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[Q] Some advice on choosing a flexible tablet for research purposes

Hi all,
I'm looking for a tablet which is going to act as the user interface for my research project, but the technical nature means that I have some particular requirements which are pretty much impossible to ascertain from reviews or even some serious Google-fu. As there seem to be a number of experts in this forum I figured some people here might be able to lend some advice...
My main issue is that I need robust, ideally wired communication with a PC - presumably via USB. I have read that USB connections are possible with Android but I get conflicting reports about how easy it is, and no real information on the bandwidth of such a connection. Has anyone had any experience with this? I need to be streaming real-time images to the tablet, would this be suitable?
This sort of leads on to a second issue which is that it would really be preferable, from a development point of view, to have it running a Linux distro. I am wondering whether this might make USB connectivity easier, but again this information is very hard to come by. So, does anyone know of a tablet which I can put Ubuntu on and have full access to the USB port? Again, any sort of information or experience would be greatly appreciated.
As it's not my money I'm spending I really need to be sure that this will do what I want in advance, so any advice in general about doing this would be fantastic.
Thanks in advance
-Rob

Honeycomb 3.1 is a solid operating system which will be able to perform the actions you listed. However, steaming data seamlessly will require a device with suitable RAM and processor speed. One nice feature with android devices is the ability to overclock the processor. If you choose to go with android honeycomb a good device would be the Xoom or Acer
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA Premium App

Intersting, thanks, I'd not seen that. It looks like this ticks off Android 3.1 as a suitable platform, in which case my final question is whether anyone knows of a tablet which can have a native Ubuntu installation, with full access to the USB, display device etc. It would be the ideal situation from a development point of view.
Thanks again.

[Completed] Need a lot of help with porting GB

ok, first, I'm disabled, in a chair, on the dole, and DIRT poor. This is pertinent because it means I can't afford a better device, I have to work within my means. Suggestions to upgrade my device will be ignored. Second, I use Windows, mostly. I CAN use Linux a BIT, but don't really want to, as it's not very intuitive or user-friendly, and my current PC hardware configuration has a LOT of difficulty running even the newest Linux distros. I consider myself pretty computer-savvy, been a freelance PC tech for 20 years now, so I've got some fairly advanced skills and knowledge. I think. I'll also say that my phone is rooted, and has CWM recovery installed.
What I need help with is porting my current rom, to remove ALL of the PHONE/SMS features, and ALL of the wifi power-saving features built into Android. Basically, I want it to function as a non-3g tablet, but with MAX WIFI. GPS would be nice, I use Maps and Navigation a lot, but is not REALLY necessary, as long as I can use a wifi location, Maps should work fine. Since my device is plugged in most of the time, I don't need power-saving features, and I'm pretty sure that THEY are why my device is constantly "disabling" my wifi network (wifi shows as available, 2 bars (-60 or -70 dBm, never seen more than -76) BUT labelled "Disabled, secured with wpa/wpa2 psk. KNOWN issue with GB, I'm pretty sure.) If I click connect, it works FINE. while I'm using it. but after about 10 mins, it's disabled again. Googling this problem has led me to the belief that it is the unwanted power-saving features that are doing this. I should say that I have a KILLER battery my brother gave me, at present I can go 3 days without a charge, and that's with music playing 24/7 over a bluetooth connection, max brightness, AND using wifi/tethering as much as I can. So battery life is not a problem.
I do NOT have access to the SOURCES for my rom. I emailed Huawei and asked for them, and was given a link to the stock firmware, which is in some kinda strange format (it's an .app file, and I can't open/edit it, merely install it. If I could unpackage it, I MIGHT be able to use IT as a source, but I doubt it.)
I can do the work, it's surprisingly easy. I am currently running a kernel that I compiled, but this is beyond me. I have a Linux partition runnin 14.04 LTS. What I need from you:
what programs to use? where to get them? Instructions on HOW to USE them written for somebody who knows JACK about Linux. I ca ./run_a_Program, and have SOME knowledge about repos/sources and compiling/cross-compiling.
and the BIG part is: WTF do I remove/change to accomplish this? PLEASE, if you are replying, remember that I'm an idiot about this stuff, so K.I.S.S.
I have read ALL of the "noob-friendly" guides available here, and they all have one fatal flaw for me: they tell you HOW to do stuff, but not WHAT to do. They setup a build environment, and say have fun. WTF? IDK what im doing, here. What does Demilitarized_zone_free_space=2048 mean? what does changing it affect? how do I change anything, given that IDK What any of this MEANS? Think of it like this: I grew up racing hotrods, know EVERYTHING about them. Now I'm trying to work on an electric-only car. A LOT of my knowledge is useless, but I HAVE already managed to mod a buncha stuff, so I have SOME learning.
I don't REALLY wanna spend YEARS learning Linux, just to tweak my phone. I know I'm gonna have to USE it to do what I want, that's fine. where to start?
And if there is some SIMPLER WAY to do this, I'd LOVE to hear it. I ran across an apk one time here on XDA, that solved the wifi issue, but I cannot find it now.

Hi!
I can understand your frustration. Have you tried asking in the guide threads that you've referred to? Seems the best place to ask questions to me.
Have you seen this guide?
> Android Development and Hacking > Android General > [GUIDE] How to port Stock/GB/CM7/CM9/ICS/CM10/JB Based ROMs [Update: Sept.25.2012
It's an old thread, but still some recent activity in it. Or ask in any of the other threads you spoke about reading.
You could ask for help here as well,
> Android Development and Hacking > Miscellaneous Android Development
Hopefully you can find help in one of these places!
Good luck!

ubuntu phone - yes, no, maybe?

It is possible to get 3 different phones with ubuntu phone now, none of them too expensive.
good.
i wonder what people's experience or informed opinion is?
ubuntu is pushing "convergence", which basically means that one operating system runs on all devices, that i can use my smartphone as a computer...
how far along is it?
now there's loads of blog articles and reviews out there, but most of them focus on comparing ubuntu phone (UP from now on) to other phone OSs - with their fully grown app universe. of course UP comes up short!
but that's not what i'm interested in. OS stability, and the standard browsing, music and video, and of course phone and sms is good enough for me.
but, i want the same freedom i have with my linux desktop install: to Do Things.
(my most important project is still to get a usable connection to the data & media stored on my kitchenserver.)
the day before yesterday i had a chat with someone on #ubuntu-phone - i think it was a dev.
i asked if i can use & upgrade it like any normal ubuntu/debian-based, install apps and utilities and so on.
basically he said, gui apps are difficult because UP uses a different gui model than Xorg, but basically yes, but you loose you guarantee that OTA (over the air) updates will work. but they should, regardless.
yesterday i was browsing the ubuntu phone section on ubuntu forums; of course people only post if something doesn't work - it looks like a normal and healthy distro forum to me.
OTA updates come in almost daily, i gather. very lively development.
there was, however, a lot of familiar discussions about how to get some app or other working; familiar from my 2 android phones: convoluted and fragile solutions, like installing ubuntu desktop in a chroot.
UP even recommends adb (android debug bridge?) as the only way to access the phone from your computer. or the standard mtp connection. so it's the same **** as everywhere.
the other aspect is this:
- ok, android is big, evil google, but there's a few established solutions around to use it without an account, use f-droid instead of play store, well documented security hacks and so on.
- UP certainly isn't the white knight here, but if not google, what do they use, is it really "better" than google and can i opt out easily?
yes, i am seriously considering to buy a UP phone, as soon as i get the feeling that it is an improvement freedom and security wise.
i wonder what people's experience or informed opinion is?

bump
...just a gentle one before the weekend ends.
i'd love to get some answers...

Advice on using Screenless Android Phone for IoT device

I would like to create an IoT device by buying new, cheap android phones, strip them down and remove the screen, rebox into my own physical box, install a custom ROM without any bloatware (and that will boot without a screen!), and install my android app on the device to do stuff.
An example of a purpose for this could be a GPS tracker for a car. The box would be placed in the car, and record GPS and accelerometer readings, posting these readings back to a central server via the cellular network. (This is just a random example, so don't focus too much on the detail of this, but there are thousands of uses for a IoT board with the sensor, CPU, RAM, storage, and connectivity capabilities of a budget android smartphone)
The reason I want to use existing phones is that they are wonderful, mass produced, cheap devices with a variety of sensors I can use.
The reason I want to use Android is because it is because of the customization ability, and the mature development ecosystem.
To me, it seems an obvious thing to do, but I don't seem to be getting much joy trying to search for examples of this sort of thing (either here, or on the internet in general).
So some questions:
1. General thoughts? (Good idea? Am I missing some fundamental problem?)
2. What are the challenges of running Android without a screen connected?
3. Are there any custom ROMs you know of that specialize in this sort of thing?
(I've seen Google Brilo, but it still seems a bit early yet, and I really like the idea of just using the standard Android SDK to develop the app - and the abundance of help and information that comes with it)
Thanks!

Surely This Wouldn't Work, Right??

Hello fellow forum go-ers of the Security section!!!!
This is my favorite area on this site & always makes me start thinking outside the box so to speak.
So i was thinking about Ubuntu & the ability to run a SU shell within it (not sudo but an actual SU shell by typing 'su' & providing your set password)
Would I be able to launch ADB commands from this SU shell & in turn run commands as any form of top tier user on my unrooted Android device???
Any responses appreciated!!! I really would like some input here on why this would or wouldn't be possible & how well the translated binary performs.
Thanks

No; but Yes. To some extent. This is why, in the *very* early days on Android, many XDA'ers had Terminal Emulator installed on our G1s. We could do build prop edits, push apps to install as system apps, "pull" backups, etc, etc.
These days I'm not sure, since I haven't experimented. However, I've got Kali on my tablet & a terminal app that lets me open either a Kali or Android command line either as a regular user, or as su.
I'm not sure if I helped here... Or if I just muddied the waters even more.

equi_design said:
No; but Yes. To some extent. This is why, in the *very* early days on Android, many XDA'ers had Terminal Emulator installed on our G1s. We could do build prop edits, push apps to install as system apps, "pull" backups, etc, etc.
These days I'm not sure, since I haven't experimented. However, I've got Kali on my tablet & a terminal app that lets me open either a Kali or Android command line either as a regular user, or as su.
I'm not sure if I helped here... Or if I just muddied the waters even more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Little bit of both but that's fine as Kali is a small download! lol, thank you by the way, as my first device was an s2 skyrocket & I remember when it was literally almost all Unix/Linux & much more simple . More or less it killed me by falling out of the computer changes in tech while I caught up on the mobile side.
Again thank you!! as now im closer to certain that i haven't been wasting my time.

LilAnt530 said:
Hello fellow forum go-ers of the Security section!!!!
So i was thinking about Ubuntu & the ability to run a SU shell within it (not sudo but an actual SU shell by typing 'su' & providing your set password)
Would I be able to launch ADB commands from this SU shell & in turn run commands as any form of top tier user on my unrooted Android device???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your android device has an operating system, which gets to make the rules about root. So does your computer. So, being root on your computer is not going to make you root on any other device -- that is, not unless the operating system on the other device is set up to really trust your computer a whole lot (or screws up).
So we might ask: why isn't it configured this way? Well, by way of analogy, imagine if anybody could get into your car and drive away, so long as they had the keys to some car! Or, to make that a slightly more fair analogy: imagine that your car would automatically assume that anyone who drives up in some other car, should be trusted and allowed to drive yours. Sounds like a bad policy, right?
As you may have noticed, some locks -- quite a lot of them, really -- actually do work that way: anybody with any key can unlock them. But those are not the kind of locks you want protecting your valuables while you're away

anonywimp said:
Your android device has an operating system, which gets to make the rules about root. So does your computer. So, being root on your computer is not going to make you root on any other computer -- that is, not unless the operating system on the other computer decides that it really trusts your computer a whole lot (or screws up).
We might ask: why isn't it configured to trust you? Well, by way of analogy, imagine if anybody could get into your car and drive away, so long as they had the keys to some car! Or, to make that a slightly more fair analogy: imagine that your car would automatically assume that anyone who drives up in some other car, should be trusted and allowed to drive yours. Sounds like a bad policy, right?
As you may have noticed, some locks -- quite a lot of them, really -- actually do work that way -- anybody with any key can unlock them. But those are not the kind of locks you want protecting your valuables while you're away
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But theoretically in the real world i would just pop your cars hood, link up a NAPA BlueFuel On Board Diagnostics Tool (costs about $80 on Amazon) to your cars CPU, then proceed to unlock the doors with a button or simple OBDT terminal command. Then I could Jump Start your vehicle (after i stuck any similar models key into your ignition) & proceed to drive your car wherever i wanted just as if it were my own.....
What enabled me to do this? Having a similar models keys & some in depth administrative authority over your vehicle
For the sake of comparison those keys (Linux Kernel) and the Administrative Authority (The OS used to build the phones platform) should give me the same results (in my mind)

LilAnt530 said:
But theoretically in the real world i would just pop your cars hood, link up a NAPA BlueFuel On Board Diagnostics Tool (costs about $80 on Amazon) to your cars CPU, then proceed to unlock the doors with a button or simple OBDT terminal command. Then I could Jump Start your vehicle (after i stuck any similar models key into your ignition) & proceed to drive your car wherever i wanted just as if it were my own.....
What enabled me to do this? Having a similar models keys & some in depth administrative authority over your vehicle
For the sake of comparison those keys (Linux Kernel) and the Administrative Authority (The OS used to build the phones platform) should give me the same results (in my mind)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, this is very often how Windows Domains work. Just "run as Administrator" and you have rooted your whole organization. Obviously that's not how it's intended to work and this would represent a mis-configuration of your Domain if your IT department intended to maintain administrative control. But, for whatever reason, this really does happen; it's not even all that rare.

anonywimp said:
Actually, this is very often how Windows Domains work. Just "run as Administrator" and you have rooted your whole organization. Obviously that's not how it's intended to work and this would represent a mis-configuration of your Domain if your IT department intended to maintain administrative control. But, for whatever reason, this really does happen; it's not even all that rare.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay Windows is not based on the Linux Kernel, you have no SuperUser capabilities as described on Ubuntu,
The main points of this disccusion were to point out the similarities in platforms & then again in the SU Binaries used on each specifically, thus (hopefully) creating a gap we could bridge, allowing for previous "unrootable" devices to gain root .