Dell Venue 8 Pro Review - Full Blown Windows 8.1 Tablet

[Vegas_Dave]

So I got one of the new Dell Venue 8 Pro tablets for Christmas. Being a bit of a tech junkie, I was very curious about this device. Personally, I am an Android fan to say the least. I was coming from a Galaxy Tab 8.9 that was 2+ years old but still runs exceptionally well. In fact, compared to the new Galaxy Tab 3 models (my kids got them for Christmas), my 2+ year old Tab 8.9 actually still outperforms them.

Windows 8, love it or hate it, was designed for touch. The mouse is becoming a thing of the past and Windows 8 looked to help write its obituary. Sadly, MS screwed the pooch since the market was not and is not ready to ditch their beloved mice just yet. This led to a lot of complaints on Windows 8 but that's a completely different topic.

The Dell Venue 8 Pro is part of a new segment of the tablet market, the 8" Windows 8 tablet.

The device is part tablet, part netbook as it runs Intel's Atom series CPU (quad core nonetheless) and runs a full blown version of Windows 8.1, not the "RT" version that is only quasi-Windows. This means that in theory, the Dell CAN run actual Windows software, not just apps from the app store.

In reality, the screen at 8" isn't much for full blown Windows programs as it is simply too little real estate after half the screen is covered with the on screen keyboard. However, just the concept of being able to run anything is nice... but there is one HUGE advantage to this over the RT version of Windows... running optimization software to trim down the OS and maximize performance.

Personally, I use Iobit's Advanced System Care 7 on the device to free up memory and shut down things that don't need to be running. This greatly improved the responsiveness and usability of the tablet as a whole.

Furthermore, even though the device only has 2gb of RAM, since it runs a true Windows OS, you can set the page file to something larger, and since the "hard drive" is solid state storage, this works MUCH better to improve your system's performance than it does in a traditional system.

As a result, this tablet can run lightning fast, reliably and easily... and for $300-$350, the performance is really REALLY impressive.

My complaints on the device have more to do with the Android to Windows tablet issues. For instance, being a long time Android user, I have become quite accustomed to the Swype keyboard concept. Sadly, no such thing fully exists for the Windows setup as the OS isn't designed for that. There are a few companies starting to TRY and get this going on the OS, but currently their offerings only work in the Desktop mode, not in any of the apps, and actually get in the way as they try to work in the app, but the app cant take the input from them.

The App store is also improving on a daily basis. This right now is the weak spot of the system, plus developers are slower to implement their newest tweaks in to the Windows apps since there aren't as many Windows tablets/phones as their are Apple & Android models.

Getting used to the different gestures in Windows on a tablet also takes some time, but as I also have a new Windows 8 Ultrabook Laptop with a touch screen, I am finding the familiarity has improved greatly.

The device is solid, and at the $300 price point, I really think it is the best device on the market. The build quality is outstanding and the device is quick.

If you are looking at getting a new tablet but don't want a larger 10" model (though they do have the Venue 11 Pro that can be outfitted with Intel Core i3 & i5 CPU's as well), or are just curious about the Windows tablet concept, check out the Venue 8 Pro.