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Cheap Android tablet (Nook Color)


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If anyone is interested in a cheap tablet, I've been watching the tablet market and wishing for something bigger than my Iphone an cheaper than an Ipad. I may have found it in the form of a Barnes and Noble "Nook Color". It is a$ 249 Android bases e-reader. It has limited web function outbox the box. However, it can be rooted, a term i hadn't heard of before yesterday. The rooting process cracks the operating system to enable the full feature set of an Android tablet. I'm writing this post on it now. It is the same size as the Samsung Galaxie Tab with a 7 inch screen. It lacks the gps and camera and only has a wifi connection. You can download apps from the android market. I am still learning the android system but i think it will do what need/want. If your interested you can check unit out at http://www.bn.com and for rooting info just google "nook rooting"

 

Dennis

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Yeah thats a project thats been in the wild for several weeks now.

 

Back around Christmas I knew OF a source of grey-market Nook Colors for $50 each....it was tempting, but I simply will NOT buy stolen merchandise. And buying a NEW Nook, for $249 and then hacking it to get it to do Android apps...well for another $150 or so, you can buy an iPad, full warranty, and have this huge app store to shop in.

 

When it comes to the iPad, think of it as a bargain. I mean...300,000 apps, no rooting (jailbreaking on iOS) and your warranty stays in place. I personally love the iPad, and too old and clumsy to go 'rooting' around with an operating system.

 

For an experimenter, it could be fun to do that stuff tho...so have fun....

 

 

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Yeah thats a project thats been in the wild for several weeks now.

 

Back around Christmas I knew OF a source of grey-market Nook Colors for $50 each....it was tempting, but I simply will NOT buy stolen merchandise. And buying a NEW Nook, for $249 and then hacking it to get it to do Android apps...well for another $150 or so, you can buy an iPad, full warranty, and have this huge app store to shop in.

 

When it comes to the iPad, think of it as a bargain. I mean...300,000 apps, no rooting (jailbreaking on iOS) and your warranty stays in place. I personally love the iPad, and too old and clumsy to go 'rooting' around with an operating system.

 

For an experimenter, it could be fun to do that stuff tho...so have fun....

 

 

 

I like the Ipad but it is too big and too expensive for what I wanted. Around here the Ipad is at least $500. I wanted a tablet I could easily hold in one hand and that would fit in a jacket pocket. I like the Galaxy but couldn't justify the cost ($500). I've got my Iphone as well so I'm used to the app store. I think the Android Market has enough selection to keep me entertained for a while. The "rooting" process only takes about 15 minutes and if you use Autonooter it is pretty straight forward. And, at any time you can reset it back to the base Nook configuration which by itself is a decent web browser.

 

Dennis

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I like the Ipad but it is too big and too expensive for what I wanted. Around here the Ipad is at least $500.

 

I use mine as most people would use a netbook...surfing and emailing as well as other apps while on the road, so its way smaller than a laptop, and better battery life than most netbooks. And laptops that are cheap are just that...CHEAP...and good laptops tend to be heavy and fairly delicate...not to mention expensive. And cheap laptops run winders...no thanks.

 

Plus, you can get refurb ipads on the apple site for $429 as I type this. I bought the top of the line ipad, and yeah, its not cheap. But wow is it cool and it fills the need for a portable computer wonderfully.

 

Blackberry has a new tablet coming out soon called the Playbook, and its looking pretty good in the tablet market...but surely it wont be cheap...hey good hardware is never cheap.

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*snip*

And laptops that are cheap are just that...CHEAP *snip* And cheap laptops run winders...no thanks.*snip*

Bought baby girl a laptop for Christmas, since she is going to college this Fall. By the time I added a 3-year replacement warranty (my son killed his in 15 months) and a virus scheme (it "runs" winders), the price nearly doubled.

 

One nice thing about the Nook Android is that you aren't encouraged to keep stuff on it. Download from Google Market? Always there to reinstall. Data? Um, kidding me? So you can restart from scratch and no worries.

 

Dave

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Bought baby girl a laptop for Christmas, since she is going to college this Fall. By the time I added a 3-year replacement warranty (my son killed his in 15 months) and a virus scheme (it "runs" winders), the price nearly doubled.

 

One nice thing about the Nook Android is that you aren't encouraged to keep stuff on it. Download from Google Market? Always there to reinstall. Data? Um, kidding me? So you can restart from scratch and no worries.

 

Dave

 

Fifteen months? He did better than most....

 

The iPad is my forth portable computer...(not counting smartphones)..and its my second tablet style computer. This is the best one yet, by orders of magnitude.

 

As far as data storage, yeah...the ipad is fully 'synched' to a host computer, meaning that when you 'activate' it, it pulls music and other data off your main computer, and all the data, apps, music, books, photos, video, etc is 100% synchronized with that computer. So if its ever lost or stolen, or just craps out, you simply plug a new iPad into the main computer, and in a little while, you have an exact duplicate of the previous unit.

 

Many schools are now using the iPad in classes, and lots of business users are adopting them as well. I sure like mine. I have no problem with someone choosing another type of tablet...but for me the iPad is the one I like.

 

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Fifteen months? He did better than most....

 

The iPad is my forth portable computer...(not counting smartphones)..and its my second tablet style computer. This is the best one yet, by orders of magnitude.

 

As far as data storage, yeah...the ipad is fully 'synched' to a host computer, meaning that when you 'activate' it, it pulls music and other data off your main computer, and all the data, apps, music, books, photos, video, etc is 100% synchronized with that computer. So if its ever lost or stolen, or just craps out, you simply plug a new iPad into the main computer, and in a little while, you have an exact duplicate of the previous unit.

 

Many schools are now using the iPad in classes, and lots of business users are adopting them as well. I sure like mine. I have no problem with someone choosing another type of tablet...but for me the iPad is the one I like.

 

I had a chance to play with an iPad for a day. It was seriously quality equipment. I found the text entry to be very slow compared to my phone's Swype technique. And there is the hilarious "damn you autocorrect" site that is possible because of i___'s craptastic interface.

 

I don't find iTunes syncing to be a particularly elegant alternative to Android's "sync to the cloud" that I experienced with my phone. Perhaps I am mis-comparing things.

 

Clearly, if you prefer a closely controlled vertically integrated solution, the iPad is fantastic. Very solid. My style varies though, so something else would work better for me.

 

Dave

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I had a chance to play with an iPad for a day. It was seriously quality equipment. I found the text entry to be very slow compared to my phone's Swype technique. And there is the hilarious "damn you autocorrect" site that is possible because of i___'s craptastic interface.

 

I don't find iTunes syncing to be a particularly elegant alternative to Android's "sync to the cloud" that I experienced with my phone. Perhaps I am mis-comparing things.

 

Clearly, if you prefer a closely controlled vertically integrated solution, the iPad is fantastic. Very solid. My style varies though, so something else would work better for me.

 

Dave

 

Text entry slow? Huh? Did you use landscape mode for typing,? I can type almost as fast on the ipad as I can on a normal keyboard....I'm talking about 20-30 wpm...thats my typing speed...im no touch typist. I'm guessing that the real touchtypists out there can type on it a lot faster.

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THJLFA88thg]YouTube - iPad Keyboard Typing Test[/ame]

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZW900ITmbo&feature=related]YouTube - iPad vs. Keyboard - The Typing Challenge[/ame]

 

Hey its NOT a substitute for a physical keyboard, but guess what, its not supposed to be, and if you REALLY need to type that much faster, then you can allways add a bluetooth keyboard...although that means one more thing to carry around. Zaggmate makes a really nice one.

 

 

http://www.zagg.com/images/accessories/zaggmate/ipad-zaggmate-10.jpg

 

http://www.zagg.com/accessories/zaggmate-ipad-case

 

Of course, that just turns the ipad into a clunky netbook....but for some users, it might work ok.

 

And BTW, you can turn off autocorrect if you want, in the settings menu of the iPad.

 

As far as 'synch to the cloud', you can set the iPad to synch your contacts, calendar, email, notes, and some other data (like photos in dropbox) right over the cloud. You can synch that to your Google account, Microsoft Exchange, or Apple's own mobile.me....But yeah, if you want 2000 songs, 300 podcasts, and 125 videos, you gonna need to hook it up to itunes.

 

One other neat feature is the 'Find My iPhone' app, which also works on the iPad. Lose that sucker? Just call up the app in another device or on the web,...login, and it will locate your iPad...using its builtin GPS and/or wifi, to tell you where it is. You can also send a recovery message to its screen, and even as a last resort, remotely 'wipe' all of its contents.

 

Pretty cool, and it works, I've tried it.

 

I'm not sure you explored all of the iPads benefits.But thats ok, that just means that there is someone ELSE out there who gets to use that ipad and enjoy it.

 

:happy34:

Edited by tx2sturgis
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I have a question...if an android tablet is what you want, why not just BUY one? And $100 cheaper in this example:

 

[ame=http://cgi.ebay.com/Coby-Kyros-7-Android-Internet-Touchscreen-Tablet_W0QQitemZ130480311535QQcategoryZ171485QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp4340.m8QQ_trkparmsZalgo%3DMW%26its%3DC%26itu%3DUCC%26otn%3D5%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D6829830828174921830#ht_3475wt_1141]Coby Kyros 7" Android Internet Touchscreen Tablet - eBay (item 130480311535 end time Feb-27-11 07:22:36 PST)[/ame]

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I have a question...if an android tablet is what you want, why not just BUY one? And $100 cheaper in this example:

 

Coby Kyros 7" Android Internet Touchscreen Tablet - eBay (item 130480311535 end time Feb-27-11 07:22:36 PST)

 

I don't believe that one is actually an Android tablet. It's made by Coby and the Androids are Motorolla. Ebay sites usually add terms like that so they can show up under more searches. BUT, that being said, it does look like a good buy and Colby is one of the better secondary manufacturers.

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I don't believe that one is actually an Android tablet.

 

Actually Android is an operating system, (like windows is an operating system) put out by Google, and installed on hardware by any manufacturer who wants it.

 

 

The description says it is running Android 2.1.

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Fifteen months? He did better than most....

 

...

 

 

Holy smokes, only 15 months?!?!?

 

Lets see, I have had 3 notebooks in the last 10 years. My first one I used for two and gave to my mom for her to use for her business and she just recently retired it because she needed something a little faster (that means it lasted from fall of 2003 to august of 2010 and beyond). My second one I used for 4.5 years and gave it to my dad because he needed a reliable portable replacement for his business; here we are 2.5 years after that and that computer is still going strong (has not even needed to replace the battery yet). I replaced that one because I needed something with a little more horsepower for some of the data analysis and 3D modeling I do for work. Now I am running on 2.5 years on my current one and it still looks and functions like new.

All of these are windows machines - granted I do dual boot with scientific Linux for work related reasons.

I travel with my computers, they are on and used heavily darn near every day of the week, typically for 8 to 14 hours a day. In fact the total hard drive hours on my current computer is *checking* 6486 hours.

 

Maybe I have been lucky, maybe I buy quality stuff to begin with, maybe I treat it differently than others, maybe a mixture of the three as well as other factors. Who knows. If I spend money on a machine, I expect it to last.

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I don't believe that one is actually an Android tablet. It's made by Coby and the Androids are Motorolla. Ebay sites usually add terms like that so they can show up under more searches. BUT, that being said, it does look like a good buy and Colby is one of the better secondary manufacturers.

 

Android does NOT equal Motorola. Yes, Motorola does use Android on some products, but so does Toshiba, Samsung, Velocity, Coby, Archos, and a dozen other Chinese manufacturers.

 

That Coby pad may be OK, but I would not buy it for one simple reason....it runs Android 2.1, not 2.2, and who knows if it is capable of 2.2? Maybe it is, I haven't researched it.

 

Does seem odd though, doesn't it.....a $150 tablet that has an HDMI port so you can watch your videos on your HDTV....plus a USB port....plus a flash card slot....And how much is the iPad with those features??? What??? They don't exist even on the $800 model?

:whistling::stirthepot:

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What version of Android do you get from rooting the Nook? I myself love Android. I use the Tasker app under Android to automate a lot of what I do.

 

I really don't know what version of Android. Based on what I read in the forums I think it is probably 2.1. When I check the software version in the setup it reflects the B&N version of 1.0.1

 

Dennis

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Holy smokes, only 15 months?!?!?

 

snip....

 

Maybe I have been lucky, maybe I buy quality stuff to begin with, maybe I treat it differently than others, maybe a mixture of the three as well as other factors. Who knows. If I spend money on a machine, I expect it to last.

 

Hey Rick, I have seen laptops last several years also, but my comment was in context. A college kid is given a laptop. Duh. 15 months seems like a lot when given to the average college kid. Stuff happens. They get dropped, ravaged by viruses on college wifi networks, stolen, banged around in backpacks, drinks spilled in them at lunch, left in cars on hot days...etc....

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Android does NOT equal Motorola. Yes, Motorola does use Android on some products, but so does Toshiba, Samsung, Velocity, Coby, Archos, and a dozen other Chinese manufacturers.

 

That Coby pad may be OK, but I would not buy it for one simple reason....it runs Android 2.1, not 2.2, and who knows if it is capable of 2.2? Maybe it is, I haven't researched it.

 

Does seem odd though, doesn't it.....a $150 tablet that has an HDMI port so you can watch your videos on your HDTV....plus a USB port....plus a flash card slot....And how much is the iPad with those features??? What??? They don't exist even on the $800 model?

:whistling::stirthepot:

 

Its funny, that I didnt mean to be in here 'defending' the iPad...but here goes.

 

Yes there are video adaptors, as well as USB and SD card adapters that work just fine on the iPad. I can directly plug in an SD card, USB cord from a camera, or a video display. The iPad uses a 30 pin connector to get this stuff done, and this keeps the slots and such to a minimum.

 

Also, the iPad has a larger, brighter screen and a capacitve touch screen, meaning more expensive, but also, more responsive and multi-touch capable. More memory, a clean simple design, a sturdy aluminum shell, 300,000 apps, and a robust company providing warranty and walk-in free support all over the world through its various stores and outlets. Hmmm....might be more there when you think about it.

Edited by tx2sturgis
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Its funny, that I didnt mean to be in here 'defending' the iPad...but here goes.

 

Yes there are video adaptors, as well as USB and SD card adapters that work just fine on the iPad. I can directly plug in an SD card, USB cord from a camera, or a video display. The iPad uses a 30 pin connector to get this stuff done, and this keeps the slots and such to a minimum.

 

Guess my point is more about the $$$ for all that. A $150 Android tablet includes those capabilities. The iPad? Give Apple more money.

 

To each his own I guess. I use my tablet as a playground and a learning tool. I like to mod it out to the max, just to see if I can do it more than anything. Kinda like adding accessories to my bike.....I want to make it mine. Don't want it to be like everyone else's.

 

I think I'd be bored with an iPad. You can do what it is configured to let you do, no more. With an Android device the sky is the limit. Yeah, I realize that I'm not in the majority....a vast majority don't want to root their device....don't even want to know what that means. They just want to turn it on, touch an icon and do what it allows. For those, an iPad is fine if money is no object. But not for me.....(and money IS an object).

:big-grin-emoticon:

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Guest tx2sturgis

 

I think I'd be bored with an iPad. You can do what it is configured to let you do, no more. With an Android device the sky is the limit.

 

 

You keep making statements that arent true. Is this beacuse you dont care, or dont know, what an Apple product is all about? There are numerous jailbreaks for the iPhone and iPad, which is about the same as rooting an Android product.

 

If hacking around in the unit is your bag, have fun, whichever one you want to do it on.

 

I continue to be amazed by members here who will spend $600 for a quality GPS for the bike,( when a $100 unit might work just fine) and then dislike Apple for making quality hardware....

 

I guess its all relative. I once spent over $3000 on a laptop. But it was the best I could afford back then. I think the tablet computers of today are a HUGE bargain....give me one of each!

 

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You keep making statements that arent true. Is this beacuse you dont care, or dont know, what an Apple product is all about? There are numerous jailbreaks for the iPhone and iPad, which is about the same as rooting an Android product.

 

If hacking around in the unit is your bag, have fun, whichever one you want to do it on.

 

I continue to be amazed by members here who will spend $600 for a quality GPS for the bike,( when a $100 unit might work just fine) and then dislike Apple for making quality hardware....

 

I guess its all relative. I once spent over $3000 on a laptop. But it was the best I could afford back then. I think the tablet computers of today are a HUGE bargain....give me one of each!

 

 

I do not dislike Apple for making quality hardware. I actually like their hardware. My son owns a Macbook Pro....nice device. However, I despise Apple's controlling attitude, telling me what I can and cannot do with my device. Yes, I know about jailbreaking. Tell me, (and I am asking out of ignorance, not out of snottiness) what is Apple's response to someone who jailbreaks their iPad or iPhone? If they find out (like when you attempt to sync or use iTunes) do they do something that will disable the jailbreak? I do seem to recall, in the early days of the iPhone at least, that people who "rooted" their phone ended up with an expensive paperweight after logging in to the iTunes store. Does this still happen? Does Apple care how you use your device?

Those are the types of things that make me angry with a company. When I buy a product (not a service, an actual product) I should have the right to change it without the company removing my right to use it in the way I see fit.

 

Let's not get heated about this....not my intention at all. I'd hate to have to see Don add iPad vs Android as one of the subjects that is off limits on this forum! :doh: I think it is just inevitable that some people will be fans of one brand, others will prefer something different.

You like Harleys and Ventures. I like Ventures and Goldwings.....not so much HD's! But, we can still get along, right?

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Text entry slow? Huh? Did you use landscape mode for typing,? I can type almost as fast on the ipad as I can on a normal keyboard....I'm talking about 20-30 wpm...thats my typing speed...im no touch typist. I'm guessing that the real touchtypists out there can type on it a lot faster.

 

 

Hey its NOT a substitute for a physical keyboard, but guess what, its not supposed to be, and if you REALLY need to type that much faster, then you can allways add a bluetooth keyboard...although that means one more thing to carry around. Zaggmate makes a really nice one.

 

 

Of course, that just turns the ipad into a clunky netbook....but for some users, it might work ok.

 

And BTW, you can turn off autocorrect if you want, in the settings menu of the iPad.

 

As far as 'synch to the cloud', you can set the iPad to synch your contacts, calendar, email, notes, and some other data (like photos in dropbox) right over the cloud. You can synch that to your Google account, Microsoft Exchange, or Apple's own mobile.me....But yeah, if you want 2000 songs, 300 podcasts, and 125 videos, you gonna need to hook it up to itunes.

 

One other neat feature is the 'Find My iPhone' app, which also works on the iPad. Lose that sucker? Just call up the app in another device or on the web,...login, and it will locate your iPad...using its builtin GPS and/or wifi, to tell you where it is. You can also send a recovery message to its screen, and even as a last resort, remotely 'wipe' all of its contents.

 

Pretty cool, and it works, I've tried it.

 

I'm not sure you explored all of the iPads benefits.But thats ok, that just means that there is someone ELSE out there who gets to use that ipad and enjoy it.

 

:happy34:

 

*note, images and videos deleted by Dave*

Erm, I used to type 95WPM, but can probably only manage 60 now. I didn't use the iPad long enough to really become familiar with the keyboard. Probably works great for entering URLs or unlock codes, as needed. Or emails, when traveling.

 

AFA as "Find my phone", that's something I use the Tasker app for on my phone. I send an encoded SMS message, and it turns on the GPS if needed. Takes a photo and sends that to me with the coordinates. It would change unlock codes if I want. It also downloads the latest weather for wherever I am, and reads it to me every morning.

 

This Tasker app is the sort of thing forbidden from the App Store, but hugely useful. Apple's tight controls are probably as big a liability as they are a benefit.

 

Holy smokes, only 15 months?!?!?

 

Lets see, I have had 3 notebooks in the last 10 years. My first one I used for two and gave to my mom for her to use for her business and she just recently retired it because she needed something a little faster (that means it lasted from fall of 2003 to august of 2010 and beyond). My second one I used for 4.5 years and gave it to my dad because he needed a reliable portable replacement for his business; here we are 2.5 years after that and that computer is still going strong (has not even needed to replace the battery yet). I replaced that one because I needed something with a little more horsepower for some of the data analysis and 3D modeling I do for work. Now I am running on 2.5 years on my current one and it still looks and functions like new.

All of these are windows machines - granted I do dual boot with scientific Linux for work related reasons.

I travel with my computers, they are on and used heavily darn near every day of the week, typically for 8 to 14 hours a day. In fact the total hard drive hours on my current computer is *checking* 6486 hours.

 

Maybe I have been lucky, maybe I buy quality stuff to begin with, maybe I treat it differently than others, maybe a mixture of the three as well as other factors. Who knows. If I spend money on a machine, I expect it to last.

 

The key is the last statement. YOU spend money, so you care. A kid is given a computer, and told things not to do, like leave it running on his bed, so it overheats and melts the motherboard. But he does it anyways, and it dies a premature death.

 

I really don't know what version of Android. Based on what I read in the forums I think it is probably 2.1. When I check the software version in the setup it reflects the B&N version of 1.0.1

 

Dennis

Thanks Dennis.

 

Dave

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