Related
Forgive me for the intrusion, but I have a question for you all. Looking at the various threads and screen shots, it appears that most are using a rooted nook rather than honeycomb or froyo; is this accurate?
My story:
I was in Best-buy the other day shopping tablets (Xoom, Galaxy, iPad, etc) and someone was walking by and said "Hey, save money, get a NC." Of course I was like, what? I'm no stranger to Linux, servers, and basic programming but tablets and android is uncharted territory for me. So, after this guy did some basic explaining I was like "half price, and near limitless customization? Yeah thats for me!"
So here I am, been browsing this website for a few days trying to decide how I should go about 'unlocking' my NC. Do I use some sort of root kit to just unlock the 'stock' system? Do I use 'Froyo' on a SD card? What about this honeycomb thing, should I use that?
Like I said, it appears from screenshots most people are still using the basic NC system, that has maybe just been rooted to run apps and such from the market? I'm sorry for sounding dumb, I'm really not, just not sure what route is best for me, or the best choice. I am a fast learner, I just don't want to spend weeks learning something only to realize I was learning the wrong thing for what I need.
What I've gathered so far:
Stock rooted NC - will do fine for most users. Launcher Pro, Pandora, YouTube, browsing, games, gmail, etc. What about GPS? Google Maps?
Froyo - Same as above, some cosmetic differences, bells and whistles only advantage?
Honeycomb - Culmination of the previous two lists?
Insight welcome please?
Signed,
Work in progress.
It may be a little over half the price... But the Nook color is half the speed of the Motorola Xoom. So if you really have the money, I would return the nook color and just get a xoom, you'll be happier with it. If you're looking for just something to surf the net, and play a few games or programs, then the NC is a decent choice.
I use CM7 nightlys. CM7 is in my opinion the best rom, it allows bluetooth support and flash. It can be overclocked to 1190mhz. And has a lot of options for customizations.
HC is limited to a preview sdk build until google decides to let others have the final source, which could be a while... (Motorola Xoom comes with it installed)
Froyo is limited in a lot of regards, and CM7 is far better and offers a lot more support for programs and hardware. That said... Some people feel Froyo is better than CM7, but they're essentially the same underlining OS.
Individuals requirements vary, but since you asked I will give my two cents:
CyanogenMod 7
While it is currently not released as "stable" but only nightly builds, the nightlies are extremely good. Phiremod is based on the nightlies and adds some nice stuff, but is also slightly behind since the nightly has to be released before it can be customized.
The latest is CM7 nightly 32 right now (http://download.cyanogenmod.com/?type=nightly&device=encore) but it changes almost every day.
A Video Test build was just released that has YouTube working in all its glory (? Did I really type that?) so the video issues should be a thing of the past in a few days. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=960537
The same dev has an overclock kernel which gets the cpu up to 1100mhz and adds the interactive governor- http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=925451
And another guy took a great idea and ran with it: adding Tablet Tweaks to CM
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1002000
I generally run the latest nightly with an oc kernel but now that the Tablet Tweaks has made so much progress, my routine is like this:
Flash latest nightly
Flash Tablet Tweaks
Flash OC kernel
Don't let the "nightly" status of CM7 put you off too much- the CyanogenMod team are perfectionists and won't call a rom Stable until it is PERFECT.
Right now the nightlies are better than any fresh install of Windows I have ever seen, for example....
I wouldn't go to honeycomb as a permanent solution now - it is reasonably good but still experimental with problems running full tablet applications.
I'm using Froyo but will switch over to CM7 shortly. At one point, froyo was more stable (two weeks back - things change fast) with working video and flash. CM7 has come along quickly and its time to move on. Having said that - both of these require some fiddling to get working properly. This is not a no-frustration experience - if you are comfortable with sorting out linux-like issues it won't be too bad. Fun if you like tinkering with gadgets.
Rooted stock is stable, adds the open android market to the the stock B&N experience which includes a very nice reader. If you upgrade beyond stock you will lose the reader which has some desireable features like "borrowing a book" in the store, magazines and newspapers. Not working on froyo, cm7, or hc.
I'd agree that cm7 is probably the best compromise at this point - at least for me. You will still be flashing gapps and wondering where certain apps or wallpapers are in the market.
Xoom or galaxy tab actually work (largely) without customization today. Closer to an ipad experience in that it works out of the box. Nook color can largely replicate those functions but you'll do a little work setting it up.
Peter
I would not trade the NC for the Xoom just because the Xoom is so ridiculously overpriced IMO. Personally, I would go with stock rooted. If you find that you are wanting to do something with it that you cannot do on stock rooted, then look for something else like Nookie Froyo or Honeycomb (which is still a little half baked on the NC IMO).
Wonderful advice and well said. Thank you much for everyone's time, I above anyone else know how precious every second is.
'Sorting out linux and tinkering' is exactly on point, I've been doing that very thing for about 12 years now. I like to consider myself an avid enthusiast rather than full throttle geek. Anyway, I think I'll study the route of stock rooted and further my knowledge on full flash before taking that plunge.
That being said, one more question and I'll let you all get back to more important things. I should be right in assuming just follow the steps in this thread http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=872490 or the v3.* thread to fully root the stock NC and have google apps, market, etc up and running? From what I've read, this auto-nooter has pretty much all of it built in already; Gmail, Market, root-kit etc.
PS: Wonderful site, very informative.
Signed,
Work in Progress.
LarcenQ said:
Stock rooted NC - will do fine for most users. Launcher Pro, Pandora, YouTube, browsing, games, gmail, etc. What about GPS? Google Maps?
Froyo - Same as above, some cosmetic differences, bells and whistles only advantage?
Honeycomb - Culmination of the previous two lists?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm in your same boat (I recently started with Nookie Froyo on SD so I can leave the Nook alone, but am just learning what else needs to be done to fix some buggy behavior.)
One thing to understand is that there are multiple versions of Android. The Nook Color still ships with Android 2.1 (Eclair). They are supposed to be pushing out 2.2 (Froyo) in a few days. The Cyanogenmod (CM7) people are using 2.3 (Gingerbread). And the NookieFroyo folks are of course using 2.2. I have no idea what Phiremod is. As expected, the later versions of Android tend to have more features/work better.
The 3.0 version of Android, Honeycomb, is still the most experimental and apparently doesn't work that well with the Nook Color yet. Worse, Google has decided to hold back the latest source code of this "open source" project for now, meaning that only the Xoom can run the thing. But it's the only Android version with true tablet support.
As to GPS,the Nook Color does NOT have a GPS chip, so regardless of Android version you can get GPS coordinates only by rough calculation based on a WiFi database or by tethering to a GPS device or GPS-equipped cell phone.
xdabr said:
I have no idea what Phiremod is.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Phiremod is based on CM7 nightlies with some very nice customizations.
Yup -- Xoom overpriced. Unless you've a burning desire to be on the cutting edge, I'd go with the Nook Color and wait out the pricing on Android tablets. They are bound to come down.
Also, a couple of key points:
Barnes & Noble is theoretically going to push an upgrade sometime in April that will include Flash capability and some sort of Market. No details on the market. However if they're smart there will be a host of apps available that we all know will run on the Nook (because we've rooted and downloaded them). This new stock configuration may be all that a lot of people want or need.
If you are determined, however, remember that this forum is like a big toy store and can be confusing. You can run stock internally and dual boot into a fast SD card to run virtually any other configuration. Or, you can flash the internal rom and run most of these variation on the OS internally.
Here's the relevant point: When booting, the Nook Color looks first at the SD drive. That's very cool, because it allows us to do a whole bunch of fun stuff.
I'm currently running rooted stock internally and CM7 (the version with working Bluetooth) off a SD card. Truth be told I typically boot into CM7 because it works so well -- even for reading B&N Nook books. I use a little variation that allows hard key dual booting. There is a brandy new release of CM7 that resolves some video issues and I'll update to that.
However, the CM7 releases do not include the Google stuff, including the Market, so you have to load those via ADB (Android Development Bridge) which means setting up your computer with an Android development environment -- something very doable and free, but it takes some time to get it all working right.
The holy grail is probably Honeycomb, the Android version specifically designed with tablets in mind. There is a development version of Honeycomb that actually works pretty well, but it's not fully fleshed out just yet. I've got it running on a separate SD and it's very cool, but lacks some functionality. Once it's fully developed that will be my daily OS for sure.
One of my wants and needs is to be able to use an external folding keyboard. The only version floating around right now that supports the Nook's built-in Bluetooth (unused by B&N) is a release of CM7 -- and it works. I can use the nifty Freedom Pro keyboard and it's really pretty good -- no excessive lag.
Hopefully that's enough to get you going. I'd say -- given the overwhelming wealth of information on this forum -- keep your Nook stock until after B&N pushes the update. In the meantime, get a good fast SD card and use that to mess with your pick of Android versions offered here. Pick just one and than tunnel down into the forum to work with it at first.
Happy Nooking!
robedney said:
I'm currently running rooted stock internally and CM7 (the version with working Bluetooth) off a SD card.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you! I wanted to try this CM7 tonight when I got home, however, I do not want to wipe/tamper with my onboard nook, and everything I've read about CM7 you have to install on internal memory. Is there a link to the instructions on booting CM7 from the sd card?
Thanks in advance!
Signed,
Getting somewhere.
Yup -- I'll track it down. Stay tuned.
Here's a thread that sets up a SD card to run CM7 with working Bluetooth. Read the whole thread before you start (some good simple instructions are in there):
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=989637
Be aware that Google stuff and the Market are not included -- you'll have to install those via ADB (and there are full instructions on how to set up and do that on this forum.
Or -- a newer option that looks pretty cool (and avoids having to use ADB to get the Market):
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1000957
I think I'll try this on a spare SD card and see how it all works out.
There are hardware differences to consider too.
NC is 7 inch screen, vs 10 inch for XOOM and some other tablet.
Then size and weight.
Also NC doesn't have cameras, the others may have one or two...
And NC doesn't have mic, although bluetooth headset may work.
I am happy with my NC for its price and what I need.
robedney said:
Here's a thread that sets up a SD card to run CM7 with working Bluetooth. Read the whole thread before you start (some good simple instructions are in there):
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=989637
Be aware that Google stuff and the Market are not included -- you'll have to install those via ADB (and there are full instructions on how to set up and do that on this forum.
Or -- a newer option that looks pretty cool (and avoids having to use ADB to get the Market):
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1000957
I think I'll try this on a spare SD card and see how it all works out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Much obliged! I'll give this a try tonight once I get home from work. God I love mature people instead of 'scr3w yu n00b!'.
Signed,
Getting there.
Just make your of which Stock ROM you have (1.0.0, 1.0.1, 1.1.0). Each Nooter is made specifically for each ROM.
Also, as far as Gapps is concerned, there is no need to use ADB. All of it can be installed easily via ClockworkRecovery. ADB stuff is fun, but not needed to get full blown CM7 w/gapps and everything else.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/archive/index.php/t-1000957.html
just used this for a SD bootable CM7. I'm running rooted 2.1 for daily use and testing out the different options via SD bootable builds. fyi, this also allows the install of google apps without ADB.
HI,
One question for you:
What do you want to use the Nook for mainly?
Toy/Playing/learning/Android Apps/Web/eBooks... CM7 (Nightlies)
eBook reader mainly... Perhaps stock rooted.
Lots of video/Flash? Not sure which, perhaps Froyo. CM7 soon.
Require bluetooth? CM7
One immediate advantage for rooting is access to other eBook reader
applications, such as Kindle.
Don't forget to look at/select a soft button approach that you like,
Android is expecting more than the one button at the bottom. I like
Button Savior from the market, but there are a variety of other solutions.
It is handy to have a bunch of SDcards on hand too, I never seem to have
enough of them. Don't forget that when you move to an internal memory
version of, say, Cyanogenmod7, that you need a SD card for data too.
Good luck, the NC is a fun toy!
Peter
envygreen said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/archive/index.php/t-1000957.html
just used this for a SD bootable CM7. I'm running rooted 2.1 for daily use and testing out the different options via SD bootable builds. fyi, this also allows the install of google apps without ADB.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We're in dire need of a single (maintained) collection of all these pre-built SD card images -- is there such a posting?
Hunting through the forum is not as much fun as it seems.
EDIT: Looks like there's a list of ROMs at http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=872003
DOH!
Read post carefully BEFORE replying!
lol
I had some trouble installing CM7 in my last posts. Now I have one for both my wife and I . We are not into Netflix, flash or anything fancy, just want to be able to install apps from Google Market like Angry Birds and install apps like my Office Viewer.
I have very successfully installed custom ROMs on my GTablet but I want to keep it easy on my Nooks, which both at 1.3.0. The new one has the 1 GB data partition so that will need to change. I see 3 main options:
1. Install Manual Nooter.
2. Install CM7 on a uSD.
3. Install CM7 on the nook.
Are there any other compelling options that I should consider like Phiremod? My main goal is stability and reliability - this will likely be the only mod I do short of a major Android release down the road. And since I have to apply it to two Nooks, ease of install and maintenance would be nice.
Thanks for suggestions.
Matt
You might want to check out MiUi. It is a different enough experience that it is appealing to some (me included). I am running v 1.9.16 from a microSD card, although most put it on the internal memory.
See: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1161914
It tends to be a simpler, stable and a very smooth running interface... especially good if you deal with a limited number of apps since it doesn't use an app drawer but has everything on the main screens (like the iPad).
davidr415 said:
You might want to check out MiUi. It is a different enough experience that it is appealing to some (me included). I am running v 1.9.16 from a microSD card, although most put it on the internal memory.
See: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1161914
It tends to be a simpler, stable and a very smooth running interface... especially good if you deal with a limited number of apps since it doesn't use an app drawer but has everything on the main screens (like the iPad).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would heartily endorse the use of MIUI on an SD Card - it is very easy to implement using the Multiboot installer from here: http://forum.xda developers.com/showthread.php?t=1022786, thus leaving your Nook intact and it runs very smoothly - for me it runs much more smoothly than CM7.
Noob or not, it's a great ROM - I run it from a Sandisk Class 2 16 Gb microSD.
docfreed said:
I would heartily endorse the use of MIUI on an SD Card - it is very easy to implement using the Multiboot installer from here: [code]http://forum.xda-developers.c...omplicated stuff.
Thanks for the suggestion!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's important to use a Sandisk card. Otherwise you will be disappointed. There are several threads on this in case you haven't read them. My personal experience has also proved this to be true.
Matt_WhatsAnIPad said:
I had some trouble installing CM7 in my last posts. Now I have one for both my wife and I . We are not into Netflix, flash or anything fancy, just want to be able to install apps from Google Market like Angry Birds and install apps like my Office Viewer.
I have very successfully installed custom ROMs on my GTablet but I want to keep it easy on my Nooks, which both at 1.3.0. The new one has the 1 GB data partition so that will need to change. I see 3 main options:
1. Install Manual Nooter.
2. Install CM7 on a uSD.
3. Install CM7 on the nook.
Are there any other compelling options that I should consider like Phiremod? My main goal is stability and reliability - this will likely be the only mod I do short of a major Android release down the road. And since I have to apply it to two Nooks, ease of install and maintenance would be nice.
Thanks for suggestions.
Matt
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would suggest that you wait a little longer as the stock NCs will be getting a fairly significant update soon so that they will include Netflix and Hulu and some other B&N store items. It is not clear whether this will also be an upgrade to Gingerbread & I have no idea whether this will change the partitions again.
Hello All,
Just thought I'd add my experience with CM on my Nook Color. I received the Nook from a friend who got an iPad mini - said he wasn't really using it anymore. I knew I wanted full Android, and one that was usable, so I got to work with trying a bunch of different solutions. What I ended up with is a very quick, responsive tablet that runs everything I need it to. I'm hoping this will help some users starting out who are looking for the best compromise between speed and functionality on this aging hardware. If you make any of these changes or suggestions I'm not responsible for damage to your hardware, software, body parts, blah blah blah. Thanks goes to various sources, but most of all to this forum and it's users for being an outstanding source of information. Again, these are all based off of MY experience with the tablet.
As far as the ROM, MiRaGe CyanogenMod 7.2. No question. I tried the official CyanogenMod, Miui, and couldn't even find phiremod (which isn't being worked on). CyanagenMod is current and has an active community with guides for help and support, and the MiRaGe variant has some pretty slick modifications that work very well on the Nook.
I find installing to the internal memory "slightly" faster, resulting in less issues. There's no reason to keep the stock OS on there for me, so I just removed it. You can find full EMMC installation instructions on this forum.
Out of the box with this install, it's pretty responsive.
Disable Wifi when the screen is off - it'll save you a bunch of battery, unless you're really concerned about notifications when you're not using it.
For applications, here's my experience:
1. Latest YouTube works well, but you'll need to deselect "HD" for each video as it loads. An inconvenience, but it works.
2. I've tried tons of versions of Netflix, and find version 1.8.1 the best for this installation. Streaming is smooth, and the UI is responsive. Once you install it, ignore the prompts from the Play store to update it.
3. Install MX Player to handle any type of video playback, including mp4s off the Internet - there's no built in support. It's fast, free and runs everything I've thrown at it.
4. Dolphin browser works really well on this installation. I find it the best balance of performance and features.
Now, the most important part, and believe it or not this made the most difference for me - disable the phone software. Since 7.2 was primarily developed for phones, the cell and phone services are still running, sucking up battery and CPU. You can see the service Cell Standby running constantly. Here's how to wipe it out.
1. Download Root Browser, free from the Market.
2. Navigate to /System/Apps
3. Delete (I know, you could freeze, rename or move, but I won't need these again, and didn't experience any issues afterwards) the following files in this order:
VoiceDialer.apk
TelephonyProvider.apk
Mms.apk
Phone.apk
The "normal" uninstall option won't work. For each of these items, and the one below, tap and hold until you see the full menu of commands. From there, tap Delete. After you delete Phone.apk, you'll get stuck in a loop that the service failed, and you'll have to keep force closing it. Just reboot at this point.
4. Back in Root Browser, go to /Data/Data
5. Delete com.android.phone
6. Reboot.
At this point, my Nook boots cold in about 20 seconds, and application transitions are snappy. I haven't experienced any crashes with this configuration, and that's steady use of Gmail, Facebook, Dolphin, Netflix, YouTube, Feedly and various other apps. All apps except for Netflix are the most current versions from the store and work perfectly.
It goes without saying that most games won't work well, but if you're looking to get some productivity out of this tablet, these settings worked the best for me.
Hi!
webman2k said:
Hello All,
Just thought I'd add my experience with CM on my Nook Color. I received the Nook from a friend who got an iPad mini - said he wasn't really using it anymore. I knew I wanted full Android, and one that was usable, so I got to work with trying a bunch of different solutions. What I ended up with is a very quick, responsive tablet that runs everything I need it to. I'm hoping this will help some users starting out who are looking for the best compromise between speed and functionality on this aging hardware. If you make any of these changes or suggestions I'm not responsible for damage to your hardware, software, body parts, blah blah blah. Thanks goes to various sources, but most of all to this forum and it's users for being an outstanding source of information. Again, these are all based off of MY experience with the tablet.
As far as the ROM, MiRaGe CyanogenMod 7.2. No question. I tried the official CyanogenMod, Miui, and couldn't even find phiremod (which isn't being worked on). CyanagenMod is current and has an active community with guides for help and support, and the MiRaGe variant has some pretty slick modifications that work very well on the Nook.
I find installing to the internal memory "slightly" faster, resulting in less issues. There's no reason to keep the stock OS on there for me, so I just removed it. You can find full EMMC installation instructions on this forum.
Out of the box with this install, it's pretty responsive.
Disable Wifi when the screen is off - it'll save you a bunch of battery, unless you're really concerned about notifications when you're not using it.
For applications, here's my experience:
1. Latest YouTube works well, but you'll need to deselect "HD" for each video as it loads. An inconvenience, but it works.
2. I've tried tons of versions of Netflix, and find version 1.8.1 the best for this installation. Streaming is smooth, and the UI is responsive. Once you install it, ignore the prompts from the Play store to update it.
3. Install MX Player to handle any type of video playback, including mp4s off the Internet - there's no built in support. It's fast, free and runs everything I've thrown at it.
4. Dolphin browser works really well on this installation. I find it the best balance of performance and features.
Now, the most important part, and believe it or not this made the most difference for me - disable the phone software. Since 7.2 was primarily developed for phones, the cell and phone services are still running, sucking up battery and CPU. You can see the two services running under the battery monitoring (Phone Idle and Cell Standby). Here's how to wipe them out.
1. Download Root Browser, free from the Market.
2. Navigate to /System/Apps
3. Delete (I know, you could freeze, rename or move, but I won't need these again, and didn't experience any issues afterwards) the following files in this order:
VoiceDialer.apk
TelephonyProvider.apk
Mms.apk
Phone.apk
After you delete Phone.apk, you'll get stuck in a loop that the service failed, and you'll have to keep force closing it. Just reboot at this point.
4. Back in Root Browser, go to /Data/Data
5. Delete com.android.phone
6. Reboot.
At this point, my Nook boots cold in about 12 seconds, and application transitions are snappy. I haven't experienced any crashes with this configuration, and that's steady use of Gmail, Facebook, Dolphin, Netflix, YouTube, Feedly and various other apps. All apps except for Netflix are the most current versions from the store and work perfectly.
It goes without saying that most games won't work well, but if you're looking to get some productivity out of this tablet, these settings worked the best for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I really appreciate this. I'm trying to update my nook color instead of buying a nexus 7 since I only need a 'tablet' for basic things. I'm really new to all of this, and did an SD root of 7.0.1 since my attempts of 10.2 left my nook super slow. I'm looking to do a full root now that my warranty is up and the 7.0.1 just isn't meeting my needs.
I'm going to attempt the route you went down. Can you provide any links that you used? Sorry if this is asking for too much... I'm really new to all of this and don't know where to start.
Do you find that your programs stop responding at all? I am having the issue now and my main goal is to get that to stop. I'm not sure if thats a rom problem, an SD card problem... or something I did wrong. I hope to use my NC to read, surf the web, email, sync with google calendar... and access google drive.
RedCello said:
I really appreciate this. I'm trying to update my nook color instead of buying a nexus 7 since I only need a 'tablet' for basic things. I'm really new to all of this, and did an SD root of 7.0.1 since my attempts of 10.2 left my nook super slow. I'm looking to do a full root now that my warranty is up and the 7.0.1 just isn't meeting my needs.
I'm going to attempt the route you went down. Can you provide any links that you used? Sorry if this is asking for too much... I'm really new to all of this and don't know where to start.
Do you find that your programs stop responding at all? I am having the issue now and my main goal is to get that to stop. I'm not sure if thats a rom problem, an SD card problem... or something I did wrong. I hope to use my NC to read, surf the web, email, sync with google calendar... and access google drive.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello RedCello,
Yeah - first thing I tried when I got the Nook was the latest CM nightly. And while it was pretty cool to have the latest Android running on 3 year old hardware, it certainly showed. The biggest drawback of the hardware is RAM. The Nook only has 512mb, and running modern apps can take up quite a bit. That's why the most important part of any mod for this hardware is good RAM management. Stock 7.2 is good, but I was constantly running out of RAM, resulting in very sluggish app performance, much like you're experiencing. Keeping Clean Master (free from the store) installed and wiping the ram when it notified me kept things moving, but when I finally tried the MiRaGe ROM, I didn't even have to use it. I wouldn't say it runs like a Nexus, but even animations run relatively smoothly, and I have no trouble with Netflix, Dolphin, Facebook, Feedly, Youtube, and others.
If you have recovery installed to the EMMC, you can grab the latest ROM and kernel updates at the link below. All you'll need are those two zips, and the gapps for 7.2:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1344873
http://goo.im/gapps
The MiRaGe thread has all the instructions for that rom, and here's the link to the general EMMC install instructions:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1030227
If you only installed to an SD before, this will guide you to create the bootable SD, from which you can install the 3 zips. Pretty simple, and the result is a VERY functional old tablet.
webman2k said:
Hello RedCello,
Yeah - first thing I tried when I got the Nook was the latest CM nightly. And while it was pretty cool to have the latest Android running on 3 year old hardware, it certainly showed. The biggest drawback of the hardware is RAM. The Nook only has 512mb, and running modern apps can take up quite a bit. That's why the most important part of any mod for this hardware is good RAM management. Stock 7.2 is good, but I was constantly running out of RAM, resulting in very sluggish app performance, much like you're experiencing. Keeping Clean Master (free from the store) installed and wiping the ram when it notified me kept things moving, but when I finally tried the MiRaGe ROM, I didn't even have to use it. I wouldn't say it runs like a Nexus, but even animations run relatively smoothly, and I have no trouble with Netflix, Dolphin, Facebook, Feedly, Youtube, and others.
If you have recovery installed to the EMMC, you can grab the latest ROM and kernel updates at the link below. All you'll need are those two zips, and the gapps for 7.2:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1344873
http://goo.im/gapps
The MiRaGe thread has all the instructions for that rom, and here's the link to the general EMMC install instructions:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1030227
If you only installed to an SD before, this will guide you to create the bootable SD, from which you can install the 3 zips. Pretty simple, and the result is a VERY functional old tablet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks so much! I'm going to give it a shot either tonight or tomorrow. I might post again in I run across any issues. Thanks again!
RedCello said:
Thanks so much! I'm going to give it a shot either tonight or tomorrow. I might post again in I run across any issues. Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've installed it and for the brief 10 minutes I've been using - it is great! Thanks for your instructions. links, and tips.
I've followed your suggestions but I can't get root browser to work. Any ideas? It loads properly but when I try to uninstall the files, it says uninstall unsuccessful. I noticed you mentioned that you could freeze items and such, I don't see those options which makes me wonder if I'm doing something wrong. Any clue?
RedCello said:
I've installed it and for the brief 10 minutes I've been using - it is great! Thanks for your instructions. links, and tips.
I've followed your suggestions but I can't get root browser to work. Any ideas? It loads properly but when I try to uninstall the files, it says uninstall unsuccessful. I noticed you mentioned that you could freeze items and such, I don't see those options which makes me wonder if I'm doing something wrong. Any clue?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Forgot that part, I'll update the OP. Tap and hold the items you want to remove to get the full menu, then choose delete. It'll work from there.
webman2k said:
Forgot that part, I'll update the OP. Tap and hold the items you want to remove to get the full menu, then choose delete. It'll work from there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Got it, thanks! I've been using the NC constantly and it fills all my needs, so much that I won't be upgrading now. Thanks for your post. It convinced me to give it a shot and I'm so glad I did!
RedCello said:
Got it, thanks! I've been using the NC constantly and it fills all my needs, so much that I won't be upgrading now. Thanks for your post. It convinced me to give it a shot and I'm so glad I did!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem, glad I could help. I'm actually quite surprised at how capable this tablet is, considering the specs.
Thanks for this. I've been using CM 10.1.3 but it was real sluggish. I had some success with the V6 Supercharger, but I may give the MiRaGe 7.2 if it works as well as you say.
Cm 10.2 M1 is the best to me, cross breeder is a must to run it smoothly
xflier said:
Cm 10.2 M1 is the best to me, cross breeder is a must to run it smoothly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What has Cross Breeder done for you? I am assuming this is it:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2113150
xflier said:
Cm 10.2 M1 is the best to me, cross breeder is a must to run it smoothly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I really like the nightlies, and if they bring KitKat to the Nook Color, I'll surely try that. However, in my trials, NOTHING touches the speed and stability of this rom. Also, there's tons more free ram on a CM7 base, which helps tremendously. But the most important difference is the touch screen responsiveness. With CM7 (and MiRaGe), the touchscreen responds instantly and accurately. The CM10 builds - through to the latest nightlies - all have responsiveness issues with the screen. Some apps require multiple touches, etc.
You're not getting the latest and greatest features here, but what I was looking to do was get the best balance of features and performance, to make this old tablet something I'd want to use on a daily basis. This rom does it for me.
webman2k said:
I really like the nightlies, and if they bring KitKat to the Nook Color, I'll surely try that. However, in my trials, NOTHING touches the speed and stability of this rom. Also, there's tons more free ram on a CM7 base, which helps tremendously. But the most important difference is the touch screen responsiveness. With CM7 (and MiRaGe), the touchscreen responds instantly and accurately. The CM10 builds - through to the latest nightlies - all have responsiveness issues with the screen. Some apps require multiple touches, etc.
You're not getting the latest and greatest features here, but what I was looking to do was get the best balance of features and performance, to make this old tablet something I'd want to use on a daily basis. This rom does it for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Nook screen re-calibrator app fixed the screen issues for me.
JoshMcMadMac said:
The Nook screen re-calibrator app fixed the screen issues for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It seems to help, but I think it's an issue of resources as well. on CM7, taps equal a response every time. There are some instances where I have to tap a few times on the nightly, or the tap zone is "off". It'll always work, but it can be very sensitive. For example, navigating Netflix can be frustrating at times. It can read a tap as a swipe if it's not precise enough. I don't seem to have that problem on CM7 builds.
I've gone back to the nightlies right now, to see the progress, and I'm incredibly impressed. If anything, it gets me excited for 4.4. From what I've read, that'll really breath new life into this tablet.
Thanks for the great writeup, have had my Nook for awhile and keep updating and since the latest one I noticed alot of weird things and bad batter life. Did what you suggested and everything seems to be working better now. Was just wondering if anyone would suggest a more lightweight launcher or is ADW the best for battery life (or does it really make a difference)? And any other suggestions for increasing battery life would be helpful to
I started with official cm7.2 and went up and down the cm tree ( cm9, cm10, phiremod) and then some ParanoidAndroid,MIUI, . Somewhere in between I found the mirage rom and to be honest by this time, all I needed my nook color was for the kids and their apps and constant usage of many apps in just a few minutes. That was the the Deciding factor and for some reason mirage ROM got laggy as hell when it was 'multitasking'. I also was not able to get the USB host to work and V6 supercharger has some problems and did not install some scripts, nook tweaks CPU settings were incompatible and WiFi title was a trouble for the kids since enabling/disabling would take them into the settings and they would muck everything up in there.
So I stuck with the official cm7.2 with the help of v6 supercharger (supercharge,kick as kernelizer, battery calibrator), voltage and stepping tweaks with the help of Nook Tweaks on the market, flash player (pre ics) and adding adw ex.
Let's see addressing the YouTube not playing hd even download vids , you can help by installing rolletube side by side with official YouTube app (g**gle it) or
https : //code.google.com/p/r7android/downloads/detail?name=Rolle%20Tube.r7android.com.apk (added some spaces, can't post links yet).
Credit: http : //forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1069911 (again with the spaces oyyy).
On a side note has anyone tried krylon360 ROM if so, do you still have it to share?
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk
xflier said:
Cm 10.2 M1 is the best to me, cross breeder is a must to run it smoothly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Weird, I'm getting a status 7 error...
MGREX said:
Weird, I'm getting a status 7 error...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you using v6045 or newer CWM? That causes that error. You need to use an older version of CWM.
Sent from my BN NookHD+ using XDA Premium HD app
How does CM11 in its current state compare with running the MiRage 7.2 ROM? I'm going to be giving my old Nook Color to my mother and want to put something on it that will run decent.
mogators1 said:
How does CM11 in its current state compare with running the MiRage 7.2 ROM? I'm going to be giving my old Nook Color to my mother and want to put something on it that will run decent.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hadn't used my Nook in a while and was thinking of putting it on Ebay, so I decided to update CM and see how it ran, or go back to stock. I decided to stick to CM10.x hoping the Netflix fixes might work, so this isn't CM11...but for the life of me, as much as I respect CM in all it's glory, it just seemed to be nowhere near as snappy/responsive as I have liked. Not sure why, maybe the newer versions are too much for the older Nook Color hardware or something. I had a heck of a time even using the browser as the screen touch response just wasn't what I expected.
Prior to restoring to stock, I came across this post and the OP's experience with his Nook using MiRage 7.2. I installed it this afternoon and I'm really pleased so far. Everything seems as responsive as I'd expect it to be, and I did remove the phone stuff as he suggested. I prefer to download and sideload my .apk's, but everything seems to be running well; very nicely in fact. I did load the 1.5.2 version of Netflix, as was suggested for this MiRage CM version, but haven't had a chance to try it yet, so I can't report on that.
But for my part, I'm much happier with the MiRage version than the most recent CM version(s), and it makes it a nice day-to-day tablet.
...thanks..
I used lolipop most of the time on my S5 mini but I also used marshmallow recently. Even with all **** disabled there are still very noticable delays when I switch between applications and scrolling isn't smooth, some transitions are not as smooth either.
I'm using Slim6 at the moment and first thing I noticed when is that it's so smooth. For a while I thought this phone's hardware is too weak for system or it should run it damn smooth. On another hand I see phones like J5 2016 from Samsung which has Marshmallow preinstalled and it's so much smoother than my S5 mini ever was.
So my question is what causes the system to preform so slow and not as smooth as one would like? And it can't be bloatware because even if you disable and uninstall all of that **** it still runs just as bad.
inejco said:
I used lolipop most of the time on my S5 mini but I also used marshmallow recently. Even with all **** disabled there are still very noticable delays when I switch between applications and scrolling isn't smooth, some transitions are not as smooth either.
I'm using Slim6 at the moment and first thing I noticed when is that it's so smooth. For a while I thought this phone's hardware is too weak for system or it should run it damn smooth. On another hand I see phones like J5 2016 from Samsung which has Marshmallow preinstalled and it's so much smoother than my S5 mini ever was.
So my question is what causes the system to preform so slow and not as smooth as one would like? And it can't be bloatware because even if you disable and uninstall all of that **** it still runs just as bad.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Stock Lolipop is full of bloatware, and the problem is, this software runs mostly in Backgroud, even if you don't use it.
Wow I'm actually shocked. After removing around 20 Google and Samsung crap that came preinstalled using Bloatware removing tools I can actually feel the difference in smoothness and device is a lot more fun to use. Again understameted what all those annoying apps from Samsung and Google can do.
inejco said:
Wow I'm actually shocked. After removing around 20 Google and Samsung crap that came preinstalled using Bloatware removing tools I can actually feel the difference in smoothness and device is a lot more fun to use. Again understameted what all those annoying apps from Samsung and Google can do.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What app and with what parameters (setup) have you used for debloating?
Nevermind it's getting slow overtime still. ****.
It's the kernel, don't use Samsung stock kernel. I've got a G800Y variant and that sh*t was as slow as a fkn fliptop I swear. I've got the following on mine:
- Xposed (23/87.1 for Samsung) <- Personally, this is also partly to do with being able to maintain everything, there's a module called like 100M+ Memory Saver (module list below)
- No Google Play Services/Play Store/Location/ANYTHING (even using Yalp Store as an alternative to that cancerous bundle of leaching bloatware)
- Hopefully sometime soon the open source OpenLauncher gets fixed up sometime soon, swear its the best of every Launcher -Performance draining features/+Free and it's pretty tidy too (but broken)
- HEBF Optimizer (Free - XDA), not sure about this one but the UI is tidy and it's got some good stuff, personally used to 3C but I have both installed
Running on the SpookyCity v2.5 CM13 Kernel (you have to CM-Auto-Root to get an install without that dirty blue/red in the top left and fix up some root permission issues I was getting), with LineageOS 13.0. Don't install addonsu, pretty sure I got it going using some divine blessing with SuperSU 2.79.
Xposed Modules
- 100M+ Memory Saver
- 3C Toolbox Pro (Free/Paid - Xposed/Play/$9.99) [Xposed-capable] little outdated, but it's got a whole bunch of options for lazy/new/any user
- Adblocker Reborn
- All My...
- Android N-ify
- FS Keyboard
- Xposed Settings Injector
Even though it states the G800F Kernel is just that, for the F model, I managed to get it going primo, gonna see what RR is like so I'll prob do a guide on that to be honest, all I know is this phone was never going this fast before I threw a custom Kernel on it, exponential speed increase.
Sounds like a lot of work. Will keep that in mind but he also made great rom that works really well for now Slim7 which also offers stock UI which looks so much better than lolipop skin from Samsung, so I'm gonna hopefully be able to stick with that.
inejco said:
Sounds like a lot of work. Will keep that in mind but he also made great rom that works really well for now Slim7 which also offers stock UI which looks so much better than lolipop skin from Samsung, so I'm gonna hopefully be able to stick with that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just to be noted, that was with a G800Y. That variant doesn't seem to have too much support but I haven't really found anything other than the bands to be that different between the two although I can't seem to get this '1500MHz' clock speed I've seen here and there.
Since I last posted, I installed got rid of MM - the features are great but I have a friend who's running N and their battery life is more than double what it was stock or MM. So I factory reset (TWRP - No need to lose your pictures etc, just make sure to make a .vcf back up of your contacts), flashed the SpookyCity v2.5 RR Kernel and threw on the latest build of Resurrection Remix (2.8.4). No need to opt into the Google scam or anything stock that Samsung has to offer, just use Yalp Store*.
Sure I've lost a handful of features from Xposed, but with a phone that ranges from 35C - 45C combined with a battery life of ~8 hours, kinda worth it. Resurrection Remix is a combination of LOS and another ROM (Resurrection *something*) and it runs flawless. No need for Google because that's the real killer..
*Yalp Store - Featured on the F-Droid repository, you can log in using alt. credentials or even your own (at your own risk!), if you want purchased apps you can use APK Extractor (F-Droid) OR buy it via PS website and use your login. Google isn't in the picture when it comes to enhancing your phones performance, however you can still use the pixel launcher in RR 2.8.4, and if you're curious as to what you can use instead of the Google search engine try DuckDuckGo
I recently dug up my Nexus 7 and I'd like to make it usable. Last I remember, I had updated it to Android 5.x+, maybe even CM 11+, and it was slower than crap, so I went back to CM 10.2 and it's alright now, way more usable. At that time upgrading to newer Android versions was horrible for performance...
So how are things now? What is the fastest/most usable ROM?
I've seen some 7.x ROMs out there. Also been reading on ParrotMod.
What are you all using? Looking for active users, not people like me that just have it sitting somewhere lol
Not higher 4.4.4. AOSP 7 is good, but 4 is still faster. crDroid is also good, but I prefer a pure AOSP.
PS: do not install social or other applications that will run in the background and use device memory during synchronization. Internal flash memory of this device - a weak point and the cause of all lags.
I'm running a CyanogenMod Rom.
Dont ask me what one, I only use it for music and video rarely.
It is always super snappy on cyanogen.
Paid 40$ for mine
Dude said he could not get it to charge,
I am a hardware tech by trade, Opened it, saw the bracket around the actual connection , Closed it up, Charging, Took me 4 mins, and a 1.99$ set of tools, let my 5 yo son use it for 2 weeks until Xmas, ( he got a 2017 Fire 7 tablet, so did his sister, She is 2) .
Continue...Rooted, 5.1.1, LMY47V.
I love it, Been using it at work, watching Maddogs on Amazon prime, Lags at bit but i do tether my phone, Company network is monitored, so .. found everything i needed right here, just downloaded AEX-Unofficial_grouper. going to try it shortly. will let you know.
For some reason i was unable to get AEX to load properly, i followed instructions, wound up downloading 4.4.0 stock, and flashed that, as it rebooted it pulled the 4.4.2 OTA update, and wanted to load 4.4.3, going to run it at 4.4.2 for a few days and see,
My N7 3G is still my daily driver for reading newspapers, various magazines and surfing.
Due to heavy lags with stock 5.1, I first installed the ParrotMod and later I switched to the Nougat AOSP ROM from AndDiSa for half a year. Now I am on 7.1 nAOSP from millosr, due to better support for N7 3G model. Both ROMs are stable and fast enough for my needs. To prevent system slow down after a couple of days without rebooting, I additionally installed the Greenify app.
Recovery:
TWRP
format "system" to f2fs
ROM:
Android 7.x AOSP
gapps:
open_gapps-arm-7.1-pico
root:
Magisk
force gpu rendering
animation off
install greenify to hibernate not in use apps
4.4.4 is fastest, 7.1 is great if you need newer ver
Good idea to have this thread!
Constantly wishing it had a >720p screen. It's great for watching videos and 'good enough' for reading comics but it leaves a lot to be desired for ebook text clarity. I was very happy to still have this when I took an 18 hour train trip this past August and used Netflix to download a bunch of videos beforehand. Since then it's been on my bedside and every once every three weeks I'll go to use it and realize I left it on and unplugged and the battery is dead (oops).
I would consider upgrading to another tablet, but what are my options at this point for one around this size? A 2013 Nexus 7 or the Nvidia shield tablet? I've pretty much given up justifying a purchase because my phone's screen is less than an inch and a half smaller (OnePlus 5T).
ROM: https://forum.xda-developers.com/ne...fficial-build-cyanogenmod-11-0-nexus-t3174831
I had this running 7.1.1 or whatever and the responsiveness was unacceptable. I completely wiped my device's storage and put this "Unofficial LineageOS 11.0" ROM on. Highly recommend it, although even at this point some apps are not available and you'll have to hunt around for apks. I'm about to update to the 26th November 2017 build (on page 10). Apparently I'm still ext4. I have trimming automatically running every week or boot or something.
I've seen the 'car installations' and those seem really neat but I'm not up to doing that myself. When the battery performance gets bad enough I'd like to repurpose it as a raspberry pi / arduino interface.
Using my Tilapia (Nexus 7 3G) as a geocaching device on a daily basis I was used to find a more modern version than 4.4.4 and stock 5.1 was, as everybody should know, crappy and laggy as f*ck. For some time I used AndDiSa's 7.1.1 AOSP and it was way more stable than any version I used before. Then I stumbled across Dirty Unicorns unofficial port by daniel_hk and as long as you don't use the official facebook app is is a charme. I would recommend you to use this ROM.
There is also a handfull of other unofficial ports like AirOne70's version for grouper and a few others.
Another remarkable Dev is milos. I tried his nightly AOSP from 10/08/2017 and as long as you don't use GAPPS the performance and stability is impressive, but I can't find a link atm.
If anyone needs links please PM me, I'm not yet allowed to post them here...
Is there anyway to make facebook usable on Nexus7?
Ok. After testing many roms.
The only way to get facebook runnable is to use android 4.3.1 (SmoothROM 5.3) ( I think I tested android 7, 6, 5 and 4.4 and all lag like hell)
SmoothROM v5.3 Link
Have to use google chrome and m.facebook.com and add shortcut to desktop.
You can do the same with instagram and youtube. Just don't install the apps.
jretropie said:
Is there anyway to make facebook usable on Nexus7?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Running slim 4.4.4 with ParrotMod (F2FS on data partition only). Rooted and SDMaid scheduled to clean things up nightly.
It's not a snappy tablet, but it's fine for reading Facebook and news in the middle of the night--even for watching YouTube videos.
I have the audio dock, so this tablet makes a superb bedside alarm clock/audio-visual entertainment system. I love how it works with the dock so much that I've got a spare motherboard in case the memory fails (again--this is the third MB and fortunately the display shows no signs of dying).
16GB wifi model still running strong and snappy on Aosp 6.0.1, DC kernel, ParrotMod and super su 2.71. Everything is smooth apart some graphical bugs in games
Running 6.0.1 on a Nexus 7 with a bad touchscreen, for cryptocurrency mining.
I dug mine out a few months ago and flashed an AOSP 7.1.2 ROM on it; runs like a beauty now! I use it for controlling MIDI devices.
I have installed AOSP 7.1.2 on my Nexus 7 2012 Wi-Fi, but I can't install gapps.
I try to install Gapps Pico, installation process finishes successfully, but when Android starts and I try select "copy your data" or "set up as new", setup wizard crashes and show the message: "Setup Wizard has stopped". If I don't install Gapps, this error doesn't occur.
Someone knows what is or how to fix this?
Thanks!
renatodanielss said:
I have installed AOSP 7.1.2 on my Nexus 7 2012 Wi-Fi, but I can't install gapps.
I try to install Gapps Pico, installation process finishes successfully, but when Android starts and I try select "copy your data" or "set up as new", setup wizard crashes and show the message: "Setup Wizard has stopped". If I don't install Gapps, this error doesn't occur.
Someone knows what is or how to fix this?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is because wifi is disabled. Continuously pull out the quick settings panel during crush. After the appearance of quick settings go to the settings of the wifi, turn it on and connect to the network.
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCC978R7gqg (timecode 1:10)
my n7 2012
This Nexus 7 2012 is my first and last only tablet I have been using so far. As far as I experienced, Lineage OS 11 (4.4.4) is best and now I am using without any trouble.
Here my binary list I installed.
lineage-11-20171126-UNOFFICIAL-grouper.zip
open_gapps-arm-4.4-pico-201xxxxx.zip
SuperSU-v2.82-201705271822.zip
twrp-3.1.1-0-grouper.img
AINUR_SAURON_[MK II]_beta_6_[FIXED2].zip
FDroid.apk
And Newpipe(Youtube alternative) is just awesome. light & responsive.
renatodanielss said:
I have installed AOSP 7.1.2 on my Nexus 7 2012 Wi-Fi, but I can't install gapps.
I try to install Gapps Pico, installation process finishes successfully, but when Android starts and I try select "copy your data" or "set up as new", setup wizard crashes and show the message: "Setup Wizard has stopped". If I don't install Gapps, this error doesn't occur.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also had the same trouble...
I finally changed from Open-Gapps to BeansGapps-Mini, that was fixed.
Off course, WIFI had been ON and connected during installation.
ok. I tested AOSP 7.1.2 and it's usable!!! Battery management seems to be very well. I have to tablet sleep for days and battery still remain. Just little bit slow whenever launching an app, it hesitate few seconds and then run the app. For facebook, I switch to use an app call "friendly". Twitter and Instagram I use chrome and add shortcut to desktop.
NiHaoMike said:
Running 6.0.1 on a Nexus 7 with a bad touchscreen, for cryptocurrency mining.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
wait.. what?