MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Other budget tablets compared to amazon fire?

Rbneader · 02-15-2017, 01:54 PM

Cheap no-name tablets are almost never worth it. Yes, the upfront cost is low but the breaking and the aggravation is just not worth it.

One thing I've found is really key for reading is high screen resolution. Low screen resolution will cause eyestrain and headaches very quickly, even if you're fine reading on computer screens. Unfortunately, this means that cheap new tablets are often not a good idea for reading.

Also, having a microSD card slot is really vital. It means that I can keep all of my regular apps and books on my tablet instead of having to think about which books and which apps I need. People always underestimate how much space their apps will take up.

My suggestion is to get a nice used tablet, a top-notch one from 2+ years ago.

I just got a flagship Samsung tablet from 2014 for $160. It works great, runs Android 6.0, and was 1/3rd of the price of similar new tablets. The battery life isn't great, but it hasn't been a problem. I have an Anker portable battery pack for my phone, so if the tablet runs low I just plug it into that.

You could also keep an eye out for used versions of B&N Nook HD or Nook HD+. They had great screens, reasonable hardware, and should be pretty cheap by now.

02-15-2017, 01:54 PM	#3
Rbneader Fanatic Posts: 503 Karma: 2661351 Join Date: Mar 2012 Device: None	Cheap no-name tablets are almost never worth it. Yes, the upfront cost is low but the breaking and the aggravation is just not worth it. One thing I've found is really key for reading is high screen resolution. Low screen resolution will cause eyestrain and headaches very quickly, even if you're fine reading on computer screens. Unfortunately, this means that cheap new tablets are often not a good idea for reading. Also, having a microSD card slot is really vital. It means that I can keep all of my regular apps and books on my tablet instead of having to think about which books and which apps I need. People always underestimate how much space their apps will take up. My suggestion is to get a nice used tablet, a top-notch one from 2+ years ago. I just got a flagship Samsung tablet from 2014 for $160. It works great, runs Android 6.0, and was 1/3rd of the price of similar new tablets. The battery life isn't great, but it hasn't been a problem. I have an Anker portable battery pack for my phone, so if the tablet runs low I just plug it into that. You could also keep an eye out for used versions of B&N Nook HD or Nook HD+. They had great screens, reasonable hardware, and should be pretty cheap by now. Last edited by Rbneader; 02-15-2017 at 01:57 PM.