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Kmart Briefly Offers $149 Android Tablet
pickens writes in with word that Kmart put an Android tablet on sale for $149 — and quickly sold out. "A Kmart circular came out last week with an uber-geeky product that perked up a few ears in the gadget community. Augen's 7-inch Gen-78 Android tablet which runs Android 2.1 is on sale for $150 (normally $170). The tablet is as bare bones as it gets, but it does work and has some features which may interest those who can't reconcile the $500+ price of Apple's iPad. Features include Android 2.1 (no skinning), 7" 800x480 Display, WiFi 802.11G, 2GB of storage +SD card slot (up to 32GB), 256MB of RAM (same as iPad), HDMI out for 720P viewing on an external display, an eBook reader, YouTube app, and Maps. ... 'I'll be honest,' writes Seth Weintraub. 'I don't trust my toddler with an iPad but this thing will be great for watching Gumby (don't ask) at home and Sesame Street in the car.'" It seems that Kmart offered rainchecks to those who found the item sold out at their local store — up until July 31. It is not clear whether after the retailer restocks the pipeline, they will stop at fulfilling the rainchecks, or will offer the Augen tablet again to new buyers. An update to the article notes that Augen does not have a license for Android from Google, and therefore the Android Store is not supported on it.
I mean, i enjoyed it, but its funny that it gets modded up when it is really, really offtopic.
My two year old (26mo) daughter has claimed my iPad 3G 64GB, or "big pod" as she calls it, and I barely get to see it anymore. She has about four pages of just her apps and most of the space is full with kids shows I put on there for her. She'll carry it around with her everywhere and she leaves shows running in the background while she plays (Ni hao Kai-Lan and Max & Ruby are her favorite shows right now). She pretty much starts demanding it as soon as she wakes up in the morning and goes to sleep next to it at night. Her favorite app right now is Drawing Pad http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/drawing-pad/id358207332?mt=8. Many of the toddler games are excellent and affordable which is not what I've found with games for Wii or PC. Monkey Preschool Lunchbox http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/monkey-preschool-lunchbox/id328205875?mt=8 and Fish School http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fish-school-by-duck-duck-moose/id367567459?mt=8 are probably the best. The interactive books are also great and very affordable. Green Eggs and Ham http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/green-eggs-and-ham-dr-seuss/id380751745?mt=8 is $4. It costs more than that for the paper version that would get destroyed. My daughter knows exactly how to use the iPad as she was already an expert user of the iTouch which she's been using since she was six months old. Adults may complain that it's to heavy, or at least non-users do, but my two year old will lay on her back holding it over her head for a half hour at a time while she watches a show.
Like the iTouch, the iPad holds up very well to toddler use. I have a Zagg skin on it but no case. It handles being dropped and banged against stuff. It even handles being used as a drum. It is resistant to small spills and my daughter knows that if it gets wet to wipe it off and bring it to me right away. Sticky dirty fingers don't harm it at all and it's super easy to wipe off. The sound quality and volume are very good. Under constant use the battery lasts most of the day. She also has a kids portable dvd/tv player and the iPad is better in every way. The only issue I'm running into with it is that 64GB isn't enough space (although that is dozens of hours of video).
I have worried that she spends to much time playing with a computer and watching shows but she is very bright and imaginative and spends a lot of time playing pretend and blocks and such things. We also try to go to the park for a couple hours a day so she is getting exercise. From her shows and games she has picked up some sign language, Spanish, and Chinese. If anything I think the iPad is a great edutainment device and she is getting a leg up without having to go through unnatural drills to learn the stuff.
At what price learning? At what cost wisdom? The price is a man's peace of mind, and the cost is his life.
That's funny, I had a choice of using my mod points or replying to you, guess which won out?
Well, they didn't have a -1 Whoosh mod, so I decided to say it in person (well, post it)
Whoosh dude, whoosh.
Oh... WOW! damn_registrars, apologies... and Nyder, thanks for pointing it out... seems I need to increase my daily coffee intake yet again... or just admit I'm a bit of a dense idiot... ;-)
StarTrekPhase2 - The Five Year Mission Continues!