Steve Posted December 5, 2014 Share Posted December 5, 2014 It's a £150 Lenovo Miix 2. A 7" tablet that runs the full version of Windows, so you can run all of your desktop software on it, rather than just tablet apps. There's 2 things that suck about it though: - 1. It came with Windows 8 installed, so it needed to be updated out of the box. I was prompted to install about 40-50 updates, then I had to reboot. I checked for updates again and there were a handful more, so I installed those and rebooted again. Now I was on Windows 8.1. I could then install Windows 8.1 Update, which is a pretty huge update, so I installed that and rebooted, then I could download all of the updates released post-Update, so I did that and rebooted again. All in all, it took fucking ages. It's really not a good out of the box experience. MS need to roll up these updates into 1 big patch that you download and install. 2. The lack of apps. There are tons of apps in the Windows Store now, but there are still notable omissions. If I was in charge at MS, I would have said "get me a list of the top 200 most popular iOS and Android apps" and I'd have made sure that Windows versions were made available quickly. If it wasn't for the lack of apps, I'd say that Windows 8.1 is the best tablet OS out there. When you use modern apps, the interface is really good and it has proper multitasking and split screen capabilities. If the tablet runs the full version of Windows, you can run any software you'd run on a desktop or laptop and you can connect pretty much any USB device to it and it'll work. You could run Serato or Traktor on one, no problem. MS always seem to fuck up when it comes to the finer details regarding the user experience - something Apple usually always nail, albeit at the expense of openness and the hit on your wallet. I think the Surface Pro 3 is another example of an "almost amazing" MS product. The device itself is awesome, but what they should have done is give it a proper keyboard, so it's like a regular Ultrabook/Macbook Air except you can detach the screen from the keyboard and use it as a tablet. Instead, you get those Touch/Type covers that are certainly better than on-screen keyboards, but they're still not great. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottie(the)goonie Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 I get what you mean about 8.1 being good except for the lack of apps. I treat it basically like a windows desktop with the added perks of touch. I have a Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro, and I use it in laptop mode while being able to touch and swipe things when I need to. Maybe 75% keyboard and 25% touch. I don't care much for the tablet only style of Windows though. Trying to search for things in settings is really annoying and I feel like I'm running two different operating systems at the same time; maybe you've had that feeling too.To be honest, if I buy my mom a new laptop, and my dad a new desktop they will be getting apple products from now on. I can't tell you how many times I've had to reformat their shit because they fall prey to spyware and clicking things without reading. All they do is browse and play silly games on the comp, and they STILL end up with a lot of malicious software installed. It's like dealing with a child and I can't stand it sometimes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Motek Posted December 8, 2014 Share Posted December 8, 2014 I have a miix 2. I like it. Very versatile. Its a perfect comic book reader. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solemn Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 i'm thinking about getting cheap tablet for my mom, preferably windows. does anyody know of a cheap one that runs windows 10? a miix 3 8 would be perfect if it wasn't running windows 8.1 instead of 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rasteri Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 I got my folks a Google Nexus 7 last year, they've been discontinued and go for south of £130 these days (or even less used). They love it and use it every day. I'm not sure what Windows is like on a tablet but I can't imagine it would be a better experience than Android, perhaps Steve would disagree though? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djdiggla Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 I have a miix 2. I like it. Very versatile. Its a perfect comic book reader.What titles u read man? If I was in charge at MS, I would have said "get me a list of the top 200 most popular iOS and Android apps" and I'd have made sure that Windows versions were made available quickly. That would be smart. That's my fear about when my daughter gets the Fire on X-mas day is the apps are all shit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solemn Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 what's the fire like compared to a 'normal' android tablet? does it only have amazon content on it or can it be used like any other anroid tablet? i guess my mom's only going to use the browser anyways so this route might be an option too... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Posted December 17, 2015 Author Share Posted December 17, 2015 i'm thinking about getting cheap tablet for my mom, preferably windows. does anyody know of a cheap one that runs windows 10? a miix 3 8 would be perfect if it wasn't running windows 8.1 instead of 10 You can upgrade it to Windows 10 for free. The free upgrade offer runs until the end of July 2016. As for Android Vs. Windows on a tablet, I think it depends what you want. Android has a lot more apps and using desktop software on a small screen Windows tablet is not the best. I think a Windows tablet is better if you're buying a device with a decent sized screen and you specifically want/need to run desktop software as well as modern apps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djdiggla Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 I don't know yet because she's getting it for Christmas but it's $50 so can't really go wrong. If you already have Amazon Prime it syncs to your account. Expandable memory via micro SD up to 128 GB (or something like that). And Lifehacker said it's extremely easy to unlock without even rooting to be able to access the android store. Obviously, Amazon's plan is to use it as a platform to push their products and content but it sounds like it has a lot of possibility and they didn't fully lock it down like Apple does so I'm hopeful but for the price it's defo worth the gamble. EDIT: Ah, you were talking to Steve not me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solemn Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 i'm thinking about getting cheap tablet for my mom, preferably windows. does anyody know of a cheap one that runs windows 10? a miix 3 8 would be perfect if it wasn't running windows 8.1 instead of 10 You can upgrade it to Windows 10 for free. The free upgrade offer runs until the end of July 2016. are you completely sure? isn't it like with their lumia phone line that only some get official updates to windows 10 and all the other ones are stuck on windows 8.1 or have to resort to the windows insider program?and does this mean that 8" is too small for a windows device? and what about those android tablets like the nexus rasteri mentioned: are they stuck on their particular android version or do some of them still get updates to later versions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solemn Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 I don't know yet because she's getting it for Christmas but it's $50 so can't really go wrong. If you already have Amazon Prime it syncs to your account. Expandable memory via micro SD up to 128 GB (or something like that). And Lifehacker said it's extremely easy to unlock without even rooting to be able to access the android store. Obviously, Amazon's plan is to use it as a platform to push their products and content but it sounds like it has a lot of possibility and they didn't fully lock it down like Apple does so I'm hopeful but for the price it's defo worth the gamble. EDIT: Ah, you were talking to Steve not me no i was talking to you. i still think windows would be perfect for my mom though as she's not going to use too many apps and what have you.she probably hasn't much use for a device like that but i'm desperately in need of a present for her... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djdiggla Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 I'm sure she'd love the Windows tablet. Just pricier than I would want to spend for a not-an-iPad tablet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djdiggla Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 I don't know yet because she's getting it for Christmas but it's $50 so can't really go wrong. If you already have Amazon Prime it syncs to your account. Expandable memory via micro SD up to 128 GB (or something like that). And Lifehacker said it's extremely easy to unlock without even rooting to be able to access the android store. Obviously, Amazon's plan is to use it as a platform to push their products and content but it sounds like it has a lot of possibility and they didn't fully lock it down like Apple does so I'm hopeful but for the price it's defo worth the gamble. EDIT: Ah, you were talking to Steve not me no i was talking to you. i still think windows would be perfect for my mom though as she's not going to use too many apps and what have you.she probably hasn't much use for a device like that but i'm desperately in need of a present for her... The Amazon Fire (or at least the $50 one) sucks. It keeps freezing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.