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Samsung looks like they are just trying to be the first and grab market share with the first Honeycomb tablet. Looking at this and the iPad, my question still i

Samsung looks like they are just trying to be the first and grab market share with the first Honeycomb tablet. Looking at this and the iPad, my question still is: what do I use this for? On the go my smartphone handles all my computing tasks and at home I have several boxes for at home computation. Where is this supposed to fit in?

drivebyacct2 15y ago
I'm with you. The only thing I'd imagine is the ASUS Transformer if it had a full copy of Chrome. Then it would just be a nice netbook with all of Android and an even more compact form factor for when it might make sense.
- nissimk 15y ago
  I think it's fair to say that will be available soon. I think dual boot to ubuntu on the ee-pad transformer is coming within the next couple of weeks and chromium os shouldn't be far behind.
avstraliitski 15y ago
Tablets are good for restaurants, stock taking and other specialised uses. Though they will soon fight the connected TV in the lounge room, right now they are a good option to have about the house if you just want to read or browse and remain mobile. Depending upon how their price and applications develop (very much in flux right now, it seems) against other platforms (PC, mobile, connected TV) I expect we'll see a leveling out in tablet growth. One thing's apparently for sure: they've killed the underpowered 'netbook' concept (finally).
kenjackson 15y ago
IMO the top use of the iPad is for little kids (think 10 and younger). It's the modern Gameboy. The other big reason is as an eReader. I just don't find the web, virtual keyboard, and other apps to be interesting enough to grab me if there is a desktop/laptop alternative. And their too large for me to take everywhere I take my phone. With that said, I have little doubt that touch-based computers will come to dominate, although I think convertibles will actually turn out to be quite popular. Unlike cellphones, an actual keyboard on a tablet is HUGE win.
illumin8 15y ago
Tablets seem to be the perfect kitchen table computing device for when you just want to look up something really quick, but don't want to walk down the hall to the office and wake up the computer from sleep. Some use cases: - Recipes using Epicurious - who wants a full blown computer in the kitchen? - Browsing instantwatcher.com and adding movies to your Netflix queue from the sofa. - Reading your newsfeeds while you eat breakfast. - Any browsing related task where you don't want to leave the room (checking weather forecast, google searches, booking an airline ticket, reading email). Really, the wife and I have had an iPad for 1+ years and we still get a few good hours a day of use out of it. I've had a Sharp Zaurus and other devices before and they all ended up in a closet or drawer after a few weeks. The tablet PC is very useful because it does fill that niche in between wanting to go to the office and get on the desktop tower or trying to look something up on your smartphone.
- gacba 15y ago
  My wife does the same thing. Other use cases: - Watching movies someplace where you don't have a TV - Looking up something on the Internet similar to above where the smartphone is simply too small to use for the experience - Games for the kids - Entertainment on planes (reading, games, movies) Had mine 6 months and can't imagine how I lived without it now.
- tkl 15y ago
  I've always thought that companies should have emphasized how perfect it is for college students. Use cases: -Torrent textbooks. Now you have all ten of your heavy textbooks in one thin compact device. Also, they're now free. -Sitting in lecture and the professor says something that you'd like to wikipedia. Why haul out a clunky, sleepy laptop when you can do it quickly on your tab. Also, you can read hacker news quite conveniently when the professor is 5 minutes late. -Write notes. Also, there's got to be some app that let's you draw on your screen so you can record diagrams as well. -Physically convenient. You can almost completely replace a full backpack with a one-handed 7-inch slab. It also plays music so you can turn on that rain ambience mp3 while you lay on the campus lawn reading any of the millions of ebooks that are now at your whimsical disposal.
georgemcbay 15y ago
"Samsung looks like they are just trying to be the first and grab market share with the first Honeycomb tablet" If that's their plan, it is going to have to involve a time machine because there are at least 3 other Honeycomb tablets that have been released already: Xoom, Eee Pad Transformer and the Acer Iconia.

drivebyacct2 15y ago

I'm with you. The only thing I'd imagine is the ASUS Transformer if it had a full copy of Chrome. Then it would just be a nice netbook with all of Android and an even more compact form factor for when it might make sense.

nissimk 15y ago
I think it's fair to say that will be available soon. I think dual boot to ubuntu on the ee-pad transformer is coming within the next couple of weeks and chromium os shouldn't be far behind.

avstraliitski 15y ago

Tablets are good for restaurants, stock taking and other specialised uses. Though they will soon fight the connected TV in the lounge room, right now they are a good option to have about the house if you just want to read or browse and remain mobile. Depending upon how their price and applications develop (very much in flux right now, it seems) against other platforms (PC, mobile, connected TV) I expect we'll see a leveling out in tablet growth. One thing's apparently for sure: they've killed the underpowered 'netbook' concept (finally).

kenjackson 15y ago

IMO the top use of the iPad is for little kids (think 10 and younger). It's the modern Gameboy. The other big reason is as an eReader. I just don't find the web, virtual keyboard, and other apps to be interesting enough to grab me if there is a desktop/laptop alternative. And their too large for me to take everywhere I take my phone. With that said, I have little doubt that touch-based computers will come to dominate, although I think convertibles will actually turn out to be quite popular. Unlike cellphones, an actual keyboard on a tablet is HUGE win.

illumin8 15y ago

Tablets seem to be the perfect kitchen table computing device for when you just want to look up something really quick, but don't want to walk down the hall to the office and wake up the computer from sleep. Some use cases: - Recipes using Epicurious - who wants a full blown computer in the kitchen? - Browsing instantwatcher.com and adding movies to your Netflix queue from the sofa. - Reading your newsfeeds while you eat breakfast. - Any browsing related task where you don't want to leave the room (checking weather forecast, google searches, booking an airline ticket, reading email). Really, the wife and I have had an iPad for 1+ years and we still get a few good hours a day of use out of it. I've had a Sharp Zaurus and other devices before and they all ended up in a closet or drawer after a few weeks. The tablet PC is very useful because it does fill that niche in between wanting to go to the office and get on the desktop tower or trying to look something up on your smartphone.

gacba 15y ago
My wife does the same thing. Other use cases: - Watching movies someplace where you don't have a TV - Looking up something on the Internet similar to above where the smartphone is simply too small to use for the experience - Games for the kids - Entertainment on planes (reading, games, movies) Had mine 6 months and can't imagine how I lived without it now.
tkl 15y ago
I've always thought that companies should have emphasized how perfect it is for college students. Use cases: -Torrent textbooks. Now you have all ten of your heavy textbooks in one thin compact device. Also, they're now free. -Sitting in lecture and the professor says something that you'd like to wikipedia. Why haul out a clunky, sleepy laptop when you can do it quickly on your tab. Also, you can read hacker news quite conveniently when the professor is 5 minutes late. -Write notes. Also, there's got to be some app that let's you draw on your screen so you can record diagrams as well. -Physically convenient. You can almost completely replace a full backpack with a one-handed 7-inch slab. It also plays music so you can turn on that rain ambience mp3 while you lay on the campus lawn reading any of the millions of ebooks that are now at your whimsical disposal.

georgemcbay 15y ago

"Samsung looks like they are just trying to be the first and grab market share with the first Honeycomb tablet" If that's their plan, it is going to have to involve a time machine because there are at least 3 other Honeycomb tablets that have been released already: Xoom, Eee Pad Transformer and the Acer Iconia.