my tab buying guide (repost) - Off-topic

So, a few people on another forum i'm on were asking about what tablet they should buy, since i'm that place's go-to geek i posted this there, tell me what you think. Before you judge, these are mostly tech noobs, who recognize that androidis better than iPad. so this is really dumbed down
[size=20pt]Top 5 Tablets[/size]
by mtmerrick​
If you're considering an android tablet, you very well may be pretty confused by all the options out there. just as with a windows PC (though less so at the moment) there are so many options an uninformed customer will very often overpay for an inferior product. Here are what I consider the top 5 tablets, and the pros and cons of each. These are not numbered by rank – every one of these is best in its own class.
1) [size=15pt]Archos 101 G9[/size] – best general purpose tablet, best for storage
The new version of the Archos 101 is a very nice tablet, despite some people's thoughts. It has a the best processor of all the tablets on this list, and a very unique feature – the option for a 8GB+250GB hybrid drive, for people who's needs exceed (or can't afford) a 64GB SSD, this is a great option. The Archos is also one of the cheaper tablets available that run Honeycomb, the version of android that gives the best tablet experience. It also has customized (and improved) music and video apps, and a hidden cover on the back that can be slid off to reveal a full sized USB port. Archos sells a USB dongle that can provide cellular internet to the tablet, that fits perfectly in the slot.
Cons? Archos' USB 3g stick only works in Europe, there's no rear camera, and the screen doesn’t have the best viewing angles. Also, the version with the 250GB hard drive is a little fat.
2) [size=15pt]Toshiba Thrive[/size] – best media tablet, best for existing PC infrastructure
The Toshiba thrive is a beast of a tablet. Its most notable features are its full sized USB, HDMI, and SD ports. The USB port can accept nearly anything you plug into it, even some printers, thanks to drivers loaded by Toshiba. You plug anything into this and it'll work, at least partially. Toshiba also included several extremely useful apps, including one of the best file managers I’ve ever seen. The screen is crisp, and the cameras are surprisingly good quality for a tablet. There are even some usb-to-ethernet adapters that i've heard have worked with the Thrive, making this a good tablet for businesses or people without wifi.
Cons? This thing's a brick. Its one of, if not the thickest and heaviest android tablet ever made, and it only has 5 hours of battery life. It also has a 1 inch+ bezel, making it taller and wider than any other tablet. If you skip the OS updates, you may encounter some software bugs.
3) [size=15pt]Samsung Galaxy 10.1[/size] – lightest tablet, best for 3g/4g
The Galaxy 10.1's best selling point, and the first thing you'll notice about it, is how thin it is – its less than 1/3 the thickness of the Toshiba Thrive, while still feeling sturdy. Its also the best -for some carriers only- tablet if you need cellular data access. The screen is beautiful, and samgsung has added a wonderful feature I wish the android OS would adopt – mini apps. You can launch a small pop up window of any of a selection of very helpful apps, such as a calculator, that only take up a small portion of the screen. You can also move them around.
Cons? There's really only one – there are no ports. There is only the headphone/microphone jack and Samsung’s dock connector. This means if you want a USB port, you have to buy an adapter from Samsung. HDMI? Adapter. SD? Adapter. Expandable storage? Forget it. This is a deal breaker for a lot of people.
4) [size=15pt]Sony Tablet S[/size] – most portable, best for gaming
The first thing many people think when they see the Tablet S is “what the heck is this thing?”, and for good reason. It has a bizarre folded-back-magizine shape. However, this is surprisingly ergonomic. Still, its a love it or hate it thing. Don't judge till you can get a hands on. The tablet is very light, and if it seems smaller than the other tablets, it is. The tablet has a 9.4 inch screen, but retains the same resolution of its 10.1 inch competitors, making for a great HD display. It also has full access to the PlayStation store, meaning you can play a huge amount of PS1/PS2/PSP games on it. If you're familiar with the Xperia Play, this is the same thing, just on a bigger screen. You can also wirelessly connect a PS3 controller if you desire. While shaving .6 inches of the screen may not seem like much, it makes it just smaller enough that it feels infinitely more portable than a 10.1 inch tablet.
Cons? The Sony brand name may scare some buyers off, as will the very atypical form factor. Since this is not a 10.1 inch screen, some rare apps may not show up in “tablet mode”. Its also a little bit pricey, being a Sony product. Also, the name sucks =P
5) [size=15pt]Asus Eee Pad Transformer[/size] – best battery
I contemplated making this a “top 4” list and leaving this one off. This tablet is very middle of the road. Standard in most every way, lacking in a couple others. It does have one of the best developing communities for a tablet, but its one major selling point is an accessory it has, that nothing else can match. It has a laptop dock, which, when clicked into place, makes the transformer into a netbook with a nineteen hour battery. 19 hours. Wow. Also, the Transformer Prime (its successor, feel free to laugh at the name)) is coming soon, so it is (or will be) on sale a lot of places very soon.
Cons? Nothing special about this tablet at all unless you hack it, doesn’t even have a USB port. If you don't need a 19 hour!!! battery, get one of the other four.
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Now, there are more tablets, including the Xoom 2 and the recently mentioned Transformer Prime, that will undoubtedly hold a great position on this list once they come out. There are also other tablets, such as the Acer a100, which if you find for a good price can give you a wonderful deal for your money. Don't take this list at the only tablets to get, think of these as the pack leaders. Compare any tablet you buy against these, see if it holds up. There's a pretty decent chance it won't.
[size=8pt](Note- This list only includes 10ish inch tablets. I will rank “half size” 7 inch tablets sepratly, as I consider them a completely different product.)[/size]
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yeah, i know the coding isn't compatible. i'l fix it tomorrow. I'm tired

7" tab recommendations. also comment on this please. good noob advice?
[size=20pt]Top 7” Tablets[/size]
by mtmerrick​
7 inch tablets are an interesting breed of device. Smaller than what many call a “real” tablet, but bigger than a phone, 7 Inch tablets are not for everyone. They are almost always cheaper than 10 inch tablets, but &' is also the screen size of choice of worthless pieces of Chinese junk that happen to be running android. You have to know what you're buying, or you'll get taken advantage of. Here's my list (in no particular order) of the top 7” tablets, In my opinion.
1) [size=15pt]Acer a100[/size] – best general purpose tablet
The Acer a100 is one of my favorite 7” tab, and one of the most powerful on this list.. It has a great screen, GPS (fairly rare for a 7”) and runs 3.2 Honeycomb, which means your experience is going to be very good. Decent cameras, guaranteed updates. All around, one of the best out there.
2) [size=15pt]HTC Flyer[/size] – best stylus input
The HTC Flyer looks unlike any other android tablet because of HTC's sense UI. This means you'll have a much better tablet experience even though it only has Android 2.3 as the OS. For a separate purchase, you can have a stylus that enables many really nice features. Handwriting support si good, if you need a note taking tablet, go for this.
3) [size=15pt]Lenovo A1[/size] – best import
The lenovo A1 has yet to be released in the US, but that doesn’t mean you can't get it online. This tablet runs an almost raw version of 2.3, which means it feels more like a big cell phone, but it has all the good stuff, including GPS and front cameras. Not very powerful, but its cheap.
4) [size=15pt]Nook Color[/size] – best hack, cheapest US tablet
I know what you're thinking, Nook? That's an ereader!. And you're right. But with a simple hack, it becomes a wonderful little tablet. Hacking? No, not as hard as you think. Its as simple as loading a ZIP onto the SD card and rebooting, and boom, you have a great 2.3 tablet. The hack will be upgraded to 4.0 eventually, so this is a device that will last a long time. It not the most powerful, and it lacks cameras, but you have more customization options and control over this tab than any other tablet on my list.
5) [size=15pt]Archos 80 G9] – biggest, strongest
I know this is about 7” tablets, but I thought I’d throw this in anyways. The Archos 80 G9 is, as it sounds, an 8” tablet, a very rare thing by itself. This tablet runs 3.2 Honeycomb, and has all the amenities of the Acer a100, also including the option for a 250 gig hard drive, if you need a ton of storage space (eg, lots of movies). It also has really good music and movie apps.
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Of all of these, I’d recommend the acer and the archos first, if for nothing else than because of the fact they run 3.2; this makes all the difference in the world. But you can still get a great experience form any of these (and more) 7 inch tablets. Just make sure you know what you're buying. and check against 10" tablets, to make sure the screen size is right for you.
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Transformer's dock DOES have USB port.

yes, but not the transformer itself.

Related

Nook Color vs. Elocity A7

Hey guys I just saw this
(Since I cannot post links go to BJ's website and look up "Elocity 7")
Its specs look pretty good plus it has an HDMI output and it already runs froyo. Do you guys think it would be work returning my nook color for one of these? Or do you guys think that the lack of third party support (meaning xda) means that in the long run the nook would be better than the elocity?
The reasons I was considering it was because of the tegra 2 chip, froyo, and the 1080p hdmi output(it would be nice to hook this thing up to our projector and watch movies off of it). Honestly I don't need those features but they would be nice. Thanks.
That thing is $369.99 according to Amazon.com. Also it is currently out of stock.
The NC is currently available at any Barnes and Noble at the cost of $250
tldr; NC is cheaper and available now.
The nookcolor has a higher resolution screen - something I would consider to be important.
sent from my NookColor using tapatalk
eggman618 said:
That thing is $369.99 according to Amazon.com. Also it is currently out of stock.
The NC is currently available at any Barnes and Noble at the cost of $250
tldr; NC is cheaper and available now.
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Well at BJ's its only 299 which isn't too much more than the Nook.
msid said:
The nookcolor has a higher resolution screen - something I would consider to be important.
sent from my NookColor using tapatalk
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Yea I have to admit the screen on the nook is very nice... However while I do care about the screen quality I also have to take into account the rest of the features.
mytabletlife.com/2010/12/11/elocity-a7-finally-start-shipping/
I placed an order for one weeks ago from amazon. Hopefully it wont delayed any longer.
dreadlord369 said:
Well at BJ's its only 299 which isn't too much more than the Nook.
Yea I have to admit the screen on the nook is very nice... However while I do care about the screen quality I also have to take into account the rest of the features.
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While the Tegra 2 sounds nice, if the screen was on par with the NC I would flinch, but it isn't, so the "extras" cant make up the fact its not as readable as the cheaper NC Ereader. I personally have a TV with USB inputs, so HDMI out isn't the happnin feature it all cracked up to be. Once we are Froyo'd, CM6'd, and OC'd to 1.2, I think most of us will be happy as clams
That's just generally the tough call though. While the camera and HDMI are cool, they're not incredibly important. The tegra chip is huge though. If you go for the A7, you're getting a smaller battery and a way worse screen i'm sure. My thing is, I only want to do two things, play games, and read comics. Based on those two requirements alone can anyone suggest which would be better? I'm really torn on this. I think the Nook color is much better looking and the build quality is probably better, but i'm really not interested in reading ebooks at all, comics yes, books no. For me it's purely a tablet device. I know that there is a lot of progress being made on the NC...I guess what i'm asking is, can anyone confirm or deny that they feel the graphics hardware will eventually make me regret picking a NC over the A7?
For that price, you might as well just get Notion Ink's Adam tablet!
$375 for the Wifi only LCD version. Should be shipping out soon too.
Much better specs and a decent screen (10" 1024x600).
Dual Core A9 with Tegra 250, 1GB memory
I don't know about the OP, and i'm not trying to hijack their thread-just looking for similar input. I really like the Adam tablet, but I want a 7 inch tablet. So it's really between the NC and the Elocity for me. I have to decide if sacrificing build quality for a tegra is worth it.
BJs is selling it for $299:
http://www.bjs.com/webapp/wcs/store..._src=14110944&ci_sku=121648111&sc_cid=DF#more
Now, I have a little buyers remorse :T
800x480? What are they thinking, not even a contest IMO.
dvanburen said:
800x480? What are they thinking, not even a contest IMO.
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Yeah, I thought about it. I ordered the Elocity, and then promptly attempted to cancel my order. The only category that the elocity beats the nc in my opinion is tegra, but that's because I don't care about BT, camera, or HDMI out. I prefer the build quality, size, bezel, screen, and battery on the NC. So that's the one i'm going with.
I was trying to decide on the same
I ordered the elocity:
Rationale for me is:
I own an iphone. It's biggest failing for me is the absence of flash.
I have owned but will be returning a g tablet from viewsonic that also is tegra 2 based.
The thing is fast and can easily run full screen flash video without a hiccup.
For me I want this device to be a:
internet and i mean full internet browser
an E-reader
mail and office device
and to have many apps like games news productivity....
The Nook color will not have a way of using another keyboard since no bluetooth or usb.
The processor is way underpowered for flash. Heck flash was stuttery on a galaxy tab.
As far as form factor the specs are near identical in size of A7 and nook
The single button for nook is also an issue unless u do a loto of hacking.
The A7 will have the ability to run honeycomb when it is out and so will have a longer practical lifespan.
The only things better on the nook are the screen though it is unclear yet if the elocity screen will be good or very good (videos of a similar device rebranded seemed to show good viewing angles) and 4 vs. 8 gb of storage (for me not a deal breaker with 16Gb sd cards costing 30$). now sure 800x480 is not as good a resolution, but this is a 7 not 10 inch tab so I am not sure it will make much of a difference. After all this is still better than DVD resolution so should be fine for reading and web.
As for battery life, I think the difference i s 4000 vs 3200 in favor of nook so not a huge difference real life we are looking at probably 1 hour difference, but A7 has ambient light sensor so could be better at battery saving
A7 has ability to output hdmi, so can bring hi def movies downloaded to people homes and watch on their TV
Has webcam to enable videochat
Has bluetooth for connectivity and most importantly the newes latest processor that ensures a much longer time before obsolescence.
Finally from what I read Elocity will have an open source ui which will allow people to really customize it
Yea I would say the biggest thing going for the A7 is the out of box stock froyo so it is easy to customize and things just work for it and the terga 2 is only the second most important. The Nooks processor should be able to watch hd video if it gets optimized.
but wont be able to run flash which for me is a deal breaker
for 399 would rather get ipad with 16gb bluetooth appstore bigger great screen better battery life
but no flash.....
xwint3rxmut3x said:
Yeah, I thought about it. I ordered the Elocity, and then promptly attempted to cancel my order. The only category that the elocity beats the nc in my opinion is tegra, but that's because I don't care about BT, camera, or HDMI out. I prefer the build quality, size, bezel, screen, and battery on the NC. So that's the one i'm going with.
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I agree... but BT would be the only thing I wish we had.
Having said that, I feel (IMHO) that Bluetooth is just around the corner. Someone will somehow find a way to use the Droid X drivers and get use of the SoC which presumably has bluetooth capability.
Who knows... maybe B&N might surprise us all and include it in their 2.2 update. Now wouldn't that be a nice belated christmas gift?
Canadoc said:
but wont be able to run flash which for me is a deal breaker
for 399 would rather get ipad with 16gb bluetooth appstore bigger great screen better battery life
but no flash.....
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My nokia n900 has an A8 clocked at 600mhz (while stock) only 256 RAM, and runs flash like a champ. NC may not run it out of the box, but with 2.2 around the corner, via a custom ROM or an official update from BN, this device will run flash, and it will run it well.
update: crap, BJs already sent out my A7 even though I tried to cancel my order. Well, now I have a boxed NC and A7 for xmas, and one of them has to go back. uggghhh
Canadoc said:
I was trying to decide on the same
I ordered the elocity:
Rationale for me is:
I own an iphone. It's biggest failing for me is the absence of flash.
I have owned but will be returning a g tablet from viewsonic that also is tegra 2 based.
The thing is fast and can easily run full screen flash video without a hiccup.
For me I want this device to be a:
internet and i mean full internet browser
an E-reader
mail and office device
and to have many apps like games news productivity....
The Nook color will not have a way of using another keyboard since no bluetooth or usb.
The processor is way underpowered for flash. Heck flash was stuttery on a galaxy tab.
As far as form factor the specs are near identical in size of A7 and nook
The single button for nook is also an issue unless u do a loto of hacking.
The A7 will have the ability to run honeycomb when it is out and so will have a longer practical lifespan.
The only things better on the nook are the screen though it is unclear yet if the elocity screen will be good or very good (videos of a similar device rebranded seemed to show good viewing angles) and 4 vs. 8 gb of storage (for me not a deal breaker with 16Gb sd cards costing 30$). now sure 800x480 is not as good a resolution, but this is a 7 not 10 inch tab so I am not sure it will make much of a difference. After all this is still better than DVD resolution so should be fine for reading and web.
As for battery life, I think the difference i s 4000 vs 3200 in favor of nook so not a huge difference real life we are looking at probably 1 hour difference, but A7 has ambient light sensor so could be better at battery saving
A7 has ability to output hdmi, so can bring hi def movies downloaded to people homes and watch on their TV
Has webcam to enable videochat
Has bluetooth for connectivity and most importantly the newes latest processor that ensures a much longer time before obsolescence.
Finally from what I read Elocity will have an open source ui which will allow people to really customize it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hope it works out for you. Personally, after using my netbook off an on (only used away from the house) I find 1024x600 pretty small for web surfing, much less 800x480. Most phones run this resolution with a 3"-4" screen.
dvanburen said:
I hope it works out for you. Personally, after using my netbook off an on (only used away from the house) I find 1024x600 pretty small for web surfing, much less 800x480. Most phones run this resolution with a 3"-4" screen.
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I found this little nugget on the elocity a7 website...this is in their FAQ....anyone want to take a shot at WTF they're trying to say? (or NOT saying)
"Q: If I add an emulator for Super Nintendo, is the screen capable of having multi-touch so that I can run with one hand and jump with the other?
A: Yes, you can install the Super Nintendo emulator, but some of the games may not work properly."
or how about this one?
"Q: Is the touch screen multi-touch?
A: The A7 Tablet supports Multi-Touch functions. The built-in browser and photo viewer support zooming in/out by two of your fingers. However, multi-touch functionality on many third party apps is not supported."
I think they are basically saying that it is application dependent, and not to come crying to them for support if/when third party applications don't work as expected.

[Q] Nook Color potential and restrictions vs Coby MID7015 & other budget tablets?

Looking forward- can anyone explain the potential of the Nook over other Android tablets?
Any thoughts on the Coby Kryos MID7015 compared to the Nook Color?
On paper, it looks like the advantages of the the Nook are:
- much better screen
- more RAM
- faster processor (?)
- longer battery life
But- Is that worth spending $100 more for the Nook?
Is one more sturdy than the the other?
Does one have better Wifi?
Are there other capabilities that are theoretically possible, but not yet available to the android noob (me)?
Thanks so much for any input!
breebauer said:
Looking forward- can anyone explain the potential of the Nook over other Android tablets?
Any thoughts on the Coby Kryos MID7015 compared to the Nook Color?
On paper, it looks like the advantages of the the Nook are:
- much better screen
- more RAM
- faster processor (?)
- longer battery life
But- Is that worth spending $100 more for the Nook?
Is one more sturdy than the the other?
Does one have better Wifi?
Are there other capabilities that are theoretically possible, but not yet available to the android noob (me)?
Thanks so much for any input!
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Click to collapse
maybe its just me... but anyone else getting sick of the nook VS X tablet?
as far as this question, I had a lower tier tablet which I stacked up against my nook. While im not the greatest frame of reference as I was content with just using the internet... The screens were generally less responsive, the apps worked so so... In some cases like the Panimage I had even on lan my nook loaded a page faster (and it was a full page and the pan was loading the same site in mobile mode... it just happens to load my blog that way though)
Take my opinion for what its worth... but for the price the nook cant currently be beat (if rooted), I personally prefer it to a straight up tablet as the E-Reader functions are far beyond any singular app.
For the price the NC has a lot going for it now that it has the market enabled, and almost all of the tablet qualifying apps working. The fact that the screen is sharper than an Ipad and the price/performance ratio vs the galaxy tab is fairly close means its a good value... Go pick one up and compare yourself.. I suspect that any similar price tablets won't give you a better screen as costs are spread out to other tablet features (hdmi out, cameras, gps)...
I have the original. ?..m001.....it's now my 9 year old's. I can't even begin to describe just how much more the the nook does....The nook color is worth 350 imho.....
Go to the store, have them take rhe device oitside diring the day....you'll be sold....very few color devices, ar any price, can be viewed outside. ?...
I think in this case what you are really paying for is build quality, which is kind of difficult to quantify. The Nook Color was designed to compete straddling the niches of the Kindle and the iPad, and accordingly was built very well. A budget tablet companies are competing for a different space in the market and though they may boast a lot of features (HDMI, Bluetooth, cameras) if you don't need these features then paying the same amount for a NC means it goes to build, design, and overall finish.
Edit: I forgot that there may be latent Bluetooth on the wifi chip. We'll just have to see if someone can coax it out.
having owned lots of cheap Chinese imported Android tablets, the Nook is leaps and bounds above them all.
1) Build Quality: It's like comparing a Toyota to a base model Daewoo. I had so many build quality issues with the import tablets it was crazy! Things like the memory card slot spring would break after a week.
2) Screen: Most import tablets are resistive and you're lucky to have multi touch. Trust me, resistive screens suck for finger inputs.
3) Speed: Ok, so my phone is faster than the NC, but the NC is faster than any of those tablets.
You pay for what you get. I had a XPad 701 and a G10+ which was $200 and near the "best" of what you could get at the time. Both pale in comparison to the NC.
Well MID or budget means probably Chinese so not only is it an "eh ok" touch resistive screen, awkward enough for sliding, the manufacturer is out of state so a problem is a month+ waiting for shipping.
B&N has the 1yr warranty and a big reputable place so just knowing i can go get another without waiting is nice.
Let alone the NCs specs beating it, can be rooted, an potential for roms later down the road. B&N has said January theres the update to 2.2 an market (tho thats still a wait an see thing) so thats only a usb2.0 an hdvia output to look forward to.
IMO NC FTW build quality, specs, potential.
Malk3rs said:
Edit: I forgot that there may be latent Bluetooth on the wifi chip. We'll just have to see if someone can coax it out.
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I didn't know about that- Bluetooth would be a nice bonus!
HotShotAzn said:
1) Build Quality: It's like comparing a Toyota to a base model Daewoo. I had so many build quality issues with the import tablets it was crazy! Things like the memory card slot spring would break after a week.
2) Screen: Most import tablets are resistive and you're lucky to have multi touch. Trust me, resistive screens suck for finger inputs.
3) Speed: Ok, so my phone is faster than the NC, but the NC is faster than any of those tablets.
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camwinnn said:
Let alone the NCs specs beating it, can be rooted, an potential for roms later down the road. B&N has said January theres the update to 2.2 an market (tho thats still a wait an see thing) so thats only a usb2.0 an hdvia output to look forward to.
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Click to collapse
Ok- that sounds promising. If B&N is already releasing an update, that makes me feel like this won't be something that will be almost obsolete in 6 months.
I've been Best Buy and other stores 4 times looking at the Nook, the Coby 7015, and the Huawei S7. The screen on the Coby was kind of a turn-off, since I'm used to staring at my iPhone4. The S7 seemed nice, but not necessary, since I have an iPhone.
Build quality is very important to me- I'm looking for something to use while traveling though Indonesia next month.
I just wanted to make sure the Nook won't be one of those things that I bought, because I thought I needed it, but wound up in a drawer after a few months for whatever reason.
Thanks!
In the end, for me at least, it's also about community support. If you look around, you'll see the Nook Color has it.
IMHO it's useless to have a super duper whopper that you're stuck using stock, no dev support, no manufacturer's support, at 2.1 without a market..
-CC
clockcycle said:
In the end, for me at least, it's also about community support. If you look around, you'll see the Nook Color has it.
IMHO it's useless to have a super duper whopper that you're stuck using stock, no dev support, no manufacturer's support, at 2.1 without a market..
-CC
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My Xpad was orphaned by the community because the seller stopped selling it after a few weeks. I vowed that I would only buy a tablet that had a huge backing (Samsung Tab or NC were on the top of the list).
To me, the two real competitors out there now (other than iPad) are B&N & Archos. The Archos 70 is about the same price as the NC. It has way better connectivity and is real Android out of the box. It also has the best video drivers out there. I have an Archos 101 and it is very good. I also have an NC. I bought it for the quality of the screen. Basically I bought it as soon as I was convinced I could root it because the base software would be unusable for me. It also works great and it is much better to read with than the Archos. I use ezPDF and Moon Reader on both.
Both Archos and B&N seem to have pretty strong communities. For Archos, this is Gen8, and the folks in that community go way back with Archos. B&N seems to be solidly behind their eBook readers and they have built two very solid products with the NC and Nook Classic, In fact, the NC is now replacing my Nook Classic as my eBook reader.
Beware of companies that will be a flash in the pan. They will be dropped by the early adopter community as soon as the next big thing appears.
The biggest difference to me is the hi-rez IPS capacitive screen. Most of the cheapie tablets have resistive screens and/or cheap TN LCD screens with crummy viewing angles.
I have both a rooted Nook Color and rooted MID7015 running stock OS.
The price difference is < $100 ($250 vs $180 in my case).
The out-of-the-box experience for the (rooted) MID7015 is very poor. It doesn't have multi-touch, a LOT of apps don't work or don't work properly, it maps its extra storage space as /sdcard thus screwing with inserted SD memory mapping, the WiFi is horrible (I found myself having to constantly disable/renable in settings), it runs a 800x480 (I think) resolution, and it's a bit clunky. I have not tested the HDMI. I DID try Cynanogen on it. It improved some things, but a lot of apps still did not work (Angry Birds, Slice It, etc), and WiFi performance was even worse.
By comparison, the rooted Nook has none of these deficiencies, runs at a full 1024x600 res, has multi-touch, apps working correctly, and is a pleasure to use. My only negative experience with the Nook Color so far is that I sometimes see behavior like this which power cycling fixes (and my unit may just be messed up - dunno yet): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiHH6mdH0WU&feature=related
So, in my book, the Nook Color is the clear winner.

Ipad to a Nook

So the others day I made the plunge from an ipad to the Nook Color. So far im pretty impressed, being the huge gadget junkie that I am. With that being said of course I have a few complaints.
1. Android tablets lack polish. Things on the ipad that just worked seem to require solutions on the nook. I do understand that I'm using a hacked device so i take that into consideration but playing decent quality youtube should be a know brainer
2. The speaker is bad. I know this is intended to be an ebook reader but my kindle is louder, no excuse.
On to the stuff I love.
1. 7" is the perfect size for a tablet, apple should take note.
2. The keyboard is amazing and it will allow you to add words to the built in dictionary. Apple clearly dropped the ball on this.
3. The screen is great, nice and crisp. It's been a joy to read on.
4. The potential, I've grown sick of waiting on apple to add simple features. Android is a blessing. I'm looking forward to new roms and froyo in the near future.
Sent from my Nook Color using XDA App
I agree the 7" is perfect size for a tab. Walkin around with a 10" tab looks retarded.
Missing #5 You saved a boatload of money by choosing Geico (NC)
I have a 10 inch iPad and a 4 inch Galaxy S Vibrant phone. And now a 7 inch Nook Color that fills the gap inbetween.
My list of issues with the Nook.
1. Slower.
Browsing the web, market place, and some other apps feels much slower on the NC than the iPad, even slower than my Vibrant. This is rooted with Dolphin HD. It's acceptable, but wish it could be quicker. And I expect Android 2.2 will help alot (I'm using a custom Android 2.2 ROM on my Vibrant).
2. Screen is tacky.
The screen feels rough or tacky. It's not very smooth at all. Makes pinching and scrolling a little more awkward than it should be. Wish it was smoother, I suppose it will get a little smoother over time. But I don't think it'll ever feel as smooth as the iPad or Vibrant did out of the box. I guess this is some coating on the phone to make reading easier? I might have to try out a screen shield to see if they can offer a smoother finger gliding experience.
3. Battery life.
Battery life is very poor compared to the iPad (probably average for an Android device). With the iPad I never even think about the battery, I always have plenty. But with my Android phone and NookColor, battery is a constant worry and I need to keep the charger on hand.
This items are both good and bad at the same time.
1. Heavy/Sturdy.
It's heavier than I expected. I read it's heavier than the Galaxy Tab and Archos 70. However it also has a very solid sturdy feeling.
2. Ugly/Comfortable.
The bevel is ugly, mostly because of that hideous loop at the bottom. Also that loop makes accessing the microSD slot more difficult than it should be. Also not a fan of the rounded raised bevel around the screen. However the rounded edges and the rubber back do make it comfortable to hold.
What I like about the Nook over the iPad.
1. It's Android.
I'm not an Apple fan. I've really tried my best to avoid buying any Apple products because I don't like the walled garden, locked down, controlling nature of Apple products. Having an Android tablet means I have much greater freedom to what I want with the OS and apps. I imagine there will be some nice custom ROMs I'll be able to install on the Nook some day that will improve the speed issues I have now and add a lot more features.
2. Screen looks great.
While I don't like the feel of the screen, I do love how it looks. It's definitely not better than the iPad, however it's one of the best on an Android tablet. I imagine only the Galaxy Tab equals or betters it. Looks good from any angle.
3. Price.
I think the iPad is a very quality piece of hardware with very polished software and certainly worth the $500 I spent. But the Nook Color is probably even more impressive for what you get at half the price.
Having owned an ipad until last week and currently own two android devices (captivate and nookcolor)
Here are my observations
-Book apps are not that far from each other but the children books score a big thumbs up for nookcolor (not really important for me since i don't have any kids)
-Magazine apps on ipad are much better laid out and more fluid than magazines on nookcolor (ie. car and driver). Also it's currently free on ipad whereas nookcolor requires subscription
-In general, better selection of apps for ipad than nook (nook doesn't have apps and lack of scalable andoird apps for big screens really shows). Ipad has been out for a while and hopefully with the numerous tablet sized android devices flooding the market will rectify this issue
Here is one thing that nookcolor really outshines ipad.
multitasking, multitasking, multitasking
When the apps are parked in the task manager, most apps will restart when you try to access them again. I've also experienced issues with resource management on ipad trying to open PDF documents (1~2MBs in size) even when i had less than five app running (or inactively running) in task manager.
Overall i'm enjoying the form factor of nookcolor for everyday usage and hope that 2.2/2.3 release will bring some more performance to the device. Device isn't slow by any mean and nook ui may deceive consumers as being sluggish but rooted and running adw for launcher makes the device fly.
Okay so playing video kind of sucks and the youtube app doesn't play hd. Just a thought
Sent from my nook color using XDA App
As far as the screen goes, it is better than the ipad for viewing. From my understanding there are 3 layers to the screen to give it good viewing angles and better viewing for reading. The resolution is also great, similar to ipad but on a smaller screen and better pixel density. Better than the Galaxy Tab resolution.
I have a matte screen protector on mine that I purchased from ebay and it makes the screen really smooth and not the sticky feel you get from stock screen. Although, I heard that it does smooth out over time.
Multitasking is great on the NC compared to Ipad and probably due to the 512 vs 256 ram on the memory. The ipad is slicker looking but you also pay more. Speed wise, all we need is a custom kernel and I am sure we can get this thing 1 or 1.2ghz. And the custom ROM with optimization will make this a lot more fluid.
I love the portability with 7" screen and it is heavier than Galaxy tab but feels sturdier.
wendellc said:
The resolution is also great, similar to ipad but on a smaller screen and better pixel density. Better than the Galaxy Tab resolution.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The NOOK and the Galaxy Tab has the same screen resolution, I have both if them. However the Tab seems to scale its interface making every app slightly larger, making them have less usable space. I prefere the NOOKs unscaled interface.
Sent from my NOOK Color using XDA App
Tacky Screen
For those complaining about the screen being tacky, I noticed that myself initially (compared to my Droid X). However, it now no longer seems tacky, so either my fingers have worn off from playing with it LOL, or it comes with some sort of initial coating that wears off with use.
jaydon34 said:
So the others day I made the plunge from an ipad to the Nook Color. So far im pretty impressed, being the huge gadget junkie that I am. With that being said of course I have a few complaints.
1. Android tablets lack polish. Things on the ipad that just worked seem to require solutions on the nook. I do understand that I'm using a hacked device so i take that into consideration but playing decent quality youtube should be a know brainer
2. The speaker is bad. I know this is intended to be an ebook reader but my kindle is louder, no excuse.
On to the stuff I love.
1. 7" is the perfect size for a tablet, apple should take note.
2. The keyboard is amazing and it will allow you to add words to the built in dictionary. Apple clearly dropped the ball on this.
3. The screen is great, nice and crisp. It's been a joy to read on.
4. The potential, I've grown sick of waiting on apple to add simple features. Android is a blessing. I'm looking forward to new roms and froyo in the near future.
Sent from my Nook Color using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Watch the 7" comment, which I totally agree with, as you'll have 10" mavens swoop in claiming that 10" is better for video(yeah right), and another smaller subset claiming that 10" is better for reading some technical documents. I've never had a problem with video watching on 7" nor with tech doc reading on a 7".
YouTube: best experience that I've had with video playback on Android devices so far has been with the lowly Augen GT78 sporting a Telechips TCC8902 ARM11 CPU which apparently had an AWESOMELY superior hw video codec support to just about ANY other ARM SoC available, although Tegra 2 doesn't seem to be doing so badly, yet could apparently, use some further driver updates to better support it's video playback capabilities.
Beyond that, yep basic Android UI is pretty "rough" for Tablets, and is why I presume that many manufacturers attempt to slap on a custom UI of some sort although they haven't had much luck so far(I'm looking at you TapnCrap) beyond specialized book reader front ends, e.g. Nook Color, Pandigital Novel, and Cruz Reader.
All this said I still haven't gotten around to picking up a NC yet, as I'm still kind of waiting to see what pops up next year, but may break down next week and just buy one as the gTab(10") is a bit much for comfortable portability and use as a reader... plus the NC has a WAY better screen from what I could tell playing around with a demo unit at B&N the other week...
cutterjohn said:
Watch the 7" comment, which I totally agree with, as you'll have 10" mavens swoop in claiming that 10" is better for video(yeah right), and another smaller subset claiming that 10" is better for reading some technical documents. I've never had a problem with video watching on 7" nor with tech doc reading on a 7".
YouTube: best experience that I've had with video playback on Android devices so far has been with the lowly Augen GT78 sporting a Telechips TCC8902 ARM11 CPU which apparently had an AWESOMELY superior hw video codec support to just about ANY other ARM SoC available, although Tegra 2 doesn't seem to be doing so badly, yet could apparently, use some further driver updates to better support it's video playback capabilities.
Beyond that, yep basic Android UI is pretty "rough" for Tablets, and is why I presume that many manufacturers attempt to slap on a custom UI of some sort although they haven't had much luck so far(I'm looking at you TapnCrap) beyond specialized book reader front ends, e.g. Nook Color, Pandigital Novel, and Cruz Reader.
All this said I still haven't gotten around to picking up a NC yet, as I'm still kind of waiting to see what pops up next year, but may break down next week and just buy one as the gTab(10") is a bit much for comfortable portability and use as a reader... plus the NC has a WAY better screen from what I could tell playing around with a demo unit at B&N the other week...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Other thing to note about ipad is the aspect ratio
I'm so used to seeing widescreen ratio on both tv and pc that when i was watching hulu on ipad, it was somewhat akward
I have to agree with many points of this discussion. I went from an ipad to a rooted NC and am very happy.
1. Love the size, Ive always felt the ipad was too big. I sure ipad 2 will be smaller.
2. I connect alot easier to public wifi, especially when there is a sign in screen. My ipad always had trouble with those.
3. Screen is nice, but sometimes a little too sensitive I think. Opens apps when scrolling through them for example.
4. Love using Google services, Google Talk, Gmail, and live wallpaper. And get latest Google Maps and navigation. Apple always tried to lock them out.
My wishes.
1. Froyo to enable beach live wallpaper. Coming soon, I hope...
2. Microphone. Can one be added on via 3.5mm jack? Would love to make sip calls, but no dice so far.
3. Static wifi, that doesnt sleep. Or at least the option to turn it on and off.
Benny1234 said:
3. Static wifi, that doesnt sleep. Or at least the option to turn it on and off.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
wvcachi said:
1. How do I keep wifi from turning off when the screen goes to sleep?
- download Spare Parts from the market and set wifi sleep policy to never.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hope that helps.
i agree with most observations comparing an iPad to NC.
I have both right now, and I definitely think when compared to iOS Android lacks polish and is behind in terms of apps.
10 characters
For the most part the apps are almost the same for what I do. Apple just really has a nice way of dummy proofing products with the exception of flash everything works right out the box.
Sent from my Nook Color

Viewsonic Aims Squarely at the Nook

So viewsonic's 7" tablet just hit Amazon, and is priced at $230.00.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846
It's an interesting device that's pre-loaded with a bunch of Amazon apps (including teh Amazon App store). Sorta like a pseudo-Amazon Kindle Color.
And Viewsonic is aiming squarely at the Nook with this device, just scroll down to the end of their product page for a spec-by spec comparison:
http://www.viewsonic.com/products/vb730.htm
Funny thing: though the spec sheet mentions that both tablets have a 7" screen, it conveniently fails to list their resolution. (The Viewsonic is just 800 x 480).
Still, the fact that this thing includes built-in stylus technology makes it a serious competitor to HTC's 7" View tablet. If it weren't for the low resolution screen, i might even consider one myself.
Wow for 230.00 bucks i would of bought that.... that's a great priced little tablet.
Yes, the NOOKcolor does have serious competitor.
Feature-wise, so far that Viewsonic has offered a lot more. Few down-side
+ far less superior screen
+ no wireless-N
+ seperate charger port. NC uses microUSB port as charger
+ thicker 14mm (vs. NC 12mm)
But it gains
+ default bluetooth 2.1
+ microphone
+ webcam
+ 1GHz CPU (can it be overclocked?)
+ regular miniUSB
+ miniHDMI
+ 10hrs vs 8hrs battery life (not much diff. i guess)
+ front speaker (better than on the back like the NC, i personal feeling)
+ lighter 15.2oz (vs. NC 15.8oz)
Next question, can this V730 be flashed and run CM7 like we did the NC?
I think if it has IPS screen tech, it will beat the NOOK.
What I've come to learn about Android phones and tablets is, the specs are near meaningless, the real strength of a device is it's community. Imagine the Nook without CM7 or even root... I have a friend who has the Galaxy Tab(CDMA), which pretty much out specs the Nook in every way, but I would never trade, because the Tabs community is basically just a rag tag group with no star action. Matter of fact my friend is jealous of all my Nook can do...
Most device manufacturers load down their android devices with so much crap or don't optimize enough that even dual core devices run like crap...
/end of rant
votinh said:
Yes, the NOOKcolor does have serious competitor.
Feature-wise, so far that Viewsonic has offered a lot more. Few down-side
+ far less superior screen
+ no wireless-N
+ seperate charger port. NC uses microUSB port as charger
+ thicker 14mm (vs. NC 12mm)
But it gains
+ default bluetooth 2.1
+ microphone
+ webcam
+ 1GHz CPU (can it be overclocked?)
+ regular miniUSB
+ miniHDMI
+ 10hrs vs 8hrs battery life (not much diff. i guess)
+ front speaker (better than on the back like the NC, i personal feeling)
+ lighter 15.2oz (vs. NC 15.8oz)
Next question, can this V730 be flashed and run CM7 like we did the NC?
I think if it has IPS screen tech, it will beat the NOOK.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why would it beat the nook? Even if it were an IPS screen (and knowing Viewsonic, it will be the cheapest crap they can find; already demoed by the pathetic 800x480 screen), the other "extra" features really aren't that great.
I will knock bluetooth off your list, since it works just fine in CM7 (yes, range could be better, but frankly, i have never had a problem there either).
So, it leaves you with some extra ports and a crappy webcam. Sorry, but i will take the amazing quality IPS screen any day over some extra ports and webcam. (BTW - the "regular" USB thing is silly, since "regular" microUSB plugs in just fine to our port..)
The 800x480 resolution makes it a non-starter for me.
So you're telling me if the VB730 has 1024x600 IPS screen, just like the NC, it is still a bad one, and can't compete to the NC?
Divine_Madcat said:
Why would it beat the nook? Even if it were an IPS screen (and knowing Viewsonic, it will be the cheapest crap they can find; already demoed by the pathetic 800x480 screen), the other "extra" features really aren't that great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. The biggest selling point of the NC for me is the beautiful IPS hi-res display. Viewsonic won't have a solid competitor (IMO) with such a low-res screen.
Stock-for-stock, it'll be a better option for Joe Schmoe in the market for a cheapie tablet, though. That is, unless a Nook owner gets to them first... haha
votinh said:
So you're telling me if the VB730 has 1024x600 IPS screen, just like the NC, it is still a bad one, and can't compete to the NC?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IF it had as good a screen as the Nook, then yes it'd be an interesting stock alternative. But as it's spec'ed now with thet 800x480 screen, that probably makes it a negative for a large number of folks. The Bluetooth is a plus vs Stock NC, but not versus CM7 NC. The mini-USB port vs micro is nice in that it's probably a fair bit sturdier than what we've got now, but all in all, not a huge deal.
The mini-HDMI is interesting, but again, when paired with the 800x480 screen, it's unclear whether it will push out worthwhile resolution. The thing that will be interesting is if they come out with a version that's got a higher resolution screen, and what the real detail is about their CPU/GPU.
The stylus is a marketing hype positive against a stock NC. You can obviously buy a stylus for any capacitive screen tablet for under 20 bucks. Whether or not the Viewsonic "RiteTouch" is any good, only time will tell.
The rest of the list is pretty much vs the Stock NC, so this is a stock vs stock argument. We have no way of knowing whether or not the hacking community for this device will be as strong as the one for the NC, so again only time will tell.
But right now, with what knowledge we have... I still feel NC is better, at least for my needs.
That's what I stated up there, the VB730 has far less superior screen compared to the NOOK. Also said if it has the same screen tech/resolution as the NC, then it is a serious competitor. Assuming xda-developer as well as cyanogenmod gurus will tackle this little tablet later on like they did for the NC, then this guys would be good.
Don't know why this site has too many hot-head blindly jumped on defending their Nook.
Can they relax and open their mind? Geez
I think it has to do with the unique nature of unlocking an e-reader for use as a full-fledged tablet, and it's great hardware for the price.
Also, I wonder how much a comparable screen would raise the Viewsonic's price.
Have you folk ever actually tried to use a capacitive stylus? I mean, give me a break . . . unless you like writing with a crayon, they are mostly useless. Pretty much impossible to use one to underline *.pdf files (or, for that matter, comfortably write).
For me, depends on the stylus technology. If you're getting something like the HTC Flyer's stylus, I think it would be a good deal, so long as there is more built-in software support. But they're kind of vague about the whole thing on the website. I haven't been able to find more information about "RiteTouch" technology. I'm waiting to see what somebody serious says about how the stylus actually works with the device.
kennyminot said:
Have you folk ever actually tried to use a capacitive stylus? I mean, give me a break . . . unless you like writing with a crayon, they are mostly useless. Pretty much impossible to use one to underline *.pdf files (or, for that matter, comfortably write).
For me, depends on the stylus technology. If you're getting something like the HTC Flyer's stylus, I think it would be a good deal, so long as there is more built-in software support. But they're kind of vague about the whole thing on the website. I haven't been able to find more information about "RiteTouch" technology. I'm waiting to see what somebody serious says about how the stylus actually works with the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here. Looking for a review. If the stylus works well, I'll probably wait and see if they release an upgraded version with a 1024 x 600 screen and then maybe.
joenathane said:
What I've come to learn about Android phones and tablets is, the specs are near meaningless, the real strength of a device is it's community. Imagine the Nook without CM7 or even root... I have a friend who has the Galaxy Tab(CDMA), which pretty much out specs the Nook in every way, but I would never trade, because the Tabs community is basically just a rag tag group with no star action. Matter of fact my friend is jealous of all my Nook can do...
Most device manufacturers load down their android devices with so much crap or don't optimize enough that even dual core devices run like crap...
/end of rant
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This. When the honeycomb/ICS source code launches, we have a strong enough community that we will be seeing a port, and its going to completely transform our ereaders into full fledged tablets. This viewsonic tablet probably wont have that support if previous models are anything to judge by, and the horrible screen resolution means that even if it did, it would be stuck with the phone UI since there simply isnt enough space to show tablet optimized applications.
So the first Amazon reader review is in:
http://www.amazon.com/ViewBook-VB73...dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1
Reviewer claims it has a RESISTIVE screen! Whoa! Hadn't seen that mentioned anywhere. In fact, I hadn't seen any mention either way. But if this is true then it surely makes a big difference (and explains the included pen). The next question is: is it multi-touch? I have to assume it is, because it would be pretty crippling if it weren't.
Now, I'm not going to immediately discount a device with a resistive screen (no doubt the technology is improving day to day) but I'd definitely want to read some in depth testimonials on how it compares to the capacitive screens we've all grown to know and love.
(EDIT: The Tiger Direct page lists "resistive screen" in the specs: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=782735&CatId=6957 So this Nook competitor is becoming less impressive the more I read about it.)
Depends on if they are using new multitouch resistive controllers.
h t t p://w w w.designnews.com/document.asp?doc_id=230884&
dsf3g said:
So the first Amazon reader review is in:
http://www.amazon.com/ViewBook-VB73...dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1
Reviewer claims it has a RESISTIVE screen! Whoa! Hadn't seen that mentioned anywhere. In fact, I hadn't seen any mention either way. But if this is true then it surely makes a big difference (and explains the included pen). The next question is: is it multi-touch? I have to assume it is, because it would be pretty crippling if it weren't.
Now, I'm not going to immediately discount a device with a resistive screen (no doubt the technology is improving day to day) but I'd definitely want to read some in depth testimonials on how it compares to the capacitive screens we've all grown to know and love.
(EDIT: The Tiger Direct page lists "resistive screen" in the specs: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=782735&CatId=6957 So this Nook competitor is becoming less impressive the more I read about it.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If it has a pen input, then resistive is really the only way to go there. As said, writing with a capactive stylus is annoying at best.
As for multitouch, usually that is NOT possible on resistive but I don't think it's impossible either.
Really, the advantage of capacitive touchscreens is probably a little overstated. I currently have two resistive touchscreen tablets. The T91MT was one of the first cheap tablet devices on the market, and it has a pretty sensitive screen with multitouch features. Most people would have trouble telling the difference between that and a capacitive screen. My Pocket eDGe has a much less sensitive screen, although its ability to use a stylus makes it much more useful than most recent Android devices. I'm not entirely convinced that a capacitive touchscreen is the best option, especially when you consider that the technology has likely advanced over the last couple years.
So . . . a resistive touchscreen . . .
(1) can have multitouch support;
(2) can be used at any temperature;
(3) can be used with any object that applies pressure;
(4) is extremely accurate;
(5) is cheap.
I'd still like to see how the stylus works. It would be really neat if it had palm rejection.
That amazon review is mine .. I had a gift card to amazon so i ordered this instead of the nook.
Since writing that review initially the amazon market has more annoyed me as I am lacking things I wish i had from the google market and I can't seem to find any drivers to support this device to make any attempt at rooting it so I can get the google market on it.
Hulu+ runs on it though thats a bonus i think.
The screen is difficult to tell if it is truly a resistive screen or something else, as why i put in the review it appears to be a hybrid of some kind. Using my Bamboo Capacitive Stylus I am able to control the screen and all just the same as using the included Rite Touch stylus, which as far as i can tell is nothing but a regular old resistive plastic tip stylus. On the Multi-touch issue I've read it is but it doesn't appear to be as I can't pinch to zoom and the usual multi-touch gestures although the double tap to zoom I use more even on cap screens than the pinch.
Divine_Madcat said:
Why would it beat the nook? Even if it were an IPS screen (and knowing Viewsonic, it will be the cheapest crap they can find; already demoed by the pathetic 800x480 screen), the other "extra" features really aren't that great.
I will knock bluetooth off your list, since it works just fine in CM7 (yes, range could be better, but frankly, i have never had a problem there either).
So, it leaves you with some extra ports and a crappy webcam. Sorry, but i will take the amazing quality IPS screen any day over some extra ports and webcam. (BTW - the "regular" USB thing is silly, since "regular" microUSB plugs in just fine to our port..)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I still have problems with bluetooth keyboards, runing nightly 126 and 131. I have a Xoom bluetooth with a modified qwerty.kl file to enable most of the android special keys to work. The three annoying issues with Xoom keyboard is that it will stop working while typing long messages, have to hit power button on it to restart; a key will stick kkkkkkkkkk; and not easy to get out of pop-up for accent keys. You do not see these problems? The best feature is that I can leave power adapter plugged in with bluetooth.
When I use my Logitech wireless usb combo keyboard and mouse I only seem to get the pop-up accent box. The negative is even with a y cable it does not seem to charge nook while in host and v-bus mode. The combination arrow and keyboard interface is really slick.
Anybody else notice these flaws with bluetooth and usb keyboards?

New Nexus 7 in 2013...Possible specs & would you upgrade?

So Android 4.2 Jelly Bean is out of Google's kitchen, and us sugar fiends will have to wait until summer 2013 for our next big rush, which leads me onto the replacement for the Nexus 7, which given the cut-throat competition is a certainty.
So here are my dream specs, which are based on upcoming technology and some common sense!, give me this Google and you've got my money.
1) Bigger screen, but same size chassis as Nexus 7, thin bezels are sexy
2) Tegra 4 quad-core & 2GB RAM. Tegra 3 might not have been the most powerful beast, but it has served us well, and Nvidia game support is always a plus.
3) Resolution full HD - 1920 x 1080 and Miracast. You just know that the next iPad mini will retina up their screen, so lets not fall behind.
4) Faster I/O. Moving away from crappy eMMC to the newest µSSD SATA, which will result in two to three times the performance of current storage tech, as many N7 owners will tell you slow I/O really bottlenecks system performance.
5) With all this tasty hardware you need equally tasty software enter Android 5.0 - Key Lime Pie.
So would these specs tempt you to buy or are you happy enough with the 'old' Nexus 7?
Turbotab said:
So Android 4.2 Jelly Bean is out of Google's kitchen, and us sugar fiends will have to wait until summer 2013 for our next big rush, which leads me onto the replacement for the Nexus 7, which given the cut-throat competition is a certainty.
So here are my dream specs, which are based on upcoming technology and some common sense!, give me this Google and you've got my money.
1) Bigger screen, but same size chassis as Nexus 7, thin bezels are sexy
2) Tegra 4 quad-core & 2GB RAM. Tegra 3 might not have been the most powerful beast, but it has served us well, and Nvidia game support is always a plus.
3) Resolution full HD - 1920 x 1080, you just know that the next iPad mini will retina up their screen, so lets not fall behind.
4) Faster I/O. Moving away from crappy eMMC to the newest µSSD SATA, which will result in two to three times the performance of current storage tech, as many N7 owners will tell you slow I/O really bottlenecks system performance.
5) With all this tasty hardware you need equally tasty software enter Android 5.0 - Key Lime Pie.
So would these specs tempt you to buy or are you happy enough with the 'old' Nexus 7?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. No the bezel is functional. Functionality over visual. I.E the iPad minis non bezeld display is a pain in the ass to hold one handed.
2. FCK Nvidia. Would rather have an S4. Or S5.
3. Seriously 1080p screens I can dig it but not necessary honestly. Our nexus 7 is already a retina quality display. And retina is a fancy zinger for high quality display.
4.SSD would be neat you got me there
5. Unlikely I'm sure we won't see it until the end of 2013. I would expect 4.2.x updates like gingerbread.
If this did come out for a reasonable price id possibly buy it. Can't say I wouldn't want to but hey this is just dreaming.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus
Why cant we just be happy with the device we have now..
Enjoy what you have now and not chase the future... You will never be able to be content with what you have other wise..
Come on Nexus 4 Erica Needs a new Phone...
erica_renee said:
Why cant we just be happy with the device we have now..
Enjoy what you have now and not chase the future... You will never be able to be content with what you have other wise..
Come on Nexus 4 Erica Needs a new Phone...
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Click to collapse
I'm enjoying my Nexus 7, this is just idle day dreaming, even typed this on my laptop rather than the Nexus to spare her feelings:laugh:
I will not upgrade. Why should I? Because with all the power that Nexus 7 has it will for sure be updated for a long time. Seriously, quad core Tegra 3 is a lot of power.
You people who update their phone/tablet every 9 months are something I don't understand. What is wrong with Tegra? I've had no problems with it by now. If your tablet needs to be on the top of benchmark result... why? Exynos may get 100 points more, or it opens an application 0.2 seconds faster but I will never spend so much money on it.
1. Decent camera on the back. I know (some) people don't see the use - but in small 7" devices, it could easily serve as a camera and analogue sharing device (showing the pictures you took, on a plane or whatever). If it had a camera, I would use it, and I would carry my N7 with me everywhere.
2. Built in kickstand. Surface has it. Make it happen and I <3 you.
3. Whatever is the fastest processor at the time of release. I don't care which chip. Use a Tegra, Exxnos, whatever. Don't care about the details. Fastest. period.
4. More storage space, but 16/32 is a good place at the moment. 32/64 would be more reasonable of course.
5. Move the power button away from the volume controls. I can't even count the number of times I've hit standby when I meant to hit VolUp. Maybe I need to pay more attention, but this could be easily relocated as well. Maybe bottom left or right, near the microUSB port?
6. The screen is fantastic as it stands. I'm not sure what can be improved while keeping this aspect ratio and screen size. It is plenty vibrant and bright enough (although the auto-brightness is too dark in most situations).
7. The back could be a bit grippy-er even. I like being able to hold it easily with one-hand while lying down. It is the best tablet-backing material I have ever felt, but it could be even better. Maybe a different texture could help /shrug.
8. Multi-color LED indicator light. Vibrator (whatever it is called) for haptic feedback.
9. Variable pressure stylus compatibility, pen sold separately to keep costs down.
10. Induction charging compatibility.
But lets get real - the Nexus 7 as it stands is an AMAZING device. I would not switch it for a slight upgrade (a la iPhone 4S to 5).
I'm good with the 7. Leave the bevels so we can hold the damn thing. The resolution is superb for a 7" tab. Resolution isn't that big of deal at this point in the game. All of that screen resolution requires a lot of umph that I'd rather put toward framerates and graphics. That like buying an iPad3 and feeling like a iPad2. Resolution on the N7 is perfect.
That said, faster/more memory (32/64), better display (brighter, Amoled maybe, something fancy), decent magnetic smartcover like Apples or N10, and of course a nice new fancy quadcore beef house.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using XDA Premium HD app
crackcaffeine said:
1. Decent camera on the back. I know (some) people don't see the use - but in small 7" devices, it could easily serve as a camera and analogue sharing device (showing the pictures you took, on a plane or whatever). If it had a camera, I would use it, and I would carry my N7 with me everywhere.
2. Built in kickstand. Surface has it. Make it happen and I <3 you.
3. Whatever is the fastest processor at the time of release. I don't care which chip. Use a Tegra, Exxnos, whatever. Don't care about the details. Fastest. period.
4. More storage space, but 16/32 is a good place at the moment. 32/64 would be more reasonable of course.
5. Move the power button away from the volume controls. I can't even count the number of times I've hit standby when I meant to hit VolUp. Maybe I need to pay more attention, but this could be easily relocated as well. Maybe bottom left or right, near the microUSB port?
6. The screen is fantastic as it stands. I'm not sure what can be improved while keeping this aspect ratio and screen size. It is plenty vibrant and bright enough (although the auto-brightness is too dark in most situations).
7. The back could be a bit grippy-er even. I like being able to hold it easily with one-hand while lying down. It is the best tablet-backing material I have ever felt, but it could be even better. Maybe a different texture could help /shrug.
8. Multi-color LED indicator light. Vibrator (whatever it is called) for haptic feedback.
9. Variable pressure stylus compatibility, pen sold separately to keep costs down.
10. Induction charging compatibility.
But lets get real - the Nexus 7 as it stands is an AMAZING device. I would not switch it for a slight upgrade (a la iPhone 4S to 5).
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Click to collapse
1. The camera was left out to keep the cost down, seriously, you look like a fool using a camera on a tablet, and when everyone already has a camera on their phone, having one on your tablet is just redundant.
2 kickstand would just bulk it up, I prefer a case.
3. The Tegra 3 is the fastest chip available, devs just need to optimize for it. As far as graphical quality goes, just put dead trigger next to nova 3. Dt was written for Tegra 3 and it looks just as good as anything you'd see on a console and is smooth, nova 3 (before the last update) ran terribly. Personally I would want to see a big jump, rather than a slight upgrade.
4. Agreed, I never understood the 8, I just got a 32 and I can't fill it, haha.
5. Disagreed, having it grouped together keeps it nice and tidy, and makes it easier to fiddle with one handed.
6. My 16gb did have trouble adjusting brightness, but they must have changed something, as my 32gb has a much better contrast and is much easier to see, esp in sunlight. Personally I have trouble keeping up with screen tech, but I think changing to super amoled would bump the price up ALOT.
7. I like the back, plus my tab spent half its time in the rubber case, nearly sticks to the wall.
8. Led would be good, I often have wished I could glance to see if there's any notifications rather than having to press the button.
As for haptic feedback, at first I thought it was odd it didn't have it, but the more I think about it, I think Firstly the tablet is too big for it, I don't know, it would be weird for something bigger than my phone to be vibrating away.
9. Styluses are old school, and even if they sell the pen separately, they'd have to have functionality in the tablet, which would unnecessarily raise the cost for people who won't use it. Google didn't make an Ipad killer by putting in stuff that only some people will use.
10. The n4 has it, it's only a matter of time. Personally pluging in a cable doesn't bother me, esp when I'm running out of battery and still want to use my n7, but it would be good for docks etc.
Personally the ONLY thing I feel that is missing from the n7 right now is hdmi or mhl, miracast is looking good but needing to buy a new tv or receiver is a pain.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app
Turbotab said:
I'm enjoying my Nexus 7, this is just idle day dreaming, even typed this on my laptop rather than the Nexus to spare her feelings:laugh:
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Click to collapse
Her feelings.... I know a good therapist i can recommend you.. My girl friend used her to get over her old Heels that were GOD Awful and old....
Does SHE (your tablet)Have a name.. And i hope you have her in a Pink case... sheesh
1) Improve build quality. Use gorilla glass. Fix the damn screen lift for real. Make them more able to handle a drop without cracking/breaking/etc.
2) Keep all the current features - don't take anything out (like the smart cover ability and currently-unused pogo pins).
3) External SD (yeah, I'm dreaming...)
4) Inductive charging would be awesome.
JavaJunkay said:
I will not upgrade. Why should I? Because with all the power that Nexus 7 has it will for sure be updated for a long time. Seriously, quad core Tegra 3 is a lot of power.
You people who update their phone/tablet every 9 months are something I don't understand. What is wrong with Tegra? I've had no problems with it by now. If your tablet needs to be on the top of benchmark result... why? Exynos may get 100 points more, or it opens an application 0.2 seconds faster but I will never spend so much money on it.
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Click to collapse
I agree my phone is 3 years old. My Other tablet is nearly two years old and we still use it everyday.. Its acer a500.. i like the 7 in tab to fit my purse better.
I wouldn't upgrade, I love my nexus, but I don't use it enough to justify upgrading. I'll play some simple games, surf the web and play Netflix for the kids, so the current 7 is plenty for me.
Sent from my De-Sensed HTC Vivid using xda app-developers app
I think $200 is cheap enough for a yearly update. You can sell the old one for $100 to minimize cost. That doesn't mean you should upgrade, but whether you'd want to or not will be an indicator of Android's progress, ie if most peeps are still fine with their old N7s by this time next year, Android isn't moving fast enough.
My ideas for an N7B, mostly the little things:
. Keep $200 price point. One can quibble over N7's technical merits, but there's no illusion on why it's popular. That means that many of the MOTS in the OP should stay in the wishful realm. Remember that Kindle Fire will keep up the price pressure.
. Have a dedicated charging port for faster charging, and to allow using micro-USB for other things while plugged in. This would be a major problem for N10 with its slow charging, if the USB were actually useful for normal peeps (it isn't).
. Have micro-HDMI out. This is a major KFHD advantage over N7.
. Have dual-band, dual-stream MIMO wifi. This is a given, since starting with KFHD, tablets are getting this as a matter of course. Hopefully wireless connectivity will get more awareness, and we'll see 802.11ac or WiGig make an appearance.
. I'm fine with the Teg3 and screen, but N7B will probably get a low-cost version of Teg4 or equiv to keep up with the Joneses. I would not want the res to go higher as that will eat up more batt/SoC power. N10 already has this affliction, and hopefully Goog will take the lesson to heart.
. I'd say micro-SD slot, but I know it won't happen. Nexus devices need to be gimped so they can get the incredible bang/buck, and SD slot is the casualty.
. Outside of N7, I hope Goog fix the eco so more vendors sell Android tabs, and that non-Nexus tabs can get updates as quickly as Nexus ones. It's a sad testament when Android tabs are limited to only Nexus tabs. I'd like to have a 4:3 tab, and I know that won't happen with Nexus. This is on Google, not the vendors. It needs to figure out a better way.
In short, for hardware, I'd just like to see better connectivity, else the rest is fine. I'd like to see an improved eco (which doesn't necessarily mean more apps, although that would be a consequence). But most of all, I'd like to see a more capable OS, being able to do more than just consuming content and being a portable kiosk for Google Play Store.
I think a higher screen resolution is a very reasonable thing to ask for. Retina displays are GORGEOUS and I'd like to have a screen with that resolution or higher.
Micro HDMI
LTE support is also something that is missing.
Screen size is perfect the way it is.
Obviously the fastest processor at that time, but I'm not picky about which one
An LED notification light would be wonderful. Haptic feedback isn't needed
Sent from my DROID4 using Tapatalk 2
erica_renee said:
Her feelings.... I know a good therapist i can recommend you.. My girl friend used her to get over her old Heels that were GOD Awful and old....
Does SHE (your tablet)Have a name.. And i hope you have her in a Pink case... sheesh
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Click to collapse
You may not have registered the hint of sarcasm in my post:silly:
bwassef said:
LTE support is also something that is missing.
Sent from my DROID4 using Tapatalk 2
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Seriously? LTE in a tablet?
Kearkan said:
1. The camera was left out to keep the cost down, seriously, you look like a fool using a camera on a tablet, and when everyone already has a camera on their phone, having one on your tablet is just redundant.
2 kickstand would just bulk it up, I prefer a case.
3. The Tegra 3 is the fastest chip available, devs just need to optimize for it. As far as graphical quality goes, just put dead trigger next to nova 3. Dt was written for Tegra 3 and it looks just as good as anything you'd see on a console and is smooth, nova 3 (before the last update) ran terribly. Personally I would want to see a big jump, rather than a slight upgrade.
4. Agreed, I never understood the 8, I just got a 32 and I can't fill it, haha.
5. Disagreed, having it grouped together keeps it nice and tidy, and makes it easier to fiddle with one handed.
6. My 16gb did have trouble adjusting brightness, but they must have changed something, as my 32gb has a much better contrast and is much easier to see, esp in sunlight. Personally I have trouble keeping up with screen tech, but I think changing to super amoled would bump the price up ALOT.
7. I like the back, plus my tab spent half its time in the rubber case, nearly sticks to the wall.
8. Led would be good, I often have wished I could glance to see if there's any notifications rather than having to press the button.
As for haptic feedback, at first I thought it was odd it didn't have it, but the more I think about it, I think Firstly the tablet is too big for it, I don't know, it would be weird for something bigger than my phone to be vibrating away.
9. Styluses are old school, and even if they sell the pen separately, they'd have to have functionality in the tablet, which would unnecessarily raise the cost for people who won't use it. Google didn't make an Ipad killer by putting in stuff that only some people will use.
10. The n4 has it, it's only a matter of time. Personally pluging in a cable doesn't bother me, esp when I'm running out of battery and still want to use my n7, but it would be good for docks etc.
Personally the ONLY thing I feel that is missing from the n7 right now is hdmi or mhl, miracast is looking good but needing to buy a new tv or receiver is a pain.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app
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Click to collapse
a. They shouldn't design the device based on a baseless assumption that people will use cases. Too many unknowns and too many variations to account for.
b. Tegra 3 is faster than the S4Pro? Anyways, whatever is the fastest next year, is the chip they should use. Of course software optimization is important, just look at the launch PS3 and 360 games vs current - but having the best processor will push the envelope of what is possible.
c. Maybe you're right about the stylus - but if it were available, if people were able to accurately manipulate tiny objects or switches with more certainty, new types of UI's can be developed. Look at Aparatus and Machinarium. Wouldn't it be awesome if you could accurately manipulate the levers and buttons? You're right in that it shouldn't be at the expense of driving hardware costs - tho I see a potential for future innovation.
Sure, stylii were used in crappy devices like the Palm, but they are also being used effectively in the Note 2 and by thousands of graphic designers through Wacom pads. Anyways, certainly don't drive up costs. I don't know if I can afford another $25.
d. If it will improve my quality of life ---- if it gives me a lifestyle benefit, ... that is the feature I want. Inductive charging is just that. It makes life easier. Plugging in a cable takes 2 seconds... as does picking up a pen and paper instead of launching Evernote. Is it possible to feed HDMI through the microUSB port? Maybe they can make an adapter that processes the signal into an HDMI output? /shrug. Big do-want on HDMI out though.
Thinking about this some more...
. Standardize a port & dock configuration for 3rd-party vendors to make interoperable docks, for keyboard/storage/battery/etc. This is key for accessory support. It also allows more productivity options. I don't want to have to buy a different proprietary dock for each device.
. Allow hardware vendors a cut of the 30% Play Store fee, as long as the device is updated to the latest OS. This would better incentivize vendors to update their old wares, more than the usual "it's a good thing for your users" lip service.
. Lend support to Cyanogenmod and similar roll-your-own-distro groups, so they can support more devices faster. Add incentives to hardware vendors where needed. Leveraging community work is a cheap way to spread adoption of the OS.
ÜBER™ said:
1. No the bezel is functional. Functionality over visual. I.E the iPad minis non bezeld display is a pain in the ass to hold one handed.
2. FCK Nvidia. Would rather have an S4. Or S5.
3. Seriously 1080p screens I can dig it but not necessary honestly. Our nexus 7 is already a retina quality display. And retina is a fancy zinger for high quality display.
4.SSD would be neat you got me there
5. Unlikely I'm sure we won't see it until the end of 2013. I would expect 4.2.x updates like gingerbread.
If this did come out for a reasonable price id possibly buy it. Can't say I wouldn't want to but hey this is just dreaming.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus
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I believe in order to be retina a ppi requirement has to be met.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2
I think "retina" is an Apple trademark. Didn't know you could trademark body parts... but whatever.
According to Apple, Retina goes from the high end of 326ppi (iPhone 4/4s) down to 227ppi in the Macbook Pro 13".
Nexus 7 is 216ppi so technically not retina.
Nexus 10 is 300ppi, just for comparison.

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