Tablet PC 2.0: How Important is the Pen?

Posted by | 02/15/2010 | 26 Comments

The heart and soul of GottaBeMobile has been Tablet PCs; we’ve documented and provided news about the latest and greatest tablets to hit the market for several years. Our readers are perhaps the most savvy tablet experts around. That being said, what are your thoughts about purchasing any of the upcoming Tablet 2.0 devices that we’ve been reading so much about? Perhaps the main question to ask is this: How important is pen and inking support?

For most hardcore Tablet PC loyalists, the lack of pen and inking support coming from what we’ve seen with Tablet 2.0 is surely disappointing. Is the lack of inking enough to prevent you from jumping on the Tablet 2.0 bandwagon, or are you holding out hope that one of these companies will realize the pen’s mighty power?

While Tablet PC 2.0, a slate-styled, multimedia consumption device, seems to be knocking at the door to success, the traditional Tablet PC appears to have fallen off the radar. For years, folks have said that Tablet PCs are too expensive, have been marketed poorly, and now seem to be losing the crippled support they had from their Grandpappy Microsoft. These events are all taking place despite the fact that Bill Gates, former Microsoft head, states that the pen has a place in computing.

Sure, we may eventually see support for limited inking on the iPad with a stylus like the Pogo Sketch, but that is truly a limited writing experience. Where are the tablets that feature the pen as the primary method of input? Help us answer the age-old question of whether the pen will yet again be more powerful than the sword keyboard. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments and vote in the poll below.

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Category: Hardware, Mobile

About the Author (Author Profile)

As an educator and school counselor, Matthew is an advocate for using technology in the classroom and passionate about exposing students to technologies that will empower them in their future careers. Follow Matthew on Twitter.
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  • Fred

    Pen is as Important as finger input is on a slate (palm rejection touch screen) for business or productivity. If I am going to use it for media consumption then pen is not needed. The problem is that slate manufacturers are more interested in the media consumption market because of the $$ and are mixing capabilities and creating slates that are not really for production. I do Real Estate and fill out forms while standing or walking. I also draw some sketches of areas while walking and my clients sign on the screen. I would like to have a slate that lets me type on the screen keyboard with my fingers because ink recognition has a learning curve and correcting on screen mistakes takes 1 or 2 more steps than typing like in an iPad or iphone. Pen and Palm rejection are also necessary because I am not going to train my clients to not lay the palm on the screen while signing and I don’t want to create vectoring when I am just hand writing notes or drawing sketches on the screen. Some of the forms or contracts that I fill out do not require to be typed so I just use the pen but some others are and on screen keyboard with winger capability is a saver. Typing with the pen is frustrating and slow.

  • pmatulew

    After interacting directly with an 8.5 x 11 input area on a regular basis, I consider regular laptops that don’t respond to a stylus as “broken”. Also touch-only devices are a novelty at best. A finger is just not the precision input device required.

  • Virtuous

    The Tablet PC market will decline in a manner similar to the PDA market. Manufacturers will distance their new tablets from Tablet PCs by omitting styli/pens.

  • http://www.gatefold.co.uk/inknotes Steven Gill

    It’s all about choice of interaction; depending on your application you may want all or just a few of the following traits, there will always be tradeoffs on cheaper devices, but that may be just fine for those that use them for what they want.

    Screen:
    Edge to edge, >200ppi for smooth ink and using the device close up, A4/Letter paper ratio, as big as weight and the use will allow. (i.e. ~4″ for pocket, ~14″ for arm, as big as possible for surface/ multi-user interaction)

    Multitouch:
    Fantastic for browsing and consuming content intuitively, works best when apps are specifically designed for touch.

    Pen:
    Essential for accurate pointing (interfaces designed for mouse), drawing, digital ink (note taking) and smaller amounts of direct ink to text

    Physical Keyboard:
    Essential for long periods of structured input (have you tried writing code or long articles with a pen or onscreen keyboard?) also required to act as an adjustable stand for the screen

    Battery life:
    At least all day working would be great 9hrs+

    I would love HP to come back with an updated TC1000, they had it right, but with today’s tech they could add all of above, the keyboard can be removed to reduce bulk but attached when required (keyboard could also include a flat extended battery).
    As a paper replacement & computer interaction technology I think all of the above is required.

  • http://www.gatefold.co.uk/inknotes Steven Gill

    Sorry – >120ppi screen although >200ppi would be nice! along with a gfx card for at least well performing Aero.

  • Scott

    Oh good golly! I finally remembered to take my pen with me on a trip to Fry’s and I can tell you that the touch experience is far from perfect for me and my fat fingers because some of the dialog boxes buttons are really small (and my aim is bad/they need to be calibrated)!

    The pen experience was just fine on both the HP tm2t and the Fujitsu 4310. Both machines sensed the proximity of the pen at an adequate height and rejected touch input until I pulled the pen away. As an added bonus, I got to totally freak out the sales rep who thought I was using an ink pen.

    I can understand that touch is great for noodling around the net and for light/quick manipulative work with large movements, but I *need* a pen. I guess I’m stuck being a pen Luddite until someone shows me a killer app for touch.

    I’m beginning to think that I can live without touch and I still want a new slate rather than a convertible. If new slates don’t come out soon, I may have to change my mind though. :(

  • Roy

    I also love my Thinkpad X200t. The pen is very important, as well as 7hr battery life and the reliability.

  • TimJDav

    Is there any info that leads you to the conclusion that the HP slate will not have the ability to INK? I’ve been following it closely, and so far it does not seam they have come out and said what touch sensor or technology they are using.

    I plan to buy the Ipad(I have both the pogo and the cheap stylus with the see through tip off ebay)…but if the HP slate can deliver on Inking and a few other small things(active digitizer like the HP Tm2 has), I’ll buy that too. I love my Tx2, but I would happily turn it into a more powerful laptop with my touch screen if I could do my inking on a slate as small/nice as the HP slate. My TX2 is my primary machine right now.(as a student)

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