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Last Post 03/09/2008 2:26 PM by  jnhawk
Best tablet pc?
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JHunter
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02/29/2008 3:11 PM

    Is a tablet pc worth the money for field adjusting?  I'm still working off a reg. laptop, but concidering a tablet pc.  Any advantages/disadvantages.  I also estimate with Xactimate.  Thanks for the help!!

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    Tom Toll
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    02/29/2008 5:42 PM

    Jeannie, I have several friends that work off a Toshiba tablet and love them. They also have xactimate on their tablets. It would be very useful when working a loss  if you wish to complete it on site. They do have smaller screens, but their batteries last much longer. If i were younger and going to be in this business for a long while more, I would get one. They are a little pricey. Right now I prefer a good tic sheet and inputing to a laptop PC.

    Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
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    JimGary
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    02/29/2008 7:52 PM
    I have also used a tablet pc while in Ms working auto. It was great for doing the estimate on the hood of a veh. I'm not sure I would use it much on property. Sketching and narratives are a little easier for me to do sitting at a desk, or in my recliner. But for auto they are great.

    BTW we were using Panasonic Toughbooks and I believe a Toshiba without a keyboard, just a stylus.

    JWG
    I know the voices aren't real, but sometimes they're right!
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    JimGary
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    02/29/2008 9:01 PM
    My mistake, it was not a toshiba, it was a Fujitsu Stylistic,
    I know the voices aren't real, but sometimes they're right!
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    johnpostava
    SIMSOL.com
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    03/03/2008 9:55 AM
    Many of our tablet users like the Panasonci Toughbooks. Downside is they are heavy. Dedicated tablets (not "flip" screen like the TB) are lighter and easier to walk around a house with for 30 or more minutes but you have to dock them to use all of the plug-ins like keyboards, CD-drives, etc...). Most bang-for-the-buck would be the Toughbook type PC's.

    I just took delivery on the Samsung Q1 Ultra. It is a dedicated tablet and weighs less than a pound. I've only scoped the office and my home so far but the screen is large enough to see very well inside and out and light enough to use all day. It was recommended by one of our adjusters and seems to work well. We will have it at all of the trade shows and conferences we attend this year starting with the PLRB in Boston next month for those of you who may want to check it out. I think Best Buy carries them in their stores.
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    wstj
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    03/03/2008 10:44 AM
    I noticed that the Q1 only has an 800Mhz Intel processor. Does Simsol run well at that speed? According to Xactimate, 24 & 25 won't run at speeds slower than 1 Ghz. And I thought that Vista would not run at that speed. So with your use of this machine so far, it seems to do the job?
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    johnpostava
    SIMSOL.com
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    03/03/2008 4:28 PM
    Yes, simsol runs great. Just when these devices are getting really cool, I have to go to reading glasses! I would stay away from VISTA, we bought some Dell's with Vista as the OS and they stop for no reason at all. We have since "upgraded" the machines back to XP.
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    jnhawk
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    03/09/2008 2:26 PM

    I don't claim to be an expert, but I chose the Fujitsu Lifebook T series T4215 (the latest is the T4220). Reason 1: I can put a second battery in the DVD modular bay giving me about 4 real hours of working time. This was the most important criteria for me. If I plug in while driving, and I don't keep it on all the time I can get a full days work out of one set of batteries. Reason 2: It has the fastest chips to run Xactimate, Dragon Naturally Speaking, mapping software, etc. Others offer a lower voltage, but slower chip, but don't get much more battery time. Reason 3: Fujitsu makes a custom fit "bump case" that allows me to scope/write while I walk through the house. I wanted a way to carry the tablet even when I am climbing roofs. Reason 4: Fujitsu offers a useable indoor/outdoor screen - so I can work almost in any lighting condition. Reason 5: It has a keyboard so I can enter text on site easily. Other things I like: small easy to pack docking station, built-in SD card slot (for downloading photos immediately), Fujitsu's reputation, and last but very important, it weighs 4.5 lbs even with the second battery.

    Xactimate 25 runs easily on this machine. Xactimate requires at least 1024 X 768 monitor resolution, so a smaller PDA's screen won't display the whole picture. I run Vista and Xactimate 25 with no problems.  Using the pen to sketch is easy, and using "bloated" macros in line items makes typing unnecessary.

    Using macros in  Xactimate like tick sheets, deleting items you don't want, I can scope and write in about the same time it takes to scope.  I think this is more accurate because I am not transferring notes to computer (entering data twice), and because I am finishing everything before I leave the site. 

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