Color ereader to read full page PDF magazines?

[nerys]

I could not find the power supply for my 8" tablet but I dug out my ST3500 (10.4" 800x600) and using foxit I can rotate and view full screen and tap to advance a page.

its shockingly usable. the tinest test is hard to impossible to read but 99% of the text is larger than this. For now its surprisingly usable and I get a battery life of around 4-5 hours like this and I have tons of batteries for this thing :-) even an external dual batt charger though I think 4+ hours is more than enough.

I will go check out that forum as well!

alas I don't think a 7" screen will cut it. its "just" usable at 10.4 inches so I think it will be an issue at 7"

BUT it does mean those 1024x600 screen 10" units "might" be usable. Maybe. I plan to get one for video playback so no harm in tossing a PDF on it and seeing what happens. sure will have letter boxing on the top and bottom but thats ok.

it also means a 1024x768 screen WILL be quite nice. So time to save up pennies for a XGA tablet probable the Motion Computing LE1600 as they are a bit lighter and thinner than the ST5x series Fujitsu units.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by nerys

it also means a 1024x768 screen WILL be quite nice.

It is. The iPad is a 10" 1024x768 screen, and it's really very good indeed for PDFs, so any device with a similar size and resolution should be equally as good.

[boswd]

Originally Posted by nerys

suggestions?

I am looking for a sub $200 device that has a color screen to read PDF Magazines (think make or popular science or new scientist or model airplane news etc.. ie normal magazines)

I don't want to scroll. I want one full page on the screen large enough and high enough resolution to read.

I know I can use a netbook but I would prefer a tablet form factor (tablet atom processor machines are too expensive)

I am thinking something like the Pandigital Novel but larger. I don't think either the 7" size or the 800x600 resolution is enough. I am thinking XGA and 9" range minimum

it does not HAVE to do anything else but needs to have full PDF support and would prefer a memory card (MSD or SD) replaceable battery would be nice but not a deal killer

does such a beast exist? maybe an android tablet with a large screen?

the only device thats not an option is an apple device. ie no ipads. (and they are too expensive anyway)

any help would be greatly appreciated.

I love my kindle DX but its just no good for mags. its large enough its got enough pixels but they just look like crap on the greyscale screen and some text is too low contrast in mag format to read.

my advice would be to wait. As other have said the iPad is the best option right now. But with Vizio, and Motorola Xoom coming out and others a price war is sure to follow.
If its a right now purchase you are either going to have sacrifice size or your wallet.

[nerys]

For now I will use my ST3500. its more than light enough and think enough for sure and so far I can read all the PDF's the 800x600 is borderline but the 10" makes up for it

all but the smallest text is readable just fine.

I might still nab an LE1600 if I can get one cheap enough the XGA screen would be nice.

all I need is a 10" xga version of something like thepandigital.

I might go stalk one of those color nooks I think its going to be too small a screen but damn does the gui for interacting with the PDF's especially the scrubber and the multi touch look nice !!

[jocampo]

Galaxy Tab? ... but not in your price range.

Like you, I was on the same dilemma days ago and ended getting a Galaxy Tab without contract. But it's not cheap. I am very pleased with my choice giving the case is not as heavy as iPad and has much more functionality, including 2 cameras. My Kindle(s) are my dedicated ereaders so battery life was not an issue to me.

I honestly do not think you can find a good tablet/PDF reader under 200. I checked the Pandigital las weekend and couple of more tablets under 200 and they were not good products. The closest thing could be a Nook Color, but the PDF reader needs some improvements and is a bit higher in price. Also, NC does not remember last read page in a PDF, which is kind of annoying.

[nerys]

hmmm interesting but I can already get a 7" 1024x600 device for $100 in fact I can get an 8.9" 1024x600 device for $120 and its got enough horsepower to also play all my videos too. (will let you guys know if PDF is readable on an 8.9" display)

looks like the $120 price is over but its still only $135 $2 shipping and I have seen it around $100 if you stalk them long enough

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-55334001-L02A

whats REALLY a pity is I have 4 ST3500s's and JUST NOW found out there was a ST3500x with an XGA screen. impossible to find now sadly :-) that would have been perfect :-)

ehh keep stalking ebay. I wish I could rotate the screen on my 3500 but this function does not work in XP (it was designed for windows 2000 so the drivers are not "100%" so to speak in XP :-)

but fox it lets me rotate so its not a huge deal.

does NOOK have software for the PC? does it have those nice PDF functions that the nook reader has ?

http://www.amazon.com/Aluratek-Cinep.../dp/B00365YT4E

$122 shipped from amazon. same resolution but much larger screen versus the galaxy tab.

although its 8.9" thats diagonal and its a 16:9 display. 9" 16:9 is a lot smaller thank 9" 4:3

I wonder how many inches WIDE the screen is.... (top to bottom ie wide in portrait)

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by nerys

although its 8.9" thats diagonal and its a 16:9 display. 9" 16:9 is a lot smaller thank 9" 4:3

I wonder how many inches WIDE the screen is.... (top to bottom ie wide in portrait)

Why not just work it out? It's a simple application of Pythagoras' theorem.

Let's say the width is "x". The height will therefore be x*9/16, since it's a 16:9 aspect ratio screen.

So, by Pythagoras's theorem:

x*x + (x*9/16)*(x*9/16) = 8.9*8.9

1.3164x*x = 79.21

x*x = 60.172

x = 7.76

So, the screen is 7.8" wide and 4.4" high.

[nerys]

smarta*& I was too tired to even think of how to figure it out. Good to know though :-)

I found another aluratek unit with a slightly smaller but higher resolution screen!! supposedly 1280x768

its $130 trying to confirm the resolution of that screen :-)

Confirmed screen resolution it is 1280x768 but at 8" I fear it might be too small for readable PDF - its got a slightly lower battery life (4 hours instead of 6) but I might give it a go just for the higher resolution. its model 100F instead of 101F

[jocampo]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Why not just work it out? It's a simple application of Pythagoras' theorem.

Let's say the width is "x". The height will therefore be x*9/16, since it's a 16:9 aspect ratio screen.

So, by Pythagoras's theorem:

x*x + (x*9/16)*(x*9/16) = 8.9*8.9

1.3164x*x = 79.21

x*x = 60.172

x = 7.76

So, the screen is 7.8" wide and 4.4" high.

You just made me smile! lol ...