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So, I've had laptops for about the last ten years and I'm giving thought to changing to a tablet when my current laptop wears out. My question is, how do the two compare? What can you do on a tablet that you can't on a laptop? What is the lifespan of a tablet compared to a laptop? Can you surf the net as easily on a tablet? Please keep the answers simple. I am anything but a techie. Thanks in advance!

Laptops can take more wear and tear than a tablet, but a tablet is more portable and has a pretty good battery life. It is either a writing or touchscreen interface so surfing the net or writing out comments will be slower than on a laptop.
If you want a long(ish) battery life but still need a keyboard to type fast and don't have huge hands (trust me it makes a big difference) a netbook is probably the better way to go but tablets are making leaps and bounds and in the time it takes for you to get one it maybe the better deal.
Hp had a 'tablet' laptop that had a touchscreen and writing interface when in tablet mode. Once you get a hang of writing and can write fast you will speed through it(I used mine to take notes and print them out later it worked very well). Most that I know of that are new don't use the writing interface though.
Also if getting a tablet with the fingerprint scanner option pay the extra money to get it, you will get a lot more use out of it than you think.

Lorcan, thanks! See, there's so much I don't know! From the sounds of it, the laptop is superior to the tablet for what I use it for. What is the difference between a netbook and a laptop?

I can answer that. A netbook to a mini laptop, used mostly for surfing the net and basic things on a computer. It is less than 10" screen size, and battery life is between 4 to 10 hours. Some tablets will have a better battery life though.

Tiva, would you say it's better than a laptop?

that actually is a personal question, something you yourself would be the best at, i had a netbook for two years and it was much, much, much better than a laptop(what i have currently) for a very long time though not another person i met could see the benifit of it other than weight(about a third less to about a quarter as much depending on the type of either) i have small hands and though i wander a lot of sites i am not a high-tech person, the small screen was not a big deal and the keyboard(minus some occasional issues with the 'a/caps' and ''/enter' was perfect for my small hands

as a general rule though it depends on what you use it for, whether storage or portability is more important and the big one, do your hands fit XD

Well, everyone else seems to have answered your question. Anymore, it is a matter of personal preference.

Normal laptops generally have more storage and computing power (not to mention better graphics).

Netbooks are stripped down versions of laptops, generally used for basic computing, word processing, etc.

Tablets are essentially the same thing, but do not have a keyboard and are generally slightly more limited on what programs they can run.

I use it almost exclusively for just surfing the web. I guess from what I've read I'll just stick with a laptop. Thanks, everyone!

Some Tablets come with, or have optional, keyboard accessories. essentially turning them into a laptop. The Asus Transformer Prime being a good example of that. (The iPad also has many 3rd party options)

The tabled clips into the keyboard making it look pretty much exactly like a laptop. This makes it pretty useful. When you want a keyboard, take it with you, when you want a smaller device for doing simple thing take off the keyboard. The best of both worlds.
The Prime also happens to be one of the most graphically powerful tablets out there, and probably one of the top tablets in regards to over specs. the only draw back being the obvious high price.

Oh, that's very nice looking! I'm afraid to ask the price...

I would say it's something around $600? I'm not to sure on the American price.

If you're not really a tech savvy person, I would actually suggest an iPad. especially since the iPad 3 has just been released, driving down of the iPad 2 which is still a very good device.
android devices (most other tablets that aren't iPads) are a bit more complex and better suited for people who like to tinker and mess around with tech.

Since my main use would be getting online, would an Ipad be as good as a laptop? Though I've heard you can draw on a tablet...

The iPad supposedly has one of the better web browsers that a tablet can offer, along with quite a wide choice of proper hard keyboard accessories. But sadly they lack Flash, so flash based websites, games and video palyers don't work. On the other hand, most Android based tablets DO have flash support

If you're wanting an optimal browsing experience stick with a latop or netbook.

*nods* Again, sounds like a laptop is my best bet after all.

Don't forget netbooks :P If you're only wanting it for basic processes like browsing the web a netbook is better. fully capable of web browsing, running microsoft office and other not to demanding processes. on top off that they're smaller and cheap.

*nods* I don't do anything else on my laptop except browse the net.