[Q] Good reference board for Android device project. - General Questions and Answers

I wasn't sure where to post this, but I will try here.
I need a recommendation on a Cortex-A9 board for a car audio project I want to do. I have seen many of the ones out there but some are missing features I need and some have feature I don't want. I also was not sure of the quality of some of them as well.
I am looking for a board with the following minimal features:
Cortex-A9 dual-core 1GHz CPU
1GiB RAM
mini-PCIe or built-in GSM/UTMS/HPSA that will work on AT&T bands
GPS
Pins for power, reset, etc rather than permanently attached buttons.
USB host support
HDMI, DVI, or RGA video out support
3.5mm or RCA stereo out
One feature I don't want to come with the board if possible, but not an issue as long as it can be removed is a built-in touch display, unless it can fit a double-DIN slot.
It would also be great if it came with a version of Android already included.

Related

[Q] Can someone create a TrimSlice category?

This new device is incredible. They are advertising it as a desktop ARM-based PC. I want to spark interest by devs and consumers alike - the platform was created with open-source communities in mind...and now have a 45% discount on their dev pro kit just for open source devs (which comes to near $175!!).
CPU and Memory:
Trim-Slice is based on NVIDIA Tegra 2 – a dual-core ARM Cortex A9 @ 1 GHz with ultra-low-power GeForce GPU with 1 GB DDR2 RAM soldered on-board.
Storage:
Trim-Slice incorporates a either a built-in 32 GB Sata SSD/250GB SATA HDD/or add your own, an SD slot on the front and additional micro-SD slot behind a secured door on the side. Both SD ports support SDHC up to 32 GB.
Video and Audio:
Trim-Slice supports HDMI 1.3a 1080p and a 2nd DVI-D port supporting resolution up to 1680 x 1050. 5.1 channels audio is available through HDMI and through S/PDIF. In addition there are standard 3.5mm jacks for stereo line-out and line-in. Analog video input port will be made available in the future when SW support for the feature becomes available.
Networking and I/O:
Trim-Slice has a Gigabit Ethernet port implemented through one of the Tegra 2 PCIe ports and a built-in 802.11n WiFi. Bluetooth is provided as a USB dongle. Trim-Slice incorporates 4 USB 2 ports two on the back and two on the front. On the front panel there is a micro-USB connector for USB device, and a mini connector for RS232.
Build and Power:
Trim-Slice is built into an all metal case of 5.1 x 3.7 x 0.6 (130mm x 95mm x 15mm). Trim-Slice power supply is 12V DC (8V-16V tolerant) Power consumption is 2-6W depending on devices in use, operating system and CPU/graphics load required by the application.
Photo Gallery
Please create a category on the main page for this impressive device...i believe to be perfect for more than just a desktop PC....most notibly a CarPC!
+1
i second that
Yea please there needs to be development on this... IT would be the perfect carputer if we could get a port of honeycomb on it
ICS demo on trimslice
There is a demo build of ICS on the trimslice now and access to the kernel code for the device. Anyone planning to do work on this?
+bump for the TrimSlice being awesome
I have booted ICS from an SD card. Pretty cool setup, but still lacking a few things.

Theoretically, could this be possible?

Is it possible to get andriod running on native x86 architecture? If so how many of you guys would be willing to shell out cash to get a gaming system powered by google and steam?
Specs would likely be a tri core processor on the entry model, packed with 3 gb ddr, a 5770 gpu, and a low profile mod, wifi, 1tb hdd, 2 usb, fiber optical out, coaxial in, hdmi, bluetooth.
Just theoretically, if someone came out with a device like this, how much would you be willing to pay for it? It would have no screen, and would work in hd on tv, record video etc. Would you want to buy it at wll?
Also say if yiu will there are three builds of this device with similar specs, but more ram and a bettercpu for a higher pricepoint. Which model would you get, low end, mid end, or high end . Gpu remaine the same as to have a stable experience across the board.
Several people have already ported Android to x86 (such as here for example). APP_ABI := x86 is even one of the options you can put in your Application.mk when building an app.
Is there Android support of NDK to the x86 version of Android?

New Android Mini PC!! 3G options, up to 128Gb of storage, bluetooth. etc

A new technology startup, Stella Mira, is entering the compact computing arena with their new device, the Pocket Console. Like many other flash drive sized mini computers we have seen lately, the Pocket Console features an Arm Allwinner A10 chip clocked at 1.5GHz, along with 1GB of Ram and Wi-Fi built on board. It also includes Bluetooth 2.1 connectivity, like the FXI Cotton Candy. And 8GB of flash storage, which is double that of the popular MK802 mini computer. Best of all it's priced at $129, which although being priced higher than the MK802, is still significantly cheaper than the Cotton Candy. The device also features 3 full sized USB 2.0 ports, 1 mini USB port, and a microSD card slot. And, of course, an HDMI port, enabling it to connect to practically any screen around. As far as software goes, the device runs Mira's customized version of android four dot zero, which is said to include a variety of popular apps preloaded such as spotify and angry birds along with support for the most popular game pads, and emulators are built right into it. Stella Mira has also announced that they will begin accepting pre orders in September for a 3G capable version of the Pocket Console. You can also buy a dock like accessory for your Pocket Console, unsurprisingly called the Pocket Dock which comes pre loaded with your favorite Linux distro (granted it can run on the Pocket Console). Stella Mira's website claims that they have built customized versions of both Lubuntu 12.04 and Ubuntu 12.04 that run "beautifully". Not much information is given of what these customized versions entail so that remains to be seen in the near future. I have reached out to Stella Mira and am awaiting more information on the Pocket Console and Pocket Dock. Until I hear back, the Pocket Console seems to be a really great contender in the mini pc market and for $129 I really don't think you could regret giving it a try, I know I certainly will.
Couple of corrections, it's not a 1.5 ghz a10 cpu it is actually a 1 ghz single core a8 cpu and mali 400 gpu. It is the board that is called an a10 as in allwinner a10.
The 1.5 ghz comes from people adding the gpu and cpu frequencies together. If you see the ebay page you will see this is how they arrive at that clock speed but it isn't actually that speed.
The 3G version is to be nearly $200 and even at $129 for basic four gig version with no extras this will be dearer than the next mk802 yet have the same specs.
Unless it sells for as good or better price than the next mk will do, the mira pc won't do as well not least because it only ships to usa and is dearer than similar spec products.
It isn't really offering anything new other than bluetooth (which new mk will apparently have) and the dock.
It is a nice design but as, when it begins shipping (and even then only to some who order early because others have to wait) there will be equally specced devices cheaper, it will need more than it has to create a lot of orders.
It certainly needs to be available in europe and start a little lower in price and to make more advertising advantage of its heatsink feature (if its promo pics are accurate it may have one).
Dave
( http://www.google.com/producer/editions/CAownKXmAQ/bigfatuniverse )
Sent from my LG P920 using Tapatalk 2
tradesteady said:
Yes, Get to know that the Android Mini PC factory will also released the 3G mini pc, and it will arm with dual core,the price not in public yet just wait and see...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your link doesn't show anything other than 3G modems. How does that pertain to the op's hdmi pc post?
Dave
( http://www.google.com/producer/editions/CAownKXmAQ/bigfatuniverse )
Sent from my LG P920 using Tapatalk 2
As an observation, The MK802 already does have bluetooth possibility. just not in the stock firmware. I am running lubuntu on mine, and bluetooth works just fine. And as others have already stated, all the allwinner a10 devices are really only 1.0ghz not 1.5. I don't see anything with this new device worth spending almost double the $68 my MK802 cost me.

[DISCUSSION] Maru Custom ROM for our device

Is our device suited for the purpose of productivity? Is our device worth it for the Maru Custom ROM??? What do you guys think? Will it work well on our device?
If you haven't heard of it, check it out at:
http://maruos.com/#/
It sounds AWESOME....
Well, I think Maru OS is rather pointless on the class of hardware the Tab 2 represents.
Why?
Let us take a look at it this way: The BeagleBone Black ARM board features similar specs to the Galaxy Tab 2 ... Ti Sitara AM335x Cortex-A8 Dual-Core at 1GHz, PowerVR SGX 530 GPU, 1GB RAM - not a exact match but very close to what makes the Tab 2 tick.
Boot the BeagleBone Black into a graphical Linux environment (i.e. Ubuntu ARM) and _TRY_ to do something productive in it. Chances are you're going to throw a temper tantrum after a few minutes because it runs like molasses. Apart from that, the Tab 2 doesn't have the required functionality to put it into a "Dock" and make it display something on a externally connected monitor (most of the ARM boards at least come with a HDMI connector and USB ports for connecting up a keyboard and mouse).
Don't get me wrong, Maru OS is a great idea - it's just no option for old under-powered devices also lacking the required interfaces to connect a external display to them. In terms of performance and productivity on a portable device you're way better off with a cheapo Chromebook (though I'm not sure if they feature a HDMI or DisplayPort connector).
BoneWithABeagle said:
Well, I think Maru OS is rather pointless on the class of hardware the Tab 2 represents.
Why?
Let us take a look at it this way: The BeagleBone Black ARM board features similar specs to the Galaxy Tab 2 ... Ti Sitara AM335x Cortex-A8 Dual-Core at 1GHz, PowerVR SGX 530 GPU, 1GB RAM - not a exact match but very close to what makes the Tab 2 tick.
Boot the BeagleBone Black into a graphical Linux environment (i.e. Ubuntu ARM) and _TRY_ to do something productive in it. Chances are you're going to throw a temper tantrum after a few minutes because it runs like molasses. Apart from that, the Tab 2 doesn't have the required functionality to put it into a "Dock" and make it display something on a externally connected monitor (most of the ARM boards at least come with a HDMI connector and USB ports for connecting up a keyboard and mouse).
Don't get me wrong, Maru OS is a great idea - it's just no option for old under-powered devices also lacking the required interfaces to connect a external display to them. In terms of performance and productivity on a portable device you're way better off with a cheapo Chromebook (though I'm not sure if they feature a HDMI or DisplayPort connector).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What ROM do you use on your device? Just asking. Am sticking to CM 13.
adityabanerjee1303 said:
What ROM do you use on your device? Just asking. Am sticking to CM 13.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I sold my Tab 2 to a friend of mine quite a while ago. However, it is running Kit Kat because that was the last custom ROM on which BlueTooth audio at least still worked ("Dock Audio" last worked on CM10.1), since he's using the Tablet as a DLNA endpoint connected to his stereo to stream music to it is rather important that headphone (line connection to his amp), WiFi and BlueTooth audio works as intended.
I'm actually using a Nexus 10 I picked up for cheap ever since I gave away the 3110.

[ Question / Discussion ] What is the best tablet to date?

What is the best tablet, for all different users, at this point in time?
The tablet market - as you might know, if you've been looking at XDA the past few years - has significantly diminished. It's all about the phones now. However, some of us still want the multi-purpose utility devices known as tablets.
Here, I'd like to discuss some of the tablet options currently available, and hopefully get some suggestions from the rest of XDA.
So far, out of the tablets I've looked at, only a few have appealed to me.
1. - The Lenovo Yoga Book:
Having some interesting features, and pretty well spec'ed for $380CAD [$275USD on Amazon.com], this is my first personal choice for buying a tablet, as I will be doing in a few days. It has four gigabytes of RAM, a 1200p LCD screen, and an Intel Atom processor clocked to 2.4GHz. 64 gigs of internal storage and 8500mAh of battery are appealing too.
The cameras are pretty bad [2mp front, 8mp back], but that's to be expected of a tablet: who wants to take pictures with them anyway?
It comes with Android 6.0 Marshmallow, with OTA updates to Nougat. There's not much activity on the development scene for this tablet, but it seems to be the same for most these days. People have successfully rooted it with Magisk, so that's a plus in my book.
Finishing up the specs, we have WiFi, of course, no GPS, Bluetooth v4.00, no NFC, Infrared, or USB OTG. It does have a 3.5 millimetre headphone jack, but no FM radio. It apparently accepts a SIM card, but I don't care about that since I'm unlikely to be using it as such.
Now for the interesting features: a Wacom drawing tablet and "Halo keyboard."
The drawing tablet seems to be pretty normal for a drawing tablet: 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity, wireless pen that doesn't need to charge, all that stuff. Additionally, the pen that comes with it is a "Real Pen," with capitals. This "Real Pen" uses some unknown technology to allow you to transcript notes written on actual paper, on top of the drawing area, into your tablet.
The Halo Keyboard is quite an oddity, being basically a virtual keyboard, except it's not on the screen. Since I have no hands-on experience with this tablet, I couldn't tell you how well it works.
The hinge of this tablet apparently has four positions, but also advertises itself as "360º," so I'm not sure which to believe.
As I said at the start, this is my current choice for a tablet, and will be buying it on the weekend, if all goes well.
For more information, here are the specs and XDA forum.
The other device that caught my eye is significantly cheaper, and lacking in features.
Coming in at $290CAD, the "Asus Z301MF-A2-GR" is a 10.1" tablet also, however it only has a 1.50GHz MediaTek processor, 2 gigs of RAM, and 16 of storage.
The screen is a 1200p IPS LCD panel, the battery is only 4,680mAh. This tablet accepts USB type C input and comes with Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box, including a suite of ASUS visual enhancement programs that have been received quite negatively, in some instances, by the community. It also does not come with a keyboard.
I could not find an XDA forum for it.
That concludes my hands-off review and slight comparison of those two devices, please let me know if there are others you'd suggest I buy instead.

Categories

Resources