Video: Windows 7 Tablet Versus iPad
The iPad has garnered far more attention and praise than any of the Windows 7 tablets expected to arrive at the end of this year. Few people have had a good look at how the two types of tablets compare, until now. A new video shows a Windows 7 tablet going head to head with an Apple iPad.
The tablet is made by Hanvon, a little-known manufacturer that is trying to gain notoriety in the burgeoning tablet market . It doesn't appear that the video was made by Hanvon, although the video does seem to be promoting it against the iPad .
Regardless, the video is a great primer on why Windows 7 does and does not work on a tablet. First of all, it offers more customization and options than the Apple iPad, simply because it's the same interface and operating system we're all used to using on a computer. It also has Adobe Flash, which means it can view the millions of Web videos that require Flash, and it appears to be doing it faster than the iPad in most cases.
But the video also points out the glaring problems in Windows 7 for tablets and the reason why the iPad seems so revolutionary. Windows 7 is just too cramped and complicated on a touchscreen interface. There's a reason why the scaled-down and overly simplified interface of the iPad appeals to people. That reason becomes apparent when the user in the video brings up the start menu with row upon row of tiny icons and text. The keyboard looks cramped too.
And then there is the most obvious problem: Windows 7 was clearly made for a mouse-based interface first and a touchscreen interface second. It's serviceable on a touchscreen, but the disparity becomes apparent when both tablets execute a simple pinch-to-zoom gesture. The iPad zooms and scrolls smoothly while the Windows 7 tablet is jittery and sometimes unresponsive.
