03-07-2017, 11:12 AM | #1 |
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Nook Tablet or budget tablet?
Can anybody tell me about the Nook Tablet? It is very affordable, but I wonder about the screen resolution. I know my mom once bought a cheap tablet once and it looked black when you tipped it certain ways. It was horrible.
Honestly this tablet will be for my 4 year old son for the most part. To play games and possibly read along books (does Nook still offer those?) and Netflix when we have long drives for trips. But I thought it might be nice to use occasionally in the kitchen for my Kobo recipe books. Can I get the full Google Play store and the Kobo app (plus netflix and youtube or other games from Play)? Any pros vs cons? I am in Canada but travel to the US to visit my family monthly and have a US address for Nook books if they haven't changed that policy. I doubt there are other budget tablets out there for this price that aren't no names from China, but I am open to suggestions. TIA! |
03-07-2017, 11:25 AM | #2 |
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It's hard to beat for the price.
The screen resolution isn't great, but for occasional recipes and kids books with larger text it should be okay I'd think. It's an IPS display and while not all are created equal it should have decent viewing angles (I know the similar spec Fire does). It'll work fine for Netflix and the like and also for most games. It has the regular Google Play store and you'll have no problem getting the Kobo, Netflix and Youtube apps. Being in Canada the built in store stuff probably won't be of much, if any, use for you. As for no names from China, that's basically what the Nook tablet is, with B&N's name slapped on it. Tablets from the likes of Samsung, Asus or Lenovo are likely to run you 2 or 3 times the Nook's $50, of course they'll generally have better specs too but that's unlikely to matter for your stated usage. |
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03-07-2017, 11:31 AM | #3 | |
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I actually see there's a Koko Arc up for auction, but I have never heard of it. Anybody have info on it? |
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03-07-2017, 12:23 PM | #4 |
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There were 3(?) Arc tablets the Arc 7, Arc 7 HD and Arc 10 HD. They are from around 2012/2013 and IIRC run Android 4.1 or 4.2. IIRC the Arc 7 has the same resolution screen as the Nook while the 10 HD & 7 HD have very high resolution screens. I believe RAM and processor specs aren't too different from those of the Nook, but I'm really not sure on that. They did come with Google Play.
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03-07-2017, 12:31 PM | #5 | ||
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03-07-2017, 12:34 PM | #6 |
Aes Sedai
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I do see this place has the Arc 10 HD as well. But I think it would be pretty big for a 4 year old. Probably nice for my recipes though.
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03-07-2017, 05:34 PM | #8 |
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I think I'd stay away from the Arc's just because it's old and now unsupported tech. They had a niche when they came out, but I wouldn't say they were a class leader. You'll likely find you want as new a version of Android as you can get or you'll probably run into compatibility issues (although your 4 year old probably isn't on top of what the hot new game is, so this may not be as important )
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03-07-2017, 07:22 PM | #9 |
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If a larger tablet is your goal, Lenovo just released the Tab 3 10 Plus here in Canada. It's available in the US as well. Although the processor is a bit slower, the screen is the same as the Tab 2 A10-70: 1920x1200. I read a lot on my Tab 2; it's great. Price is only $250 CDN; $200 in the States. Definitely more expensive then the Nooks and budget Kindle Fires, but a really nice tablet for the price nonetheless.
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03-08-2017, 10:33 AM | #10 |
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A standard Android tablet would be far more flexible in the end and allow you to install multiple readers, so instead of being locked to Barnes & Noble or Amazon or whatever, you can install software for whatever you want.
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03-08-2017, 01:18 PM | #11 |
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The Nook tablet has Google Play and isn't locked into anything. You can install whatever you want on it. (you can install whatever you want on a Fire too, including Google Play, but that's not quite the same thing)
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03-08-2017, 03:30 PM | #12 | |
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03-08-2017, 03:41 PM | #13 |
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Thanks everyone! I think I will go for the Nook Tablet since the Kobo Arc isn't supported anymore and I read the charging port has issues. I can't find a cheaper tablet that doesn't have really bad reviews.
Someday if my recipe ebooks increase I will probably get a larger tablet for myself. Maybe one like what Ottdmk mentioned. |
03-08-2017, 08:35 PM | #14 |
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I had a Nook HD and a Nook HD+. I'm not sure if these are the models you're referring to but there is much about their interface that is very, very clumsy and they do lack a few features, but all in all they really were fine devices. They weren't slow, although they weren't very fast either. The screens were excellent. The speakers were very good. I had a 64 gig micro SD card in them and that worked fine.
The interface if very poorly designed so you have to play with it a little to get what you want out of it but if you don't mind that they're really very flexible devices. Barry |
03-09-2017, 01:37 PM | #15 | |
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Quote:
She was referring to the new $50 Nook tablets. Basically like the $50 Fire tablet, but it runs regular Android instead of Fire OS. Did you ever try installing a different launcher on your Nook tablet? That would resolve your clunky interface issue. |
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