ViewSonic ViewPad 1000 Tablet PC - C 800 MHz - RAM 256 MB - HDD 20 GB - WLAN : 802.11b - Win XP Pro - 10.4" TFT 800 x 600 ( SVGA ) - camera

I still don't know what's the hype with the "tablet PC" idea.

I recommend a SONY VAIO P4 notebook, instead of this.


First-gen TabletPC to avoid.   February 13, 2004
Christopher Wanko (Nutley, NJ USA)
11 out of 11 found this review helpful

It's not the worst tablet to own, but it doesn't hit any of the sweet spots for a tablet other than WiFi abilities.

1) It's not convertible, so you have to buy a USB keyboard for data entry.

2) It's not using WindowsXP for Tablets, so you don't get the integration of Microsoft's specific handwriting recognition abilities.

3) The hardware is pitiful, clearly offering power-saving compromises to overcome some engineering problems. The CPU is slow, the RAM is limited, and your hard drive isn't exactly fast or large.

The best of the first-gen tablets was the Fujitsu Stylistic, but it cost twice as much. Of course, it also had twice as much ability. For tablet shoppers, the second-gen offers WindowsXP for Tablets, Office 2003 with OneNote (really leverages the tablet's strong points), better CPU selections and more mature engineering (convertibles!). Toshiba's Portege 3500 is probably the best tablet in the second generation, and that's the one you buy.

Fred


Does not include Windows XP TabletPC edition!   December 19, 2003
11 out of 13 found this review helpful

Although this PC has a nice combination of features and appears to be well designed, it is just running Windows XP pro.

It does NOT come with "Windows XP Tablet PC edition", so I suspect that the ink and recognition features you might expect will be missing, or not up to the standard of a real "TabletPC".

In addition, the stylus is very thin - more like a PDA stylus and is difficult to hold.