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I Can't Find a Single Productive Use For My Tablet

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Re: I Can't Find a Single Productive Use For My Tablet

#61
I have an iPad3 and a Nexus 7. They sit mostly unused. I'll pick up the iPad3 once in while just for fun. I've played a few games to completion (Sword and Sworcery, Groove Coaster) but that's about it.

I don't find them good for consuming except for movies on a plane. Movies at home? The bigger the screen the better. I'd much rather watch movies on my 42 inch TV from my sofa than my tablets.

Reading? I'd much rather use my Kindle Paperwhite. It's better on the eyes and soooo much lighter.

Browsing the internet? I'm a curious person and I click lots of links. So for example I'll come to HN and ctrl click every title that sounds interesting. Tablets hate this workflow as they start removing tabs. Even when it does work invariably I'll run into a page that doesn't work on the tablet. Maybe it's a WebGL page. Maybe it's a Flash page. Maybe it's a page that requires interactivity but does not respond to touch events.

Finally I'll want to comment on something or post something I found to my facebook or G+. In those cases tablets suck balls. Editing text in a tablet is a exercise in frustration. Trying to move the cursor, format, copy and paste. It's not fun. Pasting a link in the Facebook app doesn't generate a editable preview like it does in a regular browser and many other shortcomings.

I could go on and on. Some of these limitations I put up with on my phone but then my phone fits in my pocket and is always with me. My tablets though, really, I find them pretty useless. There's sole purpose at this point is to once in a while check out some new app someone tells me about. Otherwise mine are unused.

Re: I Can't Find a Single Productive Use For My Tablet

#63
post #49

I would say that it is notable that the author has apparently never used iOS. Setting all subjective judgments of whether iOS or Android is better to the side, what that means is that the author hasn't even tried out what is by far the largest app/developer base available on a tablet. So I don't really think the author's opinion bears much weight, when we have facts staring us in the face such as the near-universal a…

If by developer base you mean market share, Android tablets are selling more than iOS nowadays. Apple is 43.6%, Android over 50%. Nowhere near the huge lead Android has in smartphone market share, but still enough that people going for the biggest market should chose Android: http://money.cnn.com/2013/01/31/technology/mobile/android-ta...

Not really surprising considering competitors like amazon aren't even trying to make a profit on the hardware cost and are selling the things at rock bottom prices. Most business solutions I saw at CES were using Android tablet bases as well now. I guess due to the low price and because you can customize the entire software stack for health care providers or whatever you are targeting.

Re: I Can't Find a Single Productive Use For My Tablet

#64

SMS will never take off. Why would anyone fiddle with a tiny keyboard when they could just use the same phone to call someone?

That is a rare case of correctly understanding the user but incorrectly understanding the technology (most errors are the opposite). That laziness drives behavior was correct, but that calling is easier than texting was incorrect.

Re: I Can't Find a Single Productive Use For My Tablet

#66

I have an iPad3 and a Nexus 7. They sit mostly unused. I'll pick up the iPad3 once in while just for fun. I've played a few games to completion (Sword and Sworcery, Groove Coaster) but that's about it. I don't find them good for consuming except for movies on a plane. Movies at home? The bigger the screen the better. I'd much rather watch movies on my 42 inch TV from my sofa than my tablets. Reading? I'd much rather…

I agree with almost all of your main points, except that Chrome on my tablet does a pretty decent job of supporting your "opening lots of interesting looking tabs" workflow (which I also do).

Re: I Can't Find a Single Productive Use For My Tablet

#67
I can rattle of examples

1. Field guide for birding

2. Field guide for astronomy

3. Omnifocus

4. Mobile fitness regime

5. Taking notes in class (my wife who lives on her 15" MBPS) used one for a class with iAnnotate. Worked like a dream.

6. Synthesizers. The musical instruments on the iPad are stunningly good

7. As a control surface. I use mine to control Ableton live

8. Notes. I use mine for note taking often

9. Scratching out ideas (I use Paper and a Stylus).

10. And lots of reading research papers and figuring out ideas

11. All my camera manuals stay with me when I go on a photo trip.

Books are one thing where I am all kindle all the time. Long form reading and tablets don't work for me.

Re: I Can't Find a Single Productive Use For My Tablet

#68
post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The author talked about "productive use" - you listed gaming and browsing. In many circles those don't rank as productivity. There's a fine difference between "great"/"cool" and "being productive".

Are we being a bit condescending by insinuating that points earned or facebook walls commented on, is not productive? I'm sure you cure cancer with every 5th keystroke of your best selling novels and crush awesome ruby code for breakfast. You're espousing a pretty narrow view of what a computing device can be used for in a way that produces some value for its user.

Think about it this way. If your work only allowed you to use a tablet to do your work, how productive would you be?

I'm pretty sure every business prefers a 'narrow view' of what productivity means. The article is in relation to productivity.

Re: I Can't Find a Single Productive Use For My Tablet

#69
post #48

Terminal. Sounds crazy but I do a lot of work in the terminal and the ipad makes a great terminal when paired with a keyboard. It's akin to the distraction free solutions such as write room or the blocking the Internet hacks out there... With the ipad you can just have a terminal and nothing else fighting for my attention. Especially as the otherwise great Promt app logs you out so quickly so I put off checking my em…

Doesn't sound crazy to me. iSSH is one of my favorite iPad apps.
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