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Hardware keyboard

I'm sure a lot of you have seen the Lenovo Lephone with it's attachable hardware keyboard/dock thing. If not check it out:
http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/11/lenovo-lephone-seen-again-os-cues-taken-from-skylight/
Essentially the phone snaps into this plastic cover that has a hardware keyboard and turns into a foldable phone (like an LG Voyager or something) with a hardware keyboard. Anyone think we'll be seeing anything like this come out for the nexus or other future/past android phones with no hardware keyboards? It's actually a great idea because it has an extended battery along with it i believe. What do you guys think? Would anyone support this type of attachment for android phones? (By using an accessory with an app or something) And would any android users buy something like this?

matt_stang said:
I'm sure a lot of you have seen the Lenovo Lephone with it's attachable hardware keyboard/dock thing. If not check it out:
http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/11/lenovo-lephone-seen-again-os-cues-taken-from-skylight/
Essentially the phone snaps into this plastic cover that has a hardware keyboard and turns into a foldable phone (like an LG Voyager or something) with a hardware keyboard. Anyone think we'll be seeing anything like this come out for the nexus or other future/past android phones with no hardware keyboards? It's actually a great idea because it has an extended battery along with it i believe. What do you guys think? Would anyone support this type of attachment for android phones? (By using an accessory with an app or something) And would any android users buy something like this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would support something like that because I love gadgets. But then I think to myself why would I want something the size of a PlayStation Portable (PSP) in my pocket? But it does look nice. How would this thing work as far as answering incoming calls? Would you have to take it out of the case to answer calls? And if it extended the battery life on my phone that would always be a plus. Idk I would have to think if I would want to carry something so big just to use as a keyboard.

RussianSolja said:
I would support something like that because I love gadgets. But then I think to myself why would I want something the size of a PlayStation Portable (PSP) in my pocket? But it does look nice. How would this thing work as far as answering incoming calls? Would you have to take it out of the case to answer calls? And if it extended the battery life on my phone that would always be a plus. Idk I would have to think if I would want to carry something so big just to use as a keyboard.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well maybe it wouldn't be that big. Say it only made your phone twice as thick and maybe it could have an external mic for answering calls. And of course there's always headphones and speakerphone for phone calls.

H
matt_stang said:
Well maybe it wouldn't be that big. Say it only made your phone twice as thick and maybe it could have an external mic for answering calls. And of course there's always headphones and speakerphone for phone calls.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If it would make my phone as big as lets per say the touch pro 2 then I wouldnt mind. Any bigger then that I think would be annoying to carry around. You would want something like that just to use as a keyboard? Is the keyboard on the N1 that bad? I like the whole on screen keyboard. It saves me time from cleaning my screen and keyboard if I had one. Plus hardware keyboards tend to get very greasey and after a while and it would have to take a while, the keys start sinking into the phone. My G1 for example, the keyboard looked nasty before I switched to the nexus. I couldn't even sell it to a stranger if I wanted to because the way the keyboard looked. Don't get me wrong I kept up with cleaning my keyboard but it just don't look the same as the first day I got the phone. I'm sure a lot of people will agree with that.

I know I would definitely be interested. I wouldn't have the phone in said 'keyboard dock' type thing all the time, I would only use it when I need it (either need the extended battery, or need to punch out a couple emails or the phone needs lots of use).
And I would probably also make use of it when wanting to play games/emulators, because then I'd have a hardware keyboard to map keys to.
I'd definitely buy one if it was <$125, it would probably just live in my messenger bag.

I actually was thinking the other day this would be great for the N1, I had not seen the LePhone before though.
It is feasible if the dock connector is capable or passing signal as well as power. I would use it upon occasion for certain. I can make due with the on screen keyboard but I definitely would like to have a HW one as well. With something like this you get the best of both worlds. Thin and light most of the time and a keyboard for when you need to do more typing than usual.
Of course if Android would just support HID I would be just as happy and carry a foldable BT keyboard around.

RussianSolja said:
H
If it would make my phone as big as lets per say the touch pro 2 then I wouldnt mind. Any bigger then that I think would be annoying to carry around. You would want something like that just to use as a keyboard? Is the keyboard on the N1 that bad? I like the whole on screen keyboard. It saves me time from cleaning my screen and keyboard if I had one. Plus hardware keyboards tend to get very greasey and after a while and it would have to take a while, the keys start sinking into the phone. My G1 for example, the keyboard looked nasty before I switched to the nexus. I couldn't even sell it to a stranger if I wanted to because the way the keyboard looked. Don't get me wrong I kept up with cleaning my keyboard but it just don't look the same as the first day I got the phone. I'm sure a lot of people will agree with that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have no idea what you do with your phone, but I text every day (alot
), and do other stuff - on my g1. And the keyboard does not look no where near "nasty" as you've sad, and I have had this for quite a while. It sounds as if you've destroyed the thing..

Eclair~ said:
I have no idea what you do with your phone, but I text every day (alot
), and do other stuff - on my g1. And the keyboard does not look no where near "nasty" as you've sad, and I have had this for quite a while. It sounds as if you've destroyed the thing..
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Click to collapse
I've had the g1 since day one it was announced. Pre-ordered and all. I've texted a lot. I was referring to moments like you would get done eating like some BBQ wings and then go text right after. Yes you would wipe or clean your hands but the sauce would still remain. I abused my g1 LOL.

RussianSolja said:
I've had the g1 since day one it was announced. Pre-ordered and all. I've texted a lot. I was referring to moments like you would get done eating like some BBQ wings and then go text right after. Yes you would wipe or clean your hands but the sauce would still remain. I abused my g1 LOL.
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Click to collapse
Wipe your hands before you use your phone. Seriously, I don't understand how on earth you ate wings and didn't wipe your hands before texting. I send 3k to 4k texts a month as well as a ton of email and I just sold my G1 for a nice price.
Yes, I would definitely be interested in something like this even if I had to attach it every time I needed it. There are times that I need to type a lot (taking notes, for example) and a HW keyboard is the way to go.

AndroidAppCritic said:
Wipe your hands before you use your phone. Seriously, I don't understand how on earth you ate wings and didn't wipe your hands before texting. I send 3k to 4k texts a month as well as a ton of email and I just sold my G1 for a nice price.
Yes, I would definitely be interested in something like this even if I had to attach it every time I needed it. There are times that I need to type a lot (taking notes, for example) and a HW keyboard is the way to go.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was using wings as an example. LOL my eating habits are perfectly fine. Thanks for asking.

Apple Wireless Keyboard with the N1
Anyone used an Apple Wireless Keyboard with the N1 successfully?
Phil

I'd definitely buy a stowaway keyboard for my N1

Captivate impressions from an obsessive consumer

Hello all,
I'm a former iPhone 2.5G, 3G, 3GS, I4 owner, and have now spent two full weeks with the Captivate. I thought I'd give a few observations to those that are either still on the fence, or are just looking for something Captivate related to read.
I'll break this down into sections for an easier read.
First Impressions: The first thing that struck me was the screen (obviously). The screen seemed HUGE, even though it's technically only .3" larger than my I4. The rest of the form factor was very clean, which I like.
Hand feel: I have larger hands... That made my life with the iPhone rather difficult. I found myself fumbling with the handset, as well as the keyboard. I learned to handle it over the years, but it was not my favorite one handed device. The Captivate fit right in the palm of my hand. I appreciate the weight and overall thin feel of the device, while still giving me a large touch surface. The battery cover looked incredible, but it's brushed metal made it slick enough that I could easily see it falling from my hand. I had iPhone 2.5G flashbacks. I bought a Body Glove case to remedy the problem, and with that, I found the perfect cell phone case. It's wonderful.
Screen: What's there to say, really? It's beautiful. The color saturation and black levels are unrivaled by anything I've ever seen on this level. The only negative I have here is that I had an iPhone 4 previous to the Captivate and that really made the lower resolution on the larger screen noticeable. It was an adjustment, but I've made it.
Touch response: The IOS will always seem to be perfection personified when it comes to the touch response on a phone, but the Captivate gives the I4 a run for it's money. I do notice some recognition lag on the Captivate. Usually upon scrolling through the app list or in the browser. Just not quite as smooth as the IOS. This may very well be linked to the lag in the unmodified Captivate. I have not done the lag fix, as my best friend did the fix. It worked well for the first several hours, then started to slow down. Top it off with the fix going wrong and corrupting his file system.
EDGE and 3G: I know... I know... The thing is supposed to be a phone, and thus make calls... Boring, but definitely a nice experience with the Captivate. I notice the signal bars being a bit on the low end with the phone. I truly believe that they are designed this way, for better or worse. I say this because I get much better reception and call quality in poorly covered areas than my iPhone 3GS, which would typically show more bars. The data response on the phone is fantastic. I'm very happy with the speed of downloads, video streaming, and web page loading. Again the bars look low, but operate like they should show much higher. The negative here is definitely the lack of HSUPA. AT&T decided to disable this feature, I'm assuming, to help with the overly congested data network in iPhone saturated areas. Luckily for those of us with an android device, the community will soon remedy this (hurry up Rogers).
GPS: The biggest pain in my ass... I rarely use the GPS for turn by turn directions, as I'm a man and require no direction... But seriously, the GPS is integrated into every aspect of the OS, and the work flow and experience with the phone would be greatly improved if this functionality worked as intended. We seem to really be at Samsung's mercy here. I truly hope they come through. If not, I feel like there could be some possible modification from the Vibrant, where I've heard there isn't an issue.
WIFI: Very very happy here. The first Captivate I bought had a broken antenna. Wifi didn't work very well. After I traded it in it worked like a champ. I can pull incredible speeds, up and down stream from several stories above my wireless router.
Media Playback: Not super happy here. iTunes(on Windows) is a raging pile of crap, but at least it provided us with a one stop shop for music, cross platform organization, upgrading, and one click syncing. There isn't a real good solution here. I've tried a number of music players, but ended up right back with the Samsung player. It's completely functional, but not elegant, and not feature full by any stretch of the imagination. Now, movies are something different. Getting them to the device is easy, and playback looks incredible. The audio quality of music and movies is much better than my iPhone, but the media management and players themselves aren't up to snuff. That's really where Apple shows it's pedigree.
App Market: Another place where Apple man handles the Android devices. The market is improving at a blazing rate, but it has many issues that the App Store doesn't. With Apple having a strangle hold over the apps and reviews that make it to market, there is very little chance of malware making it to the store at all, much less to the Top Apps (review spoofing bastards). Thank god for Appbrain... That's all I have to say.
Community: Yes... Yes... Yes.... There are so many helpful and brilliant people in the Android community. That really gives me a feeling of longevity for the device. Even if the developer throws in the towel, there will be an entire group of people who seem to be more than willing to step in and tune the device to it's utmost potential. I'm so excited to see what happens when the Froyo roms start hitting. I expect this little phone to really turn some heads. Mine included.
In conclusion, I'm really happy with the phone so far. The GPS is testing me a bit, but I just have to take a few deep breaths and power through with my patience. I think that anybody coming from a Blackberry, iPhone, or any other device will be happy here. But there are some things you have to be willing to do. You must be patient. These phones can do anything, but sometimes the community has to have time to accomplish it. Also, you have to be willing to play... Seriously, tinker with your phone. Download every launcher you can find, download widgets, fonts, apps, play with your settings. Truly explore your phone. There's a lot here that you may not even know exists. Just because you don't see a feature, doesn't mean it isn't there. This isn't Apple, things aren't locked down.

Beautiful review!

The one thing I was most worried about with switching to a Captivate from an iPhone 3GS was the GPS issue as my Apple touting friends were poking fun at me and wishing good luck with getting a GPS fix to check in to venues etc but I haven't had a single issue at least as far as check ins go. I rarely if ever use turn by turn directions, which I could see being an issue if I did.
Overall I'm extremely happy with my Captivate, Android and it's flexibility with customization is a breath of fresh air over iOS! Even with jailbreaking iOS just seemed to be really lacking with quality customizations, sure there were widgets you could add to the lock screen etc but none of it seemed very polished even though there were commercial apps for it.
The only thing I would change about the Captivate would be to add a LED flash for the camera for those random indoor/evening snapshots and it baffles me as to why Samsung left that out, otherwise it would be close to perfect. A front facing cam would have been nice to have as well but I really think those more belong on tablets at the moment than phones, I don't really see myself making video calls when on the go but rather places where I would have a tablet handy.
Correction, two things I would change... The other would be the addition of a physical home button, I'm still getting used to hunting for the touch buttons at the bottom and often hit the wrong one still. It did help once I installed WidgetLocker though so I can press the volume buttons to wake as well as the power button as hunting for the power button was also a bit hit & miss.
The jury is still out on battery life especially as I have been constantly playing with it during to it being a shiny new toy so I will wait to see what real world usage is like.

I hear you on the customization. I am flipping between Launcher Pro and ADW Launcher right now, and it's nice to be able to change things up on a whim. Also, the different keyboards (SWYPE is amazing) also give a nice change of pace.
I don't really care about the flash, really. My I4's flash pissed me off more often than not. When the flash would go off it would cause everything that I was photographing to look like a mug shot. I never really needed a flash with my long history of iPhones, and I guess not having one on any of my phones just made it easy to not notice it missing.

Okay... After spending most of the day before yesterday getting myself all revved up to return my Captivate and show Samsung that their time table was unacceptable by going back to my iPhone 4, I would like to say that I am now once again back on the Captivate, and am shockingly more relaxed than I have been for the last 48 hours. That was the shortest lived, most misguided tantrum that I've thrown in recent memory... I just couldn't do it. The Captivate is, with all it's little flaws, an amazing phone that is really hard to step away from. To add insult to my little snap decision, my iPhone has a massive proximity sensor issue. I was face dialing through most of my conference calls today.
Sad... But anyway. Have a laugh at my expense. My wife asked if I was having some trouble with commitment. I had to remind her that I asked her to marry me... It's just with phones that I have a problem.

My thoughts, impressions, gripes, and joys thus far..

So I've "rented" a g-tab. I normally wouldn't do this, but being the geek I am, and having no previous experience with actual use of a Tablet (who has? Besides iPad owners....), I picked up a g-tab with every intention of returning it.
Sears offers 30 days, no restocking fee so what do I have to lose? Well first of all, more questions as to is this something I actually need and can use. I've got an Evo, which is plenty big to me for a cell phone. However at home, I don't have a laptop except my work Dell (Slooooooooooow) and my wife's 17" Dell (huuuuuuuuuuge). So the tablet was mainly to give me a more pleasant internet experience at home, with use of all my Android apps at the same time.
I can say that after only a day of use, it definitely fits that need. I like the formfactor, the 10" is perfect for website browsing w/o the need to zoom. The hardware is quick, I've experienced (actually) no crashes. All the software I've tried has worked, except I still am missing a few apps in the market here and there. Strange.
So on to the screen.... my god is it really bad if you aren't looking directly at it. However, at home, that is the only time I would be using it; on the couch, looking directly at it. Any other use, such as right now sitting at my desk at work I have to nearly lean over it for me to feel like I'm seeing an accurate picture. It sure is great for privacy reasons, no one is going to be able to see what you are looking at over your shoulder.
Given the 30 day return policy, as of now I am planning on taking it back. However it surely has won more respect from me than I thought it would. (Thanks to the Dev Support @ XDA of course). If the screen weren't so bad? It would be a 100000% keeper. It may still win me over, but for now there are many other tablets coming out that could be worthy. As long as they boast similar hardware specs, memory and GPU/CPU wise, and have better screen technology, I would be very pleased with any of them given they are the 10" form factor.
I was previously looking at the 7", Samsung Tab; which from playing with in the store is very very nice and everything appears to just *work*. However I just don't see myself going to 7" when I can see the benefits of 10". If I needed something portable, that'd be the exception. Jobs was not accurate at all in his statement on the smaller form factor tablet, there is definitely a use/need for it.

This may be a little funny, but...flip it upside down. The screen is perfectly visible when upside down. As many other have said, Viewsonic seem to have installed the lcd screen the wrong way. I wonder how difficult it would be to correct this..

kevin24lg said:
This may be a little funny, but...flip it upside down. The screen is perfectly visible when upside down. As many other have said, Viewsonic seem to have installed the lcd screen the wrong way. I wonder how difficult it would be to correct this..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I noticed this. Hardly a workaround though as then the buttons do not feel as natural where they are, and I have hit the power button on error a few times.
Ugh..

kevin24lg said:
This may be a little funny, but...flip it upside down. The screen is perfectly visible when upside down. As many other have said, Viewsonic seem to have installed the lcd screen the wrong way. I wonder how difficult it would be to correct this..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Odd, text is much sharper and clear for me with the camera at the top which I assumed is right side up....of course what is up on a tablet?

GTablet annoyances

I was excited to get a G-Tablet in the recent Woot sale. Unfortunately, as I have noted in other threads, when I got it, it wouldn't run through the original NTP-WiFi configuration procedure out of the box.
I wiped it and installed VEGAn 5.1.1 and got on with the process of evaluating it.
Am I the only one with touch screen sensor issues? It requires massive fingertip hurting pressure to hit the 'L' key and many of the touch areas along the edge that is adjacent to the Home/Menu/Back buttons. Sometimes I need to press so hard to register a key press, I think that it will crack the LCD. It really impacts my happy factor with this device.
The Market fix isn't as complete as my Archos 70. I saw the thread on changing device type=olympus. I can't vi the /system/build.prop without getting / set to read/write. Too much of a hoop to jump through right now. If I could vi the file, no problem. Still, it is an annoyance.
Weight. I knew it was heavier, but wasn't prepared to the reality of dealing with the mass of this unit.
Screen view. Even with an iPad screen protector on, the color and view angles are annoying. It was unusable to me for reading and regular use before the screen protector went on. Now it is better, but still subpar compared to the A70.
I want to love the gTablet for its technical superiority and future upgrade path to 2.3 and potentially beyond. My Archos device will never be better than FroYo.
However, even though I know it is 'better' I just can't stand actually using it. I feel that the gTab needs to go to flEaBay, since Woot doesn't do refunds.
Anyone else feeling this way?

Touchscreen callibration app should fix your touch issues... I had the same problem and that solved it.

Yeah, I have the app and tried it. Not much real difference in my experience. :\
I just ran it again, and it is weird. Some areas of the screen work just fine (launcher pro dock when in desktop/finder mode for example). then, when on virtual keyboard, those same pixel areas don't sense well. Might be a keyboard issue, though it seems to be the same with BetterKeyboard and Android keyboard.
I don't know, I want to like this thing, but feel disappointed. Same way with the Samsung Captivate, which i returned after fighting with it for a month.

tenet420 said:
Touchscreen callibration app should fix your touch issues... I had the same problem and that solved it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1. Screen cal should help. Anyway, don't have that problem with TNTL 4.2.5.

BoulderGeek said:
I was excited to get a G-Tablet in the recent Woot sale. Unfortunately, as I have noted in other threads, when I got it, it wouldn't run through the original NTP-WiFi configuration procedure out of the box.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Everyone has been saying the stock rom isn't very well made since day one.
I wiped it and installed VEGAn 5.1.1 and got on with the process of evaluating it.
Am I the only one with touch screen sensor issues? It requires massive fingertip hurting pressure to hit the 'L' key and many of the touch areas along the edge that is adjacent to the Home/Menu/Back buttons. Sometimes I need to press so hard to register a key press, I think that it will crack the LCD. It really impacts my happy factor with this device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, touch screen calibration app should do the trick. Also, you can create a blank file name calibration.ini in the root of your sdcard2 and then reboot. Don't touch the screen while it reboots. This file will tell the device to recalibrate the touch.
The Market fix isn't as complete as my Archos 70. I saw the thread on changing device type=olympus. I can't vi the /system/build.prop without getting / set to read/write. Too much of a hoop to jump through right now. If I could vi the file, no problem. Still, it is an annoyance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To me, it's not much of a hoop. Took me all of 30 seconds to do this.
Weight. I knew it was heavier, but wasn't prepared to the reality of dealing with the mass of this unit.
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Click to collapse
I'm an engineer researcher at a material science lab. We build and crush to test our own toys. Sometimes, we have to carry (by hand) objects that are hundreds of pounds heavy. I guess the weight of the gtab isn't really bothering me that much. But again, it's only .3 lb heavier than the ipad, so if you have a problem with the gtab then I'm sure you'll have the same problem with the ipad.
Screen view. Even with an iPad screen protector on, the color and view angles are annoying. It was unusable to me for reading and regular use before the screen protector went on. Now it is better, but still subpar compared to the A70.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Again, not an issue for me. I'm a heavy reader, meaning I go through several books a week. Been using the gtab to read ebooks on my train ride commute.
I want to love the gTablet for its technical superiority and future upgrade path to 2.3 and potentially beyond. My Archos device will never be better than FroYo.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't just want to love the gtab. I love my gtab.
But then again, you really have to consider my past I guess. I was born in a house with a dirt floor, grew up with a black and white small tv (14 inch or so, can't remember). And even then, the tv worked only sometimes.
It just seems to me that so many people (Americans) complain about things that, to me, are moot points. For $285, the gtab is a steal based on what it could do.
And to me, the gtab is more than just a toy. Before, I was carrying my laptop around, which weighs a ton (exaggeration here). Nowadays, I sometimes leave it in the office or at home and just carry the gtab around. I'm expecting my experience to be even better once the case with the usb keyboard arrives.
Yes, I'm one of those that has no problem jury rigging something to make my experience better.
However, even though I know it is 'better' I just can't stand actually using it. I feel that the gTab needs to go to flEaBay, since Woot doesn't do refunds.
Anyone else feeling this way?
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Click to collapse
Some people want their devices to work straight out of the box. And some people want their devices to just work powerfully and don't care about the luxuries.
I've recently converted 100% to electronic books. I've sold over half of my library collection on amazon. I often run into people who are absolutely against ebook reading. The #1 reason that most people seem to have against ebooks is that they want the smell and feel of paper while they read. That's their opinion, and it's ok. They are free to like or dislike whatever they want.
But to me, I read a book for its contents, not what it's written on. I don't care how a book feels or what it smells like. I love zombie novels, and I don't care if it's on paper or plastic.
I guess I have the same attitude with my gtab. This really is a powerful piece of device. It runs fast, the screen is uber sensitive (on my device at least). The battery life is up there with the ipad. Completely hackable (a must in my book). And it's incredibly lite weight. Again, I speak as someone who work hands on with his projects. Funny story, someone the other day made a face and asked me what happened to my hands. I looked down and for the first time I actually noticed all the scars and Calluses on my hands. Amazing how boy friend hasn't complained yet.
Anyway, the #1 reason why I like this device is because it's freakin' cheap. Even if I break it in a year, or if I decide to buy something else in a year, I wouldn't feel the pain in my stomach the way I'd feel if I had bought a xoom or ipad.
Anyway, to each his own I guess. And that's ok.
You should either get a xoom or ipad. I've borrowed them from friends and played with those. They are very nice and fits your needs quite well.
Edit.
And my elderly dad just told me he wanted one to surf the net while on the couch and have a 10 inch screen gps. Just bought one for him. Hopefully will arrive soon. Also already ordered a gps receiver and a car mount. My elderly dad's far sight vision is great. Better than mine. He could see things at a distance that I can't see even with my glasses on. But his near sight vision is beginning to slip. So, the gps I bought him a couple years back aren't that helpful nowadays. Hopefully, this 10 inch one will be better. I'm also hoping I could talk to him via video conferencing when he goes back to (insert a random country here). So, I better start showing him how to use a touch screen. It was hard enough to get him to understand and use the mouse...

I wouldn't mind a little tactile feedback or lighting for the 4 side touch buttons. They are hard to find in the dark. Some small protusions on the buttons themselves, or on the side of the case would also have been nice, like the bumps on a keyboard on the f and j keys.

Haha, the 4 buttons in the dark issue was bothering me, too. I guess I stopped noticing it once I have it memorized. Just last night, I was reading before I went to sleep and noticed that I could press with 99% precision the buttons. So, yeah, it's not a problem for me anymore.

1. I have had "edge" problems that went away when I put a different wall paper up. Try a non-live wallpaper.
2. The Olympus fix works. It just breaks the web site seeing your tablet. Get Root Explorer and it takes about 2 seconds to mount /system rw.
3) I guess the screen is a personal preference thing. I like mine better since I put a urethane screen protector on. Really keeps the fingerprints off of it for the most part and the angles don't bother me.
4) The unlit buttons are a pain in the dark. I put some clear paper reinforcement stickers over mine so they have a little feel in the dark. They are almost invisible from any distance away but you can feel them. These are the little sticky holes you put on loose leaf paper when the holes have torn out. Oh, the other think you can do is get button savior in the market. This gives you nice onscreen buttons (although you know VEGAn has home, menu and back buttons on the status bar). Now the other problem is I tend to hit the buttons when I am trying to grip the tablet. There is a non-free app called remapper (I think) that can turn them off (or repurpose them) but I have not tried it.

I don't disagree about the gtablet being a good value.
it's just slightly worse at everything than my existing Archos 70 tablet. So, for more money and double the specs, I didn't really get any appreciable improvement. Perhaps that's what I should have stated.
If I had no Android tablet, I'd be completely happy with my my VEGAn Tab.
However, i can't justify two tablets, and surprisingly, i don't think the gtablet is going to be the keeper. I'm just surprised that is the case.
I just did a factory reset, and will take pictures tonight for flea bay.

On the screen sensitivity issue, the one-touch app didn't work for me, and I was considering returning my tab. But then I did the calibration.ini trick, and the difference is amazing.

dfin13 said:
On the screen sensitivity issue, the one-touch app didn't work for me, and I was considering returning my tab. But then I did the calibration.ini trick, and the difference is amazing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good to know. Thanks.

It may not keep you from selling it, but it sure will help the person who buys it from you

dfin13 said:
It may not keep you from selling it, but it sure will help the person who buys it from you
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Click to collapse
I think that guy is sitting in the cube adjacent to mine. He's been playing with it all day. Reinstalling the apps that i lost by resetting to factory.

you guys do realized that vegan roms have the same buttons on the notification bar.. for just this reason.. to take the place of the side buttons at night.

I was personally about to sell my gTablet about 48 hours ago. I was having tons of lock-ups, market issues and was pretty frustrated.
I decided to start all over and reflashed to stock - did a lot of research here and just about have it working perfect with vegan 5.1.1 now. No lockups with flash, olympus thing fixed my market issues - it is simply an awesome tablet. I have had an ipad for a year and really like this in comparison.
If you don't want to put in the effort to modify the build.prop to fix the market it might not be for you though. It was not hard in retrospect but without any context it takes a while to really get familiar with some of the the things you are doing. I ended up using ADB to edit it - using root explorer sounds much easier.
I personally enjoyed getting it all setup right at the end of the day and learned a lot. For the price this thing is a heck of a tablet.
Also wanted to thank everyone for the hard work figuring out these fixes and ROMs - very impressive community!

My take on this is that these fixes should take like 2 minutes to do. Very easy. The problem is that new users are intimidated by complicated instructions. Take the olympus fix for example. Took me less than 30 seconds to do. But because of the way people talk on here a new user would have to read thru 3 pages because nobody was willing to give a straight answer.

Granted, I'm verbose but I figure if you read the first part of the olympus thread and you knew what edit build.prop and change one line on it meant you wouldn't need or read the long detailed instructions.
There has to be a balance between talking to people who are Android fluent and helping ramp up new users, in my opinion.

goodintentions said:
But again, it's only .3 lb heavier than the ipad, so if you have a problem with the gtab then I'm sure you'll have the same problem with the ipad.
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Click to collapse
You mean .05 .lbs heavier than the iPad, right? Or were you referring to the iPad2, which is .22 .lbs lighter than the GTab?
I think it's important for people to realize that the GTab COULD weigh less and be thinner, as could the Xoom, but then where would the SD card slot and USB ports go? I think the edges would have slight bulges in them to accomodate the ports. I'm actually fine with the weight of the G-tab...If I noticed a difference of 100 grams, then I'd have to seriously consider working out harder.
As for the other annoyances from the OP...I guess some seem legitimate, but I haven't noticed touchscreen sensitivity issues, etc. Mine is fast and stable and works great. Aside from the screen viewing angles, I love the GTab.
One last thing to note...I just spent a week using my GTab on vacation, and also used my daughter's iPad quite a bit, too. I know this is totally subjective, but the iPad seems more like a toy than anything else. I liked the screen, but otherwise was not impressed overall. I burned several movies from DVD to my GTab and it worked flawlessly. After surfing, playing games and watching 2 movies, I had 50% battery life left. Not bad!

wd5gnr said:
Granted, I'm verbose but I figure if you read the first part of the olympus thread and you knew what edit build.prop and change one line on it meant you wouldn't need or read the long detailed instructions.
Sorry if that confused you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My first impression of the olympus thread was "what the hell?" sure I knew what you were talking about but for someone who's new to android and rooting something as simple as editing the build.prop could be the biggest stumbling block.
I know I have the reputation for hating newbies after my wooters thread. And thats fine. But people need to pay attention to their instructions to see if they make any sense to a newbie. Belive it or not i'm actually very friendly toward newbies. And believe me, the initial instructions in that thread make no sense to a newbie.
I am in the process of compiling everything into easy step by step instructions for the technical illiterates. Viewsonic gtab for dummies. I'll launch my website hopefully sometime next week.

lostpilot28 said:
You mean .05 .lbs heavier than the iPad, right? Or were you referring to the iPad2, which is .22 .lbs lighter than the GTab?
I think it's important for people to realize that the GTab COULD weigh less and be thinner, as could the Xoom, but then where would the SD card slot and USB ports go? I think the edges would have slight bulges in them to accomodate the ports. I'm actually fine with the weight of the G-tab...If I noticed a difference of 100 grams, then I'd have to seriously consider working out harder.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's my experience that people will complain about anything/everything if something does not cost much.

[Q] i hate to throw in the towel, but i have to take the transformer back

I really wanted this to be a winner. The light bleed is horrible. I have a big gap on the left of the screen that is now starting to separate. It is starting to creak really bad when I hold it. Its now doing the thing where it won't wake up and I have to hard shut it down (my xoom did this all the time, which was one of the main reasons i returned it.) The dock is nowhere to be found. The lag, especially when typing, is getting old.
I am going to give honeycomb time to mature, and then try another tablet. The samsung looks like a better build quality, so hopefully it will get a more finished version of honeycomb. I think asus could have had a real winner here with the price and the dock, but the build quality is atrocious and honeycomb is just too buggy. I could deal with the honeycomb bugs if the hardware wasn't so junky.
I really love android and my HTC inspire, so it amazes me how buggy this is in comparison.
Good luck everyone.

Sorry it didn't work out for you. I too have the light bleed glitch, it's not major but it's enough to annoy me. I'm going to contact Comet and see if they can exchange the unit.

EvoXOhio said:
I really wanted this to be a winner. The light bleed is horrible. I have a big gap on the left of the screen that is now starting to separate. It is starting to creak really bad when I hold it. Its now doing the thing where it won't wake up and I have to hard shut it down (my xoom did this all the time, which was one of the main reasons i returned it.) The dock is nowhere to be found. The lag, especially when typing, is getting old.
I am going to give honeycomb time to mature, and then try another tablet. The samsung looks like a better build quality, so hopefully it will get a more finished version of honeycomb. I think asus could have had a real winner here with the price and the dock, but the build quality is atrocious and honeycomb is just too buggy. I could deal with the honeycomb bugs if the hardware wasn't so junky.
I really love android and my HTC inspire, so it amazes me how buggy this is in comparison.
Good luck everyone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I went through 4 Transformer's and came to the same conclusion. Going to wait till the tab 10.1 is released and take a look at that as well as re-evaluate the build quality of the transformer and see if there is better qc. I really did like it alot.
Need to sell my dock now :-(
Sent from my CM7 Supersonic

Sorry to the OP for the issues you have had. I got my Transformer on US launch day (returned my Xoom to get the Transformer also), and have not had any light bleed or build quality issues.
Actually I prefer the build to the Xoom especially the textured back. The Xoom's black glossy finish had me going nuts just keeping prints off of it.
I have had minor issues with the Sleep of Death issue but they have been rather negligible. I will be receiving my dock tomorrow so hopefully that will be smooth with the latest US patch I have installed.
Asus had the best overall design with the Transformer in my opinion. The dock is just to good of a concept. I'm willing to hang in with them until they patch these issues away. Build quality issues seems to be another issue and with the difficulty they have had delivering the units to the masses I know an RMA has to be a nightmare right now.
I'll stick with them on the Transformer but if they don't fix this stuff I won't buy another Asus tablet until they show and prove. I've been using and loving their motherboards for years, hope they get the tablet game strong.

The thing is though you give up quite a bit with the Galaxy Tab. I too thought about purchasing one (currently have a G-Tablet) but it uses the same Tegra 2 processor, has no USB port, has no HDMI port, and has no microSD card slot. All in all it just doesn't seem like much of an upgrade. Also Android 3.0 will always be Android 3.0 no matter what hardware is running it. I'm sure updates will further refine the OS but the Galaxy Tab will run Honeycomb no better than the Transformer.

I have an Asus transformer and have only a few small concerns with it. The light bleed is due to the IPS panel I believe, the ipad 2 has the same issue.. I dont even notice it really, The plastic back only flexes if I am squeezing harder than I ought to, and remember that its plastic, if you continually flex the back panel its going to get softer and softer. I haven't had it lock up on me, although a few apps have fc'd on me, but I think its more of a compatibility issue. My camera dust cover has dust under it ironically although it hasnt been noticeable in any pictures and the only reason I took a picture with my tablet is to see if the dust was apparent. Its a little too unwieldy for regular picture taking anyways.
I think its a great piece of equipment and at 100 dollars less than anything else out there I am very pleased with it.

If a product doesn't work for you, absolutely, return it. I don't really get why so many people think it's necessary to go to a forum and post that they're returning something, but to each their own, I suppose. I'm returning my Xoom, but since I got the Transformer and decided to keep it instead, I haven't been back to the Motorola forum since. I certainly won't be going back just for the express purpose of announcing my decision.
I mean, it's not like I'd be saying anything about the Xoom that's not already been said there many times. It would almost seem like I was just complaining for no reason other than to spoil the experience for someone else.
Anyways, yeah, whatever. I do have to say as well that I don't really get this fascination with the Galaxy Tab 10.1. It seems like its only advantage is that it's thinner and lighter. It doesn't appear to have a better screen (maybe not even as good as the TF's), it has fewer expansion options, it has Samsung's software which depending on your perspective can be a positive or a negative, and it costs more. Confusing...

wynand32 said:
If a product doesn't work for you, absolutely, return it. I don't really get why so many people think it's necessary to go to a forum and post that they're returning something, but to each their own, I suppose. I'm returning my Xoom, but since I got the Transformer and decided to keep it instead, I haven't been back to the Motorola forum since. I certainly won't be going back just for the express purpose of announcing my decision.
I mean, it's not like I'd be saying anything about the Xoom that's not already been said there many times. It would almost seem like I was just complaining for no reason other than to spoil the experience for someone else.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The reason I posted this, and I suspect why others so it as well, is for perspective buyers who read these forums looking for opinions. If I can help educate someone before buying this then I will.
Anyways, yeah, whatever. I do have to say as well that I don't really get this fascination with the Galaxy Tab 10.1. It seems like its only advantage is that it's thinner and lighter. It doesn't appear to have a better screen (maybe not even as good as the TF's), it has fewer expansion options, it has Samsung's software which depending on your perspective can be a positive or a negative, and it costs more. Confusing...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The fewer expansion options may be with just the limited edition one they gave out at Google I/O. The ones given out there differ from what was last shown to the public. That being said, I have the original iPad and I have never filled the onboard storage, do I have never had a need for expandable storage or USB ports. So for me, and I suspect a lot of others, it would be a non-issue anyway. Hell I wish I could pay less money for a tablet if I could get the cameras, microSD, and USB ports removed.
Samsung's software is just a bunch of widgets on top of Honeycomb, just like Asus's. It's not a skin like you see on Android phones.
Build quality and weight ARE the big reasons that people such as myself are very interested in the Samsung. i could probably ride out Asus's software issues if I thought the hardware was solid enough to last, but from the unit I got I believe it would be in the trash within a year. Ultimately I am looking for very high build quality with software that is good enough that can/will be upgraded over time.

Reading this place i'm quite happy that i'm made to wait till next month before i can pick TF+scandi dock here.
Hopefully it has gotten better on the hw and soft front. If i'm not pleased there's always Samsung that i can throw money at.

I don't really see blacklight bleeding as a noteworthy subject (Unless of course it's a problem on a bigger scale, which unlike the iPad 2 this doesn't seem to be).
You'll always have devices that slip through QA tests with blacklight bleeding or dead/stuck pixels, the only thing to do is to return it if you get a device like that.
As for the competition, the Xoom is very expensive, and without a dock, the back looks kinda weird honest, where the Asus one look a lot more consist. There's no keyboard-docking at launch, on the upside it does support hacking out of the box.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab I/O-version is gorgeous to say the least, also very hackable, unfortunately that may not be the case for the final version, though i figure it will still be a nice design. Pricing will like the Xoom probably be through the roof, and again, as far as i know, no launch-keyboard docking.
So i'm going for the Transformer, even if i have to send it back because of blacklight bleeding, because i think this is the only tablet sofar that've really made sense from a usability standpoint.

wynand32 said:
If a product doesn't work for you, absolutely, return it. I don't really get why so many people think it's necessary to go to a forum and post that they're returning something,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 ...I'm just tired of reading those posts telling the whole world about returning a whatever it is.... seriously..why even bother....
I'm just happy to say my TF has been working very well... there is lightbleed..but it's negligible in daily use and my IPad 2 is no better than that..and the keyboard docking is the deciding factor here for me..

I totally understand how frustrating it can be when you really want to like a piece of tech but it just doesn't pan out. Asus has a terrific concept on their hands and it seems the execution is a bit off. I have never been impressed with their netbooks and laptops in regards to apparent build quality (key word "apparent" since I have no personal experience with them). I have used and swear by Asus motherboards for over 10 years and keep expecting better hardware builds from them.
Nobody has mentioned it, but I have my eye on the new Toshiba coming out in June. USB ports, HDMI and SD. Looks to be solidly built. I also played with an Acer Iconia yesterday it felt pretty nice but wasn't crazy with the type of plastic they used on the ends. They also don't have a great track record with their h/w.
The tech is still awfully young with no one having any track record except Apple (and you've all heard the issues they have been having). I am impatient about this stuff as you all and being early adopters always comes at a cost. I am forcing myself to wait till I can check out these tablets in person before I plunk down my benjamins. I will check out the Transformer for myself when it finally makes it to the brick and mortars but I am rather skeptical of them. Toshiba seems to fit my wants pretty well. I also like it has a user replaceable battery.

most of these issues seem to be due to production variances since not everyone has the same problem. Which means you can easily find a better by exchanging your device.

EvoXOhio said:
The reason I posted this, and I suspect why others so it as well, is for perspective buyers who read these forums looking for opinions. If I can help educate someone before buying this then I will.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I appreciate you taking time to post your reasons for "throwing in the towel". However there is always a problem with these kind of posts. It suffers from "this is my experience, you can expect the same". You may not have meant it, but it can be preceived that way.
My experience has been just the opposite from yours... so who's experience with the TF is indicative of the product? Yours or mine?
I have yet to see any product that is massed produced from paperbooks, electronics, cars, to hamburgers ..... you name it, that doesnt have a few lemons get out there... its the nature of manufacturing. Its unavoidable.

EvoXOhio said:
The fewer expansion options may be with just the limited edition one they gave out at Google I/O. The ones given out there differ from what was last shown to the public. That being said, I have the original iPad and I have never filled the onboard storage, do I have never had a need for expandable storage or USB ports. So for me, and I suspect a lot of others, it would be a non-issue anyway. Hell I wish I could pay less money for a tablet if I could get the cameras, microSD, and USB ports removed.
Samsung's software is just a bunch of widgets on top of Honeycomb, just like Asus's. It's not a skin like you see on Android phones.
Build quality and weight ARE the big reasons that people such as myself are very interested in the Samsung. i could probably ride out Asus's software issues if I thought the hardware was solid enough to last, but from the unit I got I believe it would be in the trash within a year. Ultimately I am looking for very high build quality with software that is good enough that can/will be upgraded over time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The one given away at the Google I/O is the same one that will be sold at retail sans the white back. There will be no USB on the device itself but instead there will be an adapter sold that will allow for USB connectivity. There will be no microSD because the microSD card slot will be the same slot that houses the SIM card. There will be microSD support on the wifi/3G model but not on the wifi only model. Seeing as how you've had an iPad and don't care for onboard ports and expandable memory (some of the biggest advantages of owning an Android tablet) then why not just buy an iPad 2? It appears to me that the Samsung tablet offers a gimped Android experience without handing over more money for the additional functionality.
EDIT: Also 32 gigs now days is fairly small when a movie itself takes up over a gig of space and music collections can span hundreds of gigs of space. Take into account memory reserved for the OS and apps and you're looking at only about 29 gigs of usable space on a 32 gig tablet for media.

rockcrawler said:
I went through 4 Transformer's and came to the same conclusion. Going to wait till the tab 10.1 is released and take a look at that as well as re-evaluate the build quality of the transformer and see if there is better qc. I really did like it alot.
Need to sell my dock now :-(
Sent from my CM7 Supersonic
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ill buy the dock lol

kilofox said:
I appreciate you taking time to post your reasons for "throwing in the towel". However there is always a problem with these kind of posts. It suffers from "this is my experience, you can expect the same". You may not have meant it, but it can be preceived that way.
My experience has been just the opposite from yours... so who's experience with the TF is indicative of the product? Yours or mine?
I have yet to see any product that is massed produced from paperbooks, electronics, cars, to hamburgers ..... you name it, that doesnt have a few lemons get out there... its the nature of manufacturing. Its unavoidable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But by me not posting this, then potential buyers will not be aware of the potential issues. The problem exists both ways - if only unhappy users post, then everyone reading will think there is a problem. If only happy users post, then everyone reading will think the product is perfect. That's why I have chosen to post MY review of the product. It's up to the satisfied customers to do the same to balance out the equation.

Enectic said:
Seeing as how you've had an iPad and don't care for onboard ports and expandable memory (some of the biggest advantages of owning an Android tablet) then why not just buy an iPad 2? It appears to me that the Samsung tablet offers a gimped Android experience without handing over more money for the additional functionality.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The reason I am not buying an iPad 2 is the same reason I switched to Android after having iPhones for 3+ years - I want to be in control of the device I own. I want to customize it. I do not want the manufacturer deciding if the content is appropriate or not. I do not want my device held hostage by a CEO with an ego the size of the universe. I want to switcher launchers. I want to switch default browsers. I want real background tasks and real multitasking. That's why I have chosen Android. I am so sick my Apple stuff it's ridiculous.

EvoXOhio said:
But by me not posting this, then potential buyers will not be aware of the potential issues. The problem exists both ways - if only unhappy users post, then everyone reading will think there is a problem. If only happy users post, then everyone reading will think the product is perfect. That's why I have chosen to post MY review of the product. It's up to the satisfied customers to do the same to balance out the equation.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think there are plenty of posts here that discuss the problems that users encounter and the shortcomings that some users see. You see the same exact posts in every forum for every device so if a user only goes by that he/she will NEVER find a device. There will be just as many people hating and returning the Galaxy Tab 10.1 as there have been returns for the XOOM, the Acer and the Transformer. You made your decision and that's good. I just sold my XOOM, not because I was unhappy with it, but I wanted different features that the TF offers. Maybe I am too realistic to expect the perfect tablet. For me personally the TF has everything I need. Hopefully the 10.1 will be the right tablet for you!
Sent from my TF101

Can some of you post some pictures of your light bleed problems?
I have light bleed but to notice it, you'd have to crank the brightness up to max and be in a dark room. (Not a common situation I find myself in) Even when shutting off the lights, dimming down the brightness helps and the picture is still pretty clear. Also, light bleed is quite common in LCD screens.
I'm just having trouble understanding how light bleed can be so debilitating that some people would actually go through the trouble and exchange their unit multiple times.
I also have the creaky problem when I put moderate pressure on the back of my device but putting on the sleeve helped. (though it is not compatible with the dock)
Finally, I sympathize with your wake problems because my Xoom had this problem as well. I haven't experienced it with my TF but I can see how it can be an annoyance. Most of the other problems you can fix or put a band-aid on; but this one, you really can't. Not sure why we all aren't getting this problem since we are basically running the same software -- perhaps it's a problematic app or maybe an app triggered some sort of internal problem. (that's why I didn't dl the task killer this time)
Anyway, I'd try again but a refund isn't too bad either. We are still at an early stage with tablets so waiting a couple of months (but most likely sometime in 2012) might pay off.