Nook getting some competition @ low cost Tablet - 7" Galaxy???

[AnimaTechnica]

i've seen this phrased used in a couple of places when talking about non honeycomb tablets and frankly i am not quite sure i understand what it is
from my usage, i seem to be able to do what i want with my nook, there are a ton of apps to help with customization and tailor the nook to suit my needs - be it the launcher, the layout etc.. and certainly i have not yet encountered a show stopper (certainly not worth $50 or $250 price difference vs other tablets) so what does a 'real tablet OS' bring to the table that i am missing here? i know it might be a case of me not experiencing the ipad for months like i have with the nook (i've played with ipad 1 and 2 for a few hours only)

the lack of a real tablet OS.

 

[victle]

I don't see the Galaxy tab wifi has GPS, I think only 3G tab has one. We'll know when it is out in the store.

Sent from my NookColor

 

[durendel]

http://www.androidtablets.net/forum/members/animatechnica.htmlAnimaTechnica

I'm thinking in terms of the ideal OS for a tablet not limited to iOS for the I-Pad and things like not needing the launcher where it seems like a shell environment. How about a multi-user ability where each person has a log in with a customized interface and privileges. Minor things like the icons are so small I'd like the ability to increase the size of them or the ability to switch to landscape mode for the launcher. How about some file management like deleting files and copying between the internal flash and the SD card?

 

[J515OP]

AnimaTechnica

I'm thinking in terms of the ideal OS for a tablet not limited to iOS for the I-Pad and things like not needing the launcher where it seems like a shell environment. How about a multi-user ability where each person has a log in with a customized interface and privileges. Minor things like the icons are so small I'd like the ability to increase the size of them or the ability to switch to landscape mode for the launcher. How about some file management like deleting files and copying between the internal flash and the SD card?

Well now you are getting into the real debate of tablet vs computer and how OSes should be used. You are in the camp that believes tablets should have pc like functions but there is a whole other camp out that that feels that tablets should shift that paradigm and move away from those sorts of features entirely, i.e. file management folder sturcture, multi user support desktop enviornment manipulation (in the sense of having windows).

A launcher is just a tool to bring a set of features to you in a package, allowing users to pick a launcher with features and looks they perfer without having to create a custom layout from scratch. Icons can be resized (to some extent). You can choose landscape mode in most launchers by going to the settings and allowing home screen rotation. File mangement is also available via apps which allow deleting, copying and moving files between internal and external.

Honestly I am not sure that any of the features you are looking for are missing other than multi-user. This can also be accomplished by allowing each user to have their own home launcher (although it is sort of a poor man's way to do it) which would allow them to keep their own home screen layouts. You could even set up certain home screens for each user since multiple home screens are allowed. So you could have two home screens set the way you like and your wife could have two set the way she likes. I think the idea currently behind tablets is that they are unique to each user like a phone rather than shared like a desktop (at least the manufactures want that so they can sell more units).

 

[durendel]

Yeah I know it takes a bit of work but I'd like to see these features tied into the OS rather than as an add-on. It takes a bit of extra time, for me at least, time is not a luxury I have.

 

[scott9050]

I have Ultimate Droid 3.2.5 on my Nook and could not be happier. I don't need added features like camera and GPS (have Droid X for that) or other advanced features (have 3 laptops and two desktops). I bought it for portability and decent screen size and it works well for the tasks I use it for.

 

[rokky]

Yeah I know it takes a bit of work but I'd like to see these features tied into the OS rather than as an add-on. It takes a bit of extra time, for me at least, time is not a luxury I have.

Really sounding like you should be looking at tablet type netbooks. With Win7 or some of the Netbook desktop Linux distros (my preference - underlying OS for Android after all). Ubuntu's 11.04 Unity Desktop Environment (DE) is getting some positive reviews (and negatives by those who do not like the interface - YMMV ), and is due out by the end of this month. There are also some other Linux distro options along these lines like Meego, and those that support KDE have a netbook option, also (as I understand it - have not checked it out yet). All those features you want, but do not want to spend time on, are there, and not any kind of force fit as they could be with Android.

FWIW

 

[AnimaTechnica]

it is a mater of preference them - i love my desktop and notebooks which operate under a 'shell like environment' however for a tablet i refer the one press and it launches approach - i look at it as a fast/quick access to email, web browsing, mini apps etc.. having a layered environment would i think detract from my tablet experience. i do like a fast task switching capability however and one of my peeves is on some apps, ererytime you launch the app, it starts over from beginning (pulse is a good example) rather than remembering where you were prior to switching tasks

http://www.androidtablets.net/forum/members/animatechnica.htmlAnimaTechnica

I'm thinking in terms of the ideal OS for a tablet not limited to iOS for the I-Pad and things like not needing the launcher where it seems like a shell environment. How about a multi-user ability where each person has a log in with a customized interface and privileges. Minor things like the icons are so small I'd like the ability to increase the size of them or the ability to switch to landscape mode for the launcher. How about some file management like deleting files and copying between the internal flash and the SD card?