Here's the deal:
I do have a 15-inch MacBook Pro with retina display that I bought last year when I traveled to the US. It is a fantastic machine and I use it for everything.
I am also the owner of a 3rd gen iPad which I bought in 2012. It is a good machine for what it is intended to be, but it is not really suited for my kind of work (which is basically office work, with a lot of use of e-mail (and several e-mail attachments) and Microsoft Office applications.
I take my laptop everyday to work (I don't take the iPad), as it is very useful for me. However, I feel the 15-inch MacBook is large and not casual. I cannot just open it during a meeting without it taking a lot of space and calling everybody else's attention.
In addition, it is a very expensive machine to be carried around everyday. It costs US$ 5,000 here in Brazil and there are lots of robbers in the traffic lights waiting for us (I already had my iPhone stolen here, so I don't want to take chances with my Mac). I would prefer to leave my Mac home and take something else (cheaper) to work everyday.
I am traveling to the US again next month (and again in March, probably) and I am thinking of buying some companion to my Mac. A smaller and lighter device that can handle my kind of work, and which I can carry to work everyday without calling too much attention. Something I can open during a meeting and that nobody would care. And, yes, it must run Microsoft Office. An iPad is out of question here.
Although the MacBook Air is nice, it's not what I want. I don't like the TN low-resolution screen, so I won't buy one.
I was thinking more of a Windows device. Perhaps a Microsoft Surface Pro 2, which behaves very much like a tablet, but which is basically a full-featured laptop. Or a Dell Venue 11 Pro, which is less powerful, but cheaper.
I was thinking of something with a 10-11 inch display and an Intel processor running Windows. I would like it to be thin and light (2 lbs maximum). I would prefer if it is a tablet that can be converted into a laptop, and has a touch screen. A tablet only will not do, as I need the keyboard. If it has 3G/LTE connectivity, it's even better (but I'm not counting on this, though, as it would restrict my choices). I would like it to have a good display (by that, I mean an IPS display with a 1920x1080 resolution at least - could be more).
As for price, I don't want to pay a fortune for it. I am already the owner of an expensive 15-inch retina MacBook Pro, which is my main computer. I want something cheaper and for day-to-day office work. I am not willing to pay more than US$ 1,000 for it. But, if it is really worth it, I may think about it.
I think the Asus Zenbook Infinity and the Samsung Ativ Book 9 Plus are really good machines, but they are not that different from my current Mac. They are just laptops in a smaller scale. I was thinking about something more casual, and that's why the Surface Pro 2 came to my mind. Or the Dell Venue 11 Pro, which has the advantages of being cheaper and lighter, although less powerful.
Does anybody has any thought or suggestion on this?
I do have a 15-inch MacBook Pro with retina display that I bought last year when I traveled to the US. It is a fantastic machine and I use it for everything.
I am also the owner of a 3rd gen iPad which I bought in 2012. It is a good machine for what it is intended to be, but it is not really suited for my kind of work (which is basically office work, with a lot of use of e-mail (and several e-mail attachments) and Microsoft Office applications.
I take my laptop everyday to work (I don't take the iPad), as it is very useful for me. However, I feel the 15-inch MacBook is large and not casual. I cannot just open it during a meeting without it taking a lot of space and calling everybody else's attention.
In addition, it is a very expensive machine to be carried around everyday. It costs US$ 5,000 here in Brazil and there are lots of robbers in the traffic lights waiting for us (I already had my iPhone stolen here, so I don't want to take chances with my Mac). I would prefer to leave my Mac home and take something else (cheaper) to work everyday.
I am traveling to the US again next month (and again in March, probably) and I am thinking of buying some companion to my Mac. A smaller and lighter device that can handle my kind of work, and which I can carry to work everyday without calling too much attention. Something I can open during a meeting and that nobody would care. And, yes, it must run Microsoft Office. An iPad is out of question here.
Although the MacBook Air is nice, it's not what I want. I don't like the TN low-resolution screen, so I won't buy one.
I was thinking more of a Windows device. Perhaps a Microsoft Surface Pro 2, which behaves very much like a tablet, but which is basically a full-featured laptop. Or a Dell Venue 11 Pro, which is less powerful, but cheaper.
I was thinking of something with a 10-11 inch display and an Intel processor running Windows. I would like it to be thin and light (2 lbs maximum). I would prefer if it is a tablet that can be converted into a laptop, and has a touch screen. A tablet only will not do, as I need the keyboard. If it has 3G/LTE connectivity, it's even better (but I'm not counting on this, though, as it would restrict my choices). I would like it to have a good display (by that, I mean an IPS display with a 1920x1080 resolution at least - could be more).
As for price, I don't want to pay a fortune for it. I am already the owner of an expensive 15-inch retina MacBook Pro, which is my main computer. I want something cheaper and for day-to-day office work. I am not willing to pay more than US$ 1,000 for it. But, if it is really worth it, I may think about it.
I think the Asus Zenbook Infinity and the Samsung Ativ Book 9 Plus are really good machines, but they are not that different from my current Mac. They are just laptops in a smaller scale. I was thinking about something more casual, and that's why the Surface Pro 2 came to my mind. Or the Dell Venue 11 Pro, which has the advantages of being cheaper and lighter, although less powerful.
Does anybody has any thought or suggestion on this?
