Tablets are a Waste of Time. Don't Buy One.

[Lemurion]

Originally Posted by Tacty

what about swivel adjustable monitors? cant beat the screen size with pc monitor put into portrait mode by rotating them for 180��

They're great for those who have them - but not everyone does. Also, most new computers are laptops, and the majority of people don't use an external monitor with them.

[ebusinesstutor]

The primary use of my smart phone/tablet is ebook and news reading.

I make the occasional phone call on it and sometimes write courses in Evernote, but reading is it's main use.

Rarely play games on it. I have computers and the Xbox 360 for that,

[medard]

Actually I have still some academic PDF files on CD-ROM that I couln't read for years. These are facsimiles of the original book pages, and quite large (up to 100MB).

Does this Nexus 7 thing have a slot for external storage (Micro SD)?

And could someone point me to a video where I could see a demonstration of the PDF features, especially making a memo inside a PDF file?

[Rizla]

Originally Posted by Corkobo

Well, after reading this thread I can hardly wait to get my cheap Chinese tablet (a 10" device for about £180 including import duty)

I'm not sure I see the point when you can get a samsung tab 2 for £238...

[wodin]

Originally Posted by Rizla

What do people use them for? Checking email, consuming digital content (!) and playing games. Great, that's fine. They are entertainment devices, they are time-wasters, they are a waste of time.

Every moment you spend wasting time on a tablet would be better spent reading a book or an ebook*.

*If you counter "But ah! I read on my tablet!" define what percentage of your glued-to-your-tablet time is spent reading.

Yes Rizla, and your point would be?

Ahhhh! I see, you would like to generate lots of response.

Spoiler:

It seems that you've succeeded.

[monkeygirl351]

Originally Posted by forsooth

Sentence not clear.
Do you pay only 30USD a month for data, phone, text all unlimited?

I pay 30 dollars for my unlimited data plan for my iPad. I got rid of my cellphone and if I'm out of the house, I use google voice or Skype on my ipad to text or if neccessary call someone. I use a Bluetooth headpiece on my iPad and it is just like using a Bluetooth headpiece for a cell phone. My cellphone plan before was 70 dollars a month so decided to get rid of it. At home I use a net talk duo which is 30 dollars a year and it plugs into our home Internet. I then plug a regular phone into it and I have unlimited local and long distance. We have e 911 for emergencies since VoIP phones don't have regular 911. All in all works great and is much cheaper, than the crazy data, text phone plans that cellphone carriers give you.

[dreams]

We are aware of the concerns about the controversial nature of the first post in this thread and do appreciate those members that have kept our guidelines in mind and chosen to just post about their tablet usage.

We do try our best to have MobileRead continue to be a helpful, friendly place to be and ask that members please keep our guidelines in mind when posting.

dreams/Moderation Team

[JoeD]

Originally Posted by Rizla

What do people use them for? Checking email, consuming digital content (!) and playing games. Great, that's fine. They are entertainment devices, they are time-wasters, they are a waste of time.

Every moment you spend wasting time on a tablet would be better spent reading a book or an ebook*.

*If you counter "But ah! I read on my tablet!" define what percentage of your glued-to-your-tablet time is spent reading.

What's wrong with consuming content now and then?

My kindle is used for only one thing, entertainment. Doesn't mean it's not worth having because I enjoy reading books. It could be used for education too, but amusingly, I use my tablet for reading educational/reference material.

I surf the web on my tablet, which is often related to researching programming or astronomy. I use it for displaying sheet music to play with my instruments. I do work on it typing up the odd note or answering emails.

Just because reading books is a valuable form of entertainment to some of us, does not make movies/music or games any less a valid form of entertainment. Unless all you ever read are factual and educational books.

All in all, it could be argued my kindle is more of a time waster than the tablet. But if you want to get into time wasters, look no further than my PC and the myriad of games and MMOs

May I cross the bridge now?

Actually, despite thinking the original post was [edit], it raises an interesting point, namely, how we view each others forms of entertainment and where we each draw the line between what is worthwhile and what is just wasting time (even if it's an entertaining waste of time).

Take listening to music, entertainment? waste of time? I'd certainly say not, but I'm struggling to justify why it's not. For those who consume it only that is and have no interest is making their own.

[QuantumIguana]

It's my time, I will decide what is the best use of my time. I can talk about what I like, and perhaps others might like the same thing, but that doesn't mean that others must like it as well.

In any case, a tablet doesn't imply being sedentary - if you're sedentary, why not just use a desktop computer? People often use tablets while their on the go. Someone might walk down to the coffee shop and use their tablet. That walk isn't insignificant.

Having a tablet doesn't mean that a person is not getting exercise. I'll take my daughter to the nature center, and we'll go for a hike. When we get to the play area, I'll sit down with my the Kindle Fire while she plays. Maybe I'll read. Or maybe I'll play Angry Birds. But I got some exercise.

[IcecreamLtDan]

My wife uses our tablet for work. She's a merchandiser and goes to stores, gas stations, restaurants and so forth to check on and put up adds, displays and the like. She uses the tablet to take pictures, fill out her reports, get manager approvals and things like that in real time that a laptop would make cumbersome and difficult.

Of course, I use the tablet for reading my comics and sitting on my butt in front of NFL redzone looking at stats.

[sparklemotion]

Originally Posted by DustyDisks

I have found in general that what is hers is hers, and what is yours is hers also!

LOL.

[medard]

Originally Posted by JoeD

Just because reading books is a valuable form of entertainment to some of us, does not make movies/music or games any less a valid form of entertainment. Unless all you ever read are factual and educational books.

The difference is quite easy: When you read a book - and it doesn't matter what sort of book it is - you create something on your own while reading. You create the images, you give life to everything that these letters are trying to express.

When you watch a movie, you just consume images that someone else made for you. These images try to give you the impression that they are more real then reality, but in fact you just consume what someone else wants you to see.

This is just my personal opinion about this difference.

As a reader, I'd always prefer a handheld device that is used for reading only.

Maybe Eink isn't the final solution, maybe we'll see some better display technologies in the future. Maybe even Epub will vanish one day, we don't know that. But I'm pretty sure most readers prefer a handheld device that they can use for reading alone. At least I do.

[Lemurion]

Originally Posted by medard

The difference is quite easy: When you read a book - and it doesn't matter what sort of book it is - you create something on your own while reading. You create the images, you give life to everything that these letters are trying to express.

When you watch a movie, you just consume images that someone else made for you. These images try to give you the impression that they are more real then reality, but in fact you just consume what someone else wants you to see.

This is just my personal opinion about this difference.

As a reader, I'd always prefer a handheld device that is used for reading only.

Maybe Eink isn't the final solution, maybe we'll see some better display technologies in the future. Maybe even Epub will vanish one day, we don't know that. But I'm pretty sure most readers prefer a handheld device that they can use for reading alone. At least I do.

I read comics and graphic novels as well as prose.

I cannot read them properly on Eink. By using a tablet I can read both prose and graphic novels on one device. For me, that makes a great deal of sense.

Your mileage may vary.

[medard]

Yes, you can't read comic books or PDF files on an Eink device. I know that. I own one.

This is annoying for sure.

On the other hand, I personally don't want a mini computer when I just want to read a book. And I don't want to charge my handheld each night, that's something that I really hate.. But If I need a tablet for PDF files, then I'll obviously need to get one one day. Maybe a PDF facsimile is in fact a much better book than an Epub or Mobi file. I don't know yet.

[Lemurion]

Originally Posted by medard

Yes, you can't read comic books or PDF files on an Eink device. I know that. I own one.

This is annoying for sure.

On the other hand, I personally don't want a mini computer when I just want to read a book. And I don't want to charge my handheld each night, that's something that I really hate.. But If I need a tablet for PDF files, then I'll obviously need to get one one day. Maybe a PDF facsimile is in fact a much better book than an Epub or Mobi file. I don't know yet.

I don't think a PDF facsimile is a better ebook than ePub or mobi. However, CBZ and other image archive formats do work better for comics as they help retain the structure of the page.