Android Tablet?

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CHAoS_NiNJA

[H]ard|Gawd
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May 26, 2005
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With the release of the iPad, a lot of Android tablets seem to have come out in a very similar style (EKEN M001, iRobot aPad, a few others I've looked up) and I've come to wonder, are there any Android tablets like these on the (US) market yet that have good reviews? The more I look it up, the more I want one. I was never interested in an iPad (so don't suggest it), but these Android tablets certainly have my attention.

Thoughts?
 
Hell, when I get my Evo on Friday, i'll be selling my netbook as its (the Evo's) screen is big enough to be considered a small tablet.
 
If you're interested, the best advice I can offer is:

Wait. Then wait some more. ;)

Seriously, waiting is a very good idea because most of the current Android "tablets" that are either on the market (the Archos 5 Android Tablet having been around since last August, and a few others) are still using either version 1.5, 1.6, or - if you're very very lucky - 1.7 of the Android OS.

Nothing on the market today or that I'm aware of coming to market anytime soon ("soon" being about 3-6 months from today) are running Android 2.0, 2.1, and of course nothing runs 2.2 (Froyo) yet, and that's the OS to really get the job done since it's faster all around and also has more features obviously.

I considered getting an Android tablet of some kind in the recent past, spent a lot of time focusing on that Archos 5 Android Tablet aka the A5A (don't confuse it with the Archos 5 Internet Tablet aka the A5IT which runs Archos' own custom Linux distro, not Android) but... here's my problem with it:

Archos has issues, the company itself. They're fracturing themselves drastically with respect to Android and devices. Until a few weeks ago the A5A was their only Android device on the market, now they have the A7A (way underpowered compared to the A5A) - a 7" tablet - but it's running Android OS 1.5, an even OLDER version of the OS than the A5A does (1.6).

On top of this, multiple devices with different versions of the same OS, they've recently announced no less than 5 more "tablet" style devices coming in the next few months. They're murdering themselves with having to maintain 7, 8, 9 different devices on the market at the same time and each one could potentially be running entirely different versions of Android. As the messenger in "300" stated...

"THIS IS MADNESS!!!"

Now, take that one company that's trying to do so much with Android and then you'll find others that are doing the same thing: announcing multiple devices of all shapes and sizes and configurations, banking on the fact that they're running Android as the primary draw even in spite of coupling the OS with pretty shoddy and underpowered hardware.

A nice screen and Android do not a tablet make. ;)
 
Well, as Computex is now fully under way, as expected even more tablets are being announced, this one comes near the top of the list so far:

http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/31/msi-windpad-110-a-10-inch-tegra-2-powered-android-tablet/

Just thinking of a Tegra 2 powering that device should lead to a lot of potential... a lot indeed.

I would expect that MSI would stand behind it and develop for it faster than Archos but, it remains to be seen. There should be a TON of these devices introduced over the next few days (reports are coming in obviously because it's taking place in Taipei so, they've got almost a day's jump on most of us in the US and other parts of the world as well).
 
The MSI looks great, however what brought my interest to Android tablets was one thing above most: Price. The EKEN M001 can be picked up for like 130 bucks, which I find to be incredible. If theres a cheap as well tablet I could find to run Win7, even if a little laggy, that'd be fantastic, but any Win7 tablet isi n the 500 dollar range, which is not what I'm looking for.

Ugh. I really hate to wait. That Eken is so damn tempting as is for the price you can find it at.
 
I'm just gonna say this once:

There's a reason it's ~$130... ;)

And I'll leave it at that. I can get a 16GB "mp3 player" at Fry's right now (well, when they're open that is) for $49.99 - and there's a reason it's so cheap in terms of price. It's a cheap piece of shit that barely functions as an actual mp3 player in spite of the printed specs, printed capabilities, etc. But, in today's disposable product society most people would look at $130 and change as a drop in the bucket, I suppose, especially when compared to the $499+ for the iPad.

If companies could crank out 7" Android tablets for such low prices, the sheer supply-vs-demand concept would fly right out the window... if you think Apple has issues meeting demand, good lord. :D
 
LOL @ $399 MSI 10" tablet. "Apple gets $500, so we can get $400 easily!" :p glwt

I'll explain why Bahamut wrote "There's a reason it's ~$130..." about the EKEN M001 tablet. First off, you can get it for $100 shipped at dealextreme. http://www.dealextreme.com/forums/Forums.dx/Forum.39169~threadid.617429 If you understand what you're getting, it may be worth the money.

OK, firstly the processor in that tablet is based on the ancient ARM v5 instruction set. Performance is very low end compared to other current low end ARM devices. On http://slatedroid.com/index.php?topic=238.0 (ignore the BOGOMips rating in the last post on page 1, it is not the clock speed), this 600MHz VIA ARM processor has the performance of a 400MHz ARM v6 chip. That was average like 5years ago, but really slow now.

Don't have dreams of showing up an iPad. The EKEN M001 has very little memory and has a slow processor. Video playback at 800x480? LOL, not really. Get used to 320x200 MPEG-1 at best (edit: found video benchmarks, h263 video 500kbps-1Mbps @ 15fps is possible at 288x176). Gaming? Checkers. It does not contain a video or graphics accelerator. Web browsing will be really slow unless you stick to the mobile version of sites. Battery life? Good question. :p If anything can be called an overgrown (mediocre) cell phone, it's this.

So why would anyone want it? It's the cheapest Android tablet you can buy new. If the features that it does support interest you, it could be appealing on those things alone. Otherwise it has very little to offer.

If you want something more usable, keep an eye out for this: http://www.shanzai.com/index.php/ba...ad-clone-is-the-most-powerful-ipad-clone-yet- It may be very attractive, depending on the final price. Just keep in mind that the "slow" Atom used in netbooks runs rings around even 1GHz Cortex A8 processors used in that Zenithinks tablet and the iPad.
 
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I only meant to use the Ekens M001 as an example, as I would be looking for something a little more powerful, but I do still have an interest in the budget 7" Android tablet market, just for something to carry with me around the home and when I go out for the basic things. I will in fact likely be waiting for an Android tablet that ships with 2.0+ at a fair price. I don't want to beat the iPad with a cheap Chinese knockoff, I just want something cool thats easy on the wallets :D
 
Bahamut said:
Now, take that one company that's trying to do so much with Android and then you'll find others that are doing the same thing: announcing multiple devices of all shapes and sizes and configurations, banking on the fact that they're running Android as the primary draw even in spite of coupling the OS with pretty shoddy and underpowered hardware.

A nice screen and Android do not a tablet make. ;)
Click to expand...

This is the biggest problem right now. For the sake of competition I hope that someone releases an Android tablet with fast internals and a high quality IPS display with responsive touch input like the iPad has.
 
XvMMvX said:
Why is everyone so adverse to the ipad.
Click to expand...
Because they're shielded from the RDF. :p

If you notice a theme for the other tablets mentioned in this thread, it's not only that they lack an Apple logo. You can basically run anything you want on these, or connect any bit of hardware you please. The iPad is a very closed platform with numerous restrictions on use.
 
pxc said:
Because they're shielded from the RDF. :p

If you notice a theme for the other tablets mentioned in this thread, it's not only that they lack an Apple logo. You can basically run anything you want on these, or connect any bit of hardware you please. The iPad is a very closed platform with numerous restrictions on use.
Click to expand...

I'm much more interested in the Android tablets, despite the similar restrictions from the Marketplace. The ones running Windows 7 will no doubt be slower, not to mention have an inferior touch UI compared to mobile OS X or Android. Sure you can run any Windows software on it, but what's the point on low power hardware, on such a little screen, and without a mouse and keyboard?
 
If you notice a theme for the other tablets mentioned in this thread, it's not only that they lack an Apple logo. You can basically run anything you want on these, or connect any bit of hardware you please. The iPad is a very closed platform with numerous restrictions on use.
Click to expand...

Droid tablets are going to face the same restrictions. Things have to developed specifically for it, and the windows tablets interest me but they are still a year away.
 
pxc said:
Because they're shielded from the RDF. :p

If you notice a theme for the other tablets mentioned in this thread, it's not only that they lack an Apple logo. You can basically run anything you want on these, or connect any bit of hardware you please. The iPad is a very closed platform with numerous restrictions on use.
Click to expand...

Exactly. No flash, no USB ports, small storage size, limited use, restricted to apps, essentially a supersized ipod touch. A full-on tablet like the Asus versions are what I'm looking forward to. Apps are fine in small doses, but the limited functionality really hinders the device's usefulness IMO. If all you want is the apps then go for it. My mom would love one. Hell, I might like it too, but there's so much more a full tablet pc can do that it doesn't justify paying MORE for the LESS functionality of the ipad...unless you need one right now.
 
And let's face it...iPads are toys. They are not necessary devices. No one "needs" them.
 
Daggah said:
And let's face it...iPads are toys. They are not necessary devices. No one "needs" them.
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Agreed. If they were half price I could see getting one for my mom so she can surf and check email on the couch since she doesn't need a full laptop or netbook and her computer is slow. For casual browsing on the couch or waiting at Jiffy Lube or something, then sure. Also, D&D. A guy in my group has one with all his ebooks and a dice roller. Pretty slick, but not for $500 IMO. The upside is that's all he brings to the table. I still prefer my netbook and dice thankyouverymuch. :D
 
XvMMvX said:
Droid tablets are going to face the same restrictions. Things have to developed specifically for it, and the windows tablets interest me but they are still a year away.
Click to expand...

Here's what you can do with Android that you can't do with the iPhone OS (without hacking)

* Install apps from external sources - very important! Especially when you consider that with Android, you don't have to worry about the App Store's overlords deciding for you that an app is unnecessary (see: recent "desktop apps"), or offensive, or has too much functionality (see: what they did to the Stanza ereader app a few months ago)
* Have real access to the file system...no reliance on the flawed syncing mechanism. (Hey, look, I can plug my Android phone into different computers to transfer different pictures, music, and videos on and off without it wiping everything on my phone and replacing it only with content from the computer I'm connected to!)
* Real multitasking - not iPhone OS 4.0's hacked version that doesn't really multitask.
* On Android you don't have to worry about the Apple Messiah deciding for everyone that things like Flash are not going to be implemented, period.

So no, Android tablets will not face the same restrictions. Far from it.
 
I really hope there will be a premium android tablet out that has the refinement of the iPad. I'd really like a tablet with an IPS screen like the iPads or even an OLED screen. PVA is okay too I guess.
 
Bahamut said:
I don't get why companies are using Android as the base and yet they feel they MUST create their own UI to plaster on top of it. Still can't quite figure that one out.
Click to expand...

Think of it like OEM shovelware that gets slapped onto desktops or customized themes they put on preloaded systems.
 
I just got an Archos 7HT tablet today, and I'm loving it so far. I've been in the market for an e-book reader for a while and it's great for that. I avoided the e-ink readers because I also want to read comics, so want color. It's only Android 1.5(at the moment at least), but it does what I'm looking for and it was only $200. I'm very happy with my purchase.
 
revefel:

Can you post some pics, a mini-review, anything? For that cost, a lot of us would also be interested to hear your experience. Is it laggy as I noticed in demo videos about 2 months ago when it was first announced/shown at a trade show? Or does it just work smoothly all around...

Any info would be greatly appreciated. I've been considering one primarily as an eBook reader - I'm tired of reading on an iPod touch sized device even though I do still use my Axim X51v for such purposes. Would be nice to finally get a decent sized screen for Aldiko which is what I consider to be a most excellent Android-based eBook reader.

The A7HT could be that device...

(and of course, where'd you get it, at a local store in your area or online, etc?)
 
The Archos tablet plays divx avi movies does it not?

Yeah, Aldiko is awesome...I read through at least a dozen books with it on my Droid before I bought a Nook.
 
Yah, it plays Divx/Xvid encoded AVI files natively, and offers h.264 + MKV support by registering and getting the extra "plugin" (I really hate that about Archos but it's how they do things), so I'm definitely interested in that aspect.

There's a video or two on YouTube of people playing back what they claim to be is "high definition" content and although the limited resolution of these devices (800x480 prevents that playback at native resolution, if it can play my 720p MKV files created by HandBrake from Blu-ray source (h.264 encodings done with x264) then I'd consider it a potential purchase.

But if it's laggy, skips frames, etc, then that's a big issue I'm not interested in getting stuck with. I still have my doubts about Archos as I've already stated but, if this $200 device can get the job done with minimal muss and fuss, it's on the list of potentials...
 
Bahamut said:
revefel:

Can you post some pics, a mini-review, anything? For that cost, a lot of us would also be interested to hear your experience. Is it laggy as I noticed in demo videos about 2 months ago when it was first announced/shown at a trade show? Or does it just work smoothly all around...

Any info would be greatly appreciated. I've been considering one primarily as an eBook reader - I'm tired of reading on an iPod touch sized device even though I do still use my Axim X51v for such purposes. Would be nice to finally get a decent sized screen for Aldiko which is what I consider to be a most excellent Android-based eBook reader.

The A7HT could be that device...

(and of course, where'd you get it, at a local store in your area or online, etc?)
Click to expand...

I haven't really spent a ton of time with it yet. I read a book on Aldiko (which comes pre-installed), great experience there. I've checked out a few comics using Android Comic Viewer, which works pretty well for the most part. Occasionally the text on a comic page is slightly too small to read comfortably, and when zoomed in the scrolling could be a little smoother but far from a deal breaker. I sampled a couple xvid encoded AVI's and they play perfectly, but haven't attempted any HD files. Web browsing isn't too bad, accurately clicking links with a finger can be a bit frustrating but I think that may be better with a different browser. I've read complaints about the default browser but I haven't installed a different one yet to test.

Overall I'm very pleased with the device. As I mentioned my main desire was a good color e-book reader and this does that very well, so everything else is a bonus. The size is perfect for what I wanted. Any larger and I might as well just use my netbook, and smaller is not all that comfortable for me to read on, especially comics.

I got it from Amazon. I'd say it well worth checking out. If you don't like it, you shouldn't have any trouble returning it to Amazon, so I say give it a shot.

A few things that were recommended that I do right away to improve the experience were to update the firmware (Archos has an update on their site) and install an app called Advanced Task Manager Free, which lets you set up a shortcut to kill all open processes. The firmware apparently significantly improves performance ( I have no way to confirm this as I updated the firmware immediately) and from what I understand the device likes to leave apps running in the background causing lag and low memory, which hitting the end processes shortcut occasionally when changing apps avoids.

It's not the end-all be-all of devices, but for me at least it's a happy medium between my Blackberry and my netbook. At least 75% of my use will be as an e-book and comic reader.
 
Excellent. And considering it's a full blown Android powered device (give or take a few things since it's way back on Android 1.5), for the ~$200 cost it most definitely outperforms - in terms of capabilities - any dedicated eBook reader on the market, that's for damned sure.

I just might have to give one of these a shot... I figure the 7" diagonal screen gives about the same size "page" as a real standard paperback book does so, with a few adjustments of the font size/line spacing, someone should be able to replicate a full page of text easily.

That would be probably the most used purpose for such a device for myself, with music coming in second, surfing third, and videos back in fourth.

If you get a chance to comment on your battery life, brightness settings, that sort of thing that would also prove beneficial as info. And try the web surfing I suppose. I know if I get one the first thing I'll do in terms of apps will more than likely be to add Opera mini as that's my portable browser of choice - been using it on my Axim X51v for a very long time now and it's just insanely fast because of Opera's proxy servers and the page compression they use. Nothing else like it out there presently.

Thanks for the info...
 
I'm interested in hearing about the battery life of pretty much any of these models, I can't find much info on them. Only thing harder then that is finding a decent Android tablet, from Asia or otherwise, with a front facing camera. Maybe my standards are too high; Android 2.x, 7" touchscreen, front facing camera, DECENT (not amazing) batterly life for 150-250 bucks...a man can dream. :p Unless anyone knows of one like that? I'm not even sure where to look, only place I found that seems somewhat legit is Merimobiles and even then I don't know much about them besides stuff from YouTube videos.
 
Won't be any tablets like that for months to come. Even in spite of Google's development of Android at a breakneck pace, when it comes right down to it, when they do come out with a new version or update, the end users (the companies that license/use Android on their devices) are way behind on such upgrades for their own hardware. Android still is primarily a cell/smart phone OS first and foremost, so "porting" it to tablet devices and yanking out that cell phone call code and functionality isn't always working, I guess. Cell/smart phones have insane turnover and people won't buy a cell/smart phone with "last year's OS" on it so, that sector of Android development is running at a far greater pace. Android 2.2 was announced at Google I/O a week or so ago and wham, it'll be available on the Droid/etc in a few weeks (and already is thanks to some crafty coders at various forums - unofficially of course).

The Archos 5 Android Tablet came out last August - that's nearly a year ago nowadays - and it's still only up to Android 1.7 officially. If they could put 2.2 on it, my lord, that device would be king of the hill for all it's capable of, but as I've mentioned in the past, Archos is killing itself by fracturing it's line of products with multiple versions of Android being developed at the same time.

Apple succeeds so well because they make a device or two and that device is supported/developed for periods of about a year before the next version comes out - they don't create a flurry of iPod touchs, just one model with different storage configurations whereas Archos has not just one tablet out now but 5 or 6 and they've announced 6 more before the end of 2010, all different from each other, all having to be developed separately, all having different revisions/versions of Android as the OS, etc.

If Archos would come out with a tablet device and stick with it and only with that device like Apple does, they'd get somewhere. But they don't, and they stay basically a niche company with niche products, even in spite of them being available in more locations now (even Radio Shack carries Archos tablets in most every store these days).

It's still not enough... :(
 
I'm starting to think the Archos tablet may fail on being a tablet, but as a portable video player it may just be insanely awesome.

Honestly, if it had a capacitive screen instead of a resistive, I'd probably have one right now.

I'll take a multitude of Android devices to choose from, and the flexibility that comes along with having that choice, over being stuck with Apple's walled garden any day of the week.
 
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