Thinkpad Tablet 2 - Initial Impressions

[noxxle]

The backplate appears and feels plastic, but no flex or creaking. It has a good grip too. Unfortunately, picks up fingerprints easily.

*correction* --slight bit of flex in some areas. Most notably a inch or two under the Thinkpad logo on the back.

[Sharky944]

I have a couple of questions.

1: How long does it take for a cold bootup?
2: How is the handwriting recognition after calibration? What apps are recommended? Could you take a video of you trying it out? I am thinking about purchasing one but it all depends on how well this can be used to take notes.
3: How long does it take to load normal apps? (Firefox, Office, etc)

Any videos would be greatly appreciated.

[noxxle]

How do you want me to measure a cold boot? From power button to login screen, or to the tiles?

Handwriting recognition with the default keyboard alt thing has been so-so. Seems to get half of my words wrong. Might be my sloppy handwriting though. Onenote probably has a separate applet for recognition. I haven't tried many notetaking apps yet.

Launching any web browser is very fast. Takes a second or two. Don't have word installed. Some programs, such as steam, take considerably longer than on my desktop. I think the last time i loaded steam it took at least 20 seconds.

[Sharky944]

How do you want me to measure a cold boot? From power button to login screen, or to the tiles?

Handwriting recognition with the default keyboard alt thing has been so-so. Seems to get half of my words wrong. Might be my sloppy handwriting though. Onenote probably has a separate applet for recognition. I haven't tried many notetaking apps yet.

Launching any web browser is very fast. Takes a second or two. Don't have word installed. Some programs, such as steam, take considerably longer than on my desktop. I think the last time i loaded steam it took at least 20 seconds.

Power button to login screen would be perfect.

Would this be a decent tablet to use as a note taking device for engineering classes? For instance, writing lots of math, drawing circuit diagrams, etc? I wonder what app would be best.

I appreciate the feedback!!!

[noxxle]

Boot times: With fast startup off, power button to welcome is 17-20 seconds, another 5-7 seconds to tiles after entering your password. With fast startup on, power button to welcome is 10 seconds, another 5 seconds to tiles. These times are with the TPM chip disabled. Turning the chip on will add another 3-5 seconds from power button to welcome. This is the case even if you have windows 8 std edition with encryption off. With encryption on, boot may be even longer.

[manuelcalavera]

I think one of the most important concerns is the differences in inking experience between TPT2, Dell latitude 10 and Samsung 500T.

[rzp2003]

Boot times: With fast startup off, power button to welcome is 17-20 seconds, another 5-7 seconds to tiles after entering your password. With fast startup on, power button to welcome is 10 seconds, another 5 seconds to tiles. These times are with the TPM chip disabled. Turning the chip on will add another 3-5 seconds from power button to welcome. This is the case even if you have windows 8 std edition with encryption off. With encryption on, boot may be even longer.

this does not sound too bad. Does it come with many Lenovo bloatware?

[noxxle]

Not much lenovo bloatware, unless it is all hidden running in the background and I am not noticing it.

Still haven't installed any inking programs. Frankly, installing things can be a royal pain. Takes a long time, slows everything else down, etc.

Out of curiosity, why would inking be any different on the TPT2 compared to other clover trail tablets? They are all using similar hardware.

[philox]

Not much lenovo bloatware, unless it is all hidden running in the background and I am not noticing it.

Still haven't installed any inking programs. Frankly, installing things can be a royal pain. Takes a long time, slows everything else down, etc.

Out of curiosity, why would inking be any different on the TPT2 compared to other clover trail tablets? They are all using similar hardware.

Here are some reasons

1) Digitizer hardware may be different- looks like tpt2 used Wacom
2) Glass may or not be bonded to the lcd ( it is on the tpt2)
3) performance on the edges/ corners may differ

I think you can probably ink using paint, on the pdf reader or on a reader version of the website. No need to install office apps.

[noxxle]

Pens is very accurate in MS paint. Very responsive, with only a slight sluggishness when using a wide brush. The edges are more accurate than an x220t that I tested over a year ago. However, there are definitely some accuracy issues, even after calibrating. The least accurate edges for me are the left and top. This is with the tablet held in landscape mode, windows button at the bottom.