The Lenovo IdeaTab Lynx is a Windows 8 tablet that offers good battery life and a large 11.6-inch display. It has 64GB of storage, 2GB of RAM and a 1.8GHz Intel Atom Z2760 CPU that provides solid performance. The price, however, is probably a bit too high for our liking.

The HP ElitePad 900 is an enterprise-oriented Windows 8 slate tablet that combines the looks of a consumer-oriented tablet like the Apple iPad with enterprise friendly features that corporate users need. It's an all-day tablet with a plethora of add-on accessories that bridge the gap between laptop and tablet, without being classified as a hybrid or convertible tablet.

The HP Envy x2 has a beautiful thin, brushed-silver design that really makes it stand-out from the crowd. But in terms of performance, it could be better as the Intel Atom Z2760 and 2GB of RAM only provide adequate power.

Tablets with mobile operating systems like Android, iOS, or Windows RT are perfectly adequate if your tasks center on the Internet. But if you need compatibility with older x86 programs in a slate tablet form factor, then you need one running Windows 8. Of the handful introduced lately, the Microsoft Surface Windows 8 Pro is the one to beat.

The Acer Iconia W510-1422 is a 10-inch tablet running Windows 8 (32-bit) with a docking keyboard for those times that you want to use a keyboard and mouse. Equipped with an Intel Atom processor, the Iconia W510 may be a bit underpowered compared with your regular laptop, but it's efficient enough to give you all-day power—enough to not only last you through a full workday, but long into the night.

The Acer Iconia W700-6465 is a pricey 11-inch tablet that features an aluminum design, a beautiful display and an detachable keyboard and dock. For a tablet, it is thicker and heavier than most others and the camera is also not up to par.

The Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 13 is almost everything we want in a hybrid ultrabook. As an ultrabook, the Yoga 13 offers an uncompromised computing experience, while wedding Windows 8 with the touch screen it deserves, and delivering performance that will keep you satisfied at work and play. But as a tablet, it falters.

How much are apps worth to you? How about $120? If you want those iPad-exclusive apps and price is no object, then no other small-screen tablet will do. Beautifully made, slim, and light, the iPad mini packs precisely the power of an iPad 2 into a tablet you'll actually want to carry around.

The Asus Vivo Tab RT is a 10.1-inch slate tablet that can be fitted with a notebook dock with a built-in keyboard. It's a great way to have extremely portability while still having the functionality for a keyboard. It also has excellent battery life and is powered by the new Windows 8 RT.