Do you use a tablet? Which kind? With what game?

[Reynard]

I think this is the year when I finally give in and buy a tablet. In addiition to using it for all my casual gaming and video watching needs, I want it to be an integral part of my game mastering toolbox (PDFs, web access to SRDs, the whole shebang).

If you are using a tablet, which one? How's it working? What are the pros and cons? What game(s) do you run with the aid of said tablet? What did you spend? Would you recommend it?

Thanks.

 

[DaveMage]

I use an iPad2 with Pahtfinder. Since I'm a Pathfinder subscriber, I have all the PDFs for free, so I've loaded many of them on to the iPad. I use GoodReader to browse them. It's a wonderful program that lets me set custom bookmarks so I can jump right to the sections that are useful to my characters.

The big pro is that I can carry 50 gaming books with me in an item that weighs less than 5 pounds.

The only con is that it takes a little while to get used to maneuvering though the books. Once you get there, though, it's great.

I'd absolutely recommend it. iPad2 goes for $500-$1000, depending on how much storage you want - 16GB, 32GB, or 64GB - and if you want 3G access or not.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I'm using an iPad 2 with GoodReader and Dicenomicon (full version) to run 3E, C&C, MTraveller and, soon, Hunter: The Vigil.

It was much more of a pain in the ass until recently, when GoodReader added tabbed browsing of PDFs. Now the only hitch is that some publishers just don't do PDFs well. (Even the otherwise great Goodman Games splits two-page spread maps onto separate pages, for instance.)

 

[Bedrockgames]

I do not have a tablet but i have an i phone and intend to use the dice roller for a 2E game i am running. At some point i will shift all my gm material to a laptop.

 

[tenkar]

iPad 1 with Goodreader, except in bed. In bed I use a Samsung Galaxy 7", as it's easier to hold while lying on my back with my head propped by a pillow.

I probably buy 80% of my RPGs in PDF only these days. Man does it save on space

 

[caudor]

iPad 2. Love it. Pros...I sit at my desk less, watch movies in bed, read novels, play pinball...on and on...

Cons - does not work with 4e char gen.

More useful than I imagined it would be before purchase.

 

[Aeolius]

How is GoodReader different than Apple's iBooks app? I can already add bookmarks to PDFs, using iBooks.

Nothing beats the iPad, for DMing a chat-based game via an IRC app, having access to gaming PDFs, keeping notes in Pages and a few doodles in Penultimate... all from the comfort of one's bed.

 

[IronWolf]

How is GoodReader different than Apple's iBooks app? I can already add bookmarks to PDFs, using iBooks.

GoodReader now has tabs, is fast and allows your to annotate the PDF as well which is great for adventure prep as I can my notes right in with the PDF. It can also tap into Dropbox, so if I forget a PDF I can access it via Dropbox if I have an Internet connection.

 

[IronWolf]

I have an iPad generation 1 that I picked up on sale after the generation 2's came out. I love mine. GoodReader is a great app for using gaming PDFs, I have a dice roller, init tracker, the Summoner app, a Notetaking app and a few others that really help keep my materials close at hand. Very useful device.

 

[MythosaAkira]

I use my iPad2 for my 4E campaign with the following apps:

* Numbers: Encounter building, PC tracking, miscellaneous stuff
* GoodReader: PDFs
* Notebooks: Organizing my campaign information
* iPod (built-in): Background music
* Photos (built-in): Store maps, pics of MasterMaze layouts, etc.
* DM Tools: For combat tracking/initiative, etc.
* Safari (built-in): D&D Compedium, etc.

If I had the time to learn Objective C and the money for a Mac I'd port TableSmith to iOS and probably write a few other gaming apps. As it is, I'm looking at trying to do that with on-line tools (HTML5, Google Appspot, etc.)