Should I get an android tablet or a netbook?

[paulo_andre]

Hi
I just joined this forum and I'm terribly undecided on this.
My current laptop is a tablet pc, the tc4200. It has Windows 7 and it runs well, but I can see it's already too slow, so I want to replace it.
One obvious option is a netbook, there are a few powerfull ones and not that expensive. For reference let's assume I want the Asus 1215N.
Of course, there is also the option of an android tablet, for reference let's assume I want the eee pad transformer.
On one side, I have the netbook, it's way more powerfull and allows for much more things to be done. On the other side, I have the extremely portable tablet. For me, these characteristics are equally important, so both are on the same level.
I also have a company laptop, way more powerfull than any of this, but I'm not allowed to do much there, and of course, it's not exactly portable (even when compared with a netbook).
I've been tracking what I do with my laptop, and it's mostly web browsing (a lot), torrent downloading and external hard drive management (copy files that are downloaded from torrents). Also some skype/messaging and the occasional game.
I do have an ipod touch, loaded with music, videos and games, I don't need anything else for that, so it's really only something to replace my laptop. GPS on the tablet would be a nice thing, but I don't want to base my decision on that only.

So what do you think? For me it is better to search for a good netbook or a good
android tablet?

Note: I'm not asking (yet) what the perfect tablet would be, only if for my needs a tablet would be a good choice over a netbook.

 

[Stephen Streater]

As a developer, I have bought three Android tablets (and a few phones too). I also have a Mac laptop and a Linux box a work, and a Mac 8 core desktop with 30" monitor at home.

I use the laptop at work instead of a desktop. It has a reasonably big external screen, and is portable if I have an exhibition. But it is way too heavy and clunky compared with the tablet for normal portable use - it needs a heavy power supply as well, and then a big case to keep it all together. My laptop has a short battery life, is hot and heavy and doesn't come with 3G networking.

I find the Samsung 7" tablet is the best for when I'm out and about a lot - it fits into a pocket, so I don't need to carry it, like a phone. At 1024x600, I can run web browsing and most apps. The only downside is that it came out quite early (for Android) and the web browser isn't as slick as the Xoom.

The Adventa Vega 10" feels much cheaper (mostly shown by the slightly wider screen border, less sensitive screen, and narrow viewing angle), but with its dual core A9, is quite fast. I mostly use this at home. If I'm going to carry something this big, I'll take the Xoom (see below), and if not, I'll use the Samsung which fits in my pockets.

The Xoom is the nicest to use. At 1280x800, with dual A9, it has a very good web browser, and runs all my software. Its only drawback is that it doesn't fit in a pocket, so I only take this if I know I am going to use it.

For me, the portability is the biggest plus of the tablets. I never take my laptop around with me now. The 7" is excellent, carry everywhere like a big phone, but I use the extra screen resolution on the Xoom when I have it.

The only other point to note is that I almost exclusively use Cloud applications these days, so I can flit between devices with ease. This is a big minus for Windows software. Once you are in the Cloud, the tablet form factor and battery life works much better than a netbook/laptop.