Monday 12 November 2012

Joining the 21st Century

I have an inbuilt distrust of new technology.

I like to wait for it to become fully tried and tested before investing my hard-earned cash, especially as it tends to mean that the price of this nolonger new technology has come down to a more sensible level.

We have only recently abandoned VHS in our house...

My phone is very old, has monophonic ringtones and does not know about touch screens, wifi or the internet.  I can play Snakes on it.

We have only just bought an LCD TV.  It is not 3D.

But the more I think about my trip to the USA and Canada, the more I feel that I need something modern to keep me in touch with the world, so I started looking at tablets.  Having had a look at what is out there, I think that the Kindle Fire does what I need.  Skype, email, Google Maps and Angry Birds.  Going to look more before I buy, but it is looking good so far.

8 comments:

wigsf3 said...

Do you have a laptop or net book computer? Just bring that. Why buy a tablet?

Rock Chef said...

Wigsf - I have a laptop but my wife has more or less taken that over - and it needs a new battery...

Riot Kitty said...

My husband used to play Angry Birds but now says they're only mildly frustrated.

ShadowRun300 said...

I'm a little ahead of you technologically speaking, but not by much. I have a DVD player. I have internet. My phone only makes calls and sends texts. That's about the extent of it.
My hubby has an iPad and ADORES it. It has its own WiFi so it's pretty useful when he's on the road. He hasn't been able to convince me to get one yet. I still prefer my laptop.
I'll be curious to know what you end up with!

Abby said...

My son the gadget geek got a Nexus 7 tablet and sings its praises. I'm thinking of getting one for myself. Saves me from doing my own research. In the meantime, I still love my dumbPhone.

Reggie Hunnicutt said...

I would strongly consider the operating system, and the apps available for that system. You will want to do a lot more things on your tablet than you listed and may regret having a third tier OS with limited apps. The gold standard is Apple. All apps pass thru and are approved or rejected by apple. The operating system is the same on all current devices. Second choice would be android tablet. Apps are unregulated and untested but there are lots of choices. The OS for android is fragmented so I would pay up for a Galaxy. I have the iPad 2 and use it daily. The iPhone is my messenger, camera, gps...you name it. Embrace....this is the golden age.

terri said...

I'm like you. I like for things to become tried and true before I buy them.

I bought Mark a tablet for Christmas last year (Toshiba Thrive.) He's technology challenged and I am not familiar with Android technology, so I can't say if it's a good one or not. Others tell me it is, but I love my laptop and have no desire to play with tablets.

I think that no matter what you get, as long as you can get internet, you'll probably be good to go.

agg79 said...

I hear you RC. Been hesitant to adopt the new technology (still have two VCRs) but I am slowly making the transition. If you are going mobile, think tablet version but it has to be able to hook up to WiFi. I bought my wife an iPad last summer and I have been "borrowing" it when I travel. Lots of that available over here. A lot of hotels also have a business center with a computer if you need to get on line. I have used most of those in my travels to find locations, send messages back home, look for local sites.