Do I need a new laptop/tablet?
The wife announced that she would like to get me a new laptop for Christmas. I am using a 5 year old Toshiba Satellite right now and it does everything that I need. It does have a few drawbacks though...
Forum Discussion
kaydeejay wrote:
Just be aware that some of the newer tablets do not have a USB port.
There are always options, even with a tablet with minimal ports.
DW & I have two ASUS VivoTab Smart tablets which have only a mini-USB OTG (USB On The Go) port and a mini-HDMI video port.
Even with only that limited single USB port, I can still run all my necessary peripherals -- HP OfficeJet 100 printer, Neat Mobile scanner, Seagate portable 1 TB hard drive, and ASUS DVD drive.
The secret is to have a USB OTG to USB adapter & a AC powered 4-port USB hub. The hub supplies 2.0W of power (4 x 500mw - USB standard) to all peripherals without requiring power from the computer, which a USB OTG port can't supply.
My DVD drive requires 2 USB ports -- 1 for data transfer and 1 for power, but it works fine.
And, since it runs Windows 8.1, it runs all my software as well.
So, choose whatever computer style that works for you -- unless your peripheral needs are very unique, there's always a way to make them work.
