I really want to embrace Android tablets in general and the Asus Eee Pad Transformer in particular, but I'm really on the fence here. You definitely get more hardware bang for your buck than with iPad, and I appreciate the relatively open ecosystem and freedom from iTunes. However, what really frustrates me is the apparent lack of tablet-optimized apps. If I'm shelling out $500+ for a device, should I really have to scour the web for lists of apps that run on it in tablet mode? I definitely see the allure of the iPad with its slick user experience, despite its closed ecosystem.
I know, I know, Android Honeycomb is new and there will be optimized apps for it, but a successful tablet experience is more than just the hardware, and many, if not most, users won't want to buy an expensive tablet for its potential, they want something that works now, with easy access to apps that they can trust will work on their device. It's a chicken-and-egg story, really: without Android tablets becoming more popular, dedicated apps will lag behind, but without the apps, will Android tablets really take off and be a serious competitor to iPad?
</rant> ;-)
Thoughts?
Ron (wanting to buy an Android tablet, but being wooed by iPad 2)
There were no tablet applications for iPad at the beginning either (and phone apps are mostly worse on iPad than on Android tablets because they don't scale). You have to wait until developers get their hands on tablets - right now only Xoom and Transformer (sort of) are out.
Just like everything else that's new...
Blueray didn't have very many Blueray DVDs on the market the during it's inception.
HDTV as well. I was quite dissappointed to have bought a new HDTV when most of what I was watching was only available in non-HD.
But anyone developing software will for the most part follow the money trail. Ipad has been the #1 choice, but it is very apparent that Android tablets are catching up quickly. And when the market trends change to favor Android tablets, then so will the development base.
There are only a handful of apps that are really useful and the rest is the Android tablet experience and the community that encompasses it.
They didn't name Apple's hack "Jailbreak" for no reason.
dutch_in_seattle said:
what really frustrates me is the apparent lack of tablet-optimized apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah: when you start downloading apps and find they all apparently work and look fine you think what a load of BS there is being talked about
dutch_in_seattle said:
I definitely see the allure of the iPad with its slick user experience
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Click to collapse
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there is nothing slick about a boring experience, and ipads are boring to use, with rows of apps that you can scroll from side to side and when you click on them they open! boring ,boring, boring, outdated and getting more outdated by the minute.
I think IOS is about the same that android 0.5 was back in 1941
I have a Xoom and have had it since launch day. Trust me, we have already come a long way with tablet apps and compatibility. Day 1, I think there were around 10. New ones are released almost daily and developers are announcing that they are working on others. By this time next year there will be so many, you will not be able to easily decide which ones to install
You can help expedite tablet optimized apps by writing the developer of your favorite Android app and requesting an update. You may be surprised that many of them will respond to you that they are already working on it.
Related
I purchased the Verizon Touch Pro 2 the day it came out, but I have never been happy with the phone. I have had some issues with two of them actually. I’m receiving my third new phone this Thursday. I’m going to sell it off on either Ebay or XDA or something, but I was curious to see if anyone else is jumping ship to the new Motorola Droid. Anyone? I think the droid is a great mixture between the customization of WM6.5 and the stability of Blackberry. What do you think? Anyone taking the leap? I think that will be my next phone. I was excited for the WM6.5 update and what not, but it my eyes WM will never be great until possibly WM7.
PS: If you’re interested in a new HTC Touch Pro 2, we can discuss that too! Just thought I would toss that in there…..
We have almost 20 TP2s. Everyone knows the Droid is coming, no one has asked. I have 10 more eligible for upgrades in the next 2 months, and most of them have asked for a TP2.
you say you have had problems? what kind of problems to go through 3 phones :\
I have seen videos of it and it is buggy. For instance if you go to scroll through contacts or a list you drag your finger and about a half of second later it decides to scroll. Plus I can't stand not having decent gps software.
Sweeny Russ said:
I have seen videos of it and it is buggy. For instance if you go to scroll through contacts or a list you drag your finger and about a half of second later it decides to scroll. Plus I can't stand not having decent gps software.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
are you talking about the droid not having decent gps software? The google maps on droid looks pretty damn good to me.
Be wary of "The Droid", last guy that thought it was a good idea to switch... well, it didn't turn out so well ...
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if you don't want the freedom of doing anything with a mobile device via mods, hacks, and forums (and I mean anything literally) but rather a very handy device that will perform well out the box...then I recommend the droid...but if you want anything you can think of on a phone...stay with the TP2. Pretty much, the TP2, you have to "fix" and "trick" out to see the "actual" potential of what you have where as the the Android OS, you get most of what you would want right out of the box but has limitations. I stay with windows personally cause if I need something, it's there either on xda or ppcgeeks, period. It's just a matter of finding it.
I say do it. The more people we have working on it, the faster we can root it and start modifying.
It looks like a great phone. I can't wait to pick it up friday.
Anyone who knows about a blog program for Leo? I used iPhone before, and had a genius blog program innstalled. But I cant seem to find anything for WM 6.5/Leo.
Any ideas? Thanks for looking/helping
I would like to announce that I am a new proud owner if the HD2.
secOndly I would also like to know of blogging software as I hve a blog at http://blog.levifreeman.com
That is because on iPhone there is an app for just about anything and for windows mobile nothing, i too made the mistake and switched from an iPhone 3GS to an HD2 and regret the day i did it. On iPhone i had all kind of great apps, games etc and now i cant find anything equivalent for windows mobile. The marketplace is a joke. I am searching for a week now for a good financial program with nice and touch friendly interface and i cant find anything. If you look on the appstore for such a program you can find hundreds of them. I will definitely switch back to iPhone, but the only thing i regret is that HD2 is such a marvelous device and is let down by windows mobile.
I agree and not agree with you savvase. I love my iPhone and the apps on it, but I think its to earli to get so hard against HD2 and windows mobile. I only use mac, and until now have I had iPhone, since 1 gen. (upgraded to 2gen and 3GS) When the 1 gen iPhone came, the app store didnt look like it do now today. It didnt take long time before the programs came, but I think we should give W marketplace a chance to build up. Even if iPhone is big on the mobile market, its many WM users also. I dont says it will turn into a big sucess, and it will overcome the iPhone. If the "wanna knowers" are correct, the WM 7.0 will release next year. Who knows? It might be a big surprice for us?
I miss a lot of the apps on my iPhone (the reason to this thread ) but I think I will manage without a lot of them, while I give the HD2 a chance. For me the HD2 has so much other goodies, that I will keep it for a while and test But ! I will also keep my iPhone in backup
If my english is broken or bad, I'm very sorry. Its not my national language
But ! Is there anyone with a solution to my problem?
Unfortunately i don't think you can find such an app on windows mobile and if one arrives it will definitely not have the same functionality and user interface as the ones on iPhone but since you kept your iPhone you can continue updating your blog from your iPhone.
Thats true !
But until it shows up something, I belive...
And ! keeping my iPhone for blogging...
savvase said:
Unfortunately i don't think you can find such an app on windows mobile and if one arrives it will definitely not have the same functionality and user interface as the ones on iPhone but since you kept your iPhone you can continue updating your blog from your iPhone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are also tons of financial apps for Windows Mobile. But unlike on iPhone, you have to search for them on the internet yourself. The marketplace for WM just started and you shouldn't expect to find the same amount of apps as you do in AppStore.
I think both platforms have their advantages and disadvantages.
If you use iPhone you can download anything from AppStore real quick. But on the other hand you are limited to AppStore, unless you "hack" your iPhone.
On Windows Mobile you don't have such a nice AppStore (not yet, might come, who knows ), but you're also not limited to it. You can download and install anything you find from any source you like and from any developer you can find. That's also nice.
And with more and more "touchable" Smartphones based on WM, you'll also find more and more fingerfriendly apps.
You must see, that the iPhone is only one kind of device, which developers create apps for. WM is found on tons of different devices, each with different ways for data input. Some have touch-abilitys, some don't.
It's quite the same thing as the comparison of Macs and PCs.
What about MobiBlogr - not sure if its compatible with HD2 but its here: http://www.freewarepocketpc.net/ppc-download-mobiblogr-v1-3-3.html
Thanks jengla, I will have a look at that.
I used Blogpress on iPhone, and I hoped for a similiar app for WM. I have tried three blog programs for WM now, and two dosent work propably, and the last one, is to simple.
Pic from BP.
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Well i am getting my first android phone tomorrow
LG Optimus GT540
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What are the differences between winmo and android?
thanks
Android has a simpler method for installing apps that WinMo tried to emulate, but never even came close. Android also seems to be more customizable than WinMo, and once it's rooted, a lot more modifications can be done without having to flash the phone. Almost all of the apps I had on my Pure I've found Android equivalents for, and more. Beyond that, the differences will probably be more related to improvements in the phone itself.
Before this summer I sold my HTC Diamond so I could afford the HTC Desire... I've been a true WM fan for years. And I also think I was a bit weird since I actually enjoyed using a stylus Since I loved to tweak lots of things in the wm registry I was a bit worried that I would miss that in android, I also played around with the xdandroid project in the end before I sold the HTC Diamond.
After using the Desire for one hour or less I thought like OMG! now I understand why windows mobile is so behind!!! Playing around with free apps from the market, using multitouch in the superfast browser, everything felt just awesome! And suddenly I wondered how the hell I've managed to live with Opera Mobile for years. In Android stuff just works! And you can customize everything, you don't even need to root it (even though I recommend it), just install a great launcher like launcher pro and watch the beauty.
And games Android kicks wm into the dust when it comes to games!!! Check out games like N.O.V.A, I play it online against other people and it's super cool. NFS Shift is another game that looks very good! And finally we have Angry Birds on Android too
I could go on forever... expect to be a happier smartphone user!
...And if this reply didn't make much sense I'm sorry but I'm so damn high atm
thanks for the reply. I got my lg yesterday. And ive got to say for £99 its a bargain! Android is just amazing! Free app in the market. And its so much faster!
I am truly amazed!
flyboyovyick said:
thanks for the reply. I got my lg yesterday. And ive got to say for £99 its a bargain! Android is just amazing! Free app in the market. And its so much faster!
I am truly amazed!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And you are using an outdated version of Android (1.6).
2.0/2.1 Eclair and 2.2 Froyo are a lot better.
I like the idea of ebooks, but i HATE HATE HATE the idea of ebooks being tied to a stores specific ereader. I should be able to read an ebook on any device that's reasonably capable of displaying documents.
So i was wondering if there's any tablets out there (7 inches or so) running android that I could install the readers for amazon/kindle, B&N/nook etc etc on?
I dont really care about it being e-ink or color lcd. They both seem good - e-ink great battery life and color shorter battery life but more uses.
I'd prefer to spend less then $300 if possible. Anyone know of any tablets that fit that description?
Nook Color...............................................................................................................................................................................
Google Search for "Android EReader" I decided to click on the shopping results and found a lot of Android powered readers.
Of course you could have taken the time to search or even just look over the first few post in this forum and found the answer:
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I didn't ask if there were ANY android e-readers - i asked if there were any GOOD android e-readers - i.e. i was looking for some opinions on which ones people considered the best.
I know the nook color is also based on android, and I did look quickly at a thread about that on here. But there seemed to be some doubt as to whether the color nook will be root-able. I assume it will NOT as-is allow the kindle app to be installed on it. Which makes it less then useful for my purposes since i want an e-reader that can install all the e-reader apps from the big retailers.
I was hoping some people here had first hand experience with some of the available android tablets and had some recommendations for ones to consider (or avoid) to be used mainly as an e-reader.
Well played.
you're right, i apologize. What i typed in my original post doesn't match what i said in my reply to you. So let me rephrase now and say I'm looking for opinions on what would be a good android powered e-reader. Or actually, any tablet like device with the requirement that it has to be able to handle ebooks from the 3 major book sellers, and the battery should last at least 6-7 hours of continuous use.
I like the nookcolor, although I'll admit I have a bit of a bias (have one).
minininja said:
I like the nookcolor, although I'll admit I have a bit of a bias (have one).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i thought the nook color wasn't available yet? I thought it was being released the first week of december? I actually looked at a thread talking about rooting it but since I thought it was released yet, i didn't think anyone had rooted it yet. Is it rootable?
thanks
The premier information site for homebrew and hacking on webOS devices is at:
http://www.webos-internals.org/
It is a community-maintained wiki, and hackers are welcome and indeed encouraged to post new legally-obtained information there by creating a new wiki page and linking it into the existing site at the appropriate place.
If you have a webOS device already, you can download the Preware Homebrew Documentation application from the official app catalog (yes, Palm allows documentation of how to hack your device in the official app catalog). That will show you how to install Preware, and get access to thousands of homebrew applications, themes, OS patches and custom overclocking kernels. In the help section of that app is a comprehensive list of sites for webOS users to access community assistance.
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A lot of the homebrew packages are built from source code released at
http://git.webos-internals.org/
Hackers will find source code there for custom webOS services that run as root, and for overclocking kernel patches. Everything there is open source, to be built upon by other developers.
Note that all of the above is done without breaking any copyright laws or illegally redistributing proprietary copyright material. It would be good to keep it that way. Time will tell how what conventions of legality are enforced by the moderators on these new XDA webOS forums.
-- Rod Whitby
-- WebOS Internals Founder and Project Lead
Thanks!!!!!!!!!! GOOD!
WebOS on xda
I think this will be a boon to the Palm-faithful and a needed gateway for those new to Palm.
Thanks.
Hopefully this new sub-forum brings new developer attention to WebOS. I feel like it really is an under-appreciated platform. I would love to see how far people can take the OS.
unknownrebelx said:
I feel like it really is an under-appreciated platform.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is, for sure. It's like that great band that everyone knows, but you never hear it on the radio. I'm counting on it to take off with the release of new hardware, in the usability department it's really second to none. Add openness and all the goodness of a real linux platform and you get a rockin platform.
unknownrebelx said:
I feel like it really is an under-appreciated platform.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mostly by Palm IMO. People generally love the platform, but I can't blame anyone for not wanting to buy this terrible hardware. ANd while the UI on WebOS is great, Palm still has work to do when it comes to getting things like battery life right.
I just wish they would have put WebOS on something like the Galaxy S II. 1650mah battery, giant beautiful screen, super fast hardware. It would just be perfect, but instead they choose to put it on tiny little novelty phones that while cool, are useful for little more than making jokes about.
drizek said:
Mostly by Palm IMO. People generally love the platform, but I can't blame anyone for not wanting to buy this terrible hardware. ANd while the UI on WebOS is great, Palm still has work to do when it comes to getting things like battery life right.
I just wish they would have put WebOS on something like the Galaxy S II. 1650mah battery, giant beautiful screen, super fast hardware. It would just be perfect, but instead they choose to put it on tiny little novelty phones that while cool, are useful for little more than making jokes about.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh, come on, keep your whining to yourself. This thread is called "WebOS Internals homebrew and hacking resources", not, "I want to complain and whine".