i spent a hour playing with the xoom.

[kdarling]

Does it matter? Background running processes should not impact the performance.

Of course background processes can impact performance. Computers are not magic. If you have an Android widget that someone sets to update every few minutes, then there will be an impact. If you run a background file download on iOS, it can slow you down. This is not bad; it's by design and usually done by user choice.

Heck, there are times on the iPhone where a nav program, VoIP program or even Apple's mail app have gotten stuck running in the background. It happens. I've had it happen with app updates.

And what's that about "when you need a task manager, you failed"?

Quoting Steve Jobs is like quoting a car salesman: usually meaningless. For it to be truthful, that saying should've been, "If people KNOW they're using a task manager, you've failed". (WebOS did this best.)

iOS has a task manager to kill wayward apps... that's what the X's are for in the recently used apps bar. It needs that task manager because Apple had to give up its original Home-button-kills-the-running-app paradigm in order to allow multitasking at all.

 

[fertilized-egg]

why wouldn't the xoom owner just use the usb cable that comes with digital cameras for uploading the pictures to pcs?

The purpose is to go straight from the camera to the tablet, skipping the PCs.

I love that people just make declarations like this and expect them to be accepted without question.

While I also dislike strong declarations like that, it's hard to disagree with the "apps matter" statement since that how people do things on their tablet just like how DOS was able to overpower Mac with its "killer apps."

 

[Mattstkc]

how can you even say that, it is a worthy ipad competitor.

spec wise, yes, but price wise, NOT A CHANCE. Cramming ports and features into a tablet hoping it will sell on the merit that it "has more than iPad" is BS. It's like Camera Manufaturers cramming Megapixels into things. No one needs a 20mp camera, they need at most a 7-10mp camera that has decent sensors, but bigger numbers and more bells and whistles usually sways consumers but that trend is changing. people are looking for quality, not buzzword marketing, but quality. They can get it for $499 and not $800.

 

[hcho3]

Who is stupid enough to spend 799 dollars on xoom? You can get a nice laptop for 799 dollars online or even get refuribshed MBA 11.6 for 849 dollars at apple.com.

Xoom is a nice competitor to iPad 2 in a spec wise, but it is an overpriced tablet that has only 12-15 apps that are optimized for a tablet. Very nice.

 

[benhollberg]

Sounds like what I wrote for It's All Tech. "My One Hour with the Motorola Xoom" - http://itsalltech.com/2011/02/25/my-one-hour-with-the-motorola-xoom/

 

[gloss]

While I also dislike strong declarations like that, it's hard to disagree with the "apps matter" statement since that how people do things on their tablet just like how DOS was able to overpower Mac with its "killer apps."

It's still an incredibly shortsighted statement. Let's face it, if Apple endowed OS5 with more robust (i.e. 'complicated') interface functionality, people would not decry it as inferior to the straightforward Apps Only philosophy. There's a tendency among some of the Flock to complain about any given feature or capability not shared by Apple's platform...until Apple adds it, in which case it's the best/most user friendly thing ever.

 

[ehoui]

It's still an incredibly shortsighted statement. Let's face it, if Apple endowed OS5 with more robust (i.e. 'complicated') interface functionality, people would not decry it as inferior to the straightforward Apps Only philosophy. There's a tendency among some of the Flock to complain about any given feature or capability not shared by Apple's platform...until Apple adds it, in which case it's the best/most user friendly thing ever.

So do you think apps matter or not on a tablet? This is the statement that you are decrying.

I am hopeful about the Xoom and iPad 2 (looking for my first tablet purchase). But I am very worried about the lack of Apps -- I don't have 100s on my iPhone -- but I have several that I use pretty much every day. Also, I am worried about having an integrated media experience. How do I get content onto the Xoom from my iTunes library (which houses all my music)? Is there a mechanism for synching my music?

 

[fertilized-egg]

if Apple endowed OS5 with more robust (i.e. 'complicated') interface functionality, people would not decry it as inferior to the straightforward Apps Only philosophy.

That argument doesn't make much sense because robust interface and apps-centric philosophy aren't exclusive to each other at all. If Google had planned the Honeycomb launch better so that they would have a lot of tablet-optimized apps in the beginning it wouldn't have mattered so much.

Moreover what do you do with a "robust interface" in OS if you don't have apps? Ooh-and-ahhing switching between the mail app and the browser? (I must admit I did that stuff with Expose when it first showed up )

 

[kdarling]

Sounds like what I wrote for It's All Tech. "My One Hour with the Motorola Xoom" - http://itsalltech.com/2011/02/25/my-one-hour-with-the-motorola-xoom/

I usually don't read one-hour reviews... I think people need days to really get a feel for any device, but hey... Anyway, you wrote:

"Price, price, price. The Xoom is priced at $799, something so ridiculous that even the salesman at Best Buy agreed. Although a comparable iPad with 3G would be $729 an $800 price tag is a lot of money for a tablet.

It's $70 more, with more speed, RAM, I/O and free 4G upgrade. To people who would spend $730 for the top iPad, the difference is negligible.

Consider also that you must buy a month of Verizon data just to unlock WiFi capabilities, I’m not joking about this.

That info is out of date. Verizon repealed that requirement.

Also consider that the Xoom will be upgradeable to 4G LTE for free in the future, which could make up for that $70 price difference."

Yep. And consider that the price is bound to drop over time, as most electronics do. (The Samsung Tab dropped $100 after a month or so.)

Cheers!

 

[vrDrew]

It's still an incredibly shortsighted statement..

No, its not.

Apps matter for the very simple reason that, if you don't have Apps, there really isn't much point in buying a tablet.

If all you want to do is check your e-mail and browse the web - most people already have a perfectly good alternative: A laptop computer. Which nowadays can be purchased for considerably less than an $800 Xoom.

What Apps do is capitalize on the tablet's strengths: a touchscreen, motion sensors, extreme portability and light weight. Those characteristics, in conjunction with an App designed to take advantage of them is what gives people a reason to buy a tablet.

If you look at the iPads on display at Apple's retail stores, you will notice that they purposely load each one of them with a variety of Apps: Games to appeal to every age and interest. Newspaper and magazines. The Pages and Numbers apps. Showcase Apps like The Elements and MLB At Bat. A potential customer can go to the store, pick up an iPad and within a few minutes understand how the thing is different from anything they've done before with a computing device.

Pretending that Apps "don't matter" defies not only the history of the last thirty years of computing devices, but simple logic itself.

 

[fertilized-egg]

It's $70 more, with more speed, RAM, I/O and free 4G upgrade. To people who would spend $730 for the top iPad, the difference is negligible.

That's the wrong argument methinks. The iPad 32G 3G version is somewhat of a premium item with a higher margin in the iPad lineup. The most popular iPad was clearly the cheaper 16G version as evident in the average selling price. You're expecting people to pay premium on top of premium..for a device with a worse display. That's a tough sell.

Pretending that Apps "don't matter" defies not only the history of the last thirty years of computing devices, but simple logic itself.

I'm starting to get convinced a lot of Android users (I use an Android phone) have more fun switching&managing apps in the task manager, installing latest custom ROMs, changing icon settings, installing widgets, etc, than actually using apps.

 

[gloss]

No, its not.

Apps matter for the very simple reason that, if you don't have Apps, there really isn't much point in buying a tablet.

If all you want to do is check your e-mail and browse the web - most people already have a perfectly good alternative: A laptop computer. Which nowadays can be purchased for considerably less than an $800 Xoom.

What Apps do is capitalize on the tablet's strengths: a touchscreen, motion sensors, extreme portability and light weight. Those characteristics, in conjunction with an App designed to take advantage of them is what gives people a reason to buy a tablet.

If you look at the iPads on display at Apple's retail stores, you will notice that they purposely load each one of them with a variety of Apps: Games to appeal to every age and interest. Newspaper and magazines. The Pages and Numbers apps. Showcase Apps like The Elements and MLB At Bat. A potential customer can go to the store, pick up an iPad and within a few minutes understand how the thing is different from anything they've done before with a computing device.

Pretending that Apps "don't matter" defies not only the history of the last thirty years of computing devices, but simple logic itself.

I'm not saying that apps don't matter. Not at all.

I'm saying that the above reviewer's Declared Truth that any additional functionality in the tablet's OS layer somehow detracts from the experience seems absurd. Tablets are not smartphones. They should be expected to include expanded capability.

 

[ehoui]

I'm not saying that apps don't matter. Not at all.

I'm saying that the above reviewer's Declared Truth that any additional functionality in the tablet's OS layer somehow detracts from the experience seems absurd. Tablets are not smartphones. They should be expected to include expanded capability.

We are all giving this 1-hour "played with" review way too much credit.

Personally, I question a desktop metaphor, but I will try it before I decide whether it's appropriate (for me) on a tablet.

 

[gloss]

We are all giving this 1-hour "played with" review way too much credit.

Personally, I question a desktop metaphor, but I will try it before I decide whether it's appropriate (for me) on a tablet.

Yeah, this is fair. I just personally can't tell you how many times I've wished to be able to, say, change my WiFi network or turn off Bluetooth or whatnot without having to dig down into Settings. Taken too far, perhaps the desktop metaphor is a little too complex, but from what I've seen of Honeycomb, it seems to do an admirable job (though not without considerable idiosyncrasies).

 

[infidel69]

After reading this thread one thing is very apparent. ipad fans are worried about the Xoom.

 

[spinedoc77]

No, its not.



If all you want to do is check your e-mail and browse the web - most people already have a perfectly good alternative: A laptop computer. Which nowadays can be purchased for considerably less than an $800 Xoom.

I'll bet there is a significant portion of ipad users who do exactly that, browse the web and check their email and not much else. I'd say the ipad is pretty much perfect to do just that and a laptop is not a viable alternative when you look at the reasons people buy ipads. Namely the laptop isn't instant on, the laptop still needs to be opened clamshell style and put somewhere on a lap or a desk, and the laptop has significantly inferior battery life. As a simple email and web browser the ipad is just a huge amount more convenient. If someone purchased an ipad for ONLY email and web browsing I wouldn't blame them in the least and it would be totally logical to expect some people do just that.

 

[kdarling]

I'll bet there is a significant portion of ipad users who do exactly that, browse the web and check their email and not much else.

One survey here with lots of charts:

What People Do with their iPad

 

[Night Spring]

Yeah, this is fair. I just personally can't tell you how many times I've wished to be able to, say, change my WiFi network or turn off Bluetooth or whatnot without having to dig down into Settings. Taken too far, perhaps the desktop metaphor is a little too complex, but from what I've seen of Honeycomb, it seems to do an admirable job (though not without considerable idiosyncrasies).

What does quick access to settings have to do with desktops? In Windows, you have to open up Control Panel to change most settings. In OS X, you open the Settings Preferences, or whatever it's called. And it doesn't bother most people, because you don't have to close out your other programs in order to open the Settings/Control Panel. In fact, I'd say quick access to settings is a unique requirement for mobile devices. You tend to change settings more frequently (I set the brightness on my desktop once and never touch it again, while on my iPad I'm constantly fiddling with the brightneess depending on where I am), and limited screen space and application memory space means that opening a full setttings app displaces you from what you are doing.

 

[gloss]

What does quick access to settings have to do with desktops? In Windows, you have to open up Control Panel to change most settings. In OS X, you open the Settings Preferences, or whatever it's called. And it doesn't bother most people, because you don't have to close out your other programs in order to open the Settings/Control Panel. In fact, I'd say quick access to settings is a unique requirement for mobile devices. You tend to change settings more frequently (I set the brightness on my desktop once and never touch it again, while on my iPad I'm constantly fiddling with the brightneess depending on where I am), and limited screen space and application memory space means that opening a full setttings app displaces you from what you are doing.

The whole quick access paradigm is what the reviewer I'm referencing found annoying about the Xoom. He thought that having immediate access to notifications, settings, etc. was not the purpose of a tablet. In his words, "If all of this sounds a bit confusing you’re right. Apps are supposed to be the central focus of a modern touchscreen OS, not fussing around with desktop metaphors and fiddling with sliders and dials."

 

[Night Spring]

The whole quick access paradigm is what the reviewer I'm referencing found annoying about the Xoom. He thought that having immediate access to notifications, settings, etc. was not the purpose of a tablet. In his words, "If all of this sounds a bit confusing you’re right. Apps are supposed to be the central focus of a modern touchscreen OS, not fussing around with desktop metaphors and fiddling with sliders and dials."

Oh, I see. I'd read that as desktop metaphor *and* sliders and dials, that is, two separate issues. But you read that as one thing, that is, sliders and dials are part of the desktop metaphor. Not sure who is right, but I now get where you were coming from.

 

[lilo777]

That's the wrong argument methinks. The iPad 32G 3G version is somewhat of a premium item with a higher margin in the iPad lineup. The most popular iPad was clearly the cheaper 16G version as evident in the average selling price. You're expecting people to pay premium on top of premium..for a device with a worse display. That's a tough sell.

Well, there is "Archos premium", "Apple premium" and now - Motorola premium. Now that Apple is in a business of selling to mass market they can not afford to produce really high end stuff. Motorola can. Just check performance comparison between XOOM and iPad on Anandtech. XOOM has 2x, 3x and more (sometimes order of magnitude) performance advantage vs iPad. In essence it's in a different class. Don't you agree that this might justify a little price premium? Besides, we all know that the price will drop quickly.

 

[Jcoz]

Well, there is "Archos premium", "Apple premium" and now - Motorola premium. Now that Apple is in a business of selling to mass market they can not afford to produce really high end stuff. Motorola can. Just check performance comparison between XOOM and iPad on Anandtech. XOOM has 2x, 3x and more (sometimes order of magnitude) performance advantage vs iPad. In essence it's in a different class. Don't you agree that this might justify a little price premium? Besides, we all know that the price will drop quickly.

Not really understanding this comment in the slightest.

You are trying to prove a point comparing brand new hardware to year old consumer electronics hardware?

 

[brentsg]

So 4 things out our your cons list is really null and void..

Why is it so acceptable in the Android world to release things and then make them work later on?

No way Apple would get a free pass on this, nor should they or anyone else.

 

[lilo777]

Not really understanding this comment in the slightest.

You are trying to prove a point comparing brand new hardware to year old consumer electronics hardware?

I am comparing hardware available for purchase today and thats the only thing that matters.

 

[Jcoz]

I am comparing hardware available for purchase today and thats the only thing that matters.

No you aren't, you are drawing conclusions regarding apples ability to offer a high performance product by referencing year old apple product capabilities to Moto's just released offering.

You actually say that apple can no longer make such a high grade offering and that its clear because moto's brand new one laps it in certain tasks.

Makes no sense whatsoever.