Day 19– Consumption or Production with a Windows 8 Tablet
A Windows 8 Tablet for Teaching and Learning - Day 19Sunday, December 23, 2012
I find myself picking up the Ativ 500T tablet as my first choice for checking emails, browsing the web, viewing my Twitter stream, and for watching videos or listening to audio podcasts. Why? I think mainly because of the instant on, long battery life, and the ease of holding the tablet in front of me in a nonintrusive way. As long as I do not need to type a lot of characters then I reach for this tablet.
The Ativ 500T tablet is also much larger than my mobile phone so I can see things more clearly. If I need to type longer documents I can connect a Bluetooth keyboard and this is not difficult to do BUT it is something additional to do to get into production mode. Since I already have an Ultrabook, a Dell XPS 13, the Ultrabook is my go to device for more intense work (I am typing this post on the XPS 13).
Perhaps this is just from years of habit and my own bias but I do not think so. Most of the people I know that use iPads have a case with a Bluetooth keyboard. From a fiscal perspective an iPad is just as costly as a laptop when you add the accessories like keyboards and cases. If we are going to accessorize tablets why don’t we just go the Ultrabook route?
It is the battle between consumption and production and I find myself torn between device types based upon need. These things are still sorting themselves out and in the Windows 8 world there’s a lot of experimenting going on with a variety of form factors. There is the Lenovo Yoga that is a laptop with a touchscreen that folds completely over to go into tablet mode. Lenovo also has the Thinkpad Twist that is more like a traditional Tablet PC of yesteryear but with an updated touchscreen to support the Windows 8 touch-first interface. There are also coming to market 7 inch and 10 inch touchscreen devices that will run Windows 8. These are just the hardware choices. There are also different levels of choices in software; Windows 8 or Windows RT and with processors; ARM, Clover Trail or Core i3/i5/i7.
Then there is the Samsung Ativ Smart PC 500T Tablet that I have. I have been using this tablet for about three weeks now and I must admit it is mainly for consumption. The one exception is when I use OneNote to take handwritten notes that are very valuable in an electronic format. I did not purchase the snap-on keyboard that comes as an accessory with this tablet but I think I may based upon the number of times I reach for a keyboard. There are just too many times in my work life when I need to have a keyboard for data input. I am use to the transformer format as I have had an Asus Transformer Android tablet with keyboard for a couple of years now. The Asus Transformer is where I first realized that a touchscreen and a laptop form factor makes a lot of sense even though there are many naysayers out there (mostly the people that have never used such a device).
You know what is odd as I reflect back on the last three weeks of using this tablet?
I do not find myself wanting or needing many apps. I have downloaded a couple of game apps, the Skype app, Skydrive app, and Kindle app that are my go to apps that I feel I need and regularly use. I have also downloaded a handful of educational apps but nothing I couldn't live without. So right now I feel this tablet is meeting my needs in the way that I am currently using it.
I think we will begin to see more combinations of Ultrabooks with touchscreens in the market to address the consumption/production dualopoly of use cases. Many devices will have detachable keyboards to give users the freedom of choice of how they want to use their tablet. If you do not want the keyboard then simply detach it while you are in consumption mode. The other benefit of a snap-on keyboard is that it makes for a clamshell type device that protects the tablets screen.
You know what is odd as I reflect back on the last three weeks of using this tablet?
I do not find myself wanting or needing many apps. I have downloaded a couple of game apps, the Skype app, Skydrive app, and Kindle app that are my go to apps that I feel I need and regularly use. I have also downloaded a handful of educational apps but nothing I couldn't live without. So right now I feel this tablet is meeting my needs in the way that I am currently using it.
I think we will begin to see more combinations of Ultrabooks with touchscreens in the market to address the consumption/production dualopoly of use cases. Many devices will have detachable keyboards to give users the freedom of choice of how they want to use their tablet. If you do not want the keyboard then simply detach it while you are in consumption mode. The other benefit of a snap-on keyboard is that it makes for a clamshell type device that protects the tablets screen.
Well, those are my reasons for considering getting the Ativ 500T keyboard. We will see if I talk myself out of getting the keyboard in the next few days as I head to the stores for some after Christmas shopping.
Keep on Learning,Dr. Grissom
Tom Grissom, Ph.D.
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar