Darla G. Denton | Author Platform Coach

I bit the bullet and went and bought a tablet.

I’ve been putting it off for a long time because:

1.  I have a laptop and tablets are just like laptops right?
2.  I have a smartphone that I try to do everything on and it’s more portable then a tablet.

As I dive further and further into the writing world I’ve found that my laptop just can’t go everywhere with me because even though it’s small its still heavy and cumbersome. I’ve also found that trying to manage all my social media sites (personal and professional) is a big pain in the butt on a 3.5in screen.

So I came up with a plan.

• I decided to keep my laptop and use it like I do currently (as business only). This is where I plan, research, and write my books, blog articles, and any other writing assignments I might have.
• Since, I try to keep my personal and business accounts separate I’ve decided to use my cell phone for personal  accounts only and get a tablet to handle my business accounts (social media, moderating my website/blog, keeping up to date on the current news and information in the writing world and as a mobile office for when I can’t get to my laptop).

With my plan in mind I marched over to Best Buy to test some tablets out and to see what the resident geek squad recommended.

I have to admit, they were very friendly and helpful.

I don’t normally like shopping at Best Buy because their prices are usually higher then most other places. However, I found out that they will price match! Yay!  If, say, you see the item you want to buy at Walmart, Target, Kohls, Kmart, or even Amazon at a cheaper price they will price match it (just as long as they see that price for themselves when they look it up on the internet).

I asked the Geek Squad,

What tablet works best as a computer?

What tablet will easily handle sharing documents from my laptop to the tablet and vice versa?

and finally,

What tablet will allow me to multitask in almost any program (meaning I can have a video conference open and search the internet at the same time or work a document in Microsoft office.)

Their suggestion was:

 

There was no way I had $600 to spend so they pointed me to its cheaper sibling:

The Microsoft Surface 64GB

 

This one wasn’t cheap either but it was on sale when I got it, putting it just under $300. After getting it home I had second thoughts about it.

It’s not like other tablets that are pretty much ready to go as soon as your turn it on. Sure, most tablets need to be charged and will need you to answer a few quick questions but that’s it. With this tablet you run into the same problem and more.

I kid you not, after going through the initial set up and charge, my tablet was on a perpetual software update for almost a full 24hrs! I couldn’t believe it. That’s never happened to me before and I’ll admit, I was ready to take it back. But, I waited it out and once it was done I sat and played with it for a bit.

Now, I’m not the smartest person nor am I the dumbest but after trying to figure it out (I haven’t used Microsoft 8 programming before) I was lost, confused, and my brain hurt, literally. I pretty much had the thing back in its packaging to be returned when my husband convinced me to give it some more time. So for a few days it sat on my desk where I would give it the evil eye every once and awhile lol  I really was unhappy with this tablet. Then, one night before bed, I gave it another shot. I laid there and just aimlessly wandered through its features not having a clue what I was doing.

It was like the flood gates opened up and everything just started clicking, making sense! I went from absolutely hating this thing to being in awe of it!!

I’m not tech savvy enough to give you all the highlights as to why I think it’s awesome. But just the fact that I can go from a start up app window that is 100% customizable (Here I have my email program, calendar, social media accounts, and Writing news laid out for me in one place) to my desktop, PC functions with just the touch of a button.

Then there’s the Windows office programs that it comes with! Yes, the tablet comes with some Office programs already installed! FOR FREE!!

I’m in love. Truly, honestly in love.

The only downside is, it’s not a common shape/size, so you can’t just pick up a case for it anywhere. You either have to go to a store that sells Surface products or order it online and they aren’t cheap. However, I did a search for Surface cases on Amazon and there are a lot to choose from at very low prices (starting at $8.00).

So If you are looking for a tablet and you need it to work like a computer and be able to multitask I would suggest checking out the Windows Surface products. The initial set up and learning curve is a headache but I promise it, it’s worth it!