Handheld device to read comics

Zero-Cool

Hi, I'm looking to get a handheld device for reading digital comics. I'm looking to spend about 100 - 150 euro. Something around the size of a kindle but needs colour. Reading through the gadget thread, I hadn't even thought of an Android Tablet as I thought they would be very expensive but one of you posted this one

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Superpad3-Android-Tablet-External-KEYBOARD/dp/B006AOAG36/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1334843128&sr=1-1

Anyone here use an android tablet to read digital comics? Do they get displayed okay?

I'd only really be using it for reading so not really interested in the other specs. My android phone is too small to be reading them.

Thanks for any advice.

Carter P Fly

I use Comic Reader Mobi on my Kindle fire (7 inch andriod tablet) and its great.

Zero-Cool

Are epads any good? Also, I hear hp touchpads are cheap now but I cant find any cheap ones

Zero-Cool

After searching some more, I definitely want to get a HP touchpad as it sounds perfect for what i'm looking for.

Can anyone clear something up for me though, is the HP Touchpad discontinued? I saw Harvey Norman have a HP Touchpad section but only selling accessories for it. I can't seem to find on in any shop, only online where they seem to be expensive seeing as they were being sold for $99 last year.

Then on Amazon, the 16gb version is £362 while the 32gb is £279

longhalloween

sheehy83 wrote: »

After searching some more, I definitely want to get a HP touchpad as it sounds perfect for what i'm looking for.
I can't seem to find on in any shop, only online where they seem to be expensive seeing as they were being sold for $99 last year.

Then on Amazon, the 16gb version is £362 while the 32gb is £279

There's a thread in the Bargain Alerts section dealing with this. General consensus is that you shouldn't pay more than €200 for one.

I took the plunge and bought a Zenithink ZT280 C91 from aliexpress today. Including shipping and a discount coupon I found the whole thing came to €120ish euro.

Seems to have decent reviews everywhere I look.

Zero-Cool

longhalloween wrote: »

I took the plunge and bought a Zenithink ZT280 C91 from aliexpress today. Including shipping and a discount coupon I found the whole thing came to €120ish euro.

Seems to have decent reviews everywhere I look.

That looks excellent man!! I never heard of that shop before but that seems a great price for a 10" capacitive screen. Can I ask where you got the voucher and how much it was? Is it new or 2nd hand?

Looks a bit too good of a deal

longhalloween

sheehy83 wrote: »

That looks excellent man!! I never heard of that shop before but that seems a great price for a 10" capacitive screen. Can I ask where you got the voucher and how much it was? Is it new or 2nd hand?

Looks a bit too good of a deal

http://www.aliexpress.com/product-gs/481576098-Hot-selling-10-2-Zenithink-ZT280-C91-Android-4-0-Tablet-PC-Capacitive-1GB-RAM-Cortex-wholesalers.html

That's the link for the tablet. The seller has good feedback, reviews of the device seem genuine and people on boards have recommended the site on a few threads so I gave it a go.

The code for $10 off is rewardbuyer0416.

The website estimates the delivery at 7-10 days so I'll put a quick review on here when I get it, just so you know if I was sold a lemon or the genuine article

Zero-Cool

Thanks man, best of luck with it!

Great user name btw

Zero-Cool

Feck it, i'm just going order this, looks like a great deal!

Long, what delivery did you use? I see china mail is the default and has delivery of 30+ days where as UPS is an extra 4 quid for 3-5 days. I just don't want to get stung with customs charges.

longhalloween

I went with ups expedited.kinda regretting it now because seems they're strict with customs. But there's a space on the order form for requests so i asked for the package to be marked as a €20 gift. Whether is will be remains to be seen. :-)

Zero-Cool

Ya I was gonna go with UPS Expedited too, just seems to be fluke if UPS decide to take a look inside or not. I'm gonna go for Bundle 4 as well that comes with leather case, screen protector and in-car charger. No need for the car charger but an extra tenner for the leather case and protector seems to be worth it.

Zero-Cool

Just ordered one, can't wait to give it a lash

longhalloween

Mine shipped today. UPS say 3-7 days for delivery. If I'm lucky it might be here by Friday

Zero-Cool

class man, my status is 'order being processed'. I sent them a message about customs and they said they put down that it is an ebook with $50 value to avoid customs.

Let us know when you get it and if it's any good, you should def post it up on bargain alerts.

Zero-Cool

Mine shipped this morning but tracking number isn't showing any info, spose it won't for a few days. Come on customs, be kind!

longhalloween

Got mine today. 2 days from Shenzen to Drogheda ain't bad.
I have it charging now.

Unfortunately the charger I got with it wasn't the right one, but I have an adaptor that does the job perfectly.

Also, I fired it up for a few minutes while it was charging and the screen started to flicker. Did a quick search and came up with this: http://www.androidtablets.net/forum/zenithink-zt280-c91-c91-upgrade/35988-touch-screen-issues-whilst-charging.html

Hopefully this will solve the problem. I'll update this after the tablet is charged.

Zero-Cool

Jaysus that was fast!! Just got my eta a while ago, said I should have it by Tuesday, 1st May. I'm just happy it passed customs.

That flickering sounds mad, glad theres a fix for it.

Can I ask what adaptor you had to fit it? I'd like to have one ready when it arrives.

longhalloween

Yep, I had no problems with customs. 'Ebook reader - Gift' was printed on the packaging.

It takes a 9V,2A charger. I don't know how to decribe the plug, only that it's smaller than my psp charger and larger than an old nokia phone charger
The screen flickering stopped by itself after the first hour and hasn't started again.

I was getting a bit worried because the battery charge levels stuck at 16% for about 3 hours, then moved erratically between 50% and 30% for a while. for example I unplugged it and the battery level display in the corner went from 50% to 16% in about 5 minutes, but hung on 16% for 2 hours, then slowly creeped down to 10%.

I left it charging for the night and when I turned it on this morning it was at 100% charge and everything seems fine

For €120 it does everything I want. I dled adobe reader from the app store then I put a few pdfs and comics on it and they look brilliant. Colours are great, it's nice and fast scrolling through the pages. Web browsing is fast and youtube works well.

There's no markings on it at all, and no barcode on the box so it looks to be a knock-off but aside from the few hiccups yesterday, I'm very happy with it.

@sheehy: Let me know what your impressions of it are when ya get it!

Zero-Cool

Thanks for that man! sounds great!! Mine is in the arab emirates at the moment, should have it by tuesday.

DVD-Lots

sheehy83 wrote: »

Thanks for that man! sounds great!! Mine is in the arab emirates at the moment, should have it by tuesday.

Ordered mine Tuesday night also and it was shipped yesterday, currently sitting in UAE and should have it by Tuesday too so fingers crossed. :P

Zero-Cool

Long, are you using a travel adaptor kind of thing or a different power supply that you had around the house?

Also, what comic reader are you using? I looked up the android market and the most popular one was comic reader 11.99 euro, bit steep.

longhalloween

sheehy83 wrote: »

Long, are you using a travel adaptor kind of thing or a different power supply that you had around the house?

Also, what comic reader are you using? I looked up the android market and the most popular one was comic reader 11.99 euro, bit steep.

Yeah, it's one of those multi-voltage, multi-adaptor types. Cost €12 in power city last year.
It's similar to this one http://www.amazon.com/PowerLine-600mA-Universal-Adapter-Compatibility/dp/B0042X8XNW/ref=pd_sim_sbs_p_1

See the row of adaptors in the pic? The one I'm using at the moment is third from the right.

AFAIK comics can be viewed in adobe reader, but I have this: http://www.appbrain.com/app/a-comic-viewer/net.androidcomics.acv as well

Zero-Cool

Thanks for the links Long, I bought a vistor masterplug adaptor in argos for 7 quid, hope it fits. Just wanted something ready for when it arrives.

http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/9827590/Trail/searchtext%3EMASTERPLUG.htm

ETA is now wednesday instead. DVD, let us know when you get yours as well. One of the lads I know might be buying one as well if mine is any good, these things could be popular!

DVD-Lots

Yeah mine is pushed out to wednesday too, stuck in Germany since Friday evening. Must get me one of those plugs too, trip to argos tomorrow!!!

Zero-Cool

Mine is back to Tuesday ETA and it's currently in Shannon, so close!

Zero-Cool

ah it just arrived!! Looks great! That argos plug works and it's currently charging. One little thing though, The colours don't look crystal clear. I know for the money I spent, I'm not expecting the best but I can see the little pixels in any picture/colour. I tried to take a pic with my phone but it didn't come out properly.

Long, did you notice anything like this? Mad to get home from work so I can have a proper look at this!

DVD-Lots

Nice one, mine is still in Germany, hasn't updated since Friday! Hope nothing has happened to it.

Zero-Cool

Well having played around with it a bit more, it's a great little device. One problem though, I only noticed it when I got it home, it has 1 dead pixel. Hardly noticible at all except when you are looking at a mostly dark screen. Not a big enough problem to send it back but sickner none the less. The comics really look great on it but videos are playing too fast and with no sound. Tried a few players and all the same, will need to look into it more.

longhalloween

I almost feel like doing a video review at this stage

I've been playing around with this the last few days, testing its limitations and the apps that it will/won't run.
I put the Walking Dead and a few Batman comics on it, and they look great. The backlit screen makes the colours more vibrant and better than reading an actual comic

The camera isn't up to much, slow framerate and not too high resolution( in fairness I don't care, I don't skype and I can't see myself rushing to take a picture with it)

Games are fine, I got angry birds and a snes emulator and they run with little lag.
It's a bit too slow to do any multitasking

@ sheehy, I haven't noticed any pixellation in photos or videos. It's nowhere near retina display quality, but that was expected.

I've installed MX player and that works for me.

Is the volume on the app and the tab up full? Did you have any problems charging it at the start?

Zero-Cool

I used MX player but would only run files from an SD card and I don't have one. Thought it was weird I just couldn't play a file from internal memory. Ya the volume is up and working okay. Must be something to do with the codecs. I will try another movie player tonight. Will have to get an SD card as well. I only find it looks 'dirty' on a white screen but yeah, for the price I didn't expect super HD. All I wanted was a comic reader and I got a really great one. That dead pixel is only noticeable on a black screen but it's rear the screen would be dark anyway.

Very tempted to download GTA 3 and try it out.

EDIT: No problems charging it, i saw the percentage would jump around but looks okay not it is fully charged

DVD-Lots

Mine has made it to dublin but is now at the dreaded Import Scan stage......please please please get through!!!! :pac:

EDIT: Nope, got stung for VAT @ €26, not bad I suppose but still.....unit will be here in 10mins so will have a play at lunchtime and report back.