ON THE PROMISE OF TABLET PCs

A TABLET TODAY?...

After having avoided getting one for the past three years, I find myself thinking about getting one again.  Much has been said about them on the web, both pro and con.  Folks who are pro, cite the ability to paint and draw (which I don't do), to take notes (which is generally easier with a keyboard), to doodle (on a $2000 plus notepad), and attract attention, mostly at sales conferences (which I can do wearing a silly hat as well).  Tablet PCs have been the holy grail for technology entrepreneurs and VCs, with a trail of failures over the last two decades (Eo, General Magic, Go, Grid, Momenta, Newton amongst others)...the Palm Pilot was the only bright star in this string of disappointments.  And Bill Gates has been a big believer in the future of tablet computing for some time now.

Not much has been written by tablet pcs however on the benefits of web surfing with these things.  My reawakened interest stems from the observation that I'm consuming more and more of my daily media via the web, and that a portrait display with direct screen input might make it easier to go through this material than the widescreen Sony Vaio I use now.  One of the best overviews of the range of hardware and software available around Tablet PCs can be found at the jkOnthe Run blog.  It's also one of the best resources on mobile tech on the web.

I have no illusions about the handwriting input and the audio notes feature.  Ideally would love to get the NEC Versapro, which at 2.2 pounds is the lightest and latest one out there, but available only in Japan.  So am leaning towards a Motion Computing m1400, which at 3 lbs is eminently usable, judging from the reviews.  Approaching this with optimistic caution, but if I'm wrong again this time, there's always eBay.

Comments

[Warner Crocker]

One of the great joys of my Tablet PC experience in both work and play is using the Tablet (I own a Toshiba M200) in portrait mode to cruise the web. You are right the direct pen input in that mode is very natural. I also think that most websites/blogs/etc.. look better in portrait mode. Resolution can matter here. The new higher res machines are much better for this in my opinion.