ipad2 vs netbook for rtw travel

Hey all - currently planning a rtw journey with my wife, leaving mid-June. We need a computer of some sort to update our blog www.getupandglobe.com (shameless plug), photo edit, and Skype...we are not super knowledgeable when it comes to computers etc, so looking for advice....my brother in law is a huge Apple fan, and is thinking the ipad2 may be awesome for our needs. We played around with it last night, and in that limited time it is tough to argue....are there any cons to this? We would likely take it with the external keyboard, and even so it still seems ridiculously lightweight and compact...thoughts? Would you take the ipad2 on your round the world journey?

I wouldn't personally but that's because I can't stand macs. Other concerns I would have:

much bigger theft target than a netbook
more expensive than a netbook
hard to repair on the road as macs are much less popular than PCs
i wouldn't want to have to carry multiple pieces (i.e. cover, ipad, keyboard, stand, etc.)
more delicate than a netbook

This has come up a few times, but I can't imagine the conversation has changed much between the iPad and the iPad 2. Have you checked out any of the past threads/did they fail to address any questions you may have? Other than that, if you're not truly computer savvy and you won't know the difference anyway, you may want to consider simply picking up an iPad 1 for cheap.

Also, it's generally considered poor form to re-post the same message in multiple forums, especially when plugging a website or product, so you may want to consider deleting one of them.

Anybody regret NOT bringing a laptop

Macbook Air or Netbook?

Anyone regret bringing their laptops?

Laptop? Netbook? iPad?

iPad

Ready to take off again & my ACER netbook died, will replace it with another ACER when I hit San Antonio (cheaper than here in SV) but that's just my preference.

Personally couldn't imagine typing for any length of time on a touch screen, and I'm also pretty sceptical about the ipad's photo editing abilities... I think you will probably start to find it frustrating when trying to do "real" tasks over a long term, they're great to play with for a while, but there's the thing... it still more of a toy than a tool IMHO.

I use macs and pcs all the time, and I'd definately go for a pc netbook over an ipad any day - they are much more versatile - certainly much more and better software available (even open source freebies), you will get a much larger harddrive up to 250gb as opposed to 64gb (or whatever the biggest ipad is these days) and they are about half the price, so less of an upset if it does get nicked.

Although my longterm travel experience is limited, I cannot say enough good things about my netbook. I purchased a 2nd generation ASUS Eee PC in... 2008? 2009? It's been dropped, chock full o'viruses, carried between college classes, jostled, and spilled upon and is still running like a dream.

Echoing other posters, I'd definitely avoid an iPad (or tablet, in general) for your purposes. A touchscreen just isn't going to be good enough for typing anything of substance and the photo editing capabilities are truly limited without peripheral mouses (yes, that's the plural-- nerd here!) and keyboards. And that's just another thing to pack. To boot, iPads are slick and shiny and big theft-targets.

Go with a netbook for sure. They may not be as slim and elegant as the iPad but they're far more functional, easier to repair, and, hell, cheaper. With the tablets being all in vogue now, you can buy a top-of-the-line netbook for next to nothing.

Ive gotten mixed answers on my question about the ability to upload pictures to the ipad without a computer - something you may want to look into...

At the NYC Apple store, 2 different sales people confirmed what I had previously read online - Apple has a card reader adapter for 1 type of card only (I dont remember the card, but my cameras' cards are CF, SDHC and it wasnt either of them). On Tripadvisor, I was advised this is not correct and you can plug the camera into a USB port on the ipad.

I tend to believe the people at Apple..

Now that Ive developed a site, I have to bring my laptop with my but Im not doing RTW....

edited because I can write guidebooks - I am NOT guidebook dependent!

I'd vote for the netbook too. I brought one on my last RTW trip and I'd never go back to traveling with anything else. Mine even had a slot for an SD card right in it. Having the keyboard attached was nice, the fact that it folds up to protect the screen is nice, and although it's not as thin as an iPad, It isn't exactly bulky either. Plus having the full hard drive to store photos on was great!

Oh, and those "Apple fans" are like cult members.... don't drink their Kool-aid!

definately the Netbook - just easier cheaper and more practical

depends on your preference but im using a netbook and im also blogging about my travels... its cheaper (my emachine cost me just $250) and have more space for saving pictures...

I love them both, and I have traveled with them both so I will give you some pros and cons of each.

Laptop:
Pros:
-Space; with a lot of different options, you can get what is right for you at a good price and get a lot of space for not to much money.
-Price; PCs are getting incredibly cheap for great machines
-Compatibility; with tons of additional compatible add-ons, this is a big feature. From external hard drives, to a mouse.

Cons:
-Bulky; depending on what laptop you buy, they can be bulky and when trying to travel light.
-Battery life; while battery life on laptops is improving, I can barely get through a movie on mine without it dying. This can be a hassle when you have limited time and access to wi-fi, you don't want to have to constantly have your laptop plugged in.
-Not great for quick check ins; with the limited battery it's best to power a laptop down when in your bag, which becomes a hassle when you need it quick. You have to boot the laptop up to use it and this can be time consuming.

Now for the iPad:

Pros:
-Size: iPads are incredibly thin and lightweight, making them the ultimate when space is limited.
-Battery: iPad batteries last up to ten hours, making them awesome for times when you have ten minutes to sit down and update your blog.
-Apps: There are a vast number of useful apps to use when traveling, between maps, photo editing, blogging tools, ect. This is where the iPad really shines.
-Convenience: Unlike with a laptop, you can put an iPad to sleep when not using and it saves the battery while being able to respond quickly with one press of a button. Plus if you need it quick, once you get used to the touch screen keyboard you can actually type quite fast. That being said, you would want the bluetooth keyboard for any lengthy blog posts.

Cons:
Price: this is a big one, iPads are expensive, the big one at 64 gigs is $700, my laptop has 750 gigs of memory cost the same amount.
Memory: 64 gigs is and isn't a lot, depending on your needs. Between my dad and I, we took well over 50 gigs of pictures on our 3 week trip to Namibia. I needed my laptop for this task of constantly downloading pictures on the fly. But if you are just blogging and casually taking pictures, it would be plenty of space.


I'm sure I'm missing a lot, but this should give you and anyone else a general idea.

Hope this helps.

Well, a laptop and a netbook aren't really the same. Netbook processors are tailor made to conserve power, and almost any modern netbook you pick off the shelf will have 6-9 hours of battery life on a single charge. They're also not bulky, because, well, that's the whole point.

Also, I'm not sure how tech savvy you are, but almost any modern operating system supports some form of robust sleep/suspend/hibernation for conserving power and waking up quickly. Hell, I'm running Windows 7 on a Macbook Pro and all I have to do is hit the power button once and it goes to sleep.

In my humble opinion, the iPad is so much better than any laptop or netbook for traveling. It is by far the most comfortable way to surf the net. Unlike some here, I find it VERY comfortable to type on...and I have HUGE hands. The battery life is soooo much better than most laptops. It edits videos beautifully in iMovie. Viewing pictures on it is simple, and they look awesome. Plus it's lighter than any laptop and most netbooks AND with a much longer battery life.

Unless you are a hard core power user, I think it's pointless to lug around a fully equiped laptop.

I am a creative guy, and I have never missed my laptop when traveling. NEVER. The iPad is perfect. It's Light & Packed with great apps. What more could ya need?

I love mine and would highly recommend one over a laptop for your trip as well.

Happy travels!

DudeAbroad wrote: What more could ya need?

A USB port.