8+ Readers in comparison

[TheArtfulDodger]

Anyway what do you mean about them being too protective of the Nook Color?

Hello, Eddie:

I am a US Citizen, served my country for 28 years, yet because I live in England I am not allowed to purchase a Nook nor would I be allowed to purchase books if I were to get a Nook!

I frequently read technical articles, usually pdf, that have color photos in them. Plus, I like the idea of being able to simply wave at the page to turn it! But, I don't need all of the other stuff that's in a tablet!

Sparky

[JerseyBiker]

Originally Posted by TheArtfulDodger

Hello, Eddie:

I am a US Citizen, served my country for 28 years, yet because I live in England I am not allowed to purchase a Nook nor would I be allowed to purchase books if I were to get a Nook!

I frequently read technical articles, usually pdf, that have color photos in them. Plus, I like the idea of being able to simply wave at the page to turn it! But, I don't need all of the other stuff that's in a tablet!

Sparky

Ok, I see. I guess the Nook color would be the better choice if you read a lot of color publications. I read mostly B&W books. Too bad about not being able to purchase a Nook in England. Maybe you can have someone in the States buy if for you. There are other places you could buy and sideload books from. I'm a Vet also. I did 3 years in the Marines 1973-1976.

[repods]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

Hobbies and cost effectiveness - interesting and kind of a new thought...
And by the way: I spend way more on eBooks than on my readers. I guess it's about 5 to 10 times as much.
I've bought about 300 to 500 eBooks of most formats.
Does it make sense? Probably not, I could lend them from the library for free.
But as I've said before: Collecting gadgets of any kind still is cheaper than what many spend on their car for example.

And just a thought: I hate audiobooks. I'd certainly hate someone reading to me as well. ;-)

you should lend them here for free , or better on rapidshare..

[John F]

Come on mgmueller, I'm waiting for your reviews of the Nook Touch and Onyx Boox M90.

[JerseyBiker]

Originally Posted by John F

Come on mgmueller, I'm waiting for your reviews of the Nook Touch and Onyx Boox M90.

And the Kobo Touch.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by TheArtfulDodger

I am a US Citizen, served my country for 28 years, yet because I live in England I am not allowed to purchase a Nook nor would I be allowed to purchase books if I were to get a Nook!
[. . .]
Sparky

I'm not sure what serving your country has to do with whether or not you can buy a Nook, but, if someone was STILL serving their country and had an APO/FPO address, could they buy one? Is that still considered a US address? If so maybe you need to find some comrade in arms?

Hey, I was a Sparky, too!

ApK
IT2, USNR, '99-'07

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by JerseyBiker

And the Kobo Touch.

Sorry, I won't add any of those.
Added Motorola Xoom 2 days ago. Next will be RIM Playbook, then Galaxy Tab 10.1.
More into tablets now...
Anxiously waiting for the Amazon unit...

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

Added Motorola Xoom 2 days ago.

Nice... I have lusted over that device at Best Buy a few times. I had wanted an iPad but now that I have an Android phone and enjoy it I might consider it. Can't wait for your review. My only bummer is that it can't run GoodReader. But I expect that there are some PDF reading apps for the Xoom.

BOb

[JerseyBiker]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

Sorry, I won't add any of those.
Added Motorola Xoom 2 days ago. Next will be RIM Playbook, then Galaxy Tab 10.1.
More into tablets now...
Anxiously waiting for the Amazon unit...

awwwww, too bad. I was looking forward to your opinion of the Kobo Touch since I'm considering it. Take care.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

My only bummer is that it can't run GoodReader. But I expect that there are some PDF reading apps for the Xoom.

Check out ezPDF. It might not quite be Goodreader, but it's pretty darn good.

[mgmueller]

The chinscratch says it all.
I've read lots of (extremely) negative reviews about Xoom:
Washed out display, Android 3.0 not quite there yet, bad battery duration, ...
I saw it in German Telekom 3 weeks ago and have been positively surprised.
I didn't have time then, so I bought it a few days ago.
Initial reaction when booting it for the first time:
OMG, what kind of crap did I buy?
It actually asks: "Which language do you want to have? German?".
That's it. Just German.
I'm German, so of course I perfectly could work it. But on one hand I simply find it arrogant and stupid to assume, every buyer in Germany exclusively speaks German (a friend of mine for example always uses French, his native tongue). And on the other hand I simply want to have the freedom to choose.
Most of the apps are English. Personally, I want to have a "consistent" look and feel, so I go for an English OS as well. For all my notebooks, tablets, readers, ...
I sent an Email to Motorola Germany, whether that's really the only option. They've answered within 10 minutes (!!!): "For now, that's it. But there will be an update".
In a user forum I found a tip: The app "More Locale" solves the issue, I've activated English (or could choose tons of other languages). Strange enough: All the languages seem to be available in the ROM already (the app only has some k, so I can't imagine it actually adds any languages), you just can't activate them per se.
Anyway, from a bad and disturbing start, to my experience after 3 days on the road (business trip with iPad 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab (7"), Motorola Xoom and Kindle DX Graphite):

Form factor:
I absolutely love it. I clearly prefer the 16:9 (or whatever it exactly may be) of Xoom to the 4:3 (or whatever it exactly may be) of iPad 2.
Did love my Sony 900 before because of that.
I simply find, the portrait oriented unit fits way better in a single hand to hold. It simply feels more comfortable and seems less heavy.

Display quality:
Spontaneous reaction of a friend: "Wow, it really looks dull. 'Washed out' perfectly describes it. iPad and Tab seem way brighter". I've increased the brightness then and I'm absolutely fine with it. Actually, the text even seems a bit more crisp to me than on iPad2 (although I didn't compare 1:1 yet).

Battery duration:
My Galaxy Tab was "dead" this morning with about same usage as Motorola (still about 30%). So standby (I didn't use them that much, most of the time they simply had been in standby) seems really good on Motorola Xoom.
After a few days, of course I can't really tell yet.
But my gut feeling says, it's close enough to iPad. Not quite there, but it clearly seems above average.

Build quality:
It's no iPad, but it's close enough. I'd say, it's one of the more aesthetic and well built units.

Ergonomics:
I've read, the on/off-button on the back are none-ergonomic and stupid. I don't have any problems at all with it, I easily find it even in the dark.

Cover:
I've tested the "Gel" cover (Kind of TPU/silicone) and hated it. I don't like the touch of it. And it's way more "stiff" than silicone. And actually the one I've tested already was broken. Maybe that's the idea: Taking the impact of a crash and breaking. It may be a great protection, but it feels "inconvenient", doesn't stretch that easily and it "stinks".
I've bought the plastic cover. Almost as bad. If the designer's task was "build a bulky and extremely ugly cover. Make it inconvenient to use and simply do everything wrong", he did a great job. It's probably a great protection, bulky as it is. But it's stiff and can't be folded back. I'll check Amazon for a silicone alternative still this afternoon.

Honeycomb:
I haven't tested that much apps or features yet.
Great news first: "Spare Parts" works as well as on Galaxy Tab. So far, all apps perfectly zoomed to full screen.
Actually, I didn't have problems with Android 2.2, never understood "it's just for phones, not for tablets". So I don't see the huge advantage of Honeycomb (3.0) yet. But I certainly don't have any real complaints so far.
Although I have to say: iOS (still) seems more polished.

Responsiveness:
So far, it seems as speedy as iPad. Lags, as I've experienced them sometimes on Dell Streak or Samsung Galaxy Tab, didn't occur so far.

Apps:
Lots of apps, which I've installed on Galaxy Tab and Dell Streak, are missing. I have to do some research, whether they're not working on Honeycomb, missing specifically for Xoom or what may be the reason.
It has been described lots of times before: iTunes is more organised and simply has more apps per category. But Android is getting closer. And most of the times the difference is just "5 alternative apps on Android for the very same task" vs. "8 alternative apps on iOS". Usually, you'll find plenty of apps for both plattforms.

Over all experience:
It's close enough. Motorola Xoom certainly is not a failure. And Honeycomb (and even Android 2.2 before) works well enough, to take a look at the coming units like Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1.
But frankly, my ranking still is: iPad 2, then the rest.
Within the rest, Motorola Xoom definitely is in the top 30%.
The only real advantage of Xoom over iPad for me is 16:9 aspect ratio of the display, which I simply prefer.

Anything else you'd like to know?

BTW: I did a little demo for some newbies. Biggest "Wow factor" of the units I've had with me = Screen savers on Kindle DX Graphite: "Wow, that black really is dark, just like real paper".

EDIT:
For now, I've got problems to find the usual apps.
The MyMarket app isn't working, so are the other "usual tricks".
I even didn't find the nook app at first. So I used the .apk file from my Samsung Galaxy Tab and then have been able to update.
It seems, Motorola Xoom (or is it Honeycomb?) way more carefully tracks your location and only allows access to the apps approved for your respective region...

EDIT #2:
Honeycomb (or is it partially Motorola Xoom?) really is growing on me.
I still miss lots of apps. But it's already more fun to toy around than iPad 2. This doesn't come as a surprise. iPad 2 is great "as is", but you simply can't modify very much...

EDIT #3:
Re. languages (for Germany only German): Same applies for Acer Iconia. So I guess, it's not a Xoom problem, but seems to be related to Honeycomb.
Again, it can be solved with the app "more locale". Still, really annoying...

[pilotbob]

thanks... nicely done. But im in no hurry.

Oh, the HP Tablet thing just came out, did you get your order in yet?

Originally Posted by mgmueller

If the designer's task was "build a bulky and extremely ugly cover. Make it inconvenient to use and simply do everything wrong", he did a great job.

BOb

[Edy]

Dear mgmueller,

I just wanted to say how I love your reviews of all your gadgets. It's nice that you expand to tablets as well.

I have an iPad2 and when I was in the US in April, I bought a Playbook. I use Blackberry e-mail for my work and the Playbook is a nice companion to my Blackberry. I can read better attachments on it.

I was holding in my hands a Motorola Xoom at Best Buy, actuallly I went there with the intention to buy it, but my first impression was not so good.It covers a bit your first impression.

I have definitely on my shopping list a honeycomb tablet. I'm looking for a tablet, which can upgraded easily and is not bound to vendor upgrades.

Greeetings from Switzerland (not so far away)
Edy

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by Edy

Dear mgmueller,
I have an iPad2 and when I was in the US in April, I bought a Playbook. I use Blackberry e-mail for my work and the Playbook is a nice companion to my Blackberry. I can read better attachments on it.
Edy

Playbook definitely is on my list, although most reviews are about as negative as for Motorola Xoom.
Is the build quality as great as it looks on the pictures? It really seems elegant and "valuable".
Unfortunately, in my opinion, one simply can't rely on the tests for tablets. They have too many options and allow for too many hacks, to be tested by none-users. Often I read tests about units I just bought and simply say to myself: "Did they actually use it? Did they try to simulate a real user experience?".
Unfortunately, with this kind of testing, only Apple will have good reviews: It's a very rigid ecosystem. But it definitely is easy to use.
And that's exactly what I describe my friends:
"For my mother, I definitely would choose iPad. Android tablets allow for features such as moving files, but they mainly are fun to use for kind of 'power users'"...

[mgmueller]

Initial reaction after unboxing: WOW! Phantastic.
Clearly one of the most compelling and fascinating gadgets for years.
They made all the details right:
- It feels, as if it's in a silicon cover: The edges and the back are perfectly protected by what feels as an additional silicon layer.
- It's very thin. Way thinner than Samsung Galaxy Tab (7"). Similar to iPad2.
- It's beautiful. I like it better than iPad2, don't like the curvy edges of iPad2, whereas BlackBerry PlayBook reminds of iPhone4.
- The OS has, what I've missed on Motorola Xoom: Germany (German) or Germany (English). As most of the apps are in English, I want to have an English OS/UI as well, to have a somewhat consistent look and feel. So, although I live in Germany (and am German), I don't necessarily want to go for German.
- The OS is extremely responsive and has tons of nice features. Most of you probably already read about it: The bezel is touch-responsive as well. By swiping up from the bezel, you enter the home screen. By swiping down from the bezel, you enter the app's menu.
- Real Multitasking. Very cleverly done. By swiping to the home screen, you see all active apps. By swiping left or right from the bezel, you directly can switch apps.
- Surprisingly good sound. Powerful and well balanced sounding speakers. I always found the single speaker on iPad a significant weakness.
- Phantastic display, extremely vivid colors. Extremely good codecs, it seems. I can play some movies, Samsung Galaxy Tab and Dell Streak had been struggling with.

But there's an obvious downside (bigger than I'd expected):
Almost no 3rd party apps.
No Kindle app. No Google Maps (Bing Maps instead, which is okay). No Zinio app. No Navigon app...
I've installed about 8 additional apps. In comparison, I've got 2.190 iOS apps in iTunes!

For now, it by far is my most favorite gadget [after 5 hours of usage ].
Question is: Will I miss all those apps as soon as the "new factor" is gone?
It certainly is limited in its capabilities by lacking lots of apps.

BTW: I can't make the BlackBerry Desktop software work. Neither on iMac, nor in my "Parallels Desktop" windows instance. May be a Mac issue.
For now, I go via DropBox syncing...
EDIT: Suddenly it's working. I still can't use the BlackBerry Desktop software, but now PlayBook is accessible as a USB drive. No idea why it's going now...

But even considering the obvious absence of apps, it is absolutely stunning.
Just based on the hardware, it beats them all: iPad2, Motorola Xoom, Dell Streak (5"), Samsung Galaxy Tab (7").