Traveling with the Tablet PC
By Spencer Goad, Executive Editor

Well, since I am headed out of town to Seattle this week… I thought it would be a good time to do a quick article on traveling with the Tablet PC. I'm driving to Seattle, but I'll look at traveling from both the road and air trip perspectives. Obviously the Tablet PC can be a powerful tool for business travelers, but it can also quite fun useful for someone traveling for vacation or recreation. Here are a few of the most important things I have come across while traveling -

Get good protection. This is one of the first things I tell people when they ask me about traveling with their Tablet PC. Nothing can ruin a business trip or vacation like a smashed Tablet PC. : Ok, so there might be a few things that could be worse… but not very many. Getting a good case is an essential step before taking your Tablet PC out on the road with you. I personally like the slipcase style, as it keeps the mobility factor while providing good protection. With so much going on around you when you are traveling, accidents are more likely to happen, and in those cases (no pun intended) having a good case can save a lot of greif. I know there have been numerous times I was quite happy that my Tablet PC was in its case when it decided to fall to the ground.

Another tip I like to give to people is for traveling with your Tablet PC in an airplane. Lots of people use their laptops in planes now days, but Tablet PC users have a special advantage over these laptop users. With the convertible Tablet PCs, a quick switch into tablet mode makes the use of your computer on a plane much easier. In this position it is also almost impossible for your screen to be smashed by the person in front of you moving his seat back. I've seen laptop screens that have been victims of this… and it isn't pretty.

Now what all should you take to make the most of the Tablet PC on your trip? Obviously the Tablet PC charger is a must. And like I said earlier, a good case is also almost a requirement. For me though, I also like to take along several other accessories. I always like to have an extra tablet pen with me, just in case I happen to lose my first one. I'll also usually take my Sony external CD-RW/DVD drive with me, along with its charger and USB cable. The drive I have is powered by rechargeable batteries, so I can watch DVD movies with it from just about anywhere (including on the plane). This is usually about the extent of my Tablet PC specific luggage, although I always pack quite a few of my other gadgets as well.

Now you maybe saying that this is all well and good for the business traveler, but you want to get away from work when you are on vacation, not take it with you. Good point… and I do have to agree with you there. With the Tablet PC though, you can do much more than just take work with you. When I'm taking a trip I often use my Tablet PC to download pictures off my digital camera, listen to my music collection, watch DVD movies, and of course play games. On occasion I'll also use my Tablet PC to upload pictures to our family web-site, and provide grandparents with a step by step view of our vacation. (One thing I have learned… Grandparents can never see enough pictures of their grandchildren.)

Anyway, I could ramble on for a long while about all the things I use my Tablet PC for while traveling. One thing I'm certain of though… it is often one of the most useful pieces of luggage I take with me.

How about you? Do you have a tips or stories about how you use your Tablet PC while traveling? If you do and happen to want to share that (hint, hint) send me an e-mail at spg@tabletpcbuzz.com and I will try and get them published in next week's newsletter!

By the time you read this, I'll likely be on my way to Seattle for the annual Microsoft MVP Summit. This is an annual event that Microsoft holds for all the folks who have been given their MVP award. I'll have 3 packed days of information sessions and meetings with folks from various Windows product teams there. Also joining me there will be Contributing Editor Dennis Rice, who wrote his weekly newsletter piece from his Seattle hotel room. More information about this can be found in my front page news post!

The two biggest news items this week turned out to be April Fools jokes, but that doesn't mean we didn't have some good stuff going on this week in the Tablet PC world. :-) On Friday, the winners of the first annual Tablet PC Awards were announced. (See news post) My news post about the awards marked the first time I have ever quoted myself in my own press release. I'm actually still slightly confused about who was quoting who there.

Also this week, our own forum member "Mr. H" has an article about Tablet PCs that are in use in his classroom. NEC announced a new tablet-type device. And we added some new avatars to the forum. Also, if you missed our April Fools posts, check them out here, here, here and here!

Have a good week!

(spg@tabletpcbuzz.com)

Why are Tablet PC sales "sluggish"?

This has been a hot topic on more than one occasion, and has surfaced again. Those of us who have and enjoy the benefits of the Tablet PC, still scratch our heads in collective wonder on this one. The debate usually ranges from whether it is cost, marketing, etc., but the real truth is that no one really knows a solid answer.

If your experience was like mine when you first decided to get a Tablet, stating that Tablet sales are "sluggish" does not make sense. I could not get my hands on one anywhere! Of course that was a year and a half ago, but even then there were reports along these same lines, that sales were "slow". And of course not long ago there was the story of Acer being upset with Microsoft because they had not sold a couple zillion Tablets.

So what is the issue exactly? I went through the titled thread and picked just a few of the reasons people *think* sales are sluggish. Here are some selective comments:

1. Poor sales / salespeople in retail:

Forum member joshsf had this to say - "The CompUSA near me finally put the M205 on display, but it is totally locked down and set up in laptop mode. A casual shopper would have absolutely no idea it was even a tablet - it looks identical to all the other rows and rows of laptops. I'm sure most people walking by just ignore the sticker saying "Tablet PC" (or don't even know what it means) and pay close attention to the price tag which is $1000 more than almost every other "laptop" on display, and at least $200 more than the similarly equipped, similar form-factor ultralite laptops. And why not? The way it's displayed, there's no way at all to know what's special about it. And the sales help for it is atrocious. The manager refused to unlock it so I could convert it and try using it as a tablet - and he had no idea where the pen was. He actually looked confused when I asked him for the pen - as if he couldn't understand why a laptop would need a pen. Some of the staff don't even know that the words "Tablet" and "PC" go together - I have had to repeat myself about three times to several different salespeople in several different stores (i.e. - "Where are your Tablet PCs?" "People PC?" "No, Tablet PC." "Tablet what?" etc.)."

Well said joshsf - I have had similar experiences! Apparently not all others have had bad ones.

Here is what Wnewquay had to say - "Sales staff extremely helpful. The store actually had stock from two different manufacturers. When I wanted to see a Panasonic Toughbook Tablet PC (tough to find - believe me) the store arranged for me to meet with the local Panasonic Representative so I could see, feel, touch it. The Panasonic Rep spent over an hour doing his demo with me. Guess what - I have bought all three of mine from that store. Strangely, I do my research on the internet, (here of course, and other places) BUT then I go to the store, let them order it and I buy it from them. Sometimes more, sometimes less, sometimes it takes longer, sometimes they have what I want in stock. They treat me (very) well. They get all my business for things they can supply. I refer anyone who asks where I get my 'puter stuff to them. It is an excellent relationship."

2. Fear of new technology

Forum member blazio stated "I think also, in addition to the above comments, the everyday consumer is just flat-out afraid to try a new technology that could very well replace something they are used to. People are so used to typing and using their laptops, and something like a tablet pc seems incredibly foreign to them and because it does cost alot of money (well, comparable to how much a laptop costs) they're afraid to try the new technology. When faced with two choices, between getting a tried-and-true laptop and an untested tablet pc (untested in the sense they haven't had any experience using them in everyday tasks), the everyday consumer would probably choose the laptop."

Hmmm. Maybe so. I see lots of people looking at me with my new "gadget" and shaking their heads!

3. Price (or not?)

Comments from justjoem2 - "I don't think we will see widespread availability of tablets until the price drops significantly in comparison to similarly configured laptops. Prices won't drop until the volume of sales increases. This conundrum has lead to sluggish adoption of the platform. The elegance and power of the tablet pc will overcome this obstacle. Tablet pcs will dominate personal computing as the platform matures. As the 3rd generation tablets are released, 2nd generation tablets will drop in price into the 1200 to 1800 dollar range. At that price tablet sales will soar."

Good points, how about some counterpoints as well?

Feelings from blazio - "I agree with justjoem about pricing being a difference. However, when looking at what I wanted out of a portable computer, I gladly paid the extra 200 dollars for the functionality I wanted. I think it's interesting that Plasma TVs and LCD TVs are becoming more and more popular even at their high price tags."

Well, anyway, I could go on and on. There are lots of ideas in this topic as to why sales are not meeting expectations, but also a number of good thoughts on how to remedy that problem (hint-hint, that part is for you OEM's and Microsoft :-)).

Go read the whole thread:
http://www.tabletpcbuzz.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=11215

Till next time, good luck on your inking journey!