The Venue 8 Pro (from Dell) reminded me
– again – that I'm getting old.
In the hands of a 15 year-old me, a
tablet computer like this would have figuratively melted my brain.
You have to remember though that digital cameras were only just
appearing in 1993 and compared to current digital technology, those first
contraptions are akin to pin-hole cameras. So, something like this
would have cracked open a door to the Twilight Zone. The tablet is
packed with features, some of which I'm sure I didn't even see
let alone use as I found myself sticking to standbys like Twitter,
Netflix, Facebook and OneDrive (Microsoft's cloud storage) rather
than exploring the Marketplace to find the best apps or put the thing
to use in unexpected ways.
It was
upon reflection of that fact that I realized I've become the
punchline to a joke about old people using computers (circa 1990's).
“I use it for the electronic mail and solitaire. If I'm feeling
dangerous, sometimes I'll throw in some Minesweeper. I
can also read the latest news from around the globe. I
love my computer!”
I
think part of this was acclimatizing myself to tablet computing. Even though I use a Windows phone – yes, I'm one
of those people –
and the interface is familiar to that one, I still fumbled around
trying to figure out swipes and taps to make the thing function,
especially when it came to using my fingers instead of a mouse and
keyboard.
Of course to get to that, I had to pair the keyboard with the tablet. "Oh dear
God, I'm getting old," echoed through my mind as I poked
around with the Settings for several frustrating minutes and was on
the verge of giving up because at my age every minute is precious when I noticed the symbol that befuddled people know as a sign of
hope: the magnifying glass that brings up the “search” function.
Fortunately, the
search function is good. I tapped in “bluetooth keyboard” and
within a couple more minutes I made the connection.
At one time in my
life I would have made a stink about poor interface design, menus with little direction, and lack
of foresight to accommodate the user, now I'm just glad the mall has
a directory map.
I used the search
function a lot to get to specific settings, but the most common
settings are just a swipe away so connecting to a new Wifi hotspot or
leaping back to the homescreen wasn't a cause for grief.
Maybe the one time
in my life of being a Windows phone user that has made things easier
for me is that fact that I just had to set-up my profile once and
everything synced with my existing account. My calendar, pictures, documents, etc. were just
there and accessible (provided you're connected via wifi). It was an
extremely simple set-up and I wound up taking the tablet with me to a
few meetings to take notes and bring up documents as a way to cut
down on the amount of paper I had to carry.
I
wanted to take the plunge into full-on gaming because there are a lot
of people out that that swear that games on tablet and phones have
come of age and are full of challenging gameplay, but by the end of
the my time with the tablet, I'd used it for a total of zero
games. The graphical benhmark tests that I ran on the Venue 8 Pro got
high marks, but that was as close as I got. Like adventure games
without definite puzzles to solve or Yeti's to hit in the face with a
pie, my brain has not been able to cross the divide to embracing
tablet games (or mobile games, for that matter) as something that I
want to spend time with.
Having
pulled a muscle in my brain, I handed the tablet over to my 15-year
old son, who has a long track record of breaking things. (He's been
breaking things for as long as the Armchair Empire's been around.)
Having just recently bought himself an Nvidia Shield tablet, he was
eager to see what the Venue 8 Pro could do but was almost instantly
presented with an insurmountable issue: trying to pair a Bluetooth
controller with the tablet. He couldn't manage to do it and that was
that. His great experiment with a Windows tablet was abandoned. So, I
turned to the younger boys, 3 and 6-years old.
Neither
one had broken anything for a long time. At least since breakfast.
Other
than trying to figure out how to get Angry Birds
installed, the pair spent their time messing around with the built-in
cameras (front and back).
Neither camera offers much in the way of high resolution snaps or
movies, but that didn't deter them from figuring out the panorama
function where very large spaces can be “stitched” together to
create really neat environments or taking a ton of pictures from
about 3' off the ground. Then the inevitable.
It
dropped, as any tablet would from a 6-year old's hands who just
finished making a margarine sandwich.
And it
was okay. Then it dropped from the hands of a 3-year old as he tried
to helpfully pick-up the tablet. And it was okay.
Not
wanting to tempt fate, I sent the tablet back soon after.
For someone like me, the Venue 8 Pro isn't something I'd use for gaming; it's something I'd use for productivity and taking to meetings for easy reference to any number of files I need to consult. Add in a wireless keyboard and it's an easy way to type up minutes and power through some emails while away from my main computer.
 |
| A familiar desktop view... now it just needs a mouse. |
For someone like me, the Venue 8 Pro isn't something I'd use for gaming; it's something I'd use for productivity and taking to meetings for easy reference to any number of files I need to consult. Add in a wireless keyboard and it's an easy way to type up minutes and power through some emails while away from my main computer.
I'm
getting too old for this. My 15-year old self is crying.
-
Aaron Simmer
MSRP:
$299.99 (CAN)
Processor
- Intel® Atom™ processor Z3740D with 32GB storage (2MB Cache, up to 1.8GHz Quad-Core)
Operating System
Windows 8.1 (32Bit) English
Productivity Software
Office Home & Student 2013 Tablet
Display
8.0 inch IPS Display with HD (WXGA 1280 x 800) resolution with 10-pt capacitive touch
Security Software
Memory
2GB Single Channel DDR3L-RS 1333MHz
Hard Drive
32GB eMMC
Video Card
Intel® HD Graphics
Wireless
Dell Wireless 1538 Dual-Band 2x2 802.11n WiFi + Bluetooth® Smart
Warranty
1 Year Basic Mail-In Service Plan
