Initial thoughts:
My first-generation iPad is a much better device. Apple got it right. It does everything so right that you don't even notice, until you try something else... and now that I have tried something else, I'm pretty disappointed. Almost to the point where I will "eat" the $105 restocking fee to send the Thinkpad back.
What do I mean by "you don't even notice"? Take a pencil, for instance. It basically just works. Remember those stupid foam-rubber things that people would put on the pencil to make a futile attempt to improve.. the pencil??? Well, I consider the iPad to be a pencil. It performs perfectly for doing what you would expect it to do. Any additional functionality seems to be unnecessary and simply over-complicates things... (not sure if the phrase "simply over-complicate" even makes sense...)
Quality:
There is no question regarding the difference in quality between the 2 devices. The iPad's simple design, metal back plate and quality screen are no match for the seemingly cheap construction of the Thinkpad and the plastic case it has.
Connector:
I am not a huge fan of the proprietary "iPad/iPhone connector", but I have been using that connector for years now and NEVER had an issue. I am already worried about the micro-USB connector for the TPT. One advantage the TPT has over the iPad is the number of external interfaces/connectors. The TPT has a micro-USB, full-size USB, dock-port, SD card slot. Also - the SD card is simply a device - there doesn't have be particular folders, etc... like you might expect if you were using it with a camera, or something.
Interface:
I don't like the TPT Android interface nearly as much as IOS. It seriously bothers me to say it... but IOS is just simple. Finding applications and setting up your "desktop" is simple. The interface on the TPT Android is so busy I am left wondering where I am supposed to go to find things, change settings, etc... I uninstalled a free/demo app recently because I bought the full version and now I have a stale icon on the desktop that I can't use, nor can I figure out how to remove the icon.
The TPT has a Stylus that actually works really well. But when you are using it, you realize how much you would rather NOT be using it and to have an interface where a stylus would not be possible.
The TPT keyboard would often lose sensitivity to finger touch and would require the stylus.
File Management:
This was essentially the sole reason I had purchased an Android rather than another iPad. What a monumental mistake that was. I bought the 64 GB version so I could copy all of my documentation, project plans, etc.. to the device so I could reference them practically any time. I also installed a 32 GB SD card. At this point I am left using "Docs to Go" to access the files in a horrible application-specific browser. I am still unclear exactly how I would put any audio files on the device and worse yet how I would play them. I have attempted to use WinAmp (due to familiarity with the Windows product) and that crashes every time I try to use it.
Summary:
if you want a $700 web browser tablet, this device is great. Otherwise, the Lenovo Thinkpad Tablet is cumbersome, confusing and performs poorly.
At this point I am extremely disappointed, somewhat saddened and growing angry with the whole experience. I absolutely LOVE my Lenovo Thinkpad T520. The tablet, however, is lacking and it will take quite a bit to win me over.
Cons:
My first-generation iPad is a much better device. Apple got it right. It does everything so right that you don't even notice, until you try something else... and now that I have tried something else, I'm pretty disappointed. Almost to the point where I will "eat" the $105 restocking fee to send the Thinkpad back.
What do I mean by "you don't even notice"? Take a pencil, for instance. It basically just works. Remember those stupid foam-rubber things that people would put on the pencil to make a futile attempt to improve.. the pencil??? Well, I consider the iPad to be a pencil. It performs perfectly for doing what you would expect it to do. Any additional functionality seems to be unnecessary and simply over-complicates things... (not sure if the phrase "simply over-complicate" even makes sense...)
Quality:
There is no question regarding the difference in quality between the 2 devices. The iPad's simple design, metal back plate and quality screen are no match for the seemingly cheap construction of the Thinkpad and the plastic case it has.
Connector:
I am not a huge fan of the proprietary "iPad/iPhone connector", but I have been using that connector for years now and NEVER had an issue. I am already worried about the micro-USB connector for the TPT. One advantage the TPT has over the iPad is the number of external interfaces/connectors. The TPT has a micro-USB, full-size USB, dock-port, SD card slot. Also - the SD card is simply a device - there doesn't have be particular folders, etc... like you might expect if you were using it with a camera, or something.
Interface:
I don't like the TPT Android interface nearly as much as IOS. It seriously bothers me to say it... but IOS is just simple. Finding applications and setting up your "desktop" is simple. The interface on the TPT Android is so busy I am left wondering where I am supposed to go to find things, change settings, etc... I uninstalled a free/demo app recently because I bought the full version and now I have a stale icon on the desktop that I can't use, nor can I figure out how to remove the icon.
The TPT has a Stylus that actually works really well. But when you are using it, you realize how much you would rather NOT be using it and to have an interface where a stylus would not be possible.
The TPT keyboard would often lose sensitivity to finger touch and would require the stylus.
File Management:
This was essentially the sole reason I had purchased an Android rather than another iPad. What a monumental mistake that was. I bought the 64 GB version so I could copy all of my documentation, project plans, etc.. to the device so I could reference them practically any time. I also installed a 32 GB SD card. At this point I am left using "Docs to Go" to access the files in a horrible application-specific browser. I am still unclear exactly how I would put any audio files on the device and worse yet how I would play them. I have attempted to use WinAmp (due to familiarity with the Windows product) and that crashes every time I try to use it.
Summary:
if you want a $700 web browser tablet, this device is great. Otherwise, the Lenovo Thinkpad Tablet is cumbersome, confusing and performs poorly.
At this point I am extremely disappointed, somewhat saddened and growing angry with the whole experience. I absolutely LOVE my Lenovo Thinkpad T520. The tablet, however, is lacking and it will take quite a bit to win me over.
Cons:
- You can't actually touch/test/etc... a Thinkpad tablet. There are no retailers that carry them in stock.
- 802.11n doesn't seem to work if you are connecting to an Apple Airport Extreme. The 'n' capability may not work at all. I don't have a network to attempt to attach to other than my Airport - so, it's difficult to say what the problem might be. UPDATE: It turns out that I needed an education. I had assumed that ANY 'n' device was also a 5GHz device. Apparently that is NOT the case and I believe my Aiport Extreme uses 5 GHz for the 'n' network.
- The thing took around 3 weeks to be delivered. Fairly unacceptable for anything nowadays, let alone a fairly standardized device like a tablet (i.e. very little customization is possible).
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