Naturally, Hinckley has a day #13 in his Twelve Days of InkSeine series of posts!
Twelve Days of InkSeine
Ken Hinckley (The Alpine Inker) works at Microsoft Research and, over the last couple of weeks, he's been running an awesome series of blog posts called Twelve Days of InkSeine.
InkSeine (pronounced ink-sane) is a really cool inking application that Hinckley is working on (which is not yet an official Microsoft product). It's one of the only products around that has been designed for inking and not just a keyboard-and-mouse based product that has inking support. For example, a lot of its commands (like cut, copy, paste, search, etc.) are all pen-flick based and not menu-based.
It's still in private beta but will released to the public in 15 February. To find out more about it, check GBM's InkShow on it. Better yet, once it is available, download and try it. Assuming you have a tablet PC, of course.
Want!
It costs as much as a high-end tablet PC (AU$3,890) but the 21.3" Wacom Cintiq is one heck of an LCD screen that also has on-screen pen input capabilities:
Of course, that model is designed specifically for creative uses. I'd probably end up getting the 17" PC-720 instead (AU$2,195):
Or, at the very least, the 15" DTI-520 (AU$1,760):
Or maybe I'd compromise and get the 20" wide screen Cintiq 20WSX (US$1,999), though that's not available in Australia yet:
Ah, choices, choices.
Of course, all this has to wait till I've made my millions.
Soon, soon...
The Toshiba M700 Benchmark Scare
Like me, other power users are finding that the Toshiba M700 has most of they've been looking for in a tablet PC. It is:
- Powerful -- more so than the Lenovo X61t or the Fujitsu T4220
- Highly configurable -- like the X61t but unlike the T4220
- Relatively inexpensive -- costing less than an equivalent X61t or T4220
- Feature rich -- with more features than the X61t or 4220
And though it suffers a little in the weight department (but only by a couple of hundred grams or so) and its screen resolution isn't as high as some of us would like it to be (though that's offset by the wide screen), its has lots of bonus features -- like that wide screen, a touch screen, a webcam, and a built-in optical drive -- that more than make up for its shortcomings.
Because of all this, we were very surprised when Tiffany Boggs from Tablet PC Review posted its benchmark scores and, strangely, they came out very low. It's PCMark05 score, for example, was 3,399 while an equally spec-ed t4220 scored 4,171 and a lower spec-ed X61t scored 3,473. Most of us had expected the M700 to score somewhere in the mid-4,000s. Curious and concerned, a number of M700 owners ran the same test and came up with similar, low-3,000 PCMark scores.
Quickly the Tablet PC Review forum participants realized that this wasn't a hardware issue but a software one. That, fortunately, was when GBM's Matt Faulkner stepped in. First, he did a clean install of Vista and, lo and behold, the M700's PCMark05 score jumped to a whopping 4,528. Then, he went a step further and installed each system driver in turn, re-running the PCMark test after each reboot. After doing this for about four hours -- and working late into the night since he had to return his review unit the next morning -- he found the main culprit.
It turns out that the Intel Robson Technology Driver for Windows Vista -- a driver used to run the Turbo Memory that wasn't even in that machine to begin with -- was messing the system up. In fact, with the cleanest possible working install, one of the forum participants managed to get a PCMark05 score of 4,737!
What does all this mean? It means that the Toshiba M700 rocks and that, if you want to squeeze the most out of your machine, it is best to do a clean install. Importantly, it reinforces the fact that we have an awesome tablet PC community. If any of you read this post: thanks a million!
Annotating Word Documents
I've written previously on this blog about annotating PowerPoint slides and how you can use tablet PCs to take notes. Earlier today, Dennis O'Reilly wrote a similar article about the joys of marking-up Word documents in ink and of sending longhand e-mail messages. It makes an interesting read and, as expected, continues to make me jealous of the people who already have tablet PCs. Soon, soon...
Toshiba M700 Live Un-boxing
Earlier today, GBM's Matt Faulkner did a live un-boxing of the Toshiba M700 tablet PC (via Ustream). What was really cool, though, was that I took part in it by asking Matt some questions which he then answered. And though that's not quite as cool as having access to the M700 myself, it was certainly better than nothing. (Matt: if you read this, thanks a million.)
I'm now almost a hundred percent certain that this'll be the tablet PC that I buy for myself a few months from now. The question I now need to answer is: what hardware configuration do I go for? Unfortunately, that doesn't have an easy answer.
As Faulkner mentioned in his video, for example, going from the 2.4Ghz to the 2.6Ghz processor actually increases the price of the tablet by about US$300. On the other hand, when you went from the 2.2Ghz to the 2.4Ghz, that was only a US$100 price increase. I wonder, then, how much of a difference that additional 0.2GHz (to get to 2.6GHz) actually makes. This is something I need to investigate.
I also need to investigate Turbo Memory some more (the current consensus seems to be that it's not worth it) and I wonder whether it's worth it to get 4GB or RAM (or 3GB, or should I just stick with 3GB?). Fortunately, those questions -- and their answers -- don't need to be addressed for another six months or so. And by then, things might be different (and someone may already have answered them).
Meanwhile, Aaron Hall just got his hands on the M700 and he's posted a review of it on his blog.
Toshiba M700 Now Available in Australia
The Toshiba M700 -- currently my first choice tablet PC -- is now available in Australia from various Toshiba Resellers. Unfortunately, that's an off-the-shelf unit that is less powerful, non-configurable (except for a RAM upgrade), and higher priced than the models available in the US.
Fortunately, you don't have to order it from there. Thanks to the good folk at Tablet PC Review forums, I've discovered that you can order a higher spec-ed machine from the US and have it shipped to Australia for a considerably lower price from Portable One.
Also on those forums is a good hands-on comparison between the Fujitsu T4220 and the Toshiba M700 -- one in which the Toshiba comes out in front. Mostly covered in that comparison are the five reasons why the Toshiba has recently trumped the Fujitsu as my first choice tablet PC: the M700 has (1) a faster processor, (2) a wide-screen display, (3) a backlit LCD display, (4) a touch screen, and (5) the option to upgrade to a 7,200 RPM hard drive. The inclusion of a webcam is a bonus.
Bummer: tx2000 Out of the Running
Tablet PC Review's Tiffany Boggs has reviewed the HP tx2000 tablet PC and she likes it:
The tx2000 is going to be a hit with all the mainstream users. HP gave this model just what it needed. The active digitizer and touchscreen make this a true Tablet PC now, but it still maintains the entertainment notebook status unlike any other model on the market at this time.
I would agree with her completely: it sounds like a really cool machine. And yet...and yet, it is out of the running as the tablet PC that I will buy [1]. Why? Because it meets one of my deal-breaker conditions: no Page Up and Page Down keys on the bottom right hand side of the keyboard:
(Picture from the Tablet PC Review, er, review mentioned above)
And this from a wide screen laptop!
Why is this a deal-breaker for me? Because working with text documents (i.e. doing lots of typing) is one of my primary activities on my laptop and I simply cannot work without the Page Up and Page Down keys on the bottom right hand side of the keyboard (or even in a vertical line along right hand side). I know I can't because I tried, with little success, for about a year on a laptop that I got from work. And so there it is: one more tablet PC eliminated from the running.
By the way, the other keyboard problem that has always irritated me, but I've found that I can adjust to, is having the Function key as the bottom leftmost key. I much prefer having the Control key in that corner, with the Function key immediately to its right -- the way it is in the tx2000 keyboard, in fact -- but I can live with it not being that way.
I'm also worried about having to use a track stick (like in the Lenovo X61t) instead of a track pad -- since I've never used a track stick for an extended period of time before -- but I'm sure I'll get used to it. As it is, I generally use a separate optical mouse most of the time anyway. The issue only comes up now because I expect to be a lot more mobile with my tablet PC and so I won't have space to use the separate mouse (and I can't use my finger or the pen all the time either).
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[1] I'm nearing the end of my MBA (I graduate exactly four months from today) and, assuming I get a job within a month of graduating, it is highly likely that I will be seriously researching and preparing to purchase a tablet PC for myself about six months from now! :)
More on the HP TX2000
Finally, there's some more information on the web about HP's new TX2000 tablet PC (i.e. not just specs). Again, it's thanks to the GottaBeMobile.com crew at CES 2008 and, as with the Toshiba M700 (which I wrote about earlier), they've done a quick hands-on video review of it.
Stuff learnt from this video: (1) it's a multimedia tablet aimed squarely at the consumer market; (2) it is a little heavy, though; (3) the multi-touch features seem to work well and the wide screen display seems really nice; (4) it has some nifty multimedia features like a TV tuner, S-video output, Altec Lansing speakers, and a video camera; and (5) it has a 64-bit, dual-core AMD Turion processor. Other than that, it's a pretty standard tablet PC. Oh, and it's pretty decent on the pricing too, coming to about US$2,500 for a maxed-out version (while a maxed-out Toshiba is for about US$2,600).
However, as with the Toshiba, I can't wait for GBM to do full hardware Inkshow on this machine. I'm also looking forward to GBM's Dell XT Inkshow. Once all three go up, I'll do a side-by-side comparison of my current top-five -- the Lenovo ThinkPad X61T, Fujitsu LifeBook T4220, Toshiba Portege M700, HP Pavilion Tx2000z, and Dell Latitude XT -- and see how they stack up against each other. That should be fun.
Stuff learnt from this video: (1) it's a multimedia tablet aimed squarely at the consumer market; (2) it is a little heavy, though; (3) the multi-touch features seem to work well and the wide screen display seems really nice; (4) it has some nifty multimedia features like a TV tuner, S-video output, Altec Lansing speakers, and a video camera; and (5) it has a 64-bit, dual-core AMD Turion processor. Other than that, it's a pretty standard tablet PC. Oh, and it's pretty decent on the pricing too, coming to about US$2,500 for a maxed-out version (while a maxed-out Toshiba is for about US$2,600).
However, as with the Toshiba, I can't wait for GBM to do full hardware Inkshow on this machine. I'm also looking forward to GBM's Dell XT Inkshow. Once all three go up, I'll do a side-by-side comparison of my current top-five -- the Lenovo ThinkPad X61T, Fujitsu LifeBook T4220, Toshiba Portege M700, HP Pavilion Tx2000z, and Dell Latitude XT -- and see how they stack up against each other. That should be fun.
More on the Toshiba M700
A few weeks ago, I wrote about the newly-launched, really exciting Toshiba M700 tablet PC. Since the touch screen version of that is due to be launched by the end of this month, no reviews of it have been posted on the 'net so far. However, thanks to GottaBeMobile.com's coverage of CES 2008, there is now a quick hands-on video of it and a brief discussion on it with Toshiba's Kevin Roberts.
A number of cool things about the M700 emerged from that discussion: (1) the optical drive has an auto lock feature that disables the CD/DVD eject button when the tablet is in motion; (2) the widescreen LCD looks really good; (3) the inking experience seems to be pretty good; (4) the weight distribution on the tablet is pretty good; (5) it is a powerful, full-featured machine; and (6) it has an excellent price point.
I can't wait for a proper hands-on hardware review of a production system. Let's hope we don't have to wait too long.
A number of cool things about the M700 emerged from that discussion: (1) the optical drive has an auto lock feature that disables the CD/DVD eject button when the tablet is in motion; (2) the widescreen LCD looks really good; (3) the inking experience seems to be pretty good; (4) the weight distribution on the tablet is pretty good; (5) it is a powerful, full-featured machine; and (6) it has an excellent price point.
I can't wait for a proper hands-on hardware review of a production system. Let's hope we don't have to wait too long.
Taking Notes
I take a lot of notes. And I mean a lot of notes. I take notes for things like:
I like to think I take good notes and, since I'm a bit of a perfectionist (some would say I'm obsessive), over the years I have actively refined my note-taking technique. Here's how I take notes these days.
Note-Taking Tools
I start by making sure that I have good note-taking tools. These days I take notes with a mechanical pencil with 0.5 or 0.7mm 2B lead (i.e. softer but darker than the typical HB or #2 pencil; see Wikipedia entry on the pencil for details on gradation) on white, good quality, narrow-lined file paper. I also use a good quality eraser.
I use a pencil and eraser because I like clear and neat notes and diagrams (i.e. dark lines and no cross-outs). I use file paper because that gives me more flexibility in terms of storing, organizing, moving, and re-writing notes within subject-indexed, tab-separated file folders ('binders' for Americans).
May I geek out a bit? These days I'm using a Faber Castel Grip Matic pencil, the 2B lead that came with it, and a Staedtler Rasoplast eraser. The pencil's pretty old now so I need to buy a new one. I generally prefer Staedtler over Faber Castel -- I've been using the former's pens, pencils, lead, and erasers for about 16 years now -- but I haven't been able to find the right products in Australia so far. I guess I need to look harder. Oh, and Pilot and Uni products are good too; particularly the Uni SA-S fine ballpoint pen which I have been using exclusively for about 3 years now.
Note Organization
I organize my notes rather thoroughly: listing on each page the date, subject, page number, and, if in a meeting, the names of the participants in that meeting. To organize the notes themselves I use a series of headings and nested bullet points. Here's an example:
More recently I've started to take notes on my laptop. For that I use Microsoft Word with 12pt Georgia font and the same sets of headings and series of nested bulleted lists as I do on paper (except that those are now defined as MS Word Styles so they look a little different). This is what my electronic notes look like:
The Actual Notes
Then come the actual notes themselves. Since I write a lot, I've had to develop my own, mostly intuitive, shorthand to write things down quickly. For example: "this func. says nothing abt. price lvl.; dep. only on tech, labour & capital." Since I type quickly, I write full-ish sentences when typing notes, though. They may not be entirely grammatically correct, but I don't usually abbreviate words.
In the actual note-taking I try to write down as much as I can while still listening to the lecture/discussion, not missing anything going on (even at a deeper level), and participating in the discussion as well. It's not easy but I've been doing it for years so I'm used to it by now. Taking notes this way gives me a pretty accurate recording of what went on during the class (since that's what I developed my note-taking for) and, even if something isn't quite clear to me at that time, I can usually follow the logic and work it out later.
At the end of every note-taking session (e.g. at the end of every class) I try to review the notes to make sure I haven't missed anything. Then, usually while preparing for an assignment or just before an exam, I do one of two things. I either extract what is important from my notes (and in parallel from lecture slides and assigned readings) by re-writing them on a new sheet of paper or on my laptop. That is, I take notes of my notes. If not that, I make an index in which I identify what I've written and on which page that topic is located. The former helps me prepare for closed book exams and assignments. The latter helps me get ready for open book exams and meetings during which I might need to refer to my notes.
I don't follow any specific note-taking system like the Cornell system that the good folk at Student Tablet PC use [1], though that sounds like a really good methodology. Nor is my system as elaborate as Tim Ferriss' (via Kevin C. Tofel). I am interested in getting into mind maps like James Kendrick, but my note-taking style has always worked well for me so I haven't yet found a reason to change.
I do, however, use a mind map-type construction for breaking down complex problems. But, since I'm a stickler for writing things neatly, I use lists instead of diagrams. For example:
And that's about it. Oh, one last thing: storage. Since I have craploads on notes, I generally have a crapload of file folders to store all my notes in as well. And since I've been using, for the most part, the same system for about ten years now, my old notes still come in handy every now and then. The only problem is: I can't take all my old notes with me.
All of that, I guess, goes some way to demonstrate why the obsessive note-taker in me wants so desperately to get a tablet PC. I mean, seriously, how could I not want to get the ultimate note-taking tool? But, since I can't afford one now, I am so looking forward to getting one later and then scanning all my MBA notes into it so that they're ready for use any where, any time. In fact, I'm getting all excited just thinking about it now! Yes. I am a geek. I wrote a whole blog post on note-taking (with pictures and all), didn't I? :)
[1] The Student Tablet PC website has a whole category on note-taking.
- Planning out a report, paper, or essay
- Brainstorming a website, business strategy problem, or a computer program/algorithm
- Taking notes during a class lecture or conference
- Even making a shopping list or a list of things to do
I like to think I take good notes and, since I'm a bit of a perfectionist (some would say I'm obsessive), over the years I have actively refined my note-taking technique. Here's how I take notes these days.
Note-Taking Tools
I start by making sure that I have good note-taking tools. These days I take notes with a mechanical pencil with 0.5 or 0.7mm 2B lead (i.e. softer but darker than the typical HB or #2 pencil; see Wikipedia entry on the pencil for details on gradation) on white, good quality, narrow-lined file paper. I also use a good quality eraser.
I use a pencil and eraser because I like clear and neat notes and diagrams (i.e. dark lines and no cross-outs). I use file paper because that gives me more flexibility in terms of storing, organizing, moving, and re-writing notes within subject-indexed, tab-separated file folders ('binders' for Americans).
May I geek out a bit? These days I'm using a Faber Castel Grip Matic pencil, the 2B lead that came with it, and a Staedtler Rasoplast eraser. The pencil's pretty old now so I need to buy a new one. I generally prefer Staedtler over Faber Castel -- I've been using the former's pens, pencils, lead, and erasers for about 16 years now -- but I haven't been able to find the right products in Australia so far. I guess I need to look harder. Oh, and Pilot and Uni products are good too; particularly the Uni SA-S fine ballpoint pen which I have been using exclusively for about 3 years now.
Note Organization
I organize my notes rather thoroughly: listing on each page the date, subject, page number, and, if in a meeting, the names of the participants in that meeting. To organize the notes themselves I use a series of headings and nested bullet points. Here's an example:
More recently I've started to take notes on my laptop. For that I use Microsoft Word with 12pt Georgia font and the same sets of headings and series of nested bulleted lists as I do on paper (except that those are now defined as MS Word Styles so they look a little different). This is what my electronic notes look like:
The Actual Notes
Then come the actual notes themselves. Since I write a lot, I've had to develop my own, mostly intuitive, shorthand to write things down quickly. For example: "this func. says nothing abt. price lvl.; dep. only on tech, labour & capital." Since I type quickly, I write full-ish sentences when typing notes, though. They may not be entirely grammatically correct, but I don't usually abbreviate words.
In the actual note-taking I try to write down as much as I can while still listening to the lecture/discussion, not missing anything going on (even at a deeper level), and participating in the discussion as well. It's not easy but I've been doing it for years so I'm used to it by now. Taking notes this way gives me a pretty accurate recording of what went on during the class (since that's what I developed my note-taking for) and, even if something isn't quite clear to me at that time, I can usually follow the logic and work it out later.
At the end of every note-taking session (e.g. at the end of every class) I try to review the notes to make sure I haven't missed anything. Then, usually while preparing for an assignment or just before an exam, I do one of two things. I either extract what is important from my notes (and in parallel from lecture slides and assigned readings) by re-writing them on a new sheet of paper or on my laptop. That is, I take notes of my notes. If not that, I make an index in which I identify what I've written and on which page that topic is located. The former helps me prepare for closed book exams and assignments. The latter helps me get ready for open book exams and meetings during which I might need to refer to my notes.
I don't follow any specific note-taking system like the Cornell system that the good folk at Student Tablet PC use [1], though that sounds like a really good methodology. Nor is my system as elaborate as Tim Ferriss' (via Kevin C. Tofel). I am interested in getting into mind maps like James Kendrick, but my note-taking style has always worked well for me so I haven't yet found a reason to change.
I do, however, use a mind map-type construction for breaking down complex problems. But, since I'm a stickler for writing things neatly, I use lists instead of diagrams. For example:
And that's about it. Oh, one last thing: storage. Since I have craploads on notes, I generally have a crapload of file folders to store all my notes in as well. And since I've been using, for the most part, the same system for about ten years now, my old notes still come in handy every now and then. The only problem is: I can't take all my old notes with me.
All of that, I guess, goes some way to demonstrate why the obsessive note-taker in me wants so desperately to get a tablet PC. I mean, seriously, how could I not want to get the ultimate note-taking tool? But, since I can't afford one now, I am so looking forward to getting one later and then scanning all my MBA notes into it so that they're ready for use any where, any time. In fact, I'm getting all excited just thinking about it now! Yes. I am a geek. I wrote a whole blog post on note-taking (with pictures and all), didn't I? :)
[1] The Student Tablet PC website has a whole category on note-taking.
Tablet PC Benefits: Annotating Slides
Tim Berry, CEO of Palo Alto Software recently blogged about why he likes his tablet PC. In fact, he gives five reasons for it. It's a good article that echoes what a lot of other tablet PC enthusiasts have said about the benefits of this form factor.
For me, one of the biggest benefits of using tablet PCs -- i.e. being able to write on Powerpoint slides mid-presentation -- became very clear very quickly when I was first exposed to this technology in the classroom. This was thanks to John Asker who taught us Managerial Economics at MBS. John conducted his class lectures using Powerpoint slides on which he took notes (with a stylus) using his Fujitsu Lifebook convertible tablet PC.
Doing this was especially useful when explaining, for example, complex ideas that involved diagrams and areas under the curve. At the end of each class, John would save those annotated slides and then post them onto the course website as PDF files.
Here's an example...and you can imagine how much harder it would have been to explain the concept presented here without either lots of whiteboard work or more complex Powerpoint slides:
The same is true for the following slide, except that this one is even more complicated (and even harder to explain on the board...unless you used multiple colours, of course, though even then it would probably be harder to do):
In the study term that followed this one, we took a course called Economics and Public Policy that was, basically, a course on managerial macroeconomics. In that, everything was taught using the whiteboard and, at times, that got really difficult to follow. I remember thinking back than how much better the course could have been had the professor been using Powerpoint slides and a tablet PC. Oh well. Widespread adoption takes time.
[Article via GottaBeMobile.com]
For me, one of the biggest benefits of using tablet PCs -- i.e. being able to write on Powerpoint slides mid-presentation -- became very clear very quickly when I was first exposed to this technology in the classroom. This was thanks to John Asker who taught us Managerial Economics at MBS. John conducted his class lectures using Powerpoint slides on which he took notes (with a stylus) using his Fujitsu Lifebook convertible tablet PC.
Doing this was especially useful when explaining, for example, complex ideas that involved diagrams and areas under the curve. At the end of each class, John would save those annotated slides and then post them onto the course website as PDF files.
Here's an example...and you can imagine how much harder it would have been to explain the concept presented here without either lots of whiteboard work or more complex Powerpoint slides:
The same is true for the following slide, except that this one is even more complicated (and even harder to explain on the board...unless you used multiple colours, of course, though even then it would probably be harder to do):
In the study term that followed this one, we took a course called Economics and Public Policy that was, basically, a course on managerial macroeconomics. In that, everything was taught using the whiteboard and, at times, that got really difficult to follow. I remember thinking back than how much better the course could have been had the professor been using Powerpoint slides and a tablet PC. Oh well. Widespread adoption takes time.
[Article via GottaBeMobile.com]
Dell Latitude XT Launched
The specs for the newly launched Dell Latitude XT have finally come in...and it looks pretty darned interesting.
For starters, it has a WXGA display (1280x800) which, when optionally backlit, gives us 400nits of brightness. That's more than the Fujitsu T2010 which, till now, had the brightest display (in the 300nit range, I think). It also has a capacitive touch screen which means you can use it with your finger as well as the stylus. And the 'capacitive' feature of the touch screen gives it the ability to tell the difference between a finger press and a palm press, which is really cool. Also, it doesn't use the lightweight Intel mobile graphics chipset like the rest of the tablet PCs in the market do: it uses the ATI Radeon Xpress 1250 system which is, apparently, better than the Intel one.
Then, it has both a trackstick and a touchpad, which should make it appeal to the widest possible customer base. And finally, though its standard hard drive is an 40 or 80GB 4,200RPM one, you can upgrade to either a 120GB 5,200RPM one or a 32 or 64GB Solid State Device (SSD) drive. Yes, that's an SSD drive. A drive with no moving parts so, in theory, its as fast as your RAM is!
Of course, all of this comes at a cost, with the XT's basic configuration costing $800 more than the Toshiba M700's (and almost $1,000 more than the Fujitsu T4200's). And we don't yet know how much more the additional features (like the SSD drive) will cost. Another negative is that it has a low-powered processor, with a 1.2GHz Core2 Duo being the highest you can go.
So, while it does beat the rest of its competition in some areas, it is slightly underpowered and is does cost quite a bit more. Lets see what the soon-to-come full hands-on reviews say about it. Who knows, all these additional features might just be worth their cost.
[Sources: Reports from Engadget, GBM, CNET, Tablet PC Review; First hands on review from Engadget]
For starters, it has a WXGA display (1280x800) which, when optionally backlit, gives us 400nits of brightness. That's more than the Fujitsu T2010 which, till now, had the brightest display (in the 300nit range, I think). It also has a capacitive touch screen which means you can use it with your finger as well as the stylus. And the 'capacitive' feature of the touch screen gives it the ability to tell the difference between a finger press and a palm press, which is really cool. Also, it doesn't use the lightweight Intel mobile graphics chipset like the rest of the tablet PCs in the market do: it uses the ATI Radeon Xpress 1250 system which is, apparently, better than the Intel one.
Then, it has both a trackstick and a touchpad, which should make it appeal to the widest possible customer base. And finally, though its standard hard drive is an 40 or 80GB 4,200RPM one, you can upgrade to either a 120GB 5,200RPM one or a 32 or 64GB Solid State Device (SSD) drive. Yes, that's an SSD drive. A drive with no moving parts so, in theory, its as fast as your RAM is!
Of course, all of this comes at a cost, with the XT's basic configuration costing $800 more than the Toshiba M700's (and almost $1,000 more than the Fujitsu T4200's). And we don't yet know how much more the additional features (like the SSD drive) will cost. Another negative is that it has a low-powered processor, with a 1.2GHz Core2 Duo being the highest you can go.
So, while it does beat the rest of its competition in some areas, it is slightly underpowered and is does cost quite a bit more. Lets see what the soon-to-come full hands-on reviews say about it. Who knows, all these additional features might just be worth their cost.
[Sources: Reports from Engadget, GBM, CNET, Tablet PC Review; First hands on review from Engadget]
The Toshiba M700?!
Having eliminated the Toshiba Portege R400 from the running early on (fabulous looking but too underpowered and way too expensive), I wasn't expecting much more from the Toshiba camp in the tablet PC space. Boy was I wrong!
Toshiba has just launched the Portege M700 which, when you do a side-by-side comparison, slightly edges out the Fujitsu Lifebook T4220 that I had decided to buy in spite of its hard drive speed limitations. Yes, not only can you upgrade the Toshiba's hard drive to a 120GB 7,200RPM drive, it has a more powerful processor (2.6Ghz), a higher screen resolution (WXGA at 1280x800), Turbo Memory, and a built-in 1.3Megapixel camera. The best part? It costs only a few hundred dollars more than the Fujitsu does.
That said, the Fujitsu had a couple of things going for it as well, such as the modular bay that could house an extended battery, a combo optical drive, or a weight saver. Fujitsu also seems to have best customer service, production quality, and delivery times among the other tablet PC manufacturers. I don't know where Toshiba stands in either of these two areas (though the Portege is in its 9th generation so I'm sure quality, etc. will be great). I guess we'll have to wait for GottaBeMobile.com to do a hardware InkShow for us to find out.
Oh, one more thing. Much like the wireless dock that is unique to Toshiba, the company is introducing yet another new and unique feature with the M700: "Sleep and Charge" USB ports. These are ports that let you charge your attached mp3 players or mobile phones even when your laptop is off!
Exciting times, eh? Especially with the Dell being launched today as well. More on both of these as the reviews come in.
Toshiba has just launched the Portege M700 which, when you do a side-by-side comparison, slightly edges out the Fujitsu Lifebook T4220 that I had decided to buy in spite of its hard drive speed limitations. Yes, not only can you upgrade the Toshiba's hard drive to a 120GB 7,200RPM drive, it has a more powerful processor (2.6Ghz), a higher screen resolution (WXGA at 1280x800), Turbo Memory, and a built-in 1.3Megapixel camera. The best part? It costs only a few hundred dollars more than the Fujitsu does.
That said, the Fujitsu had a couple of things going for it as well, such as the modular bay that could house an extended battery, a combo optical drive, or a weight saver. Fujitsu also seems to have best customer service, production quality, and delivery times among the other tablet PC manufacturers. I don't know where Toshiba stands in either of these two areas (though the Portege is in its 9th generation so I'm sure quality, etc. will be great). I guess we'll have to wait for GottaBeMobile.com to do a hardware InkShow for us to find out.
Oh, one more thing. Much like the wireless dock that is unique to Toshiba, the company is introducing yet another new and unique feature with the M700: "Sleep and Charge" USB ports. These are ports that let you charge your attached mp3 players or mobile phones even when your laptop is off!
Exciting times, eh? Especially with the Dell being launched today as well. More on both of these as the reviews come in.
Quick Tablet PC Update
Okay, so I did some more research on the HP 2710p and its original elimination from my list of potential tablet PCs stands because it's too underpowered and the design is too form-over-function for my taste. That is, you can't upgrade to a faster hard disk (so you're stuck with the 4,200 RPM one) and, in an effort to make it simple to use, a lot of power features are missing from it (evidenced by how button-less it is when you're in tablet mode). Such is life.
On the other hand, its extended battery, docking solution, and wide screen display are really cool. Oh well.
On the other hand, its extended battery, docking solution, and wide screen display are really cool. Oh well.
The Latest from the Tablet PC World
I haven't written anything about tablet PCs for a while. Among the many developments in that world, these three are the most relevant to me and my interests, so here's a quick update.
First, the much anticipated Dell tablet PC is about to be released on the 11th. There's been a lot in the press about this tablet recently, including its users manual getting leaked online, so it's safe to say that people are dying to get their hands on one. Let's see how it matches up against the rest of the competition. I'll update this blog once the results are in.
Speaking of competition, though, Lenovo is giving a 20-25% discount on its ThinkPad laptops (including the X Series Tablet) and accessories for Christmas (that is, if you order before 17 December). Now if only I had a spare $3,500 lying around...
Finally, as more and more people claim that the HP 2710p has the best tablet PC experience out there, I guess I might as well take a better look at it. I still think it's too underpowered for my needs, but it sure does look good, doesn't it? Oh well.
First, the much anticipated Dell tablet PC is about to be released on the 11th. There's been a lot in the press about this tablet recently, including its users manual getting leaked online, so it's safe to say that people are dying to get their hands on one. Let's see how it matches up against the rest of the competition. I'll update this blog once the results are in.
Speaking of competition, though, Lenovo is giving a 20-25% discount on its ThinkPad laptops (including the X Series Tablet) and accessories for Christmas (that is, if you order before 17 December). Now if only I had a spare $3,500 lying around...
Finally, as more and more people claim that the HP 2710p has the best tablet PC experience out there, I guess I might as well take a better look at it. I still think it's too underpowered for my needs, but it sure does look good, doesn't it? Oh well.
Crocker's 3rd Annual Inkblot Awards
GottaBeMobile.com's Warner Crocker rounds up a year's worth of tablet PC news, views, commentary, quirks, humour, and much more in his annual Life on the Wicked Stage Ink Blot Awards, now in their third year. They're funny, true, and very Warner Crocker! :)
Pining Away for a Tablet PC
Great. A month after I hypothetically decide to get the Fujitsu T4220 convertible tablet PC over the Lenovo X61T, Warner Crocker from GottaBeMobile goes and writes about his love affair with his X61.
To make matters worse, one my classmates at MBS, who sits right in front of me in one of my classes, has a gorgeous X61 (non-tablet) that is in my direct line of sight for three hours every week. *sigh*
So now I'm conflicted over my choice of tablet PC. And this is over a hypothetical purchase, dammit! Imagine what it'll be like when I actually buy a darned convertible tablet PC! :) I guess I need to see someone using or writing about the T4220 to restore my sense of balance!
In all seriousness, though, as my current study term heads for the home stretch (less than 4 weeks to go!) I think back sadly over all the productivity-increasing opportunities that I missed because I didn't have a tablet PC this term. And there were many of them.
The biggest issue, obviously, was with mobility. There were times when I had to be moving around all day -- between lecture theatres, syndicate rooms, the library, etc. -- with a heavy laptop on my shoulder. One that is also big and bulky and so doesn't easily fit into my locker either. Then there were times when I couldn't simply whip out my laptop, whenever and wherever I was, in order to get a little bit of work done. Instead, I was forced to adjust the rest of my life around appropriate laptop-using opportunities. That is, I would schedule all my laptop-related tasks in batches because I knew the settling down would only be worth it if I had at least a half hour's worth of stuff to do. And batching is never good if you need to get lots of little tasks done during the day. However, most modern laptops would have done well on the mobility part (covering most of my needs), which is why there's the other issue.
The other issue was with note-taking and, generally, living a paperless life. There were times, for example, when I had to take complex notes in class, frequently erasing, re-drawing, and squeezing words closer and closer to the edge of my sheet of notepaper. It was only the humble pencil and eraser that saved me there. Then there were times when I had so much reading material to go through that I had to carry my reading packs in a second bag. That too in the rain! A tablet PC and a high-speed scanner like the Fujitsu Scan Snap (to batch scan all of my reading pack material) would really have helped me then.
There were other issues, of course, but those two were the biggest. I guess I'll have to live with them for just a little longer. Oh well.
To make matters worse, one my classmates at MBS, who sits right in front of me in one of my classes, has a gorgeous X61 (non-tablet) that is in my direct line of sight for three hours every week. *sigh*
So now I'm conflicted over my choice of tablet PC. And this is over a hypothetical purchase, dammit! Imagine what it'll be like when I actually buy a darned convertible tablet PC! :) I guess I need to see someone using or writing about the T4220 to restore my sense of balance!
In all seriousness, though, as my current study term heads for the home stretch (less than 4 weeks to go!) I think back sadly over all the productivity-increasing opportunities that I missed because I didn't have a tablet PC this term. And there were many of them.
The biggest issue, obviously, was with mobility. There were times when I had to be moving around all day -- between lecture theatres, syndicate rooms, the library, etc. -- with a heavy laptop on my shoulder. One that is also big and bulky and so doesn't easily fit into my locker either. Then there were times when I couldn't simply whip out my laptop, whenever and wherever I was, in order to get a little bit of work done. Instead, I was forced to adjust the rest of my life around appropriate laptop-using opportunities. That is, I would schedule all my laptop-related tasks in batches because I knew the settling down would only be worth it if I had at least a half hour's worth of stuff to do. And batching is never good if you need to get lots of little tasks done during the day. However, most modern laptops would have done well on the mobility part (covering most of my needs), which is why there's the other issue.
The other issue was with note-taking and, generally, living a paperless life. There were times, for example, when I had to take complex notes in class, frequently erasing, re-drawing, and squeezing words closer and closer to the edge of my sheet of notepaper. It was only the humble pencil and eraser that saved me there. Then there were times when I had so much reading material to go through that I had to carry my reading packs in a second bag. That too in the rain! A tablet PC and a high-speed scanner like the Fujitsu Scan Snap (to batch scan all of my reading pack material) would really have helped me then.
There were other issues, of course, but those two were the biggest. I guess I'll have to live with them for just a little longer. Oh well.
The Latest on My Tablet PC Obsession
If you've been reading this blog for a while now (that would be just you, Nadia!), then you'll know that I am rather obsessed with convertible tablet PCs. That is, I really, really, really want one. Why? Because convertible tablet PCs are everything that I want in a laptop computer at this point in time. That is, a keyboard that I can type on, a touch screen that I can write on, and a small and light form factor that I can easily carry around. The latest ones are also fast, powerful, and full-featured (ports, accessories, etc.). The only things missing in them -- a large display and a configuration suitable for gaming -- are better left to desktops anyway. I figured, therefore, that it was time for another tablet PC update. Why? Because Fujitsu and HP both recently released their latest tablet PC offerings: the T2010 and the 2710p respectively. And from all the reviews about them on the web, they're both excellent machines.
So here's my hypothetical issue (it's rather pathetic to have one, I know, but hey, if I can't fantasize about all this here, then where can I fantasize?). If I had the money to buy a tablet PC right now (let's say I won the lottery or something...God: hint, hint), which one would I get? I'm down to the following four choices:
And they're all really good. The problem is that, while they're all really good, they're all extra-specially good in different ways.
The Powerhouses
The Fujitsu T4220, for example, is the only one that has an on-board optical drive. It's also (by far) the most powerful of the bunch. However, it's also the most expensive. The Lenovo X61t, meanwhile, has the best keyboard (though the others are really good too), the longest battery life, the fastest hard drive, a really good processor, and the best extras. However, it has the the dimmest screen, no on-board optial drive, and, for the time being at least, is going through production problems. These two are also the heaviest of the bunch (though both are less than 2kg each).
The Lightweights
Meanwhile, both the Fujitsu T2010 and HP 2710p are incredibly light (about 1.5kg each), have excellent screens, good battery life, and aren't all that expensive. However, neither has an on-board optical drive (which means you have have to buy, and then carry one, with you separately) and both have low-power (i.e. slightly less powerful) processors. The 2710p also has the slowest hard drive. On the other hand, it's the only one with a wide screen. It's also the cheapest of the lost, and, apparently, has the best "tablet PC experience" of the lot as well.
Confused? Hong Kong Phooey made a really nice comparison table that shows each tablet's strengths and weaknesses graphically. That might help. The discussion below that posting is quite good too.
More Data, Mr. Spock!
Want to know craploads more? Check out the following video reviews on GottaBeMobile.com:
Or the following text reviews listed on Tablet PC Review (except for the last two that haven't been added to the listing there yet):
Analysis, Mr. Data?
So what does this all mean? Which would I finally choose? Well, when you compare the four, the first (and most obvious) grouping splits the bunch into features and raw, number-crunching performance (X61t & T4220) versus display quality and overall tablet PC experience (T2010 & 2710p). I generally prefer performance over everything else since I want to be able to edit audio & video and run processor- & RAM-intensive programs like Dreamweaver and Paint Shop Pro on my laptop. This would be true even if I did end up buying a desktop on which I could play high-end computer games etc. And, really, I don't mind the extra half-kilo of weight. That eliminates the two lightweights and narrows my choice down to the two powerhouses: the X61t and the T4220.
Next, if push came to shove, I'd probably pick the Fujitsu over the Lenovo. Why? Because, even though the Fujitsu is the most expensive of the lot, it does have the most features. If I get the SXGA screen (i.e. the higher resolution one) and up the hard drive to 7,200RPM (i.e. the fastest one; if possible), for example, I undo most of the Lenovo's advantages. I won't get the Lenovo's excellent battery life in the standard configuration, yes, but I will get the most versatility thanks to the Fujitsu's modular bay drive that can hold an extra battery, the optical drive, or, to reduce weight, nothing. And I like versatility.
Oh, and I get a few bonuses with it too: the control key is the bottom-left-most key on the keyboard (a big plus in my book), there's a touch pad instead of a track point stick, and the docking bay includes an HDMI port (which makes for better viewing on large, external monitors). Fujitsu is also supposed to have the best service and support.
So there. I've decided then. I am hypothetically going to get the Fujitsu LifeBook T4220P (the P is the more powerful of the two models) as my next laptop. Now I just need the money for it. Which basically means that I won't be able to actually get this till next year (assuming, of course, that I have a job by then). Oh, and Dell will have have come out with its tablet PC by then too. That should really shake the industry up and, as a result, I will get to make one more posting about my little obsession here. Yippee! :) Till next time...
So here's my hypothetical issue (it's rather pathetic to have one, I know, but hey, if I can't fantasize about all this here, then where can I fantasize?). If I had the money to buy a tablet PC right now (let's say I won the lottery or something...God: hint, hint), which one would I get? I'm down to the following four choices:
And they're all really good. The problem is that, while they're all really good, they're all extra-specially good in different ways.
The Powerhouses
The Fujitsu T4220, for example, is the only one that has an on-board optical drive. It's also (by far) the most powerful of the bunch. However, it's also the most expensive. The Lenovo X61t, meanwhile, has the best keyboard (though the others are really good too), the longest battery life, the fastest hard drive, a really good processor, and the best extras. However, it has the the dimmest screen, no on-board optial drive, and, for the time being at least, is going through production problems. These two are also the heaviest of the bunch (though both are less than 2kg each).
The Lightweights
Meanwhile, both the Fujitsu T2010 and HP 2710p are incredibly light (about 1.5kg each), have excellent screens, good battery life, and aren't all that expensive. However, neither has an on-board optical drive (which means you have have to buy, and then carry one, with you separately) and both have low-power (i.e. slightly less powerful) processors. The 2710p also has the slowest hard drive. On the other hand, it's the only one with a wide screen. It's also the cheapest of the lost, and, apparently, has the best "tablet PC experience" of the lot as well.
Confused? Hong Kong Phooey made a really nice comparison table that shows each tablet's strengths and weaknesses graphically. That might help. The discussion below that posting is quite good too.
More Data, Mr. Spock!
Want to know craploads more? Check out the following video reviews on GottaBeMobile.com:
- Lenovo X60t Part I, Part II (multi-touch and ultrabase)
- Fujitsu T4215
- HP 2710p
- HP 2710p compared to the Fujitsu T2010
Or the following text reviews listed on Tablet PC Review (except for the last two that haven't been added to the listing there yet):
- Lenovo X61t -- 3 reviews
- Fujitsu T4220 -- 4 reviews
- Fujitsu T2010 -- 2 reviews
- HP Compaq 2710p -- 4 reviews
- HP Compaq 2710p (GottaBeMobile)
- HP Compaq 2710p (jkOnTheRun)
Analysis, Mr. Data?
So what does this all mean? Which would I finally choose? Well, when you compare the four, the first (and most obvious) grouping splits the bunch into features and raw, number-crunching performance (X61t & T4220) versus display quality and overall tablet PC experience (T2010 & 2710p). I generally prefer performance over everything else since I want to be able to edit audio & video and run processor- & RAM-intensive programs like Dreamweaver and Paint Shop Pro on my laptop. This would be true even if I did end up buying a desktop on which I could play high-end computer games etc. And, really, I don't mind the extra half-kilo of weight. That eliminates the two lightweights and narrows my choice down to the two powerhouses: the X61t and the T4220.
Next, if push came to shove, I'd probably pick the Fujitsu over the Lenovo. Why? Because, even though the Fujitsu is the most expensive of the lot, it does have the most features. If I get the SXGA screen (i.e. the higher resolution one) and up the hard drive to 7,200RPM (i.e. the fastest one; if possible), for example, I undo most of the Lenovo's advantages. I won't get the Lenovo's excellent battery life in the standard configuration, yes, but I will get the most versatility thanks to the Fujitsu's modular bay drive that can hold an extra battery, the optical drive, or, to reduce weight, nothing. And I like versatility.
Oh, and I get a few bonuses with it too: the control key is the bottom-left-most key on the keyboard (a big plus in my book), there's a touch pad instead of a track point stick, and the docking bay includes an HDMI port (which makes for better viewing on large, external monitors). Fujitsu is also supposed to have the best service and support.
So there. I've decided then. I am hypothetically going to get the Fujitsu LifeBook T4220P (the P is the more powerful of the two models) as my next laptop. Now I just need the money for it. Which basically means that I won't be able to actually get this till next year (assuming, of course, that I have a job by then). Oh, and Dell will have have come out with its tablet PC by then too. That should really shake the industry up and, as a result, I will get to make one more posting about my little obsession here. Yippee! :) Till next time...
Life With a Tablet PC - Part 2
Much as I want to get a tablet PC as my next computer (not that I can afford even a laptop power supply for the next 18 months but, hey, one can dream, right?) I worry that it might not be powerful enough for my needs. At least not in the medium-term...but more on that later. For now though, since I am a student who moves around a great deal and whose primary computer is a laptop (so it needs to go with me everywhere), I need to be as mobile as possible. I would get that mobility with a tablet PC; while its slate-mode functionality would significantly increase my productivity. I also value performance very highly -- I play computer games and edit graphics and audio -- and most high-end tablet PCs (i.e. the latest offerings from Fujitsu, Lenovo, and HP) would let me do some of that which, for the time being, is sufficient for my needs.
The problem is that, the more mobile a computer is, the less powerful it generally is. If you list computers in increasing order of power and, therefore, in decreasing order of mobility you get this:
My previous laptop (the one that died a few months ago) was a regular laptop. The one I am using now is a four year-old regular laptop (so it's smaller, heavier, and less powerful than a modern-day regular laptop). If I was to get a laptop next week, I would unhesitatingly get a regular, convertible tablet PC. That much is clear. Now this would be nice for a while. For quite a while, actually; that is, at least for the duration of my studies.
Once I graduate and get a job, since I would continue to use this as my primary computer at everywhere but work, I would then want to buy a large-ish external monitor for it and maybe a nice keyboard and mouse too. That would be just fine as well.
Eventually, though, there would come a time when I would want to play the latest versions of my favourite computer games and use the latest versions of my favourite resource-intensive (mainly multimedia-editing) software packages. That's when the tablet PC's lack of computing power would start to pinch (mainly the lack of a dedicated graphics card). I would then seriously consider buying a gaming/media desktop (I would be rolling in money by now, see?).
Now, knowing (more accurately: hoping) that this is how things will play out, I wonder: to avoid having to buy two computers (as if that's a bad thing), should I just buy a nice powerful laptop now instead of that tablet PC? Fortunately, my answer is am emphatic no. The fact is I do need to use a computer in two different ways and that there isn't one computer that will do both things for me (i.e. be both mobile and powerful).
What, then, was the point of writing all this? What is the moral of my little story? I think the point of writing all this is simply to say that some day, when I grow up, I am going to be just like James Kendrick :)
The problem is that, the more mobile a computer is, the less powerful it generally is. If you list computers in increasing order of power and, therefore, in decreasing order of mobility you get this:
- Ultra-mobile PCs (UMPCs) -- diary-sized, with 4 to 7-inch screens
- Small tablet PCs -- A4 page-sized, with 9 to 10-inch screens
- Regular tablet PCs -- ring binder-sized, with 12 to 13-inch screens
- Regular laptops -- file folder-sized, with 14 to 15-inch screens
- Gaming/media laptops -- box file-sized, with 15 to 17-inch screens
- Regular desktops -- standard, with 15 to 22-inch screens
- Gaming/media desktops -- large, with 19 to 30-inch screens (maybe even multiple screens)
My previous laptop (the one that died a few months ago) was a regular laptop. The one I am using now is a four year-old regular laptop (so it's smaller, heavier, and less powerful than a modern-day regular laptop). If I was to get a laptop next week, I would unhesitatingly get a regular, convertible tablet PC. That much is clear. Now this would be nice for a while. For quite a while, actually; that is, at least for the duration of my studies.
Once I graduate and get a job, since I would continue to use this as my primary computer at everywhere but work, I would then want to buy a large-ish external monitor for it and maybe a nice keyboard and mouse too. That would be just fine as well.
Eventually, though, there would come a time when I would want to play the latest versions of my favourite computer games and use the latest versions of my favourite resource-intensive (mainly multimedia-editing) software packages. That's when the tablet PC's lack of computing power would start to pinch (mainly the lack of a dedicated graphics card). I would then seriously consider buying a gaming/media desktop (I would be rolling in money by now, see?).
Now, knowing (more accurately: hoping) that this is how things will play out, I wonder: to avoid having to buy two computers (as if that's a bad thing), should I just buy a nice powerful laptop now instead of that tablet PC? Fortunately, my answer is am emphatic no. The fact is I do need to use a computer in two different ways and that there isn't one computer that will do both things for me (i.e. be both mobile and powerful).
What, then, was the point of writing all this? What is the moral of my little story? I think the point of writing all this is simply to say that some day, when I grow up, I am going to be just like James Kendrick :)