Tablet Devices with Pens. Which is the Best?

[AmeanAF]

Which one is the best for productivity? Can someone actually get use to it, and go Paperless? Which performs best? Which has the best features for writing? Which is worth investing?

The Surface Pro, The Surface Go,  Samsung's Galaxy Tab that have Pen support, Apple's IPad Pro with Pen, E-ink Digital Paper tablets that can annotate too like the reMarkable's and Sony's Digital Paper. Let me know what you think.

[Himommies]

Are you planning to buy one,If so whats your budget?

[kelvinhall05]

If you want a standalone device to replace a notebook, get something with an e-ink display. Batteries last weeks, they're relatively cheap, lightweight, and I personally think e-ink is sexy as fuck.

[TheGlenlivet]

Ipad pro.

I just went through this with my wife for her birthday.  Bought a windows PC returned it, then a surface returned it, then an ipad.

Ipad won, by a lot.

When it comes to acting like real paper, it's hard to beat Apple.

[DrMacintosh]

iPad Pro with a 2nd gen Apple Pencil

[ARikozuM]

If you're looking for a writing tablet, go with an iPad Pro and 2nd gen Pencil (or a 2019 iPad and a 1st gen Pencil).

 

Most other tablets I've used have jitter with pens (when I try to roll my pen for calligraphy I expect the behavior to be a certain way, but with most pens the angle of the pencil doesn't matter) whereas the Pencil has done a much better job sensing the rolls without emphasizing them. 

[Drak3]

4 hours ago, AmeanAF said:

The Surface Pro,  Samsung's Galaxy Tab that have Pen support, Apple's IPad Pro with Pen

For basic usage, the difference will literally just boil down to two things:

Your preference in operating systems and your preference on pens vs pencils..

 

 

 

Having used all three extensively, the main difference in writing experience is that writing on the Surface has a more natural, pen and paper feel to it out of the box, the other two can get the same effect with a basic screen protector. Unless you load a shit ton of bloatware on your device, you're also not going to see any difference in writing quality or input lag between them.

[Darkseth]

Depends what exactly you want to do with it.

 

If it's going paperless = Digital Note Taking, the Ranking is:

 

iOS >> Windows > Android.

 

iOS wins simply because it has the best performance per Money spend, and the best App availability. There are multiple VERY good apps, with high support (Notability + GoodNotes 5 beeing the most popular. Also, Noteshelf 2, NotesPlus if you like that... But Notability + GoodNotes 5 would be my choice.).

Long Updates, a hell lot of very good Apps, very good and stable performance, and battery Life.

 

Windows simply, because the OS is still useable as a Notebook replacement with ideal Office capabilities, while also having Microsoft OneNote available (but still, this is worse than what iOS offers - because it's only 1 app. All Digital Note Taking apps have their pros and cons. If there are many things you dislike about OneNote, well.. get used to it.

For pure and only Digital Note Taking, there is nothing i can think of, that Windows does better than iOS.

 

Android last place (i would even go as far and say: do not consider it at all), because Android is dead. google gave up on it, and developers don't really code many Apps optimized for Tablets - and there is a huge lack of high quality Apps. it simply can't compete with what iOS offers, it's a hole other world.

 

Still, Android on Tablets does have it's very awesome Perks for specific things. Media center (file system, sd card support, 16:10 formats), or watching anime streams / reading Manga (there are very awesome Apps for it. Manga Rock for example is available as a "Definite" Edition, which includes licenced Mangas too. iOS Version does not have this).

But Note Taking / being productive is really not in Android's Favour.

 

 

What is your Budget?

If you stick to iPads, my Ranking would be:

 

1. iPad Pro 2018 (11" or 12.9", whatever you prefer) + Apple Pencil 2

2. ipad Pro 2017 (2nd generation. 10.5" and 12.9", featuring the Apple A10X Chip) + Apple pencil 1

3. iPad Air 3 / iPad Mini (same specs, different sizes) + Apple pencil 1

4. iPad 2018 + Apple pencil 1

 

 

[Commodus]

22 hours ago, AmeanAF said:

Which one is the best for productivity? Can someone actually get use to it, and go Paperless? Which performs best? Which has the best features for writing? Which is worth investing?

The Surface Pro, The Surface Go,  Samsung's Galaxy Tab that have Pen support, Apple's IPad Pro with Pen, E-ink Digital Paper tablets that can annotate too like the reMarkable's and Sony's Digital Paper. Let me know what you think.

I'd skew toward the iPad as well, since it both has the software you need and the portability.  The iPad Pro would be ideal since you could use the latest-generation Pencil, but that might be overkill unless you're intending to use the device for considerably more.  The iPad Air is a better bet if you don't mind the first-gen Pencil and still want ideal performance.

 

If not that, a Surface Go (the higher-spec model with 8GB of RAM, preferably) would be good simply because you'd have tight OneNote integration and, if it matters, a conventional Windows PC.  It's not as portable or long-lived as an iPad, but you do have a flexible platform.

[Teddy07]

I recently bought a used Ipad Pro (1st gen) with Pencil for university. I can recommend if you don´t want to spend a fortune on the newest ipad pro.  There are many videos on youtube showing you how the ipad pro performs.