I'm looking at getting purchasing my school books through amazon's kindle service. I can then install the kindle app on a tablet and use it. What I'm worried about is long term reading. Does anyone here have experience with eye strain while reading on a tablet? Any other input?
I gave a Kindle Fire to my GF for Christmas, and she loves it! Sure, it can't access the Android Market, but the Amazon Appstore is not bad. It still does Netflix and FB just fine, and its browser is decent. Also, 7" is just right (queue the "that's what she said" jokes). For $199, it's a steal! You can also look into the nook from B&N or a full-featured Android tablet.
Just buy a Kindle Fire and root it. Also, the e-ink readers are obviously easiest on the eyes since they're just like reading paper. Anything back-lit will cause eye strain, especially if you use it in low light.
I purchased one of my texts on Kindle and read it via the app on my iPad, no issue with strain as I used it as a textbook basically, in fully lit environments. One thing you might want to consider, not sure how easy it is to search for stuff in text on the Fire but with the iPad app it was pretty easy especially on the 9/10" screen.
BUMP! So, for those that have used them, how's the virtual keyboard on the 7" Kindle screen? I would use mine for browsing and light word processing, and one of the reviews I read said it was kinda cramped. But I really like the size, so I can slip it in my pocket. Currently debating between: Kindle Fire 7" - ($199) Samsung Galaxy 8.9" - ($349) Samsung Galaxy 10.1" - ($399) Toshiba Thrive 10.1" - ($399) EDIT: And the long shot: iPad 2 16GB - ($429)
i just got the kindle last night, for what it does its pretty awesome, im going to root it to ics though tonight so that i can play CBT videos on it
Take the plunge into a Galaxy Note? 5.3" phablet. My mother-in-law picked up a Kindle Fire in New Orleans when she was down that way earlier this month. I got to play with it. Pretty nice for what it could do. And she got a $50 walmart gift card along with it. So it ended up costing $149 (if you look at it like that). Not to shabby. And the keyboard was fine. Although I'm not a big fan of stock. Swiftkey FTW. Don't know if it works on stock Kindle Fire OS though.
The Apple Slut in me says go for the iPad, however, you really should get a non-Kindle tablet. I think you're going to regret the interface Amazon uses if you're not using it primarily for reading or buying stuff off of Amazon (which is what it was designed for).
LOL Apple Slut. If you get the kindle, there's a community out there creating custom ROMs, so you could get ICS on it, or a different launcher. Or at least root it.
The appeal of the Kindle is: a) price, and b) Prime content. I'm already a Prime member so I would literally get all those movies and books and TV shows for free. Plus as MasterB said rooting it is easy and thus far Amazon doesn't seem to be actively thwarting those efforts.
If you're primarily looking to read (and for long periods) I would consider the massive difference in battery life. One would last maybe a day, the other, months. I can't tell you how nice it is not to have to plug yet another thing in at the end of every day.
I'm not much of a reader, it would be a tertiary feature. And thanks to my short attention span for short periods. Anyway, I'll have my hands on a Kindle Fire to play with after work. My wife ordered one to replace her first gen Kindle, so I get to do an extended trial of it before I buy for myself.
OK, so initial opinion of the Fire: Pros Price! Solid feel, just the right size to fit in your hand/pocket Amazon interface is polished Nice screen Free Amazon Prime content is awesome Cons Small, typing is cramped in portrait mode Doesn't appear to be quite as responsive as the Thrive, iPad, or Galaxy No camera, front or back So frankly I still don't know what I'm going to buy. As nice/cheap as it is, I found myself reaching for my netbook to type and edit photos. I'm going to stick with it though, as some of that is just the learning curve and getting things set up. If I had to wager right now I'll likely buy a larger tablet, the Galaxy or Thrive.
The iPad 3 is confirmed for launch on March 7th. If you wait I'll bet you can score an iPad 2 for pretty cheap. http://osxdaily.com/2012/02/28/ipad-3-launch-date-march-7/
Probably not. That's the problem with Apple and it's products...they're like the honda/toyota/nissan of tablets/phones. The freakin' things retain their value quite well...so you might get a USED iSoulstone for only slightly less than what it originally went for new.
Sooo tempting. But I generally avoid the refurbs just because of the abbreviated warranty period. In regards to iPad 3, what's the rumor mill been saying about new features?
Confirmed features: Retina Display as on the iPhone 4/4S Quad Core CPU 4G LTE Rumored: (possibly thinner and no physical home button)
Well, been toying with the Kindle and the Lenovo A1. I think I can live with the 7" screen, but I really want the cameras so I think the Kindle is out. Not going to buy anything until the Apple announcement on Wednesday. iPad 3 (or 2S or whatever) will almost certainly have Suri, and that's kinda a big deal. Plus there's rumors of another price cut to fend off the Kindle and Nook.
Retina display, and a better camera. No Siri... <yawn> Bright news for me is that this will be the current iPads should drop in price to clear them out. http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/07/tech/mobile/ipad-3-announcement/index.html?hpt=hp_t1
