Ultrabook vs. Tablet: Which Do You Choose?

The last few years have seen a major shift in the computing world. Three years ago, the conversation was all about Macs and PCs: The benefits of each and which platform consumers should go for. Today, that discussion has been tossed to the side.

We're in a very post-PC world that is being taken over every day by tablets. At the same time, traditional laptops have evolved into Ultrabooks. These supercharged laptops offer HD displays, unibody designs, generous storage capacities and blazing fast processors.

For a number of consumers, the question is now in which platform to choose. If you're currently facing this dilemma, the easiest way to approach it is to consider your usage and which platform will have less trouble being adapted into that usage.

For example, tablets have enormous appeal to those who are looking for either portability or entertainment. They're the most portable computing solution because of their form factor, weight and battery life. Most tablets on the market are lightweight, and their form factor is typically 10 inches or less.

This makes them much more portable than Ultrabooks, which usually fall in the 13 to 17 inch range. Battery life is also a factor in portability, as most high-end tablets can easily last through a day's worth of use without needing to be recharged. If portability is of benefit to you, then a tablet might be the right choice.

However, there are limitations to the tablet that exist as a direct result of what makes them portable. For example, most tablets run Android, and the iPad runs iOS. Both are scaled back considerably from the desktop experience: Multitasking is limited, you typically can't have multiple applications running at once, and the apps available on either platform aren't as robust.

If you're doing something that requires a lot of processing power, the larger screen and enormous amount of processing power offered by an Ultrabook would be ideal.  Another limitation of tablets that needs to be kept in mind is the lack of a physical keyboard. Although virtually every tablet on the market has an on-screen keyboard that can suffice in most situations, it doesn't compare to a real keyboard.

Typing on a touch screen is generally a slower and less efficient experience than typing on a real keyboard with real buttons. There is the option to pair the tablet with a Bluetooth keyboard, but that takes away from the devices portability. Ultrabooks, on the other hand, have large keyboards with well-spaced keys that are perfect for typing on.

It's not always easy to choose between a tablet and an Ultrabrook. The answer is going to be unique for each user, and it's really a matter of evaluating how you use the device. If you're planning to mostly use the device in one place or do processing-intensive tasks, then an Ultrabook is likely the better option. However, if you value portability and ease of use more, then a tablet should suffice.

There is plenty of overlap between the two, and it's up to each user to decide what suits their needs.

Michael Jones

About the Guest Author:

Michael Jones follows everything technology related, from smartphones to Ultrabooks. His goal is to bring the latest technology to consumers. If there's a new product, you can bet he's evaluating it!