I just got an email saying:
Great news! Your recent purchase qualifies you for two months of live TV with Sling* and three digital movies from Vudu.**
2) I passed on, a NAXA 7" Windows tablet. 1GB/16GB . Just not enough memory for Win10 IMO. Only noteworthy since it's a $50 device, think that's the cheapest I've seen. Cheaper isn't always better. It's a Fry's insider deal, shown in this ad. Full description here .
My seldom-used iCraig tablet is going back. The sound stopped working after I rolled back to Win10 from Anniversary Edition, then more recently the touch screen stopped working only at the bottom, taskbar was useless without a mouse attached.
I got the extended warranty, which turned out to be a good deal. I had heard skepticism here on whether warranty-fulfilling Asurion would honor that, but I called them today and things went fairly well, so I'm sharing my experience here.
I incorrectly assumed they would simply replace it (and wondered how I would get free Win10 on the replacement Win8 machine) since I've seen these same tablets recently at Rite Aid drugstore, but turns out Office Depot doesn't carry them anymore. The service rep sent me an email with directions on how to return it. I was directed to http://replacementchoice.asurion.com/ which gave only me a choice between two ~$60 Android tablets (?!!!) or a gift card for the full purchase price plus tax, which I chose. Hopefully that process goes smoothly with no surprises.
So the next time localroger says "erco, run to office depot to buy xxx", I'm all set.
Localroger, are yours still working? I mostly liked this iCraig tablet combo, the only two drawbacks were the plastic screen which scratched easily (even little scratches are very noticeable on the display) and the lack of a touchpad on the detachable keyboard. That grew more noticeable after I got spoiled by my 8" Nextbook and 10" RCA Cambio combo units, both which are still going strong.
erco, my iCraigs are both still working but my wife managed to hose the OS on the one she took to Nepal and I had to factory default it when she got back. They aren't very well made though, really. I personally consider that both of them have paid themselves off through use and further lifespan is lagniappe. I use them mainly for field troubleshooting and maintenance work so they are used irregularly and, to be frank, expendably.
What has impressed the Smile out of me is the Best Buy Insignia 11.5 inch tablet at $199, it has 2Gb RAM, 32 Gb flash drive, micro-SD socket, and a very well made docking keyboard/mousepad with two real USB ports. The docking keyboard makes it possible to hold it in your hand and use it like a small clamshell laptop unlike either the iCraig or a Surface. The keypad is much better made than the iCraig and the touch pad works well, though I still carry a bluetooth mouse around with it.
And it has a 1080p touch display. With reading glasses I can set it up to use like a full scale computer. It runs 5 hours on battery while playing video, longer when idle. Has a micro-HDMI output which I found out by accident can drive a 4K monitor at full rez. When not docked the only USB port is the USB type C charging port, though. I find it way better than most netbooks primarily because of the 1080p display; I can set it up in a hotel room 300 miles from here, put on the reading glasses, and pretend it's a 20 inch 1080p monitor.
I did do something with this Insignia I didn't do with the Stream 7 or the iCraig: I replaced my home computer, and I'm using it right now to post this. I finally decided to upgrade from my then-$900 Dell laptop which I bought during the final days when you could get XP from the factory. The tablet is sitting on the Dell's keyboard, and all my peripherals are run through a powered USB hub so if I ever need to go back for something I can just fold the tablet down onto its keyboard, switch the USB cable, and turn on the old machine. (I did have to replace my external monitor, because my old one didn't have a HDMI input. With the new one VGA goes to the old machine and HDMI to the tablet.)
With a 64 Gb uSD card in the socket, the combined mass storage exceeds the 80 Gb hard drive of my old laptop, with no moving parts or ventilation. Like the Stream 7, and unlike the iCraig, the Insignia has a very hard-surfaced touchscreen which seems pretty durable.
While I install Classic Shell on every win8/10 PC I have to deal with, I do appreciate that WIn10 allows you to move your documents, pictures, downloads, etc. onto external storage. All that stuff is on the uSD so if anything ever happens to the tablet I can just pitch it and move the files to something else without any hassle. This is probably good because unlike the Stream 7, which can be opened for service, the Insignia is pretty well sealed and probably not repairable. But then for $199, if you use it for more than a year or two, who would need to?
Pretty dang cheap if you "need" one (I don't), although there's only 1GB of RAM and its Atom Bay Trail processor may only go so far with Windows 10 updates.
Hm... 32GB storage.. my wife's 128GB win10 box is unable to go through windows update - not enough space. I imagine 32GB will be totally absolutely utterly unusable with Windows 10.
Hm... 32GB storage.. my wife's 128GB win10 box is unable to go through windows update - not enough space. I imagine 32GB will be totally absolutely utterly unusable with Windows 10.
The key is that you can't use the 32GB main drive for anything else. Windows 8/10 let you move all your user data such as /documents, /pictures, /music etc. to alternate storage. Plug in a uSD card and move your user data to it, and you then also have extra protection should the tablet die as well as keeping the 32Gb main drive clear for Windows to do its thing.
I have five of these devices and find them very useful. I am in fact using one of them right now to post this. The occasional update has jammed them up for an hour or two but they've always recovered and I love the small form factor, low power use, and lack of moving parts.
Comments
1) I bought... RCA 7" Tablet Android 6 Lollipop 16GB $35 My prior 8GB RCA Voyager Android 5 version is still going strong, also from WM, same price in fact.
I just got an email saying:
Great news! Your recent purchase qualifies you for two months of live TV with Sling* and three digital movies from Vudu.**
2) I passed on, a NAXA 7" Windows tablet. 1GB/16GB . Just not enough memory for Win10 IMO. Only noteworthy since it's a $50 device, think that's the cheapest I've seen. Cheaper isn't always better. It's a Fry's insider deal, shown in this ad. Full description here .
Yep, working fine. Not used much, but fully updated to Win10 AU.
Dang, I have no more table space to put these things!
I got the extended warranty, which turned out to be a good deal. I had heard skepticism here on whether warranty-fulfilling Asurion would honor that, but I called them today and things went fairly well, so I'm sharing my experience here.
I incorrectly assumed they would simply replace it (and wondered how I would get free Win10 on the replacement Win8 machine) since I've seen these same tablets recently at Rite Aid drugstore, but turns out Office Depot doesn't carry them anymore. The service rep sent me an email with directions on how to return it. I was directed to http://replacementchoice.asurion.com/ which gave only me a choice between two ~$60 Android tablets (?!!!) or a gift card for the full purchase price plus tax, which I chose. Hopefully that process goes smoothly with no surprises.
So the next time localroger says "erco, run to office depot to buy xxx", I'm all set.
Localroger, are yours still working? I mostly liked this iCraig tablet combo, the only two drawbacks were the plastic screen which scratched easily (even little scratches are very noticeable on the display) and the lack of a touchpad on the detachable keyboard. That grew more noticeable after I got spoiled by my 8" Nextbook and 10" RCA Cambio combo units, both which are still going strong.
What has impressed the Smile out of me is the Best Buy Insignia 11.5 inch tablet at $199, it has 2Gb RAM, 32 Gb flash drive, micro-SD socket, and a very well made docking keyboard/mousepad with two real USB ports. The docking keyboard makes it possible to hold it in your hand and use it like a small clamshell laptop unlike either the iCraig or a Surface. The keypad is much better made than the iCraig and the touch pad works well, though I still carry a bluetooth mouse around with it.
And it has a 1080p touch display. With reading glasses I can set it up to use like a full scale computer. It runs 5 hours on battery while playing video, longer when idle. Has a micro-HDMI output which I found out by accident can drive a 4K monitor at full rez. When not docked the only USB port is the USB type C charging port, though. I find it way better than most netbooks primarily because of the 1080p display; I can set it up in a hotel room 300 miles from here, put on the reading glasses, and pretend it's a 20 inch 1080p monitor.
I did do something with this Insignia I didn't do with the Stream 7 or the iCraig: I replaced my home computer, and I'm using it right now to post this. I finally decided to upgrade from my then-$900 Dell laptop which I bought during the final days when you could get XP from the factory. The tablet is sitting on the Dell's keyboard, and all my peripherals are run through a powered USB hub so if I ever need to go back for something I can just fold the tablet down onto its keyboard, switch the USB cable, and turn on the old machine. (I did have to replace my external monitor, because my old one didn't have a HDMI input. With the new one VGA goes to the old machine and HDMI to the tablet.)
With a 64 Gb uSD card in the socket, the combined mass storage exceeds the 80 Gb hard drive of my old laptop, with no moving parts or ventilation. Like the Stream 7, and unlike the iCraig, the Insignia has a very hard-surfaced touchscreen which seems pretty durable.
While I install Classic Shell on every win8/10 PC I have to deal with, I do appreciate that WIn10 allows you to move your documents, pictures, downloads, etc. onto external storage. All that stuff is on the uSD so if anything ever happens to the tablet I can just pitch it and move the files to something else without any hassle. This is probably good because unlike the Stream 7, which can be opened for service, the Insignia is pretty well sealed and probably not repairable. But then for $199, if you use it for more than a year or two, who would need to?
https://www.frys.com/product/9239809
Pretty dang cheap if you "need" one (I don't), although there's only 1GB of RAM and its Atom Bay Trail processor may only go so far with Windows 10 updates.
https://www.theverge.com/2017/7/19/16001366/microsoft-windows-10-creators-update-atom-pcs
The key is that you can't use the 32GB main drive for anything else. Windows 8/10 let you move all your user data such as /documents, /pictures, /music etc. to alternate storage. Plug in a uSD card and move your user data to it, and you then also have extra protection should the tablet die as well as keeping the 32Gb main drive clear for Windows to do its thing.
I have five of these devices and find them very useful. I am in fact using one of them right now to post this. The occasional update has jammed them up for an hour or two but they've always recovered and I love the small form factor, low power use, and lack of moving parts.