Netbook v iPad

chrism_scotland

chrism_scotland

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Ok guys looking for a little advice and I'm sure some on here will have had various netbooks and maybe now an iPad so looking for some help!!

Basically I travel a lot for work flying up and down to London all week so I would like to be able to take my own device for internet browsing, watching video, playing music and maybe some light gaming, I was going to buy myself a fully fledged laptop but the thought of having to cart that along with my work laptop (which I can't use for anything personal :'( ) was just going to be a pain so I've decided to build a new desktop PC for home and get something else for traveling.

I have always fancied a netbook but after a lot of playing with the Samsung N220 my mum has just bought I think a 10" would be too small for whats basically a mini PC and anything with a larger 11 or 12 inch screen is very expensive for a netbook.

I've had a play with the iPad and having had an iPhone for a while before I was very impressed, it would play back video for me, music and allow to get my email / browse the web, although the memory is a bit limited v a netbook with a 160GB hard disk.

Really just wondering if anyone else has had both a netbook and iPad and have any thoughts on them both?

Thanks

Chris
 
As you already have a notebook then a netbook probably isn't the best bet.

Other than the iPad have a look at the Samsung Tab that is just about to come out (7" screen so a bit more portable) or even the Hanvon Touchpad (available in Germany at least) if you want something more PC like, although probably a bit overkill for what you want, but potentially excellent for any photo work you may want to do.:lol:
 
Thanks mate, I am very keen on the Samsung Galaxy especially as I have a host of Android Apps to use with it, but the rumours of pricing (Over £600) have put me off, if it was around £400 - £500 I would be very interested and I think it will struggle to sell if its much more!
 
You have to weigh up if the iPad is worth it or not compared to the soon to be released android based tablets, with talks of usb ports and cameras on board too.

Saying that, iPad is cool and slick... still sucks that they lack flash support
 
They are very different things really. I would nip into an Apple store and have a play.
 
i have an ipad, so this is my opinion based on real use not speculation, so sorry if that breaks the TP rules!

It's flippin' brilliant

it starts up from scratch in about 29 seconds, or comes out of standby instantly

I browse without problems, it connects to wifi without hassle, it connects to 3g no problem

It downloads apps seamlessly, I have the kindle app installed so use it as an ereader, i read mags on it, watch HD films on it, listen to my music on it, check my email, use facebook, have a navigation and traffic system on it etc etc etc oh and as a tog it has my portfolio on it too

Expensive ( I bought the 3g 64gb version), but in my humble opinion, the best bit of kit I've bought that isn't a camera or lens!

Laptops are so yesterday

and i wouldn't want the new samsung 'cos its too small (IMHO)
 
+1 Everything what Lee said.

I bought a netbook two years ago - mainly as a photo backup device while I was in Kenya. Apart from that it hardly ever got used. It had the same failing as any other PC - if you're not sitting at a desk, or equivalent, it's not very easy or comfortable to use - especially when it starts getting warm (roasted nuts anybody?).

My iPad, on the other hand, gets used all the time. It's great for web browsing, book reading or game playing while lounging on the settee, lying in bed, sitting in the garden, travelling on the train, even sitting on the (TMI). And I think it's the first ever electronic portable anything I've bought where the official battery life (10 hours) is an understimate!
 
I also travel a lot with work, from heathrow to scotland, only ever use my iPad. I got the 64gb 3G version. Movies, games, email and web all fantastic. My vote goes to the iPad.
 
Cheers guys, I am going to give it some serious thought, although right now I think I'm leaning toward a high end netbook; either the HP Mini 311 or the Acer Ferrari One which have an almost 12" screen and improved graphics capability.

Neither will match the iPad for battery life but a 250GB+ hard drive will give me more flexibility to take movies, software and music with me than the likely 32gb iPad that I could afford and also mean I can play some of my older games to kill time (Mainly Red Alert 2 and maybe some other strategy titles!)

I would love an iPad and perhaps when I get my first bonus next year I will snap one up!
 
in terms of capacity, I downloaded The Infidel to watch - HD took 1GB so thats quite a lot of films to fill it up - I've also got 6000 songs on my ipad and that takes up 30GB
 
Thats good to know, I am seriously tempted by the 32GB iPad (wifi only) at £499.99 might see if I can try and get a second hand one.

I've decided to ditch putting luggage in the hold when travelling so I think carrying my case, work laptop and another netbook / laptop is a bit much so I think the iPad would be perfect if a little less powerful than a dedicated netbook.
 
chrism_scotland said:
Thats good to know, I am seriously tempted by the 32GB iPad (wifi only) at £499.99 might see if I can try and get a second hand one.

I've decided to ditch putting luggage in the hold when travelling so I think carrying my case, work laptop and another netbook / laptop is a bit much so I think the iPad would be perfect if a little less powerful than a dedicated netbook.
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This is exactly what I do, I have carry on case with cloths, etc, and work notebook (Sony Z Series). Then carry my iPad in apple case on, it makes the whole travel thing simple. The instant On and use of the iPad is perfect for airport waiting :)
 
The Samsung tablet should be priced around the £$300 mark according to a Samsung rep the other day. There's a suspicion that the ridiculous price rumours were started by a partisan blogger/reviewer of another brand, Samsung know full well they would never sell any at £700.
 
Amp34 said:
Other than the iPad have a look at the Samsung Tab
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That thing looks horrible. Anyone who called the iPad an oversized phone surely must see that the Samsung is pretty much that. Sorry, but compared to the iPad it looks like a poor cousin. Even if it has a camera, which I have no use for on it.

Is there any major advantage apart from flash?
 
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I'm sorry, the iPad is a squarish lump of plastic and the galaxy pad is a squarish lump of plastic If one looks horrible so does the other.

I expect specs and usage wise they will be much the same but the Samsung will be considerably cheaper although the final pricing won't be released till it's showcased in Germany the 16gb 3gs 7" Samsung should come in between 200 and 300 pounds the equivallent 10" iPad is £530.
In terms of use both systems (Android and Apple) are very close and only personal brand preference separates them.
 
chrism_scotland said:
Yeah I am leaning more toward that I would have liked the Samsung Tablet but the rumoured cost seems to be a bit ridiculous (£700) so an iPad seems a better bet,
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yes,prices on the net for Sung are bit over the top...but Samsung mentioned that on release it should be closer to 400-500 mark.

if it is not urgent, I would wait until september and see whats on the market as now many companies are releasing Pads ;)
toshiba's folio 100 may be nice with Nvidia Tegra 2 ;D

im waiting for a reasonable priced Android tablet as well....but I can wait hehe
 
Personally I don't really see the point in either, both crippled tablets/slates but too big to just stuff in a pocket like a phone...
 
nice review of samsung's tabhere
 
Amp34 said:
Personally I don't really see the point in either, both crippled tablets/slates but too big to just stuff in a pocket like a phone...
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They are the future of the publishing industry, which the print sectio will cease to exist in the next 15 years. They are going to be a everyday thing for a lot of people. I know they don't do everything a netbook etc. does, but that is not the point! They are a pick up and use, read a magazine, listen to a cpl tunes, check facebook and twitter, play a quick game. Carry around in the same way we carry a book or magazine.
 
ding76uk said:
They are the future of the publishing industry, which the print sectio will cease to exist in the next 15 years. They are going to be a everyday thing for a lot of people. I know they don't do everything a netbook etc. does, but that is not the point! They are a pick up and use, read a magazine, listen to a cpl tunes, check facebook and twitter, play a quick game. Carry around in the same way we carry a book or magazine.
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I doubt that, people have been saying things like that for years, never happens like that.

Having said that they are sort of the future of the publishing industry, a hybrid of this and an e-reader will probably really take off when colour e-ink screens become very good.

I know you will disagree with that as you love your iPad but that's my feeling on the matter.
 
Amp34 said:
I doubt that, people have been saying things like that for years, never happens like that.

Having said that they are sort of the future of the publishing industry, a hybrid of this and an e-reader will probably really take off when colour e-ink screens become very good.

I know you will disagree with that as you love your iPad but that's my feeling on the matter.
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Not saying I am right, just guesswork, and I don't own one yet, hoping father christmas will be nice.

Re: The future of the publishing industry, I know it has been said before, but look how many magazines are folding now. Figures are down and lay offs across the board in the industry.

I just see this device on the coffee table in the same way books are now. Future generations with much better screens. That way you can have all you photo books, a few latest mags, check your email, update your twitter, post on here, all on on device.

I think in a couple of generations these things will be fully capable of doing that (photo books) to a high standard.

Even paper as a mainstream medium could be a thing of the past in the next ten or so years. Devices like this will become the modern chalk and slate.
 
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I don't think a rigid device will be the way forward, neither the 7" nor the 10" ones are portable enough to become widely accepted as replacements for paper publications. If anything does it it will be some kind of flexible technology.
 
chrism_scotland said:
I was going to buy myself a fully fledged laptop but the thought of having to cart that along with my work laptop (which I can't use for anything personal :'( ) was just going to be a pain so I've decided to build a new desktop PC for home and get something else for traveling.
Click to expand...

Have you discussed this with work? I've never had a problem with using a works laptop for simple web browsing / film watching etc while on company business. They expect you to travel so the rule of 'No personal use' seems a little draconian and unusual. In most of my jobs I've even managed to get agreement to install aditional software provided that it's legit.
 
a1ex2001 said:
Have you discussed this with work? I've never had a problem with using a works laptop for simple web browsing / film watching etc while on company business. They expect you to travel so the rule of 'No personal use' seems a little draconian and unusual. In most of my jobs I've even managed to get agreement to install aditional software provided that it's legit.
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Sadly they're not flexible at all :(
 
Thanks for the advice guys, after one week buggering about with only one laptop at the airport I think I've decided that a tablet device would be better for my needs, however while I am very tempted by the iPad I think I will wait to see more solid pricing for the Samsung Galaxy Tab, I'm not sure that a 2.7" screen difference will make much odds although I imagine browsing on the iPad will be better, I would like flash support and I have a bundle of Android Apps already!!!!
 
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