What to buy, what to buy?

[Androo]

My ematic tablet has freaked out on me and I'm going to return it and buy a new tablet. But I'm not sure what I should get. My price range is from 200 - 250, I might go a bit over. I was wanting a 2.2 or so. I want to be able to read comic files, go on the internet, watch videos, ect. Just the regular basics of a tablet with good stuff for the price I want. Also, I want something that will have good support. My ematic had horrible support. Any suggestions? Thanks in advanced.

Edit: I am looking for a 7 inch or above screen size also.

 

[Pyro6128]

The nook color sounds perfect for you. With cm7 its a full fledged tablet

Sent from my NookColor using Tapatalk

 

[Androo]

I looked at the NookColor initially, but it's not something I was interested in. I'm more interested in an actual computer tablet as opposed to an e-book reader. I want something like the Ematic E-Glide, but a little more when it comes to performance and support.

 

[Pyro6128]

for the price range youre looking at, the nook color is the best you can do. And yea its technically an ereader since thats what its marketed at, but once you root it and throw a nice rom like cm7 on there, it is hands down the best device in that price range. I wanted a tablet too, and was going to buy the xoom, then I saw how hackable the nook color is, and went that route. Now it doesn't resemble an ereader at all, and it has comparable specs to the samsung galaxy, which is more expensive. I'm telling you, throw cm7 on there and you'd never know it was originally intended as an ereader. I'm not pushing it by any means, I'm just letting you know that the amount your spending, versus the specs and abilities you'll get with the nook color will be better than other devices in the particular range you set.

I run one of the cm7 nightlies on mine. You mentioned you want 2.2. Cm7 is 2.3 gingerbread, full android market as well as all the other goodness that comes with gingerbread and android, has bluetooth, and allows you to watch videos both from your sd card or flash videos online (even hd) without stuttering at all. The only thing a nook color with a good rom doesn't have is a camera, no way around that. It also has a lot of developer support behind it, which means it gets better all the time. Check out the nook color section over at xda, some great stuff going on for this device.

Again, not pushing it, I just happen to have one and tinker with it all the time. If someone knows of another device in this range that can do all of the above hopefully they'll come in here and mention it. The more info you have the better

 

[Androo]

Well, I've been looking around the forums and found these two:

Fly Touch 3: Android 2.2 Tablet, 10.2, Flash 10.1, 1GHz CPU, Wifi, G-sensor, HDMI Output, Camera, 512M DDR2 RAM

7 Inch Capacitive Multi-Touch Screen Samsung S5PV210 A8 1.2GHZ Tablet PC with Flash 10.1 Camera 512 RAM and 4GB Storage

I'm just not comfortable with hacking anything, I don't want to mess anything up just in case or whatever. My only concern with these two are that they're Chinese (I think?) and I'm not sure how reliable it is and if it has any good support.

I also just found this:

http://www.amazon.com/Zenithink-And...2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1301890067&sr=1-2

Any thoughts?

 

[dwcunpluged]

The Zenithink and the Flytouch are both chinese. The flytouch only has limited support and that is from a vendor that has been blacklisted on this forum. I own one of these so I am partial to it. The flash player is not yet a truely adobe compatable or supported version, but it seems to work, mostly. The Zenithink has a pretty good following on this forum, but like all the other chinese tablets the manufacturer support might be a little iffy. I don't have anything for you on the third tablet you listed, sorry.
As someone said before, the very best you can get in that price range would be the nook color. That is support, here and elsewhere, and quality of build. But if you want to take the risk then go chinese. You might not get what you think you are paying for, but usually if something goes wrong it can be fixed. Not trying to discourage you, or even promote the NC, just want to make sure you understand the inherent risks. Good luck, and I hope you get what you want.

Sent from my Huawei Ascend M860 using Android Tablet Forum App

 

[rfanch]

VIEWSONIC G gets my vote!!!

I personally, I had a nook ordered on friday night. I got it from an ebay guy who rooted/flashed/jailbreaked it, and installed the alternative OS.. I was al set! $335..

then ssatrday morning I saw the tigerdirect email, $299 for the G.. I said WTF!! What's wrong with his device - how can a 10" android screen be soo cheap!

I found out the obvios. they had a messed u launch with a bad interface (that's since been fixed.. especially with hacked versions) so I canceled order #1, and I found a diferent ebayer to sell me a Viewsonic G-Tab (pre-root) pre(Vegan 5.1.1).... and i said, HECK YEA!!! I don't have to list the features off for you guys unless you want me to.. I bet this is a pretty knowledgeable forum

I already have a Droid x.. and I absoltely loved reading kindle books. I loved the FEATURE of kindle of my X.. but the actual use? a joke. I need a big screen for my books.. my kindle books in specific.. and that's a big deal!

my question for you guys: This Vegan, Version 5.1.1 - how much better is it than the standard OS?is there any reason or any sitation where I will have to go back to the standard OS (maybe to upgrade firmware) if this is the case, what's involved in un-rooting and installing original OS?

as for Micro SDHC card.. I ordered a 32gb level 10 patriot.

so, I kinda went all out!

I'm excited!

That... M-SDHC card will work right? and a level 10, 32gb.. that's the best I can hope to put in there, right?

are there any big deal problems, that I should make changes to right now...??

THANKS A BUNCH GUYS LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS FORUM!!

OOOOH, ps, can I tether my droid X 3g connection to my Viewsonic.? If so.. then, OMG, this isthe best purchase I have ever made!!!


PPS now I realize, you said 200-250. I can respect that, i mean.. money, is money! but my thing is........... a 200 tablet is .. not going to be 2/3 as good as a $300 tablet. and a $300 tablet is already pushing the limits of lowness..........

and my personal thing is - I'm not buying for now, I'm buying for 16-24 months from now! will I still really be using this tablet in two years?

with the Viewsonic.. I can say, especially with the hacked firmware.. YES, YES, YES..

final price was $329 btw.. for the pre-root version

 

[jimmyt]

Androo I only know of one Tablet not made in china , and it sucks, some are assembled in France Germany and other countries, but the guts come from China; Just like sneakers, and just about everything in America today, like all Televisions. So as someone that would question whether or not it would be good quality like the Chinese made Ipad, you should do a lot more reading before you buy. The Nook color and others in these and other forums are full of information on how to root, and That is your best way to go. Ereaders are using superior cpu's compared to last years Ekens so please read first and save yourself some grief later.

Just as an aside dwcunpluged is sending his message from a Huawei Ascend M860 which is made from one of the largest manufacturers in China.

 

[Androo]

Hmmm, I just found out that the Nook Color is getting a 2.2 upgrade. So now I'm being more inclined to purchase that. The update is to come out this month, right? Does anyone know when this month? I'm not debating between the Zenithink and the Nook Color

 

[dwcunpluged]

I think the biggest difference between this Huawei phone and my superpad II is that if something goes wrong with the phone I just take it back to the store I bought it from. If messing with the system is not something you are comfortable with, something mentioned earlier, then buy local no matter where the parts are from.

Sent from my Huawei Ascend M860 using Android Tablet Forum App

 

[Androo]

I think the biggest difference between this Huawei phone and my superpad II is that if something goes wrong with the phone I just take it back to the store I bought it from. If messing with the system is not something you are comfortable with, something mentioned earlier, then buy local no matter where the parts are from.

Sent from my Huawei Ascend M860 using Android Tablet Forum App

I found a Zenithink distributor in Texas:

Zenithink.us - Zenithink ZT-180 Android Tablets

I'm still researching on them and I sent them an e-mail asking about their warranty if anything goes wrong. The ZT-180 is cheaper and has some really nice features, but the Nook Color sounds more reliable

 

[dwcunpluged]

That would be great if true. Most of those places order direct from china, so check delivery times. If more than a week they are ordering from china just like you would. Keep asking them the hard questions like support and possible warranty, don't let them fleece you so to speak. Keep up the research and make good decisions based on that research. If everyone did that there would be a lot less unhappy people after their purchase. Let us know how things go for you.

Sent from my Huawei Ascend M860 using Android Tablet Forum App

 

[Pyro6128]

I personally, I had a nook ordered on friday night. I got it from an ebay guy who rooted/flashed/jailbreaked it, and installed the alternative OS.. I was al set! $335..

at $335 you were being ripped off extremely hard I'm sorry to say (glad you didn't do it). The 15 minutes it takes to root the device is not worth that large price difference.

 

[dwcunpluged]

I found a Zenithink distributor in Texas:

Zenithink.us - Zenithink ZT-180 Android Tablets

I'm still researching on them and I sent them an e-mail asking about their warranty if anything goes wrong. The ZT-180 is cheaper and has some really nice features, but the Nook Color sounds more reliable

So I have been looking through the Zenithink.us website and forum. Obviously the ZT-180 is a Chinese manufactured tablet no matter how you slice things. But after reading through all the fine print on their website I can tell you that they SEEM to offer support and upgrades promptly and regularly. They do still order their tablets through places like dhgate and other wholesalers, but they claim to offer a one year warranty (as opposed to the 6 month directly from the manufacturer,) and claim you can ship the unit back to Houston, TX for replacement instead of Shenzen, China.

As with all things from a Chinese wholesaler, even if distributed from a U.S. source, be careful and make sure the price is right for what you think you are getting. Fortunately they accept paypal payments (better for disputing purchases.) So, if anyone does ever order from this place, please let the rest of us know how things go: service before and after the sale, speed of delivery, etc...

And most of all, do your research!

 

[Pyro6128]

that tablet seemed really nice, almost too good to be true. Then I saw that it had a resistive touch screen and it all made sense haha