the screen gets you to
How do you like the screen?
I was shopping around for a Windows based tablet for the past 6 months.  Kept looking at the Microsoft Surface RT (didn't want to pay the price of the pro) and also looking here at ASUS and Lenovo.  When I saw the Venue come out I wanted to touch one so went to the Microsoft Store a few blocks from my office.  I spent about an hour going back and forth between the Suface 2 and the Venue.  The main reason was size and comparison between RT and Full Windows 8.1.  I wanted something that splits between a PC, Tablet, and eReader (huge Kindle fan).  After thinking about what my life would be like sitting on an Airplane and what would be more comfortable to work with I picked the Venue 8 Pro.  I have had this for about 4 days now (bought at Microsoft Store, price was the same as prime and I was in an instant satisfaction mode).What I like:1.  Size, this is large enough that the office tools, apps, and web browsing are functional2.  It keeps my Kindle on my night stand when I travel.  I was using my Windows Phone and it worked find but it was a bit small and this is much better and holds like my Kindle3.  It is full blown Windows, not RT so I can load my other apps on it4.  The disk space is good,  with 64G it leaves over 30G to use,  I added a 32G MicroSD card to it and can't think of how I will run out of space.5.  Full Windows from the start screen is familiar, don't need to learn anything new.  Not a huge fan of Windows 8 but on a tablet it works great.What I don't like:Configuring Windows 8.1 on a small device is a bit tedious, so need to be patient on the setups and get a stylus (I had one).The few comments on the start button being on the side really isn't an issue, a left swipe from the right side of the screen gets you to start very quickly.  So far battery is great, I did remove the dimming and put my own setting on.  I got alittle over 9 hours on the battery that way and other than international flights don't know when I wouldn't be in a position to charge it throughout the day.The screen is good, I added a bluetooth keyboard / case to this and still getting used to the keyboard.  The split keyboard on screen actually works well in the hand and I may toss the bluetooth keyboard.  I don't plan on writing documents on this and mostly for email, reading, and browsing.Already put Pandora on it, sounds OK with the speaker.  Have Sonos at home and have that installed as well as few other apps I like.  Really don't need thousands of apps and there are enough to make this fully functional for my use.The last point is I didn't buy an Apple because they just charge too much for the brand.  I actually had a significant amount of interest from the iPAD users who started to go look at reviews on this after they saw it.  $349 for a Full Windows 8 tablet with 64G, 8&#34; screen (Kindle form factor) is hard to ignore.Go ahead and buy it, you will like it for utility. 