Windows RT Tablet/Laptop

[Durvelle27]

Has anybody used one of these before. If so how was the experience and what what the model of the tablet/Laptop.

 

[erixx]

This very night I opened a User Account for myself on my wifes win8.1 RT Surface and it is bloody delicious!
Really... it is an OS. Contrary to iOs or Android that are a bunch of apps. You understand... Of course, remember get full Office with Outlook, but all other software depends of people willing to develop it. FOR ME IT IS MORE THAN ENOugh. MORE! I don't need apps, really, for newspapers, etc. I go to their website with IE11.

 

[newtekie1]

Windows 8/8.1 RT is total garbage. There is a reason Microsoft has be stuck with massive overstocks of SurfaceRTs just sitting in warehouses.

If all you are going to do is run Microsoft Office and browse the web, it will do that just fine. But forget about doing much else.

You can't install any traditional Windows software, and you can't install 3rd party apps. So you have to rely on what is in the Microsoft Apps store if you want. You can tachnically side-load apps, but mostly anything worth side-loading to the average user is already available on the app market. You can't even install Chrome or Firefox, you are forced to use IE11.

I had the "pleasure" of setting up a ASUS VivoTab RT with a Tegra3 for a client the other day and it was painful. Besides being rather sluggish once they found out Chrome wouldn't work and there were no drivers for their less than 1yr old printer, as well as most other Windows programs not working, they boxed the thing back up and shipped it back.

They then bought the Lenovo IdeaTab with an Atom Z2760 and regular Windows 8, which was $50 cheaper than the ASUS VivoTab RT. The IdeaTab runs so much smoother thanks to the faster Atom(who would have ever though we'd be saying the Atom processor was faster than anything). And he was very happy that he could load all his normal Windows Apps.

 

[erixx]

You are unconscious or just trying to fool people. there are tablets and pcs. If you want a pc, ultrabook or whatever full windows, you got options, even top-level semiPC tablets for 1000 € or more..
If you want a tablet you have choices from cheap chinese androids up to samsungs, asus' and surfaces and whotnot.
Everybody has different needs. No reason to insult and call some devices garbage.
I have a Asus Transformer 101 and a Nexus 7 (androids), and I like Surface RT much more.
Sometimes theoretical techheads just look delusional drunken in a world of blablabla....
And someones client's stories, well, let me make a healthy laugh!

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Windows 8/8.1 RT is total garbage. There is a reason Microsoft has be stuck with massive overstocks of SurfaceRTs just sitting in warehouses.

If all you are going to do is run Microsoft Office and browse the web, it will do that just fine. But forget about doing much else.

You can't install any traditional Windows software, and you can't install 3rd party apps. So you have to rely on what is in the Microsoft Apps store if you want. You can tachnically side-load apps, but mostly anything worth side-loading to the average user is already available on the app market. You can't even install Chrome or Firefox, you are forced to use IE11.

I had the "pleasure" of setting up a ASUS VivoTab RT with a Tegra3 for a client the other day and it was painful. Besides being rather sluggish once they found out Chrome wouldn't work and there were no drivers for their less than 1yr old printer, as well as most other Windows programs not working, they boxed the thing back up and shipped it back.

They then bought the Lenovo IdeaTab with an Atom Z2760 and regular Windows 8, which was $50 cheaper than the ASUS VivoTab RT. The IdeaTab runs so much smoother thanks to the faster Atom(who would have ever though we'd be saying the Atom processor was faster than anything). And he was very happy that he could load all his normal Windows Apps.

Very few programs and extremely few drivers exist for ARM-based Windows. You need to be comparing RT to other tablets like iPad, not laptops.

 

[newtekie1]

You are unconscious or just trying to fool people. there are tablets and pcs. If you want a pc, ultrabook or whatever full windows, you got options, even top-level semiPC tablets for 1000 € or more..
If you want a tablet you have choices from cheap chinese androids up to samsungs, asus' and surfaces and whotnot.
Everybody has different needs. No reason to insult and call some devices garbage.
I have a Asus Transformer 101 and a Nexus 7 (androids), and I like Surface RT much more.
Sometimes theoretical techheads just look delusional drunken in a world of blablabla....
And someones client's stories, well, let me make a healthy laugh!

Of course there are options, and one of those options is a tablet that runs traditional Windows, and that option is far superior. Maybe you've been under a rock, but there are now Atom based tablets, and they rock the socks off anything ARM based.

Very few programs and extremely few drivers exist for ARM-based Windows. You need to be comparing RT to other tablets like iPad, not laptops.

I am comparing tablet to tablet, no where did I mention anything about a laptop. In fact both are tablets, in the same price range, in the same form factor. At this point I don't know why anyone would sacrifice the functionality of a full PC to use an RT tablet. There is just no reason for it when there are Atom based Windows 8 tablets in the same price range and same form factor.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

Atom is x86 = Windows 8, not Windows 8 RT. ARM would be Android powered devices and iPad.

And yes, that's a good point that if you can get x86 for cheaper than ARM, do it; just be mindful that x86 hardware requirements (especially RAM) are greater than ARM. Just don't expect ARM Windows to be anything like x86 Windows because it is not.

 

[Dos101]

Has anybody used one of these before. If so how was the experience and what what the model of the tablet/Laptop.

I have the RT 32GB with 8.1. Threw a 64GB microsSD card in it and all my music and now I have my music collection wherever I am. Xbox Music isn't the greatest but it gets the job done.

Browsing is pretty good. Some of the heavier sites slow down a bit, but otherwise I've been able to browse pretty much anything on it, even flash sites (Microsoft has a whitelist of sites with flash, so not all sites will work). We use Google docs at work and I've had no issues opening up numerous tabs with docs, email, calendar etc.

I mostly use my RT for note taking in meetings (I'm a heavy OneNote user) but it's been better than I thought, hence using it for more than just notes.

It's not quite a full PC (no x86 application support) but you have all of the built in Microsoft programs and utilities. I use RDP and PowerShell religiously at work so this was a big bonus.

It works better than most will admit. If you're looking at one and the price is right, go for it.

 

[Frick]

I'd love to have an MS Surface. Maybe the price on those will drop even more when the second one comes out? Here's hoping. Gotta clear stocks somehow.

 

[Durvelle27]

This was gonna be for school for taking notes etc.

 

[Dos101]

I'd love to have an MS Surface. Maybe the price on those will drop even more when the second one comes out? Here's hoping. Gotta clear stocks somehow.

They're $350 right now (price drop was a couple months ago as I recall) and will probably stay that way until EOL. Supposedly Microsoft will continue selling the RT until they release a Surface mini (*8" tablet) sometime next year. On Ebay and similar sites have the 32GB Surface RT going for less than $300, might be worth it to check it out.

This was gonna be for school for taking notes etc.

Should be fine for that, unless there's a specific application that you would need to install. I use Evernote and OneNote on my RT, as well as Google Docs through the browser, works perfectly.

 

[Frick]

They're $350 right now (price drop was a couple months ago as I recall) and will probably stay that way until EOL. Supposedly Microsoft will continue selling the RT until they release a Surface mini (*8" tablet) sometime next year. On Ebay and similar sites have the 32GB Surface RT going for less than $300, might be worth it to check it out.

The price is the problem. The Surface 2 is about €80 more than the first one, and while it might not be €80 better, it'd feel silly buying the older one.

 

[Dos101]

The price is the problem. The Surface 2 is about €80 more than the first one, and while it might not be €80 better, it'd feel silly buying the older one.

Personally I think the Surface 2 is that much better to justify the price (which is why I pre-ordered one). 1080p display, better battery (about 10-12 hours now battery life now), dual kickstand, MUCH better CPU/GPU. Looking at the some of the videos of comparison's between the Surface 2 and RT, everything is smoother on the Surface 2. Given the build quality and design, I personally feel the price is adequate, especially given how much iPad's cost.

The Surface RT is still a good device though. I mean functionality wise it's still better than an iPad and most Android tablets (the only real thing it loses in is the number of apps available in the Store for it). I guess it depends how much you feel like spending and what you're looking for.

 

[Durvelle27]

OK so I ordered a Dell XPS 10 for $155 off eBay. Hopefully it satisfies my needs.

 

[Durvelle27]

Received my Dell XPS 10 32GB yesterday and i have been playing with it since then. At first i thought from reviews it would be mediocre but i'm very impressed and more than satisfied with it. Its been updated to Windows RT 8.1. Its very snappy even after loading 30+ Apps, Able to snap two apps side by side and use them at the same time is pretty great and it supported my wireless keyboard & mouse and Xbox 360 controller out of the box. Was able to play a good majority of games using the 360 controller with no problems which is pretty neat. Only cons i have so far is its pretty hefty and camera quality isn't the best even being 5MP. Overall it satisfied all my needs plus more.


Dell XPS 10 Specs:

Display: 10.1"
Resolution: 1366x768
CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 (Dual Core) 1.5GHz
GPU: Adreno 225
RAM: 2GB
Storage: 32GB Flash (Expandable via MicroSD)
Rear Camera: 5MP
Front Camera: 2MP

 

[Dos101]

Received my Dell XPS 10 32GB yesterday and i have been plating with it since then. At first i thought from reviews it would be mediocre but i'm very impressed and more than satisfied with it. Its been updated to Windows RT 8.1. Its very snappy even after loading 30+ Apps, Able to snap to apps side by side and use them at the same time is pretty great and it supported my wireless keyboard & mouse and Xbox 360 controller out of the box. Was able to play a good majority of games using the 360 controller with no problems which is pretty neat. Only cons i have so far is its pretty hefty and camera quality isn't the best even being 5MP. Overall it satisfied all my needs plus more.


Dell XPS 10 Specs:

Display: 10.1"
Resolution: 1366x768
CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 (Dual Core) 1.5GHz
GPU: Adreno 225
RAM: 2GB
Storage: 32GB Flash (Expandable via MicroSD)
Rear Camera: 5MP
Front Camera: 2MP

I read some reviews on how mediocre it was as well, but a buddy of mine had it for a while and I had a chance to play with it (back when it was running Windows 8.0). Actually wasn't a bad device at all, felt a little snappier than my Surface RT doing some tasks. Glad to see 8.1 improved it though. People can knock RT all they want but they are incredibly useful devices. Congrats on the purchase!

 

[Durvelle27]

I read some reviews on how mediocre it was as well, but a buddy of mine had it for a while and I had a chance to play with it (back when it was running Windows 8.0). Actually wasn't a bad device at all, felt a little snappier than my Surface RT doing some tasks. Glad to see 8.1 improved it though. People can knock RT all they want but they are incredibly useful devices. Congrats on the purchase!

Thx and 8.1 did improve performance over 8.0. Feels much smoother and snappier when switching between tasks and apps load a little quicker also.

 

[erixx]

at home we have surface 1 and 2. perfect experience, solid build, no revolutionary diferences between 1 and 2. Everything it has is just perfect, from videoconferencing to Word reviewing. No BF4 of course, haha.
My asus transformer 100 is falling apart after 2 years. These look much stronger.