Related
Edit 30 dec 2010:
see my last post in page 4
GPS suc*s when tested in high roads density urban areas
Hi,
I see many debate here about Galaxy S issues, mainly lag and GPS.
I was scared when got one, but finally, becoming a fan boy too:
In answer to this topic:
DSF said:
1) Test Google search (press and hold option button in home). Press a leter, for eg N. Now you have to wait seconds. Just web, apps are in searchable items. Without web suggestions
2) Swype
3) Manage apps
4) List processes
5) Apps shortcut
6) TouchWiz app drawer
7) Browser (still on JP6 ATM)
And so many issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So I tested in my SGS, recently bought (3 weeks):
GPS driving on road behaves like my Sirf III module (but under Navigon, google maps not tested)
Google search is fine (lag less than 1sec)
Swype: really smooth
Manage apps: small lag, max 1 sec or less
Apps shortcut: first time just 1-2 sec, than instant
App drawer is fine, lag is really minimal to abscent, far less than 1 sec when it is there
Browser: no issues
It came with JM7 bundled, never updated firmware as I don't see the need. Bought it in october, just after an out of stock long period
I'm really thinking there are some hardware issues solved recently. My SGS seems to behave like the one from "fanboy"
I'm not going to become a fanboy, just maybe helping with my case. If it is really hardware dependent issues, a mass RMA would help samsung to admit the problems (that they look like have solved in newer devices?). After all, Apple, with their small antenna bug was finally more fair than Samsung.
I really open this topic to give a positive feedback. I also wonder why I have a "perfect" SGS, while many have a bad one? If it is not hardware, what can it be?
Maybe people that get new units, bundled stock with a new firmware (mine was JM7), should give a feedback here.
If it is hardware, why not RMA and put pressure on Samsung
jonny_ftm said:
Hi,
I see many debate here about Galaxy S issues, mainly lag and GPS.
I was scared when got one, but finally, becoming a fan boy too:
In answer to this topic:
So I tested in my SGS, recently bought (3 weeks):
GPS driving on road behaves like my Sirf III module (but under Navigon, google maps not tested)
Google search is fine (lag less than 1sec)
Swype: really smooth
Manage apps: small lag, max 1 sec or less
Apps shortcut: first time just 1-2 sec, than instant
App drawer is fine, lag is really minimal to abscent, far less than 1 sec when it is there
Browser: no issues
It came with JM7 bundled, never updated firmware as I don't see the need. Bought it in october, just after an out of stock long period
I'm really thinking there are some hardware issues solved recently. My SGS seems to behave like the one from "fanboy"
I'm not going to become a fanboy, just maybe helping with my case. If it is really hardware dependent issues, a mass RMA would help samsung to admit the problems (that they look like have solved in newer devices?). After all, Apple, with their small antenna bug was finally more fair than Samsung.
I really open this topic to give a positive feedback. I also wonder why I have a "perfect" SGS, while many have a bad one? If it is not hardware, what can it be?
Maybe people that get new units, bundled stock with a new firmware (mine was JM7), should give a feedback here.
If it is hardware, why not RMA and put pressure on Samsung
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Many people still have release-day SGS's and they work just as good as yours; some people have the problem and some just do not. Was there a hardware update? We don't know and if there was, why would Samsung not announce something and try to put themselves in a terrible position?
We just don't know. I have a release-day SGS myself and the only problem I've had was the button's delaying (which is quite annoying) and "the Black Screen of Death" a few times (which was fixed by not putting on a hard-case from Bell).
hol17 said:
Many people still have release-day SGS's and they work just as good as yours; some people have the problem and some just do not. Was there a hardware update? We don't know and if there was, why would Samsung not announce something and try to put themselves in a terrible position?
We just don't know. I have a release-day SGS myself and the only problem I've had was the button's delaying (which is quite annoying) and "the Black Screen of Death" a few times (which was fixed by not putting on a hard-case from Bell).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi. Just a couple of questions for you if you dont mind.
1.) When you say "Black Screen of Death, do you mean the weird Coma/Crash syndrome? Mine from Bell as well just started doing this about 60 days into owning it and it has happened a total of 3 times in the last 5 days or so.
2.) What do you mean it was SOLVED by not putting on a Hard Case from Bell? I have one from Bell (looks like leather on the back) and you now have me wondering. I have had the case almost since day one though and my phone just started the Coma/Crash as mentioned above about 60 days after owning it. Please advise...
3.) A bit off topic but I see you are rooted on JH2. Can you please tell me how you rooted the device? I have tried the update.zip files I have found before but none of them ever work for me. Do you need to be sim unlocked for the root to work? Please advise...
Thank You...
@yiannisthegreek
1.) When you say "Black Screen of Death, do you mean the weird Coma/Crash syndrome? Mine from Bell as well just started doing this about 60 days into owning it and it has happened a total of 3 times in the last 5 days or so.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes; try to wake the phone and I just can not, no matter what I do and thats when...
SEGWAY
2.) What do you mean it was SOLVED by not putting on a Hard Case from Bell? I have one from Bell (looks like leather on the back) and you now have me wondering. I have had the case almost since day one though and my phone just started the Coma/Crash as mentioned above about 60 days after owning it. Please advise...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll break it down for you; my problem with the BSOD started to happen after I attached my cases I bought from Bell (the semi-clear hard grey case and the fake crocodile skin case). The cases felt VERY snug to my phone, almost 'death-gripped' (which meant the cases were difficult to take off, almost 'ripping-the-backplate-off' difficult) and I could feel heat through the case. After taking them off, I have never had the BSOD since, although my phone feels a bit naked. I had also UNROOTED my phone but the BSOD happened a few days later (with the case on).
3.) A bit off topic but I see you are rooted on JH2. Can you please tell me how you rooted the device? I have tried the update.zip files I have found before but none of them ever work for me. Do you need to be sim unlocked for the root to work? Please advise...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is the post where I got my update.zip:
Code:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=7536130&postcount=11
The steps were guide-lined here:
Originally Posted by AllGamer
Step 1. root your phone
Bell's I9000M is slightly different than the regular I9000
most of the root methods mentioned on other topics will not work.
Even the 3 button recovery mode has been disabled
After some experimentation this is the working method
download the update.zip from this topic (Thanks to jentech)
http://ip208-100-42-21.static.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=7536130&postcount=11
then you need to run adb devices to make sure your phone is listed
(ADB is part of Android SDK, download it from the source http://developer.android.com/sdk/index.html )
if you get something like
Code:
adb.exe devices
List of devices attached
900098c722a9 device
(if you run adb.exe devices and comes back with an empty list, then make sure you have set the phone into debugging mode Application > Settings > Development > USB Debugging)
then you are can execute
adb.exe reboot recovery
this will take you to the recovery screen
now if your device works with the Power + Volume Up + Home button, then you can skip that, however in my case the 3 button mode didn't work
select the update.zip with the volumen up down button, then hit home screen, it should say installing in yellow, then you are done, it reboots back to normal, and now you can install Busy Box
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hope that helps
I got mine also after the "outstock" period.
Got 2, first one had weird issue, rebooted for no reason and, in the end, USb would work and, everytime I pluged it in (PC or recharge) it would reboot in a loop :S
All of this in the first week
Got it exchange and since then, no reboot, no connection issue, no "lag" and GPS is more than decent (I use it to track jogging and it's right on the spot)
Manif. date of this one is 10.09.21 (specific date on the battery, on the device itself it's 10.09, no day)
I do wonder the same thing as you do, might be a good idea to note the manif. date and if user has issue or not...It might give help to some of us with unreliable SGS get it exchanged!
If the manufacturing date gives different hardware, I would definitely send it back again to get a latest one. My replacement didn't solve the GPS issue...will talk to orange uk again tomorrow...
I agree with thread creator. My SGS works fine right at the beginning (except the lag). I see a date on the battery which is 2010.08.03.
I also think it may be hardware-related issues.
Car navigation software such as Navigon accepts an enormous range of errors though. But the errors are exposed when using GPS for fitness purposes (because if the tracks swing wildly side to side then you do the 10km jog in 7km).
I think it might be hardware these days, but waiting for froyo official to see. After that I'll return my phone as many times as necessary
apart from the gps inaccuracy, there's nothing to complain about! the sgs is simply brilliant however, i'd be happy if they put in more ram on the device :|
the gps update frequency is bad, and sometimes is terribly inaccurate
Has anyone tested, one of these phones, with a bluetooth sirf 3 gps?
I would assume, to a certain extent, that it would help prove, if it is a hardware fault or not.
Are there other factors involved, however?
@jonny_ftm just try a Froyo build. I was pretty happy with Eclair in terms of performance (of course some issues where there too, but not that many).. but froyo has some nice additions (eg: input cursor, copy text from browser, flash support, etc) but it sucks in terms of performance. Even the latest builds (JPO, JPA) seems to suck as some realistic people report.
I have ~ 150 apps in app drawer
I will check the date of manufacture of my phone later and report back.
It could be a good idea to start with this to see if there's really a trend to better hardware with later manufacturing dates.
Sadely, it is not that simple. If in mobile phone industry it works just like in PC electronics, even manufacture date of phone won't help. I explain: intel chipsets on motherboards were often "buggy" in some extent on first production. Later, they enhance the product and produce new build versions of chipset correcting hardware issues. Now, it's upon to motherboard manufacture to use the last chipset build or not. Most time, motherboard manufacture will use old chipset stocks before moving to new one.
So, if we want to know this for sure, only SN and build dates on chipsets inside the phone will be the ultimate proof. Sadely, unlike in PC world, less people open their phones to check components unless they break the screen...
Anyhow, phone manufacturing date can help as early dates would have necessarly early components. Later built phones could or not have the last chipset though.
DSF said:
@jonny_ftm just try a Froyo build. I was pretty happy with Eclair in terms of performance (of course some issues where there too, but not that many).. but froyo has some nice additions (eg: input cursor, copy text from browser, flash support, etc) but it sucks in terms of performance. Even the latest builds (JPO, JPA) seems to suck as some realistic people report.
I have ~ 150 apps in app drawer
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
- I won't try Froyo. Until it is final, we can't say Samsung s**ks, it is just beta testing. My phone works great with original JM7 it came with, I don't need Beta Froyo features if they make the phone unusable. Now, I understand people that need these features getting frustrated. Hopefully, it is not my case, so can't help here
- I only have around 30 applications, I think I won't have more than 50-60 include stock apps. Even a PC with quadcore CPU, 16 Gigs of extreme fast RAM, RAID setup and tons of applications/processes installed will slow down. I don't expect a tiny smartphone to do a better job there. The only OS that was rock stable despite tons of applications is Palm OS, now dead :-(
Mine had 16 6 10 on the battery and I experience the gps issue.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
Latest phone aren't struggling with lag out of the box anymore.
householddog said:
Has anyone tested, one of these phones, with a bluetooth sirf 3 gps?
I would assume, to a certain extent, that it would help prove, if it is a hardware fault or not.
Are there other factors involved, however?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried using my external holux bt gps (which really kicks ass)....but to my surprise i figured android doesn't support external bt gps devices natively! so, google maps or navigation does not bother picking up gps info from the external device. android still has no support....bottom line so we're pretty much stuck with what our sgs can do! sucks i know!
Actually, from what I was led to beleive from the test in the accesories, BT GPS seems to work with everything:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=818688&highlight=GPS
See post #10
nope....even in post#10 he mentions that "in theory"! it just wouldnt work and i did a serious amount of research only to realize android doesnt support external bt based gps devices. however, i havent tried in froyo....will do it tomorrow and post if i have any luck!
All working fine here - manufacturing date 25/08/2010
Very interesting, the date manufacture theory I stated seems not that wrong from the few feedback in this thread. If we have more feedback, it will become evident, for those doubting it, that Samsung is just making fun of his customers. They don't intend to admit any defect and won't recall phones unless forced by a massive customers action.
I'm happy I got mine only in October. When I receive my microSD card, I'll open it and add my contribution with manufacturing date for my working out of the box phone.
All this means it is very bad news for people with very laggy, battery consuming and bad GPS phones
dreamtheater39 said:
nope....even in post#10 he mentions that "in theory"! it just wouldnt work and i did a serious amount of research only to realize android doesnt support external bt based gps devices. however, i havent tried in froyo....will do it tomorrow and post if i have any luck!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just install Bluetooth GPS Provider. It's simple.
Hello,
I purchased one of the Woot refurbished Nexus 10's and just received a few days ago. It looked spanking brand new/never touched when taking out of the box. Was on 4.2 so OTA updated to 4.3, then 4.4. Not rooted.
One of the main reasons I purchased it was to stream netflix and amazon prime. I was able to get amazon prime working with Dolphin browser and the flash hack, but both constantly stop/lag when trying to stream a movie (amazon with message 'loading video', neflix with 'buffering').
I'm on wireless N network with 5 bars through the house on everything except for the Nexus, which only shows 2 bars. No issues streaming netflix/amazon through laptop or roku. Even when I take the N10 right next to the router where it will then move to 5 bars, I still can't stream successfully.
I've put the MAC address on high QOS, and also cleared the cache partition. Anyone have any other suggestions of what I could try? Or does this sound like a defective unit?
I appreciate your help!
Why don't you try using the apps. There's a Netflix app and an amazon app. You. Won't need any hacks to get them working and I use the Netflix one just fine on mine.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using xda app-developers app
abdel12345 said:
Why don't you try using the apps. There's a Netflix app and an amazon app. You. Won't need any hacks to get them working and I use the Netflix one just fine on mine.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello,
I did download the Amazon tablet app but couldn't find where you could watch Amazon prime, only shop?
I am using the Netflix android app, and it constantly says buffering with streaming.
Thanks
neemypeemy said:
Hello,
I purchased one of the Woot refurbished Nexus 10's and just received a few days ago.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well lucky you, I bought first day offer appeared and I still not got mine.
neemypeemy said:
It looked spanking brand new/never touched when taking out of the box. Was on 4.2 so OTA updated to 4.3, then 4.4. Not rooted.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good to know!
neemypeemy said:
One of the main reasons I purchased it was to stream netflix and amazon prime. I was able to get amazon prime working with Dolphin browser and the flash hack, but both constantly stop/lag when trying to stream a movie (amazon with message 'loading video', neflix with 'buffering').
I'm on wireless N network with 5 bars through the house on everything except for the Nexus, which only shows 2 bars. No issues streaming netflix/amazon through laptop or roku. Even when I take the N10 right next to the router where it will then move to 5 bars, I still can't stream successfully.
I've put the MAC address on high QOS, and also cleared the cache partition. Anyone have any other suggestions of what I could try? Or does this sound like a defective unit?
I appreciate your help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So I'd suggest three approaches:
Try initially a Wifi booster app. My N7 gets a weaker wifi than my N4, both in terms of bars and Mbit connection. I had to use a N7 Wifi booster. The one I tried was Internet Speed Master https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nezdroid.internetspeedmaster
Do a stock flash. WUGS to 4.4, to clear out any 4.2.2--->4.3--->4.4 sedimentary layers, assuming you're comfortable with flashing stock rather than OTA updates?
My N7 Wifi woes I had to tweak my router to finally fix, which I changed from "auto" band and auto channel width, to using the tablet's own Wifi, the Wifi analyser app https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.farproc.wifi.analyzer , to find which band was least congested and then I manually made it that band and manually made it 20mhz, then my speed went up by a factor of 5 !
Collectively, I can't tell you which of all 3 ideas was the "killer" one but I tried all 3 and Hulu on my N7 got progressively better. The most intrusive of the above is the middle one, so try say 3 then say 1 then finally 2.
I'd also appreciate feedback on progress as if this is a problem with N10 I'll be in your same shoes middle of the week when Woot's chosen idiotic postal service finally delivers.
nigelhealy said:
Well lucky you, I bought first day offer appeared and I still not got mine.
Good to know!
So I'd suggest three approaches:
Try initially a Wifi booster app. My N7 gets a weaker wifi than my N4, both in terms of bars and Mbit connection. I had to use a N7 Wifi booster. The one I tried was Internet Speed Master https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nezdroid.internetspeedmaster
Do a stock flash. WUGS to 4.4, to clear out any 4.2.2--->4.3--->4.4 sedimentary layers, assuming you're comfortable with flashing stock rather than OTA updates?
My N7 Wifi woes I had to tweak my router to finally fix, which I changed from "auto" band and auto channel width, to using the tablet's own Wifi, the Wifi analyser app https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.farproc.wifi.analyzer , to find which band was least congested and then I manually made it that band and manually made it 20mhz, then my speed went up by a factor of 5 !
Collectively, I can't tell you which of all 3 ideas was the "killer" one but I tried all 3 and Hulu on my N7 got progressively better. The most intrusive of the above is the middle one, so try say 3 then say 1 then finally 2.
I'd also appreciate feedback on progress as if this is a problem with N10 I'll be in your same shoes middle of the week when Woot's chosen idiotic postal service finally delivers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I bought mine on 24th, was fretting because it was in shipping status for three days and then was delivered USPS Friday (I'm in FL). Saturday I received an email from Woot saying it was shipped....
I will try your suggestions and report back.
Thank you!
neemypeemy said:
Yeah, I bought mine on 24th, was fretting because it was in shipping status for three days and then was delivered USPS Friday (I'm in FL). Saturday I received an email from Woot saying it was shipped....
I will try your suggestions and report back.
Thank you!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ditto, ditto, not ditto, ditto, my email on Saturday showed a future Tuesday delivery. My unit is currently 20miles from house, apparently motionless for 3 days.
Thanks. My intention was immediately out-the-box flash to 4.4. KRT16S and root and then take it from there.
I'd also disable anything wireless on the N10 which isn't Wifi, to eliminate any interference inside your unit. I see from specs it has NFC so disable it and disable Bluetooth. If those last two ideas actually fix it then for sure your physical device has dud-ness but at least you got proof for a Woot return, or to negotiate for a credit if you can live with the problem.
Some of these refurbished units will have a legitimate reason for return, but as the original owner of your unit found, new units have issues too so I was game for a refurbished.
Good luck
nigelhealy said:
Ditto, ditto, not ditto, ditto, my email on Saturday showed a future Tuesday delivery. My unit is currently 20miles from house, apparently motionless for 3 days.
Thanks. My intention was immediately out-the-box flash to 4.4. KRT16S and root and then take it from there.
I'd also disable anything wireless on the N10 which isn't Wifi, to eliminate any interference inside your unit. I see from specs it has NFC so disable it and disable Bluetooth. If those last two ideas actually fix it then for sure your physical device has dud-ness but at least you got proof for a Woot return, or to negotiate for a credit if you can live with the problem.
Some of these refurbished units will have a legitimate reason for return, but as the original owner of your unit found, new units have issues too so I was game for a refurbished.
Good luck
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, well tried all 3 and unfortunately nothing worked. The lagging now seems to be a litter better, but now the lips don't match the words in either netflix or amazon streaming, which is extremely annoying.. Also tried completely erasing after the direct flash to 4.4.
If anyone has anything else I could try I would greatly appreciate it..
Thank you,
Lynn
EDIT: So turned off the bluetooth as suggested above and lips sync now.... I want to listen with bluetooth headset, shouldn't this work??
Thanks
neemypeemy said:
Ok, well tried all 3 and unfortunately nothing worked. The lagging now seems to be a litter better, but now the lips don't match the words in either netflix or amazon streaming, which is extremely annoying.. Also tried completely erasing after the direct flash to 4.4.
If anyone has anything else I could try I would greatly appreciate it..
Thank you,
Lynn
EDIT: So turned off the bluetooth as suggested above and lips sync now.... I want to listen with bluetooth headset, shouldn't this work??
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Saw on another xda thread someone got the sony dr-bt22s bt headphones to work on a note 10.01 without audio lag. I got these years ago and were in a box in the shed of old electronics to sell on ebay, so charging them up (3hrs), fingers crossed as the fresh install seems to have solved the loading/buffering issues so far.
Ok, I'm about ready to give up, bluetooth is off and just tested streaming again and the lip synching issue is same bluetooth on or off. No other streaming in the house, 5 bars everywhere except on the tablet.
If anyone has any ideas, please let me know, thanks!
Network bandwidth is more of a WiFi issue. Lip sync is more of an app issue.
You might have one or both. The fact you have lip sync issues implies to me an app issue (but you might still have WiFi issues also).
Try to eliminate it to Wifi performance by doing a more basic test like FTP off a LAN device. Compare to some other working performing well device.
FTP tends to more track WiFi performance as it is a simple light protocol. Don't do SFTP or SCP.
If you don't have a LAN device to copy off then at least try WAN test like a Internet bandwidth test because that at least shows your bandwidth off the Internet which matches your intended use of the N10. There are Android apps for bandwidth testing but whatever you compare to should be as similar as possible e.g. another well performing Android device.
Then those results will confirm it is WiFi or not root cause. If it is WiFi then sounds like you got a dud. If not WiFi then you have an app/Abdroid issue.
Did you do a FULL wipe and flash?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
nigelhealy said:
Network bandwidth is more of a WiFi issue. Lip sync is more of an app issue.
You might have one or both. The fact you have lip sync issues implies to me an app issue (but you might still have WiFi issues also).
Try to eliminate it to Wifi performance by doing a more basic test like FTP off a LAN device. Compare to some other working performing well device.
FTP tends to more track WiFi performance as it is a simple light protocol. Don't do SFTP or SCP.
If you don't have a LAN device to copy off then at least try WAN test like a Internet bandwidth test because that at least shows your bandwidth off the Internet which matches your intended use of the N10. There are Android apps for bandwidth testing but whatever you compare to should be as similar as possible e.g. another well performing Android device.
Then those results will confirm it is WiFi or not root cause. If it is WiFi then sounds like you got a dud. If not WiFi then you have an app/Abdroid issue.
Did you do a FULL wipe and flash?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
Yes, I did a full wipe and fresh 4.4 install with wugfresh nrt. I do have a samsung galaxy s4 phone so will try speedtest from both to compare, thank you for the reply and suggestion!
android speedtest.net results..
Nexus 10 (4.4): Download 14.65, upload 2.37
Galaxy S4 (4.3): Download 17.21, upload 2.96
Has anyone seen issues with Netflix or Amazon Instant after 4.4 update?
neemypeemy said:
android speedtest.net results..
Nexus 10 (4.4): Download 14.65, upload 2.37
Galaxy S4 (4.3): Download 17.21, upload 2.96
Has anyone seen issues with Netflix or Amazon Instant after 4.4 update?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right so the N10 is getting pretty much the same raw bandwidth.
It might be worth doing these tests 3-5 times and average. N10 is slower but not enough to account for a major streaming issue.
I am sorry but I can't help you further but I'd say you have confirmed it is not really your N10 specific unit wifi fault so go ask your 4.4 and app questions in a more frequently accessed forum. There is about 5% of the postings in this forum than others due to few N10s sold.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
nigelhealy said:
Right so the N10 is getting pretty much the same raw bandwidth.
It might be worth doing these tests 3-5 times and average. N10 is slower but not enough to account for a major streaming issue.
I am sorry but I can't help you further but I'd say you have confirmed it is not really your N10 specific unit wifi fault so go ask your 4.4 and app questions in a more frequently accessed forum. There is about 5% of the postings in this forum than others due to few N10s sold.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ok, thanks for your help!
turn off "Wifi optimization" ?
nigelhealy said:
I am sorry but I can't help you further ....
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Random stab at a possible clue? http://www.pocketables.com/2013/10/...ing-trouble-using-certain-apps-over-wifi.html
I tried it on my N7 which also suffers relatively poor Wifi, it seemed to nudge up a LAN FTP speed up by an average of 25% but such is highly erratic I'd have to download like 10GB with it on/off before I could form a conclusion..... (I might do that... but it will take a few hours....)
I'll give it a try, thanks! Seems to be doing much better after the straight 4.4 install rather than the updates from 4.2..
Sent from my Nexus 10 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
neemypeemy said:
I'll give it a try, thanks! Seems to be doing much better after the straight 4.4 install rather than the updates from 4.2..
Sent from my Nexus 10 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My N10 is the fastest thing on my LAN, 5 bars and 130Mbit speed, but it's actual file-transfer speed is the same about 4MB/s. If I plug the harddrive directly in I get 20Mb/s. I know to ignore what the bars reads as they are arbitrarily set by the vendor.
It is worrying that we seem to need to flash stock to overwrite and start from scratch to get performance. I can theorise what is causing the problems but I don't know. My guess is they are not fully testing upgrades and they're doing say stock, upgrade, test, not stock, install loads of apps, upgrade, test.
I learned over 20 years to do periodic fresh installs with Windows, and even Linux, I'm overdue to a stock Ubuntu install. There is a creeping slowness which accumulates and install/deinstall don't put it back exactly as-is. Android 4.4, I was playing with NTFS read/write and in terminal looking at modules and files, and I installed an NTFS app and deinstalled it but left a change in the filesystem over-writing a newer file with an older file and not undoing it in de-install. So imagine that crappy coding over an entire OS?
Also, my only lagginess was in background file copies making interactive use really slow, it happened in two totally different 4.2.2. devices and went away with 4.4 stock fresh install, that implies they have tweaked the underlying filesystem, or how caching is done. A filesystem is not something you can upgrade in-situ, well not easily.
I spent 2 days benchmarking 4.2.2---OTA----4.3----OTA----4.4 vs stock 4.3 and stock 4.4 and the performance gain is real, both Wifi speed, file transfer speed. Stability doesn't seem affected though. I'll also now work out the minimum apps I need and just keep total apps to minimum, as installing/removing is not perfect.
I collected a G Pad earlier on. It's the first time I've bought a tablet having never actually seen one in the silicon.
I had a Nexus 7 2013 which I was really happy with, but its mobo failed and went off for a three week repair. It came back in a worse-looking state than it went so I got a refund on it. While it was being fixed I used my old 10" Xoom, and I realised how much nicer a bigger screen is. And then I saw a review of the G Pad...
So I wasn't too unhappy when the Nexus was refunded, and based on the balance of reviews and comments here I took the plunge. So far - and I've only had it an hour - I really like it. The Nexus has a brilliant screen and I thought the lower-PPI count would show on the G, but it seems not to. It seems to go bright enough, but I've not tested it in sunlight outdoors. It's not quite Nexus-retina-searing levels but seems to be not far off.
The extra inch of screen makes a surprising difference in its actual size. It's a nice plus.
No sign yet of a blue line either. The speakers are louder than I'd expected having read things on here.
A couple of things that I need to test out though: battery life and SD card compatibility. As long as I get Nexus-ish battery life I'll be happy, but I need to see if apps like Google Music can store to the SD card (well I know it can, but can it without being rooted?) And BBC iPlayer too, some of those videos come in at one gig+ so I hope they can get off on to the card too. Otherwise 16GB is going to disappear pretty quickly, and that will make the tablet useless for that purpose.
I might try a custom ROM but CM 10.2 on my S3 isn't as finished as they'd have you think: for instance, the phone has for some reason stopped ringing aloud in the past few days. Maybe CM 11 is better, I don't know. But the stock ROM doesn't seem that bad at the moment (but anyone on here likes to tinker, so let's see how long that lasts.)
My bigger concern is community support. I really appreciate what the devs are doing, but for products like the G Pad which don't seem to have sold by the million, long-term support is surely not going to be as promising as it is for the Nexus or Samsung devices.
And actually, I'll end by asking what the hell LG are playing at. So far, this looks like a great tablet but there are NONE to be found in electrical stores here in the UK. That's why I had to buy it sight unseen. If they can't get it into stores, how are they going to shift any in reasonable numbers? Especially when this looks like it should deserve to. Equally, they seem to have failed to hit their stride in terms of getting it into the hands of reviewers.
Anyway, I'm off to have a play. From what I've seen, hopefully I can persuade myself to keep it!
Welcome to the club. I love mine too. There are ways to move files and apps to your SD card, but if your like me, my Google Music takes up a ton of space and just moving it to the SD card clears up a lot of space on the internal storage. Google Music has a setting to pick your storage location so just choose your SD card. From my understanding, this may be limited to KitKat only though. If you'reconsidering flashing a ROM, I highly suggest Mahdi. You'll lose your LG apps because it's based on AOSP, but you'll pick up a ton of customization in a buttery smooth ROM.
Thanks clemson77on.
I do like it but I am probably going to return it. It turns out that BBC iPlayer doesn't support downloads to the G Pad, and I doubt it ever will - they only spend time certifying devices that hit the mainstream. I hate to say it but I don't think the G Pad ever will.
I put Mahdi's ROM on and it is far superior to stock. I certainly mean no disrespect to him or any other devs - who are capable of doing far more than me - but I think the Nexus 7 will have a longer support life from the community. I would be very happy to be proved wrong on this in months to come.
Silly little things play on my mind with this tablet, such as the non-standard soft buttons in the stock ROM. Yes you have a selection, but where's the choice for the Android standard? Device manufacturers drive me crazy sometimes. I would actually like to remain unrooted because there are various apps I use that require that; at least with the N7 I will get no bloat and can keep it unrooted.
I really like the knock-on feature, I don't know why some reviews said it was a gimmick.
But ultimately, 16GB doesn't seem to cut it. I have moved what I can to SD but there's only about 2GB free.
Having said all that... on the other hand, the screen size is a significant plus, and having haptic feedback is really nice in a tablet.
I know that's a random selection of thoughts. I am going to have to make my mind up!
astromark said:
Thanks clemson77on.
I do like it but I am probably going to return it. It turns out that BBC iPlayer doesn't support downloads to the G Pad, and I doubt it ever will - they only spend time certifying devices that hit the mainstream. I hate to say it but I don't think the G Pad ever will.
I put Mahdi's ROM on and it is far superior to stock. I certainly mean no disrespect to him or any other devs - who are capable of doing far more than me - but I think the Nexus 7 will have a longer support life from the community. I would be very happy to be proved wrong on this in months to come.
Silly little things play on my mind with this tablet, such as the non-standard soft buttons in the stock ROM. Yes you have a selection, but where's the choice for the Android standard? Device manufacturers drive me crazy sometimes. I would actually like to remain unrooted because there are various apps I use that require that; at least with the N7 I will get no bloat and can keep it unrooted.
I really like the knock-on feature, I don't know why some reviews said it was a gimmick.
But ultimately, 16GB doesn't seem to cut it. I have moved what I can to SD but there's only about 2GB free.
Having said all that... on the other hand, the screen size is a significant plus, and having haptic feedback is really nice in a tablet.
I know that's a random selection of thoughts. I am going to have to make my mind up!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe the development support will be quite good for this device, maybe not on par with the Nexus 7, but very good especially with there being a Google Developer Edition model now.
I know nothing about BBC iPlayer, but it looks like it won't download to the device because of being out of the UK. I did notice that there's an app in the play store called Unblock BBC iPlayer that may help you out - I have no idea.
If you need to be rooted for some of your apps to work, there are apps that can hide your root such as Root Cloak.
Also, you can even move your apps to your SD card if you want to. Link2SD works great for that.
As for soft buttons, I changed mine to look like those on my HTC One and made the longpresses the same so it would be more uniform.
Hope that helps.
clemson77on said:
I believe the development support will be quite good for this device, maybe not on par with the Nexus 7, but very good especially with there being a Google Developer Edition model now.
I know nothing about BBC iPlayer, but it looks like it won't download to the device because of being out of the UK. I did notice that there's an app in the play store called Unblock BBC iPlayer that may help you out - I have no idea.
If you need to be rooted for some of your apps to work, there are apps that can hide your root such as Root Cloak.
Also, you can even move your apps to your SD card if you want to. Link2SD works great for that.
As for soft buttons, I changed mine to look like those on my HTC One and made the longpresses the same so it would be more uniform.
Hope that helps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks very much for the reply. I have in fact decided to keep it. The larger screen won out in the end, and the other positives outweighed the negatives. It only cost £230, which is £10 cheaper than the N7 was, but yes that had twice the storage (but no SD slot). The build and overall shape of this tablet is really nice, possibly the best out there for Android.
The battery life seems a bit so so, but I'm getting 5.5 to 6 hours of screen time. I can live with that - I'm never far from power!
More to the point, I keep these things for a year or so before getting a new one and I can happily live with this for a year (til maybe G Pad 2...)
To return to my points, with iPlayer it's not a location thing. It's whether the BBC dev team can get round to supporting this. Understandably they will prioritise better-selling devices - they'll spend their time where the demand is. I would therefore say that anyone in the UK who has one, install iPlayer and use it. Get this tablet onto their stats. They won't even consider it if they don't see it being used.
Root Cloak, good idea. I've tried OTA Rootkeeper which has certainly unrooted it, I just can't use it to root it again!
Haven't tried Link2SD but will give that a blast later.
My thing with the soft buttons is a more general Android annoyance. Different ways for different manufacturers. And even then they just can't stop themselves. Some of the LG mods were quite good - but they kept on adding more and more. They're not alone but feature creep tends not to lead to a better overall experience.
astromark said:
To return to my points, with iPlayer it's not a location thing. It's whether the BBC dev team can get round to supporting this. Understandably they will prioritise better-selling devices - they'll spend their time where the demand is. I would therefore say that anyone in the UK who has one, install iPlayer and use it. Get this tablet onto their stats. They won't even consider it if they don't see it being used.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My G Pad is running the stock LG ROM, is rooted and with the aid of https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amphoras.hidemyroot&hl=en_GB I am able to install and watch material using iPlayer and the BBC Media Player software.
tdodd said:
My G Pad is running the stock LG ROM, is rooted and with the aid of https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amphoras.hidemyroot&hl=en_GB I am able to install and watch material using iPlayer and the BBC Media Player software.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does iPlayer check for root? What is disabled on iPlayer if it does detect that you have root?
tdodd said:
My G Pad is running the stock LG ROM, is rooted and with the aid of https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amphoras.hidemyroot&hl=en_GB I am able to install and watch material using iPlayer and the BBC Media Player software.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I may not have been clear enough. I can also watch iplayer. I cannot download for offline viewing.
astromark said:
I collected a G Pad earlier on. It's the first time I've bought a tablet having never actually seen one in the silicon.
I had a Nexus 7 2013 which I was really happy with, but its mobo failed and went off for a three week repair. It came back in a worse-looking state than it went so I got a refund on it. While it was being fixed I used my old 10" Xoom, and I realised how much nicer a bigger screen is. And then I saw a review of the G Pad...
So I wasn't too unhappy when the Nexus was refunded, and based on the balance of reviews and comments here I took the plunge. So far - and I've only had it an hour - I really like it. The Nexus has a brilliant screen and I thought the lower-PPI count would show on the G, but it seems not to. It seems to go bright enough, but I've not tested it in sunlight outdoors. It's not quite Nexus-retina-searing levels but seems to be not far off.
The extra inch of screen makes a surprising difference in its actual size. It's a nice plus.
No sign yet of a blue line either. The speakers are louder than I'd expected having read things on here.
A couple of things that I need to test out though: battery life and SD card compatibility. As long as I get Nexus-ish battery life I'll be happy, but I need to see if apps like Google Music can store to the SD card (well I know it can, but can it without being rooted?) And BBC iPlayer too, some of those videos come in at one gig+ so I hope they can get off on to the card too. Otherwise 16GB is going to disappear pretty quickly, and that will make the tablet useless for that purpose.
I might try a custom ROM but CM 10.2 on my S3 isn't as finished as they'd have you think: for instance, the phone has for some reason stopped ringing aloud in the past few days. Maybe CM 11 is better, I don't know. But the stock ROM doesn't seem that bad at the moment (but anyone on here likes to tinker, so let's see how long that lasts.)
My bigger concern is community support. I really appreciate what the devs are doing, but for products like the G Pad which don't seem to have sold by the million, long-term support is surely not going to be as promising as it is for the Nexus or Samsung devices.
And actually, I'll end by asking what the hell LG are playing at. So far, this looks like a great tablet but there are NONE to be found in electrical stores here in the UK. That's why I had to buy it sight unseen. If they can't get it into stores, how are they going to shift any in reasonable numbers? Especially when this looks like it should deserve to. Equally, they seem to have failed to hit their stride in terms of getting it into the hands of reviewers.
Anyway, I'm off to have a play. From what I've seen, hopefully I can persuade myself to keep it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had a Nexus 7 (2013) for a few months before I decided to buy a G Pad. I very much agree with you the extra inch makes a big difference. At first if you install a custom rom like CM11 and put it side by side with the G Pad at maximum brightness next to the nexus 7 at max brightness there is definetly a difference in the max brightness with the G Pad falling down on that factor.
Also on the note of it not being found in electrical stores in your country, it is hard to find this device anywhere outside of JB Hifi in Australia unless you buy it online - which I did because even though it can be found at JB Hifi here, it is only available in white and I wanted black.
With the lack of developer community, it was hard coming from the Nexus 7 community which is insanely large however this device seems to be pretty good as it is after you flash a AOSP rom. It does lack a large amount of custom kernel's which the Nexus 7 had the upper hand on - especially with devs like Franco who made the battery life increase by a lot.
astromark said:
I may not have been clear enough. I can also watch iplayer. I cannot download for offline viewing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK. Maybe I misunderstood. Now I get it. Yes, the G Pad is not on the download compatibility list. Quite why the Beeb needs such a thing is beyond me.
tdodd said:
OK. Maybe I misunderstood. Now I get it. Yes, the G Pad is not on the download compatibility list. Quite why the Beeb needs such a thing is beyond me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a shame isn't it. Presumably it has to do with compatibility testing, user experience checking or more likely rights agreements. Rights rule the roost.
It is clearly technically capable of doing it, it's the iplayer bods having to put the work in to confirm that. And as I say. they'll prioritise by usage. Low usage = low priority = low chance of getting downloads approved.
astromark said:
It's a shame isn't it. Presumably it has to do with compatibility testing, user experience checking or more likely rights agreements. Rights rule the roost.
It is clearly technically capable of doing it, it's the iplayer bods having to put the work in to confirm that. And as I say. they'll prioritise by usage. Low usage = low priority = low chance of getting downloads approved.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm pretty sure that DRM is the issue. Probably, the Beeb thinks if you have root, you might find some way to get around their DRM and distribute the downloaded programs. Not a big deal for me, because I generally stream rather than download.
astromark said:
It's a shame isn't it. Presumably it has to do with compatibility testing, user experience checking or more likely rights agreements. Rights rule the roost.
It is clearly technically capable of doing it, it's the iplayer bods having to put the work in to confirm that. And as I say. they'll prioritise by usage. Low usage = low priority = low chance of getting downloads approved.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How about that old prop editing? Finding a phone or tablet device that has approval from BBC and then just jot that in it's model numbers into the build.prop on the V500? Perhaps the BBC player will then check up against that and allow the downloads? Then just unroot again after? :d I always say this, but it's worth a try, isn't it? Unless it's been done before of course.
woody1 said:
I'm pretty sure that DRM is the issue. Probably, the Beeb thinks if you have root, you might find some way to get around their DRM and distribute the downloaded programs. Not a big deal for me, because I generally stream rather than download.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've always found iPlayer works regardless of root state. Just tried it on my rooted S3 and it's fine, and it works on my Xoom which was rooted on day 1! I find it handy to have downloads to watch in the gym. Passes the time...
CuraeL said:
How about that old prop editing?.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good idea - haven't thought about it before now. Never tried anything quite that involved. Flashing ROMs and then unbricking is as far as I've gone! I might look into this tomorrow. I assume it's not too tricky. Is it something in the prop that specifies the device?
astromark said:
Good idea - haven't thought about it before now. Never tried anything quite that involved. Flashing ROMs and then unbricking is as far as I've gone! I might look into this tomorrow. I assume it's not too tricky. Is it something in the prop that specifies the device?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I don't remember the exact entries in the build.prop. But aquire root, download rom tool box and edit the build prop. Go to your iPlayer enabled device and look for all entries with something like "model" and any variable set ro device number and such. Then just insert them into the V500. After root, it's strictly typing required. And finding the right entries of course. I'm in Denmark and I don't believe I qualify for BBC Player, but I dunno otherwise I'd try it myself. Go with Nexus 5 or Galaxy S4 build.prop or something. It must be around here, somewhere..
Would be a nice fix if that's how the app checks. Some apps does this, yes, by the way.
CuraeL said:
Well, I don't remember the exact entries in the build.prop. But aquire root, download rom tool box and edit the build prop. Go to your iPlayer enabled device and look for all entries with something like "model" and any variable set ro device number and such. Then just insert them into the V500.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It works - changing
ro.product.model=LG-V500
to:
ro.product.model=Nexus 7
brings it on. Excellent idea, thanks.
Now I need to read up about how to treat a directory on the external SD card like one on the internal-SD as iplayer has no support for external storage.
astromark said:
It works - changing
ro.product.model=LG-V500
to:
ro.product.model=Nexus 7
brings it on. Excellent idea, thanks.
Now I need to read up about how to treat a directory on the external SD card like one on the internal-SD as iplayer has no support for external storage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's good news.
I believe theres apps for fixing external saving instead. There's some threads on it given the trouble with SD cards compatability and stuff. Go read up on those. App2SD and such I think, link2SD or something. Kinda like linking a harddrive path over to another harddrive, still keeping the app believing that it saves to in this case the internal storage, when it's really not. I'm not too sure, cause I've had no need or issues with this myself. But good luck and awesome that we fixed one of your troubles.
astromark said:
It works - changing
ro.product.model=LG-V500
to:
ro.product.model=Nexus 7
brings it on. Excellent idea, thanks.
Now I need to read up about how to treat a directory on the external SD card like one on the internal-SD as iplayer has no support for external storage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try the free FolderMount app, available in the Play Store.
I wrote some remarks regarding this device in various places so ill condense them here for any users perusing the forums before making a choice.
My once sentence review: dont bother unless you want to watch video.
1. Design
Its great, though im not convinced by the buttons, both being on the back surface and being recessed - this clear design flaw is a mistake made by people who dont actually use tablets of this type, but do talk about them a lot in boardrooms. The lines and build are great, no creaks, no cracks, solid.
2. Firmware
Horrible unless youre a Prime user. The os was built for making maximum use of amazons services. As a result you get none of the nice things about android, but lots of nice pictures of your books. No wallpapers, adverts in the lockscreen (the ads cant be disabled outside the us, and the lockscreen itself cant be disabled anywhere).
No root means your browsing experience is going to be much affected by ads. For me a deal breaker. One of the few reasons to have root on a big screen tablet is getting rid of ads in your browser.
For amazon customers its a boon of course, as all their prime videos can be easily streamed on a very nice screen. But i have no need of that. Doesnt help much that prime video is not available at all outside the us, so unless your only travelling locally and watching these movies on the bus, its a waste of money.
3. Display
The display is gorgeous. Mine has excellent viewing angles, good colors and very little gradation. With the backlight at minimum, a slight shift to grey is noticeable along the portrait vertical. The backlight is weak however, partly because of the pixel density and the display technology (the crystals seem to absorb more light than usual in white mode) i find myself browsing indoors at around 65%.
The video processing is excellent, with sharp rendering of lower-than-native 1080p video playing perfectly at arms length or less. The display is one of the best ive seen. Certainly on a cheap device like this.
4. Battery
The battery life is generally good (on my wifi 8.9 device). Im getting 4 to 5 days use listening to 1 hour of podcasts, doing 1 hour of browsing (65% brightness) and 2 hours reading (20%) per day. Not bad for a large LCD display.
5. XDAness
There is currently no root method and its not likely one will come. Amazons bootloader is locked down, and at the moment of this writing there is no (realistic) way of preventing automatic updates, even with root. Device sales are low, judging by the recent price cuts and general availability, meaning that few are interested in taking up development. What happens remains to be seen, but personally im not optimistic.
Love my 8.9", it's quite responsive and functional. Have a Nexus 10 as well, which I think has a higher build quality, but the lightness of the Kindle Fire HDX is great, makes it much more comfortable for extended use.
The glossy bezel on the rear (where the speaker ports, camera, etc, reside) is my only complaint, as my fingers tend to find where the edge of the glossy bezel meets the rest of the tablet (most noticeable on the edge of the tablet just above the power button), which irks me.
The recessed buttons work fine for me, as they seem intended for someone holding the tablet for reading or watching, for which the recessed buttons are perfect.
I'm a US customer, so the Prime service is available and works great. The ability to store Prime videos offline for later viewing is nice. I also installed VUDU, Plex, Netflix, Hulu, of which I use Plex the most (esp w/ offline media sync), all work great. Excellent devices for media playback. Speakers are of surprising quality for a tablet, and have a good loudness without distortion.
I bought the 64gb variant, so it doesn't strike me as an inexpensive tablet for that reason, but still it was well worth the $$. Do wish we had root on the latest updates though. I don't care to change the interface, but I do want to get Play Store and other Google services installed (without errors) so I can make use of my standard Android application purchases...
I'm sick of Amazon-made gadgets. With absolute zero ability but only a large desire to match up Apple and to maintain a closed-eco system in an open android system. I call them crazy. Wish these things move away from any reach of sight asap. I believe they are the best company to sell a paper book and anything more to expect from them should not be deem realistic. Remember their boss is a book seller.
Kindle Fire HDX 7" Review
hewweii said:
I'm sick of Amazon-made gadgets. With absolute zero ability but only a large desire to match up Apple and to maintain a closed-eco system in an open android system. I call them crazy. Wish these things move away from any reach of sight asap. I believe they are the best company to sell a paper book and anything more to expect from them should not be deem realistic. Remember their boss is a book seller.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Kindle Fire HDX is perfect for work or play, with the fastest processor on a 7" tablet, the latest graphics engine, world-class Dolby audio, and a highly portable form factor.
ali770 said:
Kindle Fire HDX is perfect for work or play, with the fastest processor on a 7" tablet, the latest graphics engine, world-class Dolby audio, and a highly portable form factor.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol what are you a 1-post amazon bot? That sounds like you copied it right out of the press release...
Lol was thinking the same thing
Sent from my XT1058 using Tapatalk
murso74 said:
Lol was thinking the same thing
Sent from my XT1058 using Tapatalk[/QUOTE
Good point. The hardware is awesome. Fire os is tolerable but I want options, which we currently don't have. Someone will find a root soon
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
rootcid said:
Lol what are you a 1-post amazon bot? That sounds like you copied it right out of the press release...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I copied that. What's wrong here?
A1) The edge buttons necessitates some sort of trim and flimsy buttons. I have phones like that... lost the trim pieces. I rather like the idea of back buttons. They are not always convenient, but why keep back a blank slate?
A2) There are no Amazon ads in browsing... Unless you're talking about AdBlocker / AdAway? Different problem. You can load Xposed module to block ads, you know.
And yes, there is root. There's just locked bootloader, and latest firmware had not been rooted, but previous version can be flashed... If you get it to ADB. And plenty of folks have contributed to create a dual use... I run BOTH Amazon and Google Play together.
A3) Display is lovely, yes.
A4) Battery life is okay. Just remember to close the cover / shut down the screen as games can prevent the game from timing out.
A5) Don't be so pessimistic.
kschang said:
A1) The edge buttons necessitates some sort of trim and flimsy buttons. I have phones like that... lost the trim pieces. I rather like the idea of back buttons. They are not always convenient, but why keep back a blank slate?
A2) There are no Amazon ads in browsing... Unless you're talking about AdBlocker / AdAway? Different problem. You can load Xposed module to block ads, you know.
And yes, there is root. There's just locked bootloader, and latest firmware had not been rooted, but previous version can be flashed... If you get it to ADB. And plenty of folks have contributed to create a dual use... I run BOTH Amazon and Google Play together.
A3) Display is lovely, yes.
A4) Battery life is okay. Just remember to close the cover / shut down the screen as games can prevent the game from timing out.
A5) Don't be so pessimistic.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Re the buttons - its just because people actually use tablets lying on tables a lot. Simply prevents the convenience of not picking it up. The unorthodox lack of a 1 min display timeout feature is also typical of boardroom discussions. Possibly in some sort of attempt at shaping content use? Or just for kicks?
Another thing thats become incredibly annoying is the lockscreen ads for mens products and other useless junk, opn a huge display i have to manually unlock. I never really noticed it till i had to reset my kidle and lose the old wallpaper add disabling by freeze of files. Its much worse than my original comments would indicate lol.
I don't know what you bought that brought ads for men's products. I only get ads about TV shows and movies.
kschang said:
I don't know what you bought that brought ads for men's products. I only get ads about TV shows and movies.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got the cheap wifi version abroad. I dont have a us address, so im not eligible for the free ad removal service when residing abroad.
Amusingly only us residents, are allowed to remove ads from their kindles when abroad because, of course, people who bought their kindles without a us billing address are likely to buy us products available wherever they are).
Much as i respect the kindle path, i revile the legalism. Books at market price and ads? No way to pay $20 to get rid of them? There are millions all over the world who dont want to steal. Who buy the books. Sometimes more than once because they have three or more devices. And they must open their kindles as they lie in bed... to luxurious toilet paper with their night cap? No thanks. And imagine buying one of these for your kid outside the us, where theres no targeted ads.
A while back i used the help feature and tried to get it done. There was hassle with the management. They seemed to find it amusing. They seemed very nice about it. BTW - they can see your screen, so when you type in your password using most keyboards they will know what it is. Hmm, change it afterwards.
This is why i will never buy another android kindle. Screw them for screwing with me. Ive spent thousands of dollars on amazon. My account is like 10 years old. And ill keep my books. But ill stick to the app.
rootcid said:
I got the cheap wifi version abroad. I dont have a us address, so im not eligible for the free ad removal service when residing abroad.
Amusingly only us residents, are allowed to remove ads from their kindles when abroad because, of course, people who bought their kindles without a us billing address are likely to buy us products available wherever they are).
Much as i respect the kindle path, i revile the legalism. Books at market price and ads? No way to pay $20 to get rid of them? There are millions all over the world who dont want to steal. Who buy the books. Sometimes more than once because they have three or more devices. And they must open their kindles as they lie in bed... to luxurious toilet paper with their night cap? No thanks. And imagine buying one of these for your kid outside the us, where theres no targeted ads.
A while back i used the help feature and tried to get it done. There was hassle with the management. They seemed to find it amusing. They seemed very nice about it. BTW - they can see your screen, so when you type in your password using most keyboards they will know what it is. Hmm, change it afterwards.
This is why i will never buy another android kindle. Screw them for screwing with me. Ive spent thousands of dollars on amazon. My account is like 10 years old. And ill keep my books. But ill stick to the app.
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I know you mentioned using the help feature to try and get it done, but I remember reading someone here who posted about living outside the US and having Amazon remove the ads by just calling them up. Maybe the help feature (I'm assuming you are referring to Mayday) is more tech support whereas the ads could be considered "Sales Support"? Try giving them a call if you haven't already done so. Since you have no option to pay for the removal, they may do it just by asking. Worth a shot.
icedtrip said:
I know you mentioned using the help feature to try and get it done, but I remember reading someone here who posted about living outside the US and having Amazon remove the ads by just calling them up. Maybe the help feature (I'm assuming you are referring to Mayday) is more tech support whereas the ads could be considered "Sales Support"? Try giving them a call if you haven't already done so. Since you have no option to pay for the removal, they may do it just by asking. Worth a shot.
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I guess ill give it a shot, you might be right. But i was surprised when the mayday girl seemed to have no idea why she couldnt see the option to remove them.
Well, I knew exactly what the Kindles HDX was when I bought the 64Gb 8.9" version. I also PAID to have the ads removed, because that was clearly explained on the Amazon website I ordered it from & I have no desire or need to try & rob them of the $15 dollars I agreed was okay when deciding to purchase the device.
Granted, my device is rooted with the latest 2.3.2 framework & apps from the recent OTA (sorry, not releasing anything, no time for troubleshooting or fixing any more bricks right now), but even if it was not rooted, I'd still be okay with it. I am a prime member & Amazon services is EXACTLY what I purchased the thing for.
Frankly, I am nearly 100% certain the device is rootable & while people have lost root, this can be avoided without blocking anything or without sacrificing your data or wifi connection. Why isn't it rooted? Time & numbers. There are so many devices out there & the devs like jcase & beaups are going to spend their time focusing on the devices that generate the most requests, which is clearly not the Kindle family.
As for the build, it is not perfect, but it is preferential to the Nexus 10 for me. I hated the Nexus 10, it's horrible SoC & the terrible GPU. The HDX 8.9 just runs circles around the N10. I like the button placement, which is perfect for most people that use it for reading & watching videos while traveling. I do not ever watch anything with it laying flat on a table, nor does anyone else I know. The only thing that I think was a bit under-thought was the Oragami case, which will not work for volume or power with the device raised into the viewing position, where the speakers are elevated above the case, but that is why Amazon added a volume control to the AVOD app I guess.
One thing to consider is that the era of easy root for every Android device is over. For whatever reason, carriers and manufacturers think it's in their best interest to keep things locked down. It's still possible to root almost every device, but the effort required makes only the most popular devices worthwhile.
I bought my HDX knowing it's limitations but feeling that the hardware was so desirable that it would soon be rooted, and it was. I was one who thought I had updates blocked, but got my root access removed. After a while the limitations started bothering me. So I bought a Nexus 7 to compare. The only things I can't do on the Nexus that I can on the HDX is download videos for later viewing and the Kindle Lending Library. While nice to have, these aren't deal breakers.
The HDX hardware is clearly nicer than the Nexus, the screen, the form factor, even the button placement, but the usability for me is more important. I have since gifted my HDX to someone who loves the heck out of it and uses it as Amazon intended. I keep checking in here every once and a while to see the progress, and when root is achieved and I can easily put GAPPS on, along with some other functions, I will probably buy another one.
This might help people eyeing the Z4 Tablet, but are unsure of what positives and negatives there are. Of course, this is highly subjective, but this is my list. It's influenced by my personal competing choices which were the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 and the Google Pixel C. I'm happy I chose the Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet.
Pros:
Fast SoC (Qualcomm Snapdragon 810)
This is Qualcomm's 2015 flagship SoC and from what I've experienced it's really fast. Android flies. It also runs 64-bit, which it should anyway, but for example Samsung's Tab S2 doesn't. I don't know about the graphical performance as I don't really play games.
'Compatible' SoC (Qualcomm Snapdragon 810)
This opens up the way for optimized-for-specific-SoC apps (like RSBrowser, which is Snapdragon-optimized and significantly faster than stock Chrome/Chromium) and CyanogenMod support, that need documentation/drivers. For example, Samsung's (faster) Exynos SoC's are a black box for developers, which makes things like this very hard and has the result of devs abandoning it.
Big internal storage (32GB)
32GB is plenty of storage for apps and a reasonable amount of media. But that can be stored on the microSD.
microSD capability (up to 128GB)
This is a major benefit for a media consumption device like this, which many devices don't have.
Good multitasking
I could have mentioned 3GB RAM, but that doesn't tell the whole story. Multitasking on the Z4 is pretty darn good. It swtiches quickly and is generally very snappy. My Samsung Galaxy S6 with 3GB RAM has pretty bad RAM management in comparison. I'm still trying to find a custom kernel for it that keeps the phone snappy after 2 days.
Huge screen solution, high ppi on a big screen
2560x1600, 299ppi. On a big 10.1 inch screen. This is wonderful.
16:10 aspect ratio screen
Which is good for widescreen content like movies and dSLR photo's. 16:10 also beats 16:9 for me because of the added screen height.
Screen has natural, accurate colors
Very subjective, but compared to several other screens I've found this one to be superior.
Front facing stereo speakers
A rare thing among Android devices. Good design choice.
Lightweight (~390gr), thin
It's pleasantly light to hold.
NFC, notification LED, GPS, vibration motor
These features are often overlooked, but are important to me. I use NFC for LastPass, the (multicolor!) LED with LightFlow to see what exactly is asking my attention when in standby, vibration to still be notified when I want the tablet to be silent and GPS for the occasional navigation need or social app check-in.
Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0
Another nice bonus, which isn't mentioned much. Quick Charge makes a major difference to charging speed. Needs a compatible charger though.
Big battery (6000mAh)
Can't yet say battery life is amazing, because I'm using it a lot and crank the screen brightness up quite high so don't know what to expect. Reviewers seem to agree it's great though.
Bootloader can be unlocked (so the road is open for rooting)
No waiting for an exploit if you're OK with going this route. Just follow Sony's instructions and you'll have root in no time.
Marshmallow announced
Should come January '16 I heard, but these things always get delayed :| At least it's coming.
AOSP commitment by Sony
Sony's Open Device Program is nice and all, but their sources are a bit troublesome and don't seem to produce functional ROMs. Still, Sony's stance on it might bode well for future things.
Water-/dustproof
I don't care much myself, but it's a nice bonus. At least it takes some worries away (dropping liquids on it, no fear for dust particles between the screen and the glass).
Keyboard dock option
Nice for when you want to use a physical keyboard that is fully compatible and is also attachable. I use a 3rd party BT keyboard, but I'm constantly fighting with fixing incompatible button mapping stuff.
Important root-specific things that work
These things are not guaranteed to work or be available on any rooted device, and are pretty major in adding possibilities, so I consider them pros to be working on the Z4T:
Xposed Framework
For most people anyway (Some are having issues). This is a thing to be happy about, because if it didn't, chances are it wouldn't be fixed anytime soon because of the small user/dev base. Xposed opens up many possibilities which really enhance a device. To me it's a selling point.
Native KCAL support
Another Qualcomm exclusive. I believe this is actually fully present on the stock ROM, but not fully controllable (limited to RGB in the Settings menu). KCAL support enables you to tweak various image parameters, like RGB, saturation and contrast with a tool like Color Control or Kernel Adiutor. It's pretty great and you don't see it often.
Cons:
SoC might overheat in extreme circumstances
Haven't had any problems myself, and I stress the tablet pretty hard, but I've read some reports about issues. At least of a guy bringing the tablet to the beach. It's mostly just people saying it's fine, even with heavy usage.
Speakers are lacking in bass
No surprise, but it's still a letdown.
Bad low-light camera performance, no flash
Picture quality in low light is disturbingly bad. Having no flash makes this unusable in those situations. Not a big deal for me personally, I don't take pics with a tablet.
Screen isn't that bright
Compared to several others, the screen isn't that bright and needs to be cranked up pretty much, even indoors. Outdoors, this is a problem. The big screen reflectiveness doesn't help either. Indoors it fine, it just that the needed high brightness level eats battery.
Screen lacks deep blacks
This is compared to (S)AMOLED, specifically. Those screen blacks are amazing and darker colors are also good for battery on those screens. IPS screens just don't have that. Using dark themes won't help battery life on the Z4T, it may even be worse with them.
Stock charger isn't Quick Charge 2.0
Come on, Sony.
No hardware navigation buttons
This is a real PITA for me because this requires Android's soft keys / navigation bar which take up valuable screen space. This is especially problematic in landscape mode on this 16:10 ratio in which you'll want every screen height you can get. Fortunately, this can be overcome by tools like GMD Full Screen Immersive Mode (with full screen keyboard typing restrictions so you'll have to switch back to type :S) combined with All in One Gestures, both of which don't reqquire root. Better yet is a build.prop edit that declares to Android the tablet has hardware buttons, removing the soft keys entirely, while keeping the ability to type anywhere. I navigate using All in One Gestures, because GMD GestureControl sometimes stops working. Which isn't very nice when you don't have navigation keys
No user-land root exploit (yet)
Because of this, you'll need to unlock the bootloader to gain root access. Which will destroy your TA partition, which will in turn remove Sony-proprietary functions. Which I personally don't use and don't see much use for anyway. Also, unlocked bootloader can't be undone without Sony noticing, so as a non-EU citizen you'll possibly have warranty issues.
Small user/dev community
Not many people own a Z4 Tablet (bad availability in the US and it's expensive) and because of this, there's next to no development for it. Luckily, we have @AndroPlus who's made a custom kernel and ported TWRP (which unfortunately has a bug that keeps us from restoring the system partition from a backup). @DHGE worked on root, which made it possible in the end I think. Still, custom ROMs would be nice. Also, if you run into device-specific problems, there's not many others that can help, because you're either the only one or one of very few who have that problem.
It's expensive
The price is very high and a bit hard to justify.
What I miss:
Wireless charging
This is sooo convenient. It also spares the precious MicroUSB port, which is used for charging, data-transfer, USB-OTG and adb/fastboot. If it breaks, you're done.
Removable battery
Batteries do not have eternal life, so eventually it will be completely dead. Which will render the tablet dead as well.
Any thoughts, questions, additions or critique is welcome.
jelbo said:
[*]Small user/dev community
Not many people own a Z4 Tablet (bad availability in the US and it's expensive) and because of this, there's next to no development for it. Luckily, we have @AndroPlus who's made a custom kernel and ported TWRP (which unfortunately had a bug that keeps us from restoring the system partition from a backup). @DHGE worked on root, which made it possible in the end I think. Still, custom ROMs would be nice. Also, if you run into device-specific problems, there's not many others that can help, because you're either the only one or one of very few that have that problem.
.
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Hello jelbo. Let's discuss about it. First of all, our tablet is not alone with some sort of problem. z3+ and z5 devices are the same story. I don't really understand how can we have aosp sources but not to have its rom. So what the problem, some building problem, or is it true that aosp roms works without working sensors? People give different feedback. Did you try some aosp rom? I just want to cook aosp rom in ubuntu.
alex009988 said:
Hello jelbo. Let's discuss about it. First of all, our tablet is not alone with some sort of problem. z3+ and z5 devices are the same story.
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Yes, they're similar. Which actually makes me think about a positive point as development for those devices can also benefit Z4T owners. For example @[NUT]'s efforts may eventually reach us, or when an Xperia user-land exploit is found, it will likely be shared among different devices.
I don't really understand how can we have aosp sources but not to have its rom. So what the problem, some building problem, or is it true that aosp roms works without working sensors? People give different feedback. Did you try some aosp rom? I just want to cook aosp rom in ubuntu.
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Click to collapse
I'm not too sure about the reasons, but what I've seen is that 1) the Sony sources are/have been a bit buggy/messy 2) not many people compile ROMs from it (I've only seen 2 XDA users and the FXP Team).
I haven't yet dared to flash any AOSP build because I've been too busy on getting stock rooted to my liking and troubleshooting my Xposed issues and I don't want to interrupt that. It seems to be quite easy to flash ROMs though, it's either a TWRP flashable .zip, Flashtool flashable .tft or fastboot flashable .bin files.
I'm also curious about the mixed reports about 'sensor stuff not working' and 'everything works fine' on Sony-sourced AOSP builds, but so far no-one has answered my or your questions about it. Seems we'll have too find out ourselves at some point Best leave that part of questions and discussion in their respective threads to keep things organized.
Nice summary, thanks for the effort; its clear and concise.
jelbo said:
it's either a TWRP flashable .zip,
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I think free xperia team jeer at us cause twrp has a serious bug and it can't flash any roms for the time being whereas we can see exactly .zips at their site.
Interesting, had they even tested themselves what they uploaded
jelbo said:
Yes, they're similar. Which actually makes me think about a positive point as development for those devices can also benefit Z4T owners. For example @[NUT]'s efforts may eventually reach us, or when an Xperia user-land exploit is found, it will likely be shared among different devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've put XZDualRecovery on 'feature freeze' for 2.8 well over a year ago, because it needs some work to keep it working on the ever changing Android eco-system. As a consequence, I also stopped adding devices to the supported devices list. For XZDR 2.9 things will change and I will start adding devices again, remember that I am just on my own, from time to time I have a helper but they generally drop out after a while and I'm on my own again after that... I have a busy real life and a very busy job, which consumes most of my energy, leaving only little amounts of it for use on the XZDR development unfortunately... and I have big plans with it which I'd rather deploy sooner then later.
As security features increase, so do the difficulties to keep XZDR working properly... For the Z3+/Z4/Z5/M4 Aqua it is dm-verity, which throws a tantrum once the system partition is modified, which in turn causes a reboot (and with that a bootloop). This behavior has hampered the Stock Based custom ROM development and made it generally impossible to root the device...
A backup-ta with a built-in root exploit (similar to the XZDR installer) to allow a backup of the TA partition would kick-start the development for these models. People don't mind unlocking their devices but do mind losing their warranty on a 500-700 euro device... so most of them wait for the possibility to backup their TA partition.
Oh, and to actually participate in this topic:
I have to say the Z4 tablet takes my fancy and tics just about all the boxes of things I like about tablets... I own a Xperia Tablet Z, well, the misses has it now and I can 'occasionally' touch it :silly: and I have been looking for a new tablet to actually use myself
I don't have the funds to purchase a TabZ4, but I would really like to have one with the keyboard dock
[NUT] said:
Oh, and to actually participate in this topic:
I have to say the Z4 tablet takes my fancy and tics just about all the boxes of things I like about tablets... I own a Xperia Tablet Z, well, the misses has it now and I can 'occasionally' touch it :silly: and I have been looking for a new tablet to actually use myself
I don't have the funds to purchase a TabZ4, but I would really like to have one with the keyboard dock
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Hello. Thanks for participating our thread. Tab Z4 is a great device with cool hardware, but it is less developed in comparison with Samsung to my regret. All we want for this moment are a fix of bug for twrp, problem with mounting the system, and some customs roms. And the very big dream is cyanogenmod of course
@jelbo, where in NL do you live? Did you root your TabZ4 yet?
---------- Post added at 02:28 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:26 PM ----------
alex009988 said:
Hello. Thanks for participating our thread. Tab Z4 is a great device with cool hardware, but it is less developed in comparison with Samsung to my regret. All we want for this moment are a fix of bug for twrp, problem with mounting the system, and some customs roms. And the very big dream is cyanogenmod of course
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Click to collapse
Well, I am assuming that custom ROM's will come as soon as there is a viable way to flash them
I wonder why @AndroPlus wasn't able to fix the TWRP mount issues yet...
alex009988 said:
Hello. Thanks for participating our thread. Tab Z4 is a great device with cool hardware, but it is less developed in comparison with Samsung to my regret. All we want for this moment are a fix of bug for twrp, problem with mounting the system, and some customs roms. And the very big dream is cyanogenmod of course
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm pretty confident CM will support the 'karin' at some point. Many other Sony phones/tablets are officially supported.
[NUT] said:
@jelbo, where in NL do you live? Did you root your TabZ4 yet?
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Click to collapse
I'll tell you in a PM Yeah, I've unlocked my bootloader and rooted it. I couldn't restrain myself anymore It's so much better now. Just some littles gripes left that'll be fixed sooner or later.
Well, I am assuming that custom ROM's will come as soon as there is a viable way to flash them
I wonder why @AndroPlus wasn't able to fix the TWRP mount issues yet...
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Click to collapse
Time restraints, who knows? He did post a v11 version of the kernel some days ago though @dl12345 who greatly helped him getting TWRP to work, may be able to fix it, but he hasn't been around. You can follow some technical details about it in the AndroPlusKernel thread.
It's just /system/ that cannot be restored though. Which is bad, but you can get out of a bad situation pretty quickly with restoring /data/ and using Helium/Titanium Backup, I think. Unless you really fried the ROM and need your /system/ back, then you can only go the flashtool route now
jelbo said:
I'm pretty confident CM will support the 'karin' at some point. Many other Sony phones/tablets are officially supported.
I'll tell you in a PM Yeah, I've unlocked my bootloader and rooted it. I couldn't restrain myself anymore It's so much better now. Just some littles gripes left that'll be fixed sooner or later.
Time restraints, who knows? He did post a v11 version of the kernel some days ago though @dl12345 who greatly helped him getting TWRP to work, may be able to fix it, but he hasn't been around. You can follow some technical details about it in the AndroPlusKernel thread.
It's just /system/ that cannot be restored though. Which is bad, but you can get out of a bad situation pretty quickly with restoring /data/ and using Helium/Titanium Backup, I think. Unless you really fried the ROM and need your /system/ back, then you can only go the flashtool route now
Click to expand...
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* [NUT] pokes @AndroPlus to join this conversation.
Due to lack of time on my side to read the entire topic, what exactly fails when restoring system?
@jelbo, do you have his kernel installed (a.k.a. have you unlocked your bootloader)?
[NUT] said:
* [NUT] pokes @AndroPlus to join this conversation.
Due to lack of time on my side to read the entire topic, what exactly fails when restoring system?
@jelbo, do you have his kernel installed (a.k.a. have you unlocked your bootloader)?
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Yes and yes. Basically anyone here who's rooted their tablet is running AndoPlusKernel and have manually unlocked their bootloader.
jelbo said:
Yes and yes. Basically anyone here who's rooted their tablet is running AndoPlusKernel and have manually unlocked their bootloader.
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I see, that un-complicates testing a lot
Gotta say... amazing tablet all together and the first device that i havent seen the mighty snapdragon handwarmer throttle from heat in. I kept roasting it for about 3 hours with simpleplanes and PC minecraft (boardwalk app) and it didnt lose any performance just got a bit hot on the back middle. I find the battery life to be good enough for a day of being on and off watching youtube and occasional gaming but i do keep screen brightness on auto at all times and features such as BT NFC and GPS off. Also a app that i think the tablet should have from factory: OGYoutube, you can have floating resizeable youtube above other apps or play in background or with screen off and download in mp4 or mp3.
I'd picked up a Z4T about 4 months ago to replace two different devices, my aging and finally dead cell phone (I hung on to my old Samsung S3 for way too long), and my laptop, which is a still functional but extraordinarily heavy beast of a 17" macbook - about 6 years old on its own as well. What can I say, they were still working so why buy new?
I have to say I'm very glad I made the purchase. I picked up a SBH52 handset to make phone calls more convenient, and splurged on the sony docking kb for the added ruggedness of using it as a "case" - which it does like a champ. Calls are nice and clear, and I've had pretty much no troubles - aside from some occasional static when using the handset (which I owe to the handset itself being a bit flaky). Even with an unlocked BL, remote play on my PS4 still works, only the Bravia screen mirroring to my TV is kaput. It serves very well as a laptop for those like me that need something lightweight for overnight trips, let with a big enough screen to be able to remote desktop troubleshoot back to the main office.
Would this replace every computer I own? Obviously not. I still own a high end desktop for videos, games, and intense word processing (the sony kb is just a bit small if you were attempting to write a novel for example); and my PS4 for console games; but for light end use and for traveling, it's almost the perfect laptop replacement. And as a combo cellphone laptop? I couldn't ask for better. My overall data usage has also dropped, because I'm using far more wireless on this device (I want to make sure it's connected for the stability if nothing else), but I can always drop out to a cell connection if no wireless is available - or if I don't feel like paying the stupid prices at the hotel the convention is being held at.
Now for the Cons:
I've really only got two, one of which was mentioned here. The damn thing is not cheap. Since I live in the states, the LTE version is not available directly. You need to pick up an international version from amazon or another reputable source. Hence the reason I have a kb with extra non-english symbols on it. Not that I mind, but it confuses some people when they look at it. When I picked mine up, the tablet kb and handset ran about $900 US all together. so not something you want to accidentally brick, or drop, or leave behind in a restaurant....
The second one is convenience. Given that it is a tablet - and a fairly large one, most people aren't going to go the phone replacement route like I did. You can't exactly just slip it into your pants pocket. And since the handset is BT, you can't exactly leave the tablet in the car and just use the handset inside most restaurants either (unless you park really close to the building). I'll often leave mine at home if all I do is run to the store for a dozen eggs or something, just because it's easier not to pack it up. But then half an hour of being unconnected and out of touch doesn't bother me - it might bother some though.
So there you have it, a much less technical review, from yet another satisfied user.
begalund said:
I'd picked up a Z4T about 4 months ago to replace two different devices, my aging and finally dead cell phone (I hung on to my old Samsung S3 for way too long), and my laptop, which is a still functional but extraordinarily heavy beast of a 17" macbook - about 6 years old on its own as well. What can I say, they were still working so why buy new?
I have to say I'm very glad I made the purchase. I picked up a SBH52 handset to make phone calls more convenient, and splurged on the sony docking kb for the added ruggedness of using it as a "case" - which it does like a champ. Calls are nice and clear, and I've had pretty much no troubles - aside from some occasional static when using the handset (which I owe to the handset itself being a bit flaky). Even with an unlocked BL, remote play on my PS4 still works, only the Bravia screen mirroring to my TV is kaput. It serves very well as a laptop for those like me that need something lightweight for overnight trips, let with a big enough screen to be able to remote desktop troubleshoot back to the main office.
Would this replace every computer I own? Obviously not. I still own a high end desktop for videos, games, and intense word processing (the sony kb is just a bit small if you were attempting to write a novel for example); and my PS4 for console games; but for light end use and for traveling, it's almost the perfect laptop replacement. And as a combo cellphone laptop? I couldn't ask for better. My overall data usage has also dropped, because I'm using far more wireless on this device (I want to make sure it's connected for the stability if nothing else), but I can always drop out to a cell connection if no wireless is available - or if I don't feel like paying the stupid prices at the hotel the convention is being held at.
Now for the Cons:
I've really only got two, one of which was mentioned here. The damn thing is not cheap. Since I live in the states, the LTE version is not available directly. You need to pick up an international version from amazon or another reputable source. Hence the reason I have a kb with extra non-english symbols on it. Not that I mind, but it confuses some people when they look at it. When I picked mine up, the tablet kb and handset ran about $900 US all together. so not something you want to accidentally brick, or drop, or leave behind in a restaurant....
The second one is convenience. Given that it is a tablet - and a fairly large one, most people aren't going to go the phone replacement route like I did. You can't exactly just slip it into your pants pocket. And since the handset is BT, you can't exactly leave the tablet in the car and just use the handset inside most restaurants either (unless you park really close to the building). I'll often leave mine at home if all I do is run to the store for a dozen eggs or something, just because it's easier not to pack it up. But then half an hour of being unconnected and out of touch doesn't bother me - it might bother some though.
So there you have it, a much less technical review, from yet another satisfied user.
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Thanks for sharing
So I am coming to this device from the Nvidia Shield Tablet and I love the device thus far for all of the positive reasons mentioned. Also with respect to screen brightness listed as a con my own experience is that it is much better than what I was coming from.
The battery life is truly great with this device and my needs are small when it comes to the development area. I simply need it to be rooted because I prefer to remove all of googles garbage that I don't use and rooting and bootloader unlock was very simple.
All in all I am really liking this device, had it about 10 days now. I have the LTE version but only because I may use it at some point.
Overall very pleased with the device so far.
ThePhoneGeek said:
So I am coming to this device from the Nvidia Shield Tablet and I love the device thus far for all of the positive reasons mentioned. Also with respect to screen brightness listed as a con my own experience is that it is much better than what I was coming from.
The battery life is truly great with this device and my needs are small when it comes to the development area. I simply need it to be rooted because I prefer to remove all of googles garbage that I don't use and rooting and bootloader unlock was very simple.
All in all I am really liking this device, had it about 10 days now. I have the LTE version but only because I may use it at some point.
Overall very pleased with the device so far.
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I was seriously considering the Shield because of the dev scene and the price. What made you switch?
jelbo said:
I was seriously considering the Shield because of the dev scene and the price. What made you switch?
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The device itself just isn't very efficient on battery and I needed something with a slightly larger screen. It does ok but it's really designed more as a gaming device IMO which wasn't what I needed. Also the specs are a bit outdated now.
I noticed in the op that he said being a non eu customer when unlocking bootloader they will notice. Im an eu user, does this mean that they wont notice if I try claim warranty after bootloader unlock? I havent unlocked yet but I was getting slow WiFi and disconnections. I really want root but im not sure about this WiFi issue I set the WiFi to turn off at sleep and it seems better also the issues are caused less im concerned what would you guys do? ive sent it off to Sony once already they said nothing was wrong with wifi. Can someone help me decide? Much appreciated, many thanks.