The notebook, they point out, is an entirely different device packing in far more processing muscle, bigger displays (in most cases), and with more connectivity options and ports to boot. To this, the tablet lobby responds by saying that tablets are lighter, always on, more portable and while not having the same kind of processing speed as notebooks, are often able to perform all your routine computing tasks at a much faster speed.
So heated did the notebook vs tablet argument get that we decided to retire our notebook for a week and use a tablet instead. The newly-launched Apple iPad was our tablet of choice for the task — we went with the 16 GB Wi-Fi only version as that was the one that compared favourably in terms of price with most netbooks and low-end notebooks. We also packed in some accessories and apps (see below) to help us in our week-long survival task.
Day 1 :
Massive Clutter: Too many accessories to carry
Our first day with just an iPad as our main computing device was, to put it mildly, awkward. First off, carrying all the accessories (keyboard, docks, wi-fi router) was a bit of a pain as things kept crashing into each other and we often did not quite know where to keep things. For instance, sitting and typing out a blog entry at a cafe became a bit of a task as we had to take out the iPad, set it in landscape mode using the case as a stand, take out the wireless keyboard, pair them, and then start typing. When that was done, we had to connect to the Internet to upload the entry and that involved searching for the Tata Photon Plus modem and then attaching it to the Olive Nexus router. By this time, everyone in the cafe was staring at our table, which had one iPad and no fewer than four accessories cluttered on it. Although in the end we were able to do what we started out on, it is clear that this will take some getting used to.
Day 2 :
Easy-as-pie: Everything works without tweaking
A much smoother day. We worked out that using the wireless keyboard made sense only when you need to type more than a hundred words — the onscreen keyboard of the iPad does a decent job for anything lesser than that. If you have the official case, you can also prop the iPad on your lap with a slight incline that makes typing easier.
We also had the first chance to transfer pictures using the iPad Camera Connection Kit and well, it worked like a charm. We tried to stretch our luck by attaching a USB hard drive to the iPad using the USB port in the camera kit, but alas, no luck.
Another thing we realised was that with limited connectivity, internet access was very much a necessity as the best way of sharing files was over mail or by using aservice like Box.net. And while the Olive Nexus was handy, setting it up took a few minutes of fiddling around every time. So we were constantly keeping our eyes open for Wi-Fi hotspots.
Day 3 :
Need More Wi-fi: Excellent at Web & Media Consumption
It gets better. With not too much writing to do, the iPad came into its own as Web browsing and media consumption device. We got into a Wi-Fi area and spend hours browsing the Net, replying to mail and updating our social networks (Twitter and Facebook in our case). We even spent an hour of two playing Myst, the adventure game which was a rage in the 1990s on the computer and has been later adapted to iOS. Loads of fun, really. And for the record, we finally had to recharge the iPad for the first time towards the afternoon. The battery on this device IS amazing.
Day 4 :
What About Printing : There's no easy way to do it
Missed the computer BIG time today as we needed to print a document. While the iPad does allow for printing over Wi-Fi, this is by no means as comfortable or as simple as in a notebook into which you can just plonk a USB connector and print away. After looking in vain for a Wi-Fi printer, we settled on mailing the document to be printed to a person and asking him to print it out for us. We really do wish the iPad had a USB port. Mind you, there is no doubt that people do notice it when you are using an iPad rather than a notebook, which appeals to the exhibitionist in us!
Day 5 :
Easy Browsing: The Touchscreen works wonders
A day spent at home working, and one does tend to miss the notebook here. While the iPad is marvellous on the move, working with it in bed or on a sofa is not as comfortable as using a notebook. Typing involves two pieces of hardware – the iPad and the keyboard. However, you can lie in bed and browse the web to your heart's content. Browsing is actually easier on a tablet rather than a notebook as you can adjust the viewing angle by just moving the tablet. Touching a screen to navigate beats hitting arrow keys or tweaking a mouse or touchpad. All this meant another recharge for the iPad.
Day 6 :
Dead Weight: Should have carried extra batteries
The iPad might have added a lot to our list of accessories but it definitely has made us lose some respect for the thumb drive. We found that, with decent Wi-Fi connectivity, we could share information more easily and without having to hand over a piece of hardware to another person.
Of course, this works best only if the files you have to share are at the most 10-15MB in size. Anything bigger gets tedious, wireless broadband being broad only in name. Typing is becoming easier too - we were forced to use the online keyboard for an extended period of time as the wireless keyboard ran out of battery and we had (foolishly) forgotten to carry replacements along.
Day 7 :
Revelations: Most work got done (with apps)
The final tablet-only day passed off without any major incident. Seven days was enough time to finally work out how to best use the accessories we were lugging around for the iPad and which were the best places to get Wi-Fi access. However, we did miss the convenience of being able to watch a film by just popping the disk into a DVD drive or of being able to print something easily. That said, the Web on a tablet is in a different league from what one sees on a notebook. And those keen on watching a lot of videos on the iPad can use the Air Video app ($2.99). It comes with a companion PC program which converts and streams (over Wi-Fi) any videos stored on the PC’s hard drive on-the-fly.
The office suite, Documents to Go, is more spartan than MS Office but on the flip side, it forces you to focus on content rather than flashy effects. As most of our work pertains to writing, we found ourselves using the word processor most often and our experience was generally good. And yes, all things considered, a tablet does seem to work very fast indeed, often much faster than most computers. That said, we are really delighted to be getting our notebooks back tomorrow!
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