I bought a Nook Color, and rooted it, which for non-nerds means I replaced the Barnes & Noble default OS with a standard Android ROM. This means I can load regular 'droid apps on it, by accessing the Amazon App-Store and Android Market.

Why? Because it was only $250, compared to the $500+ for an iPad. Yes, it's not as "nice" as an iPad, but:

A. I hate apple.
B. I like saving money.
C. Droid is cooler, and easier to code against than iOS, but that's just my opinion.

There are other options in a similar price range (this one is pretty nice.)

I just have a hard time with the $500 price-point on an iPad.

so this is a google tablet... half the price of an ipad.. rad.
does it do what i need it to do?
seriously, i ask you guys because the lay out of amazon and other sites like it drives my dyslexia/dyscalculia CRAZY. my brain thinks im trying to decipher hieroglyphics. >> ^KnivesOut:

I bought a Nook Color, and rooted it, which for non-nerds means I replaced the Barnes & Noble default OS with a standard Android ROM. This means I can load regular 'droid apps on it, by accessing the Amazon App-Store and Android Market.
Why? Because it was only $250, compared to the $500+ for an iPad. Yes, it's not as "nice" as an iPad, but:
A. I hate apple.
B. I like saving money.
C. Droid is cooler, and easier to code against than iOS, but that's just my opinion.
There are other options in a similar price range (this one is pretty nice.)
I just have a hard time with the $500 price-point on an iPad.

Comment hidden because you are ignoring dag. (show it anyway)

One vote here for iPad, natch. I'm typing on it right now. It meets all your above requirements. My only negative is that they're a bit fragile. but get a chunky case and it's fine.

Are you considering an ipad because it's going to be less fiddly to use in terms of it's interface than say a Windows ultra-portable? I've got a nice Asus 12.1" laptop with great battery life that I'm very happy with and could do everything you have listed. I can even put it into my A4 wallet holder-thingy and no one can even see I have a laptop.

I suppose the issue is have you ruled out such laptops? And if so I think the research you need to do is to find available apps that tick your boxes. Then just have a play on one in a Apple store and see if it chimes with you.

Comment hidden because you are ignoring dag. (show it anyway)

Laptops are just so damn cheap these days, it's true - and generally a lot more functionality than a tablet.

The benefit of a tablet over a laptop for me are two things:

1. Form factor - I can take it to bed and read it like a book, whip it out on the bus - or in economy class seats on a plane - with a lot less fuss than a laptop.

2. Quickness - I don't mean processor speed, I mean just getting to a bit of functionality that I need at that moment. If I want to open a calendar app on a laptop, I need to open up the laptop, wait for it to unhibernate- hunt for the app and then wait for it to launch. About a minute to do that. Versus about 10 seconds on tablet.

Best of both worlds would be to have the laptop at home and use the tablet mainly on the road and both sync or work seamlessly together. Pity Microsoft can't sort that out for Windows users.

i definitely want something faster to access than a laptop, ill get phone calls from people who want appointments while im shopping for groceries or picking my kids up from camp, i want to be able to open the calendar app quickly and book an appointment. also when im checking clients out at my wellness center and i have to wait for 3 other people who work out of there to check out their clients before i can use the comp to check my client out and see my schedule to book their next appointment.... and i see a laptop being too bulky to set on a dresser and play ambient music during sessions.

and gaahhh the ridiculousness of CD's that get lost, or scratched or borrowed (i don't mind sharing, it's just that they always seem to return scratched)... so sure i could get an ipod, but id rather just buy one gadget to take care of everything...

also, sometimes at night when i'm closing up or batching out or whatever i like to sit in the floor and figure out what stock i have/need, how much money i have/owe/made that day, what percentage of it i want to reinvest and what new equipment i'd like to get when its time... instead of doing that with tons of tiny pieces of paper and my shitty memory to rely on, i think a tablet in my lap with my bank accounts and quick books and schedule and the websites of my suppliers on it would minimize my time at work.

im so ridiculously right brained i have to work super hard to stay organized and on top of my business so i don't revert to my ways of winging it on the fly and crash my business into the ground or get so stressed out by all the psychic clutter that i burn it all down catharticly

also, how reliable is it in terms of memory? am i going to overload it making it play music and book appointments all day? is it going to crash in the middle of my last session and force me to pull out the 1990's technology?
>> ^dag:

Laptops are just so damn cheap these days, it's true - and generally a lot more functionality than a tablet.
The benefit of a tablet over a laptop for me are two things:
1. Form factor - I can take it to bed and read it like a book, whip it out on the bus - or in economy class seats on a plane - with a lot less fuss than a laptop.
2. Quickness - I don't mean processor speed, I mean just getting to a bit of functionality that I need at that moment. If I want to open a calendar app on a laptop, I need to open up the laptop, wait for it to unhibernate- hunt for the app and then wait for it to launch. About a minute to do that. Versus about 10 seconds on tablet.

>> ^peggedbea:

i definitely want something faster to access than a laptop, ill get phone calls from people who want appointments while im shopping for groceries or picking my kids up from camp, i want to be able to open the calendar app quickly and book an appointment. also when im checking clients out at my wellness center and i have to wait for 3 other people who work out of there to check out their clients before i can use the comp to check my client out and see my schedule to book their next appointment.... and i see a laptop being too bulky to set on a dresser and play ambient music during sessions.
and gaahhh the ridiculousness of CD's that get lost, or scratched or borrowed (i don't mind sharing, it's just that they always seem to return scratched)... so sure i could get an ipod, but id rather just buy one gadget to take care of everything...
also, sometimes at night when i'm closing up or batching out or whatever i like to sit in the floor and figure out what stock i have/need, how much money i have/owe/made that day, what percentage of it i want to reinvest and what new equipment i'd like to get when its time... instead of doing that with tons of tiny pieces of paper and my shitty memory to rely on, i think a tablet in my lap with my bank accounts and quick books and schedule and the websites of my suppliers on it would minimize my time at work.
im so ridiculously right brained i have to work super hard to stay organized and on top of my business so i don't revert to my ways of winging it on the fly and crash my business into the ground or get so stressed out by all the psychic clutter that i burn it all down catharticly
also, how reliable is it in terms of memory? am i going to overload it making it play music and book appointments all day? is it going to crash in the middle of my last session and force me to pull out the 1990's technology?
>> ^dag:
Laptops are just so damn cheap these days, it's true - and generally a lot more functionality than a tablet.
The benefit of a tablet over a laptop for me are two things:
1. Form factor - I can take it to bed and read it like a book, whip it out on the bus - or in economy class seats on a plane - with a lot less fuss than a laptop.
2. Quickness - I don't mean processor speed, I mean just getting to a bit of functionality that I need at that moment. If I want to open a calendar app on a laptop, I need to open up the laptop, wait for it to unhibernate- hunt for the app and then wait for it to launch. About a minute to do that. Versus about 10 seconds on tablet.



A big part of this for you is how the thing feels in your hand and how it handles in the scenarios you envisage. The operating system is quite solid I'm led to believe. It should be very reliable.

But I'm not sure how well joined up it will be if you're trying to run an entire business of it where you need data from one app to cross over to another. This strikes me as fundamentally basic and obviously straightforward on a personal computer but you'll need an actual living, breathing ipad owner to confirm this is possible.

I don't have one.