I have an evo, why a nook?

[LxMxFxD]

Hey guys,

I'm interested in a tablet, I suppose mostly for an e-reader. I often fall asleep reading using my rooted evo's kindle app. For $249+tax I think the Nook Color would be a cool replacement, but is it really better than my evo? Will I be paying $249 for 2.7" (diag) and thats it? From what i've read, my Evo's CPU is 200mhz faster even.

Thoughts?

 

[bucketheadmn]

I'm interested in a tablet, I suppose mostly for an e-reader.

I bought a NC as a eReader as well - I also currently have an Evo. I was going to get the basic e-ink version; however, the developer community behind the NC is why I took the step up. Running CM7 on my NC and it is a tablet that is better than the Galaxy Tab.

As far as whether it is worth it or not you need to decide that. The 7" form factor is perfect for me. I no longer play around with my Evo at home, it is my NC that is always within reach. While the NC is easily transportable I do not bring it with me everywhere and that is where my Evo comes in. Best of both worlds.

 

[PSkeptic]

I have the NC. It makes for a fantastic e-reader. Rooting only adds even more on top of it.

I'd suggest, however, to give some of the other tablet a look. The G-Tablet (Which also has a strong dev community) is on sale right now for 289 on Amazon And for that, you get a bigger (But not as nice) screen, bluetooth, a full sized USB port, and a few other features (Faster, more memory, etc).

However, if you are just reading, the Nook Color might be better for you, if you never intend on doing anything else. It's screen is second to none for reading.

 

[colchiro]

The NC runs all day at 1100 Mhz when you turn on overclocking and the custom roms, like CM7 or Phiremod are excellent Gingerbread roms, which I doubt you'll ever see on your EVO as an OTA upgrade.

Screen is excellent, standby battery life with anything other than stock right now isn't great, but should be cleared up soon. (Just turn it off when you're not using it.) There's some amazing development being done on the Nook right now.

 

[DoAndroidDream?]

In the week+ that I have owned my NC I have had to charge it once, and it was really only at 35%. I am still rooted stock though.

 

[toomuchgame441]

Well I have a rooted Nook and a rooted Evo. Both are great and perfect for me. I thought I wouldn't need a tab having an Evolution but even tho I still think that's slightly true, the Nook has been used a lot too for browsing and video playing. Plus with the new tablet tweaks in phiremod v6 its pretty sweet. Eventually I will sell my Nook, but for now its a great little tablet.

 

[colchiro]

I hardly ever play with my DroidX (Gingerbread rom) since getting a Nook.

 

[LxMxFxD]

I appreciate all the honest responses here. I am posting this from a b n store! i think i will check out the g tab before buying, but this nook is pretty cool.

 

[toomuchgame441]

I was thinking about getting a the gTab but I realize that I like the 7" form factor better. Don't Wang anything much bigger. But then again I can't really knock anything else before I try it.

 

[colchiro]

I checked out the specs for the G Tab and it has some nice features, like dedicated back/menu buttons, and working blue tooth (which kind of works on the Nook), but think the hi-res Nook screen is better. BT will be fixed soon. It didn't work on the original Nook, but someone noticed the chip supported it so the devs enabled it.

 

[bucketheadmn]

I like the 7" form factor better

This.

7" form factor for me out weighs anything bigger. Easy to hold with one hand and very portable without a carrying case.

 

[LxMxFxD]

Yeah I am still on the fence. In all the reviews I've seen the nook color's screen looks terrible compared to an ipad (1 or 2) or xoom. It looks yellowish and also has some sort of refresh problem (lower refresh rate?). I definitely could not notice this in person when checking it out but in a lot of the videos (29fps) there is noticeable interlacing while the compared devices have none. Can anyone comment on this or is the refresh rate listed somewhere as lower?

As for the g-tab, it looks great and is wicked fast for the price. The trade off is of course that the screen is last generation tech and when placed next to the xoom looks very bad. I think however, the screen is the same tech as my evo phone, haven't really confirmed that yet.

So.. still on the fence. :-/

 

[bucketheadmn]

Yeah I am still on the fence. In all the reviews I've seen the nook color's screen looks terrible compared to an ipad (1 or 2) or xoom. It looks yellowish and also has some sort of refresh problem (lower refresh rate?). I definitely could not notice this in person when checking it out but in a lot of the videos (29fps) there is noticeable interlacing while the compared devices have none. Can anyone comment on this or is the refresh rate listed somewhere as lower?

As for the g-tab, it looks great and is wicked fast for the price. The trade off is of course that the screen is last generation tech and when placed next to the xoom looks very bad. I think however, the screen is the same tech as my evo phone, haven't really confirmed that yet.

So.. still on the fence. :-/

I have only briefly used an iPad and never the Xoom, but I have a hard time believing that the NC screen looks terrible compared to them. The problem, in my opinion, with video reviews of screens is that there are things picked up our eyes will not pick on themselves - i.e. screen flickering/interlacing. I personally think the NC screen is great and could not ask for anything better.

Sounds like what you need to do is go buy one, and return it if you do not like it. At some point just need to pull the trigger or pass it up.

 

[LxMxFxD]

I have only briefly used an iPad and never the Xoom, but I have a hard time believing that the NC screen looks terrible compared to them. The problem, in my opinion, with video reviews of screens is that there are things picked up our eyes will not pick on themselves - i.e. screen flickering/interlacing. I personally think the NC screen is great and could not ask for anything better.

Sounds like what you need to do is go buy one, and return it if you do not like it. At some point just need to pull the trigger or pass it up.

I would agree with you, but why would the nook show interlacing while ipad and xoom do not side by side. Example video of both yellowish (may be caused by viewing angle) AND interlacing:

YouTube - Xoom vs Nook Color: Gameplay

Also, I was told by a B&N store employee that open Nook colors cannot be returned unless they are defective (not even for a restocking fee). As per B&N.com, it says 14 day return policy but doesn't mention whether this applies to open box or sealed. For this reason I want to be sure

 

[LxMxFxD]

Upon further research it looks like the stock software and many of the old roms had lower refresh rates. This is a software setting android, not a hardware limitation. If anyone can comment about when this issue was resolved or in what rom there is increased refresh, please let me know!

 

[DoAndroidDream?]

This.

7" form factor for me out weighs anything bigger. Easy to hold with one hand and very portable without a carrying case.

I agree. I think 7" is pretty much perfect.


As far as the screen all I can offer is to say that mine looks great. No flicker or yellowish tint at all.

 

[colchiro]

+1

 

[nj02vette]

You absolutely CANNOT trust video reviews like that. If the recording camera's refresh rate is off sync with the recorded screen, strange artifacts can be generated (eg, visible interlacing).

This effect was most notable in old CRTs, where a recorded interlaced display would show the scan lines and flickering that wasn't visible in the original source. To remedy this, you needed to sync output signals to the recording signal (genlock).

The screen did look more yellow in that video, but once again, it's hard to say since it's uncalibrated video we are watching. Effects of lighting on camera can drastically effect the final recording.

I'm not defending the NC or bashing the Xoom. The Xoom is better in almost every area than the NC. But the NC is less than half the price, so you are going to get a few tradeoffs.

All I can say is that I don't see the same results. The NC's screen looks similar resolution and white balance compared to my new Xoom. Videos play great on the NC, with no interlacing visible. I am on Phiremod 6, but even when stock, I didn't have any video issues.

 

[euph_22]

You absolutely CANNOT trust video reviews like that. If the recording camera's refresh rate is off sync with the recorded screen, strange artifacts can be generated (eg, visible interlacing).

This effect was most notable in old CRTs, where a recorded interlaced display would show the scan lines and flickering that wasn't visible in the original source. To remedy this, you needed to sync output signals to the recording signal (genlock).

The screen did look more yellow in that video, but once again, it's hard to say since it's uncalibrated video we are watching. Effects of lighting on camera can drastically effect the final recording.

And if you're doing a side by side comparision like this, one of the other (or both) will be out of sync with the camera.

 

[maverick777]

Upon further research it looks like the stock software and many of the old roms had lower refresh rates. This is a software setting android, not a hardware limitation. If anyone can comment about when this issue was resolved or in what rom there is increased refresh, please let me know!

I can tell you from experience that using the stock rom, flickering is very noticeable.

However, none of the custom roms I have tried have any flickering issues. I'm currently running Phiremod V6. Prior to that, I was using CM7 nightly. Neither have flickering issues.

 

[cabbie]

This is sort of ridiculous. The NookColor screen is gorgeous and I know people who have returned the tab because the difference im screen quality is that apparent.

You can return any B&N product with a receipt in 14 days no questions asked.

You are being given, or are taking too seriously, bad information. That B&N employee was either lying to you or there was a misunderstanding.

 

[colchiro]

I can't imagine flickering on any device as being apparent unless viewed under fluorescent lighting (or viewed from a video like the link above).

 

[PSkeptic]

I checked out the specs for the G Tab and it has some nice features, like dedicated back/menu buttons, and working blue tooth (which kind of works on the Nook), but think the hi-res Nook screen is better. BT will be fixed soon. It didn't work on the original Nook, but someone noticed the chip supported it so the devs enabled it.

As an owner of both; the Nook has a fantastic screen. Makes my G Tablet look paltry by comparison.

 

[PSkeptic]

This.

7" form factor for me out weighs anything bigger. Easy to hold with one hand and very portable without a carrying case.

As an owner of the G Tablet and the Nook; I can say I'd rather carry the Nook with me.

However, the 7" screen hampers any serious productivity work for me. So, I generally carry my G Tablet, and only carry the Nook if I'm not expecting to do much work.

Also, the 7" screen feels "cramped" when web browsing; but not so much so. If I never used a 10" tablet before, I probably wouldn't say this.

 

[LxMxFxD]

I took a hard look at the g-tab and it seemed like an awesome tablet, except that screen just kept me from buying it.

At this point I am just going to wait. I figured out that the NC doesn't have a refresh issue, it IS however much slower refresh in the stock rom, and all new rooted roms have the refresh at 60. This is the cause of the issue, NOT that "video is out of sync" in videos. That statement is silly.

If I see a nc at $199 i may nab it. There are so many new tablets coming out soon too, that I can use my evo until then, I think.