With an ever-expanding array of operating systems and hardware to choose from, consumers have to make the decision whether to pick a laptop or a tablet as their next device. Functionality and portability are the two biggest factors in the decision-making process of consumers who are figuring out which option would best suit their needs.
One of the primary criticisms against tablets is their inability to display multiple frames and windows at one time. If users want to conduct business or perform research, they have to switch back and forth between screens in order to glean the information they want from one to input it onto the other. According to a study at the University of Washington, students were quick to stop using Kindles because they could not stay organized with the devices.
That said, tablets are finding a foothold in schools, with Apple posting sales of one million iPads to schools in contrast to 500,000 laptops. However, teachers sometimes prefer laptops because of the functionality they offer. Even as schools start to move towards tablets, teachers often opt to use laptops in the classroom. The educators cite the difficulties in creating and working on documents on a tablet as the main reason for laptop preference.
The portability of a tablet cannot be matched by a laptop. Because of the constantly-connected state of society, the device that is lighter and easier to store will have a huge advantage over anything else. For example, one of the lightest ultrabook laptops (the Acer Aspire S5) on the market comes in at only 2.65 pounds. This is almost twice as heavy as the iPad, which weighs in at only 1.44 pounds.
Some laptop manufacturers are focusing on slimming down their products, while tablets are gearing up for more functionality as Windows 8 tablets will boast the same OS as that of the latest generation of Windows-powered laptops. As the differences between the two disappear, the decision will become even more difficult for consumers to decide which one would be better suited to their needs.
Which one would you pick: the laptop or tablet?
