My New “Kindle” Device

Since this has come up once or twice previously, I thought I would share what I did with the Kindle device (as soon as it stops depressing me, I’ll talk politics, I swear). I got my wife a standard Kindle, but I’ve been using it more than she has. This is mostly a product of her work schedule. She does plan to use it, and when she does, I wouldn’t be able to use it anymore. Obviously, a solution was in order. The problem is that I didn’t just want to read books, but also comic books. And, come to think of it, watching videos would be nice. Besides, I don’t need the e-ink. I looked at the Kindle Fire, but was underwhelmed by its specs. That got me thinking about getting a used tablet. That would at least let me know if I would use it. If I used it a lot, or if I wanted something more particular, maybe I’d get another somewhere down the line and put this one to secondary use. The beauty of buying used is that you can do that sort of thing.

I settled on the Samsung Galaxy Tab. The seven inch version, because I wanted to try small first. It was $185 on eBay and came in arrived in good shape (word to the wise: if you buy used, get something that has had a screen protector on it). It came with a 32GB memory card and a car mount (which I can’t imagine using), though it did not come with documentation. It also had rubber casing, though I replaced that with a full-on cover.

In short: I love it. I loved it so much that I decided to take the plunge and get Android phones. Just as I would rather get a used ThinkPad over a new Dell, I think it’s a much better value than a new Kindle Fire. At least for my purposes. It does have Kindle on it and the Kindle software is more than adequate. Google is pushing for its own book ecosystem on there, though I am likely going to stick with Kindle. Samsung Galaxy products can view Divx files right out of the box (no software encoding required). I did not opt for the data plan, though it is compatible with my cell carrier (Verizon).

So if you’re looking for an e-reader, but want more than an e-reader, I can recommend going the route that I did. You may be concerned about buying used, but I’ve had good luck with it. I typically get smartphones used and, though they’re not flawless, I’m not willing to pay twice the price for flawless.