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Nook Color - With Android Thoughts from iPad users...

D

dylanursula

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 27, 2010
313
1
All,

So I have been a long time iPhone user and considering buying the iPad2 tomorrow, however just saw a friend with the Nook Color with the Honeycomb hack. Looked interesting, but wanted to see if anyone else had any opinions on it... I know this is a iPad forum but wanted to see everyone's thoughts especially given the $250 vs $500 iPad2 price.

Thanks in advance
Dylan
 
If you want an inexpensive tablet then it seems a decent way to go. But Honeycomb on the Nook looks far from perfect (though really good). You might be able to swipe up a iPad 1 used for the same price as a new Nook Color if you're lucky.
 
I had a Nook that I was going to use to test Android applications. I didn't try honeycomb on it, but I did root it on 2.1. I felt it just had too much micro-management. Honeycomb probably improves some of it (Like having to use an app to kill other apps to get memory back...)

The thing is, Honeycomb is already being called buggy on the Xoom, and you are running an unstable port on the Nook Color.

If you just want to browse the web and play angry birds it may be a decent idea.

Also, on mine the corners of the screen seemed to be less touch sensitive. I had to press harder to get buttons to activate than the iPad which feels strange on a glass screen, plus overall Android is a bit more sluggish which ends up making you try to press buttons multiple times when it doesn't respond.

One more thing to note, if you want to do any small amount of typing I don't recommend it. The 7 inch widescreen display leaves the landscape keyboard too long to use thumbs, but too short to use two hands. On iPad I can type a decent 30 WPM with the onscreen keyboard, so that is another factor.
 
I've been stewing over this same decision for a few months now (in anticipation of possibly getting an ipad2). I have decided to go with the Nook Color and put a stable Gingerbread or Honeycomb OS on it. My primary use is reading books, and I think the Nook has a better form factor for book reading and portability. But since I have at least a little tech know-how, putting a modified OS on it opens it up to do almost everything that I would likely do on an ipad.

+1 Nook Color
 
jclardy said:
I had a Nook that I was going to use to test Android applications. I didn't try honeycomb on it, but I did root it on 2.1. I felt it just had too much micro-management. Honeycomb probably improves some of it (Like having to use an app to kill other apps to get memory back...)

The thing is, Honeycomb is already being called buggy on the Xoom, and you are running an unstable port on the Nook Color.

If you just want to browse the web and play angry birds it may be a decent idea.

Also, on mine the corners of the screen seemed to be less touch sensitive. I had to press harder to get buttons to activate than the iPad which feels strange on a glass screen, plus overall Android is a bit more sluggish which ends up making you try to press buttons multiple times when it doesn't respond.

One more thing to note, if you want to do any small amount of typing I don't recommend it. The 7 inch widescreen display leaves the landscape keyboard too long to use thumbs, but too short to use two hands. On iPad I can type a decent 30 WPM with the onscreen keyboard, so that is another factor.
Click to expand...

Thumb Keyboard is awesome for typing on the nook

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=936539



The Nook Color is a great bang-for-the-buck tablet which is being developed quite heavily over xda. Things are being added and tweaked everyday. It's quite amazing actually. With B&N finally releasing the Froyo update soon, the devs will have even more resources (drivers, etc) to build upon.
 
Roessnakhan said:
If you want an inexpensive tablet then it seems a decent way to go. But Honeycomb on the Nook looks far from perfect (though really good). You might be able to swipe up a iPad 1 used for the same price as a new Nook Color if you're lucky.
Click to expand...

The Nook doesn't actually have a usable Honeycomb build at all because Honeycomb hasn't been released to the public. The build being run on there has been copied over from the Honeycomb emulator in the SDK, so it's horribly broken and slow because it's not optimized for devices.

It's possible that Honeycomb will never come to the Nook at this rate. Google has expressed their intent to keep Honeycomb from being brought to older devices.

Edit: And according to XDA, Honeycomb development on Nook has been pretty much scraped due to Google's opposition.
 
goMac said:
The Nook doesn't actually have a usable Honeycomb build at all because Honeycomb hasn't been released to the public. The build being run on there has been copied over from the Honeycomb emulator in the SDK, so it's horribly broken and slow because it's not optimized for devices.

It's possible that Honeycomb will never come to the Nook at this rate. Google has expressed their intent to keep Honeycomb from being brought to older devices.
Click to expand...

Lets not exaggerate here. It's actually quite surprising how usable it is despite it being based on the simulator build.

Google has expressed it's not in a hurry to release the AOSP yet until its ready (My wild guess is, they've struck a deal with some of the first Honeycomb tablet makers like Motorola to not release it so people buy the Xoom) But once they do, which they've always done with Android, it'll be likely ported for the Nook by the devs at XDA in no time.
 
barryst said:
Lets not exaggerate here. It's actually quite surprising how usable it is despite it being based on the simulator build.
Click to expand...

I've seen Honeycomb on the Nook. It makes my original iPhone look like a speed demon.

barryst said:
Google has expressed it's not in a hurry to release the AOSP yet until its ready (My wild guess is, they've struck a deal with some of the first Honeycomb tablet makers like Motorola to not release it so people buy the Xoom) But once they do, which they've always done with Android, it'll be likely ported for the Nook by the devs at XDA in no time.
Click to expand...

Google has said they will not be releasing the Honeycomb source. Ever.

They will be releasing a new version of phone Android with enhancements from Honeycomb eventually as source (and this build would also be used for tablets), but there is no ETA at all on that. Sounds like it will be a while.
 
goMac said:
I've seen Honeycomb on the Nook. It makes my original iPhone look like a speed demon.

Google has said they will not be releasing the Honeycomb source. Ever.

They will be releasing a new version of phone Android with enhancements from Honeycomb eventually as source (and this build would also be used for tablets), but there is no ETA at all on that. Sounds like it will be a while.
Click to expand...

Google has stated that they will not be releasing Honeycomb until the new "phone source" is merged with the "Honeycomb source". I logical guess an an ETA is some time this summer or fall. So XDA devs have stopped moving the Honeycomb port for Nook Color forward until that source is available. I think they refer to that OS version as "icecream".

Then again, this is all second hand info. I could very well be wrong.

On the other hand, the CyanogenMod "CM7" code based on android "Gingerbread" has been moving forward quickly and now contains tweaks specifically for tablet installations of android 2.3 (gengerbread).

All this version, source, mod, rooting stuff is not for everyone. In that case, a used ipad1 is the winning solution for the budget minded tablet consumer (IMHO).
 
I was the thread starter on the post mentioned above. I ended up rooting my NC a few weeks later rather than running the Honeycomb preview off the SD card. Rooting the stock ROM unlocked the full Android functionality. The NC just wasn't strong enough to run the honeycomb v4 preview. The kids now have an Android tablet to play Angry Birds, Doodle Jump and read books on. After rooting stock, that thing is fast, and no one's using my iPad or Xoom now but me.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
I struggled to decide on the NC or iPad and ended up getting both. Couldn't resist the $199 EBay sale that B&N had last month.

The NC is my daily e-reader and quick email client. I had Honeycomb on it but reverted to the standard OS and I liked the interface better. Very portable, fast, and the screen is beautiful.

The iPad is for my gaming, movies, and Pages.
 
I like my Nook Color's form factor better than my iPad. It's easier to hold and I can use just one hand if needed. The screen is a bit shaper, but both are really good for being a LCD -- the AMOLED screen on my Nexus One is superior to both for colors and viewing angle.

Both were bought for development and of course messing around, which is pretty much the only thing the iPad is good for, as its email app is a joke and browsing on it is just passable and I prefer the NC for color eReading.

I put all my PDFs and all of my full colored software manuals on my NC to get some use out of it, but since I have a Kindle also, I use it for all other types of reading, so reference manuals, etc, as its eInk screen is hands down is the best for text -- I got the leather cover with a light in it also, which makes it readable in all situations.

Anyways, to finish my ramble and on the subject of tablets. The HTC Flyer is the tablet I really want and the only one IMO that looks remotely practical. I just need to know the price of the wifi only model here in the US, so as long as it's reasonable, I'll buy one day one.
 
Both were bought for development and of course messing around, which is pretty much the only thing the iPad is good for, as its email app is a joke and browsing on it is just passable and I prefer the NC for color eReading.
Click to expand...

Why do people insist on implying that their personal opinion is fact? This forum is filled with people who do know, from first hand experience, that the iPad is good for FAR MORE than just messing around with. I do tend to agree with your comment on the email app for my personal needs, but that's why I have a BlackBerry. I'm sure it's fine for others as well.
 
TheWheelMan said:
Why do people insist on implying that their personal opinion is fact? This forum is filled with people who do know, from first hand experience, that the iPad is good for FAR MORE than just messing around with. I do tend to agree with your comment on the email app for my personal needs, but that's why I have a BlackBerry. I'm sure it's fine for others as well.
Click to expand...

People! Maybe I have insight into that, since it was my post that spurred your question. ;)

My iPad outside of development is nothing more than a time killer, as it's no more useful than my Touch. It's plagued by all the same shortcomings that make it just OK for most tasks outside of entertainment, when it shouldn't be given its larger screen. So for what I stated, in my case at least, it is a fact.

But having said that, I should have specified 'MY' iPad, which if you'd like, I will edit my other post accordingly?
 
I definitely prefer my iPad versus my rooted NookColor. There isn't an Android version that was customized for the Nook so it's awfully buggy. Sure I enjoy using it from time to time but I could easily go without it. It has 512MB's of RAM but my iPad feels infinitely quicker. My number one gripe though are the apps. iOS Apps just seem so much smoother compared to those from the Android Market.
 
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