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[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.
Click to expand...
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
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
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.

my tab buying guide (repost)

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.

[Q] Buyer Advise for TF701T

I've had a TF201 for a long time but it is now almost dead (smashed screen, dents, slowdown, random reboots).
The TF701T looks like the direct replacement but I suspect it won't get a production Lollipop update.
I am no stranger to flashing custom ROMs and would happily do so again but CM12 development doesn't look quite stable yet although the unofficial ROM in the dev threads looks promising
Question/Poll:
Get a TF701T for form factor and ignore lack of official Lollipop
Get a Nexus 9 with Keyboard and ignore price
Get something else (Asus X205TA Atom for example)

I love mine. With the dock it is basically a laptop replacement for me. Using CM12 as a daily driver with no issues, seems super stable to me.

I was considering a Nexus 9 but decided against it for 2 reasons:
1. no sd card and I use my tablet for a lot of textbook pdf's for school and also emulator roms
2. 4:3 screen and I like widescreen
The keyboard dock on the tf701 is sweet

Sleeepy2 said:
I love mine. With the dock it is basically a laptop replacement for me. Using CM12 as a daily driver with no issues, seems super stable to me.
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Click to collapse
Same here, just sometimes Dock connection trouble
Gesendet von meinem LG-D855 mit Tapatalk

Any idea if they are releasing a model for 2015? I can't find any news if there is a new release or this is the end of line for the transformer line
Slim-bacon

Another contender was announced yesterday at MWC 2015
Sony Z4 tablet with keyboard dock
I'm glad to see someone making a high end android device with a keyboard dock.

mashed_ash said:
Another contender was announced yesterday at MWC 2015
Sony Z4 tablet with keyboard dock
I'm glad to see someone making a high end android device with a keyboard dock.
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Interesting, although it seems to be a Bluetooth keyboard without an extra battery to charge the tablet, rather than a Transformer-style keyboard.

OP, I'm in the exact same market at the exact time
pelago said:
Interesting, although it seems to be a Bluetooth keyboard without an extra battery to charge the tablet, rather than a Transformer-style keyboard.
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Click to collapse
True question, but Asus products are all over the place these days. This particular tablet 701t should have been an absolute killer in sales, but it just didn't amount to much. After not such stellar sales on android, microsoft was right up their alley. The transformer tablet concept is just the best IMO. It definitely beats all Apple/Surface keyboard concepts I've seen. It makes sense for them to consider moving to windows. 2in1 windows devices seem to get a lot of help at least from microsoft and trying to push their way into small home office and hospital environments. Lot of that junk still running xp, so there is a big fat corporate market out there. As android goes, it's just too fickle on the high end to predict a standout winner.
Really too bad that asus didn't have a tf702-t or infinity-redux lined up for 2015. I'd be all over that, but no way I'm going to windows. Considering the Sony is waterproof and their android interface is nice and stock-like, I'm going to go for the z4 instead of the asus at this point. Definitely more expensive, but I want ac-wifi and waterproof anyway (not just perks, but things I wish Asus had)
As to battery life, looks like the z4 is reported to be in the 701t+dock territory all on it's own. Sure the dock will suck a little juice, but bt4-LE for keyboards is pretty efficient. I would be surprised if it drained more than an hour in a day. Maybe not, I'll buy it and see

Yep, even Asus's newer tablets like the TF103C no longer have a battery in the dock (although it connects physically rather than Bluetooth), so maybe that's the way things are going. And given how unreliable the dock connector is on the 701, maybe Bluetooth isn't such a bad idea!
I'm also very tempted by the Z4 tablet. I see it will be £499 in the UK, including the keyboard, though, which is a lot more than the 701 initially was priced at, I think.

I was wondering the price as well. Fortunately electronics don't ever seem to price at the transfer rate anyway. FWIW, I'd bet it launched within in $50 of that exact number of pounds rather than the equivalent exchange rate
I don't recall the price of the 701t at launch either. I thought it was something like $399 and no clue on the dock msrp

I think eventually we will see Asus come out with something big.
It may not be too soon. I think they learned their lesson about putting stuff out soon.
For a lot of what Asus makes quality is very important. But pushing out too many tablets too soon has reduced buyer confidence.
They will wait when they have a high spec device that smashes all other competition.

Yeah the tegra4 arrived ahead of the "pack" in the 701t. No reason to think they'll release yesterday's news with a k1 Denver. They seem to be in bed with Intel which is making progress, but compared to nvidia and Qualcomm. . . Intel feels like they are stuck in molasses. Lib-houdini was big, and a joint effort between Intel and Asus primarily (it seems, iirc) hopefully the lull is paving the way for something big and Intel will be aosp friendly

The TF701 will probably be getting official lollipop ROM according to semi-reliable rumors.
I have a TF701 and a TF103C.
If you don't need the higher specs of the 701 you will be happy just using the 103 and saving a bit of money. 103 screen resolution is just fine for normal everyday use, youtube etc. One thing I don't like about the 701 is that it runs kind of hot. On the back upper left where the Tegra CPU is. Battery life is not all that great either. The TF103C with it's Intel CPU does not have the heating issue and seems to be better on battery life. They changed the keyboard option on the 103C. It's a different part# that does not include a battery. So if you want to use the keyboard you will probably be better off with the 701.
One benefit of the keyboard change on the 103 is they moved the USB port to the side and just use a standard micro USB connector for that now. I don't use the keyboard option so one thing I really don't like about the 701 is that proprietary USB connector on the bottom designed for the keyboard. The case I use does not have a hole in the bottom so I cannot close it when charging. Could easily cut a hole I suppose. The other problem with that location is it's very very difficult to use it when plugged in. That connector at the bottom sticks out a ways and is fragile so it would't take much to break. The TF103C location is much better on the side and it's just micro USB that doesn't stick out too far so easier to use while plugged in and less likely to break.
You will be happy with either one I think and I'm pretty sure they will both get official lollipop. Can always use custom ROM lollipop which is available now for the 701.

get the tf701t and ignore the fact that there is no official lollipop yet. the inofficial cm12 is very good, I'm using it all the time. no problems till now

aydink said:
get the tf701t and ignore the fact that there is no official lollipop yet. the inofficial cm12 is very good, I'm using it all the time. no problems till now
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Click to collapse
Are there any serious competitors to consider to the 701? I can get it with the dock for $295 from Amazon right now and unless I am missing something out there or coming out soon - there seems to be nothing even close to that price with this performance AND a keyboard without spending $500...
Am I missing something? I ask because looking at a birthday present to myself and want something that has a keyboard and is Android. I will mainly be using it with keyboard for web browsing as a "laptop", watching videos on trips, reading, and some gaming here and there but nothing major. Seems to be a MUCH better alternative and more flexible than the chromebook I was looking at.

[Q] Good Laptop for College?

I'm starting college next year, and I need a laptop! I better one than my current laptop anyways... I currently have an Acer Aspire S7 391 - purchased it used, and it just has too many cons that just don't make it worth the $600 I paid for it.
It gets too hot for Lap use, battery life is about 2-3 hours, the fan gets crazy loud... too loud for my high school classes, and the trackpad is jumpy, slow, and just.. terrible.
So I need a new laptop! Here are some things I would like to mention that may help tell you what I'm looking for.
1. Good Battery Life. A minimum of 6 hours.
2. Atleast a 1080p display. (Prefer touchscreen)
3. 13 inches minimum display size.
4. Slim, and powerful for it's size. I don't need to be editing videos or playing games, but being able to do some tasks that require a little more power would be nice!
5. The fan, if there is one, simply can't be loud. I don't know why this bothers me so much, it's fine if it's my desktop, but for a laptop, ugh..
I'll also be bringing my desktop to school, this Laptop will mostly be for taking notes, and being able to do all of my school "stuff" on a portable device, so I can work... anywhere!
Your suggestion doesn't need to match any of the specifications I mentioned, I'll certainly take a look at anything recommended!
Thank you so much!
(In-case it makes any kind of difference, I'm going into Business at an above average university, 30,000 students total)
I forgot to include a budget! haha! I'm willing to look into used versions of the laptops recommended as well, to possibly save a hundred bucks or so, I would say mu budget is just around $1,000. (Possibly being able to find it used for maybe $800 if any are available used).

Dell Inspiron 13 may be a fit for you.. If not the Surface Pro 3 was OK

I reckon surface pro, but if your looking for a bargain, look at some of the sub $200 Windows 8.1 tablets. Ad some accessories such as a keyboard, mouse and battery pack, and you could have a decent laptop replacement for under $300.
I would even suggest something such as the cube iwork7 dual boot tablet (android and windows 8.1) for ~$125USD from geekbuying
http://www.geekbuying.com/item/Cube...GB-32GB-HDMI-IPS-BT---White-Black-341909.html
This is all you really need for school imo, and after adding accessories such as a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse, battery pack and usb hub, you could have a moderately powered computer for about $200.
I seriously considered doing this myself, but the school gave us Lenovo ThinkPad yogas (current model), which is also a good option.

Ive been wondering about this also. Im about to start my computer science degree this year.

Look into Asus. By far the best in terms of hardware and build.
I'm particularly fond of the N range, though those might be a bit too powerful for regular use. (still, €1299 for a laptop(N76VB) that can run Dragon Age Inquisition on Ultra at 58FPS is well worth the money to me.)
Sent From My Samsung Galaxy Note 3 N9005 Using Tapatalk

[Q] Surface Pro 3 or Macbook Pro?

Before you continue reading, I would like to mention I work well with both Windows and Mac OS, one is not better or worse to me, I'm familiar with both operating systems.
I'm starting College next year, and I'll need a Laptop! I'm shortened my list of possible options to now two main competitors in my opinion, the Surface Pro 3, and the Macbook Pro.
The prices of the Model I am deciding between:
Surface Pro 3: $999 - i5 128GB (Additional $130 for Keyboard, $1129 total)
MacBook Pro: $1299 - i5, 128GB (2015 Model JUST announced)
In YOUR opinion, which would you choose if you could pick between either, and why? I understand this is a personal option, and there are many factors to consider, but I'm looking for other's opinions and their reasoning why

Surface. Tablet/pc, touch screen is really handy, all Windows programs, Linux if wanted, Windows 10 and more.
Source: Have some Lenovo ThinkPad yoga laptop for school, with Windows 8.1.

You know, there are many other options you can choose from, which are better for even a better price
Personally, if I HAD to take one of the two, I would take the Surface

The major question is: 'what do you need it for?'
Closely followed by 'Why a Macbook?'
Is it going to be used for mainly browsing and documents or coding? Then the Surface if a good idea. It's versatile.
Graphic design? Whatever anyone says, a uniform Mac is very much NOT a good choice for a designer who's supposed to be unique and creative. Every Mac is identical as customisation is nearly impossible. (As a Windows using designer I hate those hipsters.. Half of Uni was filled with them.) Get a proper laptop. I did Multimedia Design and my Asus ran laps around even the most expensive Macbook. For half the price. And I could game on it, too.
3D/Video/Gamedesign? You need something heavy duty. A Macbook isn't powerful enough.
Do you also intend to use it for home/on the go use for normal everyday things? The Surface will do.
If you're looking for an Android alternative to the Surface, there's also the NotePro.
Quite frankly a Macbook is a severely overpriced product with mediocre specs. I truly do not see the point of a Macbook. (I've worked with them, it's not ignorance.)
You're on XDA, so obviously you know your way around technology, rendering the major selling point (easy to use for the technologically handicapped) redundant.
You're much better off getting a Windows laptop/Ultrabook or the Surface.
Hell, you could get both for the price of a Macbook with good specs.
Sent From My Samsung Galaxy Note 3 N9005 Using Tapatalk

ShadowLea said:
The major question is: 'what do you need it for?'
Closely followed by 'Why a Macbook?'
Is it going to be used for mainly browsing and documents or coding? Then the Surface if a good idea. It's versatile.
Graphic design? Whatever anyone says, a uniform Mac is very much NOT a good choice for a designer who's supposed to be unique and creative. Every Mac is identical as customisation is nearly impossible. (As a Windows using designer I hate those hipsters.. Half of Uni was filled with them.) Get a proper laptop. I did Multimedia Design and my Asus ran laps around even the most expensive Macbook. For half the price. And I could game on it, too.
3D/Video/Gamedesign? You need something heavy duty. A Macbook isn't powerful enough.
Do you also intend to use it for home/on the go use for normal everyday things? The Surface will do.
If you're looking for an Android alternative to the Surface, there's also the NotePro.
Quite frankly a Macbook is a severely overpriced product with mediocre specs. I truly do not see the point of a Macbook. (I've worked with them, it's not ignorance.)
You're on XDA, so obviously you know your way around technology, rendering the major selling point (easy to use for the technologically handicapped) redundant.
You're much better off getting a Windows laptop/Ultrabook or the Surface.
Hell, you could get both for the price of a Macbook with good specs.
Sent From My Samsung Galaxy Note 3 N9005 Using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really appreciate you taking the time to respond!
At this point, I'm no longer considering a Macbook. The reason I even considered a Macbook was simply because of their reliability, design, and influence by the specific University I'm going to, the school is flooded with Apple devices because Steve Wozniak was once a student there (he's donated an insane amount of apple products to the school).
Sure other devices are sleep and reliable, in my opinion, Macs are just the overpriced versions.
At this point, I've eliminated any Apple product.
Now.. I do realize there has to be a million other Laptops better than the Surface, in the same price range, but there are a lot of factors I'm trying to consider
1. The design matters to me. As silly as it may sound to others, I'm willing to sacrifice power for something "sexy". (Not TOO much though!)
2. It needs to be reliable.
3. It needs to be portable.
4. Decent-Good Battery Life
5. 1080p screen resolution minimum.
6. Prefer a touchscreen for the price I'm willing to pay.
Being able to do some form a gaming or video editing, etc, would be nice, but it's not a MUST-HAVE. I wouldn't want a fat, 3-4 lb laptop with fat round edges, just so I can play games d:
The surface is appealing to me because it can do what I need it to do, it's thin, sleek, sexy, and reliable (with reliable support as-well if I need it).
If you can think of something better that may be appealing to me, PLEASE let me know a device name or include a link, because I certainly will look into it!

Lenovo ThinkPad yoga (whatever the latest number is). have one for school, touchscreen, powerful enough to play games like need for speed carbon (haven't tried PhotoShop), and my favourite part, the keyboard folds behind the screen rather than detaching, so you don't have to ditch it anywhere when using tablet style. Thin, and Imo beautiful, as well as powerful.
If for some reason you want to use android on it (no idea why, but shadowlea posted it) try amiduos(.com)

2PMintheAM said:
Really appreciate you taking the time to respond!
At this point, I'm no longer considering a Macbook. The reason I even considered a Macbook was simply because of their reliability, design, and influence by the specific University I'm going to, the school is flooded with Apple devices because Steve Wozniak was once a student there (he's donated an insane amount of apple products to the school).
Sure other devices are sleep and reliable, in my opinion, Macs are just the overpriced versions.
At this point, I've eliminated any Apple product.
Now.. I do realize there has to be a million other Laptops better than the Surface, in the same price range, but there are a lot of factors I'm trying to consider
1. The design matters to me. As silly as it may sound to others, I'm willing to sacrifice power for something "sexy". (Not TOO much though!)
2. It needs to be reliable.
3. It needs to be portable.
4. Decent-Good Battery Life
5. 1080p screen resolution minimum.
6. Prefer a touchscreen for the price I'm willing to pay.
Being able to do some form a gaming or video editing, etc, would be nice, but it's not a MUST-HAVE. I wouldn't want a fat, 3-4 lb laptop with fat round edges, just so I can play games d:
The surface is appealing to me because it can do what I need it to do, it's thin, sleek, sexy, and reliable (with reliable support as-well if I need it).
If you can think of something better that may be appealing to me, PLEASE let me know a device name or include a link, because I certainly will look into it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm an avid Asus user so this'll be quite a bit biased, but..
The Asus Zenbook NX500 is a powerhouse with a very beautiful exterior. (It looks a bit like a macbook). 15.6" 1080p Touchscreen, i7 4712HQ, GTX850M 2GB GDDR5, 16 GB RAM. This could handle both regular use and heavyuse.
An equally pretty one to look at is the ASUS ZENBOOK UX301LA. i7 4558U 2.8 GHz ~ 3.3 GHz. 13.3" Touchscreen Corning Gorilla Glass 3 16:9 WQHD (2560x1440)/Full HD. IntelHD 400/5500 (not exactly optimal for graphic use, but then the Macbook uses an IntelHD 4000 too).
Both are Ultrabooks, so they can't be detached.
The only real option in the tablet range is indeed the Surface. Everything else runs on Android or iOS, which whilst great, is a bit limiting.

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