Viewsonic 10" Gtab 1GHz Tegra 2 $379 @ Sears.com

[rushmore]

Hi. I have some update for some of the problems reported on the G-tablet.

Flash - update will be available in very near future. It seems like the manufacturing date and the launch date of Flash 10.1 did not match perfectly. It will be working fine through update.

App Portal - PocketGear Portal will be available through update. It will have a separate section for G-Tab which will include hundreds of free apps. I understand that there were a lot of apps that does not work when tried to side load. What I am hearing is that some apps that were designed for smaller screen and phones would not work with G-Tab. With PocketGear, the apps will work fine for G-Tabs.

The software update will be available constantly throughout its life cycle. Some of the updates will include app portal, Flash, and additional video codec. Please register your unit or visit the website of ViewSonic. Meet the ViewSonic G Tablet - gTablet

Please let me know of any additional issues. I willcontinue to work with the manufacturer and Sears to resolve issue or provide more information.

Thank you,

First off: The problems are a lot worse than you seem to know ATM.

Your feedback is appreciated, but the concern is a lot of the issues will not be resolved prior to the 30 day return window, hence a probably high return rate of the device. Here are "some" of the issues and perspective. Apparently Flash 10.1 final does not work for Tegra 2 yet, so not Viewsonic's fault. The other stuff is (just to name a few) and basic functions on the device are broken.

1. Microsd and thumbdrives do not mount very well (reboots needed to see them)

2. Microsd is NOT seen in USB drive mode.

3. The microsd is not mapped correctly and this is a key reason why a lot of games do not work, since a lot of games push data to the sd card, even without apps2sd. This is why Angry Birds does not work and none of the Gameloft games work. NONE will without the mapping corrected to "1" rather than "2".

4. Device is laggy due to the Tap UI (worst UI and makes Blur and Wiz seem like great UIs).

5. Time zones not remembered, apps that work even on the $100 Arm 11 China pads fail to work. MANY apps do not work with current FW. Angry Birds works fine on those cheap pads.

6. Most Youtube apps do not work and the one that does is laggy. The G1 plays Youtube
better.

7. Wifi is poor at best, in regards to connecting or seeing a signal.

8. Sometimes will not come out of sleep mode.

9. Goes in boot loops during restart

I think Viewsonic is GREATLY underestimating both the problems with this device and how upset folks are that get it.

Almost every game should work on the device, regardless of install process or native resolution. I hope the people fixing this are not assuming otherwise and not looking at why a lot of games really do not work.

I sure hope the issues do get fixed and Flash is released soon, since the hardware is OUTSTANDING!

 

[rmjdees]

App Portal - PocketGear Portal will be available through update. It will have a separate section for G-Tab which will include hundreds of free apps. I understand that there were a lot of apps that does not work when tried to side load. What I am hearing is that some apps that were designed for smaller screen and phones would not work with G-Tab. With PocketGear, the apps will work fine for G-Tabs.

Meet the ViewSonic G Tablet - gTablet

any idea when the the first update will occur? currently pocketgear doesn't even know the g-tablet exists and won't allow downloads. i heard somewhere else flash won't be available until early december.

one more showed up today at the Sears in Austin today, so I picked one up. the tapntap is horrible and is slow. typing very slow. i hope this wasn't a mistake.

randy

 

[rushmore]

any idea when the the first update will occur? currently pocketgear doesn't even know the g-tablet exists and won't allow downloads. i heard somewhere else flash won't be available until early december.

one more showed up today at the Sears in Austin today, so I picked one up. the tapntap is horrible and is slow. typing very slow. i hope this wasn't a mistake.

randy

Pocketgear is NOT going to fix the app problem, but mapping the microsd correctly WILL help a lot. The mapping set up for mounting the card was done WRONG.

This is not directed to you, but Argent's assumption that Pocketgear will fix the app problem. It will not fix it- at all.

 

[jtbnet]

Pocketgear is NOT going to fix the app problem, but mapping the microsd correctly WILL help a lot. The mapping set up for mounting the card was done WRONG.

This is not directed to you, but Argent's assumption that Pocketgear will fix the app problem. It will not fix it- at all.

Not sure if you are following along over on XDA-Dev;

[Q] Viewsonic gtablet - xda-developers

Thread is already 118 pages... Folks from CM joined in... had recovery coding start in first couple days... tons of progress and you can see a good bit of the discovery by folks researching all the (Malata) related Hybrid development that is going on all over as all the choices have a ways to go as no T2 track record yet but moving forward really fast...

 

[rushmore]

Not sure if you are following along over on XDA-Dev;

[Q] Viewsonic gtablet - xda-developers

Thread is already 118 pages... Folks from CM joined in... had recovery coding start in first couple days... tons of progress and you can see a good bit of the discovery by folks researching all the (Malata) related Hybrid development that is going on all over as all the choices have a ways to go as no T2 track record yet but moving forward really fast...

Yep, I am "rushless" on that board. Been with the thread all along. Key here though is adding Pocketgear will fix anything, but mapping the microsd correctly will fix some app issues.

Viewsonic and Argent think adding Pocketgear will fix the app issues. They are not looking at the real cause, in regards to what to focus on for an OEM fix. Their focus is in the wrong place.

The only known is Flash will not be integrated and work until Adobe and Nvidia release Flash with Tegra 2 function.

A LOT of the issues will be fixed if somehow an XDA dev is able to package plain 2.2 with the needed UI layer functions so that all functions in the Gtablet works (buttons, USB host, codecs, flash allocation for apps, etc).

 

[jtbnet]

Yep, I am "rushless" on that board. Been with the thread all along. Key here though is adding Pocketgear will fix anything, but mapping the microsd correctly will fix some app issues.

Viewsonic and Argent think adding Pocketgear will fix the app issues. They are not looking at the real cause, in regards to what to focus on for an OEM fix. Their focus is in the wrong place.

The only known is Flash will not be integrated and work until Adobe and Nvidia release Flash with Tegra 2 function.

A LOT of the issues will be fixed if somehow an XDA dev is able to package plain 2.2 with the needed UI layer functions so that all functions in the Gtablet works (buttons, USB host, codecs, flash allocation for apps, etc).

Yes, at this point good solid hardware, I bought 2, and have been quietly following along for now while rebuilding build env... you are on the mark with the remapping as until that gets cleaned up the OEM software is pretty useless except for the uninformed masses... though that is a big market and still failing due to some of the easier bugs to fix just check Sears's reviews on this product... little stuff like what's with No Enter key in the portrait keyboard? The custom side os moving good and fast and got a good tech following early on so has a lot of promise...

 

[rushmore]

Yes, at this point good solid hardware, I bought 2, and have been quietly following along for now while rebuilding build env... you are on the mark with the remapping as until that gets cleaned up the OEM software is pretty useless except for the uninformed masses... though that is a big market and still failing due to some of the easier bugs to fix just check Sears's reviews on this product... little stuff like what's with No Enter key in the portrait keyboard? The custom side os moving good and fast and got a good tech following early on so has a lot of promise...

Agreed

I am about 100% certain that if they do the simple fix of mapping the device exactly like the Galaxy S (att or Tmo version), a lot of the problems will be fixed. The app force closings and not installing are all apparent symptoms of the microsd not being mapped correctly. It is so simple, it seems to have been overlooked.

They allocated the internal flash correctly (1.6gb for device storage space) but EVERYTHING else is wrong.

In my post though, I meant adding Pocketgear "will NOT fix anything", in regards to current app problems.

 

[Richled13]

Be prepared to pay a $60 restocking fee too. That scared me off, and directly to make an online complaint to Sears. hahaha

 

[jtbnet]

Be prepared to pay a $60 restocking fee too. That scared me off, and directly to make an online complaint to Sears. hahaha

You should not have to worry about the re-stocking fee, For now at least until the vendor is able to make available the features that are advertised on the box you receive it in.... and if there are any hardware problems with your tablet even after updates are made available you still can return or exchange... I've already had need to exchange one of mine and was simple as could be... the replacement works fine... (well... as well as it can within constraints of the current software build...)

 

[Argentum123]

Hi,

Rushmore - I am unable to respond to the technical aspect of this device as deeply as you or jtbnet, or some other participants here. Your feedback is very helpful and I really want you to know that I am forwarding your comments to ViewSonic.

Richled13 -15% restocking fee should not apply on your return as Flash update is not rolled out as it was first anticipated. I still believe that the device is good for general use, has a lot of potential through software updates. If anyone wants to hold on to the device until the reasonable time and still want to return it after the 30 days due to appropriate updates not rolling out, please let me know. I am certain I can help you with that.

Flash - I have heard from multiple source that Nvidia and Adobe are working together and has agreement to support Flash on Tegra II. I don't work for Nvidia nor Adobe to be 100% certain of it, but at least the information I heard is that Flash will be available on Tegra II chip.

Although App portal may not fix all of problems that you may experience, I believe it will be a huge step towards providing an avenue of proper apps built for G-tab.

Again, I want to thank you all for feedback, and please keep bring them to me. We are taking your feedback very seriously, as well as any delays in providing proper software update.

I will try to confirm dates of the software update releasae.

Thank you,

 

[rmjdees]

Hi,

Rushmore - I am unable to respond to the technical aspect of this device as deeply as you or jtbnet, or some other participants here. Your feedback is very helpful and I really want you to know that I am forwarding your comments to ViewSonic.

Again, I want to thank you all for feedback, and please keep bring them to me. We are taking your feedback very seriously, as well as any delays in providing proper software update.

I will try to confirm dates of the software update releasae.

Thank you,

they need to get some kind of update out on Monday just to show that they can fix some problems. Tuesday, this thing goes back if there are no improvments.

 

[jtbnet]

Hi,
...
Again, I want to thank you all for feedback, and please keep bring them to me. We are taking your feedback very seriously, as well as any delays in providing proper software update.
...
Thank you,

A minor mostly but iritating and really silly obvious bug...

On the tapntap portrait mode builtin keyboard... the one most useful when in a terminal emulator, file editor, etc. window there is No Enter key... workaround is rotate tablet to landscape mode to get the enter key.

A second actually more Serious bug;

Though you can load an Alternate Keyboard APK ,the TNT settings app will Not allow you to enable an Alternate keyboard for use...

 

[danielevans83]

For those looking to pick up a G Tablet, I checked online at Sears.com and they all said out of stock. I walked into my local Sears and asked, they went in the back and found one. It was all pointless though because I returned my G Tablet for the following reasons.

1. Viewing angles suck - for a device that is primarily a display this is important to do well, Viewsonic didn't, angles are crap compared to AMOLED screens
2. Software overlay is crap, no official Market access, community is hacking it already but cmon it should work out of the box
3. Wifi constantly dropping, could be software or hardware issue
4. Apps that rely on G sensor/accelerometer do nothing at all, either device isnt programmed to use them or it has none
5. No FLASH support, advertised on the box, great job Viewsonic
6. I see what Google says about 2.2 not being ready for Tablets - its NOT. MANY apps didn't load at all on this device, even when sideloaded. Ones that did either didn't scale right, or would open in Portrait view upside-down

That being said there were a few things I liked about the device : nice big screen, fast when it wasn't lagging due to UI, tech specs seemed good.

Problem with this is that no apps or anything are made yet to take advantage of this hardware. By the time apps ARE made for tablets, we'll see a whole bunch of newer stronger tablets that are probably official Google tablets. I may have satisfied my curiosity regarding a Google tablet, I'm DEFINITELY going to wait until 3.0 and the next wave of tablets. It's kinda weak when you try to demonstrate apps for people, and they don't work right. Sure isn't a selling point that is going to help the Google tablets...

For those who want to be early adopters please realize you are REALLY EARLY ADOPTERS. Someone on another forum put it perfectly, for a device you pay $379 for it shouldn't require you + the community developing for weeks to give it a working software version. For now I got my eye on the line of LG android tablets announced early Q1 2011 - THOSE look sweet.

 

[SporkLover]

For those looking to pick up a G Tablet, I checked online at Sears.com and they all said out of stock. I walked into my local Sears and asked, they went in the back and found one. It was all pointless though because I returned my G Tablet for the following reasons.

1. Viewing angles suck - for a device that is primarily a display this is important to do well, Viewsonic didn't, angles are crap compared to AMOLED screens
2. Software overlay is crap, no official Market access, community is hacking it already but cmon it should work out of the box
3. Wifi constantly dropping, could be software or hardware issue
4. Apps that rely on G sensor/accelerometer do nothing at all, either device isnt programmed to use them or it has none
5. No FLASH support, advertised on the box, great job Viewsonic
6. I see what Google says about 2.2 not being ready for Tablets - its NOT. MANY apps didn't load at all on this device, even when sideloaded. Ones that did either didn't scale right, or would open in Portrait view upside-down

That being said there were a few things I liked about the device : nice big screen, fast when it wasn't lagging due to UI, tech specs seemed good.

Problem with this is that no apps or anything are made yet to take advantage of this hardware. By the time apps ARE made for tablets, we'll see a whole bunch of newer stronger tablets that are probably official Google tablets. I may have satisfied my curiosity regarding a Google tablet, I'm DEFINITELY going to wait until 3.0 and the next wave of tablets. It's kinda weak when you try to demonstrate apps for people, and they don't work right. Sure isn't a selling point that is going to help the Google tablets...

For those who want to be early adopters please realize you are REALLY EARLY ADOPTERS. Someone on another forum put it perfectly, for a device you pay $379 for it shouldn't require you + the community developing for weeks to give it a working software version. For now I got my eye on the line of LG android tablets announced early Q1 2011 - THOSE look sweet.

Thanks for the review. This eases my guilt for tossing some money steve jobs way (iPad purchase). I'll definitely be looking to android for the next round of tablets.

 

[danielevans83]

Thanks for the review. This eases my guilt for tossing some money steve jobs way (iPad purchase). I'll definitely be looking to android for the next round of tablets.

No problem. My main thoughts are this : the device should work as advertised out of the box. If we want to customize/hack it after the fact to add more features, then cool. We should not be hacking/customizing it so it partitions space for apps correctly, uses the right drivers, doesn't have a slow UI, etc... that is just lame.

For me I want a device that I can not only do alot with, but I can also show to others and recommend they get it too. I'll actually be pushing people towards the iPad if I kept this thing and then described all the hacking I had to do to get it to work right. I understand people's desire to make things work and fix things, but c'mon people Viewsonic is doing exactly what Microsoft did with Windows Vista - getting a ton of people to buy it and beta test it at the same time. Thanks, but no.

 

[dbpaddler]

Considering google said android isn't ready for table prime time, isn't it shame on the consumer for rushing out and buying a tablet now and complaining about the shortcomings? At this point you should pretty much assume you're a guinea pig/beta tester and either deal with it or return it and wait it out. But the geek in us prevails as we want to play with the latest tech, and we buy anyway.

 

[rushmore]

Well, I must backtrack on my 100% it is the mapping. Seems that Android 2.2 and Tegra 2 are not really that compatible. Three different devices (Z-Pad, Folio and G-tablet) with three different UI's and all have the same problems with games and apps, as well as performance issues.

Tegra 2 probably needs 2.3 before ready for prime-time.

 

[dbpaddler]

Ti OMAP for the win

Maybe they didn't consider dual core compatibility in 2.2 since nothing was out there with it or on the horizon.

 

[rushmore]

Ti OMAP for the win

Maybe they didn't consider dual core compatibility in 2.2 since nothing was out there with it or on the horizon.

Yep. Appears already two major companies have screwed up and released Tegra 2 devices which do not work properly with 2.2. Seems mega stupid IMO.

My guess is in two or three months, the G-Tablet will rock, but I would rather not wait and get past the 30 day return window to test that assumption. Still have not received mine, but will take it straight to Sears and not bother opening. Other fine souls at XDA have already "suffered" by example so I will not have to

Still may get one if I can find one of those Sears outlet $200 returns....

 

[dbpaddler]

That could be a plus for those of us in the know. Find an open box for cheap, returned by some newb, and let it age like a fine wine in its box for 4-6 months.

Question though, can the mfg's patch it kinda like 1.5 was patched for CDMA, or do they truly have to wait for 2.3?

Still may get one if I can find one of those Sears outlet $200 returns....

 

[jtbnet]

Well, I must backtrack on my 100% it is the mapping. Seems that Android 2.2 and Tegra 2 are not really that compatible. Three different devices (Z-Pad, Folio and G-tablet) with three different UI's and all have the same problems with games and apps, as well as performance issues.

Tegra 2 probably needs 2.3 before ready for prime-time.

I'm wondering where the problem is here too... not sure whether you saw my update on another thread about benching a new WitsA81E A8 @800 Mhz and my VS T2(50) using Quadrant today... the A8 hit 1950 first time out with no system cleanup out of the box... I'm barely over 1800 with the T2 after cleaning up the boot env over a few days...

As T2 is superset of A8 and running 20% faster clock even using common Armv7 base instruction set I would have expected the the T2 to beat the A8 by 20% just based on clock speed...

This makes we wonder whether it's not a lower level issue, like the compiler, or base OS build, maybe un-optimized at this point, that is to blame... but granted the Quadrant bench tries to avg. most basic functionality of the system so could be one particular area like video or mem perf that knocks the result down and I haven't reviewed the individual tests against each other yet to see If I could draw any better revelations...

Even so... the T2 is still an infant compared to the more established A8... so given time I'd still expect T2 to make big jumps in improvement like the A8 did, whereas the A8 family has been optimized past expectations already in the last 18 months...

 

[rushmore]

I'm wondering where the problem is here too... not sure whether you saw my update on another thread about benching a new WitsA81E A8 @800 Mhz and my VS T2(50) using Quadrant today... the A8 hit 1950 first time out with no system cleanup out of the box... I'm barely over 1800 with the T2 after cleaning up the boot env over a few days...

As T2 is superset of A8 and running 20% faster clock even using common Armv7 base instruction set I would have expected the the T2 to beat the A8 by 20% just based on clock speed...

This makes we wonder whether it's not a lower level issue, like the compiler, or base OS build, maybe un-optimized at this point, that is to blame... but granted the Quadrant bench tries to avg. most basic functionality of the system so could be one particular area like video or mem perf that knocks the result down and I haven't reviewed the individual tests against each other yet to see If I could draw any better revelations...

Even so... the T2 is still an infant compared to the more established A8... so given time I'd still expect T2 to make big jumps in improvement like the A8 did, whereas the A8 family has been optimized past expectations already in the last 18 months...

There are several issues, IMO:

1. UI layer is broken (microsd not mapped correctly, USB issues, settings not sticking after reboot).

2. Tegra 2 and Android 2.2 are not a match (Android 2.2 not designed for dual cores).

3. Some apps will not work due to compiling issues for dual core compatibility.

Items 1 & 2 should be fixed within a few months, but apps are up to the devs that made them

 

[Argentum123]

Yep. Appears already two major companies have screwed up and released Tegra 2 devices which do not work properly with 2.2. Seems mega stupid IMO.

My guess is in two or three months, the G-Tablet will rock, but I would rather not wait and get past the 30 day return window to test that assumption. Still have not received mine, but will take it straight to Sears and not bother opening. Other fine souls at XDA have already "suffered" by example so I will not have to

Still may get one if I can find one of those Sears outlet $200 returns....

I am certain that in next 30 days, we will have all of software updates ready and pushed out to the unit so that software side of the device will meet the hardware spec. It is unfortunate that this unit did meet all of expectation of Android users on the software side when it first launched last week, but we hope to change it soon.

Thank you all for great feedback and Sears will work with ViewSonic to address the issues that were brought up to us.

Sears will continue to offer deals on this model as we make improvements on the software side throughout the holiday.

I hope that when you see this on the Sears circular next time, G-tab will meet your expectation.

I will continue to provide update on the software update as soon as I learn more on the firm release date.

Please continue to provide feedbacks to me.

Thank you.

 

[danielevans83]

If I could find one of these open box for $250 I'd probably re-buy it. $380 though was too close to the iPad to justify, considering it sucks right now. I'm tempted to grab an Archos 70 or something just to have something to play with over the next 6 months that doesn't cost close to half a grand.

Realistically speaking though, if you wanted to buy a new Droid Incredible off contract it will cost you ~$500. For those of us expecting tablets to be of the same quality/speed and be cheaper is a pipe dream I think. From reading reviews and playing with one, I gather the real nice Droid pads will probably be hovering right around $500 for the top performers. I really hope HTC gets into tablets, most of their phones have been hits.

 

[Argentum123]

If capacitive screen is not a feature that you absolutely need, there are number of tablets available under $200, even $150, that works to browse web and play with Android apps.