OK I came here a month ago to find the best eReader for PDF books I recently purchased. Two things quickly became clear:
1) There was no "slam dunk" solution in any of the eInk screens. The closest I found were the iRex offerings. The problem is they were very expensive and the company is in chapter 11.
2) For my needs I would likely need at least a 9" screen.
Fast forward to today - once I started looking at the bigger screens, the costs quickly escalated to where an iPad entered the discussion. From what I have seen, the iPad would be a great technical solution to my dilemma, but there are a few stumbling blocks:
1) I hate that Apple locks it down from a software side. I should be able to run any software I own that is also supported by the OS and the hardware. This is not limited to apps or plugins, but should include drivers and even OS.
2) I hate even more that Apple locks it down from a hardware side - I should be able to buy the $500 unit and upgrade it to more memory and 3G if I need it and when I want to spend it.
3) I hate even more that Jobs has made a political statement about Adobe and Flash and I have to carry the brunt of his decision by not being able to install the flash plugin. Without this plugin, the vast majority of websites will not work properly.
Because of these issues, I started looking for iPad alternatives and have found a small offering of netbooks with convertible screens so they effectively become tablets.
Like this.
They are definitely in the same price range as the lowest priced iPad. From what I have read, with some setting customizations and an extra GB of RAM, these these do pretty well in comparison to the iPad.
Obviously the screen is way better in the iPad as is the overall usability, but these netbooks don't have the same limitations as I mentioned above.
Wanted to see if anyone here was able to compare or had some strong feelings agreeing or disagreeing with my views.
Thanks and let's keep this civil.