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Why would I want one, what could I use it for and which makes are good?
Price range, up to about USD 400. Could go higher if my wife does not know ;-)
</joke>
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On Thu, 01 Sep 2011 00:34:22 -0400, Stephen wrote:
> My current project is coming to an end and Ive already got my next
one
> set up. So I would like to treat myself. Ive been thinking about
buying
> a tablet pc while Im in the USA (it is generally cheaper than the
UK).
> Why would I want one, what could I use it for and which makes are good?
> Price range, up to about USD 400. Could go higher if my wife does not
> know ;-) </joke>
Well, you could 'get lucky' and get one of the next run of the HP Touchpad
for about $99. They're working on an Android port, so you probably
wouldn't have to put up with the installed WebOS. ;)
I've got a couple friends from Scotland who picked up iPads while they
were here visiting. While I'm no fan of Apple, you might find one of
those here in your price range (not the 32 GB model, but maybe a 16 GB
with Wifi only).
Otherwise, what sort of features are you looking for?
Jim
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"Stephen" <mcavoys_AT_aolDOT.com> wrote:
> Why would I want one, what could I use it for and which makes are good?
> Price range, up to about USD 400. Could go higher if my wife does not know ;-)
> </joke>
Actually,I've been wondering about a NON-American tablet called the "We Pad".
Link below:
http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/tablets/wepad-launched-to-rival-ipad-20100414-s8hc.html
I really need to learn a lot more about it before deciding if I should buy or
recommend one, but it does look interesting. If anyone happens to have any
RELIABLE info about when these might become available in the U.S, I'd be
grateful.
Best Regards,
Mike C.
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Mike the Elder <nomail@nomail> wrote:
> Actually,I've been wondering about a NON-American tablet called the "We Pad".
> Link below:
The major problem with alternatives is that they have something like
100 apps, while the iPad has something like 100 *thousand* apps. (And if
we count iPhone apps, which you can run on the iPad as well, the number
probably increases ten-fold.)
--
- Warp
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On Thu, 01 Sep 2011 11:41:06 -0400, Warp wrote:
> Mike the Elder <nomail@nomail> wrote:
>> Actually,I've been wondering about a NON-American tablet called the "We
>> Pad". Link below:
>
> The major problem with alternatives is that they have something like
> 100 apps,
Hmmm, on my Android phone, searching the market on "app", I get a few
more than 100 that show up on the list. In fact, I get 335,119 results -
3x what you say is on Apple's "App Store"...
> while the iPad has something like 100 *thousand* apps. (And if
> we count iPhone apps, which you can run on the iPad as well, the number
> probably increases ten-fold.)
The number of apps really isn't a good measure of how decent the platform
is. You can have crappy apps on all kinds of devices. In some cases
it's because the developers don't know how to write good apps (which
isn't uncommon, sadly, in the Android market), and in others, it's
because the OS platform vendor puts really stupid restrictions on the
developers, so they have to work around them (which isn't uncommon in
Apple's App Store - look at the way vendors have had to work around
Apple's attempts to extort *30%* of content sales with apps distributed
through the app store - which has caused several to implement their 'in-
app' store interfaces through the web browser instead rather than
integrated into the app. I suppose they could also charge more for iOS
users, but of course then they have to either raise the price for
everyone in order to be 'fair' or deal with customers complaining that
they have to pay more for the same content on their Apple device).
Jim
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Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospam com> wrote:
> On Thu, 01 Sep 2011 11:41:06 -0400, Warp wrote:
> > Mike the Elder <nomail@nomail> wrote:
> >> Actually,I've been wondering about a NON-American tablet called the "We
> >> Pad". Link below:
> >
> > The major problem with alternatives is that they have something like
> > 100 apps,
> Hmmm, on my Android phone, searching the market on "app", I get a few
> more than 100 that show up on the list. In fact, I get 335,119 results -
> 3x what you say is on Apple's "App Store"...
The 100 thousand apps I mentioned are specifically targeted for the iPad
(iow. they have high-resolution graphics and use the size of the screen to
their advantage).
From those Android apps maybe 100, if even that many, are targeted
specifically at the tablet you mentioned (or any tablet with similar specs).
As I said, if you start counting *all* apps that will run on the device,
the number of apps you can run on the iPad probably increases ten-fold
(the majority being iPhone apps, of course).
The Android side has also one big problem that the Apple side lacks
basically completely: When you buy an app, you can't be sure that it will
run properly in your device. You see, Android has the same problem as
desktop PCs: There are approximately a million different "Android-compatible"
platforms out there, from numerous different manufacturers. Some of them
are more powerful, some less powerful. Whether the App will work properly
in your specific device is a game of chance. It certainly doesn't help that
the market is flooded with low-quality devices made for cheap.
> (which isn't uncommon in
> Apple's App Store - look at the way vendors have had to work around
> Apple's attempts to extort *30%* of content sales with apps distributed
> through the app store
Yeah. How *dare* they try to make a profit? They should offer the app
store completely for free. After all, they *are* a charity organization,
they should start acting like one.
--
- Warp
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On Thu, 01 Sep 2011 12:31:24 -0400, Warp wrote:
> The 100 thousand apps I mentioned are specifically targeted for the
> iPad
> (iow. they have high-resolution graphics and use the size of the screen
> to their advantage).
>
> From those Android apps maybe 100, if even that many, are targeted
> specifically at the tablet you mentioned (or any tablet with similar
> specs).
That's a bit of a straw man argument. Many app developers for Android
devices don't "target" anything other than the Android platform.
> As I said, if you start counting *all* apps that will run on the
> device,
> the number of apps you can run on the iPad probably increases ten-fold
> (the majority being iPhone apps, of course).
>
> The Android side has also one big problem that the Apple side lacks
> basically completely: When you buy an app, you can't be sure that it
> will run properly in your device. You see, Android has the same problem
> as desktop PCs: There are approximately a million different
> "Android-compatible" platforms out there, from numerous different
> manufacturers. Some of them are more powerful, some less powerful.
> Whether the App will work properly in your specific device is a game of
> chance. It certainly doesn't help that the market is flooded with
> low-quality devices made for cheap.
>
>> (which isn't uncommon in
>> Apple's App Store - look at the way vendors have had to work around
>> Apple's attempts to extort *30%* of content sales with apps distributed
>> through the app store
>
> Yeah. How *dare* they try to make a profit? They should offer the app
> store completely for free. After all, they *are* a charity organization,
> they should start acting like one.
That's not what it's about. It's about the content providers being
forced to turn over part of their profit for the 'privilege' of having
their content on Apple devices.
Apple's not exactly poor - you might've noticed that. It's not "charity"
when they get part of the profits from the sale of the apps (which is
reasonable, it's their store). But in-app purchases are arguably not
coming from their store. They're coming from the vendor's store.
I'd love to come up with a way to charge people for stuff that I didn't
provide them with. Maybe GM should start charging a fee for everything
that everyone buys in the grocery store, since without their cars, people
might not be able to get to the grocery store to buy food - even though
they have nothing to do with the *food* being sold.
Apple has nothing to do with the book I buy through the Nook app running
on an iPad. That's the book author, publisher, and B&N's retail arm.
Apple's trying to set up a 'toll booth' for apps, and the retailers are
responding by just pointing their apps to a web interface for the store
so they can keep prices consistent. They're reducing the functionality
in their iOS apps, which actually hurts Apple more IMHO.
Jim
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On Thu, 01 Sep 2011 12:31:24 -0400, Warp wrote:
> The Android side has also one big problem that the Apple side lacks
> basically completely: When you buy an app, you can't be sure that it
> will run properly in your device. You see, Android has the same problem
> as desktop PCs: There are approximately a million different
> "Android-compatible" platforms out there, from numerous different
> manufacturers. Some of them are more powerful, some less powerful.
> Whether the App will work properly in your specific device is a game of
> chance. It certainly doesn't help that the market is flooded with
> low-quality devices made for cheap.
Of course Android has that same problem - Apple tightly controls their
platforms. That can increase the quality of the products offered, but at
the same time, their dev agreement allegedly is one of the more draconian
agreements out there.
Apple's approach to computing is different than everyone else's - they
want to make appliances. That's fine, good for them. Not everyone
*wants* computing "appliances".
Jim
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Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:
>
> Well, you could 'get lucky' and get one of the next run of the HP Touchpad
> for about $99. They're working on an Android port, so you probably
> wouldn't have to put up with the installed WebOS. ;)
>
> I've got a couple friends from Scotland who picked up iPads while they
> were here visiting. While I'm no fan of Apple, you might find one of
> those here in your price range (not the 32 GB model, but maybe a 16 GB
> with Wifi only).
>
Okay, thanks
> Otherwise, what sort of features are you looking for?
>
could Pov on a tablet. I suppose that I am looking for a reason to spend money.
Okay I know that I could uses it as a e-reader but what else?
Stephen
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On Thu, 01 Sep 2011 13:25:50 -0400, Stephen wrote:
> Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:
>
>
>> Well, you could 'get lucky' and get one of the next run of the HP
>> Touchpad for about $99. They're working on an Android port, so you
>> probably wouldn't have to put up with the installed WebOS. ;)
>>
>>
> Yes, but Im an impulse buyer. ;-)
LOL! "Squirrel!"
>> Otherwise, what sort of features are you looking for?
>>
>>
> That is one of my problems. I dont know what a tablet can do. I
use my
> laptop for email, surfing the net and Poving. I dont suppose that I
> could Pov on a tablet. I suppose that I am looking for a reason to spend
> money. Okay I know that I could uses it as a e-reader but what else?
The way I think of tablets and devices like that are as a 'media
consumption device'. So listening to music, watching movies/videos, that
sort of thing. Some have communications capabilities as well, but I see
them as primarily for consumption of content.
Jim
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