Has anyone extensively tried ultrabook convertibles or hybrids (i.e. laptop with touch features)? After almost losing my looseleaf notebook at a conference this morning, I’m thinking of giving in and just getting an iPad or some other tablet - something that writes well, and where I’ll be less careless about forgetting it in a meeting room and can save my notes on the cloud. But I’m also in need of upgrading my laptop too. The ultrabook hybrids seem compelling, but I know Windows 8 has had a pretty modest reception to date and have also heard that the touch capabilities on these ultrabooks is pretty mediocre compared to true tablets.
Anyone have suggestions? Do you go with an ultrabook convertible, or buy separate ultrabook/laptop and tablet devices? Can you please explain your choice?
In terms of what I’m looking for, what matters most is having a device that’s light and has great build quality (like a Macbook Air, but the problem is I’m historically a PC guy – I know a lot of people that just run Windows on these machines, but does that somewhat defeat the purpoes?). From a touch perspective, I want something where I can write really easily.
I’m not incredibly computer-savvy so welcome any feedback. Thanks.
I saw a MacBook Air the other day and could feel the twinge that said “I want it.” So nice and light, and the battery can last a long time.
As for “defeating the purpose of a MB Air,” well, if you like the hardware, that’s the purpose. They’re designed to be configured the way you like it: windows or mac. MacBooks do come at premium prices, so probably you can find something else that is lightweight for less. But given that most of us are on our machines for a good portion of our waking hours, you might as well pay for something that you enjoy, assuming it won’t put you in the poorhouse. If you find something else you enjoy for less, well, there’s that option too (but I find all the configuring that goes on in the Windows world to be a big PITA).
I actually use an iPad for a good 50% of my computing needs these days (I have a tripod and a bluetooth keyboard in cases where I need to do more writing). Basically it’s ony when I need to do Excel, quantitative work, or have access to a large screen that I need a computer. And then, I actually tend to go to a desktop, so I actually am on a desktop and an iPad most of the time. When I travel, I sometimes need to bring a laptop, but I often can get by with just the iPad.
Since you’re in NYC, if you want to go the Windows route, I recommend you stop in at J&R and look around their laptop section and just see if anything tickles your fancy. Windows machines are fairly commoditized these days in terms of capacity, so it’s really about seeing what form factor works with your lifestyle.
The longer I’ve had my ipad for, the more I use it. I own two laptops (one windows, one mac) and the mac’s covered in dust somewhere and the windows is my dedicated excel & quicken machine.
I tried the whole stylus thing with the ipad last year when I was finishing up my degree and while it does work, its not useful enough to scratch notes during a meeting. You have to slow down your writing speed, and be very careful to spread out the letters enough. I’d get the ipad for everything else and then give the stylus a try though, despite my complaints I did handwrite notes for a full semester on it. The apps usually have a magnified region so you can write your words bigger which sounds messed but works not half bad.
Thanks for the feedback guys. If I’m looking something specifically to jot notes down in a meeting that ISN’T your traditional pen and paper notebook, is there anything you recommend? Because that’s what I was hoping to find in a tablet. Absent this feature, I don’t find the tablet as compelling personally.
I should also say if your note taking is more of an annotate pdf’s deal, it works great. It’s less convenient if you’re handwriting minutes to a meeting or something.
David Pogue gave the Microsoft Surface tablet a thumbs up. He made it sound really appealing. Check it out.
BTW, there’s now a Microsoft Store in Times Square, basically carbon copied from the Apple Store, right down to the silly colored t-shirts and nametags / hipster salespeople. You can look at stuff there.
I am a huge fan of ultraportables…I have two Lenovo X61 laptops. ~3.2 lbs with battery. One is 64 bit Ubuntu with a SSD I just put in, 4 GB of RAM. The other is Win 8. The Ubuntu box loads in ~25 seconds.
My work computer is an i7 Intel chip with a SSD and 8 GB RAM much more hardcore but almost twice in weight.
Pretty much everything I do is SSH so local stats really mean nothing. But the Lenovos are going on 6 years now and they are awesome.
ChickenTikka, I’m definitely contemplating that. There’s something to be said about the build quality and graphics of the Macbook. Have read somewher that running Windows off a Mac does consume much more battery life, so you end up being close to 4 hours of battery under optimal conditions (rather than 6+). Have any of you tried doing this, and what are your thoughts?
Also, see below for the Lenovo Helix – I demo’ed this product at CES and think it’s pretty sweet. It would satisfy my need for having both an ultrabook (that I can do normal work on) and a tablet (that I can bring to meetings and “write” notes). I didn’t get to test the writing quality on it though, and it probably won’t be released till April. Would any of you guys buy something like this?
The last few conferences I’ve gone to I’ve just brought my iPad and have typed out my notes. Before that I used to do it with a pen and papar. IPad is a big improvement since when I get back to the office to type up a summary, it’s just a matter of tidying up what I already have rather than starting from scratch.
I have a mac air too and really like it, but I don’t think it’s practical to have one on your lap with the screen up at a conference. The iPad is much more discreet. It’s a similar size and shape to a traditional note pad.
You can get excel for mac air by the way. If you need to have a tablet with excel, you might as well try the new MS surface (I haven’t tried one yet).
You could just go with the Evernote Smart Notebook, since your primary concern is taking notes. I like the idea because I really think it sucks to write with a stylus.
The Moleskine idea is not completely original, but it looks like it is well executed. The devil is in the details, of course, but I might try it out at some point. I also hate writing with a stylus.
I have an asus transformer prime, and I love the detachable keyboard. Naturally, it’s smaller than a standard keyboard, so it would be difficult to model on it, but it’s awesome for note taking with evernote.
I don’t use it for editing or creating materials for work, like models or decks. Once I can get office on it (rumored to have office mobel soon), I’ll probably use it exclusively and ditch the full laptop.
How does the ASUS Transformer Prime differ from the Lenovo Helix? Sounds like the former is really a tablet with detachable keyboard while the Lenovo Helix has the computing power of a typical ultrabook, no?
I’m leaning towards getting the Lenovo Helix when the product comes out. I demo’ed the product at CES and loved it. Here’s a YouTube clip:
If the stylus is somewhat decent and usable for taking notes on the road, it’ll be exactly what I need. I guess I’ll have to try it again before buying it though just to see if the writing is up to snuff.
Having gone through the discussion it is pretty good idea that one is enjoying with the ultra books as 505 of normal work is solved by it, but mainly I prefer rugged laptops as it help to increase my business revenue providing me extra facilities as away from any worries regarding heat, dust, processing power, even I would enjoy it in sun light with rainy season as I owned rugged laptop because I had so many problems with normal laptops as it is best for the business purposes with life longitivity.
