Android Tablet or Ipad.

[mayamaniac]

I made a demo video to show how Splashtop works with SageTV, so you can see what it exactly does:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8io1_nOdBs

Edit: I wanna add some important info to this. Splashtop does NOT encrypt data, so don't send your password or sensitive data through it if you are paranoid. Use Teamviewer if you want to do online banking or other private stuffs.

[SWKerr]

We had a family event this weekend with a bunch of iPads and Android tablets being played with and passed around. I have already gone full into the Android camp but it gave me a chance to spend some quality time with the iPad. I am actually shocked how quickly people have adopted Tablets.

I actually used an iPhone for about three years but in January went with the new Galaxy Nexus in its place. I have also had an Archos 70 for more than a year which was a cheap way to decide on the usefulness of tablets.

I actually did not think I would like a full size tablet. It seemed to big and heavy for reading and too limited for a laptop replacement. I did like the 7" Archos for Web surfing and as a reader as well for some lite gaming. I was really holding out for the Windows 8 touch screen ultra book.

I finally got to the point where I needed a new laptop. I still have a full size work laptop but it is big and slow to boot and I am limited on what I can put on it. I think there will be some sub $1,000 touch screen ultra books coming out next year but not much to choose from yet. The Asus Transformer seemed like it might meet my short-term needs so I decided to get one and wait until the ultra books got closer to what I really wanted.

I bought an Asus Transformer Prime (w/keyboard) on Craig's List from someone with iPad3 envy. Long story short I love it. I bought my son the original Transformer so I could actually get my hands on the prime on occasion.

It sits on my night stand and serves as my alarm clock. I use it in bed before I go to sleep to read the news and surf the web. I use in the morning to check my personal email before I even get out of bed. I thought it would be to heavy for reading but I end up propping it up on a small pillow on my chest. With the keyboard I can use it as a small laptop. The office app is not perfect but works for the kind of light work I do for scouts, church etc. Plays every media file I have tried including Flash. and it streams Netflix over wifi. I am really not sure I will even get a new laptop. It is not a PC replacement but that is more software at this point. I expect that to improve quickly. I really love the detachable Keyboard of the Transformers. The Keyboard is both a stand and a case that protects the screen. The Keyboard dock also extends the batter life by 6+ hours as well.

IPad vs Android:

I decided I did not want to be part of the Apple Eco system when I changed my phone. It is really a simple as Apple does not play well with others. They make Microsoft look flexible. Apple is also more prone to ban competitive services or apps.

The other issue was the customization. iOS has a simple easy to use interface that Apple goes to great pains to keep consistent. The iPad does not look bad but I love Android Widgets and customization options. (Without even a Jailbreaking.) This is even more important to me on a tablet where I have some much space for cool stuff.

I am torn on Windows 8 tablets. I wonder if they will get a lot of good inexpensive touch apps without cheap hardware. It is all about the apps with the tablet. It will probably be the best work tablet but with Android and iOS I am not sure how it will fare even with the Windows base to work from. The pricing I have seen to date does not bode well for huge consumer adoption any time soon. Microsoft will not have the cult like following that Apple currently enjoys. Still I see a Transformer like Windows Ultra book in my future at some point.

After playing with the iPad3 this weekend I can still say I have no regrets about going with Android and the Transformer. I would still prefer the original Transformer I got my son over an iPad3. My boss has an iPad3 with a Keyboard and case but it is just not the same as the Transformer experience.

[gilded07]

Originally Posted by mayamaniac

I made a demo video to show how Splashtop works with SageTV, so you can see what it exactly does:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8io1_nOdBs

Thanks for sharing maya - I have it up and running and I am amazed at how well it works. I will still use VNC to access the dedicated server that SageTV is on from other PCs / laptops in the house but this now makes the iPad a viable SageTV client.

From the Splashtop website, it looks like an app for the iPod Touch and Android might be coming soon.

[mayamaniac]

Originally Posted by gilded07

Thanks for sharing maya - I have it up and running and I am amazed at how well it works. I will still use VNC to access the dedicated server that SageTV is on from other PCs / laptops in the house but this now makes the iPad a viable SageTV client.

From the Splashtop website, it looks like an app for the iPod Touch and Android might be coming soon.

I switched from VNC to Teamviewer, it's a much better remote desktop software than all the VNC variants. I also like Teamviewer better than LogMeIn.

Splashtop is available for iPhone/iPod Touch, and for Android phones and Tablets. I'm not sure why they don't update their websites. They also have it for the discontinued WebOS (HP Touchpad). And there's a PC and Mac client.

[Olias]

+1 for both Teamviewer and Splashtop.

I use both for work and pleasure. Splashtop is best for popping onto my SageTV server and watching occasional video from my Galaxy Tab 10.1 or my Android phone. I (actually my company) has a corporate license for Teamviewer which I use for all other remote desktop needs. I've used uVNC and ultraVNC in the past, but responsiveness has always been an issue.
It also appears that the new Splashtop 2 now has encryption.

[ccsmoke]

Just wanted to note, splashtop 2 is a free upgrade for those that purchased it.

[panteragstk]

I have splashtop 2 and didn't have to pay anything? Or are you speaking of the android/iOS apps?

[PiX64]

Apparently all my video issues were Windows XP related. my sage server is still rockin xp... i installed splashtop on one of my windows 7 vms running inside of mac os x, now everythign is perfect!

[Dargason]

The splashtop streamer is free -- the apps you install on the mobile devices are not, though I actually got mine as an Amazon free app of the day.

[gilded07]

Originally Posted by panteragstk

I have splashtop 2 and didn't have to pay anything? Or are you speaking of the android/iOS apps?

Paid $1.99 on the apple app store to get the app on my iPad. The Splashtop Streamer software for my windows server was dl'd from the Splashtop website and was free.

[SWKerr]

You people really are a useful resource. I had been using VNC for remote access before reading this post. VNC is functional but splashtop is perfect. I can stream SageTV from my server to my Transformer Prime perfectly over WiFi. All other functions are also just like being there. SplashTop resizes to the Transformer screen size and everything is crystal clear.

As it turns out SplashTop comes with the Transformer so it did not even cost me anything.

Since I just had knee surgery and have been glued to the couch for the last several days this has been a very welcome upgrade.

Thanks!

[Naylia]

I have an iPad 2 and it comes pretty much everywhere with me.

To me the App ecosystem from Apple is essential and I suspect it's why my iPad comes many places with me and gets used for lots of things, while I have friends with Android tablets that tinkered with them and then now leave them at home. A tablet can be much more than a mobile web browser.

I also find a tablet is great at work when in meetings. Note taking or viewing other information no longer gets in-between you and the people across the table like a laptop does.

I edit documents, ppt, and photos on my iPad.

This year, I did my taxes on my iPad.

I can VPN in to my office network and have access to documents, etc.

My laptop is now getting locked in my desk and left at the office a few nights a week. It's just not necessary.


And Splashtop is great, I use it to remotely play MMOs that are on my home PC

[eric3a]

I guess I won't be answering the question right, but I've been using a Windows tablet since about November 11 and put Win8 on it when it first came out. It's a Kupa X11. Not the most powerful of machines but it has a big battery and goes on forever. It's a little heavier and thicker than current Android or Apple tablets, but then it does run full windows programs too.

I'm just a geek and like tinkering with machines, so a Win Tablet works real well for what I like doing.
One of the ting I like, amongst many other applications, is that I can just plug-in my 4G USB dongle I have for work and be connected at no additional fee. I just dislike the idea of needing a monthly bill for each device, which seems to be the thought behind phones/tablets nowadays.

I can use a full version of Office on it, so can connect to my work servers anywhere in the world, view and reply to emails, including all attachments. It has hdmi out, and a couple USB ports. The latter are rather vital to me, and no tablet would interest me without them.
I love the digitizer and OneNote also. Taking real written notes on my machine is great.

The "Metro" part of Win8 is cute, but the apps so far are kinda limited and I don't see why I should pay for any of them when most are not much better than what I could find for free on a website anyway. Or they have full windows freeware equivalent. Might as well just run the full program.

I'm quite looking forward to the next generation of Windows Tablets, with faster processor yet -I hope- still decent battery life. On some trips I already ditch the Vaio Z laptop, and I can imagine how, with a more powerful tablet that could become my only work machine. Just would need a couple base stations to easily connect it from my office and home office to real keyboard, screen, etc..

Eric

[phelme]

Originally Posted by Naylia

... I have friends with Android tablets that tinkered with them and then now leave them at home.

Then they didn't try hard enough.

[btrcp2000]

My two bits:

My kids and mother have ipods/ipads. They just want something that works, and don't want to experiment with the latest/greatest. I am the opposite, I love to play with doodads, so my kids iPods drive me nuts because everything is a menu, there's no good way to multitask from app to app, can't really do much more than what Jobs intended.

I have a transformer prime, which I use for work. I love it except when it becomes useless due to weak wifi. Works well enough at home, but when I'm in a new place, I always have to find the exact right spot in the restaurant for a good signal. I may consider the TF300 which supposedly has better wifi. Battery life is great though, as there s a spare battery in the keyboard.

I also have something that no one else will mention, an Archos g9 turbo 250gb 8 inch android tablet. I have had a few archos things as they are the only ones who make tabs with large storage (that i was able to find). Most had fatal flaws. I wanted something to mainly live on the nightstand for quick email/news checks, but also to use in the car for media without having to stream. It has hdmi out, so I paired it with a $150 ceiling mount dvd player from walmart with hdmi in. It cost me $280 on ebay (may have gotten lucky there), and I use it all the time, more than the tranformer. Rock stable, sleeps well so battery life is great even with the hard drive, and holds 250gb worth of stuff. If these things are of any use, check out archos.

[IVB]

in case you're wondering about the lack of SD slots on some of these options, here's my latest plan.

Getting my Nexus 7 today, wife has an iPad, we'll see how that goes.

[tvmaster2]

can you use Placeshifter on a Windows tablet?

[Striker:WG]

Originally Posted by Dargason

As others have said, it really matters what you plan to do with it.

For me, I mainly wanted something small that I could take with me when I travel. A requirement was that I could pull my SD card out of my camera, put it into the tablet, and review the photos. Streaming video wasn't a big deal (but all do that anyway.)

I bought an Asus Transformer TF300 last week. It does exactly what I wanted, and I've also found it useful for a few more things. The splashtop application (which you can get for any tablet, I think) has been handy for controlling my headless SageTV server in the basement without lugging a monitor and keyboard. I've found it is also acceptable for streaming SageTV, though I haven't tested it on a WiFi network other than my own.

I'll refrain from listing all the uses, because for the most part they can all do the same stuff. I chose to go android because:

1. I have an android phone, so it's a little easier to sync everything together
2. This tablet is a bit cheaper than the iPad (though probably not as 'snazzy'... it feels a bit cheap)
3. I'm not a fan of Apple's closed system. I had iTunes on my PC for a while for my iPod and I hated it.

I'm not an android fanboy... I think Apple's software design is generally better and easier to use. My mom has been asking about smartphones, and for her I'd recommend an iPhone. But for me the android was a (slightly) better fit.

could you elaborate on how you are streaming sagetv to your transformer? i've got a transformer prime and I haven't had any success with it working with sage yet

[Striker:WG]

never mind, after reading more of the thread I think I got my answer.

I was hoping there was an app that would allow me to act as more of a placeshifter than just a remote connection into a PC.

[hemicuda]

Originally Posted by IVB

in case you're wondering about the lack of SD slots on some of these options, here's my latest plan.

Getting my Nexus 7 today, wife has an iPad, we'll see how that goes.

Already doing this with my Kindle Fire. There's a youtube video about a powered external hub setup someone else is using. Haven't tried it with the Galaxy 10.1 yet, but it has a port adapter that's like 4-in-1 or so.