Libretto W105 Pictures and video

Being playing around with the Libretto W105 that I got for Christmas and must say that i am really enjoying the device.  The touch screen is nice and the overall feel of the unit is great.  I am disappointed in the speaker output but i guess that is expected with such a small device. 

Once Rooted Nook makes the grade as a good tablet

Once, the Nook is rooted, I must say that it makes a nice 7" tablet.  The mutli-touch is very responsive and works as well as the Archos 70.  A few short coming of the Nook compared to the 70 are the lack of microphone or camera.  These are perhaps show stoppers for some but probably not for the majority that use it for games and surfing.  Here are a few shots of the multitouch on both devices as well as SD location on the Nook.

Nook Color Does it make for a good Android Tablet

I have played around with the NookColor for several hours and really am impressed with the device. Just in case others thinking about the device, I picked mine up from an Ebay dealer for 209.00 with free shipping. From the first time you open the box, you get the feeling of a high quality device. The lower portion of the box is hinged with a magnetic closure which contains the charging adaptor and cable while the Nook itself is slide inside a nice holder. The first thing you notice is the heft of the device compared to the Archos 70, but this only tends to give it a more robust feel in your hands. Let me start by giving the specs: (This has the same CPU and GPU as the Droid 2 and Droid X)

•             PCB: Foxconn ML1 S 94V-0

•             CPU Processor: ARM Cortex A8-based Ti OMAP 3621 @ 800 MHz

•             GPU Processor: PowerVR SGX530 Graphics Rendering: Open GLES1.1/2.0 Hardware Scaling: 854x480 scaled to 1024x600 Video Formats: .3GP, .MP4, .3G2 ** Video Codecs: H.263, H.264, MPEG-4, ON2 VP7 ** Image Formats: JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP

•             RAM: 512MB Hynix H8MBX00U0MER-0EM MCM (Stacked Chips 2x256MB each die mDDR)

•             Internal Flash: 8GB Sandisk SDIN4C1-8g

•             Removable Flash: Up to 32GB via microSDHC

•             Radio: Chip ID Ti wl1271 (kernel reports wl1273) Chip supports bluetooth transmit/receive and fm radio functions through the same antenna, but is not enabled in software drivers.

Connectivity: 802.11b/g/n Security: WEP/WPA/WPA2/802.1x Mode: Infrastructure

•             Display: 7" 1024x600 IPS Display w\VividView Cypress Semiconductor TTSP Gen 3 (TMA340) Touchscreen, kernel driver , reference LG Display LD070WS1 (SL)(02) LED Backlight Pixels per Inch: 169 Aspect Ratio: 16:9 Colors: 16 Million Viewing Angle: 178°

•             Audio: Ti TLV320DAC3100 Codec 3.5mm Headset Jack (TRS 3-Pole) - no mic input Single Rear Speaker PWM Headphone Amp Headphone Detection Mic Amp and ADC (Mic input not available) Audio Formats: .3GP, .3G2, .MP4, .AMR, .MP3, .MID, .XMF, .MXMF, .RTTL, .OTA, .IMY, .WAV, .OGG, .ACC ** Audio Codecs: ACC, ACC+, AMR, MP3, MIDI, LPCM

•             Power Management: Texas Instruments TPS65921 PMIC Integrated Power Management IC with 3 DC/DC's, 4 LDO's, USB HS Transceiver

•             Battery: "Barnes & Noble" labeled 3.7V

4000mAh 14.8Wh Li-ion battery Battery Life: ~8 hours

•             Physical Specifications Dimensions: 8.1" (205mm) L x 5" (127mm) W x 0.48" (12.2mm) D Weight: ~15.8oz (~422g)

•             Micro-B USB 2.0 High-Speed

•             Accelerometer

•             Input Virtual QWERTY Keyboard On-Screen Soft-Keys ** 'n' Home button Power\Lock button VolumeUp\Down buttons

Boy, I see why this thing gets rooted, it is crippled so much from the factory with only a handful of apps and the eBook reader and the specifications are very good for the price (Basically, a Galaxy Tab at half the price.) The home page is basically a book shelf with limited options and customization. First thing I did was to download the updated firmware from Barnes and Noble, this upgraded the device from 1.0.0 to 1.0.1. Went ahead and registered, etc. Now for the fun part, start rooting!!!

I basically followed this thread to get the unit rooted:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=872490

Need to make sure this is followed closely, but is really no more difficult than any other device. Once this is done first thing to do is make sure market, etc functions properly. I than would install a file explorer and Launcher Pro or something equivalent. There are a few limitations that must be fixed via work around such as restoring the launcher pro from a backup to fix dock icons. Seems that on the Nook, this cannot be changed due to some restriction. So, I took a backup off another device and restored on the Nook. This fixes this issue.  A few points: Build quality is excellent and the device has a rubber surface on the rear which helps holding the device. Device feels solid with the exception of the charging cable which seems fragile but probably no less than any device using this type of connection. The accelerometer is responsive and the touchscreen works well. I feel that the Archos might have a slightly better responsive touchscreen (probably more subjective on the individual but both are very good) but the colors are very vivid and look great on the nook. Access to the microSD card is more difficult on the Nook than the 70 due to having to open up a little rear compartment on the Nook compared to simple side access on the Archos. Currently, the Archos is on Android 2.2 and supports Flash 10.1 while the Nook is only rooted with 2.1. BN has said they will be pushing out 2.2 this month so looks like that should not be a drawback for long. Another obstacle for the Archos is that currently it has been extremely difficult if at all on the 2.2.1 update. The original 2.2 could only be temp rooted anyway. You could still get Market and the rest of the Google apps to run on the Archos and the newer update allowed the unit to run at its full potential of 1000 Mhz. Ultimately, it is one of those decisions that will be based on money (best price one can find the unit) and possible need for flash 10.1. YouTube plays fine on both and I will try some HD video later as well. I will post some pictures comparing the two later today.

Archos 70 Tablet

As I was patiently waiting to obtain a Elocity A7 Tegra Tablet, I continued to get email notifications of continual delays, so I jumped on a good deal for an Archos 70 android tablet.  The device was surprisingly thin and many times quicker than the Maylong tablet.  The original firmware on the device locked it down to only 800 Mhz for speed and utilizes a different compression method than other android tablets making it more difficult to customize with root options.  The initial released firmware can be temporarily rooted it needed, but the new upgrade has pretty much eliminated that as an option but has allowed the user to operate at full 1000 Mhz speed and fixed several bugs.  You can still use Google market and since it is Android 2.2, it also supports flash 10.1.  I find the unit to run fairly smoothly but, I think it is still limited by the use of only 256 MB of ram.   Many phones now days are utilizing 512 MB and I guess Archos tried to cut corners where they could to bring the device into a sub $300.00 category and still maintain good build quality.  I have found that the unit appears to run smoother by using an alternate launcher than the stock version.  I personally use Launcher Pro and notice a more fluid feel and operation.  I do worry about the fragile feeling kickstand but since I keep it in a case that props the unit up anyway,  I should minimize any risk of fracture on the prop.  I picked up the case on-line and it is custom for the unit and fits nicely and does not add a tremendous amount of thickness or bulk as do some foam slip cases, etc.   There has been many comparisons between the Archos 70 and a Nook Color (rooted of course), so I used my discounts and gift card to obtain one and will do a comparison between the two shortly.

There are several sites that one can find information software, customizations as well as discussions surrounding the generation 8 Archos devices.

http://forum.archosfans.com/index.php

http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=875

http://www.androidtablets.net/forum/archos-tablets/

Product capacity • Flash Serie: 8 GB**** flash memory + Micro SD Slot (SDHC compatible)
• Hard Drive Disk Serie : Hard Drive: 250 GB**** Hard Drive
Display characteristics • High resolution screen, WVGA 800 x 480 pixels, 7'' TFT LCD, 16 million colors
• Capacitive multitouch screen
Application Framework Android 2.2 Froyo7
Processor • ARM Cortex A8 at 1 GHz with DSP
• Graphic accelerator: 3D OpenGL ES 2.0
Video Playback1 • MPEG-42 HD (up to 720p, 30 fps@6Mbps)
• MPEG-42 (ASP@L5 AVI, up to DVD resolution, 30 fps@8Mbps)
• H.264 HD (HP@L3.1 up to 720p, 30 fps@5Mbps)
• WMV9/VC1 (AP up to 720p 30 fps@10Mbps)
• M-JPEG (Motion JPEG Video) in VGA resolution

With optional plug-in (downloadable on www.archos.com):
• Cinema: MPEG-2 (up to DVD resolution MP/D1, 30 fps@10 Mbps)
With the above codecs, the device can play video files with the following extensions: AVI, MP4, MKV, MOV, WMV, MPG, PS, TS, VOB, FLV, RM, RMVB, ASF, 3GP
Audio Playback1 • MP3 CBR & VBR
• WMA, WMA-Pro 5.1
• WAV (PCM/ADPCM)
• AAC, AAC+ 5.13
• OGG Vorbis
• FLAC

With optional software plug-ins (downloadable on www.archos.com):
• AC3 5.1
Photo viewer4 JPEG, BMP, PNG, GIF
Subtitles Support subtitles files with .srt, .ssa, .smi, .sub extensions
Webcam Yes
Pre-installed applications • Aldiko, Ebuddy, Wikipedia, Avecomics, HubKap, Deezer, Mewbox, Raging Thunderlite (a 3D car demo game), WordNewspaper, Touiteur, Fring
Interfaces • USB 2.0: Mass Storage Class (MSC)
• Micro SD (SDHC compatible) on flash version
• USB Host: Mass Storage Class (MSC) (adapter micro B/A sold separately)
• HDMI output5 (Mini HDMI / HDMI cable sold separately)
Communication protocols • WiFi (802.11 b/g/n)
• Bluetooth 2.1 EDR
Miscellaneous • Built-in speakers
• Built-in leg stand
• Built-in Microphone
• G-sensor
• Front VGA Camera
Power source • Internal: Lithium Polymer battery
• External: Power adapter/charger
Battery life • Music playback time6: up to 36 hours
• Video playback time6: up to 7 hours
• Web surfing6: up to 10 hours
Scalability • Device automatically downloads latest firmware updates when the WiFi connection is activated
• Updates can also be downloaded at www.archos.com and updated via USB mass storage
Dimensions & weight • ARCHOS 70 internet tablet Flash series: 201 x 114 x 10 mm – 300 grams / (7.91 x 4.49 x 0.43 - 11 oz)
• ARCHOS 70 internet tablet Hard Drive series: 201 x 114 x 14 mm – 400 grams / (7.91 x 4.49 x 0.55 inch – 14 oz)
Minimum system requirements • Microsoft® Windows® XP, Vista, 7 or higher
• Mac
• Linux
• USB 2.0 interface
Package includes ARCHOS 70 internet tablet, earphones, Standard USB cable, Quick Start Guide (QSG), legal and safety notice, power charger.

New post to come

I have several post started over the last year or so than never came to fruition but I will post them and update on newer devices I am currently messing around (Samsung Fascinate, Nook Color, Archos 70, Toshiba Libretto W105, Ipad, etc)