Database Users

Received a Response from Acer regarding locked bootloader

Good news everyone!
In an earlier thread (the [DEV] Recovery/Config thread), I mentioned that my company has a large corporate account with Acer and I was going to work my contacts to try and contact Acer and bring attention to the bootloader issue.
In my initial message to them, I informed them that Acer has a reputation of being "hostile" to the development community, reputations that the Xoom and the Transformer do not have. Specifically, I stated we needed the kernel source, which they're required to provide per the GPL, and for the bootloader to be unlocked so that we could load custom recovery and images. I told him that several people have stated they have returned the Iconia because it wasnt friendly for development, and that the developers and "power users" in this community have a vested interest in seeing development thrive and seeing the device succeed. I had two contacts with Acer I had hoped would garner a response.
Today, I received a response from one of those contacts, the Senior Product Manager of Notebooks, Tablets and Netbooks for Acer America.
While I can't post his contact information or the full text of his response (he was not empowered to speak publically on behalf of the company), he was able to share a bit of information with me that I can relay.
To summarize:
- Acer is aware of the community's reaction to the locked bootloader and unreleased kernel. They saw what went on with HTC's bootloader fiasco and they are now discussing their policy internally.
- They view the perception of the Iconia in the Android development and enthusiast community as very important.
- While he couldn't give me any specifics, he did reassure me that he is actively working with his team to find how quickly they can address the bootloader/kernel issues with the Iconia and what specific actions they would take.
So they are aware of the issue and they are working to correct it. He gave me both his work and personal contact information and he said he'd keep me posted of updates.
My personal guess is that there is more involved in the decision than just the Acer America team, but at least they're aware of the negative perception and they're taking steps to correct it.
I'll keep you all advised as I find out more, but I'm happy to see progress being made! There's still hope yet.

excellent, I believe there is an open petition thread (in general) that you may want to forward on to him, might give more ammo with the higher ups!
Good work my friend!

That's an encouraging response, kudos to Acer for hiring the guy. Too many times you get the basic canned response that goes something like "we know what we are doing, so suckit and deal with it". And good job, Fumetsu, on what sounds like a well thought out and worded request for info in the first place.
This give me hope that I'll be able to get flash-happy with my A500 in the future, even though I bought it knowing that I would probabaly be getting something else later in the year. Honeycomb just doesn't have all the dev potential that I've seen with my GTab, Nook, and Inspire...... but one can always dream.

Very good news indeed. I just want to be able to use stock Honeycomb, or Ice Cream Sandwich when that's available, without all the 'extra' software and apps that are generally unnecessary. From a business view it seems like they could have saved quite a bit of money and time if they had left the bootloader unlocked in the first place. All they would need to do is host their own update files online for people that want them and leave the rest to the Dev community. Just my thinking anyway. I feel like there is a large enough user base in the Android community that would justify an unlocked bootloader. I guess all we can do is wait and see what happens. =)

Nice. Thanks for your effort. Hope they do listen to Iconia users!!!
Enviado desde mi A500 usando XDA Premium App

Thanks all. Although he was light on specifics it was a very encouraging response. I just hope they move fast, the market is growing rapidly and dev interest can wane for the "next big thing " and Acer can find itself trailing in the market, even if it has better hardware and potential.

nice, let's keep our fingers crossed for this.

i hope that something will happen soon ...

Can you tell him to (cough) leak something (cough)?
I had the Acer Liquid and we used to get leaks like crazy. But nothing for the Iconia

Hello
Very good news, I hope it's not only a commercial response
@+

Where I come from we say:
Those who live in hope dies shi**ing ... :-D
But I also hope that bootloader will finally unlocked
Sent from my A500 using XDA Premium App

acer driver page updated
On acers driver page they have in the last day or so added some content tabs. A place where os and updates will put available. So I do think they have some plans on atleast giving available to d/load recovery is and updates.I beloved this will come wyen or soon after they begin pushing 3.1 to our devices.everyone has spoken I think now its time tobsee if Acer comes thru.
Keeping gentle and responsible pressure in then not bashing and sending threats is prob best.
Just my two and ¼ pennies. Thanks all in the community
Blonde geeky chic
Erica renee

Pure speculation here... I think that I read somewhere that AT&T will be releasing an Acer Iconia Android a501 tab soon. Could that be why Acer has this policy? After all, AT&T is notorious about this sort of thing. My Atrix and I know this all to well.

My two cents:
1) it's really not a good idea to start of a conversation with someone you want to give you a welcoming response with "I informed them that Acer has a reputation of being hostile to the development community." You don't want to kiss their ass but you certainly don't want to tell a company that everyone hates them and then expect them to do something nice for you.
2) Market penetration versus market stability. Right now Acer has a product that is readily available. Reviews have been mixed. (I ignore the ones who ***** about weight because 0.2 ounce difference is two quarters and three dimes in weight. Grow a f*cking pair biceps, you wieners.) But CNET and all the other mainstream reviewers claim that an iPad (not iPad II) and the Asus Transformer are the better deals.
But let's be honest about the responses. Sure, iPad is a gimme because it's a hip, cultural thing. Just like telling some kid that Pabst Blue Ribbon beer is **** will not get them to change brands as long as it is perceived to be "cool." So forget the iPad. As for the Transformer? Sure you can have an unlocked bootlader and new snazzy 3.1 roms, but who besides the true fanboy has one of them? They won't have stock until October of this year, and then it will be newer more powerful models coming out. The majority of people have bought a computer (desktop) and a cellphone and that's as far as they go in tech. Sure you have an iPhone but do they really use it for computing and service? They load the apps that their kids told them to. Acer can fill this gap by doing one or two things in the immediate future that could lock them into a top spot: drop the price of A500 by $40 or, work with the telcos to build and ship the next gen, wireless tablet. They are not going to drop the price because the units are selling enough that some bean counter says it competes with the other tablets in the market. But this would be an issue if Asus had their **** together and had the Transformer in plenty of stock.
This is the reason for the locked bootlader. If companies plan to add wireless to the next gen (or rev) tablets, they will get a lot of attention from the telcos. The phone companies do not, I repeat, do not want unlimited broadband connectivity. These are the same people who still charge for cell-phone texts. Why? Because they can and they know people will go over limits. Limits and exceeding them rack in the dollars. And they have millions of dollars set aside to keep their limits (profits rolling in).
If the broadband wireless next version of the Acer is different enough in Honeycomb 3.1 than the A500, then they might release an unlocked profile for the small group of XDA developers and those that read this forum. For the general population (and the large amount of sales), telcos want locked systems so that metered broadband is the norm. But if there is any way of porting and unlocked A500 to the wireless model, I don't think they'll do it. Also, it shows good faith to the telcos that they are already in step with them about creating limits on the user base. The phone companies will show favor to locked systems over the others. And that's the second choice Acer already made.

look here and join as much as possibile!
http://www.facebook.com/?m2w#!/home.php?sk=group_149462058455870&ap=1
Cross the finger me too...

The_Monkey_King said:
My two cents:
1) it's really not a good idea to start of a conversation with someone you want to give you a welcoming response with "I informed them that Acer has a reputation of being hostile to the development community." You don't want to kiss their ass but you certainly don't want to tell a company that everyone hates them and then expect them to do something nice for you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello!
Just to clarify, I didn't bash the Iconia or Acer itself, only that it is perceived as "hostile" to 3rd party developers. I actually took that "hostile" quote directly from a developer on these boards and compared development efforts with the Xoom and the Transformer. I made sure to stress that we have a vested interest in the success of 3rd party development on the Acer so that its perception as developer friendly in the community could be improved.
My initial contact and his response were cordial and respectful, so I don't believe he took it this way. I structured my contact with him stating that I felt the Iconia was a great product, had benefits the other Android tablets do not, has the distinction as of now being the fastest selling Android Honeycomb tablet, and that developers are eager to work with the device. He was quite clear that he valued the feedback and they wanted to and are working to address it.
We exchanged personal and business contact information so it was definitely a positive response.

mr.r9 said:
Can you tell him to (cough) leak something (cough)?
I had the Acer Liquid and we used to get leaks like crazy. But nothing for the Iconia
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Click to collapse
I wouldn't want to risk his position within Acer by asking for a leak. I told him that I would redact his contact info and would not directly quote his response because he is a business contact for my company and I don't want to jeopardize that relationship or get him in trouble with the company. He was clear that they know it is an issue and that he personally was working with his team to find out the best way to resolve it in the quickest manner possible. Knowing how big corporations work, it's not up to one man or I believe even Acer America itself, but I surmise there are higher level talks going on. His team is directly responsible for product development of tablets and netbooks and I believe he is in a prime position to move Acer towards resolution.

diamond_cbr said:
Hello
Very good news, I hope it's not only a commercial response
@+
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Click to collapse
It definitely wasn't a canned commerical response that one would get from T1 Acer Tech Support. If it was something I felt was said just to placate me or was just a generic statement, I would not have bothered posting this to get everyone's hopes up. It really gave me encouragement that they do see this as an issue and that he does want to help.

The_Monkey_King said:
My two cents:
1) it's really not a good idea to start of a conversation with someone you want to give you a welcoming response with "I informed them that Acer has a reputation of being hostile to the development community." You don't want to kiss their ass but you certainly don't want to tell a company that everyone hates them and then expect them to do something nice for you.
2) Market penetration versus market stability. Right now Acer has a product that is readily available. Reviews have been mixed. (I ignore the ones who ***** about weight because 0.2 ounce difference is two quarters and three dimes in weight. Grow a f*cking pair biceps, you wieners.) But CNET and all the other mainstream reviewers claim that an iPad (not iPad II) and the Asus Transformer are the better deals.
But let's be honest about the responses. Sure, iPad is a gimme because it's a hip, cultural thing. Just like telling some kid that Pabst Blue Ribbon beer is **** will not get them to change brands as long as it is perceived to be "cool." So forget the iPad. As for the Transformer? Sure you can have an unlocked bootlader and new snazzy 3.1 roms, but who besides the true fanboy has one of them? They won't have stock until October of this year, and then it will be newer more powerful models coming out. The majority of people have bought a computer (desktop) and a cellphone and that's as far as they go in tech. Sure you have an iPhone but do they really use it for computing and service? They load the apps that their kids told them to. Acer can fill this gap by doing one or two things in the immediate future that could lock them into a top spot: drop the price of A500 by $40 or, work with the telcos to build and ship the next gen, wireless tablet. They are not going to drop the price because the units are selling enough that some bean counter says it competes with the other tablets in the market. But this would be an issue if Asus had their **** together and had the Transformer in plenty of stock.
This is the reason for the locked bootlader. If companies plan to add wireless to the next gen (or rev) tablets, they will get a lot of attention from the telcos. The phone companies do not, I repeat, do not want unlimited broadband connectivity. These are the same people who still charge for cell-phone texts. Why? Because they can and they know people will go over limits. Limits and exceeding them rack in the dollars. And they have millions of dollars set aside to keep their limits (profits rolling in).
If the broadband wireless next version of the Acer is different enough in Honeycomb 3.1 than the A500, then they might release an unlocked profile for the small group of XDA developers and those that read this forum. For the general population (and the large amount of sales), telcos want locked systems so that metered broadband is the norm. But if there is any way of porting and unlocked A500 to the wireless model, I don't think they'll do it. Also, it shows good faith to the telcos that they are already in step with them about creating limits on the user base. The phone companies will show favor to locked systems over the others. And that's the second choice Acer already made.
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Click to collapse
Didn't the Xoom went through the same thing regarding being released through a carrier with a catch of having to activated a plan? ... and later on got unlocked bootloader straight from MOTO ?
http://www.androidcentral.com/unlocking-motorola-xoom-bootloader-forums
Each ones has its own potential... yet ruined by marketing greed... ( carriers $$$ gouging ) ...etc... ^^$$$^^
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20029411-1.html
I'm an Iconian "TYPE A" BTW
could you please sign it/vote it ...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1102690
"Strength in ###"
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...

Ask him why they haven't released the source yet, please.
To remain in compliance with the license, they'd have had to release it the same day as the bins. :|
I'm really starting to wish I waited for the transformer.

Boycott asus

without the B70 SBK this products gets returned! If I wanted a locked bootloader I would buy an iPAD. The creaky case is also some poor quality that also shows ASUS doesnt care about the consumer because they released it knowing it creaks, time for my money to go elsewhere. No more ASUS products just like no more Viewsonic. ASUS can deal with all the returns.

Waaa Waaa Waaa....not another one of these inane posts...please?
if you don't like your purchase, go return it but don't cry about how Asus doesn't care...that's just dumb.

ROFL
GTFO Troll

BilliamB said:
without the B70 SBK this products gets returned! If I wanted a locked bootloader I would buy an iPAD. The creaky case is also some poor quality that also shows ASUS doesnt care about the consumer because they released it knowing it creaks, time for my money to go elsewhere. No more ASUS products just like no more Viewsonic. ASUS can deal with all the returns.
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Click to collapse
Hmm that's ashame. I will get right on that boycott. So when is the Transformer 2 release? My money is ready

Asus has already had 3-4 returns from me. But I finally got a Transformer with dock without any problems.
Don't boycott their product, just buy it and return/exchange like a hundred times. Then they'll get the message.
Seriously though, don't. I'm joking. If you don't like the product go buy something else.

BilliamB said:
without the B70 SBK this products gets returned! If I wanted a locked bootloader I would buy an iPAD. The creaky case is also some poor quality that also shows ASUS doesnt care about the consumer because they released it knowing it creaks, time for my money to go elsewhere. No more ASUS products just like no more Viewsonic. ASUS can deal with all the returns.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The same team that unlocked the earlier version has unlocked the B7O. But, ASUS asked not to release sbk in similar fashion and nvflash loader needs mod.
It might be too early to say B7O (latest) and above (B8, etc) will stay locked. At least someone now has the ability to root and is trying to get root for all.
I do not have links, but it is fairly easy information to locate. Good luck.

You talk as though there are no defective units in every other brands.

you can hardly boycott asus for trying to lock the bootloader, almost every major mfg out there tries to lock it. You'd be better off blaming google for allowing mfgs to sell unrootable devices, or for closing down all the known 3.2 root methods. i agree that without root these devices become far less useable and the mfgs need to come to terms with that, but asus is hardly alone. You'll have a hard time finding a mainstream device that doesn't at least attempt to lock down the boot loader.

ibtl
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk

Asus is out to get you, that's it for sure

thebadfrog said:
Hahahaha.....gotta love those cowards who flame by pm.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here...what a waste of 20 seconds opening the PM...

thebadfrog said:
Productive......I've worked my whole life
Patriotic.....I served in the Navy and my wife is currently in the Army
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not to derail this incredibly interesting thread but thank you for your sacrifice for your country (and your wifes)
Much appreciated....really.
bob

This thread is useless - closing and hope that the whining on this won't happen again.

ICS coming soon it seems

I just noticed an update for Acer Nidus (their bug reporting app) in the changelog, it mentions a change to allow better ICS compatibility. So clearly they are in the testing phase, in fact theyre far enough into it that they're ever n upgrading their own apps for it, which means thework theyve done to build the Rom must be pretty far along.

Good stuff! Thanks for the heads up.

This is one of the reasons I went ahead and purchased the Iconia Tab, I have read many reports online stating that ACER will be pushing the 4.0 update sometime in January for both models of their Android TAB the A100 and A500. Your little find makes me believe that they werent kidding, I won't hold my breathe waiting for it in January I would bet on No earlier than February, thats just the way Manufactures seem to do things anymore.

garringm said:
This is one of the reasons I went ahead and purchased the Iconia Tab, I have read many reports online stating that ACER will be pushing the 4.0 update sometime in January for both models of their Android TAB the A100 and A500. Your little find makes me believe that they werent kidding, I won't hold my breathe waiting for it in January I would bet on No earlier than February, thats just the way Manufactures seem to do things anymore.
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Click to collapse
ME too...That was one of the reason I bought it.

Acer sales spurt
I think acer will push the ics update sooner then people are expecting,or they will release a new tablet then push the update to us after that.So it could go either way. IF they do not have the new t 3 tablets ready.or there is a very large stock of icer iconia tabs out there.. they may push the update and use it as a tool to promote another sales spurt for out devices..
I Guess with this said it could be tomorrow or not until spring or mid year.. AS i said above and from what i have read it all depends on how close the new t 3 devices are . They do what ever they can to drive sales NOT MAKE ALREADY CUSTOMERS HAPPY..
i USED TO Own a retail business and on a local scale this does work its like when a new version of windows is about to come out.. People dont push new hardware right away.. they push that there existing hardware will run the new os and push that first.. then NEw hardware taking advantage of the new os after stocks have been depleated.. ITS NOT FAIR TO CUSTOMERS BUT GOOD FOR THERE BOTTOM LINE..

garringm said:
This is one of the reasons I went ahead and purchased the Iconia Tab, I have read many reports online stating that ACER will be pushing the 4.0 update sometime in January for both models of their Android TAB the A100 and A500. Your little find makes me believe that they werent kidding, I won't hold my breathe waiting for it in January I would bet on No earlier than February, thats just the way Manufactures seem to do things anymore.
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Click to collapse
It'll be awhile before I flash any update from a manufacturer, went down that road with my evo 4g and samsung captivate. Samsung Drops the ball every time an update comes out, nut I guess I can't cry too hard because a lot of the hold up is from the phone carriers trying to tie up any loop hole, and cram all of their crapware in. HTC pulled a major foopah with the hardcore techies when they locked down their bootloaders. 6 months without root priviliges, that sucked

FWIW - the newly released a200 has been announced as ICS ready - with reports that it will be shipping with ICS in January.
Given the lead times between manufacture and shipping - to be saying this and aiming get a device in stores in January with ICS - the ICS rom must pretty much be complete for that device.
And what a sweet tab it is for the price - picked up one of the first ones available for a very sweet 299 - which i think makes it the best priced HC 3.2.1 10'1 tab on the planet at the moment. Well done acer . . .
___________
Acer Liquid MT
Acer A200 Iconia Tab

I might be wrong, but my money is on ACER NOT pushing ICS <period>. They may make it available manually, but pushing it OTA should have their legal staff trying to stop it.
Here's the issue. If you download the HC kernel and compare it to ICS it is greatly different. Many applications have issues running on ICS that ran fine on HC. It is risky. Many carriers have a service level agreement with customers and breaking a tablet on a customer you already have on contract paying you isn't worth the risk either. Secondly, there are huge changes in ICS that certain carriers are not going to want on their 3G networks. So, anyone with such an ACER (like on on Verzion), don't hold your breath.
So, here you are at ACER sitting in the executive boardroom and they're discussing ICS. Why would anyone want to support giving past customers (or better yet forcing past customers via OTA) ICS when they already have that past customer's money? No upside, only costs, headaches, and lawsuit's written all over it. ACER will therefore, release ICS only on NEW hardware. Therefore they can get you to pay for it. Also read their press releases. They are saying A500 to get ICS. But they are NOT saying YOUR OLD ACER a500 that you previously bought will be upgraded free of charge and free of issues are they?
Bottom-line, there's too much risk involved in OTA'ng a NEW OS to customers that are NOT paying you anything. Why have someone start a class action lawsuit over it because the OTA broke something?
Lastly, I've been programming and running ICS for 3 months now and it is buggy. Stuff crashes, MFG's are needing to patch their apps, etc. If ACER makes ICS OTA it won't be a release it will be a nightmare.
my 2¢
TD

timmyDean said:
So, here you are at ACER sitting in the executive boardroom and they're discussing ICS. Why would anyone want to support giving past customers (or better yet forcing past customers via OTA) ICS when they already have that past customer's money?
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Click to collapse
If Acer's smart and that executive sitting in the boardroom is not so short sighted, they'll understand that supporting their 8 month old product with reasonable updates for a reasonable period of time is the only way I'll consider using their brand again.
So if they abandon it... I (and many other users here) will never buy another Acer as a gift for a friend or family member, never recommend it to anybody, and we'll end up telling everybody to stay away from them. That's not how you build brand loyalty (compare this with Apple).
Even Samsung, who announced they weren't going to bother with ICS for any of the legacy Galaxy products is now having second thoughts after the backlash they started getting.
Now, nobody's saying they need to release all updates for everything forever. The 18-month Android Developer commitment these companies pledged to is a very reasonable window. And if there's concern about the OTA aspect, release it on the side as a manual update (HTC already does this).
And for bonus points, when they're done with the product's life-cycle... at least leave the keys on the table for us (i.e. HTC and their recent decision to unlock all boot-loaders).

timmyDean said:
I might be wrong, but my money is on ACER NOT pushing ICS <period>. They may make it available manually, but pushing it OTA should have their legal staff trying to stop it.
Here's the issue. If you download the HC kernel and compare it to ICS it is greatly different. Many applications have issues running on ICS that ran fine on HC. It is risky. Many carriers have a service level agreement with customers and breaking a tablet on a customer you already have on contract paying you isn't worth the risk either. Secondly, there are huge changes in ICS that certain carriers are not going to want on their 3G networks. So, anyone with such an ACER (like on on Verzion), don't hold your breath.
So, here you are at ACER sitting in the executive boardroom and they're discussing ICS. Why would anyone want to support giving past customers (or better yet forcing past customers via OTA) ICS when they already have that past customer's money? No upside, only costs, headaches, and lawsuit's written all over it. ACER will therefore, release ICS only on NEW hardware. Therefore they can get you to pay for it. Also read their press releases. They are saying A500 to get ICS. But they are NOT saying YOUR OLD ACER a500 that you previously bought will be upgraded free of charge and free of issues are they?
Bottom-line, there's too much risk involved in OTA'ng a NEW OS to customers that are NOT paying you anything. Why have someone start a class action lawsuit over it because the OTA broke something?
Lastly, I've been programming and running ICS for 3 months now and it is buggy. Stuff crashes, MFG's are needing to patch their apps, etc. If ACER makes ICS OTA it won't be a release it will be a nightmare.
my 2¢
TD
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Click to collapse
I keep up with the technology blogs and Acer is updating this tablet plus A100 by April. As far as all the other stuff Acer has recently said this week that they are focusing less on making new Android products but making great hardware and attracting customers by supporting software with updates.
http://androidandme.com/2011/12/dev...id-devices-catching-on-acer-joining-the-pack/
Sent from my A100 using Tapatalk

A lot of good points, but money talks in the world of business. Samsung, fubar'ed the press release that's all; everyone is thinking it, nobody is saying like Samsung.
Voting with our pocketbook, is correct. But we should have all walked when they locked the bootloader, don't you think?
All you have to have is ONE OTA come down and 'lady I'll get rich' looses access to the pictures she took of her dead husband. And lets say he died in Iraq, just to pour it on. So here's the grieving widow, of a fallen American hero, on national TV crying her eyes out that ACER pushed ICS and now she's lost the only pictures (oh and lets say a few videos) of her late husband.
Can you say multi-billion dollar lawsuit! If they push ICS it will not be pretty, and this is why no OEM will push it or make it available to an existing customer base. That's why they locked the bootloader so you cannot install ICS. Follow the money, you want ICS your bootloader is locked so cough up the cash for a new tablet, because with the locked boot loader you aren't loading anything. And they can walk into a court of law and state such 'Judge, we're not responsible for customer's loss of data because we locked the device. And as the evidence will show, the plaintiff unlocked the device causing the damage and loss of her photos and videos'. Meanwhile, 99.95% of the people won't know how to unlock the boatloader so they'll just buy a new one.
Bottom-line: Manufacture's are locking the bootloader to keep you from installing ICS, Netflex, Skype, or anything else that comes down the pipe. Oh, you want the NFL package, then let me sell you this NEW a500 with it already installed. Oh, you just want to install it on the one you already own? Sorry not supported. Since your bootloader is locked, good luck loading it!
What you will see is more and more apps that only run on ICS. Also, inside ICS will be LIB's in the /system/lib folder required to run certain apps. With a locked bootloader, you cannot add the required Lib's yet alone a OS. More proof, look at how many OEM's are now doing their own market place? If ACER locks you into ACER's market place then they make the millions. Again, follow the money. They are locking these to keep you contained inside their box and to make you buy and upgrade, period. There's no money in hardware, IBM said that what 15 years ago, HP this year? ACER wants to lock you into their market place, run only their applications, etc. That's what's happening here and why ICS will be something they can make money on. Therefore, don't hold your breath on any free ICS.
Lastly, ICS requires more memory, more video, more horsepower to run. Nvidia has already released a whole new architecture for ICS. Now you want the real bad news? They are building in additional security, and they claim that it will be impossible to root. Well, we all know how those claims go, but software exploits just might be a thing of the past. And how many of us are going to get out the soldering iron and paperclips to jumper in a bootloader unlock like gamers do on gaming stations?
Again, you can ***** and moan all you want, but ACER wants to make money and providing FREE ICS I'm sorry to say, just doesn't add money to the bottom line.
TD
---------- Post added at 06:17 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:50 AM ----------
ACER's direction - Future strategy going forward:
1. ACER has locked the bootloader to keep users from installing ICS. Therefore, they can offer a new series of devices for consumers to purchase for those wanting ICS.
2. The new Nvidia chip set and boot loader for ICS is locked from the factory from the beginning and with new and improved security and protocols. Since these tablets were never released unlocked, unlocking them will be very difficult. Only software security exploits can be used, however they can be easily fixed with an OTA.
3. ACER will deploy a new series of applications that only run on ICS with specific lib's contained in system/lib with out these library's certain applications will not run. ACER will exploit this to force vendors to use the ACER market place. If you want to watch movies, then you'll have to have an application from ACER's market place.
a. ACER will still allow general apps to be installed that conform to the ICS API, however applications that are potentially a revenue stream (for ACER) will need to be obtained from ACER's market place therefore they can charge the software vendor. Example, NetFlex application will still be free to the user, however the only version that runs is the one downloaded from ACER. Skype, the same thing. User's won't care, because to them it's still free. But to the software vendor it is not free, they will be charged by ACER to place their application on the market place.
I can go on and on. I do not work for ACER, nor claim to have any inside information. This is just my opinion gathered from various chats and reading articles on various sites. It is sort of the 'wild-wild-west' of the tablet world right now and everyone is trying to do a land grab. If you don't think this is possible then just look to the past. Remember AOL, Compuserve? You were locked into their network and they controlled it, but you don't have to look there. Look at the Kindle Fire, Lenovo, etc etc. They are all trying to be the next Apple, including Google with their Motorola division that they purchased.
anyway my 2 ¢
TD
---------- Post added at 06:32 AM ---------- Previous post was at 06:17 AM ----------
qhinton said:
I keep up with the technology blogs and Acer is updating this tablet plus A100 by April. As far as all the other stuff Acer has recently said this week that they are focusing less on making new Android products but making great hardware and attracting customers by supporting software with updates.
http://androidandme.com/2011/12/dev...id-devices-catching-on-acer-joining-the-pack/
Sent from my A100 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good point in this post, but it's just a reporters opinion of what they said happened when consumers pushed back when Samsung announced it would not offer ICS. Again, all they said was they'd re-think it. If you read the ACER press release and CEO J.T. Wang from their conference. You can see ACER is going after software, and services, he says it over and over again and locking the bootloader is part of their strategy.
You have to really look at nVidia’s Tegra 3, and the architecture behind ICS. Trying to make it run on today's hardware devices isn't worth the engineering effort.
Then you have MS and Intel breathing down your neck with Windows 8. Not to mention the ARM architecture wanting a piece of the Windows 8 action. As Scotty would say, "Captain, I can't change the laws of physics" and current platforms don't support ICS. Meaning, it will be about as affective as a one legged man in a butt kicking contest.
TD

Jeez dude, tinfoil hat much? They locked the bootloader because they're tired of all the idiots bricking their devices and returning them for warranty. The way to stop everyone from bootlegging ics on their devices and bricking them, and keeping their customer base happy long term is to release it officially.
Lots of companies make lots of money selling gadgets. If they want to try and supplement that with their own market they may, but it would be suicide to lock people into that. Only Amazon and Apple will get away with that and if they try to compete in that space they'll get killed.
My $.02

rbtconsultants said:
Jeez dude, tinfoil hat much? They locked the bootloader because they're tired of all the idiots bricking their devices and returning them for warranty. The way to stop everyone from bootlegging ics on their devices and bricking them, and keeping their customer base happy long term is to release it officially.
Lots of companies make lots of money selling gadgets. If they want to try and supplement that with their own market they may, but it would be suicide to lock people into that. Only Amazon and Apple will get away with that and if they try to compete in that space they'll get killed.
My $.02
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Love the hat comment <lol>
I do not buy into locking the device to keep costs down. In all the documents obtained from ACER, there's no mention of it. They only mention locking the device to secure software and preventing people from pirating. No mention of stupid people bricking them.
And up until they locked the boot loader, it was IMPOSSIBLE to brick a500. Let me restate that, it was impossible to brick an ACER a500 before they locked the bootloader. Because, all you had to do is download ACER/NFlash tool, connect your tablet to your PC, use a paperclip and poof, you flashed it back to factory. A monkey could do it, and I personally walked hundreds through it over the phone doing tech support (some I think were monkey's or at least about as smart).
Also, there are hundreds of reasons why the a500 would lock up (brick) and non of them were because of stupid user's trying to root them. Matter of fact, according to ACER's own tech support personnel, they now get more tablets returned then they did before because they cannot walk users through reloading them. Also, the VP of support brought it to J. T's attention that locking the bootloader was incurring increase costs. He snapped, and flew off the handle stating that like it or not, the bootloader will stay locked and if there's an increase in returns they'll just have to work through it.
TD

TD...no offense dude, but what a damned killjoy. =p
Reminds me of the sort of person who can only see the negative in everything, which is sad really.
Cheer up, eat an orange, watch kittens on youtube...something.
Peace

How about chemistry? I think I'm going to take a bunch of beer and turn it into urine.
Anyway, happy new year to all. You know all this rooting is a mute point away, isn't it? Doesn't the world end next year on 21 Dec 2012 anyway?
Well off to chemistry class.
Cheers,
TD

haha, that works too. Beer is good!
btw...meant no disrespect

gaddenar said:
haha, that works too. Beer is good!
btw...meant no disrespect
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
None taken, nice to have people appreciate chemistry.
Cheers,
---------- Post added at 07:52 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:36 AM ----------
Lastly, I wanted to share that another company I use to ***** about locked their bootloader.
They finally changed their way because enough of us complained enough about it. We all need to do voice our opinion to ACER and get them to change as well.
Please read this http://htcdev.com/bootloader

i hope ics will come soon. Compared to my galaxy nexus the a500 feels realy sluggish.
Im on root so any custom xoom or transformer custom ics rom will do

timmyDean said:
Voting with our pocketbook, is correct. But we should have all walked when they locked the bootloader, don't you think?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do you walked away when you already have bought the device?
All you have to have is ONE OTA come down and 'lady I'll get rich' looses access to the pictures she took of her dead husband. And lets say he died in Iraq, just to pour it on. So here's the grieving widow, of a fallen American hero, on national TV crying her eyes out that ACER pushed ICS and now she's lost the only pictures (oh and lets say a few videos) of her late husband.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lay off the tinfoil-hat, please. Acer won't be pushing ICS unless they can be fairly certain such a thing doesn't happen under normal circumstances. If the user has e.g. rooted their device then Acer isn't liable for possible damages as that is no longer "normal circumstances" nor intended use of the device.
That's why they locked the bootloader so you cannot install ICS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd say they locked it to stop every Joe Average from screwing up their tablets and then taking it to warranty.
More proof, look at how many OEM's are now doing their own market place?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let's see... Apple, check. Amazon, check. Google, check. Samsung? Not check. HTC? Not check. Notice the trend? It's all the really big ones that ALREADY have enough of a muscle to throw such things around, not just plain device manufacturers. Acer/Samsung/HTC/etc. would just drive themselves to the ground if they went that way, they simply do not have the marketshare or muscle to be able to do that, nor do they have the required expertise.
That's what's happening here and why ICS will be something they can make money on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What's happening here is someone WAY too comfortable in his tinfoil-hat making desperate rants on the Internets while making himself look like a lunatic (which he likely is.)
Well, we all know how those claims go, but software exploits just might be a thing of the past.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is no way of making 100% exploit-proof OS unless your OS actually accepts no input from any device whatsoever.
And how many of us are going to get out the soldering iron and paperclips to jumper in a bootloader unlock like gamers do on gaming stations?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, you can count atleast me in. Not that my PS3 required that either, software exploit works just fine.

WereCatf said:
How do you walked away when you already have bought the device?
Lay off the tinfoil-hat, please. Acer won't be pushing ICS unless they can be fairly certain such a thing doesn't happen under normal circumstances. If the user has e.g. rooted their device then Acer isn't liable for possible damages as that is no longer "normal circumstances" nor intended use of the device.
I'd say they locked it to stop every Joe Average from screwing up their tablets and then taking it to warranty.
Let's see... Apple, check. Amazon, check. Google, check. Samsung? Not check. HTC? Not check. Notice the trend? It's all the really big ones that ALREADY have enough of a muscle to throw such things around, not just plain device manufacturers. Acer/Samsung/HTC/etc. would just drive themselves to the ground if they went that way, they simply do not have the marketshare or muscle to be able to do that, nor do they have the required expertise.
What's happening here is someone WAY too comfortable in his tinfoil-hat making desperate rants on the Internets while making himself look like a lunatic (which he likely is.)
There is no way of making 100% exploit-proof OS unless your OS actually accepts no input from any device whatsoever.
Well, you can count atleast me in. Not that my PS3 required that either, software exploit works just fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agree 100% except for the fact that samsung actually have its own apps market, accessible via its samsung apps application.puny in comparison, but its there.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium

Asus locking bootloader

http://thenextweb.com/mobile/2012/0...sh-over-transformer-primes-locked-bootloader/
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using xda premium

Wrong forum, that is about the new transformer prime, not the original transformer

Yea I know just wanted anyone know who might want to get the prime... also for future products/updates they might release..
sent from epic 4g

Original Transformer also has locked bootloader. Just lucky for most of us the key was leaked.

Nullinvoid said:
Wrong forum, that is about the new transformer prime, not the original transformer
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its very pertinent here.
Sent from my Nexus S using xda premium

However the Prime forums are in a bit of an uproar about it.
As I am opposed to locked/encrypted bootloaders I post this link so we may all let Asus know that we don't want to see any more of encrypted bootloaders.

Tweeted as requested! Seems prime has more enthusiasts than we do right now.
Sent from my Nexus S using xda premium

God I really hate these internet mediastorm campaigns full of spotty teenagers complaining about crap like this and starting Facebook petitions and all to try and change corporate decisions. They flood blogs and news sites will their crap.
Go buy an Xoom if it really bothers you that much.
Comments like this really are embarrassing (not for Asus, but the whole human race).
Jermiah Fortier
Unlock this Bootloader on the prime you scumbags.
I bought this device and I demand I be allowed to use it. I will be advising everyone that I know is in the market for a tablet to avoid Asus until something is done.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Someone want to tell him he can already USE it..... He makes it sound like a power-on password. If anything unlocking the bootloader will REDUCE functionality, as it would almost certainly mean you would no longer have a secure device that could rent content, any unlocking would remove DRM keys.
Both my devices are rooted with unlocked bootloaders, however I don't DEMAND it, I research the products and buy the ones that allow it (or have leaked keys). Had the Asus not had the bootloader keys leaked, I would have bought something else (Xoom for eample). Let market forces dictate, not dumb Facebook and mediastorm bullcrap.

Got to love our first world problems. I'd much rather worry about a locked bootloader digital device then where im going to get my next meal or whether we have fresh water for the children . Send all these whining kids to south Africa or the Philippines, mayybe have them digging fighting holes in Afghanistan or building ffp 's... that will add some perspective to their "PROBLEMS"
Carry on
Sent from my SGH-I997 using XDA App

theraffman said:
Got to love our first world problems. I'd much rather worry about a locked bootloader digital device then where im going to get my next meal or whether we have fresh water for the children . Send all these whining kids to south Africa or the Philippines, mayybe have them digging fighting holes in Afghanistan or building ffp 's... that will add some perspective to their "PROBLEMS"
Carry on
Sent from my SGH-I997 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Spot on. My sentiments exactly. It's interesting this form of internet crybaby attitude seems to be almost entirely American of origin.

CrazyPeter said:
Spot on. My sentiments exactly. It's interesting this form of internet crybaby attitude seems to be almost entirely American of origin.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Indeed, methinks mommy and daddy didnt ever tell these idiots 'no'.
However, whilst i dont really appreciate people whingeining so much about this, no doubt the prime will get its leaked bootloader key sometime soon. Patience it seems is fast becoming a uncommon virtue.
The thing that bugs me about this whole bootloader thing is that pure Android devices like the Nexus range dont have this and google have said they dont approve of it but cant do anything about what other manufacturers do in this regard.

Some of the comments are a bit stupid and obviously by people who dont even know what they are talking about .
Regardless now anyway as Asus have announced they will provide an unlocking tool.
This is also good for TF101 users on SBKv2 as im damn sure they will also allow unlocking this too.
Great result i think !!

This is from engadget
"Lastly, ASUS explains that the locked bootloader is essential for access to content from Google's video market thanks to DRM restrictions, but it promises an unlock utility is in the work for those who want it."
http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/03/ice-cream-sandwich-coming-to-the-transformer-prime-january-12th/

mllk said:
This is from engadget
"Lastly, ASUS explains that the locked bootloader is essential for access to content from Google's video market thanks to DRM restrictions, but it promises an unlock utility is in the work for those who want it."
http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/03/ice-cream-sandwich-coming-to-the-transformer-prime-january-12th/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is more to the story than what was published here. It appears that along with the unlocked bootloader, will come the inability to use some DRM protected audio and video content. It will be a trade off.

Rumbleweed said:
There is more to the story than what was published here. It appears that along with the unlocked bootloader, will come the inability to use some DRM protected audio and video content. It will be a trade off.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And the same internet crybabies will be launching a campaign to try and shame Asus into allowing them to have a unlocked bootloader AND be able to rip the DRM from video rentals, they will also force them to make the next Asus Transformer 3 also have an inbuilt coffee maker and toenail clipping facility.
I hate how the internet and social media gives a vocal minority an overinflated ego that allows them to blackmail companies to conform to their whims.

Well, you can call me crybaby, but I'm happy with the result of this campaign. You seem to be crying much more that all of us so called "crybabies" now in this thread. If you don't approve - no need to call people names. And if we all allow in silence for devices to be more and more locked one day we wouldn't have a choice to buy sth else because all of them would be locked.

Magnesus said:
Original Transformer also has locked bootloader. Just lucky for most of us the key was leaked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry for OT, but when was the key leaked? I am new to the Tf101 and didn't here a Word about that. Could you post a link to confirm that, or sth. like that?

Magnesus said:
Well, you can call me crybaby, but I'm happy with the result of this campaign. You seem to be crying much more that all of us so called "crybabies" now in this thread. If you don't approve - no need to call people names. And if we all allow in silence for devices to be more and more locked one day we wouldn't have a choice to buy sth else because all of them would be locked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, but I have not felt the need to engineer a social media ****storm like you lot have arranged, where a vocal minority are pretending to be MUCH louder than they actually are.
If you really dislike locked bootloaders, then Tegra2 and Tegra3 platforms are not for you, as they are ALL locked using the same 128bit AES key, as it's part of the NVidia chipset.
The only tablet I am aware of that uses Tegra2 that allows unlocking is the Xoom, if you feel that strongly, don't buy Asus, but Xoom instead.

im sorry but im sure the group of people who want their devices unlocked is not a small percentage from the research ive done on android a good half of android owners are likely rooted.
the people who dont root are usually, not always but usually the people who dont know how or what it is. for your average joe user a locked bootloader means nothing now at least,(if we allow manufacturers to continue to take administrator rights away from the owner the owner will have no control what runs or doesnt run on their device). most users who are technically knowledged in computers are against locked bootloaders even if they dnt feel rooting is neccessary with asus' device(they did a good job at adding the features that were lacking due to a locked device)
ANYONE who sticks up for locked bootloaders on any computer or personal device doesnt have a clue...manufacturers are taking away your rights to do whatever you want with your device. there has already been federal judges state that changing software on a device should not void a warranty. if the tools that should be available are available then software problems can be fixed by the consumer but the manufacturer would lose money from people that would just maintain and repair their devices themselves. im sorry but it is VERY VERYimprobable that software of anykind can damage hardware. i dont think it can at all unless the tools to completely wipe a device and reload its software are non existent.
these manufacturers are only concerned with money not the customers at all. these decisions are made with greed as the driving factor.
and obviously the community that wants the rights to their devices must not be small or asud would have paid no attention....and htc who is now unlocking their devices heard that communities requests as well.
and very simple with a locked bootloader the manufacturer can put any tracking, or spyware on the device they want and the users wouldnt even know. that alone is enough to say no....i do agree with those who say if you want an unlocked device the buy a different tablet and i agree, and i think if that happened then companies like asus sales would definetly fall and companies would see and react to it. i believe this is one way to get manufacturers to listen to the community.
but when i bought my transformer i was told by commercials the salesman, and the android specifications and just the fact its open source, that my device was open sourced and developer freindly. an open source software that run on a locked device is just an oxymoron i guess that the word anyway.
i do feel honestly i was mislead to a degree and in the future i will not purchase a device until i confirm i get full administratir rights to my device. and i hope all other android users do the same..i absolutely love my asus and i would hate to have to make my choice on rights to do what i want with my device rather than the specs and quality of the device.
any device that has files i cant see change or remove is not truly my device its whoever has controll of it letting me use what they deem is ok.
and the low blow to americans was uncalled for but id have to say we are raised from birth believing we have the right to freedom and that includes our devices, and i really dontr think thats wrong what i do believe is wrong is anyone who accepts their freedoms being taken from them and then stcking up for the one who is taking those freedoms away. talk about silly
i really have no intentions of upsetting anyone with this and it is a general statement not directed to anyone other than asus really, im just stating my opinion and i believe thats another right we have. no one has to agree with me and i dont expect them to EVERYONE IS ENTITLED TO AN OPINION. without being attacked for it

Sure enough Asus came through with the requests!

ICS expected by April now?

According to Acer ANZ's Facebook page, the a500 is now scheduled to get the ICS update by April 2012 as opposed to the former January expectation.
I suppose this is better than not getting it at all
Hopefully, someone will have a fully functioning build sooner than Acer does!
The Facebook page is here: http://www.facebook.com/AcerANZ
Also, attached a picture of the comment.

I'm guessing ANZ stands for Australia-New Zealand? If so, then the same applies for India too.

If you look again, ACER ANZ have removed their comment. This can only mean 1 thing; that they were wrong/didn't know the actual date.

It will come when it comes. At least Acer is a lot faster than Samsung when it comes to software updates, especially to its "lesser known" devices........
If you are dying to get ICS there is a ROM for it over at tegra owners. Almost everything is working except for the camera. You do so at your own risk though.

masands said:
If you look again, ACER ANZ have removed their comment. This can only mean 1 thing; that they were wrong/didn't know the actual date.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I don't know about it only meaning that.. Maybe the guy's boss found out that he spilled the beans and demanded he take it down...
Anyway, we all hope he was full of it and Acer Poland was right with January. But like I said, better April than never.
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Tapatalk

January would be good,Feb. Is OK, April is along way off. I just hope we get it.Just got a survey from Acerasking how I liked A500, responded that they should make sure that an OTA update to ICS comes soon, said that alot of people on xda developers and other Acer and android sites expect it and will be pi**ed with Acer if it doesn't come soon.I know this would be my last Acer product if it does not happen.
Wayne

Actually, let me clear up some of the confusion. The February-April ICS date mentioned was ICS estimated release for ACER's new hardware. For example, if you buy an a200 they will tell you to look for ICS starting in February as an OTA.
Again, everyone needs to watch actually what ACER is actually saying. Because they are releasing new hardware (really nice what I saw at CES) with HC, it is nuking up the waters. I stood there at CES and watched a person come up and ask 'when we getting ICS?' and they replied starting in Feb. But, when I asked the salesman, are you saying we're getting ICS on the a500, starting in Feb? The sales person said, no. That this was for these new tablets they're releasing now with HC. But, the person asking had already walked away assuming they were talking about all tablets with HC.
So a lot of people are taking this as ACER saying older equipment will also be getting the ICS OTA. This is not clear, nor has it been clear when we've talked to ACER directly. It really depends on which way the wind blows. They told the 'suits' here that it wasn't then was, and then it wasn't. So, maybe you have to drink more to understand it <lol>.
So, if you want ICS then load a custom ROM that already has it. You can always flash back if and when they release it.
TD

If it takes Acer until April to get ICS to the A500, I'll be buying anything BUT an Acer that is out with Teg3 and ICS.
Scr3w that!

kjy2010 said:
If it takes Acer until April to get ICS to the A500, I'll be buying anything BUT an Acer that is out with Teg3 and ICS.
Scr3w that!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think I'm with you too. CES had some really, really, really nice Teg3 ones and NO LOCKED bootloader.

Yeah... hoping I didn't get screwed over for the second time; once by motorola and now soon* by acer. I still believe in you acer!

timmyDean said:
I think I'm with you too. CES had some really, really, really nice Teg3 ones and NO LOCKED bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dont forget that the a500 didnt ship with a locked bootloader, that was patched in. No guarantee that the teg3 devices will stay unocked.
On another note, are the new acer tablets the same as these, but with teg3? I ask because the only reason I dont run ICS now is because I need the camera. If it isnt figured out by then (it seems more devices are getting it running now) could the camera stuff be taken from the a200or whatever?

nifterific said:
Dont forget that the a500 didnt ship with a locked bootloader, that was patched in. No guarantee that the teg3 devices will stay unocked.
On another note, are the new acer tablets the same as these, but with teg3? I ask because the only reason I dont run ICS now is because I need the camera. If it isnt figured out by then (it seems more devices are getting it running now) could the camera stuff be taken from the a200or whatever?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You know you're right with the locked bootloader, but I was thinking of a vendor that has a policy not to lock it.
The camera is not the only issue we've had with hardware drivers on ICS. It will depend on what hardware you really need supported and/or matters to you. Some of the tablets at CES with ICS crashed or parts didn't work in some of the demos. No real big issues because they are not yet ready. The vendors that have been working on ICS for a while seem to very stable.
TD

The a 200 does not have a rear facing cam. the a 510 I am not sure. Both have a teg 2 so not much of a upgrade from the a 500. The a 700 I am not sure of because it is still so new.

timmyDean said:
I think I'm with you too. CES had some really, really, really nice Teg3 ones and NO LOCKED bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The next Asus one with the higher screen Res looked nice, but Asus support is worse than Acer's, which really isn't saying much these days.

kjy2010 said:
The next Asus one with the higher screen Res looked nice, but Asus support is worse than Acer's, which really isn't saying much these days.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My current ASUS I like (transformer). I liked the Toshiba Thrive better right up to the last OTA which is when they locked the boot loader (removed fastboot actually).
Samsung Galaxy 10 I have is pretty good too. I'm just sick of fighting locked devices then we find an exploit then they patch it. PUKE. I'm really thinking Windows 8 might be a better solution.
TD
---------- Post added at 07:02 AM ---------- Previous post was at 06:43 AM ----------
jvillejoe said:
The a 200 does not have a rear facing cam. the a 510 I am not sure. Both have a teg 2 so not much of a upgrade from the a 500. The a 700 I am not sure of because it is still so new.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Isn't the rear camera not supported on ICS because no drivers and the one they put on the NEW A200 does? Why only the front, not sure?
Some of the hardware devices that we use on the a500 have no ICS drivers at all and non-planned (official from ACER). However we were assured that on their new line they would have all the hardware drivers for what we need. However, we have to purchase new devices. Reminds me of upgrading Windows just to find out you need to buy a new printer, or the time I had to purchase a new scanner because there were no drivers for my win98 fax/scanner when I went to XP.
So for us, ICS isn't even an option because lack of device drivers on the a500, unless that changes. But for most, maybe it won't matter. But, can you imagine waking up to find ICS downloaded on your a500 and your keyboard doesn't work? Or your mobile card? How about your blood pressure monitor, or diabetes tester? With a locked bootloader how you going fix that, and if you roll back, OTA's still keep a coming unless you can root it.
A mad house I tell you, a mad house. Sometimes I think they think we're trainable monkey's. Take your dirty stinky locked bootloader off my tablet you dang dirty ACER update.
TD

I also think I am done with acer for two reasons. Updates get postponed each and every time and that not very fair for their customers... Maybe they should hire some more programer or I don't know what..... Also the quality of build is terrible. My volume button broke and when i opened the device I saw it was based on two tiny plastic "legs" that could break anyway by hard use; so be careful with it. On the other hand the hardware it is in general good and no any software problems (with custom rom of course). If any other new device come with full USB port then bye bye acer!!!!!!!

timmyDean said:
Actually, let me clear up some of the confusion. The February-April ICS date mentioned was ICS estimated release for ACER's new hardware. For example, if you buy an a200 they will tell you to look for ICS starting in February as an OTA.
Again, everyone needs to watch actually what ACER is actually saying. Because they are releasing new hardware (really nice what I saw at CES) with HC, it is nuking up the waters. I stood there at CES and watched a person come up and ask 'when we getting ICS?' and they replied starting in Feb. But, when I asked the salesman, are you saying we're getting ICS on the a500, starting in Feb? The sales person said, no. That this was for these new tablets they're releasing now with HC. But, the person asking had already walked away assuming they were talking about all tablets with HC.
So a lot of people are taking this as ACER saying older equipment will also be getting the ICS OTA. This is not clear, nor has it been clear when we've talked to ACER directly. It really depends on which way the wind blows. They told the 'suits' here that it wasn't then was, and then it wasn't. So, maybe you have to drink more to understand it <lol>.
So, if you want ICS then load a custom ROM that already has it. You can always flash back if and when they release it.
TD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once again, you completely miss the mark. Your lack of reading comprehension is phenomenal or you didn't even read the original post and attachment.
If you read the attachment in the original post, you would see there is absolutely no way to construe it, as even remotely referring, to some future/yet to be released Acer tablets. It was intended for current A500 owners.
IMHO, you really don't have the credibility to "let you clear up some of the confusion". Your "anti ICS upgrade" dogma, is starting to cloud your judgement and apparently your understanding of the English language.
Now, as to why the post was removed, it could be a myriad of things, either "good" or "bad", for those wishing for an upgrade.

firetruck41 said:
Once again, you completely miss the mark. Your lack of reading comprehension is phenomenal or you didn't even read the original post and attachment.
If you read the attachment in the original post, you would see there is absolutely no way to construe it, as even remotely referring, to some future/yet to be released Acer tablets. It was intended for current A500 owners.
IMHO, you really don't have the credibility to "let you clear up some of the confusion". Your "anti ICS upgrade" dogma, is starting to cloud your judgement and apparently your understanding of the English language.
Now, as to why the post was removed, it could be a myriad of things, either "good" or "bad", for those wishing for an upgrade.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You know, I would agree with you if you:
1. You were at CES with us.
2. You were a reseller of ACER tablets like us.
3. You have had reps in your office from ACER like us.
4. You personally wrote software for the ACER that is is sold in over 8 countries like us.
5. You went to the annual ACER meeting like us.
6. You wrote hardware device drivers for ACER, Toshiba, Samsung, ASUS, Lenovo, HP, HTC, . . . .Like we do!
7. You actually owned retails stores in multiple states that sells ACER products like us.
8. That your P&L showed more than 2.3 million on the ACER Cost Center in NET software sales alone like us
In other words, I hope this clears it up for you.
TD

timmyDean said:
You know, I would agree with you if you:
1. You were at CES with us.
2. You were a reseller of ACER tablets like us.
3. You have had reps in your office from ACER like us.
4. You personally wrote software for the ACER that is is sold in over 8 countries like us.
5. You went to the annual ACER meeting like us.
6. You wrote hardware device drivers for ACER, Toshiba, Samsung, ASUS, Lenovo, HP, HTC, . . . .Like we do!
7. You actually owned retails stores in multiple states that sells ACER products like us.
8. That your P&L should more than 2.3 million on ACER NET software sales alone like us
In other words, I hope this clears it up for you.
TD
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So you didn't read the original post of this thread and its attachment?

firetruck41,
I'm just trying to share with you where these dates are coming from and they are coming from NOT some per speculation or something else.
Thanks