Database Users

Is 16GB enough?

The Tab will be released next week in the UK and I don't wish to pay more than I need to, do you folks think that 16GB will be enough for general usage? How much space are you left with after installing your general apps etc?
Sent from my HTC Desire

It depends on what you are going to use it for and if you plan on keeping your media library on it, etc.
16gb is fine for me. I throw on movie files when I'm going to be out and want to watch something (delete them when I'm done), have no use to store pictures on it, a handful of apps that I use, ebooks, etc. I use my Zune HD for music, so I've no desire to put music on it.
I figure if I start to have lots of files I'll need access to, I'll get the USB or SD Card adapter at the store and be happy that I saved a hundred bucks between the difference of a 16gb and a 32gb.

I prefer 32GB. But 16 gb should be fine as well. For music you install google music and sign up for invite, then you can upload all the music from your computer to the Cloud. It let you upload 20000 songs. Not bad. For streaming movies and videos from your computer download the plex application from market.
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16GB works for me - acutally my Tab says 9GB free space.
Most of my music streams over Google Music, before a long flight I choose the movies I need and delete old ones and Office Documents are stored in my dropbox.
Slashtop HD helps too

Just get the Samsung USB adapter and a Micro SD card w/reader and you can copy files to/from the Tab while traveling, see my post in this thread for pics and prices...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1185810

16 GB is enough for me. If the 32 GB model was $50 more, then I probably would have gotten it. Can't see paying $100 more for it.
As mentioned earlier, I also store my music library in the cloud with Google Music. I can listen to my music from my phone, tablet, and PC.
I don't store movies on it. I only store a movie or two on it temporarily. When I'm done, I delete it. I have the USB adapter and a 16 GB adapter to go along with it. I recently went on a trip, so I have 10 movies on it, quite a few apps, and pictures. I still have 7 GB left. The 10 movies I have are not HD, therefore their file size is a lot smaller than HD videos. The videos still look pretty good to me. If I'm into the clarity of the movie, then I should be watching it on my 60" TV, and not a 10" screen.
Sent from my GT-P7510 using Tapatalk

16GB is more than enough to store a few hours of video. Easy enough to plug in the USB adapter and a thumb drive to swap content past that point.
The USB dongle and a 32GB thumb drive costs less than the extra 16GB of builtin memory.
In fact, for the $100 price delta you can get the USB dongle ($20) and two 32GB thumb drives (approx. $40 each).

I ended up with 16gb model only because Staples does not carry the 32gb model in the store and I used the $100 coupon.
I would have bought the 32gb just to have it but like others have said for the $100 price difference it really doesnt make sense. Just manage your videos and put music in the cloud, should be good with 16gb that way.

I used the $100 I would have spent towards the purchase of a new Netbook.
I now have the best of both words. With the Tab being so thin, I can store my Netbook, Tab 10.1 with the Samsung flip case, chargers, USB dongle, and cables all in a traditional netbook carrying case. I can use the Netbook for PC specific apps and certain websites that I have issues with on tablet browsers. I can use the Tab for web browsing, reading, Android apps and games.
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Thanks for the replies folks, much appreciated. I think the 16gig version will be fine for my needs, I don't think I'll be loading music onto the Tab but perhaps a film or two for trips away etc. The next decision is .... white or black!

16GB becomes 13.27Gb in fact
i went with the 16GB and found out its not enough for me (it is though on my SGS II)
- nandroid backups takes 2GB each
- i have about 90 apps installed (2GB) but
- Gameloft Games data takes a lot of space and I cant get rid of them because that Spiderman HD is sooo good !
- videos are less than 1GB
- about 15 music tracks

I grabbed the 16GB version, as I bought mine almost entirely for my photography portfolio, a cooking app, and a pdf reader. I've got 12GB free, and probably wont go much below that. If I'm feeling adventurous in a year or so and I still have it, I'll look into the cost of 128Gb memory, and look at upgrading the memory myself (I'm assuming the tablet features dual 64Gb chips for a total of 128Gb, or 16GB, but i dont know until i can either take it apart or see internals

jeandujardin01 said:
16GB becomes 13.27Gb in fact
i went with the 16GB and found out its not enough for me (it is though on my SGS II)
- nandroid backups takes 2GB each
- i have about 90 apps installed (2GB) but
- Gameloft Games data takes a lot of space and I cant get rid of them because that Spiderman HD is sooo good !
- videos are less than 1GB
- about 15 music tracks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I only keep one or two backups on my devices, the rest get offloaded to my pc.

evnarich said:
I only keep one or two backups on my devices, the rest get offloaded to my pc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does this require rooting my Tab?
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evnarich said:
I only keep one or two backups on my devices, the rest get offloaded to my pc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
. Seriously, why in the world would anyone want to store multiples of 2gb backups on the actual device. Does not make any sense.

This is funny but i get the feeling that most of the people that replied to UKseagull think that UK is one of the states in US.
GUYZ WE DONT HAVE ANY GOOGLE CLOUD PRODUCTS, SAME GOES TO NETFLIX AND HULU. WE CANNOT BUY BOOKS OR MOVIES ON ANDROID MARKET EIHER.
But in regards to the question, 16GB should be more than enough,
My problem is 3G or not 3G, I know i have mny phone with me but on Tathering battery will last me few hours, than again Tab with 3G means i have to charge 2 devices at the same time.
3G will give me option to stream films online (thank you adobe) but than again thats another £10 to pay for new sim with unlimited data on P&G :/
Any good pros and cons?

I'd think that streaming films via 3G would be quite expensive, you can soon whiz through a 500mb data cap.
The 3G version is £100 extra to the wifi unit, but the MicroSD slot that comes with it is a plus.

Get a wifi tablet and a mobile hot spot. If you have a smart phone and laptop, they could share the hotspots and help eliminate the need for higher data on your smartphone. Just a thought to see if that is a better deal to double down on the mobile hotspots.
Regarding 16 vs 32. I bought 32gb knowing that expansion would have to be via USB cable plus drive. Its okay for stationary use but not the best for travel and mobile. But if you can be very selective on your media, 16gb will work fantastic.
I have about 600 songs, which are longer and larger files since they are remixes. Then 2 TV shows @ 550mb each and 1 movie @ 1.2gb. They are Standard Def movies. I have an ample list of apps installed as well. Barely any pictures. I have 18gb left on my storage. So I am doing quite well with 32gb. I could easily fit an ample supply of movies and music to fill it up. But I'm waiting to see what is available on the Samsung Hub in HD to download to my device. I listen to music at my desk at work via the media hub. So it charges while it plays, and then I grab and go to meetings with it. Saves me towing my iPOD with me everywhere. It stays in my Jeep and then only ejects for the gym. So my Tab is my work and travel entertainment device.
If you had a 16gb, you would be nearly full with the above list of media. So you would need to delete and make room for more or use the USB adapter plus external drive of sorts. Don't get me wrong it's nice to be able to do that.... but may not always be practical with the current case+stands out there. If you were wanting to watch a movie on a plane, it may be a bit much to drag out and spread on your tray table. or if you are in a hotel and want to watch a movie, it'll have to be on your tab storage if you use the HDMI adapter to connect to the hotel TV. You can't have external storage and HDMI at same time. I think downloading a movie while traveling would be nice to watch in a hotel room via HDMI adapter. Cheaper than a hotel and you can at least take it with you on your tablet for the trip to rewatch of finish if you fall asleep.
These scenarios are probably not applicable to most but if you travel alot you might appreciate the simplicity of the larger storage. Plus you can't change you mind later without loosing money on selling old and buy the more expensive 32gb. I hope that helps give a different perspective.
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32 GB and you will feel good about your purchase. Spend the extra money. Don't be cheap.

The SGT 10.1 is not out in Canada yet so I have to wait a little longer.
I think I'll go with the 16GB version.
If I need extra space then I will go with the Wi-Drive (Kingston). Rumor has it an app is in the works for Android. My other option is to use a microSd card in a SG2.

Best Flash Drive for OTG?

Want to get a flash drive for OTG for my nexus 7 but I am unsure about if the speed of a usb drive is a concern.

I would be curious to know what flash drive consumes the least power. I'm sure they are all similar, but one would think a drive without LEDs might be better...perhaps different kinds of memory, etc. Who knows...way beyond my pay grade.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

I don't think speed is an issue if you stream right from the flash drive, I think. But you should definitely get the 64gb for lots of extra storage for backups and movies, music, etc.

I use a patroit 32GB flash drive, which is really small also and it works good.

I think it would have to be the SanDisk Cruzer Fit CZ33 32GB USB Flash Drive(can't post links, its on amazon)
why you ask? It's small and won't cause much of a weight issue and wont stuck out, speed is not a issue.

I got the Patriot 32GB from Fry's for under 20 bucks and it works pretty good. I don't know about power consumption, but I can play movies off it no problem. I can jump to the middle of a film with almost no search time delay, which I thought was pretty impressive.

[Q] Which version (16 or 32 GB) is the better fit?

Hi everyone,
I would be interested in some opinions as up until now I never had a tablet.
The question is how much storage you need as now both versions are available at the PlayStore (US) and I am totally unsure which version is the better choice. As I never had a tablet before, I do not know how much data you normally save on such a device. As it has no cellular, it has to be most of the time in the surrounding of Wifi, so space for video streaming and music would not be such a problem (what about a flight trip and some movies?). On the other hand, I hear that a lot of people think that even 32 GB are too small as there are nowadays games for Android that consume up to 2-3 GB. If I am really a gaming person is additionally questionable, most of the times I just have no time for that. But if several users might use that device (in my case probably just one, but maybe in the future up to 3 people), then storage can be again a bottleneck.
What I have in mind for usage would be mainly using that device for reading pdf files for research and browsing and streaming of videos. What functions and by that space I might use when I experience the possibilities of that device is difficult to say.
(Additionally, I will buy a Nexus 4 16GB and probably signing up for GoogleDrive and GoogleMusic as especially on my mobile phone I see a need for sufficient space).
I appreciate your help.

I travel a lot. Flying and hotels are not so bad, I usually have access to some sort of WiFi connection at the terminals and hotels, so I'm only "dead" when in the air, and worst case I can "load" my tablet in-flight from my laptop (which I've done on those long flights to Europe and Asia).
But I also like to take long camping tours on my motorcycle, where many times cellular isn't available, let alone WiFi, and bringing along my laptop would take too much space.
And that's where I feel the storage pinch of a 16Gb device. My Tab 8.9 is 16Gb, and while it's a great tablet (for its time), the lack of storage means it requires more forethought before travelling, and a lot more "shuffling" of files on and off to "freshen" my music, video and ebook libraries, or packing around the external SD card reader, which is clunky and a bit slow.
Same problem with my old N7 16Gb, which I just replaced with a 32Gb. And the other problem is that the Nexus 7's USB port is so fragile that I fear breaking it with a USB2Go dongle stressing it, along with it being clunky.
And that's why I ordered the 32Gb N10, and why I didn't even think about buying a N4. Sure, $100 is a steep price to pay for the extra storage, but for me it's worth it for the lack of hassles.
And for those that say USB2Go will solve the problem for them, you should factor in the cost of a decent USB stick/card reader/SDcard and USB2Go adapter if you don't already have them...then that $100 difference will shrink quite a bit.

By the sounds of it you'll only want the extra space when going away/out of wifi access e.g.trains, aeroplanes etc.
I am in a similar situation and settled on a 16GB. I have now confirmed that I can access films from a USB drive and will be purchasing a 64GB USB stick for those times when i'm away from home. This will give me a much higher total storage space than 32GB and will only cost ~£50.

MPJ88 said:
By the sounds of it you'll only want the extra space when going away/out of wifi access e.g.trains, aeroplanes etc.
I am in a similar situation and settled on a 16GB. I have now confirmed that I can access films from a USB drive and will be purchasing a 64GB USB stick for those times when i'm away from home. This will give me a much higher total storage space than 32GB and will only cost ~£50.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For me it's always better to have extra storage space. I had the 64GB ASUS prime and on top of it I had bought 16GB microSD card to put music and ebooks. This time I ordered a 16GB since that's what was available on Google store and received it yesterday but by then 32GB was available, so I ordered one. I really wish there was a microSD slot for expansion !

I admit having an sd slot would be nice, but not that much of an inconvenience to plug a usb in when you need that extra storage

I only ever have multiple movies on my tablet when I'm on vacation and while I do have some HD games installed, I hardly ever play them. That being said I never had a problem with my 16 GB tablets. At home I can easily stream movies with Emit and I can always delete music I don't want to listen to at the time if I ever come close to the size limit but you can fix that by using Google Music, which you said is your plan anyways. I'd say save the $100 and spend it on something else. You can always get a USB drive and an OTG cable for longer trips. It's really not that inconvenient to transfer a few files and then pack the USB drive away again.

even considered the seagate satellite portable drive. 500GB battery powered drive with wifi capabilities so no cables. But dont think i could stream 1080p from it smoothly

[Q] External Storage

Hello,
I'm thinking about getting the Nexus 10, currently have an iPad 2 but the screen of googles tablet is just too tempting.
One of the things I want to use it for is viewing media, I'll be getting the 16gb version and I'm a little bit worried the storage will get filled up pretty quickly. I have about 75gb worth of dropbox storage but was wondering if there's anything I could use if there's no wifi?
I'm thinking of just a small flash drive to plug into the microUSB port with loads of films on it, basically like a usb drive but compatible with the nexus 10, is there anything out there that'll do that?
Cheers.

There are ways to make that happen but you will need to root your device. This can be done with the use of apps, or with a custom rom but definitely possible. gaming...I don't think you can yet. mainly because its early and 4.2 is still pretty new.

I have no problem rooting the device, was probably going to anyway. I just wanted to know what the best/smallest external storage options were?
Maybe this thread would be better in the Accessories thread.

so many threads on this already, have possibilities of micro sd, sd, usb thumbdrive, some portable hdd enclosures and wireless hdds.
Dont need to be rooted, just use nexus media importer

64GB class 10 microSDXC should do the trick, they come with super small USB converters. Too bad for the lack of microUSB microSD reader, how much money one could make off it!

BoneXDA said:
64GB class 10 microSDXC should do the trick, they come with super small USB converters. Too bad for the lack of microUSB microSD reader, how much money one could make off it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Making one :laugh:
Shame the reader only support sdhc so max 32gb cards for me, but can get a few!

Pro or 16gb?

Hi guys. I have an Amazon fire tv box at the moment. Fully rooted and running some good media stuff. I am selling and upgrading to a sheild tv. My question is this. Which model should I go for? From a rooting point of view, is the 500gb model just the same to do. I have read posts talking of difficulties. If I buy the 16gb model and use an external hdd, is this the same as a pro model? I understand you can use external as internal now? Could someone enlighten me?

16gb of course... Best speed... And yes with the adoptative storage... I got a 500gb external hdd usb 3.0 as internal, no problems.. A cheapest option for more internal storage.

Largewoodenspoon said:
Hi guys. I have an Amazon fire tv box at the moment. Fully rooted and running some good media stuff. I am selling and upgrading to a sheild tv. My question is this. Which model should I go for? From a rooting point of view, is the 500gb model just the same to do. I have read posts talking of difficulties. If I buy the 16gb model and use an external hdd, is this the same as a pro model? I understand you can use external as internal now? Could someone enlighten me?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Personally I recommend the 16GB
however, if you plan to use a lot of internal storage and dont want to mess with figuring out adoptive storage then the 500GB pro would benefit you.
(adoptive storage really inst that difficult in my opinion and works really well making the 16GB far more appealing but since so many people have been having issues with it I thought it should be noted)
Shield Pro:
Pros:
the 500gb is always seen as internal storage
No need to use adoptive storage unless you are putting massive amounts of offline media on it
No real need to use external storage except for transferring files to it.
Cons:
The 500GB hard drive is a normal hard disk which does make a little noise, this bothers some people.
Early models had some issues with defective hard drives
Some people report slight performance issues compared to the 16GB model which they attribute to the hard disk
Bottom line: the Pro is going to be easier to use all around if you plan to install a lot of games or offline media but it is noisier and may have some performance stutters, also note that there were some earlier models with hard drive failure. nvidia has been great about replacing them but it should be noted.
Shield 16GB
Pros:
Smoother performance (Per some reports)
Cheaper
No defective hard drive issues since it doesn't have a hard drive.
Quieter
Adoptive storage in 6.0 gives the option to bridge the storage gap with the pro. (There are some cons to this though, see below)
When using fast external storage media as adoptive storage in my experience there have been no performance issues whatsoever.
Cons:
only 16GB of internal space
When installing multiple large games you will need to use adoptive storage
To use adoptive storage you will need to either purchase an additional SD card, OTG drive or hard disk unless you have one with good write speeds laying around.
if using slower memory as adoptive storage there are some very definite performance issues.
Bottom line: if you wont be installing many large games at the same time and use external storage for music, videos and Game Roms then this model is a no brainer being the cheaper option with generally better performance and no risk of a defective hard drive.
however, if you want to install a lot of large games to it and otherwise heavily use adoptive storage then you have to be very careful to make sure you understand how it works and what you need or it can be a headache. (you can tell this pretty easily reading through the forums with so many people complaining about it) in my own experience it works pretty well though as long as you understand what you are getting into.

I have both and never had a single issue with either... until the 3.0 update... but thats another story... in my experience, they perform the same in regards to the x1 chip... ive never heard the HDD in the pro model and i was a day one adopter... the list above is comprehensive and pretty much hits the nail on the head, but i just wanted to chime in and say that ive never heard the HDD spinning on my pro model.

If the pro model also has emmc for OS and only uses the HD as storage, I'd consider the Pro model. Unfortunately SATV Pro uses the HD for OS and it's impossible for users to clone the HD. HDs are likely to fail sooner than emmcs and make the SATV pro a waste.
SATV should have a standard SATA interface for storage and emmc for OS like the Jetson TX1.

I see little benefit in getting a pro now. If you want the absolute fastest in terms of storage you may as well get an external usb3 ssd and use that as adoptable storage
I'll be honest I didn't consider the pro as it was $100 more expensive for the 500gb hd which is an absolute rip off. If it was $50 I would have probably got one. Depends how OCD you are about clutter, personally I don't mind using an external HD.

Ok thanks guys. I just ordered the 16gb model. Do you think I need the extra stick remote?
First thing I'm gonna do is root it.
Should I upgrade to latest 3 software? And flash a Custom rom?
I've read that something weird happens with the controller not working?
Anyway I'm very excited and consider it an upgrade from my Amazon fire tv box. I hope!?

Largewoodenspoon said:
Ok thanks guys. I just ordered the 16gb model. Do you think I need the extra stick remote?
First thing I'm gonna do is root it.
Should I upgrade to latest 3 software? And flash a Custom rom?
I've read that something weird happens with the controller not working?
Anyway I'm very excited and consider it an upgrade from my Amazon fire tv box. I hope!?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would recommend the remote, though it is a bit pricey for what it does.
The biggest place its come in handy for me is when I pair a Bluetooth device (Mouse, other controller etc.) the controller always seems to disconnect for some reason and wont let me hit the "Pair" button.
The remote never has connectivity issues for me and so I can always just grab it and hit the "Pair" button and worry about getting the controller reconnected later.
I also tend to use it when I'm watching movies using headphones because I can plug the headphones into the remote.
this can be done with the controller as well but it has three small benefits that I've found over using the controller:
1. its smaller and lighter than the controller so you can slip it in your pocket and still hear what's going on if you need to run to the kitchen in the middle of a movie or something.
2. it doesn't have any lights where the controller has lights that stay on all the time (Nvidia shield logo, home, start, back etc.) which can be a bit of an annoyance watching movies in the dark.
3. the buttons are much harder to accidentally press
It can also be used as a controller in some games which is a plus for some (I prefer the controller myself but my wife far prefers the remote for simple games like badlands and dragon fly)
I love it and would recommend it for the reasons above but for some people its probably redundant since the controller can perform all of the same functions.
so if the price isn't an issue I would go for it hands down, but if you were planning on using the money for something more pressing (a second controller or more storage etc.) your money may be better off used elsewhere.