# Is it even possible to find a cheap tablet in the $100 price range that isn't poo? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 25, 2011, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061 "2011-11-25T17:26:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Farmer\_Jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Farmer\_Jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmer_Jane)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/1 "2011-11-25T17:26:38Z")
My son and brother want one. They want to be able to: Access their Audible and Amazon libraries somehow (my son has Audible, not my brother, but if anyone knows how to convert into mp3, that works) Access Android Marketplace Play/download vidoes (but not often) Stream Netflix Essentially they want a blown up version of a Droid phone. So I’m seeing all of these Tablets advertised for cheap and most seem to be, well, _cheap_. Froyo or no Flash support or can’t access a good marketplace without hacking it, blabla. It’s Black Friday. I’m willing to brave the sales or buy it online, but I’m not even sure where to start. KMart had some deals (they’re probably gone, though) and the [Big Lots](http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3583850) one seemed like a bad idea. Any others? Amazon have anything? I don’t even know what to look for anymore! Is [this](http://www.kmart.com/shc/s/p_10151_10104_020W003844006000P) all right? With [this](http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3583850), I can access Amazon and the Amazon AppStore - is that all I need? (Or they need?) GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH. For some reaosn, buying a Tablet seems to be 10x more complicated than getting a smart phone, computer, TV, or mp3 player. The boys are 7 and 10 if it helps. ---
**Author:** ![sevenwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6de8d8/32.png) [@sevenwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sevenwood)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/2 "2011-11-25T17:33:35Z")
I’m assuming that you want to purchase a tablet computer without the extra expense of monthly access fees (such as those you’d get from a cellphone carrier such as Verizon or AT&T). In that case, your biggest problem is that the cost to manufacture one of those tablets is significantly higher than $100, so the best you could hope for would be something for which manufacturing has been discontinued and the vendor is just trying to unload leftover inventory. ---
**Author:** ![Farmer\_Jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Farmer\_Jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmer_Jane)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/3 "2011-11-25T17:49:19Z")
Okay. So…which one to get? ---
**Author:** ![jacobsta811](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jacobsta811/32/2893_2.png) [@jacobsta811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jacobsta811)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/4 "2011-11-25T17:53:51Z")
By far the best tablet for even close to $100 is the nook color gen 1 refurb: [Rakuten: Online & In-Store Cash Back | Shop 3,500 Stores!](http://www.buy.com/pr/SellerListings.aspx?sku=221376447&buy=1) Yes, you do need to install cyanogenmod to get the most of it, but it has good hardware and lots of people own it so there are plenty of tutorials on youtube Don’t waste your time with any tablet that they can sell new for $150 or less -the hardware and screens are awful. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/5 "2011-11-25T17:56:11Z")
How about an Amazon Kindle? The cheapest one is $79, but it’s just an e-ink display, so I don’t think it’s going to run apps. For $199 you can get the Kindle Fire, which will run Android apps and Netflix. A bit more than your budget but I don’t know if there’s anything else out there. (BTW, I’ve already ordered a Kindle Fire for my brother’s family but haven’t seen it yet.) ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/6 "2011-11-25T18:08:45Z")
Spend the extra hundred and get a Kindle Fire. Ours came last week. We bought it for books (honest!) and haven’t put it down. I also bought USB cables (not included) so I can upload our own books (PDFs), MP3s and videos. ---
**Author:** ![phreesh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc29f/32.png) [@phreesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phreesh)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/7 "2011-11-25T18:41:49Z")
Slate says no: > **[Two Great Black Friday Deals, and Four Items to Avoid at All Costs](https://slate.com/technology/2011/11/black-friday-2011-cheap-tablets-3-d-tvs-and-more-items-to-avoid-plus-two-surprisingly-great-deals.html)** > > For several years, I’ve crusaded against Black Friday, a terrible institution that suckers otherwise rational, frugal people into spending the holidays... Spend some more money and get the Fire ---
**Author:** ![Farmer\_Jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Farmer\_Jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmer_Jane)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/8 "2011-11-25T18:58:23Z")
\ The boys won’t be getting one this year, then. I plan on getting the Fire after my tax return (assuming the world doesn’t end before then) so it can wait. I’ll share mine with my son. ---
**Author:** ![Dolomite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8491ac/32.png) [@Dolomite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dolomite)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/9 "2011-11-25T19:17:49Z")
The HP TouchPad, but they’re all gone now. I have a 32GB bought before the fire sale, and I’d buy it again. I also have an iPad so it isn’t just a sour grapes thing. ---
**Author:** ![FoundWaldo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dfb087/32.png) [@FoundWaldo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoundWaldo)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2011, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/10 "2011-11-25T20:10:08Z")
The non-Fire Kindles are not tablets. They’re e-readers. IMHO they’re great e-readers, though. I have one, as well as a Kindle Fire and an iPad (yes, I’m a gadget junkie), and I only read books on the regular Kindle because the e-ink screen is so nice for reading. I think it’s well worth buying if you want a device to read on, but it’s a completely different category from the other devices you’re talking about. All it’s good for is reading (and only stuff that doesn’t need a lot of photos, diagrams, color, etc.). ---
**Author:** ![Farmer\_Jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Farmer\_Jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmer_Jane)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2011, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/11 "2011-11-26T06:45:02Z")
Well, I already have a Kindle 3G and my son uses that sometimes. I think I’ll just wait until after taxes or the new year and get a Fire. We can share it. edit Maybe the TouchPads will be nice and cheap in a few months? Best Buy seems to be having a hard time unloading theirs. ---
**Author:** ![jacobsta811](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jacobsta811/32/2893_2.png) [@jacobsta811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jacobsta811)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2011, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-even-possible-to-find-a-cheap-tablet-in-the-100-price-range-that-isnt-poo/604061/12 "2011-11-26T16:51:01Z")
No, the HP touchpads were discontinued and discounted down to $99 for 16gb/$150 for 32gb at the end of August. Which is what I assume Dolomite is referring to. I scored 2 at the fire sale prices back in August but you had to be watching slickdeals or fatwallet constantly to get one - as soon as any website went live with the $99 price they instantly had thousands of orders. Any article you are reading about Best Buy having trouble unloading them is from before the fire sale. See [HP's TouchPad fire sale: The fallout | ZDNET](http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/hps-touchpad-fire-sale-the-fallout/55594) for an article about the fire sale.