Discontinued Slate Advice

[FatedPrime]

General Questions.

1. What is your budget?
~$700

2. Would you consider purchasing used/refurbished?
Definitely. Looking for refurbished for savings anyway.

3. Do you prefer a Slate, Convertible or Ultra Mobile PC (UMPC)?
Slate.

4. What size Tablet PC would you prefer?
Mainstream ~ 12.1"
Large ~ 13.3"

5. Which country do you intent to purchase from?
USA

6. Do you have any preferences to brand loyalty or dislikes?
None

7. How many hours battery life do you require?
Around 3 minimum

8. What will be the primary usage scenario of this tablet?
Notetaking, Email, and light web surfing.

9. Do you have an OS preference?
No.

10. What software and tasks do you intend to run?
Office, OneNote, IE, PDF editors

10. Do you intend on playing Games? If so please list.
Nope.


Screen Specifics

1. What resolution do you prefer?
Whatever. Not a deal breaker.

2. Do you require the screen to be readable in sunlight?
It'd be nice, but not required.

3. Do you prefer your display to be glossy or matte?
Matte, but not a deal breaker.

4. Do you require Touch?
I'd like it, but I can deal with pen only.

5. Do you require a Pen?
Yes, I have to have one.


Component Specifics

1. What size Hard Drive and Memory do you require?
Nothing incredible. Only running Office, OneNote, and IE really.

2. Do you require an Optical (CD/DVD) Drive to be built in?
No.

3. Do you require ability to add a second Battery or Hard Drive (Modular Bay technology)?
No, but a second battery would be handy.



In short, what I am looking for is a slate for note taking and pdf editing for my grad school. I have noticed another thread (Cheap tablet for just OneNote usage: HP TC1100 vs Archos 9 or ???) that is similar to what I am looking for, but I have a few more questions.

I need a slate that compliments my desktop, not serve as a full fledged computer. It's for note taking and general grad school tasks, so the load on it won't be incredible. Currently, I am looking at the Motion Computing LE1600 and the Fujitsu ST6012. The Fujitsu is a bit more expensive but is still in my price range.

My other main concern is the OS: I hate Vista on desktops but I don't know about tablets - will my hatred for its bloated style drive me insane or will I not notice it? Likewise, if I do get the Fujitsu, it has Vista and I may consider downgrading it to XP... are there any negatives to doing this with regard to stylus input, like it becomes less precise or whatever?



So, long story boiled down: Motion Computing LE1600 vs. Fujitsu ST6012. And: Vista vs. XP, which is better for tablets (considering I think XP > Vista on desktops)?

[pmatulew]

Did you hear something? I thought I heard something?

Anyway...If you are handwriting notes and leaving them that way then you should be fine with XP. If you are inking and then converting to text you may be better off with Vista or Win7 since the recognition/conversion functions are considerably improved.

[FatedPrime]

I am leaving them in hand written form. If I need text I'll just type it from the start.

One concern I do have is the screen, though. I went to Fry's (electronics store) and tested an HP TM2, I think, and a Fujitsu Lifebook T4013. The Fujitsu screen was amazing and the HP one was decent. Will older machines be less impressive in that regard as well?

Any suggestions on Motion LE1600 vs Fujitsu ST6012?

[kirin]

Review of motion vs stylistic below:

GBM InkShow: Motion Computing J3400 vs Fujitsu ST6012 Head to Head

Are you using the slate in portrait (stylistic) or landscape (motion) mode?

I loaded Win 7 on my ST6012 and it has full support with updated win7 drivers on the manufacturer website. My advice is to spend $80 for the academic license and prevent future headaches from discontinued legacy support of XP. Vista is a big no as an option.

I get about 4 hours on a full charge with brightness 50% and just inking in OneNote.


You should consider the ST5112 or ST5020 if you're not looking for a desktop replacement.

I'm using the ST6012 as my only computer.

kirin

[FatedPrime]

Awesome link and thanks for the input.

Now to decide...