Looking for Advice

[Kuroyuki]

Hello all, i just joined, but anyway i have a question, i am currently in high school, and will be going to collage in the fall, and i was thinking of getting a device to help keep myself organized, so here i am asking which model would match my requirements.
1. i would like it to have a keyboard of some kind attached to it, kinda like the windows Surface thing i have seen on TV.
2. i would like it to have a good camera on the front and back, and a good mike as well.
3. i would like to be able to connect to my computer with it, so a USB or some other connecting device.
4. i would like it to be able to use WiFi, and maybe be able to do some programming on it.
5. i would like it to have enough battery life and hard drive space to be able to record somewhere around 8 hours of lectures
6. i would also like it to have some good organization software on it.
7. i would like it to be easily carried from place to place

that's about all of what i would like, anything that matches? i would like something reliable... but i dont know where/how to start searching for it. and i dont really care whether it is a tablet or a small laptop, but i figured i'd start in the tablet section. anyway thank you for your time.

 

[iFargle]

Well, what OS are you looking for? Price limits?

IMO your best bet would be to get a laptop. I tried the whole tablet thing during my first year of college and it didn't work out as well as I had hoped.

Maybe the Surface Pro?
Or something like this ASUS Transformer Book ? The World?s First Detachable Notebook

 

[KSoD]

With what you want a laptop is going to be your best choice. You will not get all of that on a tablet. The Surface Pro is not slated to last for 8 hours and doesn't have much storage to record 8 hours of lectures.

 

[Kuroyuki]

I am not looking for any OS in particular, and as for price, well i am mainly looking for ideas so don't worry about that too much, thanks for the ideas so far, i like the look of the ASUS Transformer Book if that helps you understand what i am looking for.

 

[KSoD]

Yes and no. The Transformer Pad is an Android based device but does not have a Office based suite built into it. So you couldn't write your papers on it without purchasing an Office Style app from Google Play.

The same will go for the iPad.

The Surface Pro does come with Office 2013, but they are already sold out and hard to get ahold of. Again not to mention, they do not have great storage space and will not last for the 8 hours of recording you want to do with it. In fact, I don't think the iPad or Transformer Pad will do that with ease.

You will need a full blown laptop with the ability to get a high capacity battery to do what you want. The ability to record for 8 hours is what is the killer. The iPad nor Android Tabs are made for that. They are made as an addon to other devices. Sad but true. They cant do full productivity.

 

[Kuroyuki]

well my requirements up there are not iron set so if something kinda matches i would like to see it too, and i did say i do not mind laptop suggestions, but i would like a specific model to look into.

 

[strollin]

While it's true that an Android device may require you to install an Office Suite from Google Play, there is a pretty decent free app Called Kingsoft Office and there are several office suite apps available that cost around $15. These suites are all capable of reading/writing MS Office compatible files.

The Surface RT comes with the RT Preview version of Office 2013 but the Surface Pro does NOT include any Office version. The Pro can run legacy Windows applications so you should be able to install a free office suite such as OpenOffice or LIbreOffice.

I know you'd like to have only a single device to carry around but I think you could easily solve the 8 hour lecture recording requirement with one of those small note recorders that are about the size of a cell phone.

 

[KSoD]

There is no such thing as a specific when it comes to a laptop. You look at a website and find one that meets your needs. With the looks, options and other stuff. A laptop is just as much a personal choice as choosing the clothes you wear. You really dont want someone from the internet just telling you what clothes to wear, do you?

We are not you. We cant possibly sit here and give you specifics. We can give you general guidelines on what to look for with specs, but as far as finding a specific one, you have to do some work on your own here. We cant hand feed you this stuff.

Come on. You got to give us something to work with and not just saying a Laptop. Cause I will direct you to HP, Dell, Lenovo, Sony or Samsung's website and say here you go. There are laptops.

So give us something to work with. We cant pick your car out for you or your clothes out for you. So you have to give us at least something as a base as to what you like and look for in a laptop in order for us to even try to assist.