Should I get my husband a lap top or a tablet for Christmas?
He likes techy toys. I prefer stuff that just works straightforward. (I still have a basic flip phone, my choice.)
He plays games on his smart phone but I know he’d like something with a bigger screen.
I was looking at laptops and was asking about MS office programs, which no longer automatically come on the computer. Then I thought “He wouldn’t even use office anyway!”
I’d like a laptop…but this is his toy.
Does it sound like a tablet would be more up his alley than a laptop? Are they more or less expensive than lap tops?
Educate me please.
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Is he looking for fun or for actually being able to accomplish something?
You could always look at one of the many hybrid models the do both or come with a separate keyboard.
For fun I would go with a 10 ” toy tablet.
Money is a consideration.
He will likely have a strong preference either way – do you have any idea which he’d prefer?
Try a lap dancer & a tablet decreeing “Thou shalt not touch the poontang!”
IDK @glacial. I’m thinking probably a tablet because it’s the least sensible of the two. What exactly is a tablet anyway?
If he doesn’t have his own PC set-up at home, then a laptop. If he does, an iPad. Have a laptop at home as my main computer and an iPad for when I’m out of the house.
He does have a PC set up for work here at home. Can’t play on it tho.
What is the difference between a tablet and an iPad? Or IS there a difference?
Neither. If he doesn’t know exactly what he wants or needs right now, why bother trying to guess for him. It’s not an inexpensive guess ($179 – $499). Maybe he would just prefer to have his phone, which is with him at all times.
I think a device like this is such a personal preference thing, and really depends on the exact needs of the person who will be using it. If a tablet, there is size (7”, 8”, 10”) and OS (Android, iOS, or Kindle). If it’s a notebook, then again size as well as OS (Chrome, mac, windows).
An iPad is a tablet and had it since it first came out years ago. Still working great. I have my digital books there, movies, games etc. Great for surfing the net. New ones got a cool camera. You can shoot and edit movies. More toyish fun than a laptop.
But if your husband needs internet a lot, you have to get to a place with free wifi when outside like Starbucks for example. I have an ATT plan of 30 bucks a month just for my iPad. Also, I only get my music and movies from iTunes. Books I can buy either from iTunes or Amazon Kindle. Nifty delightful gadget.
See that’s part of what is driving me nuts. He has a Blackberry that his company provided him and they pay for it. But he won’t let go of his old phone because he wants to play, and we’re paying his monthly plan charge PLUS $25.00 to have internet on it. That in addition to the $25.00 we pay to have home internet. I just can NOT justify the expense.
However, he down loaded a program, Fox Fi, that turns his phone into a hot spot. I used to have an iPad from work, and it would run off of his phone like, when we were on the road. But….that’s a ridiculous expense IMO.
Only a guess but he like tech toys so he might have more fun having internet on a tablet than on his phone. Bigger screen for all that fun possibilities. I long ago gave up really smart expensive phones. Just need it to make and receive calls.
I pay Boostmobile 70 bucks a month unlimited calls. One can get it much lower I think but I need to call international once in a while so that’s 10 bucks extra a month.
Any suggestions on what kind of tablet or iPad?
^ You need to know what works best for you? Are you already invested in the Apple (iTunes) or Google (gmail, etc)? I personally like the Nexus 7 (it’s $180 – $200 in stores around here). But some people really prefer Apple. It depends. I have an iPad, and it does nothing I want it to do, so it just sits there. Occasionally, my wife uses it but complains about it.
Well, as long as you have internet you can get gmail. He has a gmail account, but he only got it to log in to fb.
I like the sound of the pricing though.
@Dutchess_III The newest iPad tablet is a really good bet. I’ll be surprised if your hubby doesn’t like it. Not sure how much it costs but with Apple, the problem is it’s never cheap.
You guys have given me a good place to start. Thanks.
Get him an hp Ultrabook. It’s a tablet and laptop in one and has gotten good reviews. You can get the 16 gB Slatebook for under $500.
Buy me one too, while you’re at it. :)
Walmart. When it says “Online” then the price…is price usually cheaper online than in the store?
I’m partial to Android tablets for fun and light work. Besides, Android devices can do things PCs can’t; why to you think there are Android-based consoles competing with PCs for your gaming dollars?
Also, if you shop around, you can pick up 2 Nexus 7s for the price of 1 iPad Mini. If money is a concern, then Apple shouldn’t even be considered. The only thing they sell that really is cost-competitive is the $3000 Mac Pro, and I don’t think your husband needs a dual-Xeon workstation.
I’m with those who have suggested an Android tablet with keyboard attachment. If you have a home desktop computer for the heavy work, the tablet will take care of anything you need on the go, and provide a nice toy for sitting in front of the TV. My son’s tablet spends more time on IMDB than anything while we’re watching old Twilight Zone reruns.
It’s done. Got a tablet. No keyboard. It looks like a giant touch phone with a screen he can see. He can down load movies and I bought a cable that will allow him to connect it to the TV. I put it in a big giant box so he’ll have no clue. They came down from $480 to $420. Because I was going to walk out if they didn’t.
I was worried about the movie down load thing ($$$) but hell. It sounds like we can cancel D-TV and just subscribe to Netflix.
Hell if I know! I’ll check in a bit.
Hell YES! And if you have Amazon Prime (and for $70 a year and free shipping for everything from toilet paper to book cases, why wouldn’t you?) you can stream movies and TV free there as well.
@jerv Really, you think only the Pro is an ok buy for the cash nowadays? The Mini seemed like the most competitive last time I looked into it, but I haven’t sat down to compare specs in a while.
@wildpotato I’m a gamer. I need better video than the Mini offers; no lower than my GTX465 or equivalent.
I hope he likes it…wouldn’t want a slap top in return. Worse yet, a stablet!
Congrats on making the decision and getting it done!
at first glance I thought this was asking if you should get your husband a lap dance for christmas!
Now just to be clear, was the Excite a tablet or a lapdance?
@Dutchess_III Hey, you’re the one buying him a dirty Christmas present. ;)
He is going to be sooooo disappointed!
It all depends on what he wants to do. If it’s purely a consumption device, such as email, games, movies, books, newspapers, etc., then a tablet. If he wants to create anything on it—like documents, then a laptop. But for simple email, a tablet is good. I have both and I use both. A laptop is more versatile, and personally, I prefer doing email on the laptop.
You don’t need to buy Microsoft Office for the laptop. Open Office is free and works about as well for general stuff.
Oh, and count me as another vote in for the touchy lap dance as opposed to the techy lap top.
Best of all possible worlds: I have an older laptop that vents quite a bit of heat out the bottom of the unit so my laptop can be nearly as good as a lap dance.
Eat your heart out, Duke III!
Well, perhaps I could set his laptop to steam and vibrate. There an app for that?
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