Affordable Alternative to iPad Pro?

djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 10:59

Hi,

I'm a uni student currently studying advanced mathematics / commerce (economics), and as such, I go through an obscene amount of exercise books and uniball pens every semester. I'm talking like 12 pens a semester and at least 8 books. So I end up spending like $40 on supplies each semester. Then, one day at uni, one of my friends showed me that he does all of his work on his iPad Pro because of the apple pen. It's all stored in OneNote and he doesn't have to find a place to keep (or just throw out) 8 full exercise books worth of work at the end of the semester.

Now, I know a lot of tablets have pens available that you can use, but not all of them are great for writing, especially mathematics. I looked into buying an iPad Pro, especially with the Bing Lee clearance sales and stuff that are going on, but it's still way out of my price range. I own a Macbook (don't hate, I didn't know about Xiaomi when I started uni 4 years ago), and I know a tablet can't really replace my laptop, especially for other hobbies like music production- but obviously being an Apple guy everything integrates quite nicely.

My question is, is there an affordable tablet alternative (say under $500) to the iPad Pro that I could use? Maybe like a Xiaomi version or some other android tablet. Otherwise maybe it's worth looking into buying an iPad Pro second hand. Ultimately what I need is an electronic piece of paper; a glorified exercise book that won't run out of pages, so I can stop buying pens and exercise books for my next few years of uni.

Any suggestions or advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

Electrical & Electronics

Comments

  • CyberMurning on 24/11/2017 - 11:09
    -7

    anything without apple logo

    • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 11:15
      +3

      That's super helpful, thanks.

  • HighAndDry on 24/11/2017 - 11:15
    +5

    Short answer: No.

    Because of the market that good tablets with stylus support are targeted towards (professionals in design/engineering/other-high-paying-fields), as well as the level of tech both hardware and software that goes into making a good stylus system, there aren't "budget" versions of these that work at the same level.

    Alternatives:

    Microsoft Surface Pro (also $$$).

    Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 (cheaper, around $500?)

    • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 11:19

      Ah okay. Some of the older models of Surface Pro's aren't TOO pricy but they're still not cheap. I hadn't thought about a Galaxy Tab 3, I'll look into it, thanks! May have to just save up and bite the bullet on an iPad Pro.

  • [Deactivated] on 24/11/2017 - 11:23
    +2

    when I started uni 4 years ago

    for my next few years of uni.

    I thought a double degree normally goes for 4-5 years, unless you're planning on doing post-grad? I would've suggested a 2-in-1 PC but it seems like you already have a laptop. The new Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 does support the S pen, however it will be costing around $640 from Amazon.

    • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 11:34

      Yeah, 4th year starts next year then I have an honours year then a 3-4 year PHD, but good catch. If my laptop were to spontaneously die then I'd have a need to buy a new one lol. In that case I'd actually spend $1000 or so on something good like a Lenovo 2 in 1.

      EDIT: that would technically make it 3 years ago on second thoughts lol, my bad. Lost track of time because I'm heading into my 4th year but technically started 3 full years ago.

  • Randxyz123 on 24/11/2017 - 11:27
    +1

    Can you save up a little and maybe go half’s with your parents or something for Christmas ? Look at refurbished models and keep an eye on eBay sales.

    Apple has $140 cash back on iPads today so that would cover the pencil as well. Not sure if that’s available with education prices.

    • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 11:39

      I'm married and moved out of home so going half and half with my parents might be a little tough lol! But it's my 21st in a couple months so my plan is to wait until then if I can't find any particularly great deals in the meantime.

      • Oz8argain on 24/11/2017 - 13:38
        +3

        wow already married! congrats on finding your life partner so early!

      • Randxyz123 on 24/11/2017 - 13:51

        Married at 21 wow…

        Anyway you’re still studying so you probably could make a decent case for going 50/50 just because your married shouldn’t exclude you from help especially as it’s for your studies.

        Otherwise I’d be asking for it for your 21st present

        • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 14:20
          +1

          Ah thanks guys, got married this year.
          Yeah very true, I'll have a chat to the family and see how I go!

  • plmko on 24/11/2017 - 11:32

    Yes there is, but you get what you pay for.

    Check out Chuwi H13 and the H3 Pen.

    • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 11:46

      Will have a look, cheers.

  • Presence on 24/11/2017 - 11:41

    What sort of ozbargain member is paying $40 for 12 pens and 8 exercise books.

    • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 11:45
      +2

      I buy unlined exercise books, like art journals because I hate the lined books. They cost about $3 each (cheapest I've found). Also, uniball pens are $4-5 each from any supplies store, I buy the biggest pack I can for about $34. Ends up being about $2 each.

      Sure, I could buy 20c lined A4 books, it's just a personal preference thing. And yes, I could buy crappy 10-20 packs of ball point pens from Woolworths for like $2, but once again, personal preference.

  • ChaLuo on 24/11/2017 - 11:47

    Check out Wacom and Boogie Board

    https://www.amazon.com/Computer-Graphics-Tablets/b/ref=dp_bc…

    • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 12:28
      +1

      That's incredibly cheap. Can anyone vouch for the quality though? I mean I know you get what you pay for in this market.

  • Diji1 on 24/11/2017 - 11:52
    -4

    40 x 3 = 120

    120 x 3 = 360

    Assuming you're just beginning a 3 year degree full time degree the iPad is going to cost more. Same for a 5 year degree.

    Also no evidence that IT has any effect on educational outcomes. Not better, not worse, just the same.

    And it's more difficult to learn things by passively looking compared to writing by hand.

    • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 12:26
      +3

      Yes, of course the iPad is still going to cost more. The unique and difficult thing about a mathematics degree is that the work you did two years ago can actually be incredibly useful for a problem you're trying to solve now, so I regularly need access to my old exercise books where I've written proofs or answered questions of a similar style to what I may be doing currently. That's the main advantage I'm seeing in doing all my work electronically.

      I've also read the studies on handwriting notes giving better final results, which is why I indeed handwrite ALL my notes, and why I want to get a device with an electronic pen so I can continue doing so.

      Also, I'm not sure where your maths is coming from there - I have semesters so 40x2x3 = $240 for a postgrad, but considering I have 2 years left at uni, then 3-4 years after that, I may be looking at (at most) 40x2x6 = $480. Now that starts to make an iPad look a little more cost effective.

  • Konstantin on 24/11/2017 - 11:53
    -1

    Any Microsoft Surface will be the better option than an ipad.

    • Diji1 on 24/11/2017 - 11:56

      There's really no objective evidence for that, one is as good as the other for educational outcomes.

  • Quantumcat on 24/11/2017 - 11:56

    Buy a second hand Microsoft surface 1 or 2 with the pen for maybe $200

    • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 12:27

      Do you think it will do the job?

      • Quantumcat on 24/11/2017 - 12:56
        +1

        If you're just looking to take notes, sure. And you can use it as an actual computer as well (which you can't do with an iPad).

  • lupiter on 24/11/2017 - 12:39
    +1

    My friend used a super old slate PC with Wacom pen he got second-hand off eBay. It had to be plugged in all the time but it worked fine for his notes.

    My experience with cheap solutions is bad though. I used to have (after uni) an Asus Vivo Note 8, but it was a POS, the only good bit was the wacom-level sensor. The pen was tiny the, screen was bad, the storage was small, it was slow. I ended up returning it when it bricked itself during an OS update.

    I'd recommend buying quality second-hand goods rather than something cheap and new. Surface, iPad Pro, Wacom (they make tablet PCs as well as seperate graphics tablets).

    [I did maths at uni so I know the notes problem, but I used to type my notes in LaTeX because I didn't find handwriting helped me]

    • lupiter on 24/11/2017 - 12:41

      Second hand price indicators:

      SP3 + Pen 64GB $450
      iPad 9.7 32GB $575

    • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 12:44

      Yeah cheers, LaTeX is fantastic, but I get a bit TeX'd out after having to write up a weekly assignment lol. I also like to write a lot in class and I find I can't code it quickly enough which is a pain especially if I know the lecturer isn't going to upload their slides. With that being said, maybe I just need to get better at LaTeX haha!

      • lupiter on 24/11/2017 - 14:04
        +1

        I got pretty good at it by the end - it was that or try and decipher my handwriting! We had no slides, the lecturer would just write on the whiteboard or on paper with a document camera. If you asked really nicely they would let you check their notes.

        I would give my friends dirty looks when they complained that their textbooks were expensive - ha! textbooks!

        • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 14:22

          Lol! Yeah that's a real pain, I'm about to take some higher real analysis / abstract algebra so I'm guessing the resources are about to become a bit more limited!
          Thanks again for your help

  • PeterSnoot on 24/11/2017 - 13:09
    +3

    Keep in mind that just because a tablet supports a pen, doesn't mean it will do it well for the purpose you describe. From talking to colleagues, iPad Pro and Surface Pro seem to work very well, with others types performing less so. Ideally try it out yourself before buying.

    • djthornton on 24/11/2017 - 14:23

      Yeah, I went to JB and the Apple Store yesterday to try out the pens. They both write pretty well, I think I prefer the iPad just because I'm used to the Apple interface but they're both pretty similar in terms of what they accomplish.

  • quietsarcasm on 24/11/2017 - 13:15

    Maybe the cube i7 Stylus

  • McBanjo on 26/11/2017 - 12:20
    +1

    Just bought the Paperlike for my iPad Pro 12.9 and it's great for writing. Not 'quite' paper, feels more like soft stone - but better than the slippery original screen.

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