Related
Hi,
I am sorry if this topic previously has been discussed, butI have googled it for some time and haven't found any solutions.
I need to be abla to beam music from one android phone to another, i.e. use the phone as media renderer. I have two old android phones which I use only for sound in my bed room and living room. I would therefore want a way to control these phones from my primary phones. There are some ways to use them as media servera, etc., but I cant't the solution.
So, please help wouldn't this be possible? I guess a lot of people out there have old phones, which could be awesome to control from remote.
Sent from my Dell Streak using XDA App
Nice idea!
Hi, this is actually a interesting idea! I have an old G1 and if it can be recognized as a renderer I
Could plug it to external speakers and beam music to it from my Desire.
Result : cheap wireless speakers system!
I'm sure that someone must have tried this before.
Any experience to share?
BUMP
no news on this?
Will Skifta work? (Its on the market)
Thanks for your answer, but Skifta works exactly as other Android streaming apps - the music on the tv/computer can be controlled, not the other way around. I want to remote control the music on android from remote (e.g. from another android device).
Have you tried twonkey media?
It should do the trick... need to install it on both phones, then set one up as the library and the other as the output.
No, I have already tried Twonky player, but it does not allow me to beam the music from on android phone to another. If have two phones, A and B, I want to be able to control the music player on B, which is connected to the hifi in the livingroom from phone A, which is in the kitchen. Twonky, and other options allows me to stream music from phone B to A, but I want to control the B player, which I am nowhere close to. Does that make sense? It has to work like Gmote, where it is possible to control music from the phone on the computer, but here I want to control the music on B instead of a computer.
Ah, I see. You have a phone connected to your stereo playing music. You want to be able to control that phone with another one wirelessly.
I think you are SOL... I haven't heard of anything like that. You may be able to cobble something together with Tasker and gtalk/sms messages (ie. send a message like "next song" to the other phone that Tasker picks up and performs the action).
I've been looking for this as well to repurpose my HTC Hero and have finally found it!
An app called ArcMC Media Server and Player (market link) can turn any phone into a DLNA receiver. You can then use your other phone as the server with Twonky or similar. I almost made an additional hardware purchase for this but now my old phone does it just as well.
The app looks new which might explain why no one has found it and the bad review average so far. Also it requires 2.2 which may be a limitation for some. Installing a custom rom can fix that though.
edit: sorry, I may be confused. I want my new phone "play to" my old phone. For that my old phone needed to be a receiver, which Twonky does not do. The media lives on and is controlled by my new phone, I just use my old phone to receive it and output it to the speakers.
BubbleUPnP
FYI
I just found this app, which looks promising...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1118891
I will install this on my HD2 that is connected to my outdoor speakers and I will then hopefully be abe to control the music from my Galaxy S2...
Cheers
Jonas
Here's one for ya... i went from an iphone 4 to an Atrix (woo hoo!) and would like to control my iphone music from my android. it is jail broken.
I know it's a long shot but figure'd it's the XDA forum, ya never know.
I can push YouTube videos from a phone that has Twonky Beam installed to a phone with ArkMC installed. I tried it with Samsung Infuse and Samsung Captivate.
jonolo said:
FYI
I just found this app, which looks promising...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1118891
I will install this on my HD2 that is connected to my outdoor speakers and I will then hopefully be abe to control the music from my Galaxy S2...
Cheers
Jonas
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Of the apps mentioned so far in this thread, BubbleUPNP is the one I found the most stable and most useful.
I'm using it to stream from my PC, from foobar with the uPNP plugin. Winamp is my preferred music player but foobar just works so smoothly as a control point for uPNP that there's not even a choice!
adrianconst said:
I can push YouTube videos from a phone that has Twonky Beam installed to a phone with ArkMC installed. I tried it with Samsung Infuse and Samsung Captivate.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ArkMC now supports YouTube as well. It's possible to subscribe for YT channels and share them to DLNA/UPnP device in local network.
Android Renderer
+1 for Arkmc . Using it for almost 1 year as a renderer on my old HTC.
BubbleUPnP on Google Play [current version: 3.8.0.2, released on March 18th 2023]
BubbleUPnP on Amazon appstore [current version: 3.8.0.2, released on March 16th 2023]
BubbleUPnP latest APKs, Google Play version (notably for side-loading on Android TV)
BubbleUPnP latest APK, Amazon appstore version (notably for side-loading on Fire TV)
BubbleUPnP 'Audio Cast' Xposed Module. Only needed on Android < 10. (current version: 1.1, released on April 28th 2021)
BubbleUPnP Server home page (download and documentation) [current version: 0.9-update46, released on February 4th 2023]
BubbleUPnP home page
Stream all your music, videos and photos to various devices in your house:
Chromecast
DLNA TVs
gaming consoles: Xbox, Playstation (from XMB)
UPnP/DLNA renderers: XBMC, WDTV Live, other Android devices, ...
various HiFi gear from Sonos, Denon, Pioneer, Onkyo and many more
local Android playback
BubbleUPnP can access your media from a lot of sources, including:
UPnP/DLNA media servers: most NASes, XBMC, Plex, Twonky, Serviio, Windows Media Player and many more
local media stored on your Android device
cloud media: Google Drive, Dropbox, Box, OneDrive, Google Music, Google+
SMB Shares
WebDAV (ownCloud, NextCloud, webserver...)
media from other apps such as web browsers and file managers, using Share/Send
captured audio from most other apps. Requires Xposed (root)
Shoutcast radio (with XiiaLive)
BubbleUPnP is a versatile app packed with many features for you to discover, some of which are:
extensive Chromecast support: play incompatible Chromecast media with transcoding (*), subtitles, audio/video track selection (*)
fast and secure Internet access to your home media while on the go, from mobile and WiFi networks (*)
playback queue, editable playlists, scrobbling, sleep timer, various shuffle modes
integrated full screen image viewer and controller
media download to your SD Card
...and much more!
(*) Some features are provided by BubbleUPnP Server, an optional software that can be installed on any machine on your local network to provide additional services. To learn more about BubbleUPnP Server, visit https://bubblesoftapps.com.
Some features are restricted and can be unlocked by purchasing the BubbleUPnP License app.
If something is not working, you can record a log file and mail it to me at [email protected]:
- launch the app
- go into More > Gear icon > Control
- Enable "logging to file" (at the end of the page).
- IMPORTANT: Exit the app (More > "X" bottom left icon)
- restart the app
- run the app and trigger the problem to troubleshoot
- exit the app
- email me the files found on internal storage:
On Android 10 and below:
/Android/data/com.bubblesoft.android.bubbleupnp/log.txt
/Android/data/com.bubblesoft.android.bubbleupnp/prev_log.txt
On Android 11 and higher:
/Documents/com.bubblesoft.android.bubbleupnp_log.txt
/Documents/prev_com.bubblesoft.android.bubbleupnp_log.txt (if present)
You can access them with a file manager app and share them to your email app for sending them.
IMPORTANT: Make sure to not restart BubbleUPnP until you have sent or saved the log file as it is overwritten on app startup.
Looks like an awesome app - all the features I want... BUT it is not currently recognizing my Synology NAS (upnp/dlna). Win 7 media player works great.
EDIT - Sorry it did eventually show up. It would be nice to have some asynchronous loading notifications. Also, if I queue up an entire genre, for example, it takes a looong time to load/start playing (thousands of songs). Otherwise looking good.
radeon_x said:
Looks like an awesome app - all the features I want... BUT it is not currently recognizing my Synology NAS (upnp/dlna). Win 7 media player works great.
EDIT - Sorry it did eventually show up. It would be nice to have some asynchronous loading notifications. Also, if I queue up an entire genre, for example, it takes a looong time to load/start playing (thousands of songs). Otherwise looking good.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the feedback.
I'll think again about async loading notifications (I suppose you mean loading of folders here), but I do not like the additional clutter they involve.
For the second point, the playlist is not designed to handle thousands of tracks. What what your exact use case ? Doing shuffle on an entire genre ?
--------
I updated the first post with an Android Market link to install the app.
bubbleguuum said:
For the second point, the playlist is not designed to handle thousands of tracks. What what your exact use case ? Doing shuffle on an entire genre ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, exactly. But after using it for a while, I don't mind the delay all that much since it only happens on the initial adding the songs to the playlist. Once the songs are added there are no slowdowns.
No other complaints really - hands down the best functioning and looking UPnP audio player on the market.
excellent app, works great with PS3MediaServer
minor issues:
reports search as not supported but I guess that's a PS3MediaServer problem?
doesn't show any album art
I have a DLNA TV (LG_42LD790) but it doesn't show up as a renderer, only local renderer available
how much are you going to charge for the unlocker?
jonengland said:
excellent app, works great with PS3MediaServer
minor issues:
reports search as not supported but I guess that's a PS3MediaServer problem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, it doesn't support searching at all.
I tried PS3MediaServer and it is not the best server you can find for audio (only folder browsing, no search, some bugs in returned data).
I found 2 bugs in less than 1h usage
doesn't show any album art
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It likely doesn't expose any album art to the app.
I have a DLNA TV (LG_42LD790) but it doesn't show up as a renderer, only local renderer available
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most DLNA TV are not remotely controllable to push content. You can just browse from their interface to play content.
how much are you going to charge for the unlocker?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Undecided yet but it won't break the bank .
Correction: album art is working ok with ps3mediaserver, think I must have been playing tracks without art, doh!
1: has the potential of being better than upnplay (although the latter is free & ad-free)
2: needs a landscape mode (or use system/sensor detection)
3: exit on back key press
4: ability to add WAN server
5: use built-in player (like you already do for music types) for divx+mp3,x264+aac,mpeg2 files (detect via 4cc and/or extension - avi,divx,mkv,mp4,mpg,mpeg,vob,m2v)
open external player for other file types (mov/qt/rm/ac3); the system, hardware renderer should be able to decode most of the aforementioned files, thus eliminating the need for an additional app expressedly for that purpose (vplayer/mobo etc)
This COULD give you an edge over the other upnp/dlna solutions, since none of them provide this functionality (yet).
My Setup: Twonky Media Server and WD TV Live as Renderer!
This setup works fine with other apps, also on iOS...
BubbleUPNP looks really good, BUT:
- the timeline / song progress bar (dont know how you call it) doesn't work (even if use the setting 'use other...')!
-> so as a result, the next song in the playlist doesnt play
So by now, the app is useless. Would like to use yours, all the others work, but yours seems more smooth and has a better usability.
Looking forward to some updates!
Would def. pay for this if the issue gets fixed!
adwinp said:
1: has the potential of being better than upnplay (although the latter is free & ad-free)
2: needs a landscape mode (or use system/sensor detection)
3: exit on back key press
4: ability to add WAN server
5: use built-in player (like you already do for music types) for divx+mp3,x264+aac,mpeg2 files (detect via 4cc and/or extension - avi,divx,mkv,mp4,mpg,mpeg,vob,m2v)
open external player for other file types (mov/qt/rm/ac3); the system, hardware renderer should be able to decode most of the aforementioned files, thus eliminating the need for an additional app expressedly for that purpose (vplayer/mobo etc)
This COULD give you an edge over the other upnp/dlna solutions, since none of them provide this functionality (yet).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the feedback
2. Not a priority for the initial stable version but in consideration for future versions. Landscape is mostly useful for tablets as it is the natural orientation.
3. You can exit the app via the "Exit" menu action found in the Now Playing tab.
4. definitely on the todo list although probably not in the first stable version
5 in consideration for a future verson
debay said:
My Setup: Twonky Media Server and WD TV Live as Renderer!
This setup works fine with other apps, also on iOS...
BubbleUPNP looks really good, BUT:
- the timeline / song progress bar (dont know how you call it) doesn't work (even if use the setting 'use other...')!
-> so as a result, the next song in the playlist doesnt play
Would def. pay for this if the issue gets fixed!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for reporting, it is a sign that the app has trouble getting timing info from the WD TV Live. There's logging inside the app that should be able to tell why and allow me to fix it. Can you record a log file following the step below, and send me the log to [email protected]:
- launch the app
- go into the Settings page (Menu > Settings) and then in the Advanced Settings section
- check "Enable logging to file".
- IMPORTANT: Exit the app using the "Exit " menu item found in menu of tab "Now Playing"
- restart the app.
- handle the app to trigger the problem
- connect your phone to your PC or MAC and mail me the file /Android/data/com.bubblesoft.android.bubbleupnp/log.txt found on the SD Card
Using as Renderer and Controller on two devices
Hi,
I am using your app to control my old HD2 (CM7) connected to external speakers with my Galaxy S2.
I am having some issues that when I start it up to control the renderer and the renderer have been running for some time, sometimes it will not find/connect to the renderer.
If I restart both apps then they will usually pick up and connect to each other again. I am not sure if this is my HD2 going to sleep in some way that makes it not being visible. But it will still continue to play music from my upnp server (WMP7) though I can't control or add new tracks...
I will put both devices to log when I am home later tonight and send you some log files that hopefully will help.
Thanks for all the hard work!
Cheers
Jonas
jonolo said:
Hi,
If I restart both apps then they will usually pick up and connect to each other again. I am not sure if this is my HD2 going to sleep in some way that makes it not being visible. But it will still continue to play music from my upnp server (WMP7) though I can't control or add new tracks...
Jonas
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just upgraded my SGS from stock 2.2 to CM7 and fixed today a WiFi connectivity issues that is related to sleep mode. It is not CM7 specific but related to how the WiFi chipset operates when going into power save mode.
So look forward to the next beta which should be out soon.
Using WMP as media player
Hi,
I just installed BubbleUPnP, and it looks really great. I already tested a few similar apps (2Player, Andromote, etc) but it's definetely the most impressive and promising one.
I just encounter a small problem when I enqueue a few music files and then launch the playlist. it sends each file to WMP but directly goes to the next one until the last one. So, only the last file is read.
A workaround is to launch the playlist with only 1 item, and then add other items while playing. Don't know if the problem comes from BubbleUPnP or WMP...
Also FYI, my Synology is well recognized, as well as my Samsung LED TV.
[email protected] said:
Hi,
I just encounter a small problem when I enqueue a few music files and then launch the playlist. it sends each file to WMP but directly goes to the next one until the last one. So, only the last file is read.
A workaround is to launch the playlist with only 1 item, and then add other items while playing. Don't know if the problem comes from BubbleUPnP or WMP...
TV.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for reporting, I can reproduce this issue so it will likely be fixed in the next beta.
Can you try playing a video on your Samsung TV an tell me if it works ?
I haven't tried it as there is no point, being a BubbleDS user already (and loving it, might I add...feels like a factory app and works far better than anything on the Apple side). But just out of interest, will this be a separate product or will BubbleDS be merged with it?
Sent from my Desire HD
lambomanx1 said:
I haven't tried it as there is no point, being a BubbleDS user already (and loving it, might I add...feels like a factory app and works far better than anything on the Apple side). But just out of interest, will this be a separate product or will BubbleDS be merged with it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
BubbleUPnP and BubbleDS will remain separate apps (mostly to avoid to clutter BubbleDS with unneeded stuff).
The next major version of BubbleDS will be updated to use the same codebase than BubbleUPnP, which will bring some fixes and even some new functionnality (Shuffle Library).
As a bonus, BubbleUPnP will be a free app to use for BubbleDS owners, as it will act as an unlocker.
Thanks for the clarification
Sent from my Desire HD
bubbleguuum said:
Can you try playing a video on your Samsung TV an tell me if it works ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I tried. It works like a charm. Furthermore, my TV shows SRT subtitles as if I launched the video from the TV itself.
0.9.9.1 available on the Market.
WDTV Live as a renderer may be partially or totally fixed, needs testing.
Library: fixed "Browse timeout" errors specific to Android 3.0.1+ (tablets)
Library: faster browsing
Library: display spinning wheel while loading folders / searching
Library: browse compatibility fixes with some Media Servers
Library: tweaked album list layout to make more of the album title visible
fixed wifi issue (on some devices) preventing from playback advance in playlist (and possibly other network issues) after screen has turned off
fixed track advance in Playlist not working correctly with WMP and likely other renderers
videos can now be downloaded in the Videos subfolder of the download folder
Now Playing: display container format of videos
Settings: added rate app button, known issues button
obscure crash fixes
I spent some time over the weekend trying out various ways to stream movies, specifically ripped BluRays, to my Android phone (EVO) and tablet (Galaxy Tab 7") when I'm outside my home. I thought folks looking to do something similar might appreciate a list of what's available, as in all my searching I didn't come across one.
So here are my thoughts on each with Windows based desktop server software in blue, and Android client in green when from a different source:
VLC server to VLC Direct and VLC Stream and Convert - $4-5
Best quality, seek!, streamed subtitles!, VLC & clients buggy, no security (should be used with VPN), complex setup.
Splashtop Remote Desktop- $5
A remote desktop app promoted as a way to stream video. I set my laptop to 1024*768 and tried various videos, including Netflix and Hulu, and video quality was tolerable. (MUCH better than LogMeIn Ignition, or the VNC/RDP apps I use.) A little cumbersome to use if you just want to watch video, but it's as flexible as the desktop computer you are controlling. I'd be interested in hearing how CrazyRemote compares, as that includes "joystick" controls. - For the $1 sale price, I'll be running this off my laptop for NetFlix and Hulu.
Plex - $5
Soso video quality, easy to set up, included posters with movie data and such, by far the nicest interface. If video quality improves, they'll be the one to beat.
PlayOn - $5 / month for "Premium Services" like Netflix and Hulu, $0 To stream local videos
Similar to Plex without the movie posters and such, but includes Hulu and NetFlix. Unfortunately video and sound wouldn't stay synched.
RemotePotato to Remote Media Center - $0
Set up was tolerable, video quality is acceptable, seek!, big wins on having a very nice desktop silverlight web player and some integration with Windows Media Center. If the (separately developed) Android client continues to improve, and/or they stream from my WMC TV tuners, Netflix, etc, I'd be in love. - This is the one I'm sticking with for now because I like the option of streaming to desktop OR Android, depending where I am at the moment.
Subsonic - $Donation of an amount you choose for video streaming. Audio only is free.
Similar to RemotePotato, but more complex to set up, better security, but browser based FLV playback had soso video quality. RemotePotato was just easier. - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=968774
TVersity - $0
Seemed complicated and I didn't want to re-encode anything, so after installing I just yanked it without testing. Other folks have had good luck with it though! - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=6085651
PS3Mediaserver - $0
Another one that I didn't test because it seemed complicated. Again worth mentioning because other folks have had good luck with it though! - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=898796
Other Android server/app solutions seemingly based off of VLC - $Varies
AndroStream - Server wouldn't install (on two Win7x64 systems)
MyTVStation - Server installed as Admin, but couldn't connect to it. (Dev replied via email that he's working on it.)
Video Source - I tested using a 40GB MKV file ripped directly from BluRay without recompression, including English subtitles and both HD and stereo sound tracks. - As I am NOT willing to spend hours/days/weeks transcoding my BluRay collection to the native resolution(s) of my mobile devices (or to re-transcode them when the devices are replaced) I specifically wanted to include in my testing on the fly transcoding capabilities. (Avatar in this case)
Connection Speed - I tested using WiFi at home, WiFi at another location across town (but with the same ISP) and WiMax at a location which tested as 6Mb down. (My home upstream is 5Mb, and the remote WiFi and WiMax results were comparable, because the streams were all set to around 1-2.5Mb.)
DLNA is interesting stuff, and bears investigating, especially for playback FROM Android to a TV without wires. Normally it will not stream outside of your local network, but I'm thinking of trying it via VPN, as my Galaxy Tab includes a native player.
I realize the reviews are brief and very subjective, and my requirements and testing won't match many peoples. That said, I still thought folks might appreciate just having a nice big list to refer to, with hopefully some good comments on other people's experiences, to save them some time digging around.
After a long weekend of fiddling, I'm using Splashtop for Netflix (not available on my Tab yet) and Hulu, and RemotePotato w/ the Remote Media Center app for my movies and recorded TV.
There also looks to be some development happening with Media Portal plug-ins for Android that could be quite promising for 2.3+ devices in a few months. If things pan out...you'll load your media one time into the server, and be able to watch it on any device, be it iOS, Windows, or Android.
Hi,
at the moment I own iPad 1 with 3G. I do not really like iOS and the way the whole device works but I bought it instead of a (any) Honeycomb tablet anyway. There were few reasons behind my decision and they are still valid.
But... from what I have seen playing in the shops with Honeycomb tablets - I really, really prefer Android to iOS (and from what I have read this will not change once the iOS 5.0 is introduced).
I am patiently waiting for a HC/ICS tablet that will meet my expectations but device itself is just a part of the success. I will also need software that I am using now. I would appreciate if you could tell me names of equivalent apps (preferable the same apps) I am using now.
Netflix - it was the main reason to get iPad instead of HC tablet. But since I am based in Poland I want to make sure Netflix app installation will be as easy on Android as it was on iPad (I just needed account in US iTunes - that is it).
I read there is an update to TF that brings Netflix support - is it for all users (regardless of location) or just for TF's in USA?
Buzz Player - beside 720p mkvs it plays everything I have stored on my NAS drive (it is using Samba protocol to access). Subtitles (people are complaining about it) are not an issue since I do not use them.
WD Photos - already know it is available on Android - any one kows how does it look/work on HC instead of smartphone with A 2.x?
VoD apps - ABC Player, BBC iPlayer, 4oD, Crackle, ITV Player - all available ass apps for iPad (unless because I will have Flash I do not need them - but will video from them work on mobile device without any hacks?)
Office - Pages and Numbers equivalent
Facebook dedicated app - as Friendly
iBooks - I got quite a lot of books on my NAS (epub format) and there was no trouble in putting them to iBooks, iTunes was not needed and they look awesome. I want app like this, with page flipping, etc....
Pandora - ?
Google Music designated app - that I do miss a lot nowe as using it through the Safari is a nightmare
XC Currency
Flipboard
MobilesRSS (or something looking as nice that works with Google Reader)
Filebrowser (to access all files on my PC's nad NAS drive)
TeamViewer
Evernote
Skype
Download manager (with support for hosting services like Rapidshare or Filesonic)
Proper support for VPN connections - all I do now is choose a connection to one of VPN servers and click connect (no need to enter password every single time).I use hem a lot because of Netflix, BBC, etc.
Basic I got access to all free apps in US, UK and Polish iTunes store and I did not had to do any Jaibrake or anything like this.
I really hope I will be able to get the same level of usability form Transformer 2 (maybe Archos Gen9) or in general a HC/ICS tablet.
Since I do not have any android based device I am unable to access Android Market myself and check if applications are there and (what is more important) how do they perform.
THANKS for help (I presume a lot my my questions are quite obvious ones - sorry).
I think netflix is US only at the moment if you are unwilling to root. I have no idea about some of the stuff you ask for but ive seen evernote, skype, and some of the other th ings you mentioned. I really like the office app that comes with the device (polaris) and i think i saw some threads mentioning vpn crap. Anyway, if you wanna use android, id say, expect less apps that dont really matter, but youll probably find decent apps that most normal people require. Plus, you get to tinker with it and stuff withiut fear of steve jobs haunting you at night.
Apps mentioned above or their equivalents are the ones that I require. Beside that I do not care home many millions of other software is available for iOS or that Android has a smaller choice because that is the only thing I need. If I can not use services I am using now there is no point in spending money on a new device.
Any ex-iPad owners here?
What i really was trying to get you to do was to hit the search bar and look for these yourself.. since that's probably going tobe the difference betweeb the ipad and android devices.. Notice how i alluded to having seen peple mention these things.
That's a long list of software.
I'll do my best to list off what I have currently installed, or apps that I've heard will work.
Netflix - I'm not sure how to help you with that one. You'll probably need root to get it working properly.
Buzz Player - Dice Player is probably the best Android video player so far, plays 720p mkv with no hassle and has full hardware acceleration. Subtitle support is built in too, just in case you feel like using subs in the future. Currently there are less supported formats than Buzz Player, but the developer is constantly updating. As far as accessing files stored on your NAS, you will definitely need root if you want Dice Player to be able to stream. Once rooted you just have to install the cifs module, then use the Cifs Manager app to auto mount your NAS to a folder that Dice Player can see.
WD Photos - Never used it, but it is listed as being compatible with the Transformer. No idea if it will work.
VoD Apps - Availability of native Android apps is all dependent on your region. Often times though there are Flash-based workarounds for watching them through your browser.
Office - Polaris Office comes pre-installed on the Transformer, so you'll have basic functionality for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents.
Facebook - You can side load the phone version of the app, or use Friend Me. Personally I prefer Friend Me.
iBooks - There are several ebook readers available. Asus' MyLibrary comes pre-installed and has page turning animations and native support for epub format.
Pandora - There is a native Android app in the Market.
Google Music - Comes pre-installed on the tablet integrated into the default music player app. You just open up Music and add your Google account, and you're set.
XC (XE?) Currency - Another app that has a native Android version in the Market.
Flipboard - Feedly is a reasonable alternative. Personally I use Pulse for all of my news consumption, but that's a completely different UI.
MobilesRSS - Try the native Google Reader application.
File Browser - File Manager HD is my favorite. To browse Samba shares, you simply add one under LAN Connection in the menu.
TeamViewer - A native Android app is available.
Evernote - A native Android app is available.
Skype - A native Android app is available, although video chat has not yet been implemented on tablets. There are however several other video chat apps available, and Google Talk has native video chat capability on all Honeycomb devices.
Download manager - I would give DownDroid a try. I don't typically do a lot of downloading on my tablet, so I can't attest to how well it works.
VPN connections - Again, several different apps available that do basically the same thing. I've heard good things about NeoRouter VPN, but I would suggest trying several different apps to see which one you prefer.
PPTP VPN is supported natively (not sure about the others). I only use PPTP and OpenVPN (which requires root). For Office, look into QuickOffice HD, although it costs 19.99. I strongly suggest Splashtop HD over TeamViewer, just because its ALOT smoother. For RSS I suggest Reader HD, it looks and works better than Google Reader.
First of all thanks for taking time...
If you do not mind I would like to add additional (NO!!! NOT APPS!!! ) questions.
earlyberd said:
Netflix - I'm not sure how to help you with that one. You'll probably need root to get it working properly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
- so Netflix as such is still not available for HC tablets?
earlyberd said:
Buzz Player - Dice Player is probably the best Android video player so far, plays 720p mkv with no hassle and has full hardware acceleration [...]
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
- Buzz Player on iPad just simply uses Samba protocol and if the Android Buzz Player can do the same than it is no problem. I do not use that many different file formats. So, Dice Player does not support Samba or uPNP (these are supported by my NAS My Book World Edition)? As to 720p mkv's... I still read comments form ppl. that they stutter on Tegra 2 based devices. I suspect that that depends on ripped file itself. But since I know I do not want a Tegra 2 based tablet (lots of threads about it already here) it is not a big problem.
Just a news. Friend of mine came over with his iPad 2 few days ago. Some of my 720p playd fine on iPad 2 but some ot them stil stutter and were unwatchable. All of them play super smooth on my netbook (Atom 330 + nVidia ION). This means that current gen. of ARM SOC's is not there yet. I am really interested how new Gen9 Archos will perform here (with TI Omap 4 1,5 Ghz under hood - all good but why are those tablets so ugly? ;-) )
earlyberd said:
VoD Apps - Availability of native Android apps is all dependent on your region. Often times though there are Flash-based workarounds for watching them through your browser.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In case of iTunes and iOS that simply meant - get account in US or UK store and free apps became available. Setting up such account is also no problem. Has anyone tried to get free apps from let say US in UK or the other way round or (unlike in stupid iTunes) free apps (like those players) are available to download and install for everyone (they might not work due to wrong IP but this is a different matter).
In another words (I do not know sht about rooting) how hard will it be for noob like me to get them?
earlyberd said:
iBooks - There are several ebook readers available. Asus' MyLibrary comes pre-installed and has page turning animations and native support for epub format.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And putting books (epub files) I already have on my NAS drive or PC will not be a problem?
earlyberd said:
MobilesRSS - Try the native Google Reader application.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use it when I am next to my desktop but and app (compatible with Google reader - like this Mobile RSS) and designed for tablets is just much nicer
earlyberd said:
File Browser - File Manager HD is my favorite. To browse Samba shares, you simply add one under LAN Connection in the menu.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is hjow it works in Filebrowser and in Buzz Player. They both see NAS in the network and both use Samba to get access.
earlyberd said:
Download manager - I would give DownDroid a try. I don't typically do a lot of downloading on my tablet, so I can't attest to how well it works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do not have plans like that either - but just in case ;-)
earlyberd said:
VPN connections - Again, several different apps available that do basically the same thing. I've heard good things about NeoRouter VPN, but I would suggest trying several different apps to see which one you prefer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmmm... in iOS VPN support is built in. I do not need any additional apps to make it work as I only set-up additional connections under settings -> VPN.
So, HC does not support VPN connection on its own??? Strange as (besied ppl. like me who use VPN to watch movies from USA in EU) it is important business feature...
Also... if I need and additional app to create VPN connection... and connect to the server... question is how and if will it affect apps like Netflix Player or internet browsers as both Netflix and HULU require US IP in order to allow stream.
frosty5689 said:
PPTP VPN is supported natively (not sure about the others). I only use PPTP and OpenVPN (which requires root). For Office, look into QuickOffice HD, although it costs 19.99. I strongly suggest Splashtop HD over TeamViewer, just because its ALOT smoother. For RSS I suggest Reader HD, it looks and works better than Google Reader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for that to you as well!
galtom said:
First of all thanks for taking time...
If you do not mind I would like to add additional (NO!!! NOT APPS!!! ) questions.
- so Netflix as such is still not available for HC tablets?
- Buzz Player on iPad just simply uses Samba protocol and if the Android Buzz Player can do the same than it is no problem. I do not use that many different file formats. So, Dice Player does not support Samba or uPNP (these are supported by my NAS My Book World Edition)? As to 720p mkv's... I still read comments form ppl. that they stutter on Tegra 2 based devices. I suspect that that depends on ripped file itself. But since I know I do not want a Tegra 2 based tablet (lots of threads about it already here) it is not a big problem.
Just a news. Friend of mine came over with his iPad 2 few days ago. Some of my 720p playd fine on iPad 2 but some ot them stil stutter and were unwatchable. All of them play super smooth on my netbook (Atom 330 + nVidia ION). This means that current gen. of ARM SOC's is not there yet. I am really interested how new Gen9 Archos will perform here (with TI Omap 4 1,5 Ghz under hood - all good but why are those tablets so ugly? ;-) )
In case of iTunes and iOS that simply meant - get account in US or UK store and free apps became available. Setting up such account is also no problem. Has anyone tried to get free apps from let say US in UK or the other way round or (unlike in stupid iTunes) free apps (like those players) are available to download and install for everyone (they might not work due to wrong IP but this is a different matter).
In another words (I do not know sht about rooting) how hard will it be for noob like me to get them?
And putting books (epub files) I already have on my NAS drive or PC will not be a problem?
I use it when I am next to my desktop but and app (compatible with Google reader - like this Mobile RSS) and designed for tablets is just much nicer
This is hjow it works in Filebrowser and in Buzz Player. They both see NAS in the network and both use Samba to get access.
I do not have plans like that either - but just in case ;-)
Hmmmm... in iOS VPN support is built in. I do not need any additional apps to make it work as I only set-up additional connections under settings -> VPN.
So, HC does not support VPN connection on its own??? Strange as (besied ppl. like me who use VPN to watch movies from USA in EU) it is important business feature...
Also... if I need and additional app to create VPN connection... and connect to the server... question is how and if will it affect apps like Netflix Player or internet browsers as both Netflix and HULU require US IP in order to allow stream.
Thanks for that to you as well!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ex-Ipad2 user here:
- Netflix works! On stock FW, just installed and tried :=)
- Im using MX Player and Diceplayer, nice combination.
- For Google RSS try out d9-Reader! Best there is.
- Using PPTP VPN native for US IP towards Netflix..
reidar.ostrem said:
Ex-Ipad2 user here:
- Netflix works! On stock FW, just installed and tried :=)
- Im using MX Player and Diceplayer, nice combination.
- For Google RSS try out d9-Reader! Best there is.
- Using PPTP VPN native for US IP towards Netflix..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Netflix - are you from US or different country (after sending post saw your flag - stupid question! LOL!) By that question I mean - can anyone download app from the market or does an Android market need separate accounts for US, UK, Poland, etc?
If Netflix was part of an Asus update - was it for everyone or just US owners (than how will I get it in Poland?) - bearing in mind above - how did you get it in Norway?
PPTP protocol is offered by my VPN provider (see my signature) so that should not be a problem.
Do you have to enter password every single time you want to connect (iPad remembers passwords like this)?
galtom said:
Netflix - are you from US or different country (after sending post saw your flag - stupid question! LOL!) By that question I mean - can anyone download app from the market or does an Android market need separate accounts for US, UK, Poland, etc?
If Netflix was part of an Asus update - was it for everyone or just US owners (than how will I get it in Poland?) - bearing in mind above - how did you get it in Norway?
PPTP protocol is offered by my VPN provider (see my signature) so that should not be a problem.
Do you have to enter password every single time you want to connect (iPad remembers passwords like this)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Android marked is differentiated in terms of country, device, os etc...
Stock NetFlix that works on latest TF update: http://db.tt/yBGwjeN
I also liked the ipads feature to remember the password for VPN, android does not do that unfortunally.. (as far as I know.. i have to enter pw everytime)
galtom said:
Apps mentioned above or their equivalents are the ones that I require. Beside that I do not care home many millions of other software is available for iOS or that Android has a smaller choice because that is the only thing I need. If I can not use services I am using now there is no point in spending money on a new device.
Any ex-iPad owners here?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I own an iPad 1 and an Asus Transformer. To be honest, the apps on iOS are usually better - even for the exact same app! That does seem to be changing slowly over time, but iOS still has the upperhand in terms of App quantity & quality.
And I still cannot access my Cisco VPN @ work with my Transformerer either (Cicso IPSec w/pre-shared keys).
In my opinion, the iPad is still a better choice for business use. The apps are better and you have a much better selection on iOS.
That being said, I still haven't touched my iPad 1 since I got my Transformer!!! The Transformer is a really fun device though - and if you can live with the app quality * quantity difference right now, go for the Transformer. If you NEED certain apps, stick to the iPad for now...
jtrosky said:
I own an iPad 1 and an Asus Transformer. To be honest, the apps on iOS are usually better - even for the exact same app! That does seem to be changing slowly over time, but iOS still has the upperhand in terms of App quantity & quality.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Apps liste above (beside some games that I have but are used seldom and are not essential) are the only ones I need and use.
Web broswisn (stupid Safari), e-mails (again terrible client for iOS) and TV/Video, rss new is all I need. So if I can replace them I'm cool.
Thanks mate.
reidar.ostrem said:
Android marked is differentiated in terms of country, device, os etc...
Stock NetFlix that works on latest TF update: http://db.tt/yBGwjeN
I also liked the ipads feature to remember the password for VPN, android does not do that unfortunally.. (as far as I know.. i have to enter pw everytime)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is it as easy as with iTunes to have accounts for different regions? As I said with iTunes I got account with US store to get (free) apps like ABC Player and Netflix, with UK store to get BBC iPlayer, 4oD and ITV Player and the rest (that I am actually paying for) are from my Polish account.
Will it be the same with Android Market?
Netflix that I found ther does not list any HC tablets (as supported).
Unless I can check for software updates while using changed IP...? But than again it will only give me apps from one region :-(.
Any insights here? I suppose if its doable on closed system like iOS it has to be doable on Android!
BTW: Thanks for the netflix link. Unfortunatley I do not have an Android tablet yet (waiting for something different than Tegra 2 devices). But I will meka a download and keep it for the future ;-)
The latest Transformer update is supposed to add native support for Netflix, the problem is figuring out how to trick it into thinking you are located in the US. I just don't know from experience if the Netflix app will play nice with your VPN. And there is built-in support for VPN in Honeycomb, but again it's something I don't have a whole lot of experience with, and often times it is better implemented through third party apps.
Most Android apps at this point don't support Samba natively, so that's why you need root and manually set a mount point in Cifs Manager. Once Cifs Manager has mounted your NAS though, it should be visible to all other applications. I like to mount my Samba shares in the /sdcard directory, for instance. File Manager HD is the only application I have installed that has native Samba support, and it also allows you to browse hard drive directories like C$ if you happen to be sharing files natively from a Windows PC. But everything else will require a manually-configured mount point via cifs before you can see what's stored on your NAS.
Dice Player has given me no issues with choppy playback in 720p. It's a night and day difference compared to the stock video player, and that's because it has proper hardware acceleration.
You don't need to root if you just want to stream and view files from your Samba share.
ES File Manager does this perfectly. It will show all samba files and stream videos from there without root.
What are Samba shares everyone is talking about? Is this a Linux thing? Since I am using Windows all I know is DLNA, where ES file manager picks up the folders containing the media.
As a side note really wish those guys at XMBC would care enough to port the platform not necessarily the engine. That is where the IPad really beats Android.
xsacha said:
You don't need to root if you just want to stream and view files from your Samba share.
ES File Manager does this perfectly. It will show all samba files and stream videos from there without root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not just streaming videos that the op wants, though. Certain apps require direct access to the share, and thus you will need to mount them to a folder they can read from. For example, the Music app won't add anything to the library unless it thinks it's stored locally on the internal sdcard or the external microsd, as in the /sdcard and /Removable/MicroSD directories. Setting a mount point in Cifs Manager means you don't have to go through a file manager every time, you can mount to a folder within /sdcard, and media libraries can be generated and organized as if reading from local storage.
AstroTrain said:
What are Samba shares everyone is talking about? Is this a Linux thing? Since I am using Windows all I know is DLNA, where ES file manager picks up the folders containing the media.
As a side note really wish those guys at XMBC would care enough to port the platform not necessarily the engine. That is where the IPad really beats Android.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samba is the UNIX-based application for managing Windows-based SMB/CIFS shares. Windows users typically right click on a folder and select Share, and that is SMB/CIFS sharing. Samba is the UNIX equivalent.
You can view Android market.
https://market.android.com/
Have a search for what you need
Thanks a lot for all your input, it is really appreciated.
I would be very grateful for few more answers.
1. To European users - do you have Netflix and how did you got it (anyone out there has it without root?)
2. There is an app filmon (from filmon.com) that shoul allow for watching BBC and itv - can you let me know ifit is working on HC (it is on iPad).
3. My NAS drive allows either for smb access or uPNP, do I still need to root? All I have there are some documents, movies, bit of music (most of it is at Google Music already) and photos. My drive is My Book World Edition.
4. Does your stock browser syncs with Chrome? (bookmark bar is quite important to me)
5. Can Honeycomb tablet receive SMS/text messages? (with 3G on board of course...).
6. If you do not use stock browser. What do you use and can it be marked as a default in the system (iPad dose not allow for any change like this - stupid machine).
Thanks in advance for your time and thoughts.
earlyberd said:
The latest Transformer update is supposed to add native support for Netflix, the problem is figuring out how to trick it into thinking you are located in the US.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I signed up for the cheapest StrongVPN service and joined Netflix. Downloaded the '246apk' and it works fine. All done on a standard unrooted TF from the UK.
I've installed Google Music on my D2G running Galnet MIUI and I'm loving it.
I have another Android device, a supercheap WM8650 tablet running Uberoid. I want to turn it into a cloud player using Google Music so I can play my music on it without having to buy more high-capacity microSD cards.
So I installed Google Music on it (latest version - I'm not in the USA so I have to download the apk externally), and it promptly stopped working. I googled a bit, and it appears Google Music has trouble running on generic devices. I'm wondering if the reason for this is known, and if there are ways to fix this problem. I'd have no problems using one of the alternatives, but from what I'm seeing Google Music is the only one that doesn't have ridiculously restrictive storage - I have 15 gigs worth of ogg files, so stuff like Droptunes is useless to me.
You could try browsing to music.google.com from a browser that supports user agent spoofing, like dolphin HD, and set it to a Desktop user agent?
I know that's kind of a crappy workaround, but I'm not sure about why GM wouldn't work well on generic android devices...
BroidDrionic said:
You could try browsing to music.google.com from a browser that supports user agent spoofing, like dolphin HD, and set it to a Desktop user agent?
I know that's kind of a crappy workaround, but I'm not sure about why GM wouldn't work well on generic android devices...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds fine in principle, but doesn't work so well on my tablet - it's very slow, and it takes a long time for the site just to load the list, let alone launch the player. I really need a native app.
The only alternative I've found so far is Audiogalaxy (a name I remember fondly from the early days of peer-to-peer... *sigh* ), but that isn't a cloud storage player, just a streaming player. In other words, if I want to have my library permanently available I need to have a computer with significant storage always on and connected, acting as a file server. A Windows computer, so I can't use any old diskless laptop with a USB thumbdrive. And if my connection or power goes down I can kiss my files goodbye. And the server wastes power.
This will do as an emergency measure, but I really need someplace to put my files. Is there a music player that will work from normal ftp storage? I have a website, I could easily upload my music to the space I use for it.
Bumpty bump.
what distro/android version is the app made for (ex: 2.1+). Which version is running on your tablet?