Recommend me a tablet

*Legion* wrote:
sheared wrote:

Sounds like iPad2 is going to be an incremental change where iPad3 is going to be more of a generational jump, but the rumors have been wrong before....

Yep. If the rumor mill is correct, iPad 2 is still going to use the A4 chip, and the "A5" won't debut until the next iPhone. Going forward, I think that will be the way to demarcate generations of (non-Mac) Apple products: the generation of the One Chip that Powers All Portable/Low-Power Apple Products.

I waited for the iPad 2. If the chip is the same and there are only a few minor updates I may wait longer, opt for another tablet (Nook Color), or buy a used ipad since they should be cheaper than they are now.

Nook color is currently $200 at the official B&N ebay store after a $50 off coupon that is prominently listed on their product page.
If that's still going by the time I get home I'll probably have a good long think about supplementing my Nook classic.

Edit: Adding link. http://cgi.ebay.com/NOOK-Color-Barne...

All the impressions I've read of the Nook Color after people unlock it to a full tablet say that it's slow and kind of annoying to use relative to the iPad.

Doesn't sound like a very competitive option, even if it is only $200.

Thin_J wrote:

Nook Color ... it's slow and kind of annoying to use relative to the iPad.

There's something in that statement that strikes me as extremely funny. I think it's the part where people are directly comparing a repurposed e-reader with a designed-from-the-ground-up tablet. I'm not disputing the results of the comparison, which I'll guarantee are spot-on, I just find it funny that anyone could have expected any other results!
It's like dropping a dune-buggy suspension into a golf-cart and then being surprised that it doesn't compare favorably to a rally-car.

However, having a functional tablet to play with for $200? Not sure they come any cheaper at this point, so it would be a decent place to find out if it's worth investing in something with a little more oomph.

I'm a couple days into using the xoom at this point, its starting to fold into my everyday life. I think its just me getting used to it but I've actually been very pleased with the performance of the base applications and find browsing to be a very pleasant experience. Even with that being the case I think I might still end up returning it purely based on a cost perspective. I just don't know that I'm getting $800 dollars of value out of this device for the things I am doing or even will do with it.

It has nothing to do with the hardware or software. As I mentioned I enjoy using the tablet to do the things that actually make sense for the device (browsing off the corp net at work, couch browsing, and even some gaming).

Rezzy wrote:

I think it's the part where people are directly comparing a repurposed e-reader with a designed-from-the-ground-up tablet. I'm not disputing the results of the comparison, which I'll guarantee are spot-on, I just find it funny that anyone could have expected any other results!

Sure. But since most of the people who are altering the nook color to turn it into a full tablet are doing it to save money and not buy an iPad the comparison makes perfect sense.

I've now been given the "just jailbreak a nook color" suggestion multiple times when I talk about why I don't have an iPad and why I won't buy the Xoom, but it's simply not a valid suggestion. The hardware is slow and it's not a good user experience.

At some point, someone will do one of these things right and they'll do it at a pricepoint that doesn't make me roll my eyes. It's kind of inevitable, it just might be a while. That's ok though, because I"m perfectly willing to wait.

Thin_J wrote:

Sure. But since most of the people who are altering the nook color to turn it into a full tablet are doing it to save money and not buy an iPad the comparison makes perfect sense.

... Really? Because in one scenario I have a functional tablet and $300 in my pocket and in the other scenario I have a functional tablet.
I'm not in any way disagreeing with your statements, but before your post I honestly hadn't seen anyone claim (or even hinting at the need to refute) that rooting a nook results in a tablet that performs just as well as an iPad. Only that rooting a nook results in a functional tablet for much less than purchasing an iPad. I find it hilarious that anyone could believe otherwise. If that's a thought that's really out there then there are going to be quite a few extremely disappointed nook owners out there!

Thin_J wrote:

At some point, someone will do one of these things right and they'll do it at a pricepoint that doesn't make me roll my eyes. It's kind of inevitable, it just might be a while. That's ok though, because I"m perfectly willing to wait.

Agreed. 100%.

Thin_J wrote:

At some point, someone will do one of these things right and they'll do it at a pricepoint that doesn't make me roll my eyes. It's kind of inevitable, it just might be a while. That's ok though, because I"m perfectly willing to wait.

Right now your best bet seems to be a used or refurbed iPad 1, going for $350-400.

Dezlen wrote:

Any good impressions of upcoming Windows 7 tablets? Are any going to hit the market in the next 2-3 months? Looking for something that is (hopefully) Zune compatible that I can surf and watch movies around the house (no 3g needed).

I recently got the Asus EP121. It's only real Con is it only gets around 3.5 hours of battery.

Wife's looking for a convertible, mainly looking at Fujitsu LifeBooks. Is there reason to avoid that line?

unntrlaffinity wrote:

Right now your best bet seems to be a used or refurbed iPad 1, going for $350-400.

Yeah... not gonna cover the issues I have with the iPad again, except to say that pricing is not my only problem with it and there's no chance in hell Apple changes the other problem for me. Pricing is my only problem with the Xoom. If at some point I can get a Xoom for $350 with a one year warranty, I'll be sold.

Thin_J wrote:
unntrlaffinity wrote:

Right now your best bet seems to be a used or refurbed iPad 1, going for $350-400.

Yeah... not gonna cover the issues I have with the iPad again, except to say that pricing is not my only problem with it and there's no chance in hell Apple changes the other problem for me. Pricing is my only problem with the Xoom. If at some point I can get a Xoom for $350 with a one year warranty, I'll be sold.

I still find how unyielding your requirements are humorous (especially when they're met, step by step, only to be updated with yet another requirement), but the heart wants, I suppose.

It has gotten pretty lukewarm reviews in the past, but Galaxy Tab is going to be available wifi only for $350 soon.

unntrlaffinity wrote:

I still find how unyielding your requirements are humorous (especially when they're met, step by step, only to be updated with yet another requirement)

...What?

My requirements are pretty simple, but they have not been met by one device yet. The Xoom is too expensive and the iPad still requires iTunes for updates. Both are a no go. I'm not paying $700 for a convenience item and I'm not paying $350 for one that still uses iTunes.

It seems pretty clear to me...

Thin_J wrote:
unntrlaffinity wrote:

Right now your best bet seems to be a used or refurbed iPad 1, going for $350-400.

Yeah... not gonna cover the issues I have with the iPad again, except to say that pricing is not my only problem with it and there's no chance in hell Apple changes the other problem for me. Pricing is my only problem with the Xoom. If at some point I can get a Xoom for $350 with a one year warranty, I'll be sold.

I saw a report that the Xoom has sold a estimated 100,000 units since launch, so you might get a $350 model soon enough. It's definitely not selling at its current price point.

sheared wrote:

I saw a report that the Xoom has sold a estimated 100,000 units since launch, so you might get a $350 model soon enough. It's definitely not selling at its current price point.

They won't have a choice soon.

Acer has the Iconia Tab A500 coming out soonish for $450. It's 16gb instead of 32gb like the Xoom, but otherwise seems so close to identical it's ridiculous. And it even looks a little better. Same basic hardware (again, other than storage) and a couple extra features for a full $150 less.

I'm still planning on sticking to my $350ish pricepoint though. That'll be the sweet spot. Really looking forward to all the competing models coming out and hopefully pushing some competition on the pricing side of things.

MeeGo really isn't dead. Huzzah!

http://www.engadget.com/2011/04/12/updated-meego-interface-gets-shown-off-on-atom-z670-based-refere/

It looks pretty damn good. The folding panels are the home screen are pretty interesting, too.

Asus' Eee Pad is apparently pretty good. $399. Getting closer

unntrlaffinity wrote:

MeeGo really isn't dead. Huzzah!

http://www.engadget.com/2011/04/12/updated-meego-interface-gets-shown-off-on-atom-z670-based-refere/

It looks pretty damn good. The folding panels are the home screen are pretty interesting, too.

The Tablet from Yuggoth?

The Nook Color just got its Froyo/App Store update. Any owners have impressions to share?

Kurrelgyre wrote:

The Nook Color just got its Froyo/App Store update. Any owners have impressions to share?

I'm curious too. It seems like the hype is keeping the Nook Color at retail prices on eBay, rooted or not.

They're not exactly sold out at retail, so that's really puzzling.

Kurrelgyre wrote:

They're not exactly sold out at retail, so that's really puzzling.

I was pondering this with the Kindle 3 as well. I would guess that it's a regional thing? Maybe people who can't buy it in other countries are snapping them up to gain early access to content?

It's extra puzzling because the official B&N refurbs that are selling on eBay are only $225 with free shipping.

So, word on the Blackberry Playbook is that it's a giant pile of ass. That's disappointing.

You still need a BB phone for basic functionality and AT&T disables bridging which means you can't use your BB phone with it, and it's generally just unfinished.

Kurrelgyre wrote:

The Nook Color just got its Froyo/App Store update. Any owners have impressions to share?

It's a nice update, but the app store is really tiny and "curated", it's not the Android app store. So it's still an (excellent) eReader with some bonus tablet features, rather than an actual tablet. Unless you root it.

MrDeVil909 wrote:

So, word on the Blackberry Playbook is that it's a giant pile of ass. That's disappointing.

You still need a BB phone for basic functionality and AT&T disables bridging which means you can't use your BB phone with it, and it's generally just unfinished.

It seemed like it was destined for epic fail from day one... Rim is in deep trouble.. They are to large an organization to get out from under itself at this point.. Way to many managers and entrenched processes. Its like another slow Nokia death spiral with the one saving grace that most Enterprise and Government agencies still use them because their device manageability is still second to none.

As soon as Microsoft opens up Group Policy to all Activesync devices to allow Enterprises to really manage Android and iPhones its completely and utterly over for RIM.

Has anybody picked up any of the andriod tablets that have come out?

Motorola Zoom
Asus Eee Pad
Acer Transformer

If so, please provide your thoughts.

I've been holding out for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, which is supposed to drop on June 8th. I considered the Eee Pad, which beats all the others on both price and features but it's just too damned bulky and ugly.

Copingsaw wrote:

Has anybody picked up any of the andriod tablets that have come out?

Motorola Zoom
Asus Eee Pad
Acer Transformer

If so, please provide your thoughts.

I've been holding out for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, which is supposed to drop on June 8th. I considered the Eee Pad, which beats all the others on both price and features but it's just too damned bulky and ugly.

I have a Motorola Xoom. I went from an iPad v1.

I'm a little conflicted.

One the one hand, I like Honeycomb and it's openness and custom-ability. The tablet itself is better than the v1 iPad. I also like the integration with Google's Calendar and GMail. The browser is very nice and having Flash is great. Being able to easily move data back and forth is really nice, especially as I have a bunch of movies and ebooks (non Kindle) I like to have available. Not being tied to iTunes is the bomb!

On the other hand, software is lacking right now. I'm reminded of where the iPad was when it first came out - lots of iPhone apps but few tablet specific ones. Now Android apps usually scale up much better than the iOS ones, but sometimes there's no knowing until you actually run it. I'm still waiting on Netflix. HBOGO doesn't work on the Xoom and SlingBox only has the mobile app available. So video streaming isn't there. Yet.

So I have some buyers remorse but I'm willing to wait it out and see where everything is at when the iPad v3 is released.

If you've specific questions, I'll be happy to try to answer them for you.

Copingsaw wrote:

Has anybody picked up any of the andriod tablets that have come out?

Motorola Zoom
Asus Eee Pad
Acer Transformer

If so, please provide your thoughts.

I'm shocked that you got every one of those names wrong, one way or another. Probably not the thought you were looking for, though.

Kurrelgyre wrote:

I'm shocked that you got every one of those names wrong, one way or another. Probably not the thought you were looking for, though.

Xoom, Transformer, Iconia. Whatever.

A friend of mine got the Asus. The build quality is pretty good. It works well in tablet and laptop form. It has 2 usb ports and a full size SD card on the laptop keyboard portion. The screen looks great. Battery life without the dock is very good. With the keyboard dock it is fantastic. It is a bit top heavy since the bulk of it is in the tablet portion. The keys are pretty nice. Docking it into the keyboard is not very difficult but can take a couple tries. There are not many apps specifically for it, yet but apps build for phones seem to work. I have almost no experience with the app store but was told it's the full app store.

If you connect a usb drive you can browse the drive and play video from it. Overall, I like it a lot. I don't believe I'll trade my ipad for one, though. iOS just has so many programs on it and the quality is generally a bit higher than android. If you want an android tablet, though, this seems to be the one that a lot of people are salivating over and from what I've seen there's a good reason for that.