Nook HD+ post 2.1 update review Updated: Great tablet!

[rushless]

For perspective, I have had a lot of tablets: The infamous Viewsonic Gtablet, HTC Flyer, Toshiba's first 10" tab, Toshiba Excite 10", A500 and now currently own the Excite 7.7, TF 300 and iPad 4.

I got the Nook HD+ 32GB due to the 2.1 update and the $200 price from Best Buy. The intent is perhaps to give the TF300 and KB to my wife

+Likes

+Build.
+Display quality (it is almost as good as the iPad 4)
+Size.
+Speed: Contrary to some benchmarks, the Nook is in general faster in multi tasking than the TF300 and also is faster with FPSE and MAMEReloaded. Seems the chipset handles the higher res display better also than the TF700. Part of the problem with the Tegra 3 is the single channel design, where the 4470 has dual channel memory.
+Battery life is better than expected. About as good as my Excite 7.7, which is good.
+SD card speed seems good and nice to have (unlike the Nexus tablets).
+Not much bloat and 27GB free out of box. Pretty good.
+Nook is much faster updating apps than the Excite and TF300. Those tablets slow down when updating apps and likely due to the single channel memory
+Best sleep mode that does not bleed battery of any Android device I have owned- period. As close to iPad great as possible- for an Android device.

-Dislikes

-The rimmed bezel edge. Unlike the Excite and iPad, it seems exposed if dust or other fine debris were to get in the area. Update: Seems pretty tight around the bezel, so perhaps no problem. Update 2: A positive for the rim is the display is not flush to the bezel, so protected more if placed face down on a surface.
-Touch response is not as good as the Excite 7.7, TF300 or iPad 4. It is good, but I do notice a little difference compared with the other tablets.
-Though much better cable design than the Excite (the connector and cable is HUGE), it is still proprietary and hard to find one in a pinch. Like the Excite as well, it should have also been a standard USB design like the Nexus 7. What is the point of the special cable?
-Seems to barely be a trickle charge with USB charging. Net negative doing anything besides charging. Excite and TF300 are same.
-No side-loading of apps. I would like to install Flash and my N64 emulator, but can not. At least B&N allowed the market and Google apps
-Like the A500, there is concentrated heat in one section where the chipset is located. Gets very warm to hot with 3D games.
-No cameras (especially front for Skype).
-Wifi seems a little bit weaker than my other tablets, but seems fast. A positive perhaps for battery life.

In summary, this is a good tablet for $300 considering the display, build and speed and an AMAZING one for the $200 I paid at Best Buy (plus tax, of course). Sadly, this seems a Hail Mary from B&N and likely a last ditch effort to drive revenue and perhaps purge a lot of static inventory. They probably have a LOT of working capital tied up in the hardware and want to make their balance sheet look better ASAP. This seems the case considering they slashed the price for the week and have compromised the business model for their contained app ecosystem.

Perhaps though there may be some short-term partnering going on with Google, so you never know!

Whatever the case, GREAT tablet for the money- presuming you do not need cameras!

 

[thegracious]

well, for my case, this upgrade did improve the display but it's not worth for me because some apps working with the 2.0.4 are now error in 2.1. I didn't know why but this's annoying.
A warning to those who want to upgrade: some apps may not work with this new kernel (can install but error while running).

 

[e.mote]

>What is the point of the special cable?

Agreed with all the drawbacks of a proprietary cable, but it is better than the micro-USB connector in that it doesn't break as easily. I've had a couple of NC's, and went through 3 different cables that had damaged connectors, which were replaced free of charge. I can't imagine B&N were too happy about the replacement cost.

The HD+ is a superlative tablet for reading, and IMO is best for in-home use. I don't see it as a good traveling device, because of its heft, and lack of things like GPS and cameras.

>Seems to barely be a trickle charge with USB charging

It charges pretty fast for me. From near-empty to full was about 3 hours. Charging is still net positive while watching streamed videos, although I didn't measure how fast it was. I suppose it depends on the activity.

>some apps may not work with this new kernel

Yes, the OfficeSuite app broke on my HD+ with the 2.1 update.

 

[rushless]

It is a great device with 2.1 and AMAZING for the price. Two new points that I added to the review:

+Like

This device has the BEST sleep mode of any Android device I have owned. Overnight it lost one percentage point of battery and that is with wifi on.

-Dislike

The wifi is a little weaker than my other tablets.

Update: REALLY liking this device! The touch response is good, rather than "okay" and I update accordingly. If I could side load apps like Flash and N64, it would be my favorite tablet. For $200, this is amazing. Makes me regret paying $380 for my 32GB Excite 7.7 now. Might even make me doubt my iPad 4 purchase a tad, but I love the app ecosystem for it.

 

[trgilman]

>What is the point of the special cable?

Agreed with all the drawbacks of a proprietary cable, but it is better than the micro-USB connector in that it doesn't break as easily. I've had a couple of NC's, and went through 3 different cables that had damaged connectors, which were replaced free of charge. I can't imagine B&N were too happy about the replacement cost.

The HD+ is a superlative tablet for reading, and IMO is best for in-home use. I don't see it as a good traveling device, because of its heft, and lack of things like GPS and cameras.

>Seems to barely be a trickle charge with USB charging

It charges pretty fast for me. From near-empty to full was about 3 hours. Charging is still net positive while watching streamed videos, although I didn't measure how fast it was. I suppose it depends on the activity.

>some apps may not work with this new kernel

Yes, the OfficeSuite app broke on my HD+ with the 2.1 update.

It's a half pound lighter then the iPad 4. Other then lack of cameras (which I have never used on any tablet), it's very nice for traveling light.
The update has speed both my stock Nook HD and HD+ quite a bit. I'm extremely happy with it.

 

[Ravynmagi]

I picked up my Nook HD+ last night.

+ 3:2 ratio
Because of menu bars and such, I really like having a bit more height when holding the tablet in landscape mode for browsing. And in portrait the extra width still allows web pages to be readable. Comics and manga pages fit the 3:2 screen perfectly. And the tablet feels more balanced.

+ 257 PPI
Text is so sharp.

+ Speaker
I'm really impressed with how nice the speaker sounds on this (much better than the Nexus 7).

+ Micro SD slot
I have a pile of micro SD cards in a bag I don't use anymore because none of my tablets or phones have micro SD slots. Glad I finally have something to put my 32GB Sandisk into (wish it had support for my 64GB SDXC).

+ Comfort
Has a soft touch back and the bezel feels nice to hold, everything feels very solid. Doesn't feel too heavy, quite comfortable.

+ Price
Ridiculous value at the current $180 sale price.


- Performance
It's running Android 4.0 ICS and I'm reminded of the dramatic difference Android 4.1 made with performance. The UI and animations are stuttery, it doesn't feel smooth at all. But it's still a small step up from my Kindle Fire HD. Overall I'd say performance is okay, but it's a shame B&N hasn't updated this to Jelly Bean.

- Glass
The glass is untreated. It's not as smooth feeling as other tablets. And fingerprints are nearly impossible to wipe off with a dry cloth. I wish B&N didn't cut this particular corner, it's a small thing that makes a big difference. I had to put Rain-X on my Nook Color and may do the same with this (I have to be more careful though, that stuff stains the plastic bezel).

- Bezel
I credited the bezel for making it more comfortable to hold. But at the same time I'm knocking it for being ugly, sorry. Perhaps if B&N got rid of the silly hole in the corner that might help. This negative is purely about my aesthetic sense. I like the look of tablets with flat glass fronts. And the Nexus 7 managed to pull that off and still be very comfortable to hold as well.

- Sideloading
I was hoping B&N would have permitted this by now, but seems it's still not possible to download and install an APK file. Sideloading is possible if you installed the Android/Nook SDK and adb install the APK file from a PC (and that's a hassle to setup the first time). Even Amazon allows sideloading on the Kindle Fires.

 

[Taosaur]

I've been trying out the new stock after running CM10 on my HD+ for months (with brief forays into rooted stock for magazines), and it's generally acceptable. The 2.1 update is an improvement, but there are still things that bug me, particularly the dumbed-down Recent Apps and the inconsistency/lack of softkeys. Using the 'n' for every home-press is a step down in ergonomics and likely increases wear and tear. None of the incompatible apps so far are dealbreakers, though Fancy Widgets, OfficeSuite and Google Voice are disappointing.

I tried to like the stock home screen, but it was just too limited. Why does the OS support grouping apps into "shelves" if you can't link directly to those shelves from your home screen? Shelf shortcuts would still be a step down from the pop-up folder implementation of most post-ICS launchers, but they would be adequate. Placing widgets on the stock home screen is also finicky and frustrating, with unpredictable placement and no option to resize. Most touch elements of the stock UI and B&N apps are quite finicky--I don't know if they have smaller touch zones or what, but I find them much less consistent in touch response than my ADWEx Launcher or third party apps.

All that said, I think I can live with it for the improvements in stability and battery life vs. CM10/10.1, and access to the stock magazine reader without rebooting (the Nook for Android app doesn't compare). I haven't tried a lot of apps yet, so poor performance there may still drive me back to CyanogenMod. I may have to re-root for Button Savior, but right now it's not a huge deal.

---------- Post added at 01:18 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:55 PM ----------

Just to clear up a couple of things:

+ 3:2 ratio
Because of menu bars and such, I really like having a bit more height when holding the tablet in landscape mode for browsing. And in portrait the extra width still allows web pages to be readable. Comics and manga pages fit the 3:2 screen perfectly. And the tablet feels more balanced.

If I'm getting you, I think you have the terms "portrait" and "landscape" confused. A device in landscape orientation is wider than it is tall, and in portrait it's taller than it is wide.

+ Speaker
I'm really impressed with how nice the speaker sounds on this (much better than the Nexus 7).

0_0 That's surprising to see. I haven't used the Nexus 7 and the HD+ speaker is a big step up over my old Nook Color, but it's also one of the things people complain about the most. I took it for being adequate but sub-par and just assumed the N7 did better.

+ Micro SD slot
I have a pile of micro SD cards in a bag I don't use anymore because none of my tablets or phones have micro SD slots. Glad I finally have something to put my 32GB Sandisk into (wish it had support for my 64GB SDXC).

The HD+ can be picky about specific cards, but in general it handles 64GB just fine, as did the Nook Color and Nook Tablet before it. I've been using a 64GB SanDisk UM10 since I got my HD+ back in Novemeber, mostly as a boot drive for CM10, and it works just fine.

- Bezel
I credited the bezel for making it more comfortable to hold. But at the same time I'm knocking it for being ugly, sorry. Perhaps if B&N got rid of the silly hole in the corner that might help. This negative is purely about my aesthetic sense. I like the look of tablets with flat glass fronts. And the Nexus 7 managed to pull that off and still be very comfortable to hold as well.

Meh, difference of opinion. I find the HD+ styling aesthetically positive but not that comfortable to hold (moot point because it's always in a case). Most tablets, including the N7, have a generic look to me, though I'd take that over the plastic lozenge styling of the 7" Nook HD.

- Sideloading
I was hoping B&N would have permitted this by now, but seems it's still not possible to download and install an APK file. Sideloading is possible if you installed the Android/Nook SDK and adb install the APK file from a PC (and that's a hassle to setup the first time). Even Amazon allows sideloading on the Kindle Fires.

If you do want to enable sideloading, burning a ClockworkMod Recovery SD card and using leapinlar's script from this thread (last file linked at the bottom of the OP) will require a lot less troubleshooting than getting your HD+ to talk to ADB, and of course you only have to do it once and sideloading is on for good. You can use the CWM card to back up your system before you run the script, and whenever you want to make a backup afterward--another use for all those SD cards

 

[fljoe]

"-No side-loading of apps. I would like to install Flash and my N64 emulator, but can not. At least B&N allowed the market and Google apps"
With a little bit of work you can get apps sideloaded. No need for rooting either.
1) Create a CWM flashable zip using instructions in the following thread (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2062613)
2) Download and copy NookHD-HDplus-Extras-rev3-(05.06.13).zip file from the above referenced thread to the CWM SD card
3) Flash the above zip when booted from the CWM mod and you now have a tablet that can sideload apps and also allows install of the Amazon appstore

I am really happy with this tablet!

 

[Ravynmagi]

If I'm getting you, I think you have the terms "portrait" and "landscape" confused. A device in landscape orientation is wider than it is tall, and in portrait it's taller than it is wide.

Not quite. What I was trying to say is typical Android tablets use a 16:10 ratio. So a 16:10 tablet would have a 1920x1200 resolution.

The Nook HD+ uses a 3:2 ratio with a 1920x1280. So what I was trying to say is that in landscape mode you have 80 extra pixels of height or in portrait you have 80 extra pixels of width.

 

[Taosaur]

Not quite. What I was trying to say is typical Android tablets use a 16:10 ratio. So a 16:10 tablet would have a 1920x1200 resolution.

The Nook HD+ uses a 3:2 ratio with a 1920x1280. So what I was trying to say is that in landscape mode you have 80 extra pixels of height or in portrait you have 80 extra pixels of width.

Ah, I thought maybe I was missing your point there. I agree the screen dimensions are outstanding for magazines and comics.

 

[fordarm]

Is newest 2.1 Jelly bean base?

I am using CM custom roms instead of Nook original due to Nook original doesn't allow to install a lot apps even I did root.
So I am wondering is newest 2.1 the Jelly bean instead of ICS?

For perspective, I have had a lot of tablets: The infamous Viewsonic Gtablet, HTC Flyer, Toshiba's first 10" tab, Toshiba Excite 10", A500 and now currently own the Excite 7.7, TF 300 and iPad 4.

I got the Nook HD+ 32GB due to the 2.1 update and the $200 price from Best Buy. The intent is perhaps to give the TF300 and KB to my wife

+Likes

+Build.
+Display quality (it is almost as good as the iPad 4)
+Size.
+Speed: Contrary to some benchmarks, the Nook is in general faster in multi tasking than the TF300 and also is faster with FPSE and MAMEReloaded. Seems the chipset handles the higher res display better also than the TF700. Part of the problem with the Tegra 3 is the single channel design, where the 4470 has dual channel memory.
+Battery life is better than expected. About as good as my Excite 7.7, which is good.
+SD card speed seems good and nice to have (unlike the Nexus tablets).
+Not much bloat and 27GB free out of box. Pretty good.
+Nook is much faster updating apps than the Excite and TF300. Those tablets slow down when updating apps and likely due to the single channel memory
+Best sleep mode that does not bleed battery of any Android device I have owned- period. As close to iPad great as possible- for an Android device.

-Dislikes

-The rimmed bezel edge. Unlike the Excite and iPad, it seems exposed if dust or other fine debris were to get in the area. Update: Seems pretty tight around the bezel, so perhaps no problem. Update 2: A positive for the rim is the display is not flush to the bezel, so protected more if placed face down on a surface.
-Touch response is not as good as the Excite 7.7, TF300 or iPad 4. It is good, but I do notice a little difference compared with the other tablets.
-Though much better cable design than the Excite (the connector and cable is HUGE), it is still proprietary and hard to find one in a pinch. Like the Excite as well, it should have also been a standard USB design like the Nexus 7. What is the point of the special cable?
-Seems to barely be a trickle charge with USB charging. Net negative doing anything besides charging. Excite and TF300 are same.
-No side-loading of apps. I would like to install Flash and my N64 emulator, but can not. At least B&N allowed the market and Google apps
-Like the A500, there is concentrated heat in one section where the chipset is located. Gets very warm to hot with 3D games.
-No cameras (especially front for Skype).
-Wifi seems a little bit weaker than my other tablets, but seems fast. A positive perhaps for battery life.

In summary, this is a good tablet for $300 considering the display, build and speed and an AMAZING one for the $200 I paid at Best Buy (plus tax, of course). Sadly, this seems a Hail Mary from B&N and likely a last ditch effort to drive revenue and perhaps purge a lot of static inventory. They probably have a LOT of working capital tied up in the hardware and want to make their balance sheet look better ASAP. This seems the case considering they slashed the price for the week and have compromised the business model for their contained app ecosystem.

Perhaps though there may be some short-term partnering going on with Google, so you never know!

Whatever the case, GREAT tablet for the money- presuming you do not need cameras!

 

[leapinlar]

I am using CM custom roms instead of Nook original due to Nook original doesn't allow to install a lot apps even I did root.
So I am wondering is newest 2.1 the Jelly bean instead of ICS?

No it is still ICS.

Sent from my Nook HD+ running CM10.1 on emmc.

 

[rushless]

From a speed perspective, the Nook is overall as fast or faster than my Tegra 3 devices with JB. I use Nova instead of the stock UI.

Frankly, I have noticed no speed improvement with any of my Android devices going from ICS to JB.

 

[Ravynmagi]

From a speed perspective, the Nook is overall as fast or faster than my Tegra 3 devices with JB. I use Nova instead of the stock UI.

Frankly, I have noticed no speed improvement with any of my Android devices going from ICS to JB.

What Tegra 3 device with JB are you referring to? Because the Nexus 7 is a helluva lot faster and smoother than my HD+ with Nova.

You should definitely notice a big difference between ICS and JB, so something sounds weird with whatever device that was on. My Galaxy Nexus, getting Android 4.1 made it feel like a new phone.

 

[rushless]

CPU heavy apps like MAME and PSX. The Nook is faster. The Nexus 7 also bogs down when using apps and using the device at the same time. Nook so far has not. Dual channel memory would be a factor in that. I notice no difference with any of my noted devices between ICS and JB. Benchmarks I do, though do not see it. The bottleneck with Tegra 3 is the single channel memory.

I prefer using the Nook over the TF300 now and have it set to performance mode.

Debates aside, whatever BN did to get the near iPad 4 level low battery bleed I'm sleep mode should bottle it up and sell to other OEs. I did not think and Android device could be this conservative in sleep mode.

 

[whatagonad]

"-No side-loading of apps. I would like to install Flash and my N64 emulator, but can not. At least B&N allowed the market and Google apps"
With a little bit of work you can get apps sideloaded. No need for rooting either.
1) Create a CWM flashable zip using instructions in the following thread (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2062613)
2) Download and copy NookHD-HDplus-Extras-rev3-(05.06.13).zip file from the above referenced thread to the CWM SD card
3) Flash the above zip when booted from the CWM mod and you now have a tablet that can sideload apps and also allows install of the Amazon appstore

I am really happy with this tablet!

Any chance you could do an simplified guide for this? That page is a beast.I don't want to break my Nook as it belongs to my Mrs.

thanks

 

[rushless]

I followed the instructions and flashed the extras rev 3 package. Flash 11.1 works great!! Thanks!

 

[fljoe]

Any chance you could do an simplified guide for this? That page is a beast.I don't want to break my Nook as it belongs to my Mrs.

thanks

The instructions in the http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2062613 thread is as simple as it gets, anyway I am simplyfying if further. I am assuming you have the Nook HD+ 9inch tablet

1) Make a folder called Nook_Mod on your PC and download 2 of the files attached at the bottom of the post http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2062613. The files you need are:
i. NookHDplus-bootable-CWM-6023-for-emmc-stock-4GB-rev3-(02.17.13).zip
ii. NookHD-HDplus-Extras-rev3-(05.06.13).zip

2) Using WinRar or WinZip extract NookHDplus-bootable-CWM-6023-for-emmc-stock-4GB-rev3-(02.17.13).zip file. After extraction you should see a file called NookHDplus-bootable-CWM-6023-for-emmc-stock-4GB-rev3.img

3) Now download a program called Win32DiskImager from http://sourceforge.net/projects/win32diskimager/. This program is used to write the image file in step 2 to a microSD card. The download is in zip format, so you will need to unzip the file.

4) Get a 4GB microSD card preferably SanDisk Class 4 and insert it into the card reader slot of your PC. Once the card is recognized by your PC, note the drive letter for the card (ie E:\ or F:\ etc)

5) Click on the Win32DiskImager program. A box pops up and here make sure you select the correct drive to write to under the Device heading (ie. the drive associated with your microSD card). Click on the Folder icon in the box, right next to Device and select the NookHDplus-bootable-CWM-6023-for-emmc-stock-4GB-rev3.img file and then click on the "Write" button. It will take approximately 15 to 20 minutes to write the image to the microSD card.

6) After the image is written, exit out of the Win32DiskImager program. Remove the microSD card from your computer.

7) Re-insert the microSD card in your computer. Your card contents should look like the image I have attached to this post.

8) Now copy the NookHD-HDplus-Extras-rev3-(05.06.13).zip file to the root of the microSD card

9) Ensure your nook HD+ is charged completely and turn it OFF completely.

10) Insert the microSD card into the slot on your Nook HD+

11) Power ON your Nook HD+

12) You will soon see the Clockwork Mod (CWM) logo appear and your device will boot into CWM

13) Use the Vol+ and Vol- keys on the side of the Nook to navigate the cursor and highlight "backup and restore"

14) Press the "n" buttom on the bottom of the Nook HD to activate the selection which is Backup to backup your device. This will take a while.

15) Now press the "Power" button to go back to the Main menu and now choose "Install zip from SD"

16) Navigate to the NookHD-HDplus-Extras-rev3-(05.06.13).zip file you had copied to the microSD card. Select this file and click on the "n" button to flash this file and select install

17) After the file has been installed, you can remove the microSD card from the Nook HD and keep it somewhere safe. You might need to use this card again if you want to restore your Nook HD.

18) Now navigate to the reboot menu line and click on reboot and your Nook HD+ should boot back into the stock ROM.

Now you should be able to sideload any apps.

Please thank leapinlar as it is due to his efforts that this has been made possible. Also I am just re-hashing instructions that was in his thread, so all credits should go to him

Good Luck!

 

[rushless]

As already noted in the instructions, be VERY careful choosing the drive with Win32DiskImager, since it will not default to the sd card. You have to pick the drive on the right hand side of the app.

 

[Taosaur]

I personally prefer WinImage for burning cards--some systems have trouble with one or the other program.