So I realize that this may be a bit far in advance to be asking but for me I am always thinking ahead for my tablet purchase. For me I am really looking forward to windows 8 tablets, and Playbook 2. These 2 will be a hard toss up I think. Unless ipad 3 comes with a whole new rehaul of their OS i won't even be looking.
I did multiple choice cause I know a lot out there that even buy a few tablets.
Third generation Playbook. the next one coming out is nice but im perfectly fine wth my playbook now. hopefully by then battery life would have evolved enough to justify putting a much better (quad core) processor in it. With the way the Playbook run now, even on OS1, im perfectly content
i just got the current playbook, so the iPad 3 will be next for me followed by a next gen playbook. whether i get gen 2 or 3 will depend on what gen 2 has. This will set me up perfectly with an iPhone/ipad for personal use, bb10/next gen playbook for work.
I''m also not a fan of android or the metro ui that windows is moving too.
If I ever venture to another OS, it would be a Windows, but right now there is no advantage of a Windows tablet over a laptop. Even with W8, the estimated battery life isn't expected to be able to exceed 4 to 5 hours running i5. My Thinkpad is almost the same footprint and thickness with more than twice the battery, twice the memory and more connectivity. You add a keyboard to a W8 tablet and you have a stripped laptop. Too large to compete with the PB for me. Price is no incentive either. Again, for the same or less money, you can find a similar size or smaller laptop with more versatility.
Now a 7" W8 tablet with 8+ hours of battery would be a desireable device, in my opinion.
In the short term I'm seriously looking at buying an ASUS Transformer (original) tablet/keyboard combination if I can get a good deal on it (say $350 total including gift cards/coupons discounts). However, in the longer term I'm almost definite I'll buy a Windows 8 tablet, assuming there a Transformer-like option that some company (ASUS, Lenovo, etc.) creates, not long after Windows 8 is released. I personally think that the tile interface on a larger screen will work really, really well, especially on tablets, mainly because more information can be shown "live" within the tile.
I hate to say it but being an Apple user, I am FORCED to go with the iPad 3.
I do love my 64GB PlayBook but I missed my Protected iTunes Library and I hate how UNORGANIZED it is, like Android which is why I sold my hTc EVO 3D and went back again to Apple with the 64GB Black iPhone 4S.
Like I said I hate that I all my Videos are mixed up or I have to rename my files. RIM/Google NEEDS an iTunes "like" to clean up things up. Let face it, not really an Apps but there's a few that I missed as well on iOS.
If I ever venture to another OS, it would be a Windows, but right now there is no advantage of a Windows tablet over a laptop. Even with W8, the estimated battery life isn't expected to be able to exceed 4 to 5 hours running i5. My Thinkpad is almost the same footprint and thickness with more than twice the battery, twice the memory and more connectivity. You add a keyboard to a W8 tablet and you have a stripped laptop. Too large to compete with the PB for me. Price is no incentive either. Again, for the same or less money, you can find a similar size or smaller laptop with more versatility.
Now a 7" W8 tablet with 8+ hours of battery would be a desireable device, in my opinion.
Where exactly did you come up with that BS about Windows 8 tablet battery life? There has been no talk about it being any less than the other OSs, and the ARM version of the OS is only in testing. Windows 7 tablets are NOT a gauge for Windows 8 tablet battery life and tests of battery life have only been made on Windows 7 tablets running the beta. They are a generation out of date and are essentially full blown computers that happen to have a tablet interface. As for current generation stuff, my HP DM4 laptop matches the battery life of my Playbook @ just about 10 hours.
This PlayBook with the new OS 2.0 will be my next tablet. It should be like starting all over again.
Man that should have been an option! Haha. Definitely the best way to look at things!.. Maybe if I buy a 64GB the day of OS 2 release it will feel like a brand new tablet tablet! ... Any excuse to get more memory and something brand new
And yeah I also thought windows 8 tablets battery life would be up to par with others.
If in the future Windows 8 shows any promise for tablets in terms of UI and native productivity and practicality, I would most likely add it to my arsenal alongside my PlayBook.
Although I have been wanting to hunt down an HP TouchPad, unfortunately those are getting rather hard to find for near firesale price even in the used market.
Since i already have a little investment in google brand ive been keeping up with two Android tablets that due out around just after mid 2012. One is a 3d tablet and the other is a top of the line 7in tablet with a kindle fire price tag attached to it. Depending one which suits my needs the best those are the only two that peek my interest right now. If both turn out to be gimmicky then I wouldt mind holding out for the PB3. One things for sure though i'll never pay more the $300 for a tablet again.
The wasn't an extra option that needed to be on that list which was the playbook 1 as an extra tablet.... I would have voted that way, as I may buy another playbook since the pricew are coming down.
That said, I will get a playbook 2 as my next tablet outside of that.