How to root a Nook Color to transform it into an Android tablet | Hacker News Reader

How to root a Nook Color to transform it into an Android tablet

arstechnica.com

39 pointsevo_922 comments

A few notes:

* Dalingrin's overclocked kernel is very nice- it can overclock from 800mhz to 1.2ghz stably, and 1.3ghz slightly less stably. Works on all 2.2/2.3 ROMs (Stock 1.2, Nookie Froyo, CM7), and is included with recent CM7 nightlies: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=925451

* The app Nook Color Tweaks (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1104039) is also very nice- if you have Dalingrin's kernel, it'll let you customize the voltage settings for overclocking, increase speaker volume, and this:

* USB Host support. If you buy a microUSB male to USB female adapter, you can plug in a mouse, keyboard, game controller, webcam, flash or hard drive, what have you. Works extremely well. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1105497 (note that the Nook Tweaks app with the Dalingrin kernel already has this built-in)

* CM7 (and maybe Nookie, not sure) have Bluetooth support, meaning that you can use a BT headset or controller (Wiimote, mostly) with it. The main downside is that it's kinda wonky- it works most, but not all of the time, and it has a really terrible range (I think 11 inches was the last I heard). However, when it works, it works fabulously.

* In CM7, if you'd prefer using the internal 5Gb of storage as opposed to a microSD card, flash this in recovery: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1034939

* The Netflix app won't show up in the Market by default, and even if it does, browsing the menus won't work in landscape. Grab a fixed APK from here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1159266

* If you want to get Hulu working, look here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1040971

* There are a few apps that crash if you don't have an IMEI, which the Nook Color does not. It's not a fantastic idea, but here's an IMEI generator: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1103766

I've had a CM7'd Nook Color for a few months, and it works fantastically. As long as you're not gaming and don't mind the lack of webcam, it's better than an iPad and half as expensive.

Is it possible to use mouse with android? This can be very useful for high resolution precise input. Thanks for a very informative post I am going to get a Nook Color now.

Yes. I have a Sylvania tablet with USB host and plugging in a mouse causes a pointer to pop up.

I don't know if Nook Color is counted in the Android tablet category ( think it counts as e-reader) , but by far it is the best tablet for value.

It's quite possibly the largest Android device by count. Estimates put it put it over 3 million Nook Colors sold. This means there are more Nook Colors than there are Galaxy Tabs, Zooms, or Transformers out in public.

I got one 2 months back, and I'm loving it. Flashed it with CM7 the day I got it, and it's perfect for reading books (EZPDF), browsing (Opera Mobile, Dolphin) and news consumption (Greader, Pulse). I also occasionally watch movies on it (Rockplayer) and videos on Youtube. And, of course, Angry Birds on the big display is fun.

CM7 nightlies + Google Apps. It's actually a very nice, useful tablet. Flashing mine took me about an hour of effort (mostly waiting).

I do wonder if this is a loss-leader for B&N. Not that I care if they have a broken business model. I just wonder because it's so cheap.

I just hit the BN page ( http://www.barnesandnoble.com/nookcolor/index.asp ) to check for international shipping - seems they do it - and noticed this blinker: "Save 15% on One Item. Use Coupon Code T9P8A9P Through July 25!". I suppose it applies to the Nook, haven't tried it.

"In compliance with shipping regulations, some item(s) in your order cannot be sent to Tel Aviv in Israel."

Meh. You gave me something to impulse buy, but something (? No idea what. The shipping FAQ even lists Israel and the requirements for ZIP codes, i.e. 5 digits) saved me the money I guess. Bad luck.

I got the same message for the UK (and instead of "Tel Aviv" it just repeated the random string I'd inputted for my city).

Rooting the b/w e-ink Nook is also possible and it's a better deal imho. You get a tablet with the advantages of e-Ink. Yes, it's grayscale but you can use it for weeks without charging your batteries and it's much better for the eyes.

The major downside being that you really can't use it for doing much besides reading. The slow refresh rate of eInk just doesn't work for most things.

"Most" is a bit presumptuous; email, social networks, and Hacker News are all good examples of things that are all reading-oriented. I'd say "most" of my casual computer interactions are eInk-friendly.

I've ordered a Nook Touch for rooting and development work, and to find out how well this theory works in practice. Maybe in a couple of weeks I will eat my words ;)

A bit presumptuous, yes, but I'd wager not for most people- out of the people I know who use tablets (mostly iPads), very few of them do any reading on them. Maybe the eInk bit would change that, I don't really know- the N2E is basically the first mainstream eInk tablet, so there's not a lot to go on.

However, for the sake of argument, let's assume that people do mostly read on their tablets. Unless B&N did something to the N2E that I'm unaware of, Android doesn't really do page-based scrolling. That's kind of what I was trying to get at with the horrible refresh rate comment- even if it can technically do email and social networks, it's not going to be a great experience (kind of like the Web on the Kindle). Here's a video of Angry Birds on the N2E, as an example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k22BB8VPI5o

(Edit: I do seem to remember that the N2E has a web browser built-in, so, assuming that it has pagination, that would work alright for email/social networks/HN. Though, IIRC, it's a slightly hidden feature- even B&N doesn't want to admit it's in there: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/nook/container/standard_bothna... (#10) )

"out of the people I know who use tablets"

I didn't mean to make that comparison, I guess. I specifically don't own a tablet because it doesn't offer any really appealing use cases to me. I can't speak for the market in general, the iPad is a big-selling device, but e-readers are quite popular too[1].

I guess I want to wind this up; I never intended to lay in to your criticism of the eInk screen, simply to offer that my experience of people's use cases differs to yours. It's kind of redundant right now anyway, the number of hoops you have to jump through to turn a nook touch into a general-purpose Android box means that it's still not a consideration for most users.

[1] a quick google for "more tablets than ereaders" yields the converse http://www.google.com/search?q=more+tablets+than+ereaders

Sorry if it seemed like I took it personally or anything- I just kind of like debating and arguing :)

Is the a capacitive touch screen? How does the screen size compare to the iPad?

Yep, capacitive touch screen. Personally, I think the screen size is ideal... it's easier to hold than an iPad. It's not especially powerful, but it's nice for web browsing and playing Angry Birds :)

We bought a bunch at work and installed Cyanogenmod for one of our projects. It's the right size, and waaaay cheaper than an iPad. For $250, I'd recommend it for a general purpose (wifi-only) Android tablet. SSH is nice on it too.

I own both an NC and an iPad, and I'd disagree with the assertion that it's easier to hold. Even though it's glass, the flat surface coupled with the mostly-flat back of the iPad makes it a lot easier for me to grip.

Even though it's Android, the price is certainly right for an entry-level tablet.

I think it's a bit bogus to compare it to the iPad. It's slower and smaller. But I accept that because it was so much cheaper - cheap enough that I could have got 2 or 3 of these for the same price as an iPad2.

I use mine to read recipes when I'm in the kitchen, and for single-purpose tasks like planning journeys using the Google Maps app. For these limited things, it's absolutely excellent.

Highly recommend CM7 running android 2.3.4

Yeah it's an awesome little device. I love mine (CM7, market, etc).

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