Related
I bought a g tablet. I feel close to it given I put in more than 30 hours going through different beta versions of alternate roms trying to get things the way they should be since out of the box it was a piece of crap. Being in canada I had driven to nearest Sears in US to Purchase it. Before the screen calibration fix I had essentially given up the inability to type properly and the horrible viewing angles and Sd card woes had me looking elsewhere.
Having tried the more expensive Galaxy Tab and finding it laggy and flash video unviewble, I decided I needed a Tegra based device. I also felt for my needs 7 inches might be better as I find typing in landscape mode hard with a 10 incher(hmm weird genital reference there LOL). I also feel that for my needs (book reading, surfing video watching, the odd game, and quick reference use) that the smaller form fact might be better given it is lighter and more portable (can fit in coat pocket....)
Heard about the ELocity and saw it available for 100$ less than what ipaid for g tab. so ordered it to my Brother's in Florida as will be there next week. It is already there waiting for me.
Of course since ordering it not having given the g tab back yet I have it working the way I want minus the screen viewing angles which I hate as I cant type on it when lounging unless holding it awkwardly in landscape mode using my thumbs.
Seems the Elocity has much better screen in terms of viewing angles.While lower res, the DPI is in fact the same and conforms to the Android OS max resolution of 800x480 so I suspect most apps will look correct on it. It also appears to come rooted out of the box. The UI layer on it is fast and responsive and flash is there to start. So for those considering a g tablet and don't want to muck around it works much better out of the box.
Seems it is not perfect yet and suffers many of the same issues the G tablet did:
Like the gtablet there is no official android market
Wifi for some seems to not wake up with the device from sleep
Angry birds won't run
All of the above from what I have read seem to be related to drivers and tegra 2 not having the best or newest ones out of the box.
Elocity says a fix is coming on december 24th (wonder if this is similar to what was done by Roebeet et al. with TNT light and Vega N with the performance upgrades form experimental diver pack)
Multitouch which is supposed to be 1+1 (which I believe is what the gtab is) doesn't seem to be enabled properly and is only emulated in software, and as of yet, not very well.
Seems from some things discovered on a different thread that this might be a 2 point multitouch after all.
For some reason there is no Elocity forum yet which I think could impede people coming on and helping development on it (Notion Ink Adam has a forum though there is no device in the wild for another month at least). I suspect given these are both Tegra 2 devices that there might be some parallel things to help.
for more info and possible help either for you to give or get the biggest thread going is:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=872299
One professional view just out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CvY8jzyCWI
One XDA member first look:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6foXW1zizM
Canadoc,
I appreciate the info and your review.
I have to say, though, that I will not buy a 7" tablet. It's just too small. Without any references to ages or disabilities or the like, it is my opinion a lot of people are being foolish trying to do at a minimum "notebook" tasks on tiny tablets or cell phones.
I have a plain old regular cell phone. I do my tablet stuff on my G-Tablet. I do my work stuff on my Vaio 16". And if I want to watch a movie I sit down in front of my 52" home theatre and really enjoy the picture and sound.
Perhaps I owe you an apology for posting this here, but it does strike me that it's silly to use stuff the wrong way. I'll concede I might watch a movie on my G-Tablet if I were in a pinch somewhere. But I don't want to live on a cell phone screen.
Best wishes and Merry Christmas.
Rev
I disagree think that a 10 inch tablet is too closeninsize and portability night as well justbuse laptop. Phone is too small to really enjoy reading surfing and viewing. 7 inch is a sweetspot. I own an ipad. I don't use it much because there is little I use it for that my MacBook can't do abdtyping etc is better.
Typing on-the-job gtab now is bad. Too hard to 2 finger type given the wide screen and too many errors otherwise. 7 inch easy totype large enough and ideal form factor to read etc.
G tablet not good enough for notebook tasks. A notebook is. Icing need my tablet tomake a real document I haves a problem. Would rather plug ina small KB if I need to but thenmight as well just have laptop
Canadoc said:
G tablet not good enough for notebook tasks. A notebook is. Icing need my tablet to make a real document I haves a problem. Would rather plug ina small KB if I need to but thenmight as well just have laptop
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Two different devices:
1. Tablet for best portability, web, Flash, media and some gaming.
2. Netbook or lappy for PC-type tasks and heavier gaming.
The trade-off is convenience and portability. A passively cooled tablet lasts over three times longer than a typical net book and way over that for laptops.
I have an M11X, which kicks all netbooks and most laptops butts. Collecting dust since having the G. No windows baggage is very nice.
Still use it for heavy gaming, but everything else is covered by the G. I use my company Thinkpad for work stuff.
Quick comment and a question.
Touch screen is 1 point. Last that I got from the 20 page thread was 1 point touch, gTab is two.
How's the real battery life? It's my second favorite thing about the gTab, the first being it's incredible speed, but I just so much more like 7" form factor.
Not sure bout battery life, but given the smaller screen 7 vs 10 inch, the 3000mamp battery vs the 3650 of the gatb I am not expecting a huge difference.
Gtab is two yes. There has been no conclusive proof yet if the 1 touch is a hardware issue or software firmware than can be changed. It is referred to as a 1+1 touch which means the screen must be registering another touch. If it can do that, then I would think it can be revised in software......Thus far google maps which requires multipoint doesn't work on gtab. Accelerometer on Gtab is meesed up so games depending on it dont work right. Fring doesn't work on gtab......
Well if you want 1 device to do it all yes a bigger screen tablet is the way to go. But then you have something that is a compromise at everyhting.
Not great for productivity short of bringing another keyboard and with less than full capable office type apps.
Not great for portability given the almost laptops dimensions
(10 inch netbook or 11 inch macbook air are no bigger except thickness and have real keyboard and u dont deal with the awful screen of the viewosnic. As an owner I can't use the viewsonic for anything that I cant do looking face on which makes typing hard on the screen).
Battery life? macbook air superior than the g tablet. Netbook with high cap battery still same price as gtab and gives 6+ hours of pc use with wifi on
Canadoc said:
Well if you want 1 device to do it all yes a bigger screen tablet is the way to go. But then you have something that is a compromise at everyhting.
Not great for productivity short of bringing another keyboard and with less than full capable office type apps.
Not great for portability given the almost laptops dimensions
(10 inch netbook or 11 inch macbook air are no bigger except thickness and have real keyboard and u dont deal with the awful screen of the viewosnic. As an owner I can't use the viewsonic for anything that I cant do looking face on which makes typing hard on the screen).
Battery life? macbook air superior than the g tablet. Netbook with high cap battery still same price as gtab and gives 6+ hours of pc use with wifi on
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Note: I'm posting this to share my own user experience. YMMV.
(1) I agree that the viewing angle is less than ideal. Most of the time I pop it up using an inexpensive stand; it actually works better for my neck (really !).
(2) Re onscreen keyboard: I have had no trouble in portrait mode (using better keyboard). In landscape mode the TNT split keyboard actually works surprisingly well (after one-time calibration).
(3) 10" is defintely not as portable as 7". OTOH: a lot of times I use the gtab to read technical documents (pdf), and 7" simply does not work -- in portrait mode the text & equations are too small, and in landscape you can read just a few lines at a time. With 10" the whole page shows up in the same font size as the printed version.
I do agree that 10" is a bit unwieldy; I've come to the conclusion that an 8", 1024x764 is the perfect size for a ebook tablet (HD movie fans would disagree).
(4) I have my gtab for over a month. With wifi on, and a mix of mp3/web browsing/ebook reading/youtube/AB, I've been getting about 8 hours pretty much every time.
case-sensitive said:
Note: I'm posting this to share my own user experience. YMMV.
(1) I agree that the viewing angle is less than ideal. Most of the time I pop it up using an inexpensive stand; it actually works better for my neck (really !).
(2) Re onscreen keyboard: I have had no trouble in portrait mode (using better keyboard). In landscape mode the TNT split keyboard actually works surprisingly well (after one-time calibration).
(3) 10" is defintely not as portable as 7". OTOH: a lot of times I use the gtab to read technical documents (pdf), and 7" simply does not work -- in portrait mode the text & equations are too small, and in landscape you can read just a few lines at a time. With 10" the whole page shows up in the same font size as the printed version.
I do agree that 10" is a bit unwieldy; I've come to the conclusion that an 8", 1024x764 is the perfect size for a ebook tablet (HD movie fans would disagree).
(4) I have my gtab for over a month. With wifi on, and a mix of mp3/web browsing/ebook reading/youtube/AB, I've been getting about 8 hours pretty much every time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't get me wrong I currently own a gtab and do see the merit in it and if it had a better screen I would probably have kept it.
But the thing is for thos people not willing to mod their device (95% of buying public) the g tab is a device that will be promptly returned.
Viewing angle is very bad, UI is not great though improving with today's firmware. Promised Flash which is probably reason many buy it over ipad, is missing in action (and with it pulled of the Vega might not be around for a while).
Also the touchscreen without running calibration ini file on a rooted machine leaves a lot to be desired. The stock tablet (as well as custom roms before trying the calibration trick) would not register many presses on the letter a the soft home button as well as the return and L key. This in fact was what prompted me to order the elocity tablet as I was more than frustrated typing on the G. Of course I discovered the calibration trick only after my elocity order shipped out.
As for using a stand, that would be fine if I used my tablet sitting at a table or desk. I say most of my use is sitting on a couch or in bed with it held up in my hands on my chest or sitting in my lap. Often the ideal angle to type at is one that tilts the screen to where I can't view the keyboard buttons well especially the darker android keyboard. The width of the device in landscape makes it hard to thumb type. Portrait is fine but the tablet, for me is too long and does not balance well in the hand at that angle. Also the bad viewing angle in portrait mode is so bad that I get a polarizing effect; the left eye sees a brighter or darker image than the right. Pictures and especially dark backgrounds look very bad. TO make it even viewable I have to watch the screen tilted about 2-3 inches. This is the deal breaker for me.
The size is good if you want full size viewing of some things but if i wa slooking at a technical manual and had to put the tablet down to read it while i worked with my 2 hands i wouldnt be able to read it.....
If i need to work on something important I will just use my laptop. This is not a laptop replacement for me.
Frankly after using the ipad for a while i would say if it could rn flash it would kill everything out there and still already does for user experience and can be had for 399 at tj maxx and marshall so not even so expensive any more.
But, I want this to watch websites that have videos/movies in flash
I recently was given a chance to try out the Momo8 tablet. I'd like to post my impressions in case anyone has been looking at this tablet as a possible future purchase.
Here are the stats of this pad according to the site I purchased it from:
Model MOMO8 Tablet PC
CPU Rockchip 2918 Cortex-A8 Dual Core, 1GHz
Operation System Android 2.3
RAM 512MB
Nand Flash 8GB
Shell Material Plastic
Screen Size 8 Inch (4:3)
Type Capacitive Screen
Resolution 1024 x 768
Visible Angle 150°
All of this information seems to be accurate except for the fact I get some different Nand memory measurements. (Around the 4-5 gb range). Still it is a good amount of memory and I always use an SD card anyway. Let me begin my review:
First thing I'll say is that this is one of the best feeling tablets I've ever encountered. It has the solid feel of a more expensive tablet. Nothing loose or out of place. Nice square edges. Just an all around great feel. There are times the screen requires a second press to get action. Haven't quite figured that out yet. this A8 processor is blazing fast compared to the other tablets I've worked with. Plus it apparently has some kind of graphics accelerator installed.
I've had a Gpad G10 and a Eken m009 and this Momo's viewing angle is amazing compared to those. I can even see the screen from almost direct edge on viewing. Wireless is a bit spotty however. Sometimes it will lose the connection while not even leaving the same room. Battery life is pretty incredible though. I managed to use it on and off with only putting it into standby for the whole day the other day and still had nearly 60% battery when I got home. (And I left the wireless on by accident, so that's even more amazing to me). The only other problem I've found with my Momo is that the speaker is screwed up. For the brief moment it works it has clear, crisp, loud sound. But, usually it's completely dead. Headphones however are pretty amazing, clear, loud (so loud I've adjusted the sound well below the middle level.) Other things I've noticed are the cameras. The rear camera is amazing. Sure it's not a high quality 10mp it's only supposed to be a 3mp if I remember correctly. What really surprises me is that the front facing camera is supposed to be .3mp and yet I'm getting great, bright, good quality face shots. The only other issue I have discovered is that when you have it in landscape mode with the buttons on top, the lower right corner of the screen has some sensitivity issues when using an onscreen keyboard. Using a recalibration app fixes it for a while, but it goes back within a very short time. Ie: when pressing n and m I get spacebar. When I press m and backspace it registers as enter.
The capacitive screen is outstanding for tapping browser links. Very good reaction. Once in a while it's a tiny bit out of calibration though. The only screen calibration tool I've found so far that works is one that has you tap a calibrate button and then it calibrates itself. I'm not crazy about it and would like one that has you touch multiple spots on the screen and then calibrates on them.
As for the aforementioned weight, it isn't a light pad, but that's actually my preference. I like the fact it has a little extra durability to it. Somewhat thick, and kind of blocky if you get what I'm saying. I like the all around feel. It's just light enough that I can read for hours without really any additional strain.
All in all this is a durable, fast, really well designed pad with a few minor issues. Compared to the higher end pads I've used I think I'd rather save a couple hundred and get something that just works for what I want instead of getting some name brand that I'm paying for the name.
Additionally I managed to fix the keyboard problem. Downloaded Thumb Keyboard from Amazon Appstore fixed it right up and in fact is the fastest on screen keyboard ever.
it might have been worth it, if they included 1Gb RAM and at the very minimum included 16Gb internal storage
Sent from my Nexus S using xda premium
So far the memory hasn't been an issue. I would prefer that the nand memory was actually as much as it says it is. But, I have an sd card so it doesn't particularly cause me much of a problem.
1GB of memory would be nice, but I haven't had any issues where I've run out of memory yet, and I tend to run two or three things at once.
Do these work ok ?
rotrhead said:
Do these work ok ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I like mine. The only issues I've had so far are the ones that I detailed in the review. 95% of all the games I've tried so far have worked, books are nice (plus I finally got things working on the brightness adjustment for fbreader), and it plays music and video beautifully. I haven't tried hooking it to my television or anything, but that's not really an option I needed.
Bought one yesterday - coming soon, I hope!
I bought one yesterday from McBub.com for $145.99 plus the protective cover, making the total just over $150.
Great reviews on Slickdeals.net from one of the users, and after rooting a Nook Color last year and having fun with it (after checking out lots of the forums on here to root it), I figured I'd try this Momo8 out. I haven't used Ice Cream Sandwich, and it ought to be nice with a tablet this size.
Does anybody have any idea if there is a USB Ethernet adapter for it? I'm curious about whether I could find an adapter to have a little more secure Internet usage when I'm traveling. Otherwise it looks like a fun tablet to work with!
Not sure if there is an USB ethernet adapter, but the built in ethernet plug seems to work great. Might be a little confused about your question.
If you find out a good, quick, easy rooting method, or a way to upgrade the OS without losing features, please let me know.
Looks like mine has no built-in Ethernet - only wireless
As a newbie I can't post outside links yet... but McBub.com is where I bought the Momo8. Its description is Ployer MOMO8 Business Edition Tablet PC - 8 inch 8GB Android 4.0 1.5GHz Capacitive 2160P HD 3D Movie (CN109156), and there's no Ethernet plug on it that I can tell - only wireless access.
Whoops my bad, I just checked and you're right. I confused it with my 9.7 that I've been working on this week. Lol, should always double check. Yeah, not sure if a USB ethernet adapter would work or not. I'd recommend getting an adapter from ebay or a chinese site, so you don't invest too much into it. Then if it works you could get something better.
For sure - I've emailed a few sites to see if they have any info on it, and I may try to email Ployer themselves to see if they can recommend anything. Thanks!
if only included 3g support and gps....i think it will be nicer compare to branded tablets
Hello, I just bought one of these and it came with android 4.0.1.
I was wondering if it would be easy to flash to 4.0.3, or would I have any problems since it is a chinapad and maybe the version of android is customized to work with this tablet? I say that because some of the functionality in 4.0 does not seem to be on this tablet (like brightness, there's no auto brightness, no face unlock, a couple of other things).
I'm worried that if I flash this, it will mess up whatever settings they had with it. Thanks for the help!!
It looks decent. I would have gotten one too, but I bought a Kindle already.
I know having a bluetooth keyboard for a phone with a physical keyboard seems silly, but for long emails (and really for any typing) I find the physical keyboard to be lacking. It may be that I have small hands, but it is uncomfortable and I can never really get my rhythm with it. Anyway, I have been eyeing this keyboard for a while and finally decided to purchase it. I got the iPad version since it was Prime eligible on Amazon. I purchased it also because I am in the market for a 7" tab and wanted a keyboard of comparable size.
It's a small keyboard, about 8.5" wide. They keys are springy and have a nice feel to them. The pairing was a bit trickier than other phones I have used. I had to do the initial pairing, then select the device in the paired list and hit a key on the keyboard to activate it. It doesn't seem to pull up the on screen keyboard when in use, which was a nice surprise. I had already downloaded nullKeyboard in anticipation of that happening.
EDIT: I am not very observant. It does pull up the on screen keyboard. I don't know how I missed it!!
One downside (although minor) is that it doesn't use a standard USB end. It is something smaller than microUSB. Not a big deal, though it would have been nice not to have another cable to keep up with. I haven't used it enough to give any sort of estimate on battery life, but these sorts of things are usually pretty long lasting.
Link:
http://www.amazon.com/CaseCrown-Por...P8EE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1322545047&sr=8-1
That's a good posting, thank you.
I just ordered a bluetooth keyboard before thanksgiving:
http://www.amazon.com/Verbatim-9753...LT2E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1322557358&sr=8-1
I'll post a review about it when I get it.
I agree with your sentiment about having a physical keyboard.
I want to plug my phone into a TV, then sit back on a couch and play with it, leaving the phone by the TV.
This means Bluetooth keyboard, video game controller, and trackpad.
Have you seen any good trackpapds that are bluetooth? being able to use the touchscreen as a touchscreen by proxy of a trackpad seems like the right answer instead of a mouse.
Blue6IX said:
Have you seen any good trackpapds that are bluetooth? being able to use the touchscreen as a touchscreen by proxy of a trackpad seems like the right answer instead of a mouse.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is the one I have also considered:
http://www.amazon.com/Pyramid-Promini-Trackball-Bluetooth-Keyboard/dp/B004S214IS/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1322575241&sr=8-6
Many people have recommended the keyboard that has the large square trackpad beside it, like this http://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Keyboard-Symbian-Players-TouchPad/dp/B0042VAXKK/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&qid=1322575241&sr=8-14 but the trackpad seems too wide to be able to comfortably type of the keyboard. Seems like you'd have to hold it strange on the right side. I like the first keyboard because the trackball doesn't offset the keyboard by too much.
I've seen that mini-keyboard recommended for the Nook Color.
Thing about it for this phone, though, is it just doesn't seem much different fromthe slide-out keyboard. The trackpad is a nice bonus, but if i'm gonna use a whole new physical keyboard, something like what you got or I ordered seems more worthwhile.
Why strain on tiny little thumb-keys when you can get keys sized for fingers and type normally.
Maybe for another device it would be good - just that mini-keyboard seems like too little gain for too big a hassle. Others may feel different, just my personal thoughts without having one.
I say this, though, and when my keyboard comes in i'll be minus a trackpad, so unable to scroll on the phone and still have to keep it right in front of me - therefore only a partial victory.
I'm really glad to hear that the keyboard you have is working out well for you, I was worried that it would be a pain in the tail to make it work right.
I just got mine in.
Works fantastic, fold up and fits in my cargo pocket of my pants.
Works on two AAA batteries, and I have packs of them just laying around thankfully, though I can't imagine it goes through them fast since it has an off switch.
Pairing was simple and easy, subsequent reconnects are seamless.
I like it, happy customer. Now have a keyboard that goes with my phone that outputs to a larger monitor.
Blue6IX said:
I just got mine in.
Works fantastic, fold up and fits in my cargo pocket of my pants.
Works on two AAA batteries, and I have packs of them just laying around thankfully, though I can't imagine it goes through them fast since it has an off switch.
Pairing was simple and easy, subsequent reconnects are seamless.
I like it, happy customer. Now have a keyboard that goes with my phone that outputs to a larger monitor.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know why I didn't consider a fold up keyboard! So much more handy and easy to tote about. Thanks for the recommendation. I may just have to pick one up (I have a thing for keyboards ...)
geek_riot said:
I don't know why I didn't consider a fold up keyboard! So much more handy and easy to tote about. Thanks for the recommendation. I may just have to pick one up (I have a thing for keyboards ...)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, if you got a thing for keyboards, let me explain this one a bit more now that i've had it for a day.
It rocks. It's nice to type on, the keys are flat like a laptop. It integrates with android well, haven't had any problems in using it.
It has a little stand that pops out of the back of it, which I can use to support the phone right behind it - very handy.
It folds in half and slips in a case that fits in my cargo pocket - happy. Smaller then my Nook Color when folded, pictured below.
I attached a handful of pictures to give an idea of the size and how it looks.
On each side it has 4 little rubber feet, so when it's folded open it balances on 8 points that don't slide - perfect!
Runs on two AAA batteries, - the only thing is you have to press a recessed button for initial pairing, so you need a tool or something. ( I used a pair of tweezers).
Pictures below:
Do you think that stand would hold a 7" tablet?
Thanks!
Kim
I am quite sure that my Nook Color with the Trident case would break the stand.
It may not, but it sure wouldn't hold it right - it's pretty flimsy.
Fine for the phone, but anything beyond that is asking too much.
So there the expensive official keyboard, the cheaper logitech keyboard..
Can anyone who has tried these post a small review? I've seen reviews of the official samsung one but not the logitech.. the logitech one would suit my black model tab to match my S5
Or.. is it just a stupid rip off (as it seems buy the prices) and get a much cheaper bluetooth keyboard
TBH I'm not sure if i'll even use it, but.. i like to have everything for my devices
Idk where to find the link in the YouTube app but go search for Samsung Galaxy tab S keyboard and I recommend the logitech one since it's cheaper and better and it also has a case with it with decent protection. I too like to have all stuff for my device. I'm not even sure what to get yet as they're still expensive, maybe the prices will go down eventually.
Sent from my SM-T805
Not sure if you are aware but if you register your Tab with Samsung at their website, they will email you a coupon code for 50% off any 3 accessories. This will allow you to get the official keyboard at just about the same price as the Logitech one (about $10 difference). I can't comment on the Logitech but I do have the Samsung one and I do like it. Also like how well it matches and still maintain relatively low profile.
Cheers didnt know you could do that ill sign up
anyone try a 3rd party ebay keyboard, like Ebay Item # 251714259830 ( Would post a link but under 10 posts so I can't )
I love the official keyboard for all the usual obvious awesome reasons. But I really miss a trackpad while in laptop mode.
I found the Amazon Fire Keyboard right in the same BestBuy where I got the official keyboard. It's smaller than the Samsung in every dimension, height, width, thinner, lighter, WITH a trackpad, and yet the keys are actually larger. Has almost identical features and keys. Like all 12 F-keys, and a back button that works as Esc key at least in a couple terminal/ssh apps which I need. Ctrl, Alt, etc. And to top it all off, I paid $150 for the Samsung and the Fire was only $79 open box but clean. Only $89 unopened.
It's a wonderfully slick little keyboard. Perfectly flat, thin, light, simple, clean.
However all in all, I haven't yet made up my mind which is the better overall kit. There are some pros & cons about each.
Since I want a pointing device, I'm comparing not just two keyboards but two complete kits.
Using the Samsung keyboard means I have to carry a mouse or trackpad or some kind of pointing device other than touching the screen, and I DON'T have to use any kind of case. (I don't like cases.)
Using the Fire keyboard means I don't have to carry any extra pointing device, but I DO have to put the book cover on the tablet to provide a kickstand since the Fire keyboard doesn't. It also means I'm carrying two loose items instead of two items snapped together into one item.
I found a pretty slick little (expensive, and not as small as I'd really like) bluetooth mouse that goes well. HP Bluetooth Mouse Z8000. It looks like there are no buttons, or like the entire mouse is one big mouse button, but in fact if you press on the top-left or top-right, it has distinct left and right mouse buttons. It has a capacitive touch sensitive top surface that provides a virtual scroll-wheel. Just swipe your finger on the spot where a scroll wheel would normally be, and it works. It takes 2 AAA batteries, no usb recharging port.
So I have two possible configurations I'm comparing:
1) Official keyboard + mouse.
PROS: Mouse is actually pretty optional. If I leave it behind in the car, I can still touch the screen directly. So when max convenience matters, just grabbing the tablet & keyboard snapped together is better than grabbing the tablet and Fire keyboard as two loose items. This mouse works a lot better than the trackpad in the Fire keyboard. Mouse has normal left & right buttons and scroll. No need for book cover or other case. Keyboard provides all that is necessary, neat and clean. Looks better, peices all match well. Samsung keyboard has slightly better keys and compatibility: Samsung has PgUp/PgDn/Home/End, Fire does not. Samsung layout is closer to standard pc, particularly the {[ }] |\ ;: ~` keys, the very existence of PgUp/PgDn Home/End keys, and the fact that they are doubled up with the arrow keys in the obvious way, where the Fire keyboard puts display brightness on Up/Dn, and nothing on Left/Right. The primary functions of all of the F-keys are standard universal Android or hardware functions, not Samsung special. Only Samsung special key is S-finder, and that's a secondary Fn function and is off to the side not on a central F-key. Keyboard provides kickstand. It's much more convenient to grab the naked tablet when you want to. The book cover snaps in place very strongly and is hard to pry off, and to snap back on. While it's effortless to combine or separate the tablet and keyboard cover.
CONS: Lumpy extra loose object carrying the mouse. Ugh! Samsung keyboard + mouse is a more expensive total kit than Fire keyboard + book cover, though not by a lot. 3 total battery powered objects to recharge or replace: Tablet, keyboard, mouse.
2) Fire keyboard + book cover.
PROS: Smaller, thinner, lighter. Cheaper. Built-in pointing device. Only 2 total battery powered objects to carry and keep charged instead of 3: Tablet and keyboard. Both objects rechargeable by micro usb, no batteries to buy, or leak. Kit, tablet + keyboard, is flat, no mouse lump. Kit is a little cheaper. Keyboard is more useful with other devices than the tablet. It isn't shaped specifically to fit exactly one specific tablet. You can use it for home theater pc, PS3, phone/phablet, anything. Book cover provides two tilt angles vs the Samsung keyboard only provides one.
CONS: Keys are less standard. F3 is a shopping cart, Amazon remember. Android "home" is a dedicated button where F1 should be. `~ {[ }] += :; are all in odd places. PgUp/PgDn/Home/End don't exist at all. Trackpad doesn't work as smoothly, accurately, or effortlessly as the mouse. There IS one mouse button, in the form of the whole track pad clicks. That provides only a left-click function, and click-dragging (dragging while holding down the button) is very awkward and mostly doesn't work well, as you are trying to slide across a surface that you are pressing down quite hard on. No right-click. No scroll-wheel. Requires some other way to prop the tablet up, IE: book cover. Keyboard says "Amazon" on the back, and I hate Amazon (WalMart of the Internet).
A few things that are notably pretty good, or bad, but the same for both kits, at least for me:
* Both have all 12 F-keys. (good)
* Both have all 12 F-keys as secondary Fn+F# keys, not primary functions. (inconvenient)
* Both have android back button that functions as Esc key in at least a few terminal/ssh apps. (good)
* Both have Ctrl & Alt (good)
* Both have 4 arrows, and in a reasonable spot. (good)
* Both have capslock with light (who cares?)
* Both have Android Back, Home, and Menu buttons. (good, menu is particularly handy now that it's removed from the device itself and the overflow button doesn't always appear on screen)
* Both have Delete (good)
* Both lack Insert (bad)
* Both lack Scroll-Lock/Num-Lock, Print-Scr/SysRq, Break (bad)
* Both charge by micro usb and claim to last for months. (good)
This pic shows Left: Samsung keyboard + HP mouse. Right: Fire keyboard + Samsung book cover. In-use and packed for travel.
Post content cannot be empty. Please try again. (ok, now it's not empty, that was useful...)
KEYofR said:
I love the official keyboard for all the usual obvious awesome reasons. But I really miss a trackpad while in laptop mode.
I found the Amazon Fire Keyboard right in the same BestBuy where I got the official keyboard. It's smaller than the Samsung in every dimension, height, width, thinner, lighter, WITH a trackpad, and yet the keys are actually larger. Has almost identical features and keys. Like all 12 F-keys, and a back button that works as Esc key at least in a couple terminal/ssh apps which I need. Ctrl, Alt, etc. And to top it all off, I paid $150 for the Samsung and the Fire was only $79 open box but clean. Only $89 unopened.
It's a wonderfully slick little keyboard. Perfectly flat, thin, light, simple, clean.
However all in all, I haven't yet made up my mind which is the better overall kit. There are some pros & cons about each.
Since I want a pointing device, I'm comparing not just two keyboards but two complete kits.
Using the Samsung keyboard means I have to carry a mouse or trackpad or some kind of pointing device other than touching the screen, and I DON'T have to use any kind of case. (I don't like cases.)
Using the Fire keyboard means I don't have to carry any extra pointing device, but I DO have to put the book cover on the tablet to provide a kickstand since the Fire keyboard doesn't. It also means I'm carrying two loose items instead of two items snapped together into one item.
I found a pretty slick little (expensive, and not as small as I'd really like) bluetooth mouse that goes well. HP Bluetooth Mouse Z8000. It looks like there are no buttons, or like the entire mouse is one big mouse button, but in fact if you press on the top-left or top-right, it has distinct left and right mouse buttons. It has a capacitive touch sensitive top surface that provides a virtual scroll-wheel. Just swipe your finger on the spot where a scroll wheel would normally be, and it works. It takes 2 AAA batteries, no usb recharging port.
So I have two possible configurations I'm comparing:
1) Official keyboard + mouse.
PROS: Mouse is actually pretty optional. If I leave it behind in the car, I can still touch the screen directly. So when max convenience matters, just grabbing the tablet & keyboard snapped together is better than grabbing the tablet and Fire keyboard as two loose items. This mouse works a lot better than the trackpad in the Fire keyboard. Mouse has normal left & right buttons and scroll. No need for book cover or other case. Keyboard provides all that is necessary, neat and clean. Looks better, peices all match well. Samsung keyboard has slightly better keys and compatibility: Samsung has PgUp/PgDn/Home/End, Fire does not. Samsung layout is closer to standard pc, particularly the {[ }] |\ ;: ~` keys, the very existence of PgUp/PgDn Home/End keys, and the fact that they are doubled up with the arrow keys in the obvious way, where the Fire keyboard puts display brightness on Up/Dn, and nothing on Left/Right. The primary functions of all of the F-keys are standard universal Android or hardware functions, not Samsung special. Only Samsung special key is S-finder, and that's a secondary Fn function and is off to the side not on a central F-key. Keyboard provides kickstand. It's much more convenient to grab the naked tablet when you want to. The book cover snaps in place very strongly and is hard to pry off, and to snap back on. While it's effortless to combine or separate the tablet and keyboard cover.
CONS: Lumpy extra loose object carrying the mouse. Ugh! Samsung keyboard + mouse is a more expensive total kit than Fire keyboard + book cover, though not by a lot. 3 total battery powered objects to recharge or replace: Tablet, keyboard, mouse.
2) Fire keyboard + book cover.
PROS: Smaller, thinner, lighter. Cheaper. Built-in pointing device. Only 2 total battery powered objects to carry and keep charged instead of 3: Tablet and keyboard. Both objects rechargeable by micro usb, no batteries to buy, or leak. Kit, tablet + keyboard, is flat, no mouse lump. Kit is a little cheaper. Keyboard is more useful with other devices than the tablet. It isn't shaped specifically to fit exactly one specific tablet. You can use it for home theater pc, PS3, phone/phablet, anything. Book cover provides two tilt angles vs the Samsung keyboard only provides one.
CONS: Keys are less standard. F3 is a shopping cart, Amazon remember. Android "home" is a dedicated button where F1 should be. `~ {[ }] += :; are all in odd places. PgUp/PgDn/Home/End don't exist at all. Trackpad doesn't work as smoothly, accurately, or effortlessly as the mouse. There IS one mouse button, in the form of the whole track pad clicks. That provides only a left-click function, and click-dragging (dragging while holding down the button) is very awkward and mostly doesn't work well, as you are trying to slide across a surface that you are pressing down quite hard on. No right-click. No scroll-wheel. Requires some other way to prop the tablet up, IE: book cover. Keyboard says "Amazon" on the back, and I hate Amazon (WalMart of the Internet).
A few things that are notably pretty good, or bad, but the same for both kits, at least for me:
* Both have all 12 F-keys. (good)
* Both have all 12 F-keys as secondary Fn+F# keys, not primary functions. (inconvenient)
* Both have android back button that functions as Esc key in at least a few terminal/ssh apps. (good)
* Both have Ctrl & Alt (good)
* Both have 4 arrows, and in a reasonable spot. (good)
* Both have capslock with light (who cares?)
* Both have Android Back, Home, and Menu buttons. (good, menu is particularly handy now that it's removed from the device itself and the overflow button doesn't always appear on screen)
* Both have Delete (good)
* Both lack Insert (bad)
* Both lack Scroll-Lock/Num-Lock, Print-Scr/SysRq, Break (bad)
* Both charge by micro usb and claim to last for months. (good)
This pic shows Left: Samsung keyboard + HP mouse. Right: Fire keyboard + Samsung book cover. In-use and packed for travel.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Personally, I'd stick with the Samsung keyboard. As you highlighted, its a single piece to grab and works well together. The mouse you picked up actually looks cools and doesn't actually look that big. You can probably find a case to house all three together so that you have a single item to grab. Another sleek mouse is the Logitech Bluetooth mouse. It's small, and lightweight. Only issue is expensive, about $60. Also, if you just picked up the Samsung keyboard, return it. You paid way too much. If you register you Tab with Samsung, they will send you a 50% off accessory coupon. You can then get it for about $80 shipped.
I think I am leaning that way. Using the Samsung keyboard and the separate mouse most of the time. I'll use the Fire keyboard for something else like my phone or the TV. Or give it to someone who has a Kindle Fire HD.
I think the Fire keyboard is turning out to be like when I see a shirt that just looks amazing on the hanger, but no matter what I do, looks like crap on me. No denying it's an amazing shirt. No denying it still does me no good.
KEYofR said:
I think I am leaning that way. Using the Samsung keyboard and the separate mouse most of the time. I'll use the Fire keyboard for something else like my phone or the TV. Or give it to someone who has a Kindle Fire HD.
I think the Fire keyboard is turning out to be like when I see a shirt that just looks amazing on the hanger, but no matter what I do, looks like crap on me. No denying it's an amazing shirt. No denying it still does me no good.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey, is the samsung keyboard case friendly?
Offica said:
So there the expensive official keyboard, the cheaper logitech keyboard..
Can anyone who has tried these post a small review? I've seen reviews of the official samsung one but not the logitech.. the logitech one would suit my black model tab to match my S5
Or.. is it just a stupid rip off (as it seems buy the prices) and get a much cheaper bluetooth keyboard
TBH I'm not sure if i'll even use it, but.. i like to have everything for my devices
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I picked up the Logitech Type S keyboard case before I knew I was going to get a 50% coupon from Sammy and I love it. They keyboard is almost identical in key size, feel and key travel to the Logitech keyboard I use for my desktop minus the F-Key row. What I like over the style of keyboard that the Sammy keyboard is that it locks the tablet in rather than simply balancing the tablet in a trough. This makes it very secure for using it on your lap (I have a long train commute with no tray tables). It obviously folds to use as just a tablet, but it is obviously not as easy to pull the tablet out of the case which doesn't bother me but might some. The pairing is always very fast. Further, the design, feel and materials of the case are very premium. This is one of the nicest tablet keyboards I have ever used and truly makes my 10.5" tablet an ultrabook (the 128 GB sd helps there too ).
I'm extremely happy with the Logitech Type S keyboard.
Is there any case that is friendly for 10.5 and samsung keyboard that offers drop protection? I dont want to carry 2 things around. Thanks
Just so everyone knows, I ordered the Samsung keyboard in bronze on 17 Jan and it was on backorder. It's now 17 Feb and I still haven' t seen a keyboard. Samsung customer service isn't very helpful. They could care less! Yes, I'm using my 50% off coupon.
Sent from my SM-T800 using XDA Free mobile app
Guardsix said:
Just so everyone knows, I ordered the Samsung keyboard in bronze on 17 Jan and it was on backorder. It's now 17 Feb and I still haven' t seen a keyboard. Samsung customer service isn't very helpful. They could care less! Yes, I'm using my 50% off coupon.
Sent from my SM-T800 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I am not sure it is actually on backorder. Personally I think Samsung is playing games with the 50% off coupon. I had the same issue with the Samsung S mouse. Waited 3 weeks and got no response from Samsung. Emailed them twice for updates and no response. Third time I emailed them to cancel order as I would not authorize Credit card charge, then I get an email response. Terrible customer service. I know when I ordered mine, there were a few just sitting available at Best Buy. Same with your keyboard, I've seen them available for weeks in the stores. I truly believe Samsung just doesn't want to honor the coupon IMHO.
Ive had nothing but bad experiences when ordering from samsung mobile. I have a dev note 4...what a train wreck that was. On another note my girlfriend is recieving her bronze keyboard for the tab s 10.5 on the 20th. It will be delivered to the house from best buy.
I use the Logitech Type S with my 10.5. Been very usefull and works perfectly. The only complaint I got, is the lack of backlight on the keys.
I would prefer backlighting. I've read very good reviews about the Type S keyboard. Maybe they will make a version with backlighting shortly?
Sent from my KFAPWI using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
I'd like a keyboard with track pad and backlighting. Track pad is the most important feature... does anyone know of any good option?
There are some cheapo ones with trackpad, but I don't know of any serious one, unfortunately. Also touchpad doesn't work well with android, yet. I have Apple keyboard&trackpad.
Then, there is the Lenovo keyboard, with trackpoint, which might be an alternative.
cbb77 said:
Yeah, I am not sure it is actually on backorder. Personally I think Samsung is playing games with the 50% off coupon. I had the same issue with the Samsung S mouse. Waited 3 weeks and got no response from Samsung. Emailed them twice for updates and no response. Third time I emailed them to cancel order as I would not authorize Credit card charge, then I get an email response. Terrible customer service. I know when I ordered mine, there were a few just sitting available at Best Buy. Same with your keyboard, I've seen them available for weeks in the stores. I truly believe Samsung just doesn't want to honor the coupon IMHO.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed, I am about to begin the process of disputing through PayPal. Their official site still shows "ships within 1-3 days" but they pulled the same back order BS on me - after collecting my money of course.
I gave them one final chance to ship by Monday, then I am disputing the charge, getting my money back, and returning my Tab S 10.5 to Best Buy and never buying from Samsung again. They've been stringing me along lying the entire time, all because they don't want to honor their "gift" to me. Piss poor customer service.
Hey guys, so, I know there's a lot of you out there who are thinking of getting a controller for your shield tablet, thinking you should get a console controller w/ bluetooth or something of that nature, but I honestly think this is the best controller out there, despite some of its flaws. This isn't really a professional review, just some pictures and captions xP But I think it'll give people an idea of what to expect. The pictures were relatively big, 4000x3000, so I had to resize them all to 1024x768 on postimg. You can click the thumbnails to get a better view.
So as far as the box goes, there's nothing really much to say, it's mostly in chinese.
There's not much inside the box. Just the controller, a charge cable that's about 3 meters long, and an instruction manual.
The sheer size of this thing after first holding it literally had me laughing for about 10 minutes, just actually taking in that I'm holding this gaming device that is now about 13.5" long was just funny xD
After playing with this thing for an hour or two, going back to the Vita, the Vita felt extremely tiny in comparison.
This thing has three modes to pair, each is selected by turning the controller on while holding either X, Y, or A and pressing the home button at the same time. There is Keyboard, Gamepad(What you'd use), and mouse mode. Gamepad is X+Home.
Showing off Black Ops 2 played through Gamestream here:
The controller works very well with gamestream, practically no input lag AT ALL, but there is some video lag though that's NVIDIA's fault and will hopefully be lowered in the later months/years.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ACTUAL REVIEW NOW
Now, onto some actual reviewy type stuff, the pros and cons. The build quality for this controller is absolutely FANTASTIC for $30, It feels much better than my Moga Pro in every aspect except portability, but for a tablet I'm sure you aren't expecting that anyway. The sticks feel amazing to the touch and have just the right amount of resistance, both the face buttons and the top buttons feel nice, just everything feels great and it's hard to believe this thing only costs $30, but there are some cons.
Not exactly a con: Ports
The ports are hidden as you have the controller fit as snug as possible, but it is completely possible to raise the tablet up higher while it's in the controller and have every port shown while still having a tight fit. It'll look something along the lines of this.
I kid you not I was flinging this controller up and down and left and right and even with the tablet in that high, it didn't budge at all, this controller holds your device in very well.
Pro: Works with Gamemapper
For some reason it's 2015 and we still have FPS games that don't have native gamepad support(NOVA 3). Luckily, just hold the start button and you can bring up NVIDIA's gamemapper.
(60/40) Con: D-PAD
Don't get me wrong, this is a really great D-PAD...For everything other than fighters. It feels nice, it works almost perfectly, the problem is, diagonal inputs don't read as naturally as they should. You have to kind of put more effort into getting the D-PAD in the diagonal portion of the gate to correctly get a hadouken or whatever you want out. It's kind of frustrating. A side note, for some reason, the Home button doesn't work at all. Not sure if I have a broken controller or if it just doesn't work correctly with Lollipop.
Con: L2/R2 (LT/RT for you X360 users)
Even though they feel nice to press, I can't get over the fact that these are just buttons, and not actual triggers. I don't even want to try a racing game with Gamestream because of how much it'd fail. They work fine with everything else though.
All in all, this is a very nice controller, and even with those cons, I'd recommend it to ANYONE looking for a controller for ANY tablet. Definitely the best bang for your buck.
MY SCORE: 9/10
You can purchase the controller really cheap at:
Mod Edit: Commercial links removed.