This month in Mobile News Manor

Mobile News Manor, otherwise known as my home office, had a revolving door that allowed a lot of gadgets come in and go out this month. There were all kinds of devices that came in and a few that went back where they came from. A lot of them were reviewed and some triggered some thoughtful commentary. Here you'll find the best of the coverage for the month.

Most popular articles

Good apps for the Galaxy Note 8.0 -- The arrival of the Note 8.0 prompted the search for good apps. This list is a great place to start for apps on most any Android tablet.

9 best iPad keyboards (hands on) March 2013 -- I've tried all of the major keyboards for the iPad and this collection from March is still a popular source of information.

Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet: Beating the iPad mini with features (review) -- Samsung's iPad mini competitor beats Apple at its own game.

Good Android apps for the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 -- Good apps are hard to find but this collection, hand tested on the big Note tablet, are a great assortment.

Definitive guide to keyboards for iPad and iPad mini (Spring 2013) -- This updated list of keyboards for Apple's tablets again proves a lot of owners wish to use a good keyboard for productivity. This updated list is chock full of the best of them.

Gadget reviews

HP Envy x2 revisited: 45 days in -- The Envy x2 has become a stable work companion as detailed in this article.

Logitech FabricSkin Keyboard Folio for iPad -- This keyboard borrows from the unique design of the Microsoft Surface TypeCover and improves on that design.

Logitech Keyboard Folio Mini for iPad mini: Small case, big keys (hands on) -- This keyboard for the iPad mini turns Apple's little tablet into a real work machine. 

Definitive guide to keyboards for the iPad and iPad mini (Spring 2013) -- It seems a lot of owners are interested in pairing Apple's tablets to good keyboards for getting work done and this guide has the best of the lot.

Asus VivoTab TF810C: First look at a solid Windows 8 tablet with pen -- This tablet was expensive, but was purchased to get the good inking a pen provides. It didn't last long.

My top gadget for 2013 (so far) -- One of the devices to enter Mobile News Manor brings so much to the tablet it is the best gadget so far. It may not be what you think.

Asus VivoTab going back to Amazon -- As impressive as the Asus was during its short stay, it went back where it came from. The reason is detailed in this follow-up to the review above.

Chromebook Pixel revisited: One of the best laptops I've used -- Say what you will about Google's expensive laptop, it is a fantastic piece of kit.

ThinkPad T431s: Review in photos -- The latest ThinkPad from Lenovo is very thin, fairly light, and is pure ThinkPad in every way.

Chromebook Pixel running Windows 8 remotely (video) -- Yes you can run Windows 8 remotely on a Chromebook using Google's free app.

Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet: Beating the iPad mini with features (review) -- Samsung has hit the ball out of the park with the Note 8.0. Good hardware and software carry the day.

HP Pavilion 14 Chromebook: Biggest screen yet (review) -- HP entered the Chromebook space with a 14-inch laptop for $299.

Thought pieces

Windows 8 without touch is like a day without sunshine -- The latest version of Windows needs touch operation to tap into the full potential in this writer's opinion.

The need for cross-platform app parity -- App developers, if you decide to release your apps on multiple platforms please do customers the favor of doing it correctly.

Google on Android updates: We're still working on it -- Little has changed to improve the update situation on Android, and Google is still trying to fix it but admits it's hard to do.

Remember the UMPC: First 7-inch Windows tablets -- As OEMs ready small Windows 8 tablets it's worth a trip down memory lane to remember they've been done before.

Small Windows tablets on the way to serve no existing market -- Like the UMPC before it, the small tablets coming with Windows 8 are products no one has asked for.

Google gets sync -- The search giant has succeeded in the mobile space in part because it understands how to do sync properly.