<p>personally, i dont recommend them</p>
<p>they cost tonns of cash and the touch screen is just going to scratch and dull from the writing. Ever seen the credit card thingies at a store where you have to sign your name on the screen? notice how messed up it is? Same concept...</p>
<p>...however, if you dont have to pay for it and/or can afford a new computer every year, than have at it.</p>
<p>i didnt even think about that. do the pens really scratch up the lcd screen that bad?</p>
<p>Tablet PCs have a plastic like sheeting that protects the screen. Some people don't like it and have carefully peeled it off and have no problems writign on on the LCD. Strong Engineering produces a clear plastic screen material that many users like to give their screens added protection. PDA's, and credit card readers do not have such screens and it shows.</p>
<p>Tablet PCs were introduced in 2002. If screen scratching were an issue, you would have heard about it before now. Tablet screens are designed to be written on. And given their price premium, users would not put up with it...</p>
<p>So does the plastic screen like sheet waste after a while? Do you have to go out and buy the sheet covering again? How much would it cost?</p>
<p>There are two companies that sell screen protectors:</p>
<p>Strong Engineering: <a href="http://www.strongengineering.com/%5B/url%5D">http://www.strongengineering.com/</a></p>
<p>Pocketpctechs (Writeshield): <a href="http://www.pocketpctechs.com/main%7Eunit%7EToshiba_Tecra_M4-419%7Earea%7Eaccessories-WriteSHIELD%99+AG%7Eaction%7Eupdateunit.htm%5B/url%5D">http://www.pocketpctechs.com/main~unit~Toshiba_Tecra_M4-419~area~accessories-WriteSHIELD%99+AG~action~updateunit.htm</a></p>
<p>The Strong Engineering sells for under $20 and the Writeshield sells for $60.</p>
<p>Users on Tabletpcbuzz seems to like both with the Writeshield (while more expensive) getting a few more votes.</p>
<p>Tablets already come with a protective coating sheet on the lcd. Some people claim that the coating cuts down brightness and have carefully removed the protective sheet. A lot depends on how you feel about the look of your Tablet screen. </p>
<p>My nephew's Toshiba M200 is two years old and his screen is fine with the original coating. I can't say how long the coating is supposed to last, but I'm guessing that it's supposed to last the life of the Tablet.</p>
<p>awesome at least that's definitely not a main concern then.</p>
<p>i was curious also about pen lag. In real life as you write with a pen/pencil there is no lag but is that the case with the tabletpc? Is there lag? If so how bad is it?</p>
<p>The electronic signing pads at stores is a bad example... Anything and everything gets screwed up prematurely if it's for public use. :rolleyes:</p>
<p>Pen lag issues can stem from a variety of issues. Most people using OneNote don't seem to notice any problems. Drawing programs seems to suffer the most from lag issues. </p>
<p>Many users find lag elminated or reduced by adding more memory. It's probably a good idea to go to 1G of memory. And it's a good idea to load all the latest video drivers after you buy your Tablet. Actually, it's a good idea for any computer.</p>
<p>When I was cleaning up my Nephew's M200 (with 512m), I did notice a bit of lag, but it's mostly psychological (from what I've read). There's a slight gap between what your eyes sees and the motion of your hand as you write on the screen. Unlike paper, your Tablet screen is back-lit which may exaggerate your pen's motion. It's something that takes some time getting used to.</p>
<p>Thanks as always.</p>
<p>Well I've finally made my purchase. After talking it through with my friend and looking at what I wanted I came down to something that fit me. My problem was mainly that I wanted a powerful notebook that could play games (recent games) whenever I wanted. With regular laptops it's possible to get a good video card but with tablets the options are not too good. The Toshiba Terca M7 offers an Nvidia card but as my friend pointed out the Quadro series is meant for rendering and not games. Then I looked around and found that the Gateway CX210X brought a video card as well. The problem with that card is that it's a low-end graphics card (ATI X1400 w/ 64mb). While a definite upgrade from the intergrated chip it was not going to make much of a difference anyways.</p>
<p>So I looked at something interesting. I was planning on easily spending 2,000 to 2,500 on a TabletPC and using it as my main PC. Rather than do that I decided I might as well just build my own computer with recycled parts. So what did I do? I ended up buying a barebones kit (includes the motherboard, processor (Core 2 Duo 1.83ghz), fan, case, and powersupply) with ram and a mid-range video card to go with it. It all came to under $1,000 before S&H and taxes. And I went and bought the Gateway CX210X for $1,700 (after NY sales tax; no S&H right now). I didn't customize it much. I figured with the stuff it was bringing standard it was a much better choice than Toshiba or Fujitsu was offering and at a much better price. And you can check it out yourself. At the moment a standard Gateway CX210X comes with 80gb (others start at 40gb) and 1gb of ram (others start at 512mb). Plus it comes with a free Microsoft Office 2003 Basic edition (and OneNote) and it includes free bluetooth. Overall I think I'll be satisfied. </p>
<p>I still remain with some questions. What will I use Bluetooth for on the TabletPC? Are there any popular devices running on bluetooth that can connect to the tablet?
Will my 3-yr warrantee be enough?
What kind of backpack should I be looking into getting? These are the dimensions on the tablet: 13.58" (W) x 11.14"(D) x 1.26" - 1.35"(H).
Also, how effective is an 8-cell Lithium Ion Battery? This is what it came with standard. Other laptops I saw usually came with 6-cell instead.</p>
<p>There are Bluetooth keyboards and mice, headphones, PDAs and cell phones. See the following link for a more complete list of Bluetooth devices: <a href="http://www.bluetooth.com/Bluetooth/Connect/Products/%5B/url%5D">http://www.bluetooth.com/Bluetooth/Connect/Products/</a></p>
<p>Think WiFi, but with much shorter range. If you have a PDA or cell phone, you can use Bluetooth to synchronize with your address book in Outlook. Or you transfer files from one computer to another if both are Bluetooth enabled. Unless you have these kinds of devices, I wouldnt worry too much about Bluetooth.</p>
<p>Re: batteries</p>
<p>Laptop batteries come in a variety of cell configurations depending on where they fit in a laptop. Some laptops have a rectangular battery that fits into the bottom of the case. Others have batteries that plug in along the back of a case and are longer. Depending on the amount of space you have and what the designers want to do, you can have a variety of battery configurations, cell numbers and price points. Again, nothing to worry about </p>
<p>Re: Desktop</p>
<p>You made a good decision. If you want to play PC games, buy or build a desktop. Laptops that have the power to run 3-D games at max settings are expensive, heavy and have a really short battery life. The real issues about laptop vs. desktop are costs and portability. If moving a PC from home to school is not an issue, a desktop is fine (and more cost efficient). Laptops are all about portability. If youre far from home and moving your stuff is going to be an issue, transporting a laptop is going to be more efficient than moving a desktop. </p>
<p>My nephews M200 is fine and can even run a few games. Still, he built his own desktop last year for some 3-D shooters. </p>
<p>Re: Warranty</p>
<p>Be sure to verify that the warranty covers accidental damage. Some companies will charge more for this kind of coverage. Read the fine print and ask questions. Its good to know that your hard drive is covered for three years. Its even better to know that your screen is covered when you accidentally drop your Table PC onto the library floor. And add your Tablet PC and desktop computer to your parents homeowners insurance policy for theft coverage. Record your model and serial numbers. Take pictures of your Tablet PC and your desktop. Give them to your folks. </p>
<p>Re: Backpacks</p>
<p>Cant help much I know the big box stores have backpacks that have laptop pouches that can cushion your Tablet PC/laptop. Im an old-school briefcase guy, myself </p>
<p>Since you have two computers, buy a jump drive or a cross-over cable to transfer files.</p>
<p>wow...you guys have waay too much money to invest into your computers</p>
<p>There's no question that you can spend a lot of money on computers. Still there are Tablets that cost around $1100 that can see you through four years of college. And it's a lot cheaper than the posters who want to know if they should bring their "Bimmer" to school...and a Tablet PC/laptop is certainly more useful academically.</p>
<p>This morning's NYT's Technology column addresses the issue of technology and the start of the school year:</p>
<p>(You may need to register to read the article...it's free)</p>
<p>For college bound students, the article suggests: </p>
<p>"Among the popular options this year are laptops that flip around to turn into tablet PC’s, like the Gateway CX210X convertible notebook ($1,299). The stylus that comes with the laptop can be used like a pen. For those unfamiliar with tablet PC’s it can take a little time to become comfortable with the smooth display, however, and the screen is sometimes difficult to see under certain lighting conditions. But the laptop could prove to be a big timesaver for students putting together study guides. For example, students could download a professor’s lecture notes to the laptop, write their own notes in the margins using the tablet PC, then print out a set to study."</p>
<p>And that article doesn't really begin to cover all the other useful and cool features of Tablets...</p>
<p>I just wanted to give this baby a bump. It's been a while now since I've been using my tablet. I have to say it's been fairly good to me. I love how I can easily take out the battery. I rarely use it in fact and when I do I always make sure it's charged up. Taking notes in class using OneNote 2007 is the best thing since sliced bread. I actually ended up sending copies of my notes for my Micro-Econ class last semester to a friend (it's great how you can save notes as html files). Recording professors was a nice feature as well. The one thing that I learned is that the Tablet isn't for all classes. Some classes you barely have to do any writing, and other classes there's a lot of writing. For my lecture classes, it's been 50-50 as far as deciding when to use it.</p>
<p>The one thing I've found weird and that I don't like is the screen itself gets smudges on it, mainly from when I close the laptop (the keyboard/dust leaves smudges on the screen). This really isn't a problem though since I got a wipe made from fiber which cleans the smudges right off. The one problem I have had is with the dust. It seems I've had a few dust particles get caught underneath the screen sheet. I've tried endlessly to get the particles out but to no avail. I probably should make a separate thread for that but let's see if someone reads it here and decides to help.</p>
<p>On a side note, for those looking into buying a TabletPC, the new ones will probably bring Vista and the new Core 2 Duo processors. It sucks that I couldn't wait until companies started selling tablets with the C2D processors (they started getting sold like 1 month later). I've personally been satisfied with my Gateway CX210. And I just checked on their website and the pricing seems better too (much less expensive than what I paid for this but that's probably because of the $200 instant savings).</p>
<p>I'm a senior in high school, and I've used Gateway m285 for almost a year. I don't do much notetaking with the pen, since when I use the laptop to take notes, I do it because the teacher talks too fast if I were to handwrite everything down in a notebook. I find taking notes with pen very hard. It just doesn't feel have that writing feeling. Many have expressed concerns with this concern with the Gateway: You have to repeteadly calibrate the screen with your pen. I also went through 3 pens. For the first 2 pens, ink continued to flow when I was hovering 1cm away from the screen. But if you love to draw, it's awesome. The microphone is very cheap. Overall, I chose the Gateway because it was a a great buy-low price, the fast hardrive and centrino duo handles most of my multitasking. BT has also been handy-sending pics from my cell. But it's not the best for everyone. Fujitsu and Toshiba offer alternatives with 12" screen, amazing microphones built in, erasers on the top. It's your pick. I recommend the Gateway if you're looking for a "powerhouse" tablet. Just remember it's heavier than its alternatives. Idealistically, you are not going to be going in and out of the fields with the tablet as a notepad.</p>
<p>i hate OneNote with a burning passion....</p>
<p>moralityjustice: i'm curious, why would you actually write notes on a tablet instead of typing them? the catch for the tablet, at least to me, is the ability to write on the screen which facilitates drawing graphs and diagrams when needed. i certainly wouldn't waste my time writing with the pen though, unless you can somehow write faster with the pen than you can type. as far as the calibrating goes, i gotta say i've experienced that as well although it hasn't been a big issue with me. and i never did manage to actually use the mic on the tablet, i actually ended up using one i had from my dell desktop which was pretty convenient for me to use in class. the one thing i've hated with a passion is that i can't get my cellphone to connect through bluetooth with the laptop. at one point it recognized it but poof i got nothing more than that.</p>
<p>MallomarCookie:
........why do you hate OneNote with a burning passion?............</p>
<p>So i was finally set to get a Mac over PC, and then I start reading about tablets and wonder if for math major that might make more sense. Any thoughts? Why doesn t Mac move into tablets if they re so good? They were first with Newton, what happened?</p>
<p>it has taken a long time for tablets to become widespread in use. even now they still aren't as popular but the market is growing for tablets. you couldn't say the same ten years ago. the technology and demand just wasn't there. making tablets were more expensive as well. i'm guessing that's probably the reason. if apple were to get into the market now it would be pretty awesome.</p>
<p>They could call it the MacTab.......or something much more creative</p>
<p>BP. Idealistically, I would keep all of my handwriting notes on the tablet. I don't have a feel for electronic ink. Naturally, at the speed I write with a pen, it comes out alot sloppier. Perhaps it'll become neater if I spend a month working at it just like how we learned how to write in first grade.</p>
<p>Thanks for the clarification. Any external mic would do better than the internal one on the Gateway.</p>