8+ Readers in comparison

[mgmueller]

Initial frustration (seal had been opened) aside:

There are 4 stickers on the back.
Why?
Do they produce centrally and want to cover all legal obligations they face globally on every single unit?
I've had this on an Asus tablet as well. Seems to be something about Asian manufacturers. I don't have this on Dell, Microsoft, Apple and the likes...

Build quality:
It's not as plasticky as Dell Venue 8 Pro, but it's no iPad either.
The back is the same metal as the sides, but it feels and looks a bit "plasticky".
At second glance, it all looks a bit cheap. From the looks alone, one couldn't tell any price difference to the Dell (although it's € 350 vs. € 650 list price).
The bezel seems slightly uneven. It's raised about a fingernail on the bottom (in portrait mode), the left and the top. On the right, it almost feels even. And on the right I can see some gaps in the housing.
Definitely no iPad, not even close.

The backside:
Lenovo seems a bit childish.
There's a red plastic ring around the lens of the camera.
And there's a tiny red LED, marking the dot of the i in "ThinkPad".
I'm not a fan of such gimmicks.
What if the LED dies on me in 12 months? Does it have any function at all? Or is it just an annoying light at night?

Display quality:
It's brighter than Dell Venue 8 Pro. And the higher resolution is visible. It's no quantum leap, but slightly more appealing than Dell Venue 8 Pro (although Dell Venue 8 Pro is absolutely fine for me).
I'll compare to my iPad mini Retina later on.

The momentary verdict:
It's a nice little Windows tablet.
The display is great.
But Lenovo doesn't seem to be able to build real quality. I've checked out Lenovo Yoga a few months ago and had the same feel about sub-par build quality. Maybe not sub-par, but clearly not worth the premium in price...

Wow!
The resolution is killer!
When I set the icons in system settings to the small size, they're almost hard to see. And it won't be easy, to actually hit them without a stylus. For the desktop, like many recommend, an increase to 125% or even 150% might make sense or even be unavoidable.
But the text, small as it is, is still perfectly readable.

The quick shot cover is crap.
The front is rigid. Entirely.
No folds as on iPad.
It probably is protective, but neither elegant nor multi-purpose-like.
At least wake-up and sleep via magnets work flawlessly.

The tablet seems to have died on me!
"Built-in battery needs to re-charge".
I had connected it to the (proprietary!) power supply, but didn't track battery level (who does?).
I'm trying to charge, but it doesn't look good.
I probably should have sent it back without even opening the box. But now at least I know: What I had heard about the "quality" of Lenovo products seems to be correct.
I'll most likely send it back tomorrow...

Impressions after 18 hours:
It's a mixed bag for me.
In some parts, it's what I heard feared of a unit from Lenovo.

The bad:
- A permanent red LED on the back (in the dot of the "i" of ThinkPad) to show the activity status? Utter nonsense to me.
- Build quality. It's no disaster. But compared to the likes of Surface Pro or iPad... Even more so considering the premium price.
- The snapshot cover. I haven't tested the functionality (taking pictures by pulling back one edge of the cover) yet, no need for it (taking pictures on a tablet?), but I don't like the touch and feel. It's absolutely rigid. This might be great protection-wise, but it feels awkward and I have no idea how to conveniently get it out of the way. In comparison: If I turn the iPad smart cover to the back of the tablet, it doesn't bother me and attaches nicely with the magnets. If I do the same with this snapshot cover, it doesn't attach and the stiffness is inconvenient to gold.

Neutral:
- The display is great. I still have to compare to iPad mini Retina, but it's certainly nothing to complain about. But I'm no "fanatic" about this. I'm fine with my Dell Venue 8 Pro and for pst of my usage patterns can't make much use of the high resolution.
- No pen. Actually, I'm not even sure about that. I've read somewhere about a pen. If so, it's not marketed very well. I'm not even a fan of pens. But for Windows devices, I find them helpful. On the road I don't always take mouse and keyboard with me. Then a pen can be helpful for the not-yet-touch-optimized programs.
- The speakers. They seem loud enough and of okay quality, but nothing special.

The good:
- It boots in about 2/3 of the time my Dell Venue 8 Pro takes. It seems rather snappy.
- 128GB. Many manufacturers still don't integrate enough storage. In my "fun units", I always go for >128GB in the meantime. The 32GB of my Kindle Fire HDs for example are way too limited. I couldn't find a 128GB Dell Venue 8 Pro.

Meaning:
I'll keep it, I only send back defective units.
It has the potential, to be my Windows counterpart to iPad mini Retina.
It does have some weaknesses re. design and childish gimmicks, so it probably won't be in my top 3 gadgets (iPad mini Retina being my #1 gadget, Surface Pro 2 being my #1 professional tool and Nvidia Shield being my #1 toy). But I intend to take it with me on the road, when I don't see the need for Dell Venue 8 Pro + keyboard + pen.

Display:
I've compared to Dell Venue 8 Pro and iPad mini Retina for now.
Colors are more vibrant than on Dell and about the same as on iPad.
Viewing angles are spectacular. Better than both others.

Speakers:
Speaker on Dell Venue 8 Pro is not very loud.
Louder on iPad mini Retina.
Lenovo ThinPad 8 is even more powerful. Great for watching movies.

With a (significantly!) better build quality, it would be a fantastic gadget.

[JerseyBiker]

mgmueller you should check into the new Galaxy Tab S. I have he 10.5" but it also comes in a 8.4" size. It is ten times better than the ASUS TF700 I have.

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by JerseyBiker

mgmueller you should check into the new Galaxy Tab S. I have he 10.5" but it also comes in a 8.4" size. It is ten times better than the ASUS TF700 I have.

But it's Android, I guess?
I'm not much into Android anymore.
I've got my iPad mini Retina as a gadget. I can't do much business stuff on it, but it's a great toy.
For the rest I used to buy Android. But Windows 8 is offering much more for my needs. I'd buy a Surface mini in a second. I really like my Dell Venue 8 Pro, but sometimes I'd like to have a more "valuable" 8" Windows 8 tablet.
Lenovo ThinkPad 8 is doing lots of things right, but unfortunately Lenovo doesn't seem to deliver the build quality I'd like to have.

BTW: I'm no fan of Samsung either. They're supposed to offer great technology. But their design and haptic, to me, seem sub-par. I'll never forget the plastic back of Galaxy Note...

iPad and Surface, in my opinion, have the best appearance. I can't find any faults.
From other manufacturers, I get more and more frustrated. Quality seems to decline rapidly. I'd rather pay 30% more and have good enough quality, than go for the bargain unit and feel frustrated every single time I turn those things on.

Lenovo ThinkPad 8 has some design flaws, it's hard to belief...
Best so far:
There's an LTE model.
I've got the WiFi-only, I already use 6 SIM cards and don't want to add further.
And here it comes: On my model, there's still the slot for the SIM card. They glued (!!!!!) a dummy into the socket. The dummy started to get loose yesterday. Unbelievable.

I know, I'm nitpicky. But once I saw this dummy get loose, I can't forget it. Whenever I take the tablet out of the cover, that's the first thing I remember. I can't enjoy such units, once I've seen such flaws.

Do you still have your Nook classic?
Now, that was a quality product!
But their Nook HD, for example, was a cruel joke. Gaps in the housing, you actually could look inside the tablet..

[mgmueller]

Lenovo ThinkPad 8
------------------------------

You'll all probably consider me crazy.
I've reordered it.
From another reseller.
I was a bit pissed about the first one: The seal on the box clearly had been opened. My guess: Demo unit or customer return.
And the build quality left a lot to desire.
But the display seemed worth another try.
So I've reordered from another reseller.
I'll keep this one and send the other back.
Normally, I'd never do this.
Usually I keep, what I've ordered.
In the worst case, I'd send it back.
But reordering?
Never did that before.
But in this special case, the first reseller really did seem a bit dubious to me.

Anyway...

The build quality still is not great. Unfortunately, Lenovo sticks to its reputation...
There are some small gaps in the housing and some sharp edges.
No disaster. But in comparison not as good as the Dell Venue 8 Pro, which cost about 200 Euros less.
In general, the materials used seem fine. And they clearly made an effort to go elegant, kind of a "poor man's iPad". But the manufacturing process and quality control doesn't seem to be on the same level.
I'd rank it about the same level as my Nook HD (not the Nook HD+, which is far superior).
But the build quality of my 2nd is definitely better than the 1st one.
The QuickShot cover is nice enough, once you get used to it. It's a bit inconvenient at first, as it's extremely sturdy. But if one doesn't compare to iPad's SmartCover, it's good enough.
Basically:
The display is fantastic.
But that's more or less all that's outstanding about it.
On one hand, the display is amongst the most important parts of any tablet. On the other hand, for a gadget listed at € 550, you'd obviously expect more.
Still: I think, the display makes up for the rest.

I'll keep using my Dell Venue 8 Pro + the great keyboard for light work on the road.
For heavy work, I've got my Surface Pro 2 (Pro 3 in about 4 weeks).
And from now on my Lenovo ThinkPad 8 as my Windows 8 mobile gadget.

[mgmueller]

I've just ordered it.
The NVIDIA website states "available in Germany around September 1st".
The German merchant I've just ordered from states "you'll have it in 1 to 3 working days".
Let's see, who's right...
Anyway...
I'm reading a bit on all my tablets, so this probably won't be any exception.
But of course it's mainly for playing.
I'm not playing much, maybe 30 minutes per day.
Emulators (Commodore 64 and the other treasures I've owned 20+ years ago) and some Android games.
I hate playing games on touch screens (maybe with the exception of Soduku and similar games) and so I was glad when the Shield console came out.
Love it, but a tablet for some usage patterns might have advantages.
And the K1 processor is rumored to be spectacular...

EDIT: Now my merchant states, I should have it September 5th. So NVIDIA was right, and the website of the merchant when ordering was wrong. Did they intentionally show the wrong date? Is it really so complicated, to keep a webstore up to date?
Anyway...I'll stick to the order. My 32GB/LTW version isn't out in the US yet, either. So I probably couldn't get it any faster anyway...

I'm looking forward to it. Tests and review are quite enthusiastic so far. Not just for gaming, but a powerful tablet for all usage patterns. And with great speakers, one of the flaws in most tablets.

[jersysman]

I'm pretty sure that some web sites present incorrect dates on product shipment. They probably figure that once an order is placed, most people will not cancel the order, so they will still have the money. I think it's a bad business practice, but it goes on a lot.

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by jersysman

I'm pretty sure that some web sites present incorrect dates on product shipment. They probably figure that once an order is placed, most people will not cancel the order, so they will still have the money. I think it's a bad business practice, but it goes on a lot.

Exactly my thoughts.
It's simple enough, to track stock levels.
It seems more likely, they draw a nicer picture before one places his order.
I find it annoying and stupid, though.
I was prepared for a waiting period of 5 weeks, as advertised by Nvidia.
By showing a lead-time of 4 weeks earlier, they raised false hopes. And then, of course, I was disappointed. Totally unnecessary...
But I guess, as merchants they simply don't care. As a manufacturer, you might worry about your reputation. But merchants, being randomly replaceable, it's probably not that relevant...
Anway, less than 3 weeks to go. About the same time my Surface Pro 3 should arrive...

[aceflor]

Can't wait for you to receive your sp3. I am myself very tempted, although it would be a total overkill considering my needs. But I will be in the US in October and might not resist..

I understand very well what you say about Android. Imho it's neat, and super fun to play with, but I don't manage to get much work done. Win 8, or better said 8.1, was not my cup of tea to start with, and it took me some months to feel ok with it, but it really grew on me. I am missing Mantano Reader on my Win 8.1 devices (using an asus vivotab note 8 and a samsung ativ tab 3), but apart from this all is fine.

I still have an Android phone and am not going back to an iphone, and I am still enjoying my Samsung Note 8 a lot (especially since One Note for Android became penable) but unless something very innovative happens on the Android side, I can't see myself getting another android tablet anytime soon.

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by aceflor

Can't wait for you to receive your sp3. I am myself very tempted, although it would be a total overkill considering my needs. But I will be in the US in October and might not resist..

I understand very well what you say about Android. Imho it's neat, and super fun to play with, but I don't manage to get much work done. Win 8, or better said 8.1, was not my cup of tea to start with, and it took me some months to feel ok with it, but it really grew on me. I am missing Mantano Reader on my Win 8.1 devices (using an asus vivotab note 8 and a samsung ativ tab 3), but apart from this all is fine.

I still have an Android phone and am not going back to an iphone, and I am still enjoying my Samsung Note 8 a lot (especially since One Note for Android became penable) but unless something very innovative happens on the Android side, I can't see myself getting another android tablet anytime soon.

I haven't checked out yet. But I've read somewhere, Bluefire reader would be available for Windows 8.1.
I liked it a lot on my iPad, so it should be worth checking out for ePUBs.

I'll get another Android tablet, parallel to the Surface Pro 3: NVIDIA Shield 2.
But mostly for gaming, though the K1 processor should be great for all other tasks as well.

Right now I'm mainly playing with my iPad mini Retina. Eventually I couldn't resist and did the jailbreak. Very nice. But still more of a toy, than a real business machine...

And in general, Android still is #3 for me, far behind the others...

BTW: Microsoft did invite me to the introduction of Surface Pro 3 (since having pre-ordered early) to a luxury weekend in Berlin (for the first 30 respondents) for end of August. I didn't check out the details, I have been to Berlin only in February already. But I've never experienced this before, so obviously Microsoft is starting the marking machinery...

[Edy]

I'm in Chicago and saw today the Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10,1 and fall in love. I'm still here for three weeks and might order it from Amazon. It seems the price is everywhere the same for the 16GB white model.

Anybody here who bought it?

[Sweetpea]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

I haven't checked out yet. But I've read somewhere, Bluefire reader would be available for Windows 8.1.
I liked it a lot on my iPad, so it should be worth checking out for ePUBs.

I think it's horrible on tablets as it's purely made for monitors (landscape). And portrait mode isn't even considered.

[aceflor]

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

I think it's horrible on tablets as it's purely made for monitors (landscape). And portrait mode isn't even considered.

+1

Tried it, but meehhh...
Sweetpea, how are your 2 vivotabs doing ? Will you get a Surface Pro 3 ?

[aceflor]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

BTW: Microsoft did invite me to the introduction of Surface Pro 3 (since having pre-ordered early) to a luxury weekend in Berlin (for the first 30 respondents) for end of August. I didn't check out the details, I have been to Berlin only in February already. But I've never experienced this before, so obviously Microsoft is starting the marking machinery...

Lucky guy!! Go!!! I sooooo miss Berlin myself...

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by aceflor

Lucky guy!! Go!!! I sooooo miss Berlin myself...

I'm pretty sure, the 30 tickets are long gone.
And I wasn't much interested in joining a sales show.
If I hadn't already pre-ordered and if I was a developer, maybe I would have hoped for a free demo unit. Like the Google Chromebook Pixel I bought from a programmer, who got it for free on the Google developer days...

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by aceflor

+1

Tried it, but meehhh...
Sweetpea, how are your 2 vivotabs doing ? Will you get a Surface Pro 3 ?

I don't have the VivoTab Note 8, but Dell Venue 8 Pro and Lenovo ThinkPad 8.
Both are nowhere close to the class of Surface Pro 2.
I'd buy a Surface Pro mini anytime and I've got high hopes for the Surface Pro 3. I should have the Surface Pro 3 in 2 weeks. The event in Berlin is on August 29th, my Surface Pro 3 should ship on the 28th...