exhange the Nook for Cruz

[nyartist]

Well, my good intentions: that is to surprise my girlfriend with the Nook as she's been reading at night in bed with an IPhone - a with backlighting.
The Nook does not have that and she prefers that capability so what do people think about the Cruz as an alternative? I suppose it can download from the public libraries as the Nook could, but I think it also has the backlighting she so loves. Any impressions of the Cruz???

[soondai]

I have a Pandigital Novel, which is the same hardware, and that is exactly what I use it for every night. I love it, but the screen resolution isn't that great. Not a problem for me at all, but I know some people are pickier than others.

I tend to just read in night mode whether it's night or day, setting the text to gray on a back blackground.

I recommend you let her check one out at a store or make sure you can return it, just in case.

[boswd]

if your budget allows get her the nook color. the hardware and software are head and shoulders above the Velocity cruz.

the screen is amazing, it will offer alot more ereader UI features and functionallity.

[peitsao]

Nook Color has the highest resolution of the color droid tablets, and there is a new update coming soon with added features, or you could jailbreak it. I like it most as I read at night. Eye strain is no worse for me than on Kindle, which I didn't expect since I had eye strain problems on Kindle.

[RainingLemur]

Originally Posted by boswd

if your budget allows get her the nook color. the hardware and software are head and shoulders above the Velocity cruz.

the screen is amazing, it will offer alot more ereader UI features and functionallity.

I was pretty much going to say the same thing as this.

If you can, go with the Color. You wouldn't be sorry, and neither would she.

[agarner]

Originally Posted by RainingLemur

I was pretty much going to say the same thing as this.

If you can, go with the Color. You wouldn't be sorry, and neither would she.

We owned a Cruz Ebook, after 3 month we had to return it. It started to lockup on us and we either had to reset it or pull the battery and replug it in. When we returned it to Borders they were very nice on giving us our money back. It seems quite a few people before us had been returning it to them.
We then bought a Nook Color and my wife who does all her reading at night in bed absolutely loves it. She said the Nook Color vs Cruz was like a Mercedez vs an Escort.
Also I read that in the middle of April this year Nook Color is upgrading to Android 2.2 Froyo which will make the Nook Color more of a tablet with better power management, faster wifi downloading and more app's to use.

Alan

[Lemurion]

I tried out the Cruz in our local Borders before it closed, and I really wasn't impressed. Like many others I ended up getting a Nook Color (which I've since rooted) and I love it.

As others have said, it's the screen that makes the difference - it's a higher resolution better quality panel, and since you're going to spend all your time looking at it, that's a very important factor. It's also capacitive - which is much smoother and more responsive than the resistive screen on the Cruz reader.

[tubemonkey]

Nook Color - it's the best Android tablet for the money.

[tazangel52]

I had Nook that my daughter gave me(she bought herself a Nook Color) and after the screen cracked I bought myself a Cruz ereader. I mainly got it because of being able to read it at night in bed but also because it has a decent browser so my husband can use it when we go up to wifi (dont have internet at home) Unfortunately you cant read the Cruz outside very well especially when its sunny, there is a glare. One would have to hood it or something to hide the glare. At any rate the Cruz is pretty good. I was able to get mine at Borders for $115 a few months back. Hope that helps.

[tazangel52]

There are some of us that just can not afford to go out a get a Nook Color. I did buy a Cruz and so far its pretty good. Although the browser locks up sometimes and we have to shut it down and turn it back on again and you cant read it in the sun. but mostly I use it for reading in bed so its great. It will do until I can afford to buy myself a Nook Color.

[lotrfan]

I would also go for the Nook color however if it is too pricy then consider the Pandigital Novel. The Cruz reader and the Pandigital Novel are essentially identical in hardware yet the Novel beats the Cruz by having 256k extra internal storage for apps and expandable internal memory (the Cruz has a fixed 2gb internal memory where the Novel has only 1gb internal but it can be replaced for up to 32gb micro sd card. Plus there are plenty of mods available for it at Slatedroid.com.

I have the PDN and love it. The resistive screen may be turn off some people but I find it responsive enough. In any case as I said the Cruz is pretty much identical so same resistive screen.

Edit: BTW the PDN that is similar to the Cruz is the white 7in color reader not the black one. The black Novel uses completely different hardware and it is actually inferior.

[WillysJeepMan]

Originally Posted by lotrfan

I would also go for the Nook color however if it is too pricy then consider the Pandigital Novel. The Cruz reader and the Pandigital Novel are essentially identical in hardware yet the Novel beats the Cruz by having 256k extra RAM and expandable internal memory (the Cruz has a fixed 2gb internal memory where the Novel has only 1gb internal but it can be replaced for up to 32gb micro sd card. Plus there are plenty of mods available for it at Slatedroid.com.

I have the PDN and love it. The resistive screen may be turn off some people but I find it responsive enough. In any case as I said the Cruz is pretty much identical so same resistive screen.

Edit: BTW the PDN that is similar to the Cruz is the white 7in color reader not the black one. The black Novel uses completely different hardware and it is actually inferior.

The WPDN screen is pretty poor...it might rise to the level of "adequate" but only if one can find the WPDN for no more than $75. The Cruz Reader may have less RAM and less storage, but the screen is noticeably better.

I have had a lot of interaction with WPDN devices as I helped friends and family acquire a WPDN for $60 at Kohls and helped them set up their devices as tablets.

I could never recommend the WPDN for the current retail price of $150-$170. Spend the extra $50-$100 and get a nook color. What you're getting for the extra cost is definitely worth it. The performance and functionality of a simply rooted nook color (no custom firmware, just "unlocking" the underly version of Android and adding the Google experience apps) makes it on par with polished tablets selling for more than twice the price of the nook color.

[lotrfan]

Originally Posted by WillysJeepMan

The WPDN screen is pretty poor...it might rise to the level of "adequate" but only if one can find the WPDN for no more than $75. The Cruz Reader may have less RAM and less storage, but the screen is noticeably better.

Really? What I said before is what has been said at Slatedroid which basically says they are almost identical in hardware specs. So I would have expected the screens to have identical performance. Not having used the Cruz I can't say anything further in that regard. In my opinion though the screen of the PDN is great. In what regards do think it is poor?

[taosaur]

I'm researching android devices to serve primarily as an e-reader and audio player, and I am considering the Nook Color, but the Coby Kryos MID7024 is looking pretty good too, at $165 on Amazon. The Nook has a capacitive touch screen and +4GB storage (8GB total), but the Coby might be a more justifiable expense for the OP's (and my) purposes.

[WillysJeepMan]

Originally Posted by lotrfan

Really? What I said before is what has been said at Slatedroid which basically says they are almost identical in hardware specs. So I would have expected the screens to have identical performance. Not having used the Cruz I can't say anything further in that regard. In my opinion though the screen of the PDN is great. In what regards do think it is poor?

You are certainly entitled to your opinion and it was not my intention to convince you to change it.

As for why the WPDN's screen is poor... color saturation and contrast IMO are inferior for a device that retails for $170. pixel density is at an adequate level. I am familiar with the differences between resistive and capacitive touchscreens (having owned Fujitsu resistive tablets in the past) but there is a lot of play/slop in the layers of the WPDN screens. Viewing angle also suffers.

Again, it is quite adequate for a device selling for $60... but for $150-$170? no way.

Originally Posted by taosaur

I'm researching android devices to serve primarily as an e-reader and audio player, and I am considering the Nook Color, but the Coby Kryos MID7024 is looking pretty good too, at $165 on Amazon. The Nook has a capacitive touch screen and +4GB storage (8GB total), but the Coby might be a more justifiable expense for the OP's (and my) purposes.

Perhaps. At this point in time, there isn't a seamless spectrum of Android tablets. There seems to be a few basic tiers. Spending a little bit more gains you significantly more in terms of build quality and functionality. The quality/functional difference between the Coby/Pandigital/Sylvania that retails for (about) $170 and something like the nook color ($200-250) is greater than the price difference seems to indicate.

IMO, I can't see how anyone other than "price is the top priority" would chose those other devices over a nook color.