Related
It seems the G1 absolutely requires the owner to have a Gmail account; when you turn on the device, the initial setup wizard asks your details, and offers to create a new account if you don't have one. Also, it seems that it only supports one Google account at a time; if you want to change the signed-on account, you need to soft-reset the device.
If you add that Gmail has all your emails, tracks your browsing, recognizes people's faces in your pictures and asks you to name them... how comfortable are you knowing that your Google account is now linked to your mobile phone ?
metempsihoza said:
It seems the G1 absolutely requires the owner to have a Gmail account; when you turn on the device, the initial setup wizard asks your details, and offers to create a new account if you don't have one. Also, it seems that it only supports one Google account at a time; if you want to change the signed-on account, you need to soft-reset the device.
If you add that Gmail has all your emails, tracks your browsing, recognizes people's faces in your pictures and asks you to name them... how comfortable are you knowing that your Google account is now linked to your mobile phone ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Very, if I wasn't comfortable with sharing my information with Google I never would've signed up for my first Gmail account. As for pointing out people in pictures, facebook-esque? I'm pretty sure that will be optional, so you shouldn't have to worry about that if you don't want to. I don't see the big deal, unless they use the information (and for what?).
As for browser tracking, there's already the "Iron" variant of Chrome which strips out all of the user tracking. The same will undoubtedly be done for Android, if it's not explicitly available already.
Do you ever worry about your ISP? They log every user every day in everythings they do. I guess not, same for tracing cookies, for example, just because we have to deal everyday with them... because that's how internet works. So, Google is just another provider that offers great and useful services, for free.
stocaprimo said:
Do you ever worry about your ISP? They log every user every day in everythings they do. I guess not, same for tracing cookies, for example, just because we have to deal everyday with them... because that's how internet works. So, Google is just another provider that offers great and useful services, for free.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't trust my isp, and I really don't trust google because of their privacy policies (do you use google maps on your mobile? have you actually read their terms of service? why do they want with recording my voice chat?. not because google offer things free doesn't mean its good when it comes to privacy.
lennie said:
I don't trust my isp, and I really don't trust google because of their privacy policies (do you use google maps on your mobile? have you actually read their terms of service? why do they want with recording my voice chat?. not because google offer things free doesn't mean its good when it comes to privacy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haha if you don't trust your ISP then get off the internet, they know absolutely everything you do, and if they wanted to use any of it against you they could.
lennie said:
I don't trust my isp, and I really don't trust google because of their privacy policies (do you use google maps on your mobile? have you actually read their terms of service? why do they want with recording my voice chat?. not because google offer things free doesn't mean its good when it comes to privacy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure where you saw a clause about voice chat. Perhaps if you provided a reference it would help.
It's true that just because something is free doesn't mean it's good. But that doesn't mean it's necessarily bad, either, or that things that cost money are always good. The real question is whether or not there is any malicious intent, and again there's nothing that says anything free is automatically malicious.
Part of the reason why Google's products are so popular is because Google has the ability to mine copious amounts of userdata in order to create powerful and useful services. It turns out that with most of these products, you reach a threshold where there's so much userdata that your own specific data becomes statistically insignificant -- security through obscurity.
Sure there are people to whom that "excuse" is not good enough, and there are ways to opt out of submitting userdata. But at least Google provides (some amount of) transparency to their terms, which is more than can be said about many other companies that are more callous about abusing your privacy for monetary gain. If you're that concerned about privacy, then you should give up Google products, online search/directory services, online shops like Amazon and B&N, the vast majority of user-generated content sites, messaging services like AIM and MSN, ... Pretty much everything short of disconnecting your ISP. Same with wireless carriers and how they track your calls, voicemail, messaging, possibly even location. Hell, you might as well just stop doing anything, because even in real life, everything you do and everything you buy says something about you.
Of course there's something to be said that the G1 ships with only Google apps installed. But that's missing the bigger picture, that the open platform (the core Android stack, which needs absolutely no userdata for functionality) essentially allows you to trim the baggage wherever you see fit. Certainly not right away, and the G1 will be the learning curve, but ultimately the whole platform will have a level of transparency that no other mobile OS (WinMo, iPhone, Symbian, BlackBerry, etc) currently has.
People said the same thing about library cards 20 years ago. Anyone who thinks any organization, let alone the government, respects your privacy is living in a fantasy world.
Google has fought the government in the US over privacy issues (the US government wants Google to hand over all sorts of user information) and Google has won several cases. I think the e-mails I got with links to the numa-numa dance or mortgages or viagra or my nigerian cousin with money to send me are fairly safe for now.
I'm not worried.
1) I'm not typing in my birthdate, SS#, and mailing address left and right. All the other information is pretty much useless for anything significant.
2) Identity theft is the easiest crime to prosecute. Most of the criminals are stupid and have the merchandise, credit cards, or other stuff sent to their own address, leading the Cops/FBI straight to their door.
3) If I were truly worried, I'd have my credit reports frozen. It's not that expensive, and it stops ID theft, even when the thief has all your info.
beartard said:
Google has fought the government in the US over privacy issues (the US government wants Google to hand over all sorts of user information) and Google has won several cases.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This a perfect example why I'd rather trust Google with personal info than many other entities. The Governmnet was trying to do something illegal, Google resisted and won.
The reason that Google all the data gathering is for en masse analysis. Wired had an interesting article about it recently (link). This gigantic mass of data is how they were able to create the Chrome browser so quickly and have it work. The information they have allowed them to simulate years of beta testing in a few days. They don't really care it YOU use a particular website or type of phone, they care that 213568 people use a particular website or type of phone.
It really annoys me that people get on Google's case for this type of thing. They could easily have been more underhanded and you'd never know and they'd really never have to tell you because of legal loopholes.
They're being upfront that that's a good thing.
oh wow... I just watched a talk at Hope from a PI about this... so... all you information is publicly available already. With any single piece of information about you someone can get you DOB, SSN, jobs and pay, friends, sexual orientation, your picture, religion, political views,....... and on and on and on. Google already has one of the largest databases of information about you. You know what really surprised me? The company with the largest consumer database in the USA? Domino's... the FBI buys information about you from a pizza place. Myspace, linkdin, monster, transunion, facebook,.... they are all keeping information on you... it's a scary world out there... if you have an SSN you information is publicly available. If you have used the internet then even more about you is public knowledge. Here is the best part... because google, facebook, monster..... are all private companies they don't have to delete you information EVER... and its not all bad... if the government had been looking at the information on the 9/11 hijackers we probably could have stopped 9/11 based on the information about the terrorists that is publicly available.
BTW google is now offering a service for doctors to store your medical information online
sorry for rambling... I am getting a G1 and I have trusted google for years... if you are wanted don't get online, make a phone call, drive your car, or even walk outside in some cities but otherwise you shouldn't have anything to fear.
dagentooboy said:
...you know what really surprised me? The company with the largest consumer database in the USA? Domino's... the FBI buys information about you from a pizza place...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And your source for this rather unbelieveable claim is...?
sorry... here is the session that I watched...
http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docid=3079242748023143842&hl=en&fs=true
and part 2
http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docid=2219573359400519690&hl=en&fs=true
I was just trying to make a point about how little privacy we really have these days... watch it for your self if you want to devote the 3 hrs to it (Very interesting)
dagentooboy said:
and its not all bad... if the government had been looking at the information on the 9/11 hijackers we probably could have stopped 9/11 based on the information about the terrorists that is publicly available.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Using the same information, you can see that five of the 17-18 hijackers on 9/11 are running Dominos pizza places in Riyadh at this very moment.
Android EULA Questions
If someone can send me a copy of the EULA for the G1, both Android and TMo's I would really appreciate it. I want one, but I have nagging privacy concerns that T-Mobile is unable/unwilling to answer.
Android is in a position to collect serious amounts of data on individuals, and the combination of Google's desktop information combined with the information from the handset has really scary Orwellian possibilities. With Android Google has the ability to collect very detailed location information. There has been no mention in the media over the rights to the data that could be collected by Google. Does the EULA give Google the rights to use and sell the data collected from Android, and specify what data it collects, and give you an opt-out?
I know it's really kind of conspiracy theory, and sounds out in left field, but I don't put anything past corporations trying to make money. Imagine if you went in to buy a car, and the dealer buys your Google data? They know know what cars you have looked at online, what dealers you have visited, how long you were there, and whether or not you have explored other financing options than the dealers. Same with buying a house... The selling agent could buy your Google data, and know what other houses you have looked at, and what price range you are looking in. Possibly serious advantages in negotiating.
Imagine the value of the information your bank would have if they bought your location data, and overlayed it with your banking records. they then could sell a very detailed consumer profile of where you shopped, where you bought, and other spending/location/web history data.
The bar code application has lousy implications also. It gives the vendor of the app a really good idea of what you are shopping for, and the locations you do your shopping.
Another thing that's kind of unnerving is the association of your location with your google calendar.
It's bad enough with all the data Google gets from my email, calendar, and web history do I really want them to have EVERYTHING?
Are you that paranoid?
As if your information isn't out there for anyone to get now.
Your phone is as safe as it's gonna be as the amount of info you keep on your desktop gmail.
whether is on a desktop gmail account or a phones.
Guess what? same thing.
Unless I'm really missing something. lol
Your ISP doesnt really protect you much. Gmail has won court orders from the government revealing info from accounts.
Toss a coin.
you have a point. but to be honest everything is gearing to that. from easy pass to credit/debit cards to just logging into you isp and geetting ads to meet single in your hoe town. i realized this as i just movend and was getting adds for where i lived.
if someone wanted to find u they just need ur cell phone. unless u have a analog phone u are being tracked (or can be tracked) whether u want to be or not.
or u can get the phone set up and email with gmail then do not use it. use the pop email feature until a full exchange solution come out. the use yahoo or altav or anything else for searching. u might have some temp success at eluding the glasses of google.
if i had the info u were really looking for i would be glad to share. if i dont miss or havent missed ups. today might be the day
I know everything on my PC's well monitored by everyone from the ISP to every friggin advertising cookie that gets dropped on me. Private email's on my own server, not GMail. I just think location data's a little much, and people need to be cognizant of what we are giving away for shiny new toys and features. And Google's little gaff with the Chrome EULA (We want the rights to everything you do with this..I Know it was an "error") removed a lot of the don't be evil luster.
And just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean they're not watching....
My point was...you have a sim card type cell. Thats all they need to track you.
You can delete every program on the phone. Guess what, you can be tracked, by the sim card inserted and your phone just being on.
As for info do what was mentioned in the previous thread.
Miss read and deleted a statement!
I know, I can be tracked tower to tower, and approximated (I used to work in a 911 dispatch center and had to deal with a ton of cell 911 calls). But, there is some expectation of privacy from a telco, and oversight from the FCC is a possibility (I know, great job they've done so far with carriers). But, like I said, I was curious, and none of the blogging coverage has said anything yet, s I figured I might try to stir up some stuff.
I would consider myself as an Android advanced user. I've had the G1, MyTouch 3G, NexusOne and Droid X. I've purchased each device the day it was released and I've helped dozens of people switch from dumbphones and Iphones to Android. I've rooted, used custom ROMs, etc. Additionally, my company is very much google-based (Gmail, docs, and talk are all core components to how we do business).
I really expected the Xoom to deliver greater capabilities than my Android phones, primarily for consuming media and viewing AND editing spreadsheets.
I pre-ordered the Xoom and picked it up yesterday morning (2nd in line out of 12+) and after less than 24 hours I've decided to return it. Primarily it is because I can actually do MORE with my Driod X than I can with the Xoom based on my daily usage. The biggest pains/frustrations I have with the Xoom are:
Lack of flash support/real browser: I know it's coming "in a few weeks" but in the meanwhile when I want to read news items with flash videos, browse "real" sites or play flash games, I have to actually pull out my phone because the Xoom can't do it! I should be able to pull up my browser, visit any media site and start consuming media. Instead I'm limited to standard browsing. With this much processing power and the huge screen it's absolutely ridiculous that the device doesn't include a full-featured browser!
Apps: The lack of tablet-optimized apps is extremely frustrating. All the apps I need to use work just fine on my Droid X. I was hoping for additional functionality on the Xoom, but it's actually worse because some of my regular-use apps are quite buggy on the Xoom (e.g., spreadsheets in DocumentsToGo simply does not work).
Having to carry both a charging cable AND a USB cable...it's just ridiculous.
Mobile Google Docs: because Google Docs is such an important tool for my business I NEED full google docs capabilities. The processing power in this device is FAR superior to that of my netbook, why can't they put that to use? Spreadsheets in Google Docs mobile is absolutely useless.
Bugs: In the market, clicking on "my apps" always loads the most recently installed app rather than loading the "my apps" list in Market. Additionally, pausing a movie and attempting to browse back to the movie list in Gallery fails, so I have to browse to Home, load Gallery and then browse back to the movie list.
Lack of DLNA. On my Droid X or NexusOne I'm able to access my media, download it, upload it, or stream it from any computer on my home network. With the Xoom I can't. So, if I want to watch a movie while sitting in bed I have to connect the Xoom to my PC, download the movie, disconnect it and then I'm ready to watch. In this case the Xoom is a DISCONNECTED media device...I haven't owned a disconnected media device for 1 1/2 years! Ridiculous! I should be able to jump on the network, browse for media and start streaming, but it's impossible with the Xoom.
I'm frustrated that this device - which cost FOUR TIMES what my cutting-edge phone cost can't even keep up.
What are your thoughts? Are there solutions for the issues above that I'm just not aware of? Have any of you experienced similar frustrations?
P.S. the battery life and screen are really cool, but I don't see any significant improvements in Honeycomb over Froyo...maybe I should go buy a Galaxy Tab?
I'd say give it at least until your 14 day return period.
When the iPad came out, I had a friend who got it first day (He's an Apple fanboy...the annoying kind. lol) He whined and moaned for two weeks about there not being any iPad oriented apps. Now he defends the iPad like it's the holy grail.
Just give it time. The XOOM's main purpose at this point is to give developers a platform for developing on Android tablets. They JUST got the thing, so it might be a little while.
The charger thing is kind of frustrating, but I'm not going to let that ruin it for me. My backpack has plenty of pockets.
mitchweight said:
I would consider myself as an Android advanced user. I've had the G1, MyTouch 3G, NexusOne and Droid X. I've purchased each device the day it was released and I've helped dozens of people switch from dumbphones and Iphones to Android. I've rooted, used custom ROMs, etc. Additionally, my company is very much google-based (Gmail, docs, and talk are all core components to how we do business).
I really expected the Xoom to deliver greater capabilities than my Android phones, primarily for consuming media and viewing AND editing spreadsheets.
I pre-ordered the Xoom and picked it up yesterday morning (2nd in line out of 12+) and after less than 24 hours I've decided to return it. Primarily it is because I can actually do MORE with my Driod X than I can with the Xoom based on my daily usage. The biggest pains/frustrations I have with the Xoom are:
Lack of flash support/real browser: I know it's coming "in a few weeks" but in the meanwhile when I want to read news items with flash videos, browse "real" sites or play flash games, I have to actually pull out my phone because the Xoom can't do it! I should be able to pull up my browser, visit any media site and start consuming media. Instead I'm limited to standard browsing. With this much processing power and the huge screen it's absolutely ridiculous that the device doesn't include a full-featured browser!
Apps: The lack of tablet-optimized apps is extremely frustrating. All the apps I need to use work just fine on my Droid X. I was hoping for additional functionality on the Xoom, but it's actually worse because some of my regular-use apps are quite buggy on the Xoom (e.g., spreadsheets in DocumentsToGo simply does not work).
Having to carry both a charging cable AND a USB cable...it's just ridiculous.
Mobile Google Docs: because Google Docs is such an important tool for my business I NEED full google docs capabilities. The processing power in this device is FAR superior to that of my netbook, why can't they put that to use? Spreadsheets in Google Docs mobile is absolutely useless.
Bugs: In the market, clicking on "my apps" always loads the most recently installed app rather than loading the "my apps" list in Market. Additionally, pausing a movie and attempting to browse back to the movie list in Gallery fails, so I have to browse to Home, load Gallery and then browse back to the movie list.
Lack of DLNA. On my Droid X or NexusOne I'm able to access my media, download it, upload it, or stream it from any computer on my home network. With the Xoom I can't. So, if I want to watch a movie while sitting in bed I have to connect the Xoom to my PC, download the movie, disconnect it and then I'm ready to watch. In this case the Xoom is a DISCONNECTED media device...I haven't owned a disconnected media device for 1 1/2 years! Ridiculous! I should be able to jump on the network, browse for media and start streaming, but it's impossible with the Xoom.
I'm frustrated that this device - which cost FOUR TIMES what my cutting-edge phone cost can't even keep up.
What are your thoughts? Are there solutions for the issues above that I'm just not aware of? Have any of you experienced similar frustrations?
P.S. the battery life and screen are really cool, but I don't see any significant improvements in Honeycomb over Froyo...maybe I should go buy a Galaxy Tab?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Man, no offense but your entire post you seem like a whiney little kid. Your a early adopter of a device and complaining on this forum about early adopter syndrome.
Flash? Man i'm sick of seeing flash post's as flash is becoming irrelevant. iPad(#1 tablet) doesn't even have flash. Get over yourself.
Apps? O-M-G the Tablet has been out a grand total of 1 day. You surprised they don't have apps? Wow...
Bugs? It's Honeycomb fool it was just released!!!!!!!!!!
Streaming media... Bro the device has been out 1 day.
All your points sound so dumb...
Sorry to hear bout your frustrations. But it is what early adopters are supposed to be. We pretty much for the device to test it. Google will indeed update the software and makes this experience on honeycomb better. Your frustrations are largely because of apps developers have not yet update
their apps. Hope you'll come back here soon once this thing is updated in a few months.
Sent from my Xoom using XDA App
I don't know, but if I read your reasoning it looks like you already knew before you buy or you need to just postpone your purchase.
1. You can postpone your purchase until Flash 10.2 available
2. You can postpone your purchase until all your apps are available in Honeycomb version
3. I agree with this, but charging this beast via USB will take long long long time!
4. You can postpone your purchase until Google doc updated
5. Hmmm, I think this is normal, right? At least in my Nexus S is like this.
6. You should know this before you buy the Xoom
jamaicansolja said:
Man, no offense but your entire post you seem like a whiney little kid. Your a early adopter of a device and complaining on this forum about early adopter syndrome.
Flash? Man i'm sick of seeing flash post's as flash is becoming irrelevant. iPad(#1 tablet) doesn't even have flash. Get over yourself.
Apps? O-M-G the Tablet has been out a grand total of 1 day. You surprised they don't have apps? Wow...
Bugs? It's Honeycomb fool it was just released!!!!!!!!!!
Streaming media... Bro the device has been out 1 day.
All your points sound so dumb...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AMEN Brotha!
jamaicansolja said:
Man, no offense but your entire post you seem like a whiney little kid. Your a early adopter of a device and complaining on this forum about early adopter syndrome.
Flash? Man i'm sick of seeing flash post's as flash is becoming irrelevant. iPad(#1 tablet) doesn't even have flash. Get over yourself.
Apps? O-M-G the Tablet has been out a grand total of 1 day. You surprised they don't have apps? Wow...
Bugs? It's Honeycomb fool it was just released!!!!!!!!!!
Streaming media... Bro the device has been out 1 day.
All your points sound so dumb...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Flash is still present on a lot of the internet. People are buying Android tablets because they want Flash. If they didn't, they'd already own an iPad. You can down play it if you want, but it's supposed to be a huge advantage of Android.
The tablet's been out one day, but the iPad had several tablet-specific apps ready on day 1 and from what I hear did a good job of scaling up phone apps so they were at least usable on the iPad. Google has had a year to catch up and to find a way to make most phone apps translate properly to Honeycomb. It's not a big complaint of mine, but it's a valid complaint.
Bugs are bugs. Nobody has to like them, but it's what you get with a new OS.
Streaming media is what most tablets are used for, it should work.
Why are you insulting him for expressing what he doesn't like about it? He's offering constructive criticism about the Xoom.
mitchweight said:
I'm frustrated that this device - which cost FOUR TIMES what my cutting-edge phone cost can't even keep up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually it's 1.4 times the cost of your phone. Comparing the subsidized cost of your Droid X to the retail cost of the Xoom is a bit uneven. The retail of the Droid X was $560ish when I bought mine a few weeks ago, making it 1.4 times.
mitchweight said:
I would consider myself as an Android advanced user. I've had the G1, MyTouch 3G, NexusOne and Droid X. I've purchased each device the day it was released and I've helped dozens of people switch from dumbphones and Iphones to Android. I've rooted, used custom ROMs, etc. Additionally, my company is very much google-based (Gmail, docs, and talk are all core components to how we do business).
I really expected the Xoom to deliver greater capabilities than my Android phones, primarily for consuming media and viewing AND editing spreadsheets.
I pre-ordered the Xoom and picked it up yesterday morning (2nd in line out of 12+) and after less than 24 hours I've decided to return it. Primarily it is because I can actually do MORE with my Driod X than I can with the Xoom based on my daily usage. The biggest pains/frustrations I have with the Xoom are:
Lack of flash support/real browser: I know it's coming "in a few weeks" but in the meanwhile when I want to read news items with flash videos, browse "real" sites or play flash games, I have to actually pull out my phone because the Xoom can't do it! I should be able to pull up my browser, visit any media site and start consuming media. Instead I'm limited to standard browsing. With this much processing power and the huge screen it's absolutely ridiculous that the device doesn't include a full-featured browser!
Apps: The lack of tablet-optimized apps is extremely frustrating. All the apps I need to use work just fine on my Droid X. I was hoping for additional functionality on the Xoom, but it's actually worse because some of my regular-use apps are quite buggy on the Xoom (e.g., spreadsheets in DocumentsToGo simply does not work).
Having to carry both a charging cable AND a USB cable...it's just ridiculous.
Mobile Google Docs: because Google Docs is such an important tool for my business I NEED full google docs capabilities. The processing power in this device is FAR superior to that of my netbook, why can't they put that to use? Spreadsheets in Google Docs mobile is absolutely useless.
Bugs: In the market, clicking on "my apps" always loads the most recently installed app rather than loading the "my apps" list in Market. Additionally, pausing a movie and attempting to browse back to the movie list in Gallery fails, so I have to browse to Home, load Gallery and then browse back to the movie list.
Lack of DLNA. On my Droid X or NexusOne I'm able to access my media, download it, upload it, or stream it from any computer on my home network. With the Xoom I can't. So, if I want to watch a movie while sitting in bed I have to connect the Xoom to my PC, download the movie, disconnect it and then I'm ready to watch. In this case the Xoom is a DISCONNECTED media device...I haven't owned a disconnected media device for 1 1/2 years! Ridiculous! I should be able to jump on the network, browse for media and start streaming, but it's impossible with the Xoom.
I'm frustrated that this device - which cost FOUR TIMES what my cutting-edge phone cost can't even keep up.
What are your thoughts? Are there solutions for the issues above that I'm just not aware of? Have any of you experienced similar frustrations?
P.S. the battery life and screen are really cool, but I don't see any significant improvements in Honeycomb over Froyo...maybe I should go buy a Galaxy Tab?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Out of curiosity, why not use one of the streaming service apps from the market? I use VLC Stream & Convert Pro. Works for me (haven't tried it yet on my Xoom, but can't imagine why it wouldnt work).
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.gmail.traveldevel.android.vlc.license
only the strong survive
Early adopters are a rare breed. especially in the google expereince.
you have to except that google moves fast, but not in a bugless manner. regardless its something people can deal with and are fine with.
i bought it, i enjoy it, and i can see the areas of needed improvement. but im happy, because im all android and trust in google making this a great experience. maybe its not on day one, but through google/dev support it will sure enough be a great package.
my suggestion:if you were expecting perfection. you are not a early adopter. your a brat.
buyers remorse threads from complainers should be deleted on any forum.
falconeight said:
buyers remorse threads from complainers should be deleted on any forum.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
/thread
10chars
I honestly don't see too much reason to complain about some bugs in the device at this early stage. The device hardware-wise is awesome (disliking how much fingerprints get on it, but meh, I carry a cleaning cloth around), and Google will only keep updating Android to make it run better.
Software support from 3rd party developers will catch up quickly. In less than 24 hours, the number of apps in the Android for Tablet section nearly doubled since I bought the Xoom yesterday morning.
It's rootable, the bootloader is unlockable, and once the source goes live, I know some of the really talented devs out here will start picking apart bugs in the source and making some really sick custom ROMS for the Xoom.
Yeah, there's some inconvenience with using the device, certainly Honeycomb has its share of bugs, and some missing features that really should have been a part of the OS at launch. But after showing my Xoom to a couple people at work that have iPads, they were completely blown away by how tablet-like Honeycomb is. In fact the most-used remark was "It's not a giant phone."
All-in-all, I'm very happy with my Xoom, and can't wait to see what the future holds for this device.
Rebuttal:
1- Lack of Flash. You are an early adopter.
2- Apps. You are an early adopter.
3- Charging complaints. Typical of tablets - that's not going to change.
4- Google Docs. Early adopter.
5- Bugs. Early adopter.
6- Lack of DLNA. Early adopter, this could come later (or it might not).
See the pattern? You pre-ordered with assumptions, and those assumptions were wrong. In the case of Flash, it was more of an 11th hour change but it was still before release.
In all honesty, none of the things you've mentioned surprise me in the least. Probably my only real complaint with the device so far is that the microSD isn't working yet - that's something they should have gotten fixed before release since it's a blatant hardware problem.
Thanks for all the feedback. I understand the early adopter pains, and to be fair, Droid X and froyo are pretty mature platforms. When Honeycomb becomes mature I'm sure it will be killer.
While I know Google was trying to steal some thunder from the iPad 2 announcement, I think they would have gotten a lot more mainstream traction if they had addressed some of these issues before release.
Thanks for pointing me to streaming from VLC, I'll take a look at that and post back the results.
Any other ideas on spreadsheets?
Ditto to what everyone else is saying, plus: I think it's clear that they found some issues with Flash and the Tegra 2. I'd much rather they spend a few extra weeks optimizing things than just put out a bug-ridden version (which would have people up in arms about things being buggy).
I mean, really, it's always this way: some people complain if a company delays a product because of bugs, and others complain when they don't. Personally, I'd rather have my Xoom to use now with a few bugs than wait a few weeks for it to be more "perfect." I think offering the device itself with some (I think) minor bugs and without some major bugs is a good compromise.
mitchweight said:
[*]Mobile Google Docs: because Google Docs is such an important tool for my business I NEED full google docs capabilities. The processing power in this device is FAR superior to that of my netbook, why can't they put that to use? Spreadsheets in Google Docs mobile is absolutely useless.[/LIST]
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you try using "about:debug" in the browser and then going to Settings to change the browser's User Agent String to "Desktop"?
Please try that and let us know if Google Docs works properly after the change.
I usually have major buyer's remorse with everything I buy, but not with the xoom. Nothing you mentioned was unknown. My iSheep friends bithced about the same stuff when the iPad came out. And they are still *****ing about flash .
EDIT: as per jm9843, I can confirm that about:debug does work for change UAString. I'll check if google docs works.
EDIT: Desktop Google Docs warns you that some features may not work, and gives a weird version that looks almost like desktop but is clearly different. I can't say I like it, but it could do in a pinch. It's odd though.
roebeet said:
Rebuttal:
1- Lack of Flash. You are an early adopter.
2- Apps. You are an early adopter.
3- Charging complaints. Typical of tablets - that's not going to change.
4- Google Docs. Early adopter.
5- Bugs. Early adopter.
6- Lack of DLNA. Early adopter, this could come later (or it might not).
See the pattern? You pre-ordered with assumptions, and those assumptions were wrong. In the case of Flash, it was more of an 11th hour change but it was still before release.
In all honesty, none of the things you've mentioned surprise me in the least. Probably my only real complaint with the device so far is that the microSD isn't working yet - that's something they should have gotten fixed before release since it's a blatant hardware problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wonder why the ipad was able to be released without anyone needing to defend I with the early adopter line?? It released with a thousand apps at launch, no early adopter waiting period. It released without a million bugs throughout the os, no early adxopter waiting period. You people bashing him are hilarious and stupid. Motorola and google completely messed up this release. Regular consumers don't give a **** about your early adopter excuse, they want things working day 1. And why do we care what regular users think??? Because if regular users treat the xoom and honeycomb like the beta software/hardware it is right now, there will be no getting out of your early adopter phase bcause companies won't suport the platform.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
mitchweight said:
Lack of flash support/real browser: I know it's coming "in a few weeks" but in the meanwhile when I want to read news items with flash videos, browse "real" sites or play flash games, I have to actually pull out my phone because the Xoom can't do it! I should be able to pull up my browser, visit any media site and start consuming media. Instead I'm limited to standard browsing. With this much processing power and the huge screen it's absolutely ridiculous that the device doesn't include a full-featured browser!
Apps: The lack of tablet-optimized apps is extremely frustrating. All the apps I need to use work just fine on my Droid X. I was hoping for additional functionality on the Xoom, but it's actually worse because some of my regular-use apps are quite buggy on the Xoom (e.g., spreadsheets in DocumentsToGo simply does not work).
Having to carry both a charging cable AND a USB cable...it's just ridiculous.
Mobile Google Docs: because Google Docs is such an important tool for my business I NEED full google docs capabilities. The processing power in this device is FAR superior to that of my netbook, why can't they put that to use? Spreadsheets in Google Docs mobile is absolutely useless.
Bugs: In the market, clicking on "my apps" always loads the most recently installed app rather than loading the "my apps" list in Market. Additionally, pausing a movie and attempting to browse back to the movie list in Gallery fails, so I have to browse to Home, load Gallery and then browse back to the movie list.
Lack of DLNA. On my Droid X or NexusOne I'm able to access my media, download it, upload it, or stream it from any computer on my home network. With the Xoom I can't. So, if I want to watch a movie while sitting in bed I have to connect the Xoom to my PC, download the movie, disconnect it and then I'm ready to watch. In this case the Xoom is a DISCONNECTED media device...I haven't owned a disconnected media device for 1 1/2 years! Ridiculous! I should be able to jump on the network, browse for media and start streaming, but it's impossible with the Xoom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Whats funny is I've been debating returning mine and none of your reasons made my list. After being a day 1 purchaser of a G1 and a Palm Pre, you get used to those things you listed.
My issues are more related to performance. With a tegra 2 processor, I'm really surprised at how sluggish the system gets sometimes. It's only been 24hrs and I'm already counting the days till the first OTA.
BUT, I gotta say, the potential of this device is amazing and that alone is keeping me from acting on any returns. Plus, depending on where you bought it, you'll have at least 14days to return it. No rash decisions...give it a chance.
I've been reading up lately and I had a question about the Iconia that I haven't been able to find an answer for. Does the Acer Iconia, or Tegra 250 chipset in general, have any kind of hardware DRM? I've been reading up on the upcoming netflix app and it seems like it will only run on android devices that have some type of Hardware DRM incorperated. Does the Iconia have any type of DRM hardware? If not, does that mean we won't ever be able to use the Netflix App when it is made available?
From what we've heard, Netflix will only be working with Intel chipsets at the moment.
When I first read about this news, I was pissed. I even tried to rally a few people to write and protest Netflix because of this. It's a delicate thing. I want to support Netflix because of the great price and the great service, but I don't want them telling me what device I can and cannot use their service on.
It's funny because the CEO was just talking about not being a cable company...yet here they are talking about limiting their exposure on devices.
I really wish we could get a petition going or have everybody with an Android device send them an e-mail telling them we don't want this type of precedent set and that we won't accept it. I could live without Netflix...I just don't want to.
Until we scream and shout for what we want, we'll have to settle using PlayOn to get our Netflix and Hulu fix on your non-Intel tablet.
Sent from my A500 using Tapatalk
beebop483 said:
I've been reading up lately and I had a question about the Iconia that I haven't been able to find an answer for. Does the Acer Iconia, or Tegra 250 chipset in general, have any kind of hardware DRM? I've been reading up on the upcoming netflix app and it seems like it will only run on android devices that have some type of Hardware DRM incorperated. Does the Iconia have any type of DRM hardware? If not, does that mean we won't ever be able to use the Netflix App when it is made available?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As far as I know Tegra 2 has no inherent DRM technologies, thus the Iconia A500 isn't blessed with any DRM hardware...HOWEVER, DRM can also be exclusively software based and I'm pretty sure Honeycomb has some keen DRM tech and will be getting updates with even more secure DRM. Of course, Netflix (or moreso, it's partners) may not settle for that so it's still up in the air.
At this point, and though I don't like being pessimistic about things - I'd advise against looking forward to an Official Netflix app on the Google Market (for now). If you want Netflix badly enough, I'd say wait for a tablet that is released with the app built in or wait until an App comes and see what the requirements are. The requirement will either be hardware, eg: requires snapdragon xxxx or Exynos based device or software, eg: requires Honeycomb 3.1.
Thanks for taking the time to respond to my questions, I'm surprised people aren't making a bigger deal out of this. I like the idea of having a petition or email campaign to netflix, not to chastise or threaten them, but rather to express that as educated consumers we would like to know that our money is being spent wisely, and that products we buy today will not be outdated within weeks. I've taken the liberty of drafting a letter that can be sent to netflix. Feel free to copy the letter and send it, or post it somewhere on XDA so that we can try to collect signatures and support.
Dear Netflix,
First and foremost, we would like to take the time to express our gratitude towards your company, and the fantastic service that it provides. Even with the current state of the economy, most companies that provide media and entertainment to consumers charge outlandish fee's, provide poor support, and overall, do not seem concerned with offering customers a quality service at a reasonable price.
Netflix has been one of the very few exceptions to the status quo, and continues to offer great content at a great price, much to the dismay of large cable corporations, who seem content on increasing prices while not improving infrastructure, or providing more content to their customers. We also applaud your companies willingness to provide content on a large variety of devices. Netflix is one of the only companies that seems to actually want to provide an excellent affordable service that users can enjoy on their own terms, on whatever hardware they prefer.
It is because of this, that we would like to reach out to Netflix and open a dialogue concerning the future of the company, and it's plans for Android implementation.
A large concern among the public right now is whether or not Netflix plans to release its Android application in a state that will only allow it to run on devices that contain integrated hardware DRM. As you may already know, a large amount of tablet PC's are being released into the market right now, the majority of which are running on the Nvidia Tegra 250 chipset, which has no native hardware DRM. This puts consumers in a difficult position, on the one hand these devices are very powerful, and offer a good user experience for the price. On the other hand, consumers are unsure about the future of these devices. There have been rumors that new versions of the Honeycomb operating system will contain software DRM, but that still leaves consumers with a lingering question. Do we spend five hundred dollars on hardware that may not be compatible with Netflix, or do we wait indefinitely to see if the devices will be able to utilize Netflix services?
We realize that Netflix is involved in a very competitive business, and for obvious reasons, it is in the companies best interest to not explain it's entire game plan to the world. On the other hand, as consumers, we like to know that we are making wise purchases that will meet the expectations we have.
We are requesting that Netflix reveals more information about it's future plans for supporting the Android operating system. More specifically, we would like to know if the Netflix Android application will work on devices that only have hardware DRM, or if the company has any plans to support software DRM integrated into future releases of the Android operating system.
Any information you could provide on this subject would be of great help to the Android community, as well as consumers who value the service that Netflix provides. Thank you very much for taking the time to read this request, and we hope you will consider releasing information that will clarify the future DRM requirements for the Android Netflix Application.
Thank you.
Makes no difference unless Acer were to pay to have the A500 as a device to work on Netflix servers (assuming the chipset qualifies). LG Revolution is the only device so far.
I wonder if Google will spare a very small fraction of their billions to give blanket approval for Android devices that have the approved chipsets? Nah.
I'm pretty sure the tab's HDMI supports HDCP. For what that is worth.
Having Trouble with USB ports and speakers
Hi, y'all,
I have been around computers software and hardware wise for years. I am new to the Acer a500 Iconia Tab world. But I can not get my acer to acknowledge my computer to root or to upload and now my speakers are gone. Is there someone who can help me on these issues? I think the problems are hardware related. I tried searching the internet but no luck. I hope y'all have a good one.
Windows 10 is known to collect private data of the users and collect them on to their servers. They are getting huge profits just by selling these data.
There is a github project that is aimed to block this data collection. But it is not always working. Microsoft still manages to collect data even after the user actively trying to block it.
Maybe we have to tackle this problem using a different approach. If we succeeded in blocking the data collection to an extent, the few data that is collected is still valuable to the company. The novel way would be to "Contaminate the data". Figure out a way to generate random private data so that it would be rendered useless.
The software should generate random browser history, and other data. This data cannot be used by telemarketers to target us or used by any other corporations.
I ask the great minds here to start a project using this idea and help put an end to the privacy intrusion. Thanks.
This is why they give us these OS' for free. There not really free as our information is profitable.
Nothing is free when it involves corporate companys.
So what's it worth?....I dont click on them stupid ads!!
The individual resale of a persons information is pointless and worthless, however they sell it all the same as they do their souls and this is where the pennys come from, relatively small companys will buy list for certain areas or places and try to target those people specifically.
Mass collection of data and information is different. This enables companys to do high profiling at a mass level....predicting future rises and falls in technology and every other market known to us. This is where the pounds come in, targeting people on a mass scale....this is where it becomes dangerous and the real soul selling begins.
They not only profile our latest footwear, clothing, and our latest use of technology, etc. Which we already know.
They profile our likes, dislikes, anger, happiness, even fear! They basically profile us as machines and thwn these corporate companies sell it too the "big people"....Governments...Charities and anyone with enough power, money and influence.
This is where it gets bad. Profiling on mass scale enables them to control our enviornment and social interaction.
Even wondered why facebbok gives free internet to poor countries...they dont buy the latest trainers...they dont buy the latest technology.....so why profile them?????
Simply because they want to profile the mind....fear, feelings and everything inbetween the best they can this enables governments and corporate companys to manage different societies differently.
You may think things just "happen", but if they did then the chances of there being a coincidence would be astronomical.
We could go into this in a little more depth, however is there much point...its never been admitted and it will never be. People even find it.
hard to believe. Well...believe this..if they wanted to sell you the latest technology they would...without profiling.
Nike trainers which we buy for over 100£ cost as little as a £ or two to produce...an iphone 6 cost £5.61 to produce [if i remember correctly _ bbc panorama covered this]...so they could just put it on the shelf to see if we buy it and if we dont...so what...lets make another one for a couple of quid and see if they like that!!! you get what I'm getting at!
Only way to stop this is to stop our data leaking out of our laps.
They profile us as robots and create a certain amount of our perception and understanding of our surroundings based on our profiling. We are free thinkers however studies prove that we flock with the crowd thus makes us predictable.
Back to the point...
Application and games reviews are incredibly important for an application store such as Google Play, and these can be the target of some malicious services. This issue is compounded when it’s an application store for the largest mobile platform in the world. In November of last year, Google talked about how they are improving the review and rating system within the Play Store. Google does a lot of work to keep this spam and bot activity at bay, but this is a never ending job.
This improvement was thanks to some work that they announced one month before in October. This involved detecting if an install happened with the intention to manipulate an app’s placement on Google Play. But since most systems like this are a cat and mouse game, the malicious entities are always finding a way around the latest protections. This is what we’ve been seeing in the Play Store over the last few weeks too. Multiple popular applications are getting 5-star reviews with comments that don’t match the application itself.
The Next Web took a small screenshot of some reviews for Messenger. All three of the reviews shown in this screenshot talked about games and how this game was so fun to play. But the review was placed on a messaging application, not a game at all. Multiple people within the community have been noticing this wave of reviews on high profile applications such as Gmail, WhatsApp, Messenger and more. Which is something that seems out of place at first glance.
These review and rating services that developers can buy to increase the popularity of their applications are generally done for very low quality games and applications. There isn’t a need for Facebook to pay for a bunch of spammy reviews for WhatsApp. However, some are speculating that these services are using their bots to build up a ‘profile’ in hopes that future reviews from them are not detected as spam. Reports say Google is being quite lenient about this issue, and while true, Google is likely taking this time to collect data on known bots so that detecting these instances becomes easier.
PSA - Watch out what you install, do your research before installing unknown apps.
Source: The Next Web