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New Gtab- $284 shipped. 1-day only Wow!
- Thread starter xmr405o
- Start date
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- viewsonic gtablet
pastafarian
Pâtes avec votre foie
Just jumped on it. I wasn't in the market for a tablet, but was looking for an ereader for my older son. I was leaning towards the Nook color because of it's versatility but missed the $200 ebay deal. I'm hoping that with root/rom, we can use this for his reading as well as a general around the house web browser.
I have an Archos A70 IT running 2.2.
I also bought one of these (hey, the two are still about the same or less than one midgrade iPad).
I like 512MB RAM, which I wish the Archos had been spec'd with.
And, I originally wanted a 10" Archos "table" but they were so far backordered and unprepared for release, i settled on the 7". I really like the 7" as an e-reader, but I just had to evaluate the tegra and 512MB RAM to see what the user experience would be like.
I figured that i can flip whichever one that I don't keep on flEaBay or in the Archos forum, if the 70 goes. Time will tell.
I also bought one of these (hey, the two are still about the same or less than one midgrade iPad).
I like 512MB RAM, which I wish the Archos had been spec'd with.
And, I originally wanted a 10" Archos "table" but they were so far backordered and unprepared for release, i settled on the 7". I really like the 7" as an e-reader, but I just had to evaluate the tegra and 512MB RAM to see what the user experience would be like.
I figured that i can flip whichever one that I don't keep on flEaBay or in the Archos forum, if the 70 goes. Time will tell.
i jumped on it.. I was looking to get a nook and root it also like pasta but didnt grab it when it was 200.. with tax and everything it was 300.. not bad for me.. I would of had to spend 250 for the nook get a decent microsd card to root it.. so its almost the same.. plus the 10 inches is what i want for couch browsing.. i just wonder how long it will take to get here.. i am already impatient lol.. thats why i was willing to get at retail store.. but glad i didnt 
xmr405o
Android Expert
I'm glad some of you had a chance to jump on this deal. A gtab at this price is awesome. At under $300, the viewing angles are forgivable, IMO. And having to root is not a hassle.
To pasta and to all who are purchasing the gtab: ereading on the gtab is okay in portrait mode. Landscape mode will provide u with better results. I think the viewing angles not the resolution of the display is the number one issue where people tend to return their gtab. 2nd reason is people have a hard time following instructions when rooting the gtab.
The gtab is a great first tablet to have especially if a person doesn't really know if they need or want a tablet in the first place.
To pasta and to all who are purchasing the gtab: ereading on the gtab is okay in portrait mode. Landscape mode will provide u with better results. I think the viewing angles not the resolution of the display is the number one issue where people tend to return their gtab. 2nd reason is people have a hard time following instructions when rooting the gtab.
The gtab is a great first tablet to have especially if a person doesn't really know if they need or want a tablet in the first place.
pastafarian
Pâtes avec votre foie
Woot's pretty good about shipping fast, not Buy.com or amazon fast, but not bad. My guess is we'll be tableting by the weekend.
Most definitely! I'm kicking myself for buying mine last month for $375...
I still think it's something to do with the screen refresh rate or something. In landscape, the viewing angles on mine are fine, about 30 degrees left and right, and 20 or so up and down.
In portrait, it gets worse...
So, it's the resolution or the refresh rate bonking up the viewing angles IMO.
Most certainly. It's a powerhouse that is pretty cheap. On par (Spec-wise) with the Xoom, at a fraction the price.
xmr405o
Android Expert
I don't think it's the resolution that causes the poor viewing angles. I lean more towards the refresh rate. I'm actually not too bothered by the viewing angles. Unless I want to read or browse with my tablet laying flat on a table (which is a rare occasion), I don't mind the viewing angles that much.
I think that the viewing angles are due in part to some sort of coating on the screen. I noticed a marked increase in the viewing angles when I put a Skinomi screen protector on mine, and the guy who discovered the rain-x solution said he noticed better viewing angles as well.
It looks like other retailers are following suit. Circuit City today set the purchase at $299+$8 shipping. $22 more than Woot, but still well below prior levels.
FWIW, I received my Woot shipping notice on Friday. Not too shabby considering the volume they generated.
Still wading through the ROM options to find the "best" configuration according to consensus. I am thinking vanilla Cyanogen 7 + Launcher Pro?
FWIW, I received my Woot shipping notice on Friday. Not too shabby considering the volume they generated.
Still wading through the ROM options to find the "best" configuration according to consensus. I am thinking vanilla Cyanogen 7 + Launcher Pro?
pastafarian
Pâtes avec votre foie
Mine is due to arrive Wednesday.
Maybe this will be the trigger that drops tablet pricing? The tech blogs love to proclaim that Android tablet prices aren't lower than the iPad because of Apples buying advantage (Apple marketing at work?). I call BS, at least semi BS! Sure, Apple has some advantage, but I bet they don't amount to more that a few percent overall. Apple lowers margin's for no one and is making it's 30-50% no matter what. There's a lot of room there. I think the main thing keeping non iPad prices high are the manufacturers reluctance to get back into the netbook race to the bottom line. They're all intent on keeping high margins even if sales numbers are lower....till one blinks, then the rest will be forced to follow suit. Maybe this is the blink? The iPad2 is a nice device with a mature ecosystem around it and at the same relative price, the wifi Xoom or Galaxy Tab don't stand a chance to eat into its market share. Reduce their price by $50 or better yet $100 and we have a different ballgame.
Maybe this will be the trigger that drops tablet pricing? The tech blogs love to proclaim that Android tablet prices aren't lower than the iPad because of Apples buying advantage (Apple marketing at work?). I call BS, at least semi BS! Sure, Apple has some advantage, but I bet they don't amount to more that a few percent overall. Apple lowers margin's for no one and is making it's 30-50% no matter what. There's a lot of room there. I think the main thing keeping non iPad prices high are the manufacturers reluctance to get back into the netbook race to the bottom line. They're all intent on keeping high margins even if sales numbers are lower....till one blinks, then the rest will be forced to follow suit. Maybe this is the blink? The iPad2 is a nice device with a mature ecosystem around it and at the same relative price, the wifi Xoom or Galaxy Tab don't stand a chance to eat into its market share. Reduce their price by $50 or better yet $100 and we have a different ballgame.
Oh well, should have it by end of the week.
pastafarian
Pâtes avec votre foie
I pulled the trigger ~8:30 EST
Mine came yesterday.
Seems like I had a unique issue, where the initial boot-time personalization routine for time and network setting fails and crashes. i could not log in to the normal launcher environment at all.
I called viewsonic, and they suggested I speak with Woot for an exchange. While I was waiting for Woot to RMA me, I went through the VEGAn installation instructions over at XDA. Took about an hour to get all of the pieces together and working. I had to use a Linux virtual machine to work on the filesystem on the gTablet.
Now, my gTablet is running VEGAn 5.1.1 and it is very snappy. I have full market, launcherpro, GApps, etc.
The device is quite heavy, and does indeed had some terrible viewing angles. I read for a couple of hours with it last night, and played som YouTube videos on it, and it is very fast compared to my Archos 70. The Archos is less than half the weight, however.
i'll be interested to see if other Woot purchasers had the same login personalization issue that i did.
Seems like I had a unique issue, where the initial boot-time personalization routine for time and network setting fails and crashes. i could not log in to the normal launcher environment at all.
I called viewsonic, and they suggested I speak with Woot for an exchange. While I was waiting for Woot to RMA me, I went through the VEGAn installation instructions over at XDA. Took about an hour to get all of the pieces together and working. I had to use a Linux virtual machine to work on the filesystem on the gTablet.
Now, my gTablet is running VEGAn 5.1.1 and it is very snappy. I have full market, launcherpro, GApps, etc.
The device is quite heavy, and does indeed had some terrible viewing angles. I read for a couple of hours with it last night, and played som YouTube videos on it, and it is very fast compared to my Archos 70. The Archos is less than half the weight, however.
i'll be interested to see if other Woot purchasers had the same login personalization issue that i did.
xmr405o
Android Expert
Yeah, the stock OS gets corrupted easily. People have said that its an issue in regards to how TnT partitioned the memory. Repatitioning the sd card to the correct parameters could possibly prevent future outbreaks of force closing apps. I've done it and I've haven't had any issues with force closing errors. It does erase the data in the internal memory but it shouldn't be an issue if you back up your files on a pc or if you just got your gtab.
xmr405o
Android Expert
Cool! Vegan is a great ROM. I can't wait for the Gingerbread edition.