Tablets have become incredibly popular devices for a variety of uses in recent years. Their portability and convenience make them appealing choices for tasks like note-taking, reading, and light productivity work. Many students have adopted tablets as alternatives to laptops for common school tasks like taking notes in class, organizing assignments, and yes – even writing essays. While tablets aren’t quite as full-featured as laptops for lengthy writing projects, modern tablets have come a long way and can definitely be capable essay writing machines with the right accessories. Let’s take a deeper look at how tablets can be used for essay writing.
To start, it’s important to choose a tablet with a keyboard attachment or case. While on-screen keyboards work for quick notes, physical keyboards are far superior for longer form writing. The top tablets like the iPad and Samsung Galaxy Tabs regularly have quality keyboard cases available from manufacturers like Logitech and Zagg to transform them into more laptop-like devices. Paying a bit more for an official keyboard from the tablet maker usually results in a better typing experience. With a keyboard attached, tablets can give users a similar feel to a small clamshell laptop.
Screen size is another important factor – the larger the better for writing essays. Most full-sized tablets have 10-inch or larger displays which provide enough screen real estate for writing while still retaining good portability. Smaller 7-8 inch tablets can work in a pinch but the cramped screen will likely hamper productivity. Top tablets like the base iPad and Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite offer ideal 10.5 and 10.4 inch screens respectively for balancing screen size with overall device size.
Internal specs are less crucial than these input and display elements, but still matter to some degree. Most tablets released in the last two years will have specs robust enough to handle writing essays without issue. Factors like storage space, RAM amount, and processor speed can impact performance for juggling many web browser tabs, word processing apps, reference material, and more while writing. Strive for brands and models from the last 1-2 years to ensure snappy responsiveness across all typical tablet tasks.
Once a tablet and keyboard are selected, users need writing and research apps to get started on essays. Free word processors like Google Docs, Microsoft Word (via an Office subscription), and OpenOffice let writers compose directly on the tablet. Pages and Numbers from Apple are also quality paid alternatives. These cloud-based office suites sync documents across devices for easy access anywhere. In addition to writing apps, research-focused apps are key for gathering sources. Browsers like Chrome and Firefox can handle basic online research but more powerful tools exist too for organizing references. Apps like Zotero, Mendeley, and Papers are robust citation management options to use alongside writing.
Access to cloud storage and the ability to easily plug in external drives expands a tablet’s storage capacity for large writing projects involving many research sources and drafts. All popular tablets work seamlessly with cloud services like Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive and iCloud to keep all related essay files synced. Many also have microSD card slots or support attaching USB drives via accessories. This lets users supplement internal storage for installing more apps and keeping extensive project folders locally. Some high-end tablets even have removable storage via microSD.
Getting started on the writing itself, the smooth onscreen keyboards allow quick composing and editing wherever inspiration strikes. Tablets are incredibly portable for writing sections in between classes, during study breaks in the library or coffee shop, and while commuting. Their instant-on capabilities let users jump right into working on documents without the boot up times of laptops. The responsive touchscreen interfaces also lend themselves well to annotating references and rearranging outlined sections with taps and swipes instead of mouse clicks.
While tablets won’t completely replace laptops for all student needs, they can without a doubt competently handle writing and organizing entire essays from start to finish. Any modern tablet paired with a keyboard case provides a flexible all-in-one device for researching, outlining, composing, citing sources, revising and finalizing essays for classes. Their lightweight portability is a major advantage over lugging a laptop everywhere on campus. With the right accessories and apps, tablets make as much sense as laptops for essay writing tasks today.