The Alchemist on 2/3/2011 at 18:50
Xoom = ordered. ETA: Tomorrow. (Free overnight shipping).
Renzatic on 2/3/2011 at 19:17
...and the iPad 2 has been previewed. Thinner, lighter, finally has cameras and an HDMI out port (adapter sold separately), but overall isn't that huge of a boost over the original. The processor is faster, but it has the same amount of ram, and same 1024x768 screen. When you consider how anal Apple is with the app store, and how limited iOS is in comparison to Honeycomb, the iPad isn't quite as appealing to me anymore.
Apple still has the better selection of apps though. Bah. Fuck it. I should just buy a really thin laptop. I lose the touch and comfortability, but I gain so much more in other areas. Other than being able to goof around on the internet, or play some games, the tablets won't do what I want them to do for a couple of years yet.
I'll let you be the tablet guinea pig, Alchemist. Unless you wanna sell your iPad 1 for really cheap. I'll join in the fray then.
demagogue on 3/3/2011 at 04:07
Quote Posted by gunsmoke
I LOVE MY DIRT CHEAP DUAL-CORE NETBOOK.
Ditto, Asus. I got mine for <$200 slightly used off Amazon, 250 gig HD; I have a zillion movies, books, and games on it that go anywhere I go. Has surprisingly decent performance considering. Battery lasts something insane like 6+ hours. And the thing is tiny. I thought it was a compromise but I love the damn thing and can't imagine anything better for how I use it whatever the price.
gunsmoke on 3/3/2011 at 12:23
Yeah, I wasn't entirely thrilled with the 1st generation netbooks' performance. It was merely adequate. Besides, as a general rule of thumb I avoid 1st gen everything (cars, electronics, etc..) anyway. I wanted to wait and see if the Atom cpu would go multi-core or at least get a higher clock speed without compromising too much battery life. I, too, get at least 6 hours on the Asus which is nice considering my old single-core notebook gets 3 and is a lot slower.
Anyway, gaming is great on it. I mean playing relatively modern 3D games on lunch break is sweet. I haven't tried to push the hardware to see what games it can run, but I play the orig. Serious Sam games, Deus Ex, Project I.G.I. 1 and 2, Arx Fatalis, Half_Life/Blue Shift/Op4, and Morrowind with ease.
BTW, I have a backpack that I bought for work. It was designed as a laptop bag and has a well-padded slip pocket against the back for a notebook/netbook as well as having special pockets just for headphones, mice, cables/wires, sunglasses, and even a mesh pocket for water. I can put all of my paperwork and odds and ends for work in it and carry all of the above together. I used to have to carry 2 separate bags, and this is great as I am on the go at work constantly. I highly recommend looking into one if your job requires you to be mobile throughout the day like me, or if you have a long commute on public transportation. (
http://www.targus.com/us/productdetail.aspx?regionId=7&sku=TSB175US&PageName=Laptop%20Backpacks&productCategoryId=4&bucketTypeId=0&searchedTerms=&navlevel1=&cp=undefined&bannertxt=Backpacks%20for%20Laptops) Link
demagogue on 3/3/2011 at 16:47
Quote Posted by gunsmoke
I mean playing relatively modern 3D games on lunch break is sweet. I haven't tried to push the hardware to see what games it can run, but I play the orig. Serious Sam games, Deus Ex, Project I.G.I. 1 and 2, Arx Fatalis, Half_Life/Blue Shift/Op4, and Morrowind with ease.
Yeah I have a lot of the same games. Great for commutes and hanging out somewhere.
And it will run something like Minecraft & Defcon, and most all contemporary homebrew games.
I can get up to about 2003-5 full-scale games. It'll run Vietcong, Anachronox, the GTAs <4, Need for Speed Hot Pursuit 2, NOLF, it used to run Vampire Bloodlines but a driver update killed that, and best for me Doom3/Darkmod, where it starts slowing down, maybe not great for playing, but it's good enough for me to map on Darkmod and see it in-game. Haven't tried HL2. Mirror's Edge is over the line.
But I play so many retro games that run fantastic. It's almost a blessing in disguise because I'm playing so many of these games I probably wouldn't have got to otherwise ... HL1, Planescape, Fallout, Morrowind, etc, and a lot of oldschool console games, all on this little netbook.
catbarf on 3/3/2011 at 17:39
I look at products like the iPad and Xoom and while they have some appeal to me, their price makes them impossible to justify. I'm typing this on an Acer netbook, which has become my travel device. Its length and width are smaller than that of an actual spiral notebook, and with a cheap carrying bag is very portable. Stock it was alright with a dual-core processor, but now with 2GB of DDR3 RAM it boots quickly, loads software quickly, and does everything I need it to with a minimum of frustration, and has in total cost me $400 (case included). I guess my point is that portable devices have a ways to go before they can compete with netbooks and laptops for price, even if they have similar performance.
And it's nice to be able to play Deus Ex anywhere. Even Half-Life 2 runs nicely, I've been able to play Garry's Mod without issue.
Renzatic on 3/3/2011 at 18:59
Quote Posted by Subjective Effect
£500 for the Xoom, which seems reasonable, but the what's all this about a wifi version? If this is wifi only and I'll have to pay more for 3G access I won't be happy. Else I think this might be my next tech purchase.
Prepare yourself to be not happy then. £500/$600 is for the wifi only version. To get 3G, you'll have to plunk down an extra £150 at least, or go with a two year cellco contract.
SubJeff on 3/3/2011 at 19:31
I'm sure I'll be able to tether it to my Nexus One to use it's 3G though. Why didn't I think of that earlier?! :D \o/
