So how many Android tablet flops and disasters will it take?

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BoberFett

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
37,562
9
81
So a tablet is a convenience that is better to have than not, but a pen to interface with it is not?

Sure, you can make music if all you had was a stick, but I personally prefer to use instruments.

Your argument makes absolutely no sense.
 

runawayprisoner

Platinum Member
Apr 2, 2008
2,496
0
76
So a tablet is a convenience that is better to have than not, but a pen to interface with it is not?

Sure, you can make music if all you had was a stick, but I personally prefer to use instruments.

Your argument makes absolutely no sense.

Nope. My point is... a tablet is a tool that better serves people that need it.

But a pen is not a tool that makes the tablet any better than it actually is. Not that it is not a good thing to have.

And it's not like the pen doesn't even exist. There are capacitive stylus pens.
 

Fayd

Diamond Member
Jun 28, 2001
7,970
2
76
www.manwhoring.com
Well, there is a difference. You are talking about a living condition. I was talking about convenience of a tool vs without.

You don't need tablet computers, but some parts of your life are easier with them. It's arguably not a lot or any easier for an artist to have a pen.

some art would be vastly more difficult without a pen...
 

runawayprisoner

Platinum Member
Apr 2, 2008
2,496
0
76

smartpatrol

Senior member
Mar 8, 2006
870
0
0
Some people can adapt to using their fingers or a capacitative stylus. That doesn't mean it's the best tool for the job. Capacitative screens are designed primarily for finger input.

Many would prefer a real active digitizer with pressure sensitivity. Most artists certainly would, at least the ones I know. I don't get why this caused such a heated debate.

Imagine if Steve Jobs announced an "iPad Pro" with an active digitizer and some cutesy program for handwriting recognition (that, say, makes your screen look like a page of wide-ruled paper). People would be hailing the stylus as the next great revolution in computing.
 

ChAoTiCpInOy

Diamond Member
Jun 24, 2006
6,442
1
81
Many would prefer a real active digitizer with pressure sensitivity. Most artists certainly would, at least the ones I know. I don't get why this caused such a heated debate.

There is somewhat some pressure sensitivity in Garageband with the accelerometer. I'm interested in what else could happen with this.
 

runawayprisoner

Platinum Member
Apr 2, 2008
2,496
0
76
Some people can adapt to using their fingers or a capacitative stylus. That doesn't mean it's the best tool for the job. Capacitative screens are designed primarily for finger input.

Many would prefer a real active digitizer with pressure sensitivity. Most artists certainly would, at least the ones I know. I don't get why this caused such a heated debate.

Imagine if Steve Jobs announced an "iPad Pro" with an active digitizer and some cutesy program for handwriting recognition (that, say, makes your screen look like a page of wide-ruled paper). People would be hailing the stylus as the next great revolution in computing.

Well, Jobs made his stance about stylus quite obvious in the Jan 2010 keynote when he unveiled the iPad. So if anything, I sincerely doubt an active digitizer will be included next.

And I'm not sure I have reposted this enough, but here you go:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgTcyjzXfTg

The tech is there. Whether they figure out how to do it or if they even want to do it is up to them.
 

Arp_

Junior Member
Mar 26, 2011
15
0
0
Well, Jobs made his stance about stylus quite obvious in the Jan 2010 keynote when he unveiled the iPad. So if anything, I sincerely doubt an active digitizer will be included next.
I think he meant stylus as a pointing device, and that's perfectly reasonable. You'd never want to control a tablet with a stylus if you can just touch it with your fingers.
But to dismiss the most natural writing and drawing tool on a device with form-factor that is perfect for writing and drawing is simply stupid.

The tech is there. Whether they figure out how to do it or if they even want to do it is up to them.
Have you tried any of those styluses? I tried some of them, and they are not even close to that "writing on paper" feeling. The tech that they're based on was never supposed to be used in precise pen-like devices, it's just some hacks that work mediocre at best.
 

runawayprisoner

Platinum Member
Apr 2, 2008
2,496
0
76
Well, not to brag, but I sincerely doubt there are many stylus solutions I haven't tried. I have had multiple tablet PCs and UMPC devices, multiple tablets from Wacom and Genius, and there's a Cintiq 12WX on my desk. When I go outside, I have a Vaio UX and an iPad in the same bag. Crazy, huh? But no, that's me, and it's not really relevant to the discussion.

And that's part of why my personal stance is that a stylus input, as an add-on benefit, doesn't necessarily make these tablet devices any better than what they actually are.

To be more precise, it's that I don't really see how being able to use a more precise pen will benefit the iPad, or Motorola XOOM, or... Blackberry Playbook, or the HP TouchPad. All of these devices are very limited in hardware performance. There are things my iPad would subjectively outperform other computers, but drawing is not one of them.

Just imagine using Photoshop on something that is 10x slower than a netbook and you'll see how bad it actually is. Software just isn't there, and neither is hardware. Most drawing apps are limited to the native resolution of the screen as an additional insult to your artistic ambition.

As for the pen and paper feel, it's only natural that it doesn't feel that way because you are drawing... on glass.

You may think otherwise, but I'm all for more precise pen input. Heck, I lug the 12WX around whenever I feel like it since it's portable enough. I just don't see how the "mobile" hardware of these tablet devices (not to be confused with tablet PC) will be able to handle the workload of a precise pen. Maybe note-taking wouldn't be too bad, but you definitely won't want to draw Mona Lisa on this.
 
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Arp_

Junior Member
Mar 26, 2011
15
0
0
Pen just sends coordinates to the app, it doesn't need any special processing. There already exist usable drawing apps that perform well, if you use them with a precise pen, it will simply mean that they will receive more precise coordinates where to draw, there's nothing that would affect their performance.