Windows 8 tablets.

[c.ruel]

Just a couple of n00bie questions. Are there any good window 8 tablets about for under £300 and closer to the £200 mark? Also if you have a windows 8 phone and windows 8 on your pc would it be advisable to get a windows 8 tablet rather than a google nexus say?

[James22]

I don't think they are as cheap as you asking because mostly their prices starts from £400.. but i will try to find some for you.. I think maybe I will get some in acer.

[vicar]

You could have a look at the MS Surface RT for your price point.

Go to a computer shop and have a go on it, before relying too much on reviews.

IMHO I prefer a win 8 tablet to an Android one, just my penny worth.

All the best in your decision making process.

[jadenathanau]

Why not try the getac v1oo as they are more rugged as compared to normal laptops along with they are used in any kind of environment with efficient features that makes them more powerful as compared to others.

[Thorburn]

Got a ASUS Transformer Book T100 with the new Baytrail Atom chip in it yesterday - £350 in the UK for 32GB models but I got a 64GB US import for £340 inc PnP.

As a cheap laptop its really nice - unlike many low-end laptops it has eMMC flash as opposed to a mechanical HDD so its really nice and responsive for general use. Similarly priced clamshells I've used at this sort of price point are normally horrible. It also comes with a full copy of Office 2013 Home and Student edition included in the price - not a crappy trial version - which is a real bonus.

I've done some gaming testing on it over the weekend and graphics performance is about on a par with a 1st generation Core i3/i5, which isn't as bad as it sounds when you think this is a 2w SoC! I have stuck a few videos up on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/user/BrueComputing

There is one downside though - I'm just not sold on 10" 16:9 aspect ratio tablets. It makes a really good LAPTOP, but I was using it detached last night and I just find typing with the tablet in landscape a real chore. You need to hold it with two hands and that means typing with both thumbs, but the keys in the centre become a really awkward stretch.

Hold it portrait and its REALLY tall and narrow. You only have a 1368x768 (yes, 1368) screen which is fine for a 10.1" Windows device (I don't like the way Windows handles DPI scaling as too many applications are simply broken) in landscape usage, but held portrait having 768 horizontal pixels isn't enough and means you start scaling down a lot of websites.

As little as I like iOS I have to say that the 4:3 aspect ratio of the iPad range is, IMO, better for a tablet than 16:9, unless you are purely interested in video playback.

[cptwhite_uk]

There's a range of smaller full Windows 8.1 tablets coming to market: Typically retailing for $300-330, hopefully this will translate into the £250-300 mark over here.

http://us.acer.com/ac/en/US/content/model/NT.L31AA.004
http://www.dell.com/us/p/dell-venue-8-pro/pd
http://www.engadget.com/2013/10/17/l...iix2-hands-on/

[J90]

I had a mate who bought a acer icona tablet on windows 7 cheap because it was unusable and I put a copy of 8.1 on it and it runs like a dream now. Keep your eyes open on ebay for one!

[spiritdreams]

Microsoft current doing a student deal on surface Pro 128GB for 350quid, after quidco cashback of £60, def one of the better ones out there in specs, if you are not student you can get it around £470 after the cashback.

They are doing some kind of clearance for surface pro 2

[Rocketshoes]

I got a Microsoft Surface RT 64gb with Touch cover for about £260 with a student discount.

[TVoJ]

How do these student discounts work?

Would love a Surface to play a few of my steam games I don't touch. Namely the walking dead and wolf among us. I know I'd play these if I could do it in bed/on the train/ in the bog.

[mdwheeler1]

This depends on what you want it for;

Mini iPad type - there are a few no-name small Win8.1 tablets - I have HP Stream 7 - ~£100 from MS store - or if in US $99 - I got a bundle HP7 & protector & case - $119 - very nice - Yes only 7" 5 point touch and small size, but is Win8.1 full (not Pro) rather than RT version - so I have Sky App, BBC iPlayer downloads - use Classic Menu to bypass "metro" - it works great for travelling - Bluetooth, wifi and with USB connector - I have 64GB µSD card which is under back cover (a couple of times failed to locate - pop out and back using hot swap. 32Gb SSD (~20Gb free - so use µSD slot)

There are slightly larger one is 10-11" range - Lenovo or HP stream 11 - I have full Surface I Win 8.1 Pro (i5 - 128Gb SSD) - fantastic as a laptop replacement - can run as tablet only or via keyboard.

The new Surface 3 is good but the lower price point is for RT - so if web, streaming and apps only it is fine, but CPU is low spec, getting i3, i5 or i7 can be up to £1500, so like apple -more style over substance possibly depending on your needs.

How do these student discounts work?

Would love a Surface to play a few of my steam games I don't touch. Namely the walking dead and wolf among us. I know I'd play these if I could do it in bed/on the train/ in the bog.

I use my i5 surface 1 (128Gb) to play some Steam games - Moon breakers, Entropy - but the graphics setting need to be lowered. Yes newer units have better inbuilt GPU, but they throttle down when het builds - and the i7 gets very hot - the chassis does not allow rapid heat loss so capable yes - I am not sure of the experience.