It’s Christmas time, which means time to give and receive the newest hottest gifts to hit the market. Usually, this means elec-tronics, even if not for the most avid reader on your gift list a new tablet computer might be a pos-sibility. Readers may not be the same as the iPad 3, set to come out in February, but one of the newest readers, The Kindle Fire and Nook Color may fit your needs.

DesignThe Kindle Fire and Nook

Color both have the same seven inch displays with a resolution of 1024 x 600, similar to a standard desktop computer. The Kindle Fire itself is slightly smaller how-ever than the competing Nook Color, edging it out by a half inch. It also has a slight edge

being one ounce less, but both clock in under one pound. Nook Color is more vibrant and has a better grip whilst the Kindle Fire is fairly no frills and straight forward. Kindle works well in either portrait or landscape, while Nook Color seems to lose something in landscape, and so I give the edge for design to the Kindle.

MediaKindle Fire is the brainchild

of Amazon dot com, and so provides all things at their dis-posal, including streaming video and music. Barnes & Noble is a bookstore and its lack of experi-ence in other media shows in the Nook. Both tablet e-readers can be loaded with one’s own media including movies, photos and videos.

The Nook is limited by the size and format of videos how-ever. Once again, the Kindle

edges the Nook in this category as well.

AppsCurrently, Amazon provides a

wide range of apps for the Kin-dle for a wide range of purposes and it seems Amazon is going head to head with Google’s An-droid for control of this market. Barnes & Noble’s Nook unfor-tunately comes out behind yet again. Once again, the edge is this category is overwhelmingly in favour of the Kindle Fire.

In conclusion, the Kindle Fire is bounds ahead of the Nook Color, in fact I found not a single important function it did not equal or surpass its Amazon-backed competitor in.

With the sole exception be-ing a slot for memory cards. They equal in price as well so the choice is clear, ditch the Barnes and Noble wannabe and get the real deal.

9EntErtainmEntDEc. 16, 2011

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Kindle fire vs Nook color

Christmas time is here, and with it comes an exuberant amount of hap-piness and cheer.

With the snowflakes in the air and carols everywhere, it’s no wonder that Vince Guaraldi was able to write such great music about the season.

But just as I artistically adapted his Charlie Brown lyrics, it seems that ev-ery modern artist has simply recycled the same Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Andy Williams, Nat King Cole tunes into their holiday repertoire, fabricat-ing a very cliché Christmas.

Justin Bieber’s Under the Mistletoe features 15 recordings by the ear-throbbing teen sensation, including renditions of “The Christmas Song,” “Silent Night,” “Santa Claus is Com-ing to Town” and “Drummer Boy.”

Rather than eviscerate the underly-ing flaws of this album, I will make the simple comparison to *NSYNC’s Home for Christmas from 1998.

Generally, these tunes should be reserved for those who can give them a new light, rather than commercial-ize them and essentially destroy any hint of holiday cheer.

While a majority of this seasonal music is precariously teetering on in-tolerable disaster, this year has deliv-ered a few new albums that are quite refreshing.

Despite lacking creativity in their titles, A Very She and Him Christmas and Michael Bublé’s Christmas are by far the best albums of this season.

She and Him consists of two of the most influential indie musicians, Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward.

Delivering a simplistic, retro feel throughout the album, the duo seems unperturbed by the holiday hoopla surrounding them.

She and Him retains the integ-rity of classic songs, including “The Christmas Waltz,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and an in-credible rendition of “Silver Bells.” Unlike other artists who depend on complex arrangements to excite the audience, this duo can inspire and delight with sheer vocal abilities and minimal instrumentation.

Michael Bublé’s Christmas could cer-tainly be defined on the opposite end of the spectrum. While his vocals alone continuously deliver, his utiliza-tion of full orchestras certainly deliv-ers an impact.

Heartfelt songs like “Ave Maria” and “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” coincide with gleeful, upbeat tunes, including “Holly Jolly Christmas” and the best interpretation of “Jingle Bells” I’ve ever discovered.

This album epitomizes the good-ness of the holidays and the genius that is Michael Bublé.

These two albums may reiterate the same holiday tunes of the last cen-tury, but the style and talent of the artists brings a new spirit that renews the Christmas spirit.

So, as we value the contributions of Dean Martin, Burl Ives, Johnny Mathis and all who defined our holi-day classics, let us appreciate those who continue to remind us why Christmas is the best time of the year.

KELLY MEYERStaff Writer

ANDREW LESSIGBusiness Manager

Walking in a winter wonderlandWrapped in a blanket from head to toe, drinking hot chocolate, snacking

on popcorn and watching a Christmas movie is a tradition which prepares me for the Holiday season.

One problem, which movie should I watch? A Christmas classic of course, but what is a Christmas classic?

As generations pass, the definition of a Christmas classic constantly changes. According to my grandparents, “Miracle on 34th Street” and “It’s a Wonderful Life” are by far the only Christmas classics. But as we proceed into the next few decades, “White Christmas” competes for the top spot of the classics.

By the 1980’s and 90’s a whole new genre arrived. “A Christmas Story” was widely watched across America. Shortly after, “Scrooged” and “Na-

tional Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” joined the Christmas classic list. As technology continued to advance and Hollywood understood the

value of Holiday theatre revenue, movies were constantly being produced, and we started to see a change in the definition of a Christmas classic. No longer were a few movies viewed as the must-see traditional classics during the Holiday season.

Instead, numerous Christmas movies were produced in order to satisfy every moviegoer’s personal taste.

From action-packed to romance to comedy, our generation enjoys a pleth-ora of Holiday classics; some of which are considered the best or worst of all time.

Whether you are a fan of series like “Home Alone,” “The Santa Clause” or “Die Hard,” or you prefer single hits like “The Grinch” or “The Polar Ex-press,” or maybe you are like me and love “Elf,” there’s plenty to watch and to entertain throughout the 24 nights of December leading up to Christmas.

Tommy’skindle 11:11

Quick Facts

Both tablets have 8GB of storage

Both tablets cost $199.00

Kindle-2.3 Android Nook- 2.2 Android

The Nook hasA micro SD card slot

Both tablets haveMicro USB ports

NBC comedy on hiatus

With so many bad television shows, it’s always re-freshing to come across an enjoyable and well-written show that is full of witty humor, clever satire, and dy-namic storylines.

NBC’s Community embraces all of these things and more.

The show focuses on the lives of seven main char-acters whose extremist personalities exaggerate the familiar actions and lifestyles of our own friends and families.

Taking place in a fictional community college in Col-orado, Community follows these characters through hu-morous and bizarre storylines that make for a hilarious and thought-provoking show.

But now, after entering its third season with a fan base of millions of people, Community has been forced to go on hiatus through the winter season.

Due to low ratings and the return of 30 Rock, NBC has benched—but vows not to cancel—Community until a later, undetermined date.

Although it looks like Community may be forced to succumb to the same fate as the much-loved Arrested Development, the show’s fans—much like those of Ar-rested Development—are doing all that they can in the blogging and tweeting worlds to make sure that NBC doesn’t revoke one of its most amusing comedies.

Television is becoming less interesting and is re-quiring less thought as the number of mindless reality shows grow in numbers and popularity.

Because of this, it is important that clever and inter-esting sitcoms like Community are kept on air.

MEGAN PERANTEAUPhotographer

NORAH CUNNINGHAM // The Iliad