Can't decide on what Tablet to buy......Need Suggestions

[cre8tivspirit]

Okay, I've looked at Surface RT, Surface Pro, Thinkpad Tablet 2 and a couple of others but still can't make up my mind so I'm reaching out to the forum world for some feedback. I need Office as I use it everyday, ability to use a stylus pen to take notes and make comments on documents, expandable storage (microSD), and decent battery life (I want to be able to make it through the day without having to connect to a charger). These are my main concerns. Of course build quality and screen resolution are important as well but most that I have looked at so far appear to be well built and I didn't see any real issues with screen resolution.

I just can't seem to make up my mind and all the reviews are starting to run together. I want some honest feedback about different tablets from users here on the forum. One thing I don't want is one of those laptops or ultrabooks that the monitor flips around to become a tablet. I'm pretty comfortable with using the touch keyboard that is built in and I find the convertable units to be just a bit too bulky.

 

[vormison]

My experience is pretty much only with my Surface RT so I can't offer too many comparisons to other tablet models.

However, my experience with my RT has literally been the most positive experiences I've ever had with an electronic - this is including my Windows 8 Phone (which I also love). It's light, works incredibly well with the touch cover, and the battery life is honestly mind-boggling. I literally use it all day to play games, stream video, etc. and the battery lasts over a day. Office works very well on it as well.

The only thing I'll say is that you'll most likely want to get the touch cover or type cover, especially if you'll be using office often. It also has expandable micro SD expandable memory up to 64gb (I believe).

 

[cre8tivspirit]

Unfortunately though, the RT doesn't appear to have to stylus capabilities and that is a definite requirement for me.

 

[vormison]

I believe the Pro has that capability but is quite expensive. There are other ways to create notes without a stylus. I deal with PDF's often with my work and have to e-sign documents as well - for that I just have a digital signature saved that I insert into PDF's.

 

[MAkhdar]

If you are looking for something with a stylus and has good battery life, your only choice is pretty much the ThinkPad Tablet 2 otherwise you are looking at battery draining devices like the Surface Pro.

 

[DBDev]

From what I have read, the Surface Pro will probably not have enough battery power for a whole day, but the RT has that. I have the RT with a touch cover and I love it! You could use a capacitive stylus. It's not the same precision as the one on the pro, but it works great! :smile:I don't know much about the ThinkPad Tablet though.

 

[mase123987]

Wait for companies to update their offerings with Haswell. Battery life seems big for you so this only makes sense.

 

[toddpart]

I have a Surface Pro and a Surface RT. To be clear about the stylus, you can use one with the RT but it is not an active digitizer like the one built into the Pro. What does that mean? The biggest difference for me is palm rejection. On the Pro, I can rest my whole hand on the screen and write in it just as if I was writing on paper. If you try to do that on the RT then the screen captures your palm as touch input and the screen bounces around, etc. This is the exact same behavior as using a stylus on an iPad. Personally, I can use a capacitive stylus on the RT for simple notes, signatures, or light mock up of documents. But, if you do a lot of handwriting for notes and markup, as I do in OneNote, then the digitizer of the Pro is a must. Lastly, if you need precision with stylus for detailed drawing, art, creative, etc. then you need an active digitizer like the Surface Pro has.

 

[cre8tivspirit]

I'm a huge OneNote user so the digitized stylus is important. I was leaning towards the Thinkpad Tablet but haven't really found anyone using it for a really good review and it soesn't seem to be in any of the stores I've visited to get a chance to actually play with it a bit.

 

[jmerrey]

Wait! Yes, in technology there is always something better around the corner, but this time there is something MUCH better around the corner. Haswell. So wait, if at all possible.

 

[Ridemyscooter86]

I'm actually in the market to buy a new tablet too as I just cracked the screen on my current tablet ;(. Well, If you want a stylus, I would either go with the surface pro, wait for the update for the surface pro 2 if you can, which to be fair will probably be announced soon, but if it is, it will probably come out at the earliest in october and possibly in january like the last surface pro. I know MS is about to have a fire sale on the surface RT this week for 350$ So I'm possibly planning on buying one of those seeing as all I do on a tablet is office, internet, and email... The ativ tab 3 from samsung looks interesting, its apparently very thin, intel atom processor w/ 2gb ram and wacom stylus pen, only issue it that its probably not built very well knowing samsung as of late and it apparently is going to sell for 699$.

 

[GoodThings2Life]

Definitely wait for October with Haswell processors and Win 8.1. Surface Pro 2 and Dell has some super awesome new Latitude models coming (I saw their roadmap under NDA yesterday).

 

[migueli2]

I bought Asus VivoTab Smart 4G and I can tell I'm in love! Best tablet with accessories for all tastes!

 

[xboxonthego3]

I highly suggest looking at Samsung! I have the Ativ Smart 500t. It is an atom. Fantastic battery life, also has a stylus. I'm very pleased with this device. I had a Surface Rt before. But wanted a stylus. Luckily I got a sweet deal on my Samsung. It is very well built. They also came out with another version don't remember the name but it also has a stylus and atom processor. I think you can find a review on the 500t on this site. Best of luck deciding on a device that works for you!

 

[skja]

My recommendations are the iconia w700. Which looks great and has an amazing battery and 1080p screen, also can be used with a stylus with the right accessories

 

[freestaterocker]

I'm with Skja on this one. Out of currently available devices, to me the iconia w700 is the best available choice. It checks all of your boxes. And, should you decide to use it, the optional keyboard dock doubles the amount of time you can spend away from the charger, which is already an impressive 8hrs+ without it. And it has a VERY competitive price and surprisingly good build quality. If I had the money and was looking to buy right now, I would've already ordered one. Personally, I'm saving my money for a new haswell-powered unit, or maybe a bat trail atom for the extra longevity. (I'm not trying to run Crysis or edit HD footage on it)

 

[jhguth]

ThinkPad Tablet 2 is the best option of current devices

 

[Blkacesvf41]

Look into the HP Envy x2 convertible. I bought one about a week ago and it rocks! It's touch screen and the keyboard has an extra battery for a total of over 11 hours of battery life.

 

[jlynnm350z]

Look into the Asus me 400. Cheap, awesome. Can't go wrong

 

[juanitoriv]

Look into the HP Envy x2 convertible. I bought one about a week ago and it rocks! It's touch screen and the keyboard has an extra battery for a total of over 11 hours of battery life.

I saw one at Office Depot. I hate to say, but it is a sexy b!t(h.. But, the HP Split X2, is out soon, a little bigger, just more.. YUM