I also have experimented with using a Laptop before getting the Music Pad for my wife (who is the player in my family).
But what what she couldn't tolerate was the loading time of each selection (especially if it had multiple pages).
The MPP solves this with the proprietary software/formats. SOFTWARE is the SOLUTION. Plus it fits very nicely on any music stand, which a laptop doesn't and it is a 'Touch Screen' device, plus has an external (foot peddle) page turning capability. Personally, I think it is a reasonable price for hardware and software that 'gets the job done'. But everyone should draw their own conclusions as to the benefit to them.
P.S I'm not on the payroll of Freehand, just an enthusiastic owner/user.