An Awful Review of the ANN and the Kobo Touch - Page 6

boswd · 06-09-2011, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SCION

That's a sexy ensemble. Just need a tweed jacket when going out to dinner.

and some nice reading glasses to round it out.

boswd · 06-09-2011, 05:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RockdaMan

I think Apple (and Samsung) have a grip on what's important to most, and your needs lie outside of the mainstream.

I think you are a Mac guy in a Windows world, in a figurative sense.

Anyway, should we go to PM's for this?

I don't think my needs lie outside of mainstream. I do think mainstream and even mainstream reviewers have a knee jerk reaction to "thin" without thinking everything through. While Yes there does have to be a certain level of thinness, I mean you can't have 2 inch tablet nowadays. Makes me think of the Entourage. Great concept, maybe the best ereader concept but big , bulky, heavy and of course priced very high. But it did fail. But the difference between most of these tablets and the iPad2 and the Samsung are just not that much of a difference. BUT it's Thinner so it must be better, without thinking of why it's thinner and why the others are a little bit thicker and the benefits.

For example take HDTV's. The one's that everybody crave's are those really super thin LEDHDTV's. Ones that are just as thin as the iPad 2. but when you look closer, why is it thin? well the led lights are put on the side and mirrors are used to backlight your screen. The drawbacks are blacks aren't as great and the off angle can be really bad, but hey it's thinner.

now take the other LED HDTV's they are a bit thicker, not much , but they don't have the sexiness of the other ones. They are local dimming, they are backlit from the behind the screen and this results in deeper blacks and better viewing angles. So when you stop for a moment and think to yourself what would you rather have a tv that is credit card thin or one that is little bit thicker but gives you deeper blacks and a better viewing experience?

The same can apply to tablets

boswd · 06-09-2011, 05:33 PM

Sure the iPad 2 and the Samsung are super thin and yes we want the thinnest right? but if you stop and think about real life wants and needs out of your tablet and how we will use them, is the thinness worth some of the tradoffs?

A very possible real life situation: you're on vacation in Alaska, you are taking a ton of pictures, and videos now one has an Ipad 2 the other has an Asus Transformer. Now one is a bit thinner but the other you can take your card and instantly pop it into your tablet and start uploading and have all your photos ready to be viewed, edit and shown. while the iPad 2 or Samsung you have to wait to get all your tongle and other propritary setups ready.

I mean this isn't some obscure techie needs Having some extra features at the cost of a slight bump in thickness is much more beneficial in real life situations and even more so for the non techie people.

or just running your tablet directly into a television without having to pull out the bundle or even if you are smart enough to remember to bring your hdmi bundle with you.

So yes the knee jerk reaction is wow it's thinner, must have, must be better. But if stop to think for a minute and ask why is this a bit thicker and are those reason a better tradeoff, I think most would say yes.

RockdaMan · 06-09-2011, 05:48 PM

Wow!

Ok, you win. I'm going super thick and ultra-fat with EVERYTHING from now on.

Including my 'summer in Chicago' clothes.

boswd · 06-09-2011, 05:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RockdaMan

Wow!

Ok, you win. I'm going super thick and ultra-fat with EVERYTHING from now on.

Including my 'summer in Chicago' clothes.

you don't have to go super thick just remember black is a thinning color

Mmmbacon · 06-13-2011, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SensualPoet

No one has pointed out that David Pogue is actually pretty well respected for fairness and NOT being in one camp or another. His reviews are always light-hearted and chummy and sometimes that attempt at "gosh, schucks" humour gets in the way (as it did this time).

No one has pointed it out because nothing could be FURTHER from the truth. Only Walt Mossberg surpasses Pogue when it comes to Apple Loyalty. Anyone who respects him for "fairness" (especially when dealing with Apple products) simply hasn't read enough of him.

EldRick · 06-13-2011, 11:57 AM

However, he apparently doesn't know jack about technology - he thinks that e-Ink is a magnetically-actuated technology.

CommonReader · 06-13-2011, 01:14 PM

Micro SD cards are so tiny that there are simply no technical reasons for not including a micro SD card reader in any device, let alone a device of the size of a tablet. However, you cannot milk your customers for a device that offers no more than additional storage space if the customer can simply expand storage space with an inexpensive card. Sorry, folks, customer convenience simply has to take the back seat if it might have a negative impact on the company's bottom line.

murraypaul · 06-13-2011, 01:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CommonReader

Micro SD cards are so tiny that there are simply no technical reasons for not including a micro SD card reader in any device, let alone a device of the size of a tablet.

Because all you have to do is add the hardware and it will just automatically work, with no software effort?
Didn't seem to work like that for Motorola.

bhartman36 · 06-13-2011, 01:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RockdaMan

Restaurant reviewers don't go into the kitchen and tell you what ingredients are in use and the cooking techniques in use.

They focus overarchingly on the final product.

What Pogue does in the reviews I highlighted is like a restaurant reviewer referring to a "pizza", without giving you any details (e.g., toppings, crust, cheese, etc.). If you're eating at McDonald's, you don't need (or probably want

) much detail, but when you're comparing two upscale restaurants, you want details on the food more than, "The food was presented nicely and tasted great."

Quote:

Originally Posted by RockdaMan

Ditto with a reviewer. If a device is notably better because of some unique spec, they mention it. But if it's there and there is no difference in the outcome they might not. The Xoom was not measurably better because the spec sheet.

A tech review (which Pogue's reviews ostensibly are) are most certainly at least partially about the specs. Especially when you're comparing two devices. Pogue isn't writing these articles for a technical writing class. He's writing them to help people make buying decisions. And he does his job with an obvious bias.

Quote:

Originally Posted by RockdaMan

It had a SD slot too. mentionable?

I'd say an SD slot is very mentionable, since some tablets don't have them (including, of course, his beloved iPad).

bhartman36 · 06-13-2011, 01:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by murraypaul

Because all you have to do is add the hardware and it will just automatically work, with no software effort?
Didn't seem to work like that for Motorola.

I wouldn't say no effort, but damn little effort. I don't know what the deal is/was with Motorola, but if my $100 tablet can have a micro-SD slot (and it does) I would think it would be no problem for Apple.

CommonReader · 06-13-2011, 01:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by murraypaul

Because all you have to do is add the hardware and it will just automatically work, with no software effort?

We may think it's only a common card reader as seen in millions of devices, but it's maaaaagic..

murraypaul · 06-13-2011, 04:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CommonReader

We may think it's only a common card reader as seen in millions of devices, but it's maaaaagic..

Again, Motorola didn't seem to be able to make it work.

bhartman36 · 06-13-2011, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by murraypaul

Again, Motorola didn't seem to be able to make it work.

The fact that Motorola couldn't make it work doesn't mean it's difficult. It's not. There are other tablets that have micro-SD cards with no problem, and for less expense.

bhartman36 · 06-27-2011, 09:51 AM

As more evidence of Pogue's fanboy-ism, I'd point to this article.

Compare and contrast it to this article on CNN, in which users are basically excoriating Final Cut Pro for its lack of features.

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06-09-2011, 05:33 PM	#78
boswd Banned Posts: 2,391 Karma: 1001781 Join Date: May 2010 Device: The Nook, Nook color and Droid X	Sure the iPad 2 and the Samsung are super thin and yes we want the thinnest right? but if you stop and think about real life wants and needs out of your tablet and how we will use them, is the thinness worth some of the tradoffs? A very possible real life situation: you're on vacation in Alaska, you are taking a ton of pictures, and videos now one has an Ipad 2 the other has an Asus Transformer. Now one is a bit thinner but the other you can take your card and instantly pop it into your tablet and start uploading and have all your photos ready to be viewed, edit and shown. while the iPad 2 or Samsung you have to wait to get all your tongle and other propritary setups ready. I mean this isn't some obscure techie needs Having some extra features at the cost of a slight bump in thickness is much more beneficial in real life situations and even more so for the non techie people. or just running your tablet directly into a television without having to pull out the bundle or even if you are smart enough to remember to bring your hdmi bundle with you. So yes the knee jerk reaction is wow it's thinner, must have, must be better. But if stop to think for a minute and ask why is this a bit thicker and are those reason a better tradeoff, I think most would say yes.

06-09-2011, 05:48 PM	#79
RockdaMan Banned Posts: 1,644 Karma: 213512 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: On the other side of over there Device: Pandigital Novel, Kindle G1 (broken), iPod Touch	Wow! Ok, you win. I'm going super thick and ultra-fat with EVERYTHING from now on. Including my 'summer in Chicago' clothes.

06-13-2011, 11:57 AM	#82
EldRick Evangelist Posts: 470 Karma: 112801 Join Date: Aug 2010 Device: Aura H2O (i86, M96C, Mini&Glo, PRS-950, STR, K-Touch, K-DX, K-3)	However, he apparently doesn't know jack about technology - he thinks that e-Ink is a magnetically-actuated technology.

06-13-2011, 01:14 PM	#83
CommonReader Fanatic Posts: 528 Karma: 2530000 Join Date: Dec 2010 Device: Sony PRS-T3, PRS-650, Vaio Tap 11, iPad Mini	Micro SD cards are so tiny that there are simply no technical reasons for not including a micro SD card reader in any device, let alone a device of the size of a tablet. However, you cannot milk your customers for a device that offers no more than additional storage space if the customer can simply expand storage space with an inexpensive card. Sorry, folks, customer convenience simply has to take the back seat if it might have a negative impact on the company's bottom line.

06-27-2011, 09:51 AM	#90
bhartman36 Wizard Posts: 1,323 Karma: 1515835 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Jersey, USA Device: Kobo Libra Colour, Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition (2021)	As more evidence of Pogue's fanboy-ism, I'd point to this article. Compare and contrast it to this article on CNN, in which users are basically excoriating Final Cut Pro for its lack of features.