10 Reasons a Netbook is Better Than an iPad
Not to keep dumping on the iPad or anything -- we did enough of that the other day -- but the overwhelming consensus seems to be that it's not the netbook replacement Apple promised it would be.
Indeed, look no further than Crave blogger Scott Stein's 10 things Netbooks still do better than an iPad.
He notes that although iPads might have the edge when it comes to things like video playback, for the most part they can't compare with netbooks. Here's a sampling of his reasons why:
Type on your lap. Yes, the iPad has a virtual keyboard, and even a cool keyboard dock that turns the tablet into a quasi-desktop device. But the dock can't be used for lap typing, and the Apple demos didn't make iPad typing seem as comfortable as pounding away on an old-fashioned hinged Netbook. For long-term writing on the go, a physical Netbook keyboard with an attached angled screen still wins.I think Stein forget one of the most important reasons of all: price. The entry-level iPad will cost you $500 (not including a keyboard), while nicely appointed netbooks routinely sell for around $300.
Upgrade. Netbooks can upgrade their RAM -- albeit slightly -- and with a little effort, that hard drive can be swapped, too. The iPad is a fixed entity, so there's no going back once you've picked 16, 32, or 64GB.Swapping batteries. Sure, the iPad is slim, attractive and very showy. But its battery is fixed, while a Netbook can not only swap its battery, but upgrade from a three- to a six-cell or more.
Oh, and let's not forget multitasking. For the moment, an iPad can perform only one function at a time (well, two if you count listening to music while doing something else). Netbooks can, of course, run many apps simultaneously.
I think the choice is clear, at least for now, and especially for business users. Agree? Disagree? You know the drill: leave a comment!