tablet pc

annies_mum

my son has recently done extremly well in his exams and we would love to buy him something he really wants. which unfortunatly for us is an i pad, the price of these are way beyond our reach but i have seen 10" tablet pc's which look much the same, i think they run android (google) if that makes any sense and are much cheaper than the i pad.
he has an i pod touch which his grandparents bought him 18 months ago but he only really uses it for photos and the internet so the loss of itunes wouldn't be the end of the world.
can anyone give me any advice on what i should look for or equally avoid.
thanks

Hammyman

Avoid the iPad. Unless you jailbreak it, you can only install applications from the iTunes store and it won't multitask. Apple have filed a patent for wiping jailbroken devices running iOS (iPhone, iPad) so its not going to be a good time for many.

If he's only using his iPod Touch for photos and the internet then a tablet PC is going to end up doing the same because the iPad is basically an iPod touch with a larger screen.

amcluesent

>can anyone give me any advice on what i should look for or equally avoid.<

TBH, I'd avoid all tablets (other than the iPad) right now. These cheapies are coming in from China with Android 1.6 which is rubbish TBH as you can't access the Android Market, or even worse come with Windows CE, and are dog slow.

If you aren't able to spring for an iPad, wait until tablets from reputable suppliers like Asus, Acer etc. appear nearer Xmas with Android 2.2

bob_man_uk

Hammyman wrote: »

Avoid the iPad. Unless you jailbreak it, you can only install applications from the iTunes store and it won't multitask. Apple have filed a patent for wiping jailbroken devices running iOS (iPhone, iPad) so its not going to be a good time for many.

If he's only using his iPod Touch for photos and the internet then a tablet PC is going to end up doing the same because the iPad is basically an iPod touch with a larger screen.

first off

it is legal to jailbreak your i* device

second, the suit is titled "Systems and Methods for Identifying Unauthorized Users of an Electronic Device"

it mentions nothing about restricting users of jailbroken i* devices only ways of identifying whether the device is authorised or not.

Hammyman

bob_man_uk wrote: »

first off

it is legal to jailbreak your i* device

second, the suit is titled "Systems and Methods for Identifying Unauthorized Users of an Electronic Device"

it mentions nothing about restricting users of jailbroken i* devices only ways of identifying whether the device is authorised or not.

Actually it isn't legal as its circumventing copy protection. And if you have a read on Slashdot, you'll find out all about what Apple intend to do with their patent.

bob_man_uk

slashdot is the only place so far that ive seen that hints that this suit will attack jailbroken devices, not that ive ever really trusted slashdot anyway... but it seems like the whole thing has been twisted just to have a go at those who have jail broken their device....


though something just occured to me, if you have a mobileme account and an iphone, you can do some of the things set out in the suit, like, tracking the phone with its GPS, wipe the device, make it ring/make a high pitched noise... maybe this suit is just to cover those aspects, after all its all under apples roof

and sorry, i mean patent not suit...

[Deleted User]

bob_man_uk wrote: »

first off

it is legal to jailbreak your i* device

Does that apply to anywhere outside of the USA?

bob_man_uk

anewhope wrote: »

Does that apply to anywhere outside of the USA?

glad you asked...

see here

so basically no it isnt illegal, so long as your not doing it to use pirated software... IE using cydia to install software that apple doesnt like is fine... however i wouldnt want to be the first in the dock defending myself

anyway sorry to hijack the thread

annies_mum

Many thanks for your replies, i won't pretend i understand more than 50% but thank you for taking the time.