Nook Color vs Archos 70/101 - Nook Color General

http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/24/archos-70-and-101-internet-tablet-review/
Just $49 more for cameras, kickstands, Android 2.2, less headache, and more.
What do you think? Which one is better?
Anyone used both? Or considering returning the NC for an Archos?

I was just talking about this subject with some friends.
Nook has a much better screen. A 1024x600 res IPS with great angles and crispness. The Archos 70 has a crappy 800x480 TN screen with really bad viewing angles. Screen quality in a tablet is probably most important to me. I want to be able to hold this thing any any direction at any angle and still see it, can't do that with the Archos.
The Nook feels solid... maybe a little too solid, as it is certainly heavier than the Archos 70. The Archos is reportedly very flimsy feeling. This could go either way depending on how much you value solid feeling versus weight.
The Nook has 512MB of RAM and it looks like 1GB or more of app storage space (unfortunately I didn't look at it before installing a few things). The Archos 70 has 256MB of RAM and only a measly 256MB of app storage space. Maybe the modders can fix that if they haven't yet, not sure. But that is a big downer for the Archos to me, I've already installed about 400MB of apps on my Nook in that app space.
Archos seems to have performance on it's side. It's CPU runs at the full 1GHz and it's running Android 2.2 already. My Nook feels sluggish with web browsing (using Dolphin HD), but I'm hoping the Nook update to 2.2 in January can help pep it up some. And maybe someday we'll get a 1GHz kernel.
Archos has a few extra hardware features like Bluetooth, HDMI out, better speakers, and cameras (though probably not a big loss if they are as bad as Engadget says they are).
For me the WAY better screen more than makes up for the slightly slower performance and other features the Nook doesn't have.

Connectivity. Vs. Screen quality... Pick your poison.

Ravynmagi said:
The Archos 70 has 256MB of RAM and only a measly 256MB of app storage space. Maybe the modders can fix that if they haven't yet, not sure.
...
And maybe someday we'll get a 1GHz kernel.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just to clarify, RAM, flash storage space, and CPU are not things that can be fixed/improved with software. These are determined by the physical chips that are soldered on to the board.
There are apps to boost CPU speed a bit, but you will start to run into stability issues if you bump it up too much above what the chip was binned at. A nice 2.2 build might improve things a bit on the NC, but the archos will likely always have an edge. Not just because of its higher clock speed, but also because it has fewer pixels to render.

candre23 said:
Just to clarify, RAM, flash storage space, and CPU are not things that can be fixed/improved with software. These are determined by the physical chips that are soldered on to the board.
There are apps to boost CPU speed a bit, but you will start to run into stability issues if you bump it up too much above what the chip was binned at. A nice 2.2 build might improve things a bit on the NC, but the archos will likely always have an edge. Not just because of its higher clock speed, but also because it has fewer pixels to render.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't you mean the nk will have the slightest edge once it gets 2.2?

that all depends on what soc graphics chip the archos 70 has because the ti omap proc at 800 can go blow for blow with alot of 1ghz chips

I think most important think is amount of RAM - 256MB is just to little to get going with highend apps like Flash or games.

The Archos 70 8GB model "feels" flimsy because there is a small gap on the inside center, so this flexes. This gap I believe is from the lack of a harddrive which is in the 250GB model. It only feels flimsy when you push on this gap, however it doesn't twist or anything (strong structure), where the 250 with the drive feels like a brick.

Im dying for the update in january. Let's pray for some decent video playback the hardware is there. cmon!!
Sent from my Nook Color

candre23 said:
Just to clarify, RAM, flash storage space, and CPU are not things that can be fixed/improved with software. These are determined by the physical chips that are soldered on to the board.
There are apps to boost CPU speed a bit, but you will start to run into stability issues if you bump it up too much above what the chip was binned at. A nice 2.2 build might improve things a bit on the NC, but the archos will likely always have an edge. Not just because of its higher clock speed, but also because it has fewer pixels to render.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I thought the Nook was using a 1GHz CPU that was underclocked to 800MHz. Maybe I'm mistaken?
Regarding the app space, that is a software issue though isn't it?. The Nook partitions what appears to be about 1GB of it's 8GB of flash space for apps. The Archos however only partitions 256MB for apps. Seems like a custom ROM on the Archos could change that up and give more space to apps, or so that is what they say on the archosfans.com forums.

Posted this reply in another thread ... worth repeating ...
While the NC supplier (B&N and it's mfg'er) have a limited track record, the record of Archos is pretty clear ... roll out products that target the 'latest trend' with software that is usually not ready and move on to the next latest thing within a very short time leaving a trail of unsupported devices. If you can live with buying a new thing from Archos every 9-12 mos and knowing support will be GONE after that then go for it.
As said the Nook may not turn out better, but it can't be worse. It has an reasonably up-to-date system now, larger memory, better viewing for it's primary mission. A70 just getting 2.2 and who know what bugs with it (seems to be bugs aplenty); A101 still not very available, what does THAT tell you?
If you want an android multimedia device then the Archos family may be a way to go, but evaluate it against multimedia devices since that is Archos' focus (assuming they have one), not reading and/or tablet functions.
Probably most people on this thread have reading as a primary, tablet second and entertainment third. The screen is really great, pdf reading is real good other than the swipe down instead of swipe sideways, with the Dolphin browser, root, su, multitouch what's not to like? ... did I mention the screen is great?

zdrifter said:
Probably most people on this thread have reading as a primary, tablet second and entertainment third. The screen is really great, pdf reading is real good other than the swipe down instead of swipe sideways, with the Dolphin browser, root, su, multitouch what's not to like? ... did I mention the screen is great?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lawl i bought the Nook just to Root. Ive got books on it an thats nice but since my phone died i needed a micro-mobile device so i wouldnt have to switch from tv to pc (1 button but im lazy) the Nook simply had the specs to get it done.
Only plus about archos is the BT for a phone but just the possibility of it for the Nook made it a done deal, Having the 60mb wing i know what Devs can do. The screens obviously the best part but double the ram as similar tablets is amazing, Ive loaded tons of 3D games an still have 200Mbs of ram, and the fact that you can drive to a B&N in most towns. (i hate shipping)
I think there both 7" form factor? but the sexy knock the Nooks got was also a winner
Archos is lacking ram an screen, but if a 1.3mp camera an knowing BT will work makes it up there you go.

Ravynmagi said:
I was just talking about this subject with some friends.
Nook has a much better screen. A 1024x600 res IPS with great angles and crispness. The Archos 70 has a crappy 800x480 TN screen with really bad viewing angles. Screen quality in a tablet is probably most important to me. I want to be able to hold this thing any any direction at any angle and still see it, can't do that with the Archos.
The Nook feels solid... maybe a little too solid, as it is certainly heavier than the Archos 70. The Archos is reportedly very flimsy feeling. This could go either way depending on how much you value solid feeling versus weight.
The Nook has 512MB of RAM and it looks like 1GB or more of app storage space (unfortunately I didn't look at it before installing a few things). The Archos 70 has 256MB of RAM and only a measly 256MB of app storage space. Maybe the modders can fix that if they haven't yet, not sure. But that is a big downer for the Archos to me, I've already installed about 400MB of apps on my Nook in that app space.
Archos seems to have performance on it's side. It's CPU runs at the full 1GHz and it's running Android 2.2 already. My Nook feels sluggish with web browsing (using Dolphin HD), but I'm hoping the Nook update to 2.2 in January can help pep it up some. And maybe someday we'll get a 1GHz kernel.
Archos has a few extra hardware features like Bluetooth, HDMI out, better speakers, and cameras (though probably not a big loss if they are as bad as Engadget says they are).
For me the WAY better screen more than makes up for the slightly slower performance and other features the Nook doesn't have.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great points here and everyone else. The low amount of RAM is a shocker, and is a dealbreaker right there. That makes me glad I don't have an Archos.
zdrifter said:
Probably most people on this thread have reading as a primary, tablet second and entertainment third.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
camwinnn said:
Lawl i bought the Nook just to Root.
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Click to collapse
Yup, same here, I bought the Nook Color with literally zero intention of reading anything. It's a pure 100% Android browsing/gaming tablet for me
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The only thing that gives me pause about my Nook Color purchase is the lack of Bluetooth and a front facing camera. One of my main uses for this device will be watching shows/movies while doing cardio at the gym. Using a wired heaset is dangerous as one wrong move of the arm and boom, your device goes to the floor. A Bluetooth headset and watching stuff on my phone was great (and safe).
And a front facing camera would be nice for video chat. I think all tablets will have this feature in the future and ones that don't will be knocked down a notch.

B&N have already stated that an update is happening "next year", informaton about it happening in January was not true, people seriously should stop repeating this.
In addition to everything written above Archos has a resistive touchscreen which is said to be really unresponsive.

candre23 said:
There are apps to boost CPU speed a bit, but you will start to run into stability issues if you bump it up too much above what the chip was binned at. A nice 2.2 build might improve things a bit on the NC, but the archos will likely always have an edge. Not just because of its higher clock speed, but also because it has fewer pixels to render.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The NC and the Archos Gen8s have the same cpu at different speeds. We've been able to run the NC stable up to about 1.15GHz. Froyo + JIT will go further than oc towards responsiveness.
As for bluetooth, the hardware is at least partially there. I'm still trying to figure it out, so if you know someone who's done ports to a platform with TI bluetooth send them my way.

Thanks for the information everyone, this cleared up my doubts and worries of purchasing the nc.

inferniac90 said:
B&N have already stated that an update is happening "next year", informaton about it happening in January was not true, people seriously should stop repeating this.
In addition to everything written above Archos has a resistive touchscreen which is said to be really unresponsive.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So no update in jan?
Sent from my Nook Color

inferniac90 said:
B&N have already stated that an update is happening "next year", informaton about it happening in January was not true, people seriously should stop repeating this.
In addition to everything written above Archos has a resistive touchscreen which is said to be really unresponsive.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, the new Archos models (70 and 101) have capacitive screens.

jaydon34 said:
So no update in jan?
Sent from my Nook Color
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Click to collapse
zdnet.com/blog/gadgetreviews/barnes-noble-confirms-android-22-update-for-nook-color-updated/20759
//not allowed to post links yet
UPDATE: Looks like that confirmation wasn’t really a confirmation after all. There will be an update, but just probably not in January. Here’s the statement from a B&N PR rep:
B&N plans to update the OS sometime in 2011. Regarding applications, we are committed to the NOOKdeveloper program and on track to add apps to our store in early 2011, but do not have plans enable Android Marketplace at this time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
stwallman said:
Actually, the new Archos models (70 and 101) have capacitive screens.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're right, forgot about that, but the viewing angles are still really bad
http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/24/archos-70-and-101-internet-tablet-review/

I bought the NC over other devices for many of the reasons already stated (basically THE SCREEN), also because it has very good wifi reception. I believe I read that Archos was having issues with that.

Related

[Q] Is anyone able to compare the ipad1 to the nook?

If anyone has both or had both, would you be able to answer a few questions?
I got a brand new ipad 1 for $280 and ended up selling it a few weeks ago because it really didnt meet my expectations for performance. I like Android OS better because of user customization ability and the widgets, which I use all the time. I dont like choosing between a million apps. I was very disappointed with the browser experience of the ipad 1. It was good for viewin 2-3 pages but after that, it would checker-board and also because of the limited ram (256mb) it would constantly refresh. Browsng on the ipad 1, was very minimal browsing, nothing that I can replace a netbook with. I think the Nook has 512mb ram which is the same as the ipad2....Also the ipad1 lacked multitasking (Even simple ones like chatting with someone on gchat and going back to my browser page) and notifications.
1) How does the browsing experience for the Nook compare to the ipad1?
2) With the new mods and tweaks, what about responsiveness?
I plan to use the tablet for watching movies, netflix when it comes out, browsing, gchat and multi-tasking all around with email and stuff. The ipad severely underperformed in that aspect and in the notification aspect. Basically, if it can do everything my stock mytouch4g phone can do (1ghz, 786mb ram), I will be happy.
3) Is the nook a legitimate replacement for an android tablet like the xoom? I mean considering the price + mods and tweaks, to someone who doesnt have one, it LOOKS good on youtube. BUt you never know how itll work out until soemone who used it tells you the truth.
kettlecorn said:
1) How does the browsing experience for the Nook compare to the ipad1?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The biggest problem I have run into browsing involves sites automatically redirecting to the mobile versions although the NC is generally better off, at least in my opinion, with full versions. That is easily fixed with a few tweaks however. I have many times had 5-6 tabs open in Opera while listening to Pandora or an audio book in Mort Player and notice no slowdown.
kettlecorn said:
2) With the new mods and tweaks, what about responsiveness?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Everything short of Dungeon Defenders runs with no apparent slowdown after proper setup, and it is only going to get faster as Dalingrin and others continue working on it. I can whip back and forth between all my pages of apps without seeing any hesitation or stuttering with 5 widgets on my main page and 10+ apps on every page.
kettlecorn said:
3) Is the nook a legitimate replacement for an android tablet like the xoom? I mean considering the price + mods and tweaks, to someone who doesnt have one, it LOOKS good on youtube. BUt you never know how itll work out until soemone who used it tells you the truth.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To me, it definitely is. I frequently use my Nook for a few main tasks, all of which it handles perfectly in my experience.
1) RDP (I use Remote Desktop Client by Xtralogic)
2) Streaming video (UPNPlay + RockPlayer)
3) Audio books (Mort Player)
4) Web Browsing (Opera)
5) Remote control of media on my PC (MPC-HC Remote/VLC Remote)
6) Playing games (Angry Bird+Seasons+Rio, Stupid Zombies, Fruit Ninja, Words With Friends, Speed 3D FX, NES/SNES/GBA/GameGear/Genesis/PSX emulators)
7) lulz (FML, Cheezeburger, joke apps)
On an important note though, lacking 4G and GPS really annoys me, but I am planning on getting a Bionic whenever they finally release which tethering to should cover me for both of those.
I never had that many problems with the internet on the ipad. But I do not have a lot installed. I use the apps that came with it for most all my stuff. When I try to use other apps to copy files to it that’s when the problems started. after removing the files every thing is good. I have Angry Birds and other games running with no issues. The battery life is the same as the NC running CM7 off sdcard. All in all the nook color is very impressive for the price.
Awesome, thanks for the reply. It looks like with the overclock and some mods itll run just fine. I'm also looking into the archos tablets but I don't think they are as good as the nook in terms of support or getting honeycomb.
In all honesty I am a fan of android, and not a fanboy of apple...that being said...
I enjoy using my girlfriend's iPad, and if they weren't $500+ I would have bought one. After spending alittle over $250 on my nook color, I am VERY pleased with it.
I think my girlfriend is a little jealous too, especially when she sees me playing flash off the internet. I think the screen size is just perfect, and with the progress the developers have made on CM7 so far, it is working great. I think the main benefit of Android over apple is that you have more choices on which software to run on the device.
There are some very lightweight and fast web browsers out for Android, and I think you will find one to suit your needs.
Very pleased with my nook color and I recommend them to many friends.
I have both iPad and a CM7 nook. This is my take:
- iPad is huge! It does not fit any pocket. In fact is so big, that you have to carry a bag if you want to take it along (and if you take a bag, you might as well take a notebook). This is a magor plus for the nook. 7" seems to be just fine for me.
- iPad has a very low resolution screen. The screen density on the iPad is much lower then any phone's. This is relay frustrating for me. The nook has much better screen density.
- 4:3 vs. 16:10. I prefer the widescreen. 4:3 is probably better for magazines, but when it comes to video a lot of the 4:3 screen is wasted.
- when it comes to performance - the nook is much faster (using CM7 with the OC kernel), unfortunately battery life on the nook is not that great.
So, I guess it's more of a choice of form factor. For me, 10" 4:3 screen is not a good choice at all. I can't comfortably hold it in one hand. The plus is that the iPad has a bit of a WOW-factor over here (in Bulgaria).
I actually own both. Here's my take:
iPad:
- More responsive screen (huge perk for me)
- Appstore is so superior to Market. It's not even a contest.
- Bigger screen = more enjoyable browsing from the couch.
Nook Color (Phiremod 5.3 @ 1.1ghz):
- More portable
- More enjoyable reading ebooks (which is my primary use for it atm)
- more "fun" with the moding community and openness of Android
- Much easier to sideload apps and books. Huge plus.
All in all, I have an iPhone 4 and the iPad is a glorified iPhone. So I bought the iPad for the fiance and she absolutely loves the simplicity of it as she can relate to it because she has an iPhone as well.
I bought the Nook initially and learning Android was not as intuitive as learning iOS was for her. So the nook simply frustrates her.
Each has it's purpose. It's really all about what you're going to do with each device.
EDIT: Also, I paid $200 for my Nook (new) and $300 for her iPad (new). At these price points, if I could have just ONE device, I'd choose the iPad (jailbroken) over the Nook Color (CM7). If it were between the NC and the iPad2 @ $500, NC, no question. But that's just me.
Got both.
Ipad has netflix. NC will never get netflix, ever. Netflix requires qualcom chip DRM.
That is a big plus for ipad/phone, a single killer app.
Flash support if you ROM the nook.
I feel flash beats netflix, or at least ballances the scale.
Form factor of NC is ideal, 7 inch will win the tablet form factor wars for obvious reasons.
Ipad is wifi only, so not much diff there.
Ipad apps, seems like most I ever used (read: free) were upscaled iphone apps. Pixel doubling fail. Suppose android has same issue to a much lesser extent, and somwhoe it never bothers. Could be a bias, but really the ios apps seem to have more profound issue with native tablet apps or making apps scale to larger screen.
Multitasking. Ipad came out around the time of mutitasking ios apps, but seems to not share the feature with iphone.
I love the nook color over ipad. Ipad is dead in the eyes of apple.
Deliver by Epic 4G xda app
snives said:
The biggest problem I have run into browsing involves sites automatically redirecting to the mobile versions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can easily change your userAgent with dolphin... sorry if its been mentioned in the thread, I didnt look
kettlecorn said:
If anyone has both or had both, would you be able to answer a few questions?
I got a brand new ipad 1 for $280 and ended up selling it a few weeks ago because it really didnt meet my expectations for performance. I like Android OS better because of user customization ability and the widgets, which I use all the time. I dont like choosing between a million apps. I was very disappointed with the browser experience of the ipad 1. It was good for viewin 2-3 pages but after that, it would checker-board and also because of the limited ram (256mb) it would constantly refresh. Browsng on the ipad 1, was very minimal browsing, nothing that I can replace a netbook with. I think the Nook has 512mb ram which is the same as the ipad2....Also the ipad1 lacked multitasking (Even simple ones like chatting with someone on gchat and going back to my browser page) and notifications.
1) How does the browsing experience for the Nook compare to the ipad1?
2) With the new mods and tweaks, what about responsiveness?
I plan to use the tablet for watching movies, netflix when it comes out, browsing, gchat and multi-tasking all around with email and stuff. The ipad severely underperformed in that aspect and in the notification aspect. Basically, if it can do everything my stock mytouch4g phone can do (1ghz, 786mb ram), I will be happy.
3) Is the nook a legitimate replacement for an android tablet like the xoom? I mean considering the price + mods and tweaks, to someone who doesnt have one, it LOOKS good on youtube. BUt you never know how itll work out until soemone who used it tells you the truth.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My experience with the ipad 1 mimics yours, though I will say for one or two page browsing the ipad is superior. However, I can open 7 or 8 tabs at once in DolphinHD (whatever the maximum number it lets you open) on the NC without any slowdown when scrolling through pages which makes it vastly superior for me as I always have at least 3 or 4 tabs open when browsing. If you want to do anything like drawing or note taking, the screen is more sensitive on the ipad to allow that, though you can also do it on the NC, just not as well.
In terms of tablet useability, it is as usable if not more so than my Fascinate. You can easily multitask and it performs well. Mail, gchat etc. all run at the same time without issue. Movie watching is high quality if you convert the movies or use VLC convert and stream to encode on the fly to the proper format. I prefer the form factor as it's more portable and you can use it one-handed which is not really possible with the ipad. It absolutely can be used as an everyday tablet.
Probably no sense in repeating everything everyone has said so I'll say that I pick the NC up more often than the iPad because having Flash is important to me and the size is so much nicer, especially when reading. The iPad is just overly huge.
parasense said:
Got both.
Ipad has netflix. NC will never get netflix, ever. Netflix requires qualcom chip DRM.
That is a big plus for ipad/phone, a single killer app.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll make a lier out of you yet
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=995759
It was working for some time, but they caught on to us. It's close to coming out, though...
What about the NC screen brightness, contrast, viewing angles, color reproduction, flickering?
I've used an Ipad 1 in a bright store and it suffers a lot from glare, even at highest brightness setting.
Couldn't find a Nook Color in my country to try it out.
I have both an ipad 1 and the nc. In the past I have had a Cruz tablet, gtab, and Augen tablet. There are three things I have to have in a tablet: speed, portability, and a good screen. Out of all those tablets only one meets all those criteria and its the nc.
The screen is superb. Its has great viewing angles, and it's bright and crisp. The speed once rooted and overclocked is good, there are faster tablets but not at this price point. Finally, this is truly a portable device. You can't just toss an ipad or grab in your pocket. Plus have you ever tried to hold those larger tablets in one hand for any period of time?
I would say for now if you want a nice, zippy, portable tablet this is the clear cut winner.
parasense said:
Ipad has netflix. NC will never get netflix, ever. Netflix requires qualcom chip DRM.
That is a big plus for ipad/phone, a single killer app.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmm... ever? To quote Marge Gunderson, "Not so sure about your detective work there, Lou"
"Ever" is a mighty strong statement.
playon lets you access netflix via your home PC - so while technically I don't have direct access, i can access netflix from anywhere using my nook color using playon
Jgrimoldy said:
Hmmm... ever? To quote Marge Gunderson, "Not so sure about your detective work there, Lou"
"Ever" is a mighty strong statement.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Why 512MB of RAM means no Bionic for me

I've seen a lot of discussion on various Android/Droid forums on the web over the past month or two about the Bionic, and it having 512MB of RAM. A lot of people don't seem to mind, and some people have even said it doesn't matter because it's DDR2, which is faster than regular DDR.
Well, 512MB of RAM is not enough for a dual-core phone you plan to use for 2 years or more. Here's why, in a rather lengthy post that I also put on MyDroidWorld the other night. I've been on the XDA forums for a long time, though I don't post very frequently and I'm curious to see what people will think of my admittedly long post. So, here is why I think people should think long and hard about whether to buy the Bionic when it does come out, assuming it still ships with 512MB of RAM.
Caching.
Ok - let me explain. The single most important factor in performance of a computer is having enough RAM. When a computer runs out of RAM, it starts to use what's called a page file. It's basically a file on your hard drive that acts as additional RAM. Now, DDR3-1600 speed RAM transfers data at 12.8 gigabytes per second. Phenomenally fast. It also has a reaction time of around 5 nanoseconds, also ridiculously fast. When your operating system has to start using the page file because the physical RAM is full, the performance hit is EXTRAORDINARY. Even the best hard disk drives (not counting SSDs) like the latest Raptor from Western Digital cap out at around 155 megabytes per second for reading and writing, and it has a peak latency of 7 milliseconds for reaction time. 1 nanosecond is 1 million milliseconds, which makes the DDR3 RAM over a MILLION times faster reacting than the hard drive, and the transfer rate of the RAM over 80 times faster than the transfer rate of the hard drive.
In real-world terms, it's like you're talking about an ant versus a Porsche 911 Turbo. Most old computers that have long pauses or hang for several seconds doing even basic tasks, it's because they don't have enough RAM and it's caching stuff between the hard drive and the RAM.
Now, whenever Android runs out of RAM, (same with any operating system) it has to start using its page file, which means it starts using this monstrously slow flash memory as RAM. It's like merging onto a freeway that is gridlocked with traffic when you were going hundreds of miles per hour. The flash memory is a lot slower than the Raptor hard drive for data transfer rates, but it has a read time a lot faster; the best-performing ones are generally under 1 microsecond. 1 microsecond is a thousand times slower than 1 nanosecond. The write times are closer to hard drives, though; generally less than 1 millisecond, so like 10x faster than a hard drive but still 100,000 times slower reaction time to writing data than the RAM is.
What this means is, when your permanent storage is flash-based, it has a much faster reaction time than a hard drive but it's still dog-slow compared to RAM; so when Android runs out of RAM, it caches to the page file on the flash memory, and you'll have the same slowdown effect as you do on an old POS computer, but it's not as noticeable because flash memory reacts faster than disk-based hard drives.
The point of all of this is that, 1GB of DDR1 memory on a phone is FAR better than 512MB of DDR2 memory. The 1GB will prevent you from hitting that metaphorical brick wall of caching data to your flash memory when the 512MB won't. We already use 400MB, or more, of our 512MB of RAM on our existing phones just by turning it on and having a couple of widgets/services in the background above & beyond the stock ones. How do you expect to take advantage significantly higher-end applications and games, which also means (for games, primarily) that they take up more RAM, as well?
You can't have higher-quality graphics without needing more RAM, so when that new version of Angry Birds comes out this fall or something that requires two cores and looks amazing, but uses 250MB of RAM to run instead of the 80MB or whatever the regular one uses now, what do you think has to happen? That's right. Android has to cache that much extra data to your flash memory so it can unload it from the RAM, freeing the necessary space to load Angry Birds HD. This causes more of a delay as it's writing data, and will cause extra choppiness, etc. Another thing to keep in mind is that, as resolutions increase, so do the texture sizes for all applications and widgets that you use, assuming they support the new resolution. More size needed, which takes up more space in RAM.
Don't be fooled. When truly good and proper dual-core benchmarks come out, 1GB RAM dual-core phones will spank their 512MB RAM dual-core brethren for real-world performance in games, and other high-memory applications. Also, excessive caching greatly increases the chance of flash memory going bad. Not a common occurrence if it was fine when shipped, but still something to think about.
So, in summary, even though the performance hit from caching to flash memory isn't as bad as caching to hard disk drives, it's still a tremendous slowdown and it will matter for dual-core phones way more than for single-core ones. The average amount of RAM installed on dual-core desktop computers from Dell/HP/etc. was significantly higher than what the average was for the previous single-core generations were, and there are reasons for that. Primarily, the same reasons I just outlined. In simple terms, faster processors can do more things, which necessarily requires more RAM.
Sorry for the wall of text, I tried to be more concise but it kind of got away from me. I'm not buying a Bionic because it has 512MB of RAM. After owning it a year, it'll be having performance issues on top-end dual-core-required games that run just fine on phones like the Atrix.
I'm sorry because I know this is probably going to come across the wrong way, but WOW, you spent a lot of time writing that up, and too much time for me to read it alll, especially considering Motorola has pulled back on the Bionic and it's receiving "enhancements". I guess what I'm saying is why all the speculation/conjecture until we know the revised specs? Maybe it'll land with 8GB of DDR 6 RAM.
I'm hoping Motorola gives Verizon a phone that is higher end than the Atrix. Afterall Verizon has done much more than ATT in the way of supporting Moto..when they needed it. Anxious to see what Big Red winds up with.
Sent from my ERIS using XDA Premium App
I disagree that ram is the single most important factor of performance of a computer.
hard drives are the biggest bottleneck in a computer. this is why I use a vertex 3 ssd.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App
gemro311 said:
I'm hoping Motorola gives Verizon a phone that is higher end than the Atrix. Afterall Verizon has done much more than ATT in the way of supporting Moto..when they needed it. Anxious to see what Big Red winds up with.
Sent from my ERIS using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I concur, really hope VZW pushes for a premier device
I disagree. Android isn't expanding as an OS at some breakneck pace and 512MB is definitely suitable for the near future. 1GB is absolutely not necessary for great performance in a phone. RAM is a bottleneck, but it is not something that magically allows for better performance if the device isn't hitting the pagefile anyway.
The way that Android manages applications will allow 512MB phones to be relevant for some time. The Bionic will be a solid phone for the next year, but there will always be something bigger and better next year. Phones aren't future-proof.
I was just checking out this thread and wanted to say maybe the reason that the atrix comes with 1gb of ram is because of the extra contraption that you can buy along with. It looks like a netbook but is not very well performing and who would even care to rely on it for anything I don't know.
gemro311 said:
I'm hoping Motorola gives Verizon a phone that is higher end than the Atrix. Afterall Verizon has done much more than ATT in the way of supporting Moto..when they needed it. Anxious to see what Big Red winds up with.
Sent from my ERIS using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I certainly hope Motorola makes the required improvements, but you also need to keep in mind Verizon approves and in many if not all cases specs the phones they want. They chose the specs, they had to live with the specs. I think once they saw what was coming they figured it was no longer premiere and wanted changes made.
Regardless of why its been pulled back the fact that it was is good, but if its going to take 4-5 months to get it out the door they should have just scrapped it altogether.
E30kid said:
I disagree. Android isn't expanding as an OS at some breakneck pace and 512MB is definitely suitable for the near future. 1GB is absolutely not necessary for great performance in a phone. RAM is a bottleneck, but it is not something that magically allows for better performance if the device isn't hitting the pagefile anyway.
The way that Android manages applications will allow 512MB phones to be relevant for some time. The Bionic will be a solid phone for the next year, but there will always be something bigger and better next year. Phones aren't future-proof.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, wait for Ice Cream and we'll see. Since the future Android version will also run in tablets, it is likely that it will have huge memory requirements.
By the way, my Acer Liquid A1 can't be officially upgraded to Froyo because it only has 256Mb. Later Liquid models with 512Mb are upgradeable. At the time I bought it, 512Mb seemed unnecessary because the Nexus One operating system only supported 256Mb, having the other 256Mb wasted. This was only 12 months ago...
galaxyjeff said:
I was just checking out this thread and wanted to say maybe the reason that the atrix comes with 1gb of ram is because of the extra contraption that you can buy along with. It looks like a netbook but is not very well performing and who would even care to rely on it for anything I don't know.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you are on to something here. I think I read somewhere that the atrix only uses 512 mb when not connected to the dock. I have the inspire which has 768 mb, and I came from the captivate which was 512 mb, and I done know if is the ram or what but this phone performs way better than the captivate. Even when I bought the inspire, right out the box stock, preformed much better than a captivate overclocked with an ext4 filesystem kernel. Not that this is empirical evidence, but hey.
Sent from my HTC Desire HD using XDA Premium App
cryptiq said:
I'm sorry because I know this is probably going to come across the wrong way, but WOW, you spent a lot of time writing that up, and too much time for me to read it alll, especially considering Motorola has pulled back on the Bionic and it's receiving "enhancements". I guess what I'm saying is why all the speculation/conjecture until we know the revised specs? Maybe it'll land with 8GB of DDR 6 RAM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I lol'd. But seriously 512 MB of RAM is more than enough... It's a PHONE not a high end desktop system. I play tons of games on my x2 and with alot of crap in the backround open, and I notice zero performance hits. If you are spending all day monitoring your RAM on your phone and trying to measure FPS loss, load time differences, etc. I suggest that you try to pick up a new hobby ASAP, OCDing will be the end of you. Best of luck!
Edit: I wouldn't worry about it either! Bionic probably won't come out anyways, and if it does, another phone with 1GB to satisfy your OCD probably will be out by then.
As of now, I feel ALL future top tier smart phones need to come equipped with at least 1GB of DDR2. The G2x, for example, will most likely have issues running a custom ice cream rom. And people will be upset.. especially after putting up with all of the other various problems that particular phone has.
OP, I don't agree entirely with your explanation of the use of caching by the OS - for all 3 major computer OSes, no matter how much excess RAM you have, they will start caching data to the hard drive, whether you like it or not. Obviously if you run out of RAM, it has to do so, but it'll even do it long before you've hit that cap - just because it determines an application has gone "inactive". Now I haven't read up on Android enough to know whether this is 100% true for it, too, but considering it's running a linux kernel, I would imagine so. So just like the 8GB of RAM in my desktop doesn't necessarily help for everyday computing needs, 1GB vs 512mb on the Bionic may not make a huge difference.
raptordrew said:
OP, I don't agree entirely with your explanation of the use of caching by the OS - for all 3 major computer OSes, no matter how much excess RAM you have, they will start caching data to the hard drive, whether you like it or not. Obviously if you run out of RAM, it has to do so, but it'll even do it long before you've hit that cap - just because it determines an application has gone "inactive". Now I haven't read up on Android enough to know whether this is 100% true for it, too, but considering it's running a linux kernel, I would imagine so. So just like the 8GB of RAM in my desktop doesn't necessarily help for everyday computing needs, 1GB vs 512mb on the Bionic may not make a huge difference.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i beg to differ
my captivate; even though its a single core...is still quite capable at most everyday tasks...only thing lacking is the RAM
my phone will slow to a crawl after entering twitter, switching to pulse and then going back to my homescreen....
not to mention my launcher keeps getting killed by android as it keeps running out of RAM
droid_does said:
i beg to differ
my captivate; even though its a single core...is still quite capable at most everyday tasks...only thing lacking is the RAM
my phone will slow to a crawl after entering twitter, switching to pulse and then going back to my homescreen....
not to mention my launcher keeps getting killed by android as it keeps running out of RAM
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have to lol at this one. Absolutely none of those issues have to do with amount of RAM. In fact the launcher problem has nothing to do with RAM at all.
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App
While I appreciate other people who have the same amount of passion for phones as I do, I just have two words to say about anyone saying phones with 512 mb ram will not get Ice Cream Sandwich. Nexus S.
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App
mb02 said:
I have to lol at this one. Absolutely none of those issues have to do with amount of RAM. In fact the launcher problem has nothing to do with RAM at all.
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
it does as android keeps killing it to free up more RAM to use......
droid_does said:
it does as android keeps killing it to free up more RAM to use......
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea the task manager is killing the apps to keep ram freed up, as in stopping unused processes etc. That's just the aggressive working of the management software that would run just the same if you even had 8GB of ram.
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App
timothymilla said:
While I appreciate other people who have the same amount of passion for phones as I do, I just have two words to say about anyone saying phones with 512 mb ram will not get Ice Cream Sandwich. Nexus S.
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Remember when everyone thought Gingerbread would require a 1GHz processor as a system requirement, which was later debunked?
http://www.talkandroid.com/23041-so...ngerbread-update-due-to-1ghz-cpu-requirement/
Nobody can say what will and will not get updated for sure, although I will venture to say that it's HIGHLY likely the Nexus S will be getting 2.4, you're right.
zetsumeikuro said:
I lol'd. But seriously 512 MB of RAM is more than enough... It's a PHONE not a high end desktop system. I play tons of games on my x2 and with alot of crap in the backround open, and I notice zero performance hits. If you are spending all day monitoring your RAM on your phone and trying to measure FPS loss, load time differences, etc. I suggest that you try to pick up a new hobby ASAP, OCDing will be the end of you. Best of luck!
Edit: I wouldn't worry about it either! Bionic probably won't come out anyways, and if it does, another phone with 1GB to satisfy your OCD probably will be out by then.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
512 mb is not enough for a dual core 4G phone it just isnt. the thunderbolt has 768 mb and its only single core and 4G and let me tell you it would be way faster with the 1024 mb of ram i cant imagine how laggy the bionic would be if you start doing anything with it! the 512 ram will be ate up in no time! i sure hope verizon reconsiders and adds more ram or i probably wont use this device as my daily phone either keep the thunderbolt with more ram which is sad cause it has been out for awhile now and the droid x also has 512 ram and it has been out for a year and they cant make improvements?? and they are going to want $299+++ for this phone ON CONTRACT! it better have more than 512 ram or it aint worth a lick! rip this phone open and put my own ram in it!

[Q] Will Nook Color 2 be CM supported?

Hey guys,
Long time Android user here, but new to the nook.
I am a photographer by hobby and want to use a nook color as a display device for photo reviews using a eye-fi card.
I am just now learning about CM7 on the original color nook and am looking to buy one. I know the new ones are coming out in a few days and know the decision is harder.
Do I grab the refurbished ones on buy.com for 139.99 or wait for the new ones?
My concern is CM support. I want to root it, install AOSP 2.3x and use it for photo reviews and general web browsing at home with flash.
Does anyone know if the CM team plans on supporting the new Nook color? If so, do we have an estimated time to root/code for the new nook?
What would you gus do if you had my needs in mind?
It's impossible to tell since no one has a unit in there hands yet. Also does eyefi have an android app? Do they make microSD cards? If not I doubt it would work on the nook
Sent from my NookColor using xda premium
Yes and not needed.
Been done before by others, I'm just late to the party.
psychoace said:
It's impossible to tell since no one has a unit in there hands yet. Also does eyefi have an android app? Do they make microSD cards? If not I doubt it would work on the nook
Sent from my NookColor using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The eyefi card goes into his camera and then it connects to the nook via wifi. And as the OP said, there is an android app for that.
I have doubts for the NC2. The only really different thing about it is the faster processor. The OG Nook color worked and still does work incredibly well on CM7. Why buy a new one? It probably will see development, but not as much as the touchpad or original nook color. Just my .02 worth.
Tapatalkin it from my IHO CM7.1'd, ICS Themed Optimus V
I'm also a photographer thinking about using the Nook Color as small portfolio. The refurbished units of the first model should be good enough as a showcase since the display on the Nook 2 will be the same.
kcls said:
I have doubts for the NC2. The only really different thing about it is the faster processor.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From what I've read, it'll also have
* 1 GB RAM
* 16 GB EMMC( + microSD slot up )
* 1.2 Ghz Dual Core CPU
Could be a nice bump in performance. Could be faster page loads, when web surfing which at a reasonable price, could be a nice performance bump. Of course, Rootability is still needed.
LOL, this thread may now be moot. I just couldn't resist buying the original nook color for 149.
We'll see how it goes...
Note that the NC2 claims to have a better display than the original NC (which is already pretty good).
If your anticipated use is to show off photos, the increased speed (dual core) and the better screen might be worth waiting for.
nook-color said:
From what I've read, it'll also have
* 1 GB RAM
* 16 GB EMMC( + microSD slot up )
* 1.2 Ghz Dual Core CPU
Could be a nice bump in performance. Could be faster page loads, when web surfing which at a reasonable price, could be a nice performance bump. Of course, Rootability is still needed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's 1.0 GHz dual-core processor.
---------- Post added at 01:25 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:24 PM ----------
jasoraso said:
Note that the NC2 claims to have a better display than the original NC (which is already pretty good).
If your anticipated use is to show off photos, the increased speed (dual core) and the better screen might be worth waiting for.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Better? by what? IPS-square?
Another marketing term.
votinh said:
It's 1.0 GHz dual-core processor.
---------- Post added at 01:25 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:24 PM ----------
Better? by what? IPS-square?
Another marketing term.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree that it certainly could be marketing-speak only - that is why I used "claims" in my previous statement.
Regardless, this is the marketing language being used:
Display: World’s most advanced 7-inch VividView™ Color Touchscreen 16 million+ colors, high resolution IPS display – 1024x600, 169 PPI Fully laminated with no air gaps for remarkable clarity and minimal glare – read indoors or outside.
The PPI doesn't change from the original NC, but the laminated language appears to be new. The reviews that I've seen so far don't compare screens, especially not in real life, and even more importantly, outdoors. BUT - that is something I'm looking forward to seeing.
If I were a photographer like the OP, and buying a NC or NC2 to highlight my work, I would want the best screen, and I would wait one week to see, and that is what I was suggesting he do.
The price of the NC is only going to keep going down (unless you are looking at the $139 refurbished NC's, which might run out).
jasoraso said:
I agree that it certainly could be marketing-speak only - that is why I used "claims" in my previous statement.
Regardless, this is the marketing language being used:
Display: World’s most advanced 7-inch VividView™ Color Touchscreen 16 million+ colors, high resolution IPS display – 1024x600, 169 PPI Fully laminated with no air gaps for remarkable clarity and minimal glare – read indoors or outside.
The PPI doesn't change from the original NC, but the laminated language appears to be new. The reviews that I've seen so far don't compare screens, especially not in real life, and even more importantly, outdoors. BUT - that is something I'm looking forward to seeing.
If I were a photographer like the OP, and buying a NC or NC2 to highlight my work, I would want the best screen, and I would wait one week to see, and that is what I was suggesting he do.
The price of the NC is only going to keep going down (unless you are looking at the $139 refurbished NC's, which might run out).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I'm interested in seeing how the new screen works, not necessarily on how it looks (I'm ok with he current one on the NC). I want to see if its responsiveness is better, that way I could use a thinner (homemade) stylus for my Nook and take notes faster.
Something is new with the screen. The top layer is one single piece. On the NC, there is a distinct border between screen and the home button bezel. On the NT, there is no border.
Here's a pic:
http://www.engadget.com/photos/nook-tablet-meet-nook-color/#4590238
thatdude90210 said:
Something is new with the screen. The top layer is one single piece. On the NC, there is a distinct border between screen and the home button bezel. On the NT, there is no border.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A small detail, but it makes the device look a lot more polished, doesn't it?
leocallejas said:
A small detail, but it makes the device look a lot more polished, doesn't it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I thought it was already pretty slick but now it looks even more polished. It's about what I would expect for a 2nd generation product.
The new nook tablet has a read and record feature which utilizes a Mic. Let's hope it works if it gets cm7 or 9 on it
Sent from my NookColor using xda premium
Already ordered the original nook color. Remember I don't really practice photography professionally. It is simply a hobby. I more or less want to be able to check focus on a larger screen.
I want it as soon as CM7 gets on it.
At this point I could care less about CM7. I want a shiny new rooted ICS based OS to go with the shiny new tablet.
EverythingNook said:
I want it as soon as CM7 gets on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here, I'd pre-order it right now if I knew for sure CM7 could go on it. Hopefully they figure it out soon after release!

Screen dust?

Ive noticed i have a small fleck of dust (which i find very very irritating). Anyone else got similar? Its most likely a dust flake between the digitizer and the screen as it moves relative to the image underneath. Sure it wasnt there when i bought it.
I've had mine since November and there is no dust under my screen unlike my iPhone 3G that I cleaned only a couple of months ago!
In the daylight i can see its a very white fleck under the digitiser. Very disappointed with this tab so far, slow, buggy and badly built. Such a shame as i love my Galaxy S2.
rovex said:
In the daylight i can see its a very white fleck under the digitiser. Very disappointed with this tab so far, slow, buggy and badly built. Such a shame as i love my Galaxy S2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Half the stuff i've seen you moan about I do not have any issue with at all.
I would suggest you stick to your phone or just go buy an ipad as nothing will keep you satisfied.
No doubt you would have lot's to moan about with them as well.
My brother has 2 ipads and I still prefer my Tab 8.9 over them.
I'm running stock with Go Launcher and no problems here from my side. It runs as I would expect it too and it is an addition to my phone and pc, not a replacement of either.
Hate to say it, but choccy31 is right. You make 8.9 appear a lot worse than it is. It's not slow or buggy, with the latest CM9 ICS it's smooth enough and without problems. It's not badly built, you having dust under the screen does not mean we all have it. If you don't like it, you can always sell it, why keep it when everything is wrong with it?
choccy31 said:
Half the stuff i've seen you moan about I do not have any issue with at all.
I would suggest you stick to your phone or just go buy an ipad as nothing will keep you satisfied.
No doubt you would have lot's to moan about with them as well.
My brother has 2 ipads and I still prefer my Tab 8.9 over them.
I'm running stock with Go Launcher and no problems here from my side. It runs as I would expect it too and it is an addition to my phone and pc, not a replacement of either.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm glad someone else agrees..
Sent from my Incredible 2 using xda premium
Im sooo sorry i have upset you all, but the thing is rubbish. Its the worst Android device i have used by some way and ive used a lot. Im not the only one complaining about its speed it IS slow, fact there is no debate. Poor video that surprised me even knowing the Tegra limitations. Micro-stutter, lag, jerking. Maybe ill put up some comparison videos between the tab and the S2 and you will see what i mean. If it was cheap it wouldnt be so bad, but Sammy wanted £400 for this?? glad i didnt pay that.
I wont be getting an 'iPad' because its Apple and automatically fails, but i may well sell this on, swallow the loss and get something better. I should have gone with the Zoom, which is getting good support and is much smoother.
So go and sell it already. I dunno what Tab meets your requirements though, I guess the Transformer Prime is probably the closest you can get to the iPad in build and performance. Can't really think of any others that perform particularly better than this one, or that I can guarantee won't get dust (oh sh-------ttttt!!!!) under the screen.
its Apple and automatically fails
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Credibility = gone.
Why credibility gone? I hate the look of iOS which i think is very dull and I find Apple a horrible company. I buy Samsung to support free trade and as a protest to the way apple thinks it can limit choice by suing everyone over idiotic patents it should never have been granted.
The TF prime is better, but its not about raw power, its about optimization. There is no reason this tab needs to be so slow when the xoom isnt or even the Advent Vega!
Im going to wait for a real ICS ROM and see, by that time i may have got over the dust disappointment, but if it doesnt speed up its going.
You seem to think im asking to much for a tab to be able to actually function without stuttering, well i dont think i am. Im used to the slight Android stutter, but this is WAY beyond that. If i drag my finger slowly from screen to screen its smooth until it gets to about 40% of the way across, at which point it starts to stutter, however slowly i swipe. My S2 doesnt do that, even my Desire didnt, even my friends Wildfire doesnt and that has a 600mhz single core CPU.
rovex said:
Why credibility gone? I hate the look of iOS which i think is very dull and I find Apple a horrible company. I buy Samsung to support free trade and as a protest to the way apple thinks it can limit choice by suing everyone over idiotic patents it should never have been granted.
The TF prime is better, but its not about raw power, its about optimization. There is no reason this tab needs to be so slow when the xoom isnt or even the Advent Vega!
Im going to wait for a real ICS ROM and see, by that time i may have got over the dust disappointment, but if it doesnt speed up its going.
You seem to think im asking to much for a tab to be able to actually function without stuttering, well i dont think i am. Im used to the slight Android stutter, but this is WAY beyond that. If i drag my finger slowly from screen to screen its smooth until it gets to about 40% of the way across, at which point it starts to stutter, however slowly i swipe. My S2 doesnt do that, even my Desire didnt, even my friends Wildfire doesnt and that has a 600mhz single core CPU.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your Desire didn't? Hmm....as for being markedly worse than the Xoom with TW removed to make the OS more equivalent the performance is the same.
In any case it's hardly fair to compare the 8.9 to the S2 when the latter runs at a lower sub-HD resolution and isn't capable of displaying multiple large widgets. The 8.9 is quite up to HD video play back but then how is that worse than the S2?
I don't think anyone is saying that it's too much to ask for it to function without stuttering but it seems most, including myself, do not see the level of problems you appear to see. The example you give of stuttering at 40% swipe, I really don't see my home screens pause for fractions of a second as I swipe between them; it continues to move smoothly all the way in line with my finger movement.
Its smooth without widgets, but not with them. The more i use, the slower it gets. My S2 is running 6 full screen scrollable widgets, its has no slow down whatsoever. Sure WVGA makes life easier, but the Galaxy note is also smooth with ICS, that is HD and has the same CPU (in most markets). Tablet widgets are no bigger than phone ones., and even if they were the Tab struggles with the same ones my S2 has no issues with, even if they are smaller!
Ive given up using widgets now and it makes the device much nicer to use, but it seems like a waste of the larger screen.
For what its worth i have no issues with gaming.
The Note and S2 will both decode full rate 1080P blu-ray files, the tegra struggles with heavily reduced rate 720P. I have a copy of 'Drive' in 720P on my Laptop, S2 and Tab, the tab stutters and pauses, the others are smooth as silk.
You seem to be forgetting that the CPU and GPU in SGS 2 are more powerful than the Tegra 2 solution. Include also that more powerful device is running on a lower resolution screen, add the a lot more optimized ICS version for SGS 2, and you can clearly see the end result.
Is 8.9 perfectly smooth at this point? No, maybe it will never be, even with official ICS. I doubt we will see the improvement with buggy TouchWiz slapped on it, but at least devs will get some good stuff from it, like camera drivers and kernel. You can just hope for the best, or sell the tablet and purchase another more powerful model, something with Tegra 3 perhaps. We all know what's wrong with this model, we don't need someone to point it out.
High profile 720p and 1080p are just not doable on Tegra 2 solutions, it was like that from the start, there is nothing we can do to make it play nice without stuttering. I do get a decent framerate with DicePlayer on 1.4 GHz with some 720p movies, but not for long, on certain scenes it just becomes choppy. It's choppiest when you start the movie, but if you leave that tablet like that, and not swipe around, it gets better and better, only to be choppy again when more demanding scene comes up.
It is a shame, great screen going to waste, but if i sell it now, i don't know what tablet i would get to replace it. Transformer Prime is not cheap, i would need to add more money to get it, but i just love the form factor on this one. It's a difficult decision, and when the Tegra 3 tablets get their prices slashed, this thing will be even harder to sell.
Im not forgetting anything. My point is that if Tegra is so bad, it should never have been used in a top end device. I only paid £279 for mine, but if i paid the full £399 launch price i would be very upset.
The TF Prime still uses Tegra, the '3' isnt much better, as far as i can see its still broken, they are just throwing more broken cores at the problem in an attempt to fix it.
Its acceptable for now, but i still dont see why it should stutter with hardware acceleration enabled.
rovex said:
Its smooth without widgets, but not with them. The more i use, the slower it gets. My S2 is running 6 full screen scrollable widgets, its has no slow down whatsoever. Sure WVGA makes life easier, but the Galaxy note is also smooth with ICS, that is HD and has the same CPU (in most markets). Tablet widgets are no bigger than phone ones., and even if they were the Tab struggles with the same ones my S2 has no issues with, even if they are smaller!
Ive given up using widgets now and it makes the device much nicer to use, but it seems like a waste of the larger screen.
For what its worth i have no issues with gaming.
The Note and S2 will both decode full rate 1080P blu-ray files, the tegra struggles with heavily reduced rate 720P. I have a copy of 'Drive' in 720P on my Laptop, S2 and Tab, the tab stutters and pauses, the others are smooth as silk.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Widgets are the same size? 1 full screen widget on the 8.9 carries over twice as much information as 1 full screen widget on the S2.
How does Dual-core 1.4 GHz ARM Cortex-A9 in the Note equate to Dual-core 1GHz Cortex-A9 in the 8.9?
As for decoding, I would say that the almost double resolution on the 8.9 vs the S2 is a factor aside from CPU difference.
You say the Note is fine and is that from your own experience?
rovex said:
Why credibility gone? I hate the look of iOS which i think is very dull and I find Apple a horrible company. I buy Samsung to support free trade and as a protest to the way apple thinks it can limit choice by suing everyone over idiotic patents it should never have been granted.
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Because it means you aren't judging something objectively... Samsung have been attempting these crazy law suits too, and they did get their name in the smartphone/tablet market by being as close to Apple as possible... TouchWiz for Android 2 is basically Android hacked to look and act more like iOS and the phones up until S2 were all designed to look like iPhone alternatives (look how the Galaxy S is the iPhone 3GS and then the Galaxy Ace is the iPhone 4...), and the people who design the devices and the legal departments are completely unrelated, it's not like each company is some dude who makes every decision.
rovex said:
or even the Advent Vega!
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I had an Advent Vega... Doesn't even begin to compare to this thing... Was fun for modding but to actually use it was a POS... I mean come on, if you're into modding you can put an unfinished homebrew HoneyComb/ICS on it which doesn't support the camera (lol, the nasty VGA thing) or if not you can run the ridiculous stock ROM with inch-thick navigation bar... The accelerometer doesn't even work right. I think I can put up with choppy homescreen transitions...
You seem to think im asking to much for a tab to be able to actually function without stuttering, well i dont think i am.
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Not at all, we just can't understand why you don't rid yourself of it and get something else if it makes you so mad. We want you to be happy with whatever device you get but at the same time we don't want to be shouted about at how crappy stuff that we like supposedly is.
Im used to the slight Android stutter, but this is WAY beyond that. If i drag my finger slowly from screen to screen its smooth until it gets to about 40% of the way across, at which point it starts to stutter, however slowly i swipe.
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Ah yes, I know what you mean. The homescreens move with my finger but they do lose framerate. Never been important to me as homescreens are, erm, they're just to get you into the apps, and you only swipe between them when you want to see your other widgets/icons, it's not like a frequent thing. I find it stutters a LOT worse when using some live wallpapers, make sure you don't use one of them. A lot of the Honeycomb devices I've used do this though. There aren't many I've seen to run the homescreens smoothly without modding. I mean, for me, it's one of the best Android tablets I've used, the form factor, performance (for the size & weight), screen, etc. all come together really nicely. It's only the homescreen that doesn't seem smooth for me...
Have you tried overclocking? I've heard that can fix the issue. I read somewhere that the homescreens don't use hardware acceleration on this tab.
It's HoneyComb's silly 3D screens thing, the way swiping between them has that unnecessary 3D effect, I mean seriously, what is the practical use of that, it uses way more resources and also affects the intuitiveness of using a touch screen (when you keep things "flat", it creates the feeling of sliding something under your fingers, when the 3D comes in it separates it and feels more like minority report 'gestures'), it seems to be pointless showing off and causes a lot of the stuttering on Android tabs.
Also, have you considered giving the Galaxy Tab 10.1 a try? I've read that it runs better and is more compatible. For me no tabs compare to the Samsung ones in design, weight, etc., the performance isn't perfect but it's the kind of sacrifice you make to get something impossibly thin and light.
My S2 doesnt do that, even my Desire didnt, even my friends Wildfire doesnt and that has a 600mhz single core CPU.
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Yeah but these are all Android 2 devices which run at 800x480...
I never claimed to be objective, i despise Apple, and im very happy to say why. The galaxys look like an evolution of older Sammy phones and the Tabs look like large versions of them. They didnt copy Apple, call it 'convergent evolution' if you must. Apple are being patent trolls, they started it, the others need to finish it.
I love the look of the 8.9, its lovely, i just want the excessive stutter gone. homescreens are important to Android, its not just about the apps.
I know the Vega is rubbish, but it still manages to be smoother than the Tab.. Thats really sad.
Lower res phones should be smoother yes, but the Galaxy Note is smoother as well, that has the same res. The Xoom is smoother, in fact the 8.9 is the worst T2 powered tab ive used. What i want is ICS with Apex launcher than is smooth and jitter free. A pause or 2 i can handle, but not the gritty jerky laggy mess it currently is. It makes it feel so cheap and low end.
As for the dust, i used a statically charged plastic rod, and managed to make the fleck 'jump' off screen, behind the bezel i guess. It may return but its gone or now.
rovex said:
I never claimed to be objective, i despise Apple, and im very happy to say why. The galaxys look like an evolution of older Sammy phones and the Tabs look like large versions of them. They didnt copy Apple, call it 'convergent evolution' if you must. Apple are being patent trolls, they started it, the others need to finish it.
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Well, it's not even worth getting into here, but it's still just a company, no need to take it personally, they all do these same things and our tablets wouldn't exist if iPad didn't, and wouldn't be half as great if they weren't competing with it.
homescreens are important to Android, its not just about the apps.
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But why? What can you actually do on a homescreen?
I know the Vega is rubbish, but it still manages to be smoother than the Tab.. Thats really sad.
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Well, only if you mod the crap out of it, and I'm sure you can mod this tab to run better if you overclock it and use the right ROMs and stuff...
Lower res phones should be smoother yes, but the Galaxy Note is smoother as well, that has the same res.
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And it's running Gingerbread.
The Xoom is smoother
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And bigger, and heavier.
As for the dust, i used a statically charged plastic rod, and managed to make the fleck 'jump' off screen, behind the bezel i guess. It may return but its gone or now.
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Good idea! If it comes back you can just do it again. Great thinking though.
Android has widgets, iOS doesnt. iOS's interface is just a basic list of apps. Android has so much more, yes widgets are apps in a sense i suppose, but they are interactive. If their performance is very poor it ruins the experience. Most apps perform ok in themselves, but the homescreen is the face of the device and it must be smooth.
Yes the Vega must be modded to be smooth, but i standby what i said. A Stock Vega is better than a stock 8.9, and ive done everything i can to make this smooth (ROMs, kernels, overclocks, tweaks), its still slower than a modded Vega.
The Note has ICS now and it destroys the 8.9 with ICS builds. The 8.9 feels like a 500mhz single core unit next to a Note. The Note running GB previously doesnt explain why its faster, it should mean its slower!
The Xoom might be heavier but it has no 'performance enhancing' extras that the 8.9 doesnt have, in fact the 8.9 has faster RAM, or at least a better implemented memory subsystem. Its still manages to be slower.
I simply dont accept the answer 'Blame Honeycomb'. If ICS fixes the issues then i believe Samsung must have changed something else, some limitation or previous decision that was hindering the unit.
Tegra2 for whatever reason is a horrible CPU. I've used a few omap4 tablets and they just seem way smoother than tegra2. I mean a tegra 3 is finally smooth but nvidias cpus seem to be "on paper" good but real world bad each generation. Seem like they come out first with a spec set but poorly implemented once competitors are out. I mean the snapdragon s4 quad will probably destroy tegra 3
The S4 duals beat the T3!
I knew Tegra was old and slow, but i did think that maybe Samsung would have made the best of the bad CPU, it seems they have made the worst of it.

[Q] Why is my Nook HD+ embarrassingly slow?

I had bought a Nook HD+ to be the replacement for my aging 1st generation Kindle Fire (Otter) tablet. However after having had it for 6 months now I've been rather disappointed with it. On paper it should have been better than my OG KF in every way but in reality that has not been true.
Nook HD+
Released 2012
1.50GHz TI OMAP 4470 (ARM Cortex A9 + PowerVR SGX 544)
1 GB of memory
32 GB storage (controller without issue too)
CM11 Nightly 2014.08.02 installed to internal storage
Davlik, stock kernel, not overclocked
Kindle Fire
Released 2011
1GHz TI OMAP 4430 (ARM Cortex A9 + PowerVR SGX540)
512 MB of memory
8 GB storage
CM11 Nightly 2014.08.02 installed to internal storage
Davlik, stock kernel, not overclocked
Whenever it comes to anything relating to the screen though this old as dirt KF tablet still performs better than this much newer and on paper better device. The Nook HD+ is obviously better as most apps perform much better like browsing FB app, looking at web pages with lots of content, running any number of non-visual intensive apps.
Places the Nook HD+ bogs down.
Paging around in the home screen stutters when loading icons even if the page has already been loaded.
Closing an app and returning to the home screen is extremely sluggish and then requires reloading of each page.
The boot animation is completely embarrassing, it jitters and skips like it's been beaten to death.
Scrolling through large pages of data in Chrome jitters rather badly.
Some games with intensive video requirements are just nasty at times. Running really slow or slowing down over time.
This video shows the KF next to the Nook HD+ to show how horrible the start animation is. After loading I page left then right and you can see the home page stutter on loading the icons when I come back left.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEJK-VUZunk
This video shows loading PvZ 2 where just the loading screens alone are running slower and jitter more. Then when loaded menus take longer to load and are very jittery compared to the KF.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCG8GKIWyso
Note - I even removed the overclock from the KF for these tests.
I realize the resolution is greater on the HD+ than the KF but the Amazon KF HD 8.9" uses the same hardware as the HD+ and it doesn't have the same issues. I also recall when running the stock firmware the system was much more responsive than it is under CM11 (any version).
This really seems like a lack of a good video driver or something wrong with the memory management.
I'm looking for serious discussion on this and not "well mine works fine so it must be yours..." or suggestions of running some random ROM or running TRIM or tweaking some random setting. This is something more than basic settings as I've already tried several over the last 6 months along with fresh installs of CM.
Your hd+ looks normal. I wouldn't think about it too much as its more than likely not getting better than that.
I just bought a new phone and the hardware made android so much more snappier then it was on the last one no matter how much people had tweaked the roms.
Just how it is. Its a cheap tablet with a nice size screen and hardware not quite capable.
sandsofmyst said:
Your hd+ looks normal. I wouldn't think about it too much as its more than likely not getting better than that.
I just bought a new phone and the hardware made android so much more snappier then it was on the last one no matter how much people had tweaked the roms.
Just how it is. Its a cheap tablet with a nice size screen and hardware not quite capable.
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I've installed CM11 for two of my friends on their HD+'s, and their is snappier than mine. All are fresh installs. There is a very noticeable difference between mine (purchased in June, 2013), and theirs (purchased in May & June 2014). I didn't write everything down, but there was very little difference in the information for each device as reported by Quadrant.
Odenknight said:
I've installed CM11 for two of my friends on their HD+'s, and their is snappier than mine. All are fresh installs. There is a very noticeable difference between mine (purchased in June, 2013), and theirs (purchased in May & June 2014). I didn't write everything down, but there was very little difference in the information for each device as reported by Quadrant.
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You maybe experiencing lag since you have been running longer (since 2013, not just with CM11). Also you may have a different emmc chip than they do. There are hardware differences between some devices
Sent from my BN NookHD+ using XDA Premium HD app
leapinlar said:
You maybe experiencing lag since you have been running longer (since 2013, not just with CM11). Also you may have a different emmc chip than they do. There are hardware differences between some devices
Sent from my BN NookHD+ using XDA Premium HD app
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Thanks for the info. I'll ask them to send me the device info and I'll compare them both. Based off of what you said earlier, it may be due to too many writes to the chip? If so, I can live with that. I did abuse the heck out of it.
Thanks to you, VG, and everyone else in the community who put all of this together.
Odenknight said:
Thanks for the info. I'll ask them to send me the device info and I'll compare them both. Based off of what you said earlier, it may be due to too many writes to the chip? If so, I can live with that. I did abuse the heck out of it.
Thanks to you, VG, and everyone else in the community who put all of this together.
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That is exactly what I meant. But if you run CM11 enough, it may speed up due to it running TRIM in the background.
Sent from my BN NookHD+ using XDA Premium HD app
Idk. Had two of these, one for three months and this one since around when you got yours. It performs as I remember and as I expect.
But since your comparing directly to another aren't ALL electronics that way? This display is more blue than that one, this hard drive has more errors that that one. This cpu can be oc'd more than that one.
There's always things causing speed differences. Background services, amount of free space - its best to have >50% free space, amount of installed apps, what leapinlar pointed out, etc.
In one month they could have no noticeable difference. Tis all I'm saying.
[You might was to switch over to using art instead of dalvic as well if not already. It may/may not help in making it feel faster as its suppoed to be the PBT™ (Performance Boosting Thing). Mine is on art. You may also want to go into the recovery and do a full backup before that.]
sandsofmyst said:
[You might was to switch over to using art instead of dalvic as well if not already. It may/may not help in making it feel faster as its suppoed to be the PBT™ (Performance Boosting Thing). Mine is on art. You may also want to go into the recovery and do a full backup before that.]
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Pardon my ignorance, but how do you do this?
neoage said:
Pardon my ignorance, but how do you do this?
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This post is for a phone, but it is the same for all devices (I just randomly picked a post):
http://forums.androidcentral.com/android-4-4-kitkat/404625-enabling-art-android-4-4-3-devices.html
Quote "To enable ART, Go to settings => About Phone =>Then go to Build Number and tap on Build Number until it ask if you want to enable Developer Options (or something in that effect) Once you say yes, Go back once and above About Phone you should see Developer options.
Under Developer options, go to "Select Runtime" (which should be on Dalvik) and select ART. Once you do this it will need to reboot your phone and then it will go through an update process on your Apps. Depending on how many Apps you have this can take a bit. I suggest doing when you won't need your phone for a few minutes and also make sure to plug your phone into power to help it go faster.
Once it is done, I suggest testing one or two apps to make sure they work. Then I would reboot your phone one more time. (This seems to fix a noticed app lag after the update). Once it comes back up, use your phone as normal and enjoy the free speed boost and a little added battery life. I have not noticed any issue with the 168 apps on my Nexus 5 nor any stability issue with the device, but again you millage may vary on your device and apps."
Some additional notes:
I stress doing a full recovery backup first. If you don't have enough internal space available, then that may cause it to be unusable when android starts up due to it failing while configuring art.
Phones (and other low internal storage devices) are a bit problematic due to amount of space available. My htc sensation couldn't enable art from not enough internal space. But the nook hd+ (for instance) has plenty (assuming its not all used).
Art is supposed to be enabled automatically in the next android release.
"With the L Developer Preview, ART is now the default runtime."
https://developer.android.com/preview/api-overview.html
Art requires more space due the fact that apps are pre-compiled during install:
"ART, on the other hand, uses an Ahead-of-Time compiler (AOT) to process application instructions before they're needed so things run more smoothly for the user."
http://lifehacker.com/android-art-vs-dalvik-runtimes-effect-on-battery-life-1507264545
You'll possibly lose about half a GB or more. It just depends on how many apps including the apps included with the rom.
The reason why the hd+ has poorer performance is probably due to it dragging a 1920x1080 (2073600 pixels) screen while the Fire has a 1024x600 screen (614400 pixels). Processing a full 1080p screen vs a 600 makes a big difference. The 544 isn't much of an upgrade over the 540 to make up for it. While it doubles the frame rate in graphics by about 2x over the 540, its having to push more than 3x the pixels.
Apple had the same issue with the ipad 3 when they went to the retina screen. It was a bit of a dog on pushing the retina screen, hence the quick rollout of the ipad 4 with a much faster cpu and gpu.
Lastly, amazon has a lot of pretty good paid developers optimizing the heck out of the Fire. I doubt its running a stock google display/graphics driver.
One of the things with high density displays. They're pretty and nice for text but you need plenty of horsepower to run them.
I signed up for alerts but doesn't seem like I was getting them.
I was comparing it to the OG Kindle Fire because it was the first real Android tablet and it's old as dirt now. Also as mentioned in the other performance vs stock thread when running the default Nook HD+ OS the interface is a lot more responsive and games perform better too. It seems like there's something missing between those kernel's/drivers and the CM version.
Of note these commits might help us with some of our issues. It looks like they're enabling a 128 MB swap partition for this device.
http://review.cyanogenmod.org/#/c/68840/

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