The iPad made tablets a must-have accessory, and now that a year and change has passed since its initial release, the selection of tablets on the market is richer than ever. However, the price tag is a bit heavy for many tech consumers.
A surprising, inexpensive solution comes in the form of a loophole. The Barnes & Noble Nook Color is merely $249, but the version of Android that it runs skimps on features and can’t connect to the Android Market. That is… unless you modify it.
The Nook can be hacked in two ways. One involves rooting the OS and replacing it with a total Android mod, but this will void your warranty. The other involves putting an Android image on a microSD card, which turns the Nook into a dual-boot tablet (though it will have less memory than if you rooted the OS completely).
The specific details of the hacking process are easy to follow and can turn the $250 Nook Color into a comparable Android tablet that would cost around $600.
[via GammaSquad]
![Video: Watch Zooey Deschanel's New Apple Ad [Update: Sam Jackson Has One, Too!]](http://cdnl.complex.com/mp/?f=CHANNEL_IMAGES%2FTECH%2F2012%2F04%2Fzooeydeschaneliphone.jpg&w=159&h=100&q=93&interlace=0&clip=1&bg=ffffff&sig=2add55b873db77496092d8a2d5c6b515)
Jim July 29th, 2011 at 03:58 PM
FYI, the story image above is of the "Nook 1st Edition" not the "Nook Color". While both can be hacked, it is the Nook Color that is getting all the hacking attention. Booting a new OS provides full color tablet functionality--unlike hacking the Nook 1st Edition.