OK, decided that using the iPod (Touch) for web browsing when in a room other than the office at home isn’t ideal so we’re after getting one of the above. Not sure what though.

Requirements are:
– ease of use
– quick to boot
– decent battery life (6 hours plus)
– doesn’t have to have storage, it’ll be purely for web browsing

Few questions…
– what does the iPad do other than web browsing? And are other (ie, cheaper!) tablets similar in function.
– why get a netbook over a tablet, apart from the storage?

To be fair, I love web browsing via the iPod but obviously its a bit of a faff so I am leaning towards an iPad but am slightly worried that Apple especially, seem to update their stuff so quick its out of date in a few months. So possibly I’d be looking at used/recon.

Any help would be hugely appreciated!

Dave

ipad can have lots of apps on it so email is obvious, many, many games, music playing, movies, useful gadgets, office stuff (of sorts) etc etc.
It’s a very useful device and as you’d expect, is very well put together.

You could also go down the android tablet path. There’s some very nice ones out there but they’re not as nice as the ipod while demonstrating some advantages over the ipads that you probably won’t care about.

Lastly you can get a netbook. It’s a small, solid state (no spinning disks) laptop with minimal operating system installed, the better ones have massive battery life and you can still do most computery stuff on it too.

If you can easily afford it though, get an iPad. They really are quite nice.

FWIW I have an Android tablet, cost me two hundred pounds, does everything I want it to. But it’s not as slick as an iPad.

edit: To expand on the netbook stuff, the iPad keyboard is hard to type really quickly on, but you can easily store local documents on a netbook, it’ll have USB ports, it’ll do proper computer things like office and graphics.

I’m using an ipad right now and since buying it, our laptop is gathering dust. The only downside for me is the lack of flash and I would defo look at alternative tablets but for my family they are sooo much more convenient.

iPad

Motorola Xoom.

Memememepad plus not having to bow down before the temle of Jobs, and with all the joy of flash et al.

Ipad is good or a serious alternative is the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer, android with optional keyboard.

<hangs head in shame>
My wife bought me an iPad for my birthday about a month ago. I was so sure I wouldn’t like it and that it didn’t offer me anything over and above what my computer could do that I:

a) didn’t open it for four days

b) asked if she could return it (no, because she had had it engraved with a lovely message from herself and our daughter)

c) was generally rotten in a ‘please talk to me before buying expensive gifts’ way (not that I ever deserve to have any more bought for me, of course)

all of which was pretty boorish and marks me out as (at least on this occasion?) a Grade A jerk.

Anyhow, after my wife opened the iPad for me and I started using it, I fell in love. The process took about 2 minutes (maybe less). Now, after I’ve added (many!) more apps, been on holiday to America with it and learned more about the apps it comes with I love it even more. Highly recommended.

Yeah, iPads are ace. Shame about some (at least one) of the users…
<continues to hang head in shame>

Outside of the shame, if you have toddlers then the Toca Boca and Duck Duck Moose apps are great!

Oh, and to answer the question of what does it do besides web browsing, pretty much everything! Although some things (beastly spreadsheets, for example) are better done on big machines, the iPad can do most things really competentrly. Some lovely Adobe graphics apps which are slimmed down versions of their big boy things, for example.

If you have iTunes, visit the app store and browse by typing in keywords. Lots of goodness.

Cheers all. Think its between an iPad and an Andriod tablet. Might have to do some more research into specific models… Just need to see if its worth nearly double for an iPad…

I was a hater but have succumbed to all things Apple because they just work. Simple.

I have an Ipad, and it is only used for browsing, which makes it quite expensive really. Though i do also use it for controlling my music on a squeezebox which is cool.

ipad,others are not as good yet.

anyone see the HP one on bbc click last wekk – lol it was shite

Slight highjack (sorry)

Which of these can work with Word, Excel, Powerpoint?

Ta

What about the new Google thingy* that fires up super quick, and is basically a browser

*not its actual name

Wait for the supposed arrival of the iPad 3 this winter. Rumours include retina screen etc.

IPad 2 will work with Excel, Word and PowerPoint using Numbers, Pages and Keynote. Some do not have the same features as the full versions but tend to make up for this in having greater usability.

Has flashfart posted his predictably-boring-answer-from-a-predictably-boring-person stock answer to a question regarding an apple product yet?

OP, from what you describe in your post, I’d say an iPad, if in budget, would suit you down to the ground. 🙂

Playbook. Dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun… Flash!

I like mine, but already have a Blackberry for email. Will view Office documents and pdf files. Isn’t tied to iTunes – which is a biggie for me as I needed drag and drop file transfer.

If you like the form factor (7″), I think it’s great. It’s also very portable,. However if it is to sit at home in the lounge reading STW, then a larger form factor may be better.

Don’t worry too much about it becoming obsolete. I git mine early on so its just a 16gig WiFi mk1 and its just fine 😀 love it for travelling and couch surfing etc.

Memememepad plus not having to bow down before the temle of Jobs, and with all the joy of flash et al.

Actually the ipad2 is now jailbroken, so you can do whatever you want with it. XBMC is worth it alone.
No clunky underdeveloped OS either 😀

For anyone worried about the lack of flash on iPad try the Skyfire app. Using it on my iPhone and it allows me to view certain select movies in flash 😉

I have an ASUS eee Pad transformer. I seriously recomend having a look at it before bying an ipad. Every ipad owner I have shown it to has been envious

All the plus points of a tablet
As powerful as ipad and motorola xoom
Keyboard with an additional 8hrs charge stored inside it
cheaper than ipad (mine was under 400 quid inc keyboard)
Full office suite included
2 USB ports

Downside is not as many tablet optimised apps as apple but this will change (only been out a couple of months)

Oh, and it has full flash support

Can it send music/ wirelessly to a stereo, or video/pictures wirelessly to a tv? No?

Tut, double post

The iPad will please most people most of the time i suspect.

@sharkbait sorry wasn’t meant to come across as one up manship, just pointing out the alternatives.

anyone see the HP one on bbc click

Interested to know why it was shite – had a go on one at the airport and it seemed identical to the iPad! But with a slightly nicer interface ❓

After looking at (ok, its not the greatest place to look) currys.co.uk, it seems that the iPad isn’t actually too much more expensive than the alternatives. Theres a tablet for £200 but I’m guessing you don’t get a lot for that whereas everything else (the Samsung Galaxy etc) are all iPad kinda money.

More research at lunchtime I think although if the iPad3 is out later in the year, I might just wait and get a new hifi this month instead 🙂

Ipad as well here. I have to find my other half for it…so she is getting one for her b’day!

The android is nice – but not willing to buy fully into the Larry Page empire….

samuri – Member
FWIW I have an Android tablet, cost me two hundred pounds, does everything I want it to. But it’s not as slick as an iPad.

Which one, Samuri?

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/273104

You can get ever cheaper ones!

There will always be a new upcoming iPad. Not sure what v3 could include other than a different screen but I can’t see anything wrong with the v2 we’ve got.
Tablets are very very good for instant access to information, games, etc.
I’d just go for it. The lack of USB doesn’t cuae us any problems at all, if I want to transfer something I’ll either use dropbox, email it or if it’s a movie I’ll put it on an SD card and use the Camera Connector kit which works brilliantly.

Stay away from the cheap (under £200) pads.

They are shocking.

Rumour has that when IOS5 is released then the iPad won’t be limited to iTunes as such ,it will be able to synch wirelessly to iTunes and the new icloud thingy that Apple were working on.
As others have said it can do so much more than just browsing,my laptop only every really gets used for uploading photos and stuff to the web,which the iPad can do but you need the camera kit add on as it does not have a Sd card reader.

I have never regretted getting mine,I did have a Android tablet(Advent Vega) for a week before hand but the screen failed.
For the money it was great ,but the one thing that bugged me about that was the Widescreen display,I think the 4/3 ration on the iPad works better.

Just get an ipad – sure some of the other ones have more rams or whatever and the processor is some boring number better or whatever and has some ports or something that some nerds might care about but if you want something that’s great to use and you can just pick up and play with, get the ipad.

iOS5 will be impressive and will make the v2 even better (full mirroring of everything on the display to any telly via AppleTV.

randomjeremy – Member
Just get Xoom – if you want something that’s great to use and you can just pick up and play with, get the Xoom

😉

I think the great thing here is that there is now a lot of choice in the market, and there are a lot of really good products out there. Go to a shop, try a few and see what feels nicest…! 🙂

I might just wait and get a new hifi this month instead

Marantz M-CR603 FTW!

OK, wheres best to get an iPad. Apple Store?

Apple store with quidco is pretty much the best.

Hard to find discounted.