I found out I won second place in an idea contest at work and am being granted ~$400 to spend at Best Buy (the web site for any unfamiliar). Originally, I believe the second place prize was going to be an iPad, but it looks like they've decided to just allow me to pick something in that ballpark price range.
I suspect there are a fair amount of tech saavy folks on LW and thought I'd inquire as to whether you've purchased a device or accessory (or anything from Best Buy-ish stores) that has brought you an increase in efficiency, usefulness, pleasure, etc. The idea of a tablet appeals to me, but I'm not entirely sure what I'd do with it. Also, a data plan is not in my budget, so many typical uses are not applicable in my case.
Anyway, just hoping to probe some collective knowledge about this decision. I'm not very knowledgeable on devices and/or how longer term usage/satisfaction matches expectations or even money spent.
Thanks for any assistance!
Purchasing a tablet greatly increased my frivolous spending and time wasting habits, since it made them that much easier. It has positive capabilities as well, such as those mentioned by others - I do wish to point out the dangers, though. You may find yourself frittering dollars and cents just to waste your time on pretty pixels.
Extra points to someone who can figure out which biases this purchase model exploits. (high frequency, very low cost, frictionless transactions)
I wondered about this. So does my wife. I get lost on my computer enough already. Now we reduce capability to browsing and games, and how might that play out? Thanks for sharing this. I'm not sure how it would work in my case...