Is there any Wndows 8 tablet / hybrid with cellular connectivity?

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IdoTDW December 10, 2012

Is there any Wndows 8 tablet / hybrid with cellular connectivity?

I'm looking for a new tablet that can be useful for some word processing and viewing Microsoft Word documents, and came to a conclusion that a Wndows 8 tablet / hybrid is what I need, because it has full MS Word support. I was looking at the Surface from Microsoft itself, but I also need a 3G-capable device so I can use it anywhere. I don't live in a country that has 4G LTE networks, so that's not important for me.
Is there any Windows 8 device with support for 3G connectivity? And if it has an optional keyboard (preferably a first-party solution), it would be fantastic.

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TgD 5 months ago

Right now the only one I can think of is the Samsung ATIV Smart PC. You can get a dock for it.

However reviews seem to be saying that it is not that good.

winsupersite.com/windows-8/review-samsung-ativ-sma...

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IdoTDW 2012-12-11 03:25:57

Thank you very much!
Is there a full-featured word processing application for iOS or Android that can be used as an alternative to native MS Word? Is Microsoft expected to launch such application is the near future?

TgD 2012-12-11 15:09:51

In terms of Microsoft Office, there are rumours aout it coming to iOS in the near future.

Otherwise you would have to look into options like Documents to Go, Google Drive, OfficeSuite or others

IdoTDW 2012-12-11 15:17:20

Google Drive doesn't have all the features and compatibility that I'm looking for, although I haven't looked deeply into the other alternatives you mentioned. Thanks for the response - I think I'll wait to see what Office for iOS will be like and then decide. Maybe I'll even buy an Ultrabook and connect a portable USB 3G receiver that I can purchase from my mobile service provider, although that wont be too much of a good deal.

Met 2012-12-18 02:03:16

You could get apps like QuickOffice. However, Microsoft's Office has been announced and is to be released soon on both iOS and Android (though I believe iOS first).

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ArmpitOfDeath 2012-12-11 17:54:15

I would get a Mifi.

My primary and secondary cellular plan has just a data limit and they don't restrict me in terms of tethering, so I just tether my phone these days. For use abroad I have a Mifi.

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IdoTDW 2012-12-12 01:40:28

But it means that I always have to do something to get Internet connection on the road on my tablet, and it's not seamless. One of my friends has a wifi-only ipad, which when he bought he said he would tether his phone most of the time, but he now says that it's not a really good solution...

ArmpitOfDeath 2012-12-12 04:29:06

I think it's something you'll have to try. Mifis are fairly 'power on and forget'.

If you're doing it the phone way, I guess it also depends on the ease of tethering - e.g. I'm almost entirely Windows in my general devices except when the odd iDevice sneaks in, so I leave tethering enabled on my Lumia when I'm out - I find that the Surface is always asking for something over the Internet so the tethering link stays up all day.

Met 2012-12-18 02:01:27

It may not be seamless, but it's a lot smoother than:
Screen on> Password> Settings> More> Hotspot & Tethering> On
On an Android phone or an equally long flow on an iPhone or Windows Phone.

However, just pressing a power button on the MiFi and that's that, it's smooth enough if you ask me.

Similarly, if you plan on tethering a lot from your Android phone, you could just have a widget on your desktop for a quick toggle.