Last week I got a sneak preview of the new HP Slate 2 tablet. It’s pretty cool – it weighs just over a pound and runs Windows 7. If the iPad 2 is like a big magazine in size, the Slate 2 is more like a big paperback. With a USB or Bluetooth keyboard it could be a good writer’s portable. Unlike the iPad, it comes with a stand and a case. Anyhow, here’s my exclusive unboxing video. I think I may be the first person to have reviewed it! (Given that, it’s not big surprise that HP is a client at Articulate Marketing.)
Yeah, but haven’t you just described a netbook?
I’m still wrestling with the whole idea of a writer’s portable computer, and I’m not sure if a Netbook is a laptop that’s simply too small, or a brilliant clamshell-style tablet design that lacks a touchscreen but includes a worthwhile keyboard (and takes up less space than keyboard + tablet).
As you can see, there’s nothing clear cut about this stuff.
Some time ago I bought an iPad (wanted to stay current on mobile marketing), but my three year-old has basically claimed it (and I couldn’t live with the lack of ports or a file system), so I just ordered a Toshiba Thrive (only $299).
I’m starting to believe that nothing can be considered a real “writer’s computer” unless it can be easily disconnected from the Internet…
No, because historically were built to a low price. Increasingly, though, they’re just cheap laptops. This is really distinct tablet PC running Windows. I like it a lot but I’m not sure I would call it a writer’s computer. I’ve gone through a lot of very light, very portable but ultimately unusable laptops. There were a couple in the past that worked okay, a Toshiba and a Dell (this is 10 and 15 years ago respectively) but now I use a MacBook Air for writing on the move and it’s lovely.
I was alluding more to form factor than construction; I’ve seen quite a few blogs/reviews suggesting tablets were the new black for writers, though once you add a keyboard of some kind, the form factor isn’t any better than a netbook.
My Starling netbook has turned out to be pretty good; I’m not sure I’d want to write a trilogy on the thing, but the small form factor and long battery life are useful. It’s less powerful than my other laptop, but then it’s running Linux, which is pretty snappy.
Computer hardware for writers is definitely in flux (I keep seeing references to aspiring screenwriters updating their screenplays from their iPhones, which beggars belief). Where it ends up should prove interesting…
Yes, I know what you mean. I’ve had a few netbooks in my time but I always found them a bit slow – slow to start, to wake and load Word. I had a tiny little Sony which had a great keyboard for a small system but the battery life was 1.5 hours and it was really, really slow. I certainly wouldn’t want to write more than 100 words on a touchscreen under any circumstances, though. I have no idea how other people manage it.