[Gocamino] walking with tablets

[Joanie Hess]

We carried a Color Nook on the Portuguese Route this past summer and it worked well.  Included maps, guides,  and directions (.doc and .xls files).   We also toured and carried reservations on the unit, rather than be bothered with that paperwork except when necessary.  Much better than carrying a computer or a notebook.  Nooks have SD card capability but have not needed them.  But since they are the same as most cameras, they should not be an issue.  

Previously a step-down transformer was needed in Europe, but now almost all chargers seem to accept a 220-240 volt input as well as 110-120. Check your chargers for input and output characteristics.  Transformers were bulky and a pain to carry - now leave at home.  A connector is necessary to connect European plugs to US plugs.  They are cheap and light, differ by country.  

We do not have G3 but found many places in Europe with free WiFi and our Nook worked relatively well.  The problem is not with the Nook but rather the poor WiFi infrastructure in Spain.  Works better in some places than some others - they just have poor electronics in some areas (??cheap, ??outdated).
 

 



 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Robert Spenger <rspenger at earthlink.net>
To: via-francigena <via-francigena at yahoogroups.com>; †Yahoo James Saint <saintjames at yahoogroups.com>; Santiagobis <Santiagobis at yahoogroups.com>; †GoCamino OakApple <gocamino at oakapple.net>; Ultreya †Yahoo <Ultreya at yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Sun, Jan 22, 2012 1:08 pm
Subject: [Gocamino] walking with tablets


I see that a lot of folks are now carrying ipads on their walks, mostly on the 

VF. I had thought about carrying a tablet (on the VT), but the 10' devices seem 

to be to be much too bulky and fragile for lugging in a back pack - heavy as 

well, especially with a charger. I have a couple of 7" devices that are much 

more compact and less likely to be damaged when stored in a pack. They are both 

e-readers, but can be used for storing lots of preloaded maps, guide pages, and 

pictures. Both have smaller views than I would like, but I accept the trade-off 

of compactness for visibility, since sections can be selectively enlarged. Both 

have WiFi, but neither have G3 capability, which would be nice to have, but the 

potential costs are scary. Both have very large storage capacities, since they 

both have microchip slots. with additional microchips the storage potential is 

enormous, but physical storage of the chips on the road might present problems.

I am not sure how either of them fare on being charged from European power 

sources and I can't get information from the makers - the phone techs didn't 

seem to get the picture. They can be used for e-mail if a WiFi source is 

available, but not easily.



Nook Color: 



Heavy (for a 7")

Color is nice to have

Short battery life, but that is the trade off for having color

Nice relatively light weight padded cover available

Backlit screen which I like for reading in bed while sitting up during my 3 hour 

wait that I have to do between dinner and lying  horizontal (but it is another 

battery drainer, except that there is the possibility of keeping it plugged in 

at the time)

Very awkward to use for any online applications - except for book purchases 

which can't be done in Europe anyway - I don't regard it as a practical way to 

send e-mail.



Sony reader:



Very light weight - probably the lightest 7" around

Black and white only

Long battery life

Needs fairly strong light for me to read it

Bad reports on the covers available (I don't have a cover for mine, so I can 

only judge by the online reviews.)

Better than the Nook Color for e-mail, but not by much



Any comments would be appreciated.



Bob S.

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