Remember when PDA’s were all the rage? Well I got lured in about 13 years back and thought that I needed one. I tried to use it, I really did. It turns out that after 2 weeks of trying to incorporate it into my life and type my appointments into it I was done. It just didn’t work for me. That PDA became just another outdated electronic item cluttering up my drawers – as it might have for some of you.
I think that the tablet computer, in many cases, is today’s version of the PDA. Many of us already carry a 4 inch screen around in our pockets and have a 15-17 inch screen at home. Do we need an in between size display to update our statuses, do mobile gaming, and suck up even more of our time? I don’t know about you but I get enough “screen time” as it is.
Now I know that for some folks tablets are a necessary evil. Some of you road warriors need one for work and it isn’t negotiable. But for us everyday folks with normal jobs, I believe it is something we would do well to live without. Sidenote: I put e-readers in a different category considering the free books you have access to with them.
One of the major benefits that the tablet makers tout is how easy they are to carry around with you. Yet more than half of consumers never take them out of their homes according to consulting firm McKinsey and Company. Tablets have become the “gotta have it” item of our day that quickly becomes an afterthought in our lives. I can think back to many things in my life that I wish I wouldn’t have purchased. The procurement didn’t live up to the hype and I would much rather have that money back in my pocket instead. For some taking this electronic gamble may be worth it, but for the majority of us money saving types out there I just can’t recommend it.
By the way, if you had only invested your money in apple stock instead of buying that original iPad, you would have $1439 dollars instead of a used electronics item that isn’t worth much more than $100. Now that is smart.
Do you have a tablet? Are you glad you spent the money on it, or like my PDA, is it sitting idly by collecting dust as a rarely used item?
I agree. Except for the ad that tells me to buy a tablet right below the article.
Well H, obviously I would suggest that you purchase that one.
Just kidding.
I have an iPad but I have only used it 3 times (yes, exactly 3). Luckily I got it as a present from my boss!
Want to sell it lol!
A lot of folks have had that experience with tablets Michelle. Thanks for sharing your experience. And hey, you should try selling it if he wouldn’t be upset.
Regretted my Kindle Fire purchase soon after we bought it. Shoulda just sprang for a new laptop. Ugggh.
Bummer Ryan. Sorry man.
We have a laptop and a tablet as well as two smart phones (plus an e-reader). The tablet serves us well as our second “computer”. It was given to us as a Christmas present, but prior to that, we were seriously debating purchasing it on our own. One of our laptops died a month prior and the choice was to replace it with another laptop, or buy a tablet. I think ultimately it comes down to the question: are you going to be “consuming” or “producing”? If the former is your modus operandi, I think a tablet might be worth consideration. It was the right choice in our case and it would have saved us money.
Thanks for your thoughts Wiley. I think tablets are certainly a thing of preference. It is definitely something worth really thinking about before purchasing. Many others make the purchase and don’t find nearly the satisfaction that you found. Glad you did though!
i think tablets are handy for people that are into streaming media (i.e netflix) thats about the only reason my sister uses hers.
Paul,
Does your sister have a computer as well? I guess I just don’t see the need to have both if streaming is your primary use for the gadgets.
I love my iPad. I use it daily, instead of a computer. I only have this one apple product, and don’t buy electronics every year when the “new” models come out. I think the key is to find something you really like and use it until it wears out before buying new.
Teresa, That is definitely one of the important lessons – don’t buy the new one just because it exists. Far too many of us trade out our great gadget for the “latest and greatest” and lose a lot of money in the process. Thanks for sharing.
I could not imagine not having an iPad. As it turns out it has all but replaced my computer. There is only one application that I use on my computer since the iPad version is not as powerful and it has to do with my volunteer work. Bot I and my wife have smart phones and iPads and we both get a ton of mileage out of both. My wife was with you when I first got my iPad and what do you know a few months down the road when I started using my iPad more at work, I took it with me to work and she called frantically asking where the iPad was. As it turns out she was using so much more then she thought and for so many more things then she thought she would. I then purchased an iPad mini and now we both have one and use it daily for most all of our computing needs. Just because someones tablet doesn’t leave the house does not mean it is not useful. My wife is a stay at home mom and uses it daily from creating shopping lists, to keeping the family calendar up to date, to building and using our very own cook book. I would also like to see how that statistic breaks down of Apple vs Android tablets. My suspicion is that the Apple tabs get much more use than the Android versions. If you look at tablet internet traffic as an indicator of use then Apple iPads get used way more than anyone else products. You pay the premium but if it is actually useful then isn’t that worth spending the money instead of wasting on a very expensive electronic paperweight? That’s my two cents at least.
Chris, thanks for sharing. I agree with you on that – It isn’t worth the much cheaper price if it goes unused. I would rather pay a higher price for a much better and more useable machine than nabbing the cheap version that doesn’t get the job done.
I bought a Nook and side-loaded Android on it. LOVE IT!. Also have a laptop & Android phone. Have various uses for each. AND.. can can sync a lot between all three with Evernote.
Nice John! How exactly does that work? Is it a color display? One of the things that people say about tablets is that it is hard to read books on that color display and that a dedicated e-reader is much better for the job. What do you think?
It is a color display, more than acceptable. (Not HD) It is only hard to read in very bright sunlight. I got a protector for it that mitigates some of the glare, but not all. A dedicated ereader is definitely better for reading outside if that is your priority. (The paperwhite type) But that lacks all the other capabilities of the Android device. I bought the Nook color for its reader and the apps available only to find that the internal memory is locked.. I wrote BN about it and … nothing.. surprise, surprise!! So I researched and found Android for nook ( http://www.androidfornook.com ), bought a 32 gig card, paid $10 for Android download and installed… LOVE IT! I still have Nook mode for reading and I have all the capabilities of ICS. DEFINITELY worth the price and effort.. (and truth be told a great ‘thumb your nose’ at the proprietary practices of BN..)
Those are some great tips John. Thanks. And I’m totally down with thumbing your nose at those silly proprietary practices.
We had iPads (no all that impressed), but sold them and got two 7″ Kindle Fire HDs, which we love. With two great speakers, they have the best sound quality of any tablet we found and they are perfect for watching movies and TV shows, especially while relaxing in the tub (TMI?). We also use them for reading eBooks, browsing the internet, playing games, checking email, etc. It fits easily in my purse and I take mine with me most everywhere.
Haha. Good stuff Beth. Thanks for making me chuckle.
I have an iPad for work but I use it constantly at work at home. I take notes at meetings, dropbox/google drive and internet for troubleshooting when fixing a customer computer, and most other work tasks. At home I stream/watch local media, read books, watch my son on our baby monitor (actually a security camera), play games, listen to music, update and create docs for shopping, etc. The basic idea is that I can do almost everything I do on a computer, but it’s easier to tote around, quieter, and the battery trounces any computer or phone I’ve ever owned. It’s definitely not for everyone, but for me it does 95% of my work and play tasks as well as or better than a laptop, desktop, or phone. Also, Airplay is flawless.
Thanks for your thoughts Andrew. You know, some of this might boil down to me not being a guy that gets enthused by technology. Great to hear others thoughts on how they’ve used tablets well though.
It will be a matter of 2-3 years when all laptops will double as tablets, there are a few in the market already, but it will be the norm. You will pull out the screen and take it with you and the will be tablet, leaving behind the rest of the hardware which will provide extra power and RAM for more serious homework. Since tablet makers now sell you “docking” keyboards you can see the trend.
JMB, I think you are very correct on that. I wouldn’t mind having a more portable “computer.” Each person has different preferences, I think I’ll just wait till an all in one device more to my liking comes out. I just don’t need another device to keep up with at the moment.
I agree with you, Joel. I have three android tablets, two net books, two laptops, and two desk tops, and a Samsung Note 2 as a cell phone. Hardly ever use the tablets. I found out that I need a keyboard and touch pad.
My daughter is working on a pHd in pharmacy, has an Apple laptop and iPhone that she loves more than me. They work beautifully together, syncing, updating, let her focus on schoolwork.
She called me a year ago, said she could use an iPad, too, so I got one for her. Now, it too is indispensable to her, uses it constantly. She set up flash cards on it to review class notes, organic chemistry equations, etc. before going to sleep. But, two weeks after she got it, she called, said she needed a bluetooth keyboard for it. No problem, but I thought: That makes it, for practical purposes, a net book (with a detachable screen).
Very true Lowndes. Your daughter is doing some far more intense stuff than I am so I can see why she needs better electronic equipment. And how did you come to acquire so many tablets?
I have just re-evaluated this. I have had an iPad 2 for 2 years now. I don’t push it to it’s full potential since my day job is as a Windows Systems Admin. My Hubby has talked about how co-workers use theirs to take notes and such. He has a Nook as an eReader that is starting to give him difficulties. Last week he went out of town and he took me up on my offer to take the iPad with him. I did miss having a device on my nightstand to check TV schedules, email, Facebook, and as an eReader. He said I use it more than I thought, but I think I can get by with a $200 device (Kindle Fire or Google nexus) rather than the iPad. So we are in Limbo right now. Hubby uses aiPhone, so it would blend seamlessly.
And the distinction between producing content and consuming content is a big one for me. I have a laptop sitting in the family room for my use. Of course I am also eyeing the new “convertible devices” running Windows.
My sons have tablets, one a Kindle Fire and the other a Google nexus. They love them and now leave the iPad alone. So we have one of each of the popular devices at my house. My iPad is the least used.
Sounds like you guys are a household full of used tablets! Thanks for sharing Maggie.
Hi Joel,
Your no-tablet recommendation assumes that a person is willing to pay the high ongoing cost for a smart phone. My wife and I have $20 Virgin Mobile pay-as-you-go dumb phones that we use for talk and text, and Nook Color tablets that we use for web access (free) outside the home.
Our total cost for the VM phones last year was $285 for minutes used, vs a minimum cost of maybe $720 for two smart phones at $30 per month each – for a savings of at least $435 per year.
Hows that for frugal?
Mike
Mike. I dig your style man. Well done. Thanks for the reminder that we can even live with less technology than I’m suggesting here. I love the simplicity.
I use my tablet ALL THE TIME. I keep it in my purse. I am a stay at home mom and I use it for my books on tape, my shopping list, my menu planner, my knitting patterns, my web browser, my scriptures at church. ALL THE TIME. I never, ever used my PDA though.
I think I’m an oddity when it comes to tablets as the comments keep rolling in! Glad you are loving your tablet.
Best thing in the world for Bible study!
Awesome!
Love my iPad Mini with 4G, I don’t have a smartphone because until recently the screens were so small they were useless to me for anything other than making calls. So my tracfone and my iPad data plan only cost me $30/mo. What I love about iPad is no need to boot up like a PC; portable with nice screen size for reading, web browsing; News reading; Bible study; photos; GPS and too much more to list here. I never leave home without it!
You are cheaper than me Alexandra. Nicely done.
I LOVE my tablet. I thought about it for over a year before I bought it, which was a good thing… had I waited just a bit longer I would have gotten an even better deal, but that is always the way with electronics.
Anyway, I had originally wanted a Kindle because I like to read, but for the same price I have more of a laptop but more portable. I use it for magazine subscriptions, to watch movies and TV shows in my bedroom and for web searches or to read/watch shows away from home.
I will admit that I do use my tablet differently than I had first imagined. Although I have some decent game programs I don’t use it for that. I did for a short time but I game on my PC and the tablet just doesn’t hold my interest on games for very long. I have a lot of books downloaded onto my tablet but I am more likely to read magazines on it than a book. It is actually really convenient to read in bed, well lit, not too heavy.. maybe I am still stuck on paper books, idk, but magazines I prefer as I read and delete… No recycling, no clutter. I can go back to them later if I wish, or just save them on the tablet as they do not take up much room at all.
I might feel differently if I had a smart phone, but I never felt the need for one. I like my basic slide phone, it is easy to talk or txt. I have mobile web on it, but would much prefer the web on the tablet.
The thing about a tablet is that it is small (I have a 7″ tablet), light and convenient to use anywhere. The tablet has many functions and takes the place of many pieces of “equipment” in one portable unit… Television, Video Recorder, Camera (well not a great one but if you just had to have a photo of something it would serve the purpose), email, web browser, magazines, books, gaming device, calendar, calculator, GPS, athletic monitor/tracker, weather guide, sketch pad, news tracker/newspaper… well it can do almost anything.. there are even aps to make use of it as a level or track the distance of the vehicle in front of you or…. Basically if I need something, especially if it is a one time use item for me I check to see if there is an ap for it and there usually is.
I do not regret my purchase in the least. I actually think I should have purchased one earlier and I will use it until it wears out and then replace it. I don’t need the best or the latest item, just one that meets the needs of my personal use.
Thanks for your thoughts Pandorahh. Sounds like there are a lot of folks without a smartphone but with a tablet out there.
I bought a Nook Color last year for the purpose of side-loading Android on it for website development. I found the interface to be a little cumbersome so I didn’t use it quite as much as I thought I would. My employer bought me a new Samsung Galaxy S3 to use with their new app for reporting my work, and I love the TouchWiz interface and use my phone constantly. My kids, however, have grown completely attached to the Nook Color. They use it to check school e-mail and read book assignments, research information for school projects and reports, , browse Facebook and Tumblr, play games and watch videos on YouTube and Vimeo.
It has reduced the fighting over the family PC and has repaid its $200 investment IMO. When quality tablets start dropping below the $100 price point, I will look at getting each child their own tablet rather than investing in another computer for them. They may still end up getting my hand-me-down PC that I built in 2008 that I’ve recently upgraded to Windows 7, which will fuel their Minecraft and music composing interests. It is also currently being used as the household multimedia server that feeds every Roku player in the house (via Plex). I think I’m ready for one more PC upgrade myself, but the wife is also likely looking at a good tablet for most of her needs and using a bluetooth or USB keyboard for the times she needs them.
The exception to this I would say is the Microsoft Surface. Though it’s really not a tablet, but then it is.
I think the design is onto something.