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I am currently looking at buying an Android Tablet. I heave looked at a few but not sure which one to pick.
What I am looking for is the following:
Android 2.2 or better
10" screen
web cam
multi-touch screen
good battery life
1080p HD playback is a positive
access to the Android Market would be best but not a necessity
<$400
fastest processor possible
If anybody has any ideas or suggestions I would appreciate any feedback.
I have looked at the following but I am open to other suggestions
Archos 101
Viewsonic GTablet
Nook Color
Samsung Galaxy Tab - dont need the cellular connection and would really like a larger screen
I have a ViewSonic G Tablet running TnT Lite 4.2.1. Installed LauncherPro on it, and I'm loving it. Playing Dungeon Defenders, Raging Thunder, Pocket Legends, Angry Birds, Crazy Snowboard, all perfectly at full screen. WiFi connection works great, Dolphin HD Browser loads all sites with flash (Even works on Hulu for the most part, some videos on Hulu I have had to reload once or twice to get them to play).
USB keyboard plugs in and works flawlessly, has read all of my USB Hard drives without issue (Fat32). Dumped photos off of my Sony digital camera right onto the internal tablet storage.
All in all, for under 400 bucks this tablet is a steal. And being the only Tegra2 one on your list (not sure if it's the only one on the market now other than the Adam), I'd say go for it. The thing really flies once you get a custom rom on it like TnT Lite (or other).
You should decide if you are looking for something that "just works" or if you want to tinker.
On that list, I'd put the Galaxy Tab in the "just works" column, with all of the others in the "tinker" column.
I love my gTablet, but wouldn't recommend it to anyone that isn't a tinkerer. It is an awesome platform and the software gets better by the day. Given the specs you list and the price point, it is a solid option. You have several great choices of Android builds (CM, Vegan, TNT Lite) and the stock build is pretty usable these days.
If you get any of the "tinker" tablets, prepare to spend all of your free time for a few weeks flashing new roms, trying new apps, testing every little tweak - and finally settling into something usable for you. For me, the time was a bit frustrating - but the roms are much more mature now, and I suspect you'd be up and running in no time.
Given that Tegra2 looks to be THE big Android tablet platform for 2011, I expect my gTablet to keep up with the big boys.
I can't emphasize enough however that the screen sucks - thats the big difference IMHO between the $400 price point and the $600+ price point of the upcoming Android tablets. If you can live with it, its a great value.
Thanks for the info. I was leaning towrds the GTablet. Just wanted to get some.solid opinions of what I was looking at. I am very much a tinker at heart been flashing cell phone since 2004 constantly re-installing an OS on my laptops. I just recently found a ROM that works for me on my Samsung Captivate, which is why I want an Android tablet instead of an iPad or a windows version. The OS is so customizable you can make it your own.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
I'm in the market for a 8inch+ tablet.
I'm generally using it for web browser, mostly android games (Heartstones) and youtube.
I also do have a decent PC with Nvidia video card that can stream on the Nvidia shield table if I ever want to do it.
I heard the Nvidia shield tablet is great for gaming.
The main reason I had my eyes on the Nvidia shield tablet is because of the dual front speaker and great cpu power (future proof).
Would it be a total waste $ if I'm not using it for the main purpose of gaming?
I will definitely not get the Nvidia controller. Unless it was on a sale later in the coming years.
Should I just get a galaxy tab/similar tablets?
Any other tablet recommendation ?
It would be a sound purchase even if you will not be using it primarily for gaming. I'm one of those purchasers, and I am very happy with my purchase. I upgraded from a Tegra Note 7 and Nexus 7 LTE. I purchased the Shield Tablet LTE and transferred the SIM I was using on the Nexus. I'm very satisfied.
I'm running an AOSP build with none of the proprietary Nvidia apps or services and I use it more than the Nexus 9.
I think it is a solid tablet for pretty much any purpose. There are some goodies which few other tablets offer. Sound is nice - louder and more full than other tablets I experienced. The stylus is an extra that I unexpectedly actually use some times for sketching and even general control. I read a lot of comics with it, watch some movies or youtube, and of course browse the web. Web browsing is kinda sluggish some time for me. I had a low budget 8 inch Win 8 tablet before - browsing was a better experience there - but still, the Shield is quite good or I think comparable to other high end tablets.
Have had mine for 2 months, haven't spent a single moment using it for gaming - & love the thing.
Thank for the inputs.
I will most likely get the Shield tablet.
I want to get something $300 ish.
The galaxy tab series are nice but I want something bit more.
The galaxy tab S series are what I'm looking for in term of performance but its over my budget.
I been reading some research on the other forums as well.
I'm now a bit worry about the cracked edge.
How common is this?
I'm an all around type of person. I sometimes play games but I also use it as a regular tablet. I also have a tablet mount in my car and use it to play Sound Cloud, Waze, Torque Pro and other various apps. It does have its own quirks such as 5.0.1 doesn't really respond to root very well so I've elected to drop back down to 4.4.4. Works wonderfully right now.
bobola said:
I been reading some research on the other forums as well.
I'm now a bit worry about the cracked edge.
How common is this?
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It's not uncommon but supposedly they've fixed the major issues that cause it to just spontaneously crack. Still, it's very easy to get replaced and the send you one first so you won't have to be without. It's annoying but it's mostly cosmetic atleast.
One downside is lack of accessories. There are screen protectors and cases, but there aren't many options. No tempered glass and really only one hard case right now and I doubt that will get better.
I'd recommend it over a samsung, but then again samsung is one of the last major OEMs I'd get a device from. Not a fan of their software or physical button setup (one hard button + capacitive buttons.
For the price I went for it and don't regret it. The stock os is basically AOSP with some extras thrown in and Nvidia has been pretty good about updating it.
---------- Post added at 10:53 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:49 AM ----------
SEscobedo said:
I'm an all around type of person. I sometimes play games but I also use it as a regular tablet. I also have a tablet mount in my car and use it to play Sound Cloud, Waze, Torque Pro and other various apps. It does have its own quirks such as 5.0.1 doesn't really respond to root very well so I've elected to drop back down to 4.4.4. Works wonderfully right now.
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5.0+ and I've had zero issues with root, flash the newest supersu zip for 5.0 and you should be fine. Everything I did with it before lollipop works fine after updating. I can see some apps not working with ART if they haven't been very well supported/updated, but I haven't had any issues with that either.
And here I'd definitely recommend Samsung over NVIDIA, although Samsung badly needs to come out with a newer generation tablet featuring an S-Pen. The Tab S line makes this device look clunky unresponsive in terms of touch input.
Use mine for non gaming and work - it's been great. No cracked edges and I bought it in October last year. I love the pen functionality!
sbdags said:
Use mine for non gaming and work - it's been great. No cracked edges and I bought it in October last year. I love the pen functionality!
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Hi sbdags! Great to see you here. Are you thinking of doing any development for this wonderful tab?
Without you I would have ditched my TF700 ages ago.
okantomi said:
Hi sbdags! Great to see you here. Are you thinking of doing any development for this wonderful tab?
Without you I would have ditched my TF700 ages ago.
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Hi mate - long time no see! Yes once I finish the latest CROMi-X for the TF701T I am going to unlockl and see what can be done with the shield. I'm keen to keep the CleanROM principles so it will be stock NVIDIA based but allow us to remove what we want and offer some performance tweaks.
Watch this space.
Your deft touch is all this baby needs. It's almost great right out of the box.
okantomi said:
Your deft touch is all this baby needs. It's almost great right out of the box.
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Which is why I am still locked and not rooted yet
sbdags said:
Hi mate - long time no see! Yes once I finish the latest CROMi-X for the TF701T I am going to unlockl and see what can be done with the shield. I'm keen to keep the CleanROM principles so it will be stock NVIDIA based but allow us to remove what we want and offer some performance tweaks.
Watch this space.
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This tablet could definetly use a ROM with some (especially battery) tweaks thrown in!
First I apologize if this is not the correct section, there doesn't appear to be a general tablet section.
I really need some help on deciding on a new tablet & I'm hoping I can get some advice. I currently have a Hisense Sero 7 Pro that I bought a couple of years ago. It's been a decent & reliable tablet but it has become very laggy lately as I load more apps onto it & try to multitask with it more. It also freezes constantly now for no reason.
I'm looking for a 7 inch tablet in the $100-$130 range. I don't know a ton about tablets. I know with personal computers that for the most part more RAM means equals less laggy performance. Would a Quad Core tabley with 1 GB of RAM be a safe bet for years of use with almost no performance lag or slowdown? I use it mostly for web surfing & some games like Candy crush, Subway Surfers & Temple Run. My daughter will also sometimes watch some TV shows that I have loaded on a Micro SD card.
Again my main priority is something that will be unlikely to slow down & freeze over time. For tablets what is the key for that? Quad Core, memory, something else? Sorry for the newb question.
Edit... One thing I forgot to mention is it must have a Micro SD card option.
Hey,
I would have to recommend the Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 7.0 Tablet, Quad-core Marvell PXA, Android, 7", Wi-Fi, 8GB, Black. I've been using this tablet for a while now, and I've got a lot of apps installed as well as having a few games for my girlfriends brother (he's three) and we can both use this and it isn't too heavy. The screen is awesome and the tablet is really fast. I had a Nexus Tablet 7 before and it just kept dying really quickly and wasn't really up to standard.
I hope this might help you, also I understand that the tablet I've recommended isn't the cheapest!! But I think you'd be better off paying a little bit more and therefore getting more bang for your buck as the old saying goes.
Thank you for the suggestion. I don't mind paying a little more to get a better tablet. Do Samsung's tablets also come with TouchWiz like their phone's do? I've never been a big fan of that so might be a deal breaker.
I just noticed that the Nexus 7 tablet has 2GB's of RAM. For $165 it seems like a pretty decent deal. Does anyone have any positive or negative experience with the Nexus 7?
http://www.amazon.com/Nexus-Google-...8&qid=1430875921&sr=1-1&keywords=nexus+tablet
NY Yankee Pride said:
I just noticed that the Nexus 7 tablet has 2GB's of RAM. For $165 it seems like a pretty decent deal. Does anyone have any positive or negative experience with the Nexus 7?
http://www.amazon.com/Nexus-Google-...8&qid=1430875921&sr=1-1&keywords=nexus+tablet
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Samsung tablets come with Touchwiz. The Nexus 7 is a very good tablet, especially for the price.
NY Yankee Pride said:
I just noticed that the Nexus 7 tablet has 2GB's of RAM. For $165 it seems like a pretty decent deal. Does anyone have any positive or negative experience with the Nexus 7?
http://www.amazon.com/Nexus-Google-...8&qid=1430875921&sr=1-1&keywords=nexus+tablet
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The Nexus 7 is a competent tablet. Being a Nexus device you get the quickest updates to new Android versions from Google, and/or tons of 3rd party custom development (ROMs, kernels, etc). The one thing it lacks though (being a Nexus device) is a microSD card slot. I believe you can, however, use USB OTG (on-the-go) cables to plug in SD card readers or USB thumb drives, although this might require a custom ROM/kernel that enables this function, or at least requires Chainfire's Stick Mount app.
Hi. My sero7 pro is 2 yrs old and still going strong. You didn't say, do you have root? Are you running a custom rom? lollipop is now available, as other custom roms. Not trying to talk you out of a new tablet, but maybe you can fix this one for your child. It's an awesome, fast tablet.
My antutu score with dopa lollipop is 23,166. And no freezing.
Planterz said:
The one thing it lacks though (being a Nexus device) is a microSD card slot. I believe you can, however, use USB OTG (on-the-go) cables to plug in SD card readers or USB thumb drives, although this might require a custom ROM/kernel that enables this function, or at least requires Chainfire's Stick Mount app.
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I didn't realize the Nexus 7 lacked a microSD card slot, I think that's going to be a deal breaker although I may still consider it.
kc12 said:
Hi. My sero7 pro is 2 yrs old and still going strong. You didn't say, do you have root? Are you running a custom rom? lollipop is now available, as other custom roms. Not trying to talk you out of a new tablet, but maybe you can fix this one for your child. It's an awesome, fast tablet.
My antutu score with dopa lollipop is 23,166. And no freezing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do not have root. I guess I could try that with a custom ROM. At first I thought maybe I had rogue app that was causing problems with the tablet but even after doing a factory reset & only loading a few essential apps it still becomes laggy very quickly with constant freezing. Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking the Sero 7 Pro, it has been an awesome tablet when it worked. I'm thinking something is wrong with it though at this point so I'm only looking for something new because this one has now become frustrating to use. If I could find a way to get this tablet working like it did the past 2 years I'd be ecstatic. I think the Sero 7 Pro was a very under rated tablet for the money.
root on the sero7 pro
I think it's worth a try, what would you have to loose? The developer DoloressPark is awesome! Lots of development. His thread for root, custom recovery, and an upgrade to the stock rom is here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2470998
IF you need help, I have a tutorial here: http://sero7forum.com/sero-7-root-hack-mod-and-development/rooting-step-by-step-picture-guide/
other custom Roms are available after you root and get your custom recovery.
ASOP http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2709243
Lollipop http://forum.xda-developers.com/android/development/rom-sero-7-pro-uk-au-aosp-5-0-2r1-dopa5-t3015014
others too, if you're interested: http://sero7forum.com/sero-7-root-hack-mod-and-development/custom-roms-for-the-sero7-pro/
The wife got me a shield for Christmas 2014. Had it for a couple months, then it started not responding or shutting down randomly. RMAed it. 3-4 months later the new tablet was recalled. Got a New one.... The new one never acted right studdered constantly. At that point I gave up, I used the tablet. But never really set it up, I just put games that I could save to the cloud with. And now it has started shutting down like the first one. So another RMA.
Am I the only one?
bucket81 said:
The wife got me a shield for Christmas 2014. Had it for a couple months, then it started not responding or shutting down randomly. RMAed it. 3-4 months later the new tablet was recalled. Got a New one.... The new one never acted right studdered constantly. At that point I gave up, I used the tablet. But never really set it up, I just put games that I could save to the cloud with. And now it has started shutting down like the first one. So another RMA.
Am I the only one?
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Click to collapse
The K1 is my first tablet. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say its probably the worst tablet for $200. I've only had mine for a month. Already returned one cuz the OTA broke WiFi. WiFi sucks hard, constantly getting slow connection warnings on my favorite game (blame it on MM go ahead but my Nexus on MM doesn't have any issues), the reason I bought the tablet was to play it. Screen becomes unresponsive all the time, like 10x a day, sometimes I have to wait up to 5minutes just to open the app drawer, I've resorted to putting all my apps on my HS just to try to avoid this, doesn't help. Battery is horrid, stand by time is garbage, I have to turn it off just to have power when I want to use it again, Misc bug is not fixed. Charging is super slow, charge for hours only gains 20-30%. Support from Nvidia is non existent, posted on the support forums, not one response from anyone except users making excuses for this garbage.
I'm not rooted, completely stock, but maybe I should root to see if I can fix the issues myself but from what I read on multiple sites nothing helps. Will never buy a product from this company again. It's not just u
Yeah the software is buggy. Both Google and NV are to blame here. I've rolled back to Lollipop and Kitkat. Part of the problem is newer versions of Android tend to break apps that aren't updated anymore.
Don't expect companies to respond on forums. NV generally uses them only passively. Forums are a gas can of drama and lynch mobs waiting to explode. You can definitely contact them by other means.
swaaye said:
Yeah the software is buggy. Both Google and NV are to blame here. I've rolled back to Lollipop and Kitkat. Part of the problem is newer versions of Android tend to break apps that aren't updated anymore.
Don't expect companies to respond on forums. NV generally uses them only passively. Forums are a gas can of drama and lynch mobs waiting to explode. You can definitely contact them by other means.
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i was contemplating about getting it becuase i need one, but it seems that unfortunately is down to the iPad or a Galaxy Tab S. As much as i dislike Sammy's SW update practice and Apple's lack of features, they are rock solid (i have both ipad air and tab s for my kids). Never had issues with them, but is time i stop hijacking my kid's galaxy tablet
I don't think the Shield is by any means a disaster. If you buy one, stay on the original Lollipop release until NV and Google get Marshmallow more refined. A lot of issues were cleared up with a recent update but it introduced wifi problems for a subset of users so they ceased distribution of it for the moment.
Shield is a neat tablet that is great for games and media. Fast for general apps too and just a great value for its price. Fun optional accessories and console mode capabilities too.
swaaye said:
Yeah the software is buggy. Both Google and NV are to blame here. I've rolled back to Lollipop and Kitkat. Part of the problem is newer versions of Android tend to break apps that aren't updated anymore.
Don't expect companies to respond on forums. NV generally uses them only passively. Forums are a gas can of drama and lynch mobs waiting to explode. You can definitely contact them by other means.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I totally understand about forums but if its an official NV support forum on their site I expect something from them. At least a mod response.
BTW lost 5% battery just typing this ????
I feel like the phrase "it's a good value for the price" is a weak point. It doesn't work.... If it's a good value it works.
Also not on 6.0. I really think its bad hardware and poor QC. I really don't think NVIDIA would have responded to anything.
I was looking at the Galaxy Tab A with Spen but..... The screen sucks. I like the Tab S but I wanted a pen. And there's the Zentab S... I am also playing with the wife's Surface 3 and Android emulators like Blue Stacks.
I've been using the K1 for a bit more than a month. I really haven't had much trouble with it. I've run their 4.4.2, 5.0.1, 5.1.1, and 6.0 releases on it. The problems I've had are primarily with apps not working on all OS versions and this is not really a NV specific problem.
The initial 6.0 had some quirks like the touchpad on their controller was non-functional. Yeah I have the controller. It's interesting and works well, including the gamepad mapper. There is also the apparent problem with the logd daemon hitting the CPU too much and wasting battery. I have not tried the newest 6.0 release. I'm waiting on NV to put it into the OTA system again. I'm not much impressed with 6.0 though because it's a lot like 5.x but adopted storage is not so hot and I preferred the old "move to SD" function (which is gone).
I own/have owned a bunch of different tablets and am used to fighting with Android quirks. I tend to go for fun projects like the old Nook tablets, some Chinese tablets, and Windows tablets. At the moment I have an Onda V919 Dual OS, Tegra Note 7, Venue 8 Pro, and the Shield K1. Samsung might be the way to go if you want the most solid experience. I would read the forums first on that though to be sure you aren't dreaming.
I think I might see if the replacement works. If not I'll sell it and move one.
Of course its not the best, but what do you expect for 200 bucks. That being said my only problem is the build quality, everything else works like it should. Im now since a week or so on 6.0 and everything works, its smooth and fast, no wifi issues. Performance wise its still one of the best Android devices till now, although its about 2 years old.
Here all fine...the only think i can't have working is the stylus only mode and lazo capture...back on MM update but even if I mod the build.prob nothing happen.
Waiting for 1.1 OTA
Hi guys,
I'm still my ol'good Asus TF-700. I have installed a long time ago the zombi-pop 5.1 rom.
The tablet is running quite fine but despite having everything on sdcard, some lags remain.
I saw that newer ROMs based on MM or Nougat do not support SDCard installation anymore.
So, will those ROMs give me better performance anyway ? Or Zombi-pop is still the best I can have.
I'm wondering if my lags are not due to F2FS not supportying TRIM...I may go back to ext4, don't know...
On another side, i'm considering changing my tablet. But I really apperciate the keyboard dock with battery and 10" screen.
I know Google Pixel C but it's very expensive.
Any other tablet you can suggest that will fit my needs ?
Regards.
It wasnt too hard to change up the ROM. I flashed the katkiss ROM yesterday.
I was thinking about changing over to a surface pro but not sure yet...
Chuwi makes several tabs that are dual OS Windows/Android RemixOS. A friend of mine bought one and likes it but I don't know how good they really are. But it is interesting....
http://en.chuwi.com/tablet.html
Im running KatKiss nougat and have been on a never ending quest for the best performance. I suggest running Nougat. Putting and keeping the CPU speed at 1.4mhz and using ZRAM on boot. That seems to make it quite snappy and good on battery life. My main use is to use Microsoft Word at work and watch Podcasts and Netflix. Generally that is enough for me. Word is a BEAST and seems to take a toll on memory etc. I suggest keeping the sync and autosave functions off and keep the files on the local drive and sync them later into the google drive.
I may be a little late to the thread but I recently replaced my TF700 with a Samsung Chromebook Plus and its just great.
Chromebooks now run Android apps (well some of them do) and this device has a 2400x1600 display, keyboard, touchpad, touch-screen, pressure sensitive stylus and a microSD slot.
Overall this thing is awesome, so much better performance than the TF700.
There are a few minor negatives. No way to get root access or install custom ROMs (but you can install linux), and Android apps don't yet have access to the SDcard (but should in a few versions).
Currently you can open files read-only from the Chrome files app and choose an Android app to run them in.
I don't really miss root access much and the frequent updates to Chromebooks (for at least 5 years) lessens my desire for custom ROMs.
I recommend taking a look at a few Chromebooks if you are still looking for a new device, they are a much cheaper option than many of the Android tablets that are around.
Hi. Sorry this is not the original intention of the thread.
I just picked up a TF700 for light use. Maybe take to class for note taking or just bring with me when I don't feel like toting my laptop. Anyways I just wanted to find out from you guys what you recommend software-wise for maximum usability. Will I see a significant increase in speed if I install a custom ROM? It currently just has the stock 4.2.1. A few years ago I used a TF300t and a fancy stylus for note taking, but Inot longer have either. I didn't have the keyboard for it, so this seems like it will be more useful.
Pr.TOSHIBA said:
Hi. Sorry this is not the original intention of the thread.
I just picked up a TF700 for light use. Maybe take to class for note taking or just bring with me when I don't feel like toting my laptop. Anyways I just wanted to find out from you guys what you recommend software-wise for maximum usability. Will I see a significant increase in speed if I install a custom ROM? It currently just has the stock 4.2.1. A few years ago I used a TF300t and a fancy stylus for note taking, but Inot longer have either. I didn't have the keyboard for it, so this seems like it will be more useful.
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Click to collapse
.
The only active development of ROM for TF700 and likely better than anything out there is on this thread. As you're on android 4 you probably have some maintenance to do to get from there to the latest version V24 7.1.2 your bootloader is probably older for starters.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/transformer-tf700/development/rom-t3457417