Laptops VS Tablets and The Samsung Galaxy Tab A

[David Williams]

I know there are a couple threads like this on ST. I've read them, but I have a little bit different question with regard to the laptop vs. tablet debate. First off, I want to mention that I started chasing with a laptop and GRlevel3. However, with the advent of cell phones and tablets, I've switched over completely. There are still some diehard laptop, GRlevel3/2 users out there, and I want to know why. My guess is that you've amassed such a placefile web of awesomeness on GR or whatever program you use, you couldn't imagine chasing without it. But, I want some details. So, my questions:

1. Why are you still using the laptop?

2. If you've switched to tablet/cell phone, is there anything you miss?

3. What do you like more about tablets/cell phones than laptops (especially if you have recently switched, and you didn't have high hopes about tablets : )

Finally, I'm interested in getting another tablet, and I'm looking into the Samsung Galaxy Tab A 9.7 in. I'm only using it for radar (PYKL3, wX, etc.), weather data (CoD, SPC Mesoanalysis Page, etc.), Spotter Network, Twitter, and Stormtrack... of course. The Tab A seems perfectly fine for these needs (in addition to the occasional Youtube video ; ) but I was comparing it with the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2, and damn!, what a difference! The S2 is a boss! I don't think I need it, but my nerd radar is going off because of its utter power and superiority. So... what say you?

 

[NealRasmussen]

I prefer the cellphone cause it's much smaller and I have to hold it up in front of my face. I've always loved risky driving.

But seriously, I do miss glancing down at the laptop for GPS. Not so much for "where am I going?", but for "Is this the road I think I'm on?". Then use Roads Of, or a texaco road map for "Where am I going to go?".

Never used GRx. I was happy getting a UCAR radar shot at 4800 baud on tethered cell data. RadarScope and even RadarAlive are like leaps away from what I'm used to. Almost makes me feel guilty.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Benefits of a laptop:

1.) Multitasking / ease of switching between programs quickly (one click).
2.) Full photo and video editing capability with my normal Adobe software
3.) Full keyboard for typing emails, social media posts, forum posts, web site/blog updates, etc
4.) 3 built-in USB 3.0 ports
5.) Baron WxWorx and StreetAtlas supported
6.) Identical software setup between home desktop and car computer.
7.) Large amount of hard drive space for offloading photos and videos during a chase trip
8.) I presently have a laptop desk installed and a fully working laptop on it, no desire to spend the money on a capable tablet and new mounting hardware.
9.) Most tasks require (at most) one hand and a minimal sight diversion from the road (akin to looking at the radio to change stations). Unmounted phones or tablets require two hands to operate as well as looking down and away from the road for dangerous intervals.

I see no problem with tablets in general, and I realize a few of the above items can be duplicated on something like a Surface. But, if you have a good laptop with years of life left, why swap it out?

 

[Jeff Duda]

Benefits of a laptop:

1.) Multitasking / ease of switching between programs quickly (one click).
3.) Full keyboard for typing emails, social media posts, forum posts, web site/blog updates, etc
9.) Most tasks require (at most) one hand and a minimal sight diversion from the road (akin to looking at the radio to change stations). Unmounted phones or tablets require two hands to operate as well as looking down and away from the road for dangerous intervals.

I agree with these, plus I have not had any luck with GPS logging apps on Android using my phone. I tried one on a chase last year and even with my most accurate GPS settings activated, the chase log was full of gaps and inaccuracies in my location. I was not able to track my chase route with better specificity than a few-county area. On the other hand, I still use the BU-353 GPS puck that I've had since 2010 with Delorme on my laptop and I'm accurate to within a few meters.

In 2014 I chased exclusively with a tablet I had recently obtained. While the reduction in wires and space was pleasant, I did not have a mount for the device, and I found the apps I was using to simply not be as good as something I could get by using a laptop. I did not use a tablet in 2015. For example, PYKL3 is great for some basic stuff, but it gets really hard to perform any sort of manual radar analysis on the small scale, and it's harder to use than my laptop with GR3 in which all i have to do is hit R, V, S, Z, C, and space to switch between reflectivity, velocity, storm relative velocity, differential reflectivity, and correlation coefficient, and then to turn animation on and off. Plus I have road shapefiles and the ground satellite imagery helps fill in some knowledge of terrain in areas that you can't get from PYKL3. Plus the SN feature on PYKL3 either clutters the image or doesn't offer as much information as I could use. The SN placefiles in GR3 are appropriately sized and have icons that help me determine what might be going on when I don't have a visual or am not on a storm, and I also can see LSRs drop, too. I also usually have a browser open to 3 or 4 tabs, one each for satellite, surface obs, mesoanalysis, and the IEM chat bot (and maybe perhaps Facebook, but usually not). It's a quick tab+pg up/dn to switch quickly between tabs. I can almost do it without taking my eyes off the road.

Until I see an improvement in the GPS capability and features offered in tablets, I will almost certainly continue to use a laptop.

 

[David Williams]

I agree with these, plus I have not had any luck with GPS logging apps on Android using my phone. I tried one on a chase last year and even with my most accurate GPS settings activated, the chase log was full of gaps and inaccuracies in my location. I was not able to track my chase route with better specificity than a few-county area. On the other hand, I still use the BU-353 GPS puck that I've had since 2010 with Delorme on my laptop and I'm accurate to within a few meters.

In 2014 I chased exclusively with a tablet I had recently obtained. While the reduction in wires and space was pleasant, I did not have a mount for the device, and I found the apps I was using to simply not be as good as something I could get by using a laptop. I did not use a tablet in 2015. For example, PYKL3 is great for some basic stuff, but it gets really hard to perform any sort of manual radar analysis on the small scale, and it's harder to use than my laptop with GR3 in which all i have to do is hit R, V, S, Z, C, and space to switch between reflectivity, velocity, storm relative velocity, differential reflectivity, and correlation coefficient, and then to turn animation on and off. Plus I have road shapefiles and the ground satellite imagery helps fill in some knowledge of terrain in areas that you can't get from PYKL3. Plus the SN feature on PYKL3 either clutters the image or doesn't offer as much information as I could use. The SN placefiles in GR3 are appropriately sized and have icons that help me determine what might be going on when I don't have a visual or am not on a storm, and I also can see LSRs drop, too. I also usually have a browser open to 3 or 4 tabs, one each for satellite, surface obs, mesoanalysis, and the IEM chat bot (and maybe perhaps Facebook, but usually not). It's a quick tab+pg up/dn to switch quickly between tabs. I can almost do it without taking my eyes off the road.

Until I see an improvement in the GPS capability and features offered in tablets, I will almost certainly continue to use a laptop.

Have you used Google maps on your phone for any chase? What did you think?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Stormtrack mobile app

 

[Ethan Schisler]

I prefer the use of my iPhone or iPad to chase with simply because of space and simplicity. Even at home where I've got a desktop I find myself using my phone or tablet to do most things. I don't really sell much video so I don't find myself having to edit on the go and if I do I usually keep my laptop in my backpack for that purpose. The mapping application on my tablet is fairly decent as well, it isn't the same as streets and trips but it definitely serves the purpose. As far as radar goes, I use radarscope and I think with the new update, it moves it closer to being a GR replacement for myself.


Sent from my iPhone using Stormtrack mobile app

 

[Jeff Duda]

Have you used Google maps on your phone for any chase? What did you think?

Actually no, I have never used Google Maps, probably due to issues with data usage and caching. However, @Brett Roberts pointed me towards a mapping app for Android devices called MAPSwithME that I do use. It is free and you can download street maps by state before going on the chase. I have found the maps to be of high accuracy and very useful on chases. In 2015 I used both this app and Delorme on my laptop. Since I have a windshield mount for my phone, there were definitely times where my phone was more useful for near-term mapping than Delorme.

I'll also still use paper maps (Gazetteers) for longer term planning (minutes to hours ahead in a chase).

 

[David Williams]

Actually no, I have never used Google Maps, probably due to issues with data usage and caching. However, @Brett Roberts pointed me towards a mapping app for Android devices called MAPSwithME that I do use. It is free and you can download street maps by state before going on the chase. I have found the maps to be of high accuracy and very useful on chases. In 2015 I used both this app and Delorme on my laptop. Since I have a windshield mount for my phone, there were definitely times where my phone was more useful for near-term mapping than Delorme.

I'll also still use paper maps (Gazetteers) for longer term planning (minutes to hours ahead in a chase).

I haven't heard of MapsandMe. Thanks for mentioning it. I'll check it out.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Stormtrack mobile app

 

[David Williams]

Ha! Sorry for that typo. That's MAPSwithME.

 

[Adam Ploessl]

I use one with the Map.me app for location. One with Pykl3 / Radar scope and another for video streaming. The video streaming unit also acts as a wifi hotspot and the radar one works as a bluetooth GPS which I've had great luck with. I've also added a surface tablet on a modified laptop mount for windows based programs and linking my DSLR to relay photos back to news media in near real time. There's also a 10 inch tablet that's usually used by the passenger and has mirroring software to change the driver displays without having to move them.
This was a photo from last year's test setup in my car. I have a different vehicle I use now, that I wired up for it.

 

[Andrew Constans]

While I don't have a lot of experience chasing, I have had a bit of success on the technology side of things this year. I exclusively use PYKL3, wX, Google maps (for getting in position), and MAPS.me (once on a storm to conserve data) with a windshield mount for my phone and a "custom" mount for my 10" tablet. Both are android based and so far both have been pretty accurate when it comes to GPS in rural areas. Honestly I've had more GPS trouble in downtown Omaha than I've had in the countryside. I was originally going to run GRL3 on a cheap laptop, but decided against it for now because of the cost involved when adding in a laptop stand, GPS puck, and power inverter.

As far as photos go, I've got Lightroom on the tablet if I really need to get something out on the road. The primary advantage of the tablet for me is the fact that it's small/light and I've already got enough camera gear to handle as it is.

 

[David Williams]

I use one with the Map.me app for location. One with Pykl3 / Radar scope and another for video streaming. The video streaming unit also acts as a wifi hotspot and the radar one works as a bluetooth GPS which I've had great luck with. I've also added a surface tablet on a modified laptop mount for windows based programs and linking my DSLR to relay photos back to news media in near real time. There's also a 10 inch tablet that's usually used by the passenger and has mirroring software to change the driver displays without having to move them.
This was a photo from last year's test setup in my car. I have a different vehicle I use now, that I wired up for it.
View attachment 12125

You look like you've really got your bases covered, but is there anything you feel like you're missing?

I like the quadruple stack. Do you have individual mounts holding each one?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Stormtrack mobile app

 

[Brian G]

OsmAnd+ is an OpenStreetMap based Android app that allows you to download maps to the device. Like most of you I also prefer to chase with a laptop.

 

[Brett Roberts]

I switched to a Surface Pro 2 last season, and I can almost guarantee I'm never going back to a laptop. It's blazing fast (perfectly sufficient for photo and video editing after the chase, even) and super convenient. For the most part, it offers nothing but advantages over my previous laptop setup. Just a few cons and caveats, though:

CAVEATS:

- No internal GPS (just like a laptop). I use and recommend a Bluetooth GPS puck, rather than a USB one, since there's only one USB port. You can find high quality Bluetooth pucks on eBay for $15-20.

CONS:

- If you don't have the keyboard attached, typing isn't as easy as a laptop - not bad at all, using the large onscreen keyboard, just not ideal. If you're a driver chasing solo, this hopefully isn't a frequent concern anyway! If you're a passenger, you may just want to attach the keyboard and use a traditional laptop mount. So this "con" mostly just applies to solo drivers when they're stopped for extended periods, after the chase in a parking lot, etc.

- GRx still hasn't made much of an effort at touchscreen-friendliness. This is especially true on high-DPI screens like the Surface's, where GRx's top menu buttons are *tiny* and impossible to tap accurately. In my opinion, GRx sorely needs a dedicated tablet mode, or at least the option to greatly expand the size of the top toolbar. Being the super nerd I am, I used Visual Studio to create a bare-bones Windows program that uses huge buttons to simulate key presses corresponding to GRx hotkeys. I used that in the field last year and it worked pretty well. I can share it with anyone interested, but it probably needs some refinement. Hopefully, GRx will solve this problem more eloquently soon.

- Mounting is very tricky, compared to a laptop. This could be the biggest pitfall, depending on your vehicle and setup. For me, the whole point of going to a tablet was to reduce clutter and to keep the screen visible without diverting my eyes from the road too much. As such, I insist on mounting it somewhere near the center of the dash, rather than using a stand that bolts into the passenger seat. I ended up with a RAM Mount X-Grip III that attaches to my windshield with a large suction cup, and has an arm that extends almost 10" downward to put the tablet itself right in front of the top center vents on the dash. It's fairly pricy, and even so, it isn't capable of keeping the SP2 wobble-free on its own; I have to configure it such that the bottom of the SP2 sort of rests on the dash area. I'd previously tried a cheaper CD slot mount, and the amount of wobble with a 2-3 lb tablet inserted was pretty laughable.

Aside from those points, the SP2 was a pleasure to use throughout 2015, and I look forward to using it again this year. All the power and functionality I was accustomed to before, delivered largely within my normal field of view as a driver, and without a laptop mount blocking half the passenger legroom. If you carefully consider your mounting preferences and whether your vehicle supports them, I don't think anyone would be disappointed switching to a Windows tablet.

BTW, it was around this time last year I snagged the SP2 for roughly half of its price at launch. Perhaps the SP3 and/or Surface 3 (which should easily be powerful enough for chasing) are on clearance by now as the next generation looms.

 

[Dan Robinson]

To be fair, a Surface is more like a "laptop in a tablet form factor" (full Windows OS and laptop-grade internal specs) than a traditional tablet, which I do think would be very useful. When I think of a "tablet" in the context of this thread, I think of a traditional Android or IOS device.

I do like the idea of something more compact, and when my laptop finally dies, I might look at a Surface Pro or something similar as a potential solution.