I'm getting totally fed up with trying to use Android tablets to do anything remotely useful, they're full of junk software you can't get rid of and you can't access the parts you want.
So, can one get a tablet (7" or maybe up to 9") that runs some vaguely normal version of Linux?
On Wed, 24 Aug 2016 09:35:12 +0100 Chris Green cl@isbd.net wrote:
I'm getting totally fed up with trying to use Android tablets to do anything remotely useful, they're full of junk software you can't get rid of and you can't access the parts you want.
So, can one get a tablet (7" or maybe up to 9") that runs some vaguely normal version of Linux?
I have a Jolla phone and for a short while they sold a tablet but although I placed an order and paid my money, I never got one. They are being sold however on places like ebay.
Or, how about removing Android from the tablet and installing linux?
http://www.linux-magazine.com/Online/Features/Convert-an-Android-Device-to-L... http://www.techradar.com/news/software/operating-systems/install-linux-on-yo...
On Wed, Aug 24, 2016 at 10:06:55AM +0100, Chris Walker wrote:
On Wed, 24 Aug 2016 09:35:12 +0100 Chris Green cl@isbd.net wrote:
I'm getting totally fed up with trying to use Android tablets to do anything remotely useful, they're full of junk software you can't get rid of and you can't access the parts you want.
So, can one get a tablet (7" or maybe up to 9") that runs some vaguely normal version of Linux?
I have a Jolla phone and for a short while they sold a tablet but although I placed an order and paid my money, I never got one. They are being sold however on places like ebay.
No actual Jolla phones or tablets for sale that I can see, just accessories for them.
Or, how about removing Android from the tablet and installing linux?
http://www.linux-magazine.com/Online/Features/Convert-an-Android-Device-to-L... http://www.techradar.com/news/software/operating-systems/install-linux-on-yo...
Yes, that second is a route I have considered but:-
If you read the first article (the Linux Magazine one) it doesn't really *replace* Android with Linux in most cases, it just runs Linux in the Android phone. I want to get rid of the space hogging Android junk.
The TechRadar one is better but requires an x86 tablet which I don't have at the moment, I guess they're not too expensive though. However reading the article suggests that the results aren't all that brilliant.
On Wed, 24 Aug 2016 11:37:45 +0100 Chris Green cl@isbd.net wrote:
On Wed, Aug 24, 2016 at 10:06:55AM +0100, Chris Walker wrote:
On Wed, 24 Aug 2016 09:35:12 +0100 Chris Green cl@isbd.net wrote:
I'm getting totally fed up with trying to use Android tablets to do anything remotely useful, they're full of junk software you can't get rid of and you can't access the parts you want.
So, can one get a tablet (7" or maybe up to 9") that runs some vaguely normal version of Linux?
I have a Jolla phone and for a short while they sold a tablet but although I placed an order and paid my money, I never got one. They are being sold however on places like ebay.
No actual Jolla phones or tablets for sale that I can see, just accessories for them.
http://www.trustedreviews.com/sailfish-aqua-fish-review
And if you want to buy one, you can do so on ebay - http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Intex-Aqua-Fish-Unlocked-Dual-Sim-5inch-1-3Ghz-16G...
On Fri, Aug 26, 2016 at 02:07:28PM +0100, Chris Walker wrote:
On Wed, 24 Aug 2016 11:37:45 +0100 Chris Green cl@isbd.net wrote:
On Wed, Aug 24, 2016 at 10:06:55AM +0100, Chris Walker wrote:
On Wed, 24 Aug 2016 09:35:12 +0100 Chris Green cl@isbd.net wrote:
I'm getting totally fed up with trying to use Android tablets to do anything remotely useful, they're full of junk software you can't get rid of and you can't access the parts you want.
So, can one get a tablet (7" or maybe up to 9") that runs some vaguely normal version of Linux?
I have a Jolla phone and for a short while they sold a tablet but although I placed an order and paid my money, I never got one. They are being sold however on places like ebay.
No actual Jolla phones or tablets for sale that I can see, just accessories for them.
http://www.trustedreviews.com/sailfish-aqua-fish-review
And if you want to buy one, you can do so on ebay - http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Intex-Aqua-Fish-Unlocked-Dual-Sim-5inch-1-3Ghz-16G...
I have to say the advertising in the above eBay page makes me wonder if it's going to be much different from Android!
On Fri, 26 Aug 2016 14:18:59 +0100 Chris Green cl@isbd.net wrote:
On Fri, Aug 26, 2016 at 02:07:28PM +0100, Chris Walker wrote:
And if you want to buy one, you can do so on ebay - http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Intex-Aqua-Fish-Unlocked-Dual-Sim-5inch-1-3Ghz-16G...
I have to say the advertising in the above eBay page makes me wonder if it's going to be much different from Android!
Don't judge the book by the cover ;-)
I can assure you that Sailfish is nothing like Android although you can run Android apps on the phone is you insist. I have 45 apps (including the pre-installed stuff) on my phone with an additional 20 Google Apps (I ought to delete some of them as I don't use them). These are things that are never going to be available for Sailfish such as those from banks and credit card companies, plus the essential one - the CAMRA Good Beer Guide ;-)
The Google Barclaycard app tells me that I can't use their app as my phone is 'rooted' and redirects me to their mobile site. I suspect their code checks for something weird as although my phone has a developer mode available, it isn't run like that in the same way you wouldn't log on to a machine as root.
I see that the Intex phone has one function available to it that my own phone doesn't and that is an FM radio. I don't use one but my wife always likes to have an FM radio available on a phone.
On Fri, Aug 26, 2016 at 02:45:21PM +0100, Chris Walker wrote:
On Fri, 26 Aug 2016 14:18:59 +0100 Chris Green cl@isbd.net wrote:
On Fri, Aug 26, 2016 at 02:07:28PM +0100, Chris Walker wrote:
And if you want to buy one, you can do so on ebay - http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Intex-Aqua-Fish-Unlocked-Dual-Sim-5inch-1-3Ghz-16G...
I have to say the advertising in the above eBay page makes me wonder if it's going to be much different from Android!
Don't judge the book by the cover ;-)
I can assure you that Sailfish is nothing like Android although you can run Android apps on the phone is you insist. I have 45 apps (including the pre-installed stuff) on my phone with an additional 20 Google Apps
Can you remove the pre-installed things if you don't want/need them?
I see that the Intex phone has one function available to it that my own phone doesn't and that is an FM radio. I don't use one but my wife always likes to have an FM radio available on a phone.
I usually find it's useless as I want to listen on speaker and it uses the phone lead as an aerial.
On Fri, 26 Aug 2016 20:39:56 +0100 Chris Green cl@isbd.net wrote:
On Fri, Aug 26, 2016 at 02:45:21PM +0100, Chris Walker wrote:
I can assure you that Sailfish is nothing like Android although you can run Android apps on the phone is you insist. I have 45 apps (including the pre-installed stuff) on my phone with an additional 20 Google Apps
Can you remove the pre-installed things if you don't want/need them?
Sure. One of the apps is 'Store' and by using that, you can uninstall any or all of the apps. You can also simply delete the icon from the list of apps by holding your finger down on it and clicking on the cross that appears.
If you'd like to have a closer look at the phone, email me off-list and I'll see what I can do about meeting up.
On 24 Aug 2016 9:37 a.m., "Chris Green" cl@isbd.net wrote:
I'm getting totally fed up with trying to use Android tablets to do anything remotely useful, they're full of junk software you can't get rid of and you can't access the parts you want.
As far as native Android tablets go I only know of the Aquaris: http://www.trustedreviews.com/bq-aquaris-m10-ubuntu-edition-review
But you might want to start with AC Android tablet running CyanogenMod or similar; that would let you access everything and remove anything you don't want, which seem to be your main concerns. It ought to be possible to pick up an older model that CM supports quite cheaply if you don't already have one to "sacrifice".
Mark
On 24/08/16 09:35, Chris Green wrote:
I'm getting totally fed up with trying to use Android tablets to do anything remotely useful, they're full of junk software you can't get rid of and you can't access the parts you want.
So, can one get a tablet (7" or maybe up to 9") that runs some vaguely normal version of Linux?
You could replace stock Android with Cyanogenmod, perhaps.
Looking at the method and software required, I would probably use a VirtualBox instance to set things up. To be fair, it's several months since I looked at this, so it may be different now.
Or:
https://developer.ubuntu.com/en/phone/devices/ https://developer.ubuntu.com/en/phone/devices/installing-ubuntu-for-devices/ https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Touch
What actual tablet is it?
Cheers, Laurie.
On Wed, Aug 24, 2016 at 11:50:09AM +0100, Laurie Brown wrote:
On 24/08/16 09:35, Chris Green wrote:
I'm getting totally fed up with trying to use Android tablets to do anything remotely useful, they're full of junk software you can't get rid of and you can't access the parts you want.
So, can one get a tablet (7" or maybe up to 9") that runs some vaguely normal version of Linux?
You could replace stock Android with Cyanogenmod, perhaps.
Looking at the method and software required, I would probably use a VirtualBox instance to set things up. To be fair, it's several months since I looked at this, so it may be different now.
Yes, I suspect this is probably the best route to what I want.
Or:
https://developer.ubuntu.com/en/phone/devices/ https://developer.ubuntu.com/en/phone/devices/installing-ubuntu-for-devices/ https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Touch
It might be worth getting a supported Nexus device to do this.
What actual tablet is it?
Well it could be one of several phones/tablets:-
Motorola Moto E (phone) Samsung Tab 2 7" 3G (phablet) Bush Spiro 8" 3G (Argos own brand) Tatty old generic 7" tablet from China running 4.0.4 currently
I think the Moto E and Samsung are probably the best candidates for Cyanogenmod, there's a stable build for the Samsung (from 2013 though).
On Wed, 24 Aug 2016 13:15:44 +0100 Chris Green cl@isbd.net allegedly wrote:
Motorola Moto E (phone) Samsung Tab 2 7" 3G (phablet) Bush Spiro 8" 3G (Argos own brand) Tatty old generic 7" tablet from China running 4.0.4 currentlyI think the Moto E and Samsung are probably the best candidates for Cyanogenmod, there's a stable build for the Samsung (from 2013 though).
I run the nightly build (I pull updates only weekly though) quite happily on a Moto G. Nightly for that device is currently at v 6.0.1
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