[ale] need tablet buying advice, bought nook, liked it, returned it
Geoffrey Myers
lists at serioustechnology.com
Thu Apr 5 14:37:27 EDT 2012
On 04/05/2012 02:06 PM, Jim Kinney wrote:
> Your $WIFE is variable?! My char const wife = 1 is not.
Probably a shell variable and readonly...
>
>
> what a pack of nerds.....
>
> On Thu, Apr 5, 2012 at 12:15 PM, Chesser.Damon
> <Damon.Chesser at suntrust.com <mailto:Damon.Chesser at suntrust.com>> wrote:
>
> Ron,
>
> No, it does not have an HDMI out. Or to put it differently, all you
> need is a 30 pin adapter to HDMI, which does not exists. It *has* hdmi
> output, just no existing adaptor. Or so I have read. The Le Pan III is
> supposed to have it, but it is not out.
>
> One provision: You will need to install an equalizer app or perhaps get
> a speaker for it (blue-tooth can pick it up from 30' away, many models
> exists). With the EQ installed, it is plenty loud enough for $WIFE and
> myself to watch Netflix on (together). Aside from that one thing it has
> met all my expectations for a tablet.
>
> Carry your power cord. Battery life is 6 to 7 hours. Less if you are
> watching a movie over the wifi with brightness up high.
>
>
>
> Damon at damtek.com <mailto:Damon at damtek.com>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ale-bounces at ale.org <mailto:ale-bounces at ale.org>
> [mailto:ale-bounces at ale.org <mailto:ale-bounces at ale.org>] On Behalf
> Of Ron
> Frazier (ALE)
> Sent: Thursday, April 05, 2012 11:43 AM
> To: Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts
> Subject: Re: [ale] need tablet buying advice, bought nook, liked it,
> returned it
>
> On 4/5/2012 6:40 AM, Damon L. Chesser wrote:
> > On Wed, 2012-04-04 at 23:39 -0400, Ron Frazier (ALE) wrote:
> >
> >> On 4/4/2012 3:18 PM, Scott Castaline wrote:
> >>
> >>> On 04/03/2012 05:58 PM, Ron Frazier (ALE) wrote:
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>> Hi all,
> >>>>
> >>>> I'm back on the tablet hunt again. I bought a Nook yesterday,
> used
> >>>> the SD card trick to put CM7 on it without affecting the original
> >>>> system, really liked it, then returned it. BN works so hard at
> >>>> foiling anyone trying to run something else, it's a major pain. I
> >>>> got CM7 to boot, then shut down the tablet. Rebooted into BN,
> >>>> since I wanted to be able to flip back and forth, and then
> tried to
> >>>> boot CM7 again. I never got it running again. I reflashed the SD
> >>>> card and tried again. Again, I got CM7 to boot only once. The BN
> >>>> software was 1.4.1 I think. Anyway, while I really like the
> >>>> tablet, I just don't want to be fighting the big corp all the time
> >>>> to keep my alt version of the software running. So, I'm back in
> >>>> the market and, if you all have experience with such things, I'd
> >>>> like some advice.
> >>>>
> >>>> I'd like to get the following minimum features. The Nook didn't
> >>>> have some of these, but I wanted the ability to read BN books in
> >>>> the BN store. I realize I won't be able to do that with another
> >>>> tablet.
> >>>>
> >>>> 7" or 10" screen (10" is probably not possible in my price range.)
> >>>> capacitive touch screen Android 3.2 or 4.x, or at least upgradable
> >>>> to 4.x. 1 GHz processor, preferably dual core 1 GB ram 16 GB flash
> >>>> sd or micro sd card slot front and back cameras microphone
> >>>> headphone jack hdmi output usb port (full USB functionality is
> >>>> preferable) access to full android market and google apps
> >>>> accelerometer wifi b/g Thin is good. The nook is .48" and feels
> >>>> good in your hand.
> >>>>
> >>>> The following features would be nice to have but not critical.
> >>>>
> >>>> haptic feedback wifi b/g/n gps gyroscope ? (I saw this on a spec
> >>>> sheet somewhere. Is that different from an accelerometer? If so,
> >>>> what's it for?)
> >>>>
> >>>> I'd like to keep the price of the tablet itself under $ 320.
> >>>>
> >>>> I haven't studied all the specs yet on these, but my current
> >>>> candidates are:
> >>>>
> >>>> Acer Iconia 7 - Best Buy - $ 259 (or was it $ 269) Samsung Galaxy
> >>>> Tab 7 - Best Buy $ 300 (currently, normally $ 350)
> >>>>
> >>>> By the way, Best Buy now has 30 day returns, 30 day price match,
> >>>> and 30 days of tech support by phone.
> >>>>
> >>>> I'm sure there are other tablets which meet this criteria. I'd
> >>>> appreciate your thoughts on this. I don't want to root
> anything or
> >>>> fight the designers to make it run. The tablet has to run
> >>>> Honeycomb or Ice Cream Sandwich natively. I could go slightly
> >>>> higher in price, but I want to also have some money for a case,
> >>>> android book, etc.
> >>>>
> >>>> Sincerely,
> >>>>
> >>>> Ron
> >>>>
> >>>>
> >>>>
> >>>>
> >>> I had done the same going the external route with the SD chip, but
> was
> >>> sort of restricted to using it when the significant other is not
> home
> >>> as the Nook is hers. Well I have been successful in being able to
> cold
> >>> boot Android multiple times. My only issue is that it seems more
> >>> geared up for phone than tablet. Is there a way to remove the phone
> >>> stuff as klutzy me tends to hit the spots for phone use and of
> course
> >>> it seems to be laughing at me that I don't have a phone. Also I
> have
> >>> noticed that I lose my WiFi when I wake it up from it's nap, and
> then
> >>> later it works. At best I would say WiFi is a bit flaky.
> >>>
> >> Hi Scott,
> >>
> >> I don't know about the phone features. I think Michael T. and
> Michael
> >> W. use Cyanogenmod. Maybe they can tell you how to deal with those
> >> functions. You can delete items from the home screens by
> tapping and
> >> holding an icon until a menu appears, then tap the delete icon or
> >> continue holding the original icon and drag it to the trash can at
> the top.
> >>
> >> I'm making some progress narrowing my selection of tablets by the
> >> process of elimination. If you don't know exactly what you want,
> >> sometimes it helps to know what you don't like or can't do without.
> >> Reading the spec sheets can be quite confusing and tedious. Here's
> some
> >> of what I've learned. I'm eliminating the tablets from
> consideration
> >> with the following features.
> >>
> >> eliminate - tablets without 2 or more CPU cores - I think good CPU's
> >> include but are not limited to: Tegra 2, Rockchip RK30, TI Omap 4.
> >> eliminate - tablets with less than 1 GHz CPU frequency
> >> eliminate - tablets with less than 1 GB RAM
> >> eliminate - tablets with less than 8 GB Flash Memory
> >> eliminate - tablets with no front camera - I figure I'm more likely
> to
> >> video chat than use a tablet for photography.
> >> eliminate - tablets with screen size less than 1024 x 600 if a 7"
> screen
> >> eliminate - tablets with less than 6 hr battery life playing video -
> >> Goodbye Acer Iconia A100.
> >> eliminate - tablets with less than Android 3.2 (Honeycomb)
> >> eliminate - tablets without a capacitive touch screen
> >> eliminate - tablets without an SD card slot (32 GB capacity)
> >> eliminate - tablets without auto screen rotation - This means they
> have
> >> a "G Sensor".
> >> eliminate - tablets without speakers (if there are any such tablets)
> >> eliminate - tablets without a microphone
> >> eliminate - tablets without Bluetooth
> >> eliminate - tablets without HDMI output - Goodbye Acer Iconia A100
> and A200.
> >> eliminate - tablets with funky proprietary large connectors instead
> of
> >> multiple small individual standardized connectors - Goodbye Samsung
> >> Galaxy Tab.
> >> eliminate - tablets that cannot play 1080p video smoothly
> >> eliminate - tablets with a price over $ 400
> >>
> >> Apparently, the "G sensor" could be an accelerometer or a gyroscope.
> As
> >> I understand it, the accelerometer senses MOTION, or more
> accurately,
> >> change in motion in one direction. A gyroscope can sense position,
> >> whether motion is involved or not I think. Some tablets have both.
> >>
> >> If the unit has a proprietary connector, you have to buy expensive
> >> custom cables and adapters to attach anything to the unit.
> >>
> >> In terms of price, I'd really rather it be $ 300 or less,
> because I'm
> >> not sure that the functionality a tablet provides, above that of a
> >> laptop, is worth $ 400 to me. I may even consider an Android
> netbook
> if
> >> I can find one.
> >>
> >> I'm pretty sure about the above criteria. Here are some others I'm
> not
> >> so sure about yet.
> >>
> >> potentially eliminate - tablets without a full USB port, to attach a
> >> keyboard to, for example
> >> potentially eliminate - tablets without IPS screens, which have
> wider
> >> viewing angles
> >> potentially eliminate - tablets which can't or won't be upgraded to
> >> Android 4 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
> >> potentially eliminate - tablets without gps - I'd usually have it
> off,
> >> but if you need it, it's nice.
> >> potentially eliminate - tablets without haptic feedback - Gives nice
> >> confirmation when pressing on screen buttons.
> >> potentially eliminate - tablets without wifi N in addition to B
> and G
> >> potentially eliminate - tablets without a flash if there is a rear
> >> facing camera
> >> potentially eliminate - tablets without an IR tranciever - for intra
> >> device comm and using tablet as a remote control
> >>
> >> As you can imagine, that narrows the field quite a bit. So far, I
> >> haven't found what I want to buy. There should be some more really
> neat
> >> ones coming out this year. I've found engadget and cnet reviews
> quite
> >> helpful in looking at these. Of course, there are many other
> sources
> of
> >> reviews.
> >>
> >> Sincerely,
> >>
> >> Ron
> >>
> > Again, I HIGHLY suggest the Le Pan II. It is minus the regular usb,
> > but, hey, use a blue-tooth keyboard. It matches all other
> criteria on
> > your list and at $279.00 at Microcenter, it matches your price.
> >
> > It is NOT ICS, but the MFG claims they will provide an update.
> >
>
> Hi Damon,
>
> I saw your prior message and looked at the link you sent. That does
> look like a pretty cool tablet. Does it REALLY meet all those required
> criteria? I hadn't thought about a Bluetooth keyboard. Anyway, full
> USB is on my nice to have list, as opposed to my required list. One
> thing bugging me about the spec sheet you linked to is that it says
> there's no HDMI port. Now, that was something that is on my required
> list, but at this price, I might reconsider that. I wanted to say
> thanks for the info when you sent it before.. I meant to write you back
>
> the first time and hadn't done it yet. I'll do some more research on
> this one.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Ron
>
>
> --
>
> (PS - If you email me and don't get a quick response, you might want to
> call on the phone. I get about 300 emails per day from alternate energy
> mailing lists and such. I don't always see new messages very quickly.)
>
> Ron Frazier
>
> 770-205-9422 <tel:770-205-9422> (O) Leave a message.
> linuxdude AT techstarship.com <http://techstarship.com>
>
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> --
> --
> James P. Kinney III
>
> As long as the general population is passive, apathetic, diverted to
> consumerism or hatred of the vulnerable, then the powerful can do as
> they please, and those who survive will be left to contemplate the outcome.
> - ////2011 Noam Chomsky
>
> http://heretothereideas.blogspot.com/
> ////
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--
Until later, Geoffrey
"I predict future happiness for America if they can prevent
the government from wasting the labors of the people under
the pretense of taking care of them."
- Thomas Jefferson
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