Jawbreaker;671454 wrote:Are you talking about a notebook or tablet? At any rate, we are not talking about slow product cycles anymore. Apple, Microsoft, Google and HP are not sitting around thinking what we have now is the last iteration of the tablet. The will continue to refine their products and add new features.

Sorry, I meant tablet.

I Wear Pants;671729 wrote:Tablets are excellent web devices. Which is why they're growing in popularity as we move towards using more and more web services and content.

Agree, and I think what drives both smartphones and tablets, ultimately, is the touchscreen is a better user interface. But I think the physical keyboard is still a limitation. Some people are fine with it, but I can't imagine using a soft keyboard for extensive emails or even posting on the net. Asus unveiled a tablet at CES that I think is brilliant - a sort of slide out physical keyboard that in some respects is the tablet equivalent of the original Moto Droid.

And to me the thing that's going to finally put tablets/smartphones over the top is a universal physical keyboard (universal with respect to smartphones or tablets, not both) that is detachable, probably connecting via bluetooth. So if I just want to browse or watch videos, listen to music no problem, but if I need a keyboard I can easily bust it out.

I loved that tablet Asus showed. I'm a huge fan of physical keyboards but I also realize that touch based interfaces are the best way to access web content on a mobile device right now.

To be honest I don't think tablets inhabit the same space that laptops do. Laptops are all about making the desktop mobile and when you need to do those types of things. Tablets are for a more limited purpose of web and media content consumption.

I Wear Pants;671910 wrote: To be honest I don't think tablets inhabit the same space that laptops do. Laptops are all about making the desktop mobile and when you need to do those types of things. Tablets are for a more limited purpose of web and media content consumption.

Don't disagree, but tablets will get more power. The PC will probably never be replaced for the super cpu-intensive tasks, but for 95% of use, particularly home use?

I just think back to my old dual-core 1.8ghz laptop that had maybe 2gig of ram... And it would be perfectly fine today, perhaps, outside of some dated graphics and wifi capability. Of course, Vista sort of unnecessarily required upgrading to 2gig ram, but tablets and smartphones now are very close to having as much power as that laptop did 3-4 years ago.

Sort of like how you can get faster and faster cars, but you don't really need to be able to drive over 80 nor do you need to get to 60mph in under 6-8 seconds. At some point there's a hurdle of power for smartphones/tablets where it handles 95% of use just fine and anything beyond that is mostly overkill.

gut;672002 wrote:Don't disagree, but tablets will get more power. The PC will probably never be replaced for the super cpu-intensive tasks, but for 95% of use, particularly home use?

I just think back to my old dual-core 1.8ghz laptop that had maybe 2gig of ram... And it would be perfectly fine today, perhaps, outside of some dated graphics and wifi capability. Of course, Vista sort of unnecessarily required upgrading to 2gig ram, but tablets and smartphones now are very close to having as much power as that laptop did 3-4 years ago.

Sort of like how you can get faster and faster cars, but you don't really need to be able to drive over 80 nor do you need to get to 60mph in under 6-8 seconds. At some point there's a hurdle of power for smartphones/tablets where it handles 95% of use just fine and anything beyond that is mostly overkill.

I would contend that the major difference here is that there IS a function that is widely used, even by home users: typing.

My boss brought in his iPad today. It's great for a lot of everyday things, but for even things like this (typing replies on a message board), it would appear less functional than a laptop.

It certainly has its place in the market, so don't hear me saying that isn't the case. I just don't think it will ever be the "majority" until speech recognition writing becomes more common than typing ... if then.

O-Trap;672041 wrote: It certainly has its place in the market, so don't hear me saying that isn't the case. I just don't think it will ever be the "majority" until speech recognition writing becomes more common than typing ... if then.

True, but the Asus has one with a sort of slide-out keyboard and we'll see a detachable keyboard, if there already isn't one. With an attachable keyboard, it basically becomes a netbook. And when tablets get more power, you then have a viable low/mid-range laptop replacement.

good point on speech recognition, but that ultimately doesn't replace keyboards if you are in public places or the office (or even around family at home).

gut;672123 wrote:True, but the Asus has one with a sort of slide-out keyboard and we'll see a detachable keyboard, if there already isn't one. With an attachable keyboard, it basically becomes a netbook. And when tablets get more power, you then have a viable low/mid-range laptop replacement.

If it becomes something you can type on easily with two hands, then I agree. It will be a viable option as a "laptop." Hell, at that point, it will basically BE a laptop with tablet functionality, which they've had for years ... I have one, in fact. The big advantage to this will be its small size, as the current tablet-capable laptops are larger than the new generation of tablets (mine's a 12-inch screen) and are, thus, difficult to carry and use on the go.

In terms of a "slide-out" keyboard, I only think that will catch on if it can be disconnected from the tablet itself, and the tablet has a kickstand, such that it can basically be set up like a small monitor and keyboard. Keeping the keyboard itself attached to the tablet, slide-out or not, will be difficult to use.

gut;672123 wrote:good point on speech recognition, but that ultimately doesn't replace keyboards if you are in public places or the office (or even around family at home).

Indeed. I suppose that was my point. If we existed in such a time that it became possible, then maybe. Until then, two-hand capable keyboards are going to be necessary.

O-Trap;672136 wrote: In terms of a "slide-out" keyboard, I only think that will catch on if it can be disconnected from the tablet itself, and the tablet has a kickstand, such that it can basically be set up like a small monitor and keyboard. Keeping the keyboard itself attached to the tablet, slide-out or not, will be difficult to use.

Seems more an issue of preference - I actually use my laptop on my lap. But with bluetooth it seems only a matter of simple engineering to have various set-ups, attached or detached. I think a 3rd party mfr should be all over this, phone or tablets. Maybe the bluetooth capability is not quite there with Android yet, but it otherwise seems a simple matter of an adjustable bracket to have a one size fits all keyboard accessory.

gut;672158 wrote:Seems more an issue of preference - I actually use my laptop on my lap. But with bluetooth it seems only a matter of simple engineering to have various set-ups, attached or detached. I think a 3rd party mfr should be all over this, phone or tablets. Maybe the bluetooth capability is not quite there with Android yet, but it otherwise seems a simple matter of an adjustable bracket to have a one size fits all keyboard accessory.

In terms of the detachable (or adjustable?) keyboard, I'm just thinking how much of a pain in the neck it may be (even literally) it would be to lay it anywhere and try to type while having to look directly down on it.

To be honest, an adjustable keyboard shouldn't be that difficult.

I like where your head's at with the keyboard idea. I'm betting it's already in the work, but still a great thought.

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This crazy bitch likes them...

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