Do we need tablets any more?

[Dude]

I see fewer and fewer people buying tablets and instead buying cheaper laptops which do more and are generally more powerful, which is made apparent by recently published tablet sales figures. So that made me wonder whether tablets were even needed to begin with.

 

https://joshdoestech.wordpress.com/2016/03/13/is-the-tablet-redundant/

 

What do you think? Are tablets useless or just becoming more niche by catering to children and digital artists?

[79wjd]

Think about the use of tablets (light media consumption, light internet use, light email, etc...), so it's only natural that the sale of tablets falls off once everyone has a tablet since they're mostly used for very light weight tasks, and thus they basically last forever (for most people).

 

So, it's not that the need for tablets is diminishing, it's that everyone who wants a tablet already has one. 

[Fetzie]

I use mine for watching movies and reading books when I don't want to use a laptop, so I wouldn't say they're useless. That and my iPad has a seemingly never-ending time between charges (which a laptop definitely does not).

[ben dover kid]

good tablets last for a long time. i don't have a laptop nor a tablet, and id actually want one. i would love to have something with big screen that i can have for example in bed or couch or whatever. 

[Guest]

I love tablets. Great for when you dont want to carry around a heavy laptop but want a larger screen than a phone offers.

i think they're here to stay.

[Benergy]

5 minutes ago, Dude said:

I see fewer and fewer people buying tablets and instead buying cheaper laptops which do more and are generally more powerful, which is made apparent by recently published tablet sales figures. So that made me wonder whether tablets were even needed to begin with.

 

https://joshdoestech.wordpress.com/2016/03/13/is-the-tablet-redundant/

 

What do you think? Are tablets useless or just becoming more niche by catering to children and digital artists?

Did we ever need tablets? 

 

Like a laptop but with a smaller screen and janky virtual keyboard - so you can pretty much rule them out for doing anything productive.

 

They have only ever been good for quickly looking up a Youtube video or mobile apps/games, the only reason they became so widespread IMO was because of their 'coolness' factor, heavily propagated by Apple (the 'anything they make is fashionable and sells like hotcakes' effect, which makes other manufacturers make similar products, so consumers are swamped by them). Also because they seems 'futuristic' for non-techies, to have a 'full computer' as just a big touch screen, with most people not really understanding the hardware difference between a tablet and a PC.

[Dude]

15 minutes ago, Pearsonia said:

I love tablets. Great for when you dont want to carry around a heavy laptop but want a larger screen than a phone offers.

i think they're here to stay.

But what about Ultrabooks that are really light and still do more than the tablet? 

[Benergy]

22 minutes ago, djdwosk97 said:

Think about the use of tablets (light media consumption, light internet use, light email, etc...), so it's only natural that the sale of tablets falls off once everyone has a tablet since they're mostly used for very light weight tasks, and thus they basically last forever (for most people).

 

So, it's not that the need for tablets is diminishing, it's that everyone who wants a tablet already has one. 

Or realised that they never needed/wanted one in the first place after buying one, and effective marketing made them think they did (playing devil's advocate )

 

I've personally heard a lot of stories of tablet related buyer's remorse.

[GoodBytes]

Tablet sales are going down, including Apples, based on figures I recently saw.

However, hybrid laptops like the Surface Pro are increasing.

 

To me it shows that people prefer to have less systems that does what it does before. A powerful system to run their productivity software, and be comfortable as they use the system, and yet, can be converted as a tablet for media consumption. Technology has advanced to make this more and more possible. System is lighter, longer battery life, and thinner making it more comfortable to use.

 

We can see this being the case more so, by looking at new products from HP, Dell, and even Samsung, all being solid hybrid system, aiming more for the average consumer than the Surface Pro line, by opting with Core M CPUs, instead of a more powerful Core i5/i7 U series CPU. This also allows to have the system lighter, or pack a larger battery for longer battery life (and well also, cheaper, than the Surface Pro).

 

[Dude]

5 minutes ago, GoodBytes said:

Tablet sales are going down, including Apples, based on figures I recently saw.

However, hybrid laptops like the Surface Pro are increasing.

 

To me it shows that people prefer to have less systems that does what it does before. A powerful system to run their productivity software, and be comfortable as they use the system, and yet, can be converted as a tablet for media consumption. Technology has advanced to make this more and more possible. System is lighter, longer battery life, and thinner making it more comfortable to use.

 

We can see this being the case more so, by looking at new products from HP, Dell, and even Samsung, all being solid hybrid system, aiming more for the average consumer than the Surface Pro line, by opting with Core M CPUs, instead of a more powerful Core i5/i7 U series CPU. This also allows to have the system lighter, or pack a larger battery for longer battery life (and well also, cheaper, than the Surface Pro).

 

I think hybrids are the way to go as far as portable computing goes, although, I don't think I want smudges all over the same screen I'd use to play games, watch movies or do homework on.

[Godlygamer23]

53 minutes ago, Dude said:

[removed]

Please make sure you are reviewing all the available sub-forums before posting something.

 

Moved to Phones and Tablets.

[Dude]

3 minutes ago, valdyrgramr said:

I barely use mine  HTC Evo.

What made you buy it?

[JorenBus]

Why not, I use my iPad Air 2 several hours a day, I think it's awesome being able to browse reddit/facebook/youtube whatever while just laying in my bed.

I couldn't miss my tablet.

[Dude]

3 minutes ago, JorenBus said:

Why not, I use my iPad Air 2 several hours a day, I think it's awesome being able to browse reddit/facebook/youtube whatever while just laying in my bed.

I couldn't miss my tablet.

The way I see it is that tablets and phones need to stay away from beds because they really do affect your sleep.

[Allshevski]

Personally - no. I had a tablet once and since the charging cable broke I don't use it. Prefer my phone or my PC. Tablet is only house carrying internet device cos it's not portable and if you take it, your phone can do all of that.

[JorenBus]

3 minutes ago, Dude said:

The way I see it is that tablets and phones need to stay away from beds because they really do affect your sleep.

True, I'm aware of that, it's just too tempting

[Dude]

23 minutes ago, JorenBus said:

True, I'm aware of that, it's just too tempting

To be fair, my Kindle Fire gets used for e-books until I fall asleep =)

[Dude]

6 minutes ago, valdyrgramr said:

To see what the fuss was about.  Got it used.

Why not use it as a streaming machine if you have a Nvidia card? When you're away from your PC, you can play games on your tablet with a controller.

[durpflip]

personally,i think 8" - 11" tablets are still a necessity no matter how much slack it gets from fanboys. some people only use their devices for surfing the web and playing simple games, so cheap foxconn ARM wizardry fits the job like a glove.

[Dude]

5 hours ago, durpflip said:

personally,i think 8" - 11" tablets are still a necessity no matter how much slack it gets from fanboys. some people only use their devices for surfing the web and playing simple games, so cheap foxconn ARM wizardry fits the job like a glove.

Welcome to LTT! I think kids and graphics designers or digital artists need bigger tablets like that to either play or draw concepts and stuff on the go, but the tablet has worn out it's welcome elsewhere.

[vibeit]

I wouldn't really say they're useless. I have both a laptop and tablet. I can watch youtube videos and internet surfing on both. Also, If I am traveling and need to carry something light, the tablet will do. There are lots of things you can do with the tablet like taking pics when outdoors. I did buy my tablet a bluetooth keyboard, though, so I can type documents related to work if need be.

[Lethal Seraph]

I personally am looking for a Asus Zenpad 8 S. IDK if others don't like tablets, I for one want it for mobility reasons and since I got TWC- I can connect and watch shit wherever civilization with WIFI exists.

[pinksnowmanshandle]

I don't think tablets are going away, it's just that others have said people tend to not feel the need to upgrade their tablets as often as they might upgrade their phone.

 

I've still have a Nexus 7 (2012, 32GB Wifi) and while I don't use it because it takes forever to charge and has slowed down a lot from being dumb and updating it to 5.1.1 from like Jellybean 2 (4.3)...

When I have the money I'll probably buy an iPad Mini 4 or 5 or a Nexus 9.

[AU_Gundam]

While they aren't going away, I do see that a lot of companies are starting to decrease their output or stop making them entirely. 

Apple and Samsung are about the only mobile device making companies large enough to regularly release/update their tablet lines without worrying about incurring massive losses.