Since before Thanksgiving I have been slowing giving into the idea of getting a tablet. I have looked at all the major brands of tablets and eReaders. I have been trying to imagine how often I would use it. I watch how other people would use their tablets.
While attending a local trade show I noticed a large majority of the vendors were using iPads. There were only a few who had other tablets. Several business friends and associates now have tablets. They all seem to be using them successfully.
I really started to give this tablet thing more serious thought when I was at a luncheon. I was asked, unexpectedly, to read something that I had wrote. All I had on me was my cell phone. I pulled up Evernote on my cell phone. The text was so small I had to almost put my nose up to the screen to read it.
I still don’t like the $400 to $600 price tag. When I looked at the Barnes and Noble Nook along with the Kindle Fire my interest got sparked. I began to look at these two quite seriously. I do like their price point along with their functionality.
It was at that point where I started to make a list of what makes a table a practical tool for me. I don’t want to invest in any tablet unless I am going to use it. I list four thing I needed it to do.
- Type text to Google Docs and Evernote
- Send and receive email
- Surf the internet through a web browser
- Read PDF’s and eBooks
I research all the tablets and the high end eBook Readers for a practical solution. I needed to narrow down my best options. I did not want to spend more money than was necessary. So I started eliminating features I did not need.
- I did not need a camera, because I had already had a good camera on my phone.
- I was not going to need a lot of memory. Most of my work is stored on the cloud.
- Watching movies like from Netflix was going to be a waste.
Finally, there were two. The two which stood out were high end eReaders. The Kindle Fire for a price of $200 along with all of Amazon store looked inviting. Then there is Barnes and Noble Nook for $250 before taxes. The Nook is supported by the Barnes and Noble ecological system.
At this point I stopped myself. Why? I would not just be buying the tablet/eReader. I would also have to buy a carrying case, and screen protector, and maybe an SD card for extra memory. This would definitely add to the price.
Amazon sells for the Kindle Fire a nice hard case when flipped turns it into a stand. It sells for the $29 plus tax. Amazon.com also sells for the Nook Tablet case for $29.95. The two cases are very similar.
Oh yes, for any touch screen device there is a need for screen protectors. The screen protectors for either device runs about $4 each.
This bring the out of door cost to $235 plus tax for the Kindle Fire. The Nook would be another $50 at $285 plus tax.
The big difference between the two is amount of memory and processor. Here is where the Nook has the clear advantage. The question to ask is the dual core processor and extra memory worth the extra $50.
I thought it was interesting over at Geeks.com a side by side comparison between the Kindle Fire, the Nook and iPad2. This comparison stood out in my mind. It is simple, basic as well as highlighting the important stuff.
