First things first. A tablet PC should be defined as a tablet. A big screen. That's it. These "tablet pc's" being touted in every bloody computer store are laptops with swivel screens. They weigh the same as a regular laptop. They all weigh between 4 and 5 pounds, and the touchscreens are no where near good enough to take notes with. The closest being maybe the Fujitsu's "swivel screen" laptops. But even they weigh 4.5 lbs and are almost 2 inches thick.
To all of you who say that the tablet has no use, you obviously graduated from college before tablets became a viable alternative. The fujitsu tablets (real tablets) are less than an inch slim and have great reviews.
Here are some significant advantages for students.
1.) It would be so much easier just to carry one tablet with all of your books in pdf or scanned format, than to lug 4 or 5 3 pound books around. Heck, it'd even be eaiser with a tablet AND a spare battery.
2.) Writing in the margins of your textbook would no longer matter because you don't have to sell the book back anymore. Also referencing old notes would be incredibly quick and easy, by attaching a page of notes to a page of the textbook, all on the screen. No more paper.
3.) It gives you two input options, both as quiet as someone writing with a pencil. You can either write with a stylus input, or use an on screen keyboard. No clickity clack of laptop keyboards in the classroom anymore (I find it very annoying when trying to listen to a lecture).
4.) Miss a lecture? No problem, instead of getting crappy photocopied notes or having to copy them all by hand, simply transfer them wirelessly from your friends tablet. Or, if you don't have one, he can print you off a copy.
