by Marc Saltzman
Is it a pen or a mouse? It's both. The Tablo can turn your laptop into a tablet PC -- and that's just the beginning.
You probably haven't heard of Tablo just yet, but when you find out what it can do, you'll likely want one. Yesterday.
Available through Hantech, Canadian distributors of high-tech gadgets and gear, the Tablo ($129) transforms your laptop into a tablet. It's a two-piece device: a sensor that snaps into the top of an LCD screen (and plugs into an available USB port) and a wireless pen used to write on the screen or as we'll get to in a moment, on paper, too.
And yes, Hantech says using Tablo on a laptop screen is completely safe as these displays are far more durable than a desktop monitor (which is why the company doesn't market this product for desktops).
We were blown away by the demonstration at Hantech's Markham, Ont.-based offices, and the one they let us take home to try out for ourselves, and so we thought it would be fun to pass on all the clever uses for this product.
After you install the disc for Windows XP and Vista machines, and calibrate the Tablo by following the onscreen instructions, try out of these 10 applications (note: our two favourites are kept for last):
1. Draw and sketch images on the screen using the built-in software or for use with Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, Microsoft Paint, other popular programs. Choose from a huge palette of colours and brush styles and sizes, and draw on the screen using the Tablo stylus like a paintbrush (including support for pressure sensitivity). Once you get the hang of it, it's more accurate than a mouse (offering 600 dots per inch precision compared to the usual 100 to 400 dots per inch).
2. Write emails or IMs instead of typing. Compatible with Microsoft Office (including Outlook) and Windows Live Messenger, you can handwrite messages to your friends, or get fancy by showing off your "cursive" skills. Your friends will receive your handiwork as an image file. The Tablo adds some speed, convenience and personality to your emails or instant messages, plus it also works with Microsoft Word documents, PDF files, and more.
3. Connect your laptop to a projector and give a presentation in a program like Microsoft PowerPoint and use the Tablo stylus to circle or underline key words or write annotative comments on the sides of the screen. Choose the colour, style and size of the font to get your message across. Laser pointers are so 20th century. This is great for the classroom or the boardroom.
4. Rather than print out photos and illustrations to mark up with a pen, a common practice in medical imaging, a greener solution is to mark up the digital images (such as X-Rays or CAT Scans) with comments and notes for before showing (or emailing) to colleagues, clients or patients. You can also easily cut out part of a photo or image, if desired (see no. 8 below) or bring up the soft keyboard to tap some text to accompany an image.
5. The Tablo can be used as an educational tool. Imagine you're learning math and are asked to "show your answer" by writing out the solution. You can now do this digitally using the pen on the screen. Similarly, you might be studying a new language and are asked to write out words or a sentence. After all, many schools are adopting digital textbooks, such as universities in South Korea, beginning in 2013 or 2014.
6. Surf the Net, mouse free. Use the Tablo stylus pen to check out your favourite websites or discover new ones. Simply double-tap the stylus on the screen for a left mouse-click or press and hold for a right mouse-click. Tap links, photos, music and video files, too. Small buttons are also on the Tablo pen's shaft if you prefer to use those as "mouse" buttons. You can also write "sticky notes" and digitally affix them to websites.
7. Game on, by holding the stylus like a Nintendo Wii-like motion-sensing controller. Head on over to your favourite Flash games site, such as Miniclip.com and use the pen to play, say ping pong, by waving the pen near the screen and you'll see the effect in the game immediately (as if you were moving the mouse around). You might want to use the stylus buttons for some games, such as the shooting variety. Or try a game like the aptly-named Crayon Physics and see how the Tablo adds to the experience.
8. Circle, cut and paste websites and documents using the Tablo. See something you like and want to keep? Simply draw a circle (or any shape) around a screen shot, photo or text and it becomes a cut-out, which you can paste elsewhere for isolated viewing. In fact, Windows Vista has a lot of built-in Tablet functions, so you can flick to move an item or easily copy and paste using hand gestures.
9. Pull off the Tablo sensor from on top of your 12- to 17-inch laptop and place it sideways on a sheet of 8 1/2 x 11 paper. Without much (or any) reconfiguring, you can now insert one of the ink pen tips into the end of the Tablo stylus (you get a few to start) and write or draw and it will show up on your computer screen in real time! Compare this to other digital pen solutions (e.g. Logitech's io Digital Pen or Leapfrog's Fly Pen) that require special paper with teeny dots on it.
10. After you handwrite words on a piece of paper using the Tablo, and your chicken scratch shows up on the computer screen, you can have your words transcribed into text with the tap of a button! Yep, the Tablo supports OCR (optical character recognition) so your handwriting can be converted into text to easily email, edit, search, archive or import into a document.
Interested? The $129 Tablo is available in black or white. More info is available here.
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