The Tech-Pert: Get a Netbook/Tablet Hybrid for $549.99 shipped

As you've probably heard, Apple just starting accepting pre-orders for the much-ballyhooed iPad tablet. Before you plunk down your $499 (or more, depending on which configuration you get), ask if you wouldn't be happier with something a little more versatile.

Like, say, the Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t, a netbook that's also a tablet. It normally sells for $699, but right now it's on sale for $649, and there's a Lenovo coupon code that drops it to $549. Shipping is free, so that's your out-the-door total.

Yep, your math is spot-on: For just $50 more than the price of the entry-level iPad, you get a dual-purpose PC running Windows 7.

On the netbook side of the coin, the IdeaPad offers an above-average feature set. It has 2GB of RAM (most models have half that), a 250GB hard drive (the $499 iPad offers one-tenth the storage), 802.11n Wi-Fi, and a four-cell battery.

It also looks like a traditional netbook, right down to the 10.1-inch screen and full-size QWERTY keyboard. These things are great for traveling light while still performing everyday computing tasks (e-mail, Web browsing, Facebook, etc).

The trick up the IdeaPad's sleeve is its hinged screen, which can pivot 180 degrees and then fold down over the keyboard. Presto! Now it's a touchscreen tablet, just like the iPad.

Well, not quite. You're still using Windows, though Lenovo bundles a basic suite of finger-powered software for things like browsing photos and reading e-books. I won't say the experience is anywhere near as pleasant or intuitive as using an iPad, because it's not. In fact, I'm still not sold on the whole idea of tablets, as I don't really see a need for one.

That said, if you like the idea of a tablet PC that can actually function as a PC, the IdeaPad beats the iPad hands-down. It offers a lot more capabilities for about the same money.

Self-proclaimed cheapskate Rick Broida has been a technology writer for over 20 years. He has authored over a dozen books, including, most recently, "How to Do Everything: Palm Pre." Currently he writes the Cheapskate blog for CNET, the Hassle-Free PC blog for PC World, and technology stories for Popular Science, Wired, and other magazines.