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I read an article on Ipadforums that said Microsoft will release Microsoft Office for IPad in Feb. 2012. This is great news that they bringing this to mobile platform but how long do you think it'll be before they give Android some love also? This will kinda be a big deal as this could finally be the word processing capabilities that students and other people have been yearning for on Android. I would hope Microsoft would have the best version of word processing considering it's their format n programs that's most widely used in pc community. Do you think it could be implemented in full capacity or that it might have to be dumbed down some.
Just a f.y.I. In case you haven't heard this news. It's been rumored for a while but now I think it's official.
Is this a full Office suite or is it their answer to Google Docs? I think that is called MS Office 365 or something similar. I'd be curious to know. This is where software is headed in the future anyway so it would make sense if that is what it is.
edit:// I just looked at MS Office 365 and it will already work on our devices including the Prime. It is cloud hosted software though and is $6 a month.
For some reason knowing Microsoft, they will drag their feet for a couple years, and if it ever does drop for android i would imagine it to be a very very very water downed version. (It pretty much depends on Microsoft's relation ship with Google). Now i have no basis for this opinion, other than the last several versions of office for mac. Despite Microsoft having one of the best word processing suites for Windows they always seem to make the mac version seem cumbersome and not as good.
skeptikal said:
Is this a full Office suite or is it their answer to Google Docs? I think that is called MS Office 365 or something similar. I'd be curious to know. This is where software is headed in the future anyway so it would make sense if that is what it is.
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I just checked the article again and it doesn't specify if full suite or not. Plus article won't name sources. I think it's against rules to link an article from another forum, so I didn't. I'm curious also as to how much can be expected out of it. Apple has iworks to compensate for non existing Microsoft office before. Bit Android never really had anything like iworks. Only third party apps n such. Which some work great also but hardly any that let's you do everything or at least a suite of apps from same developer to compliment each other.
lmm112190 said:
For some reason knowing Microsoft, they will drag their feet for a couple years, and if it ever does drop for android i would imagine it to be a very very very water downed version. (It pretty much depends on Microsoft's relation ship with Google). Now i have no basis for this opinion, other than the last several versions of office for mac. Despite Microsoft having one of the best word processing suites for Windows they always seem to make the mac version seem cumbersome and not as good.
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Supposedly Microsoft just updated or is going to update the Mac version. I wouldn't think apple/Microsoft relationship could be better than one with Microsoft n google. Apple has been their arch nemesis for years. Apple has always cried Bill Gates stole their tech and made him the richest man in the world because of it..lol not bill fault they sold him the rights when he knew the true potential of it.
I use office pretty regularly and am actually considering paying 6 bucks a month for the cloud version. $72 bucks a year sounds sort of reasonable to me for an official MS Office product. Worth a trial at least.
For the Transformer series, an awesome word-processing application is essential. I find it hilarious that there is really no good one on Android yet.
Polaris is absolutely awful.
My money is on Google to finally update their Google Docs app to make it half-decent for tablets. But right now, it is a disgrace.
We also have LibreOffice announcing an Android version slated for 2012. Microsoft has slowly been releasing mobile versions of their software so I am sure there will be a Office 365 version out there eventually.
I have used a few Android Office Suites, and my favorite is QuickOffice Pro HD, specifically designed for tablets. Allows for opening, editing and authoring Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDFs. It also supports "save as" for Office 2010, 2007, and 2003.
It was Amazon Free App of the Day a month ago, and I love it. Best thing is that it hooks to many different cloud document storage sites, like GoogleDocs and Dropbox.
http://www.quickoffice.com/quickoffice_pro_hd_android/ for screen caps. It's as close as you can get to the real MS Office for a tablet, I think.
The phone version (non-HD version) is not that great, IMO. The tablet specific one is pretty darned good.
xTRICKYxx said:
For the Transformer series, an awesome word-processing application is essential. I find it hilarious that there is really no good one on Android yet.
Polaris is absolutely awful.
My money is on Google to finally update their Google Docs app to make it half-decent for tablets. But right now, it is a disgrace.
We also have LibreOffice announcing an Android version slated for 2012. Microsoft has slowly been releasing mobile versions of their software so I am sure there will be a Office 365 version out there eventually.
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I'd not say there is no good one. I quite like QuickOffice.
I agree that there is no good office suite for Android as of yet. I prefer QuickOffice mostly because of the cloud integration, but all other features are roughly the same as other apps (I actually like the look of Polaris best, but no dropbox integration makes it worthless to me). I would be thrilled to see a full office suite from Microsoft or anyone else (hoping LibreOffice comes through!). But really, all we need is for Microsoft to open MS Live office to mobile browsers - that would be enough for me, though I would rather have an app like QuickOffice with full cloud integration and full formatting features and spell check(!). It seems silly to me that nothing like that exists. Hell, when I type posts on this forum, I get more formatting options than most, if not all, office apps and it has spell check!
Yeah, quick office HD pro is a good one. I have it on my iPad along with Office2 HD, Docs to Go premium, and Iworks Pages. Also PDF expert n PDF reader. Got several different ones just in case one does something the other doesn't do.
So for Android, as I'm hearing, quick office HD is the way to go. At least until Microsoft releases office. I mainly use these apps to make/edit my resumes in such. Some apps act funny with formatting n such. Reading and filling out pdf'sworks well with PDF expert n PDF reader.
Does Android have those others I mentioned, minus Pages? I think I've seen docs2go. I have quick office on my Atrix4g. Will definitely get the HD version for Prime once I pick it up.
When I consider the numerous areas where Google is in direct competition with MS,l I would be very suprprised if MS offered any products which even remotely benefited the Android platform. Of course, once Windows 8 is released for portable devices, the odds of an Android version of Office, will probably approach zip.
All I know is that the SINGLE biggest thing preventing tablets from being able to serve as an effective replacement for ultra slim laptops is the lack of word processing abilities. If tablets were able to do that, they would be able to do pretty much everything I use my laptop for. Word processing is absolutely KEY for any sort of computer device that is supposed to have practical benefit for your life. As a student, it is essentially the only thing I do on my laptop that is entirely practicality-focused rather than media focused that tablets can't do.
While I'm probably going to be getting the TF Prime, the only thing holding me back is if I really need it. If it was capable of word processing, that question would be absolutely erased from my mind. Anyone in the tablet industry needs to jump on making that happen.
I highly doubt Microsoft will release anything worthwhile on Android.
Personally, I'm holding out for LibreOffice, though I also have a faint hope that Google might actually develop their Gdocs app into a full office suite app, something with the same capabilities of the desktop version at least.
If none of those happen... well, here's hoping for dual-booting Android/Windows 8.
LibreOffice for Android is in the works as I read somewhere. I much prefer LibreOffice to MsOffice. I also don't like much what Android has to offer, because no app saves odt files, which I prefer. Still - fully functional web Google Docs would be enough for me.
This is going to be my first tablet and I was wanting to hear from the tablet vets what are the best, must have apps and what are the best practices for ownership?
Do you recommend some brand of shields for the screen?
Best cases for the transformer?
Apps that you install before anything else?
What services did you tie in and are their any tricks to using the? For example I use to use dropbox to sync many system pref between the systems by making symbolic links to the Dropbox dir. (yes, that is a very old and not usually needed trick but you get the idea.)
Are their any cases that allow the tablet to dock w/o removing the tablet from the case.
What do you think of the asus drive privacy terms? I will not use amazons cloud drive w/o encrypting the entire contents due to their privacy clause.
Splash top works well on my wife's iPad was planning to use that, then heard of asus's implementation of splash top or is there better for android? Did some searching on it and found asus is using splash top too, is there any reason to buy splashtop hd? Didn't see any solid answer on that with google.
I think that is enough of my ideas just interested in hearing what everyone has found in their own experences.
I did some searching and all I have found is threads about best app and such looking for alittle more that fotm apps. Though I think my search foo is weak, if this has been posted sorry and would appreciate a link pointing me to the right place.
Ah one more from me any brands of shdc cards I need to avoid?
I ordered a skinomi clear skin /screen protector! This will allow It to dock! I would have gotten carbon but the speaker cutout will look weird! Remember that with any case their will be a square cutout for the speaker!
I'm in the same boat as you this will be be my first tablet!
I think you should have made a separate post for the must have tablet apps!
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
I think that if I ask about best apps you would need what type of app you are looking at like
What is the best keyboard app?
What is the best rdp app?
Looking for something alittle more general than that. Like:
I need a battery monitor app/widget, I personally use battery monitor widget the pro version is nices as it allows battery tracking.
Best apps change as they new ones come out or old ones get updates, but the role they fill always needs filling.
Thanks for recommendation on the cover! Googling it now.
Also posters if you see someone recommending and app/case and you know of a flaw or problem with said item please tell us your experience and how you have worked around or solved said problems.
Selutha said:
This is going to be my first tablet and I was wanting to hear from the tablet vets what are the best, must have apps and what are the best practices for ownership?
Do you recommend some brand of shields for the screen?
Best cases for the transformer?
Apps that you install before anything else?
What services did you tie in and are their any tricks to using the? For example I use to use dropbox to sync many system pref between the systems by making symbolic links to the Dropbox dir. (yes, that is a very old and not usually needed trick but you get the idea.)
Are their any cases that allow the tablet to dock w/o removing the tablet from the case.
What do you think of the asus drive privacy terms? I will not use amazons cloud drive w/o encrypting the entire contents due to their privacy clause.
Splash top works well on my wife's iPad was planning to use that, then heard of asus's implementation of splash top or is there better for android? Did some searching on it and found asus is using splash top too, is there any reason to buy splashtop hd? Didn't see any solid answer on that with google.
I think that is enough of my ideas just interested in hearing what everyone has found in their own experences.
I did some searching and all I have found is threads about best app and such looking for alittle more that fotm apps. Though I think my search foo is weak, if this has been posted sorry and would appreciate a link pointing me to the right place.
Ah one more from me any brands of shdc cards I need to avoid?
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Less than a handful can actually comment on experience with this tablet as it's not officially out yet. Less than 5 here have it in possession already. There are reads in prime section of forum that basically covers all your sections. You will want spalshtop HD as it works great with Android tablets. As far as accessories and cases goes, check out the thread called Ultimate transformer Prime accessories thread. Also look into accessories sub forum here. There's a lot of people commenting on various cases that would be good for this device. For apps, that depends on what you looking for. Productivity, entertainment, games, research, etc.. Be more specific. Now with memory cards, there's a few threads here in general section that will answer your questions on that.
I know there is a lot of b.s. Preorder threads to sift thru here in general section. But all the answers you looking for are here. They may be a page or two back in this section. I would post links but there are so many. Good luck on your search
I will start flipping back in the pages to see what I can find. Thanks for the search pointers!
Though I do know only a few here have the device but, I was thinking that for most this would not be their first device and I was not looking for experience with "asus transformer prime" but more general knowledge with a leaning on the prime. I though that most here would be more knowledge able about the spec that the asus prime would have and most tablets have hc on them.
Though you make good points and I thank you for your advice. Going into the sub forums, damn there are a lot of pre order threads almost wish there was a temp sub forum called preorder.
I can't see if find if the asus splash top is splash top had or not anyone know?
This list should keep you busy for a while.
Best Free Android Apps 2011
http://www.techsupportalert.com/best-free-android-apps.htm
Top 160 best Android apps 2011
http://www.techradar.com/news/phone...-phones/top-160-best-android-apps-2011-693696
The Best Free Android Apps of 2011 (So Far)
http://www.pcworld.com/article/229323/the_best_free_android_apps_of_2011_so_far.html
The 10 best free android apps of 2011
http://galaxys2apps.net/newsandmagazines/the-10-best-free-android-apps-of-2011/
The 40 Best Free Android Apps for 2011
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2366244,00.asp
Results for "best android apps"
http://www.cnet.com/1770-5_1-0.html?query=best+android+apps&searchtype=videos
Ultimate Transformer PRIME TF201 Accessory Guide
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1377669
Thank you for the links and yes it will keep me busy for some time.
Sorry for my weak search foo
Tablets are pretty fun to use. However, it is rather difficult to bring out a tablet in public as they are quite cumbersome and you look like a pompous asshole with it; trust me. However, the transformer series has the keyboard dock, making you look like a more practical human being.
I used my TF101 in some college classes for note taking. I used Evernote. Worked beautifully. However, I want some faster speed lol.
Selutha said:
I will start flipping back in the pages to see what I can find. Thanks for the search pointers!
Though I do know only a few here have the device but, I was thinking that for most this would not be their first device and I was not looking for experience with "asus transformer prime" but more general knowledge with a leaning on the prime. I though that most here would be more knowledge able about the spec that the asus prime would have and most tablets have hc on them.
Though you make good points and I thank you for your advice. Going into the sub forums, damn there are a lot of pre order threads almost wish there was a temp sub forum called preorder.
I can't see if find if the asus splash top is splash top had or not anyone know?
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There was a thread talking about that splash top. I don't think the one included is the HD one. I think it's the regular one. Splash HD is the one you really want though as it has all features unlocked and better for tablets. All I've heard is great things about it though. I have it on my iPad and Atix4g.
---------- Post added at 01:02 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:58 PM ----------
xTRICKYxx said:
Tablets are pretty fun to use. However, it is rather difficult to bring out a tablet in public as they are quite cumbersome and you look like a pompous asshole with it; trust me. However, the transformer series has the keyboard dock, making you look like a more practical human being.
I used my TF101 in some college classes for note taking. I used Evernote. Worked beautifully. However, I want some faster speed lol.
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What do you mean by cumbersome? Lmao as my iPad is light and very easy to carry around. Now for the pompous comment, I guess some could see it like that. I always get looks n comments like oh look, he has one of those iPad/tablet things. Lol. Like people who have/carry tablets are better than everyone...
Just saw the stylus jot pro it looks like pure sex in the ultimate as stories thread I am ordering one of those.
Thanks for the info on splash top I was hoping that I could use the asus provided on but hd looks good compared to splashtop
demandarin said:
Less than a handful can actually comment on experience with this tablet as it's not officially out yet.
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90% of what he asked was generic and the Prime's going to run the exact same applications every other HC tablet does exactly the same way (albeit faster). There might be some Teg3 optimized games but, other than that, it's just another tablet from a utilization perspective.
Here's some apps I can't live without:
Plex and Playon for video streaming
With Plex, you can store all your audio and video content on your home PC, NAS, or WHS and play it on your tablet, even over a 3G connection. It does an impressive job of organizing, labeling, and presenting your content and the tablet interface is pretty slick. I have 2TB of video that I stream to my tablet. It does a fantastic job of transcoding so the video quality's great even over sketchy connections.
PlayOn provides access to Hulu, Amazon VOD, and Netflix. It too is excellent at transcoding and actually does a better job in terms of video quality and buffering than the native apps. It's the best way to access Hulu content.
Pulse and News360 for news
Both have great tablet interfaces, sync with their desktop companions to bookmark or save stories, and can be highly personalized.
Zinio, PressReader, and Next Issue for magazines and newspapers
All have great content available and are designed for tablet screens. Next Issue content is free if you already have print subscriptions.
Read it Later for offline web surfing
Great app for finding web stuff to download to your tablet either as you see it or from your desktop PC to read later.
Swiftkey Tablet X & Swype keyboards
Swiftkey is a fantastic keyboard with excellent predicitive word logic and layout. It also has a thumb keyboard setting which is great when you aren't using a physical keyboard.
Swype has a mini-mode which takes up about 1/8 of the screen and is really fast when you're writing longer e-mails or docs.
CoPilot for navigation
Google map caching is hit or miss when you need to deviate and don't have a wireless signal. CoPilot stores all data locally and doesn't require any wireless signal to be fully functional.
TouchDown for e-mail
It's the best e-mail app for contact management and tasks. You almost have to have it if you connect to Exchange. It's got the best widgets of any e-mail program out there.
Worldmate travel companion
If you travel a lot Worldmate stores the details of your future trips on your tablet. As you're traveling it provides alerts for gates and times and any delays or changes to your itinerary. You can check flight status for any airline in real time and look up alternates if you're screwed.
Widgets
There's tons of screen space to fill on a tablet and these are some of the widgets I think are cool looking, useful, or both.
- Google Market
- AP Mobile
- CNBC
- CNN
- Pulse (multiples)
- Touchdown e-mail, calendar, and tasks
- Worldmate (live flight alerts on your home screen)
- Social Hub
- Gallery
- Kobo
- Amazon MP3
Task killers, batter managers, and the like
Tablets are different than phones and they're used differently. Android as an OS manages resources incredibly effectively. While it's a personal choice, adding things that use resources to save resources seems counter intuitive to me and I don't use them.
Half the fun of an Android tablet (vs. iOS) is the ability to make it your own. Enjoy.
Asus already included a big portion of the apps you might need for basic usage.
But here s some apps I use pretty much every day with my transformer, they re almost all optimized for tablet (android 3.0 framework)
Wizz Widget (for social feed)
tTorrent (for downloading)
subloader (for automatic subtitle downloading)
mobo player / bs player (for watching any kind of video)
File manager HD (a file explorer, better than Asus's one)
Newsr (a google reader better than google reader)
Catch note (to take and read note in the cloud, protect by password and synchronised on every device)
Google Current (offline reading of RSS feed with a very nice looking layout)
Beyondpod HD (best podcast apps)
And Adobe Photoshop Touch, Adobe Idea, Autodesk Sketchbook Pro, Picsay Pro, cause I'm a computer graphist.
Those are the apps I use the most, along which there is some usefull apps like skype, messenger, dropbox, splashtop HD, Facebook and pretty much every google Apps. (chrome to phone, translate, maps, etc etc)
Unless you're a super reckless user, a screen protector isn't going to be necessary (and is sometimes ugly/degrades screen quality). It's really hard to scratch this screen, and other ones like it.
kokusho said:
File manager HD (a file explorer, better than Asus's one)
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I second that.
Newsr (a google reader better than google reader)
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I would reconsider. Newsr is really buggy and slow, crashes a lot and behaves very strange when you start it before WiFi is connected. I didn't find anything better though.
For me most important are also:
- ezPDF - I don't know any better app for PDFs on any system or device (great for taking notes on books or writing answers in exercise books for school).
- Writepad Stylus - for writing (not perfect, but the best I found, if you are buying Adonit Jot, you will find it useful),
The rest for me is mostly games. Cut the Rope is the "must play". Dizzy is the "greatest but probably only appreciated by fans of the original".
hauj0bb said:
Unless you're a super reckless user, a screen protector isn't going to be necessary (and is sometimes ugly/degrades screen quality). It's really hard to scratch this screen, and other ones like it.
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I agree. I've had my Galaxy S (Gorilla Glass screen, like the Prime) in my pocket "unprotected" for about 18 months now, and although I was anxious at first, I haven't noticed any scratching of the screen. Screen protectors might have been recommended for resistive touchscreens, but I don't think they're necessary with capacitive touchscreens, because the glass is tough enough already.
Magnesus said:
I would reconsider. Newsr is really buggy and slow, crashes a lot and behaves very strange when you start it before WiFi is connected. I didn't find anything better though.
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Weird, I don't have any problem at all with newsr. Butter smooth, fast feed load, super stable, not a single crash. Sure if you re offline it doesn't login but that's expected from a RSS reader and nothing strange happen, just a message saying that you need an internet connexion.
I wonder why you seem to have problem with it.
One of the main reasons why I got a tablet was for the purpose of carrying one tablet instead of 5+ school books.
While I am still looking for the books I want, I am just wondering if when I get them and by chance highlight them.. if I export them to my computer before loading a rom..
Will it save the highlights and what not?
i don't know if your highlights will still be there if you export the books to a computer but i dont think you really need to. I have used a couple of roms while on gingerbread and all of my annotations survived. even when I upgraded to honeycomb via globatron's method I was happy to see all of my books with all of my annotations. one time I even cleared the data in the reader app and found all of my books deleted and the books that come installed on the flyer back on my tablet (I had deleted them previously). after panicking I rebooted and was happy to see all of my books with the annotations back on my flyer. I am not really clear where they get stored (because I think I even changed SD cards during this time but I am not sure of this) but all I know is if I can't find them I reboot and they reappear automagically lol. maybe they are stored on the internal SD card which doesn't get touched when flashing.
Some of it will depend on what format the books are in. PDFs for example only saved annotations when I explicitly saved the file.
Sent from my HTC Flyer using XDA App
Will_nonya said:
Some of it will depend on what format the books are in. PDFs for example only saved annotations when I explicitly saved the file.
Sent from my HTC Flyer using XDA App
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Good point. I was referring to the reader app and EPUBS. But i believe once you save the PDF file after making annotations that there isn't a need to export them to an external computer. I think once they are saved they will be able to be recovered along with the annotations upon reboot just like the EPUBS. In fact I just looked at a book in the PDF format that I annotated before I even rooted the flyer (these annotations had the fat pen issue - which is what made me root the flyer in the first place) and all the annotations are still there. So they survived rooting, placing custom Roms while on gingerbread and then upgrading to Honeycomb via globatron's method. You can always do a test on one PDF and/or one EPUB prior to installing a rom just to be sure.
At the moment I think you are better off with an IPad for school. You pick up ipad1s pretty cheap and soon iPad2s. How I wish there was an iAnnotate app for Android with the pen usage.
In one year Android Tabs have come a long way and I'm loving my view and hardly use my iPad. I doubt I will be upgrading to Ipad3 since android is tabs are getting Sooo much better.
gedster314 said:
At the moment I think you are better off with an IPad for school. You pick up ipad1s pretty cheap and soon iPad2s. How I wish there was an iAnnotate app for Android with the pen usage.
In one year Android Tabs have come a long way and I'm loving my view and hardly use my iPad. I doubt I will be upgrading to Ipad3 since android is tabs are getting Sooo much better.
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So if you are loving your view, AND there is a means of annotating books with it already, AND you hardly use your IPAD since you got your view, why would you recommend that he get an IPAD?
I currently do not need note taking in PDF so I really do not need the ipad. If I was taking classes, I would be using my Ipad for that.
Who let the iPad guy in here? Maybe we need to review the site security
my only point is that some apps save the notifications when they're made, some require you to same them manually and some will depend on how you initiate them.
If you know what formats you are planning to work with it is easier to get more specific recommendations.
yea what's up with the IPAD guy, jk. one thing i appreciate about the flyer/view forum is that we don't get into "this is better than that" drivel. i was just curious as to why he would recommend the IPAD when the OP was asking about saving his annotations for a device that he already has purchased for a very specific purpose?
gedster314 said:
At the moment I think you are better off with an IPad for school. You pick up ipad1s pretty cheap and soon iPad2s. How I wish there was an iAnnotate app for Android with the pen usage.
In one year Android Tabs have come a long way and I'm loving my view and hardly use my iPad. I doubt I will be upgrading to Ipad3 since android is tabs are getting Sooo much better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd rather carry my books than buy an ipad.
So please, if you have nothing to contribute to the conversation in the way of useful information, don't sidetrack the serious conversation with talk of ipad.
I am glad you happen to like your ipad, but I'd sooner not use a tablet than use an ipad. I hate dumbed down software.
back to the issue at hand. are you looking to download books into PDF files or EPUBS? I find the PDF reader keeps the format of the publication - which is better for publications that are heavily illustrated like magazines or brochures. but the epub reader is more efficient for annotating because not only can you highlight or write right on the page but you can even attach notes to what you highlighted. plus you can easily locate and retrieve your annotations as they are kept separately in its own category within each book (highlights, what you wrote, and notes)
Ah. Thanks for the heads up on that. I may play around with both formats.
Any idea if the kindle and nook apps support highlighting and what not? I've considered using them to get at least some of my books.
I've been trying to figure out how many apps there are for Android tablets and it has been really hard to find out, which in itself hints that it ain't good. But the best estimates I could find online pin it at around 1000-2000 apps. Didn't iPad 1 release with more than that? What is wrong with Android? I sincerely believe that this OS is better with its Widgets and customizations and all. But does it not bother you that after a whole year we have so few apps? I may as well go for an iPad at this rate. I mean i have all the apps i need now, but still some apps are meant for the phone, like Facebook.... still I feel it is worth investing in a device that actually has proper support... you are paying $500, shouldn't you expect more then just thousands of apps? And don't argue that the new iPad with its hi res display will have few apps. That is only temporary... it too will soon surpass the android tablet app tally...
Took me 5 seconds to google that-
http://phandroid.com/2011/03/14/android-app-count-rapidly-gaining-on-ios-chart/
and its year old, so the number is bigger by now.
Android still has plenty of great apps. ICS is the merging of phone and tablet apps. So there won't be a need for either. Instead it'll be a universal app that would work on wither and if its tablet, then it'll take advantage of it.
I have over 200 apps on my Ipad. I have just as many on my prime and have found majority of my Ipad apps n AAndroid and have them on my prime now. So there's still slot of apps out there. Tablet only apps, yes Android has less but its steadily growing. Phone apps already caught up to apples.
Plus you won't catch many here wanting to switch to IOS over apps. Especially not me. I've already did the Ipad experience for 2 years n glad I came to android. I'm satisfied with what's available. It isn't like you can install all of them at once. Android has great apps n always could use more. But Android users generally know the deal when it comes to the apps. Apple needs apps to do things android does out the box by itself. My Ipad has alot of really good apps on it but I have them all ln my prime also. Majority being better on Android. So expect your poll to show love for Android and its ecosystem. Most try to stay away from limited features n capabilities of Ipad. Depends on what floats your boat the best.
That is Android Market on the whole. I've been talking about tablet optimized apps.
demandarin said:
Android still has plenty of great apps. ICS is the merging of phone and tablet apps. So there won't be a need for either. Instead it'll be a universal app that would work on wither and if its tablet, then it'll take advantage of it.
I have over 200 apps on my Ipad. I have just as many on my prime and have found majority of my Ipad apps n AAndroid and have them on my prime now. So there's still slot of apps out there. Tablet only apps, yes Android has less but its steadily growing. Phone apps already caught up to apples.
Plus you won't catch many here wanting to switch to IOS over apps. Especially not me. I've already did the Ipad experience for 2 years n glad I came to android. I'm satisfied with what's available. It isn't like you can install all of them at once. Android has great apps n always could use more. But Android users generally know the deal when it comes to the apps. Apple needs apps to do things android does out the box by itself. My Ipad has alot of really good apps on it but I have them all ln my prime also. Majority being better on Android. So expect your poll to show love for Android and its ecosystem. Most try to stay away from limited features n capabilities of Ipad. Depends on what floats your boat the best.
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All in all, it would be comforting to see a good recent estimate regarding android "tablet" Apps. As of now, I have apps to watch movies, socialize, a great browser, to read PDFs and eBooks and to take notes. I still feel that quality is lacking and I hope what you said about ICS unifying things will help devs dev more. But it bugs me that say Facebook has no tablet app, etc. Thankfully I don't game a lot though!
READ up on Ice Cream Sandwich Android version and see what its supposed to mean. Soon there will be no more need for tablet optimized apps as all will be optimized for whatever device its being used on.
If you want to get an Ipad that's cool, but I hope you didn't think most here would vote in favor of getting one. You will see soon most are happy with Android. Yes it could always get better but still love it regardless. I'd never switch back to Ipad. Seen so much more with Android now. Going back to IOS would be moving backwards in features and capabilities of a tablet.
---------- Post added at 01:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:40 PM ----------
litetaker said:
All in all, it would be comforting to see a good recent estimate regarding android "tablet" Apps. As of now, I have apps to watch movies, socialize, a great browser, to read PDFs and eBooks and to take notes. I still feel that quality is lacking and I hope what you said about ICS unifying things will help devs dev more. But it bugs me that say Facebook has no tablet app, etc. Thankfully I don't game a lot though!
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I always see people complain about Facebook on android. Why? I have it and works great for me. I have like 3-4 different Facebook apps on my Ipad. Plus here is a reality check. The official Facebook app on Ipad isn't even the best one. It took them so long to bring it out that the 3rd party ones are the best now. The official app sux on Ipad and is buggy still. I have it and other ones on Ipad. You just have to search more. I have tons of great tablet apps on prime.
Here's a tip. If you want to look for android tablet app only marketplace, look for an app called Tablified. Its an marketplace that showcases all tablet only or optimized apps for Android. Its really good and apps must pass strict guidelines to be considered to be viewed in that app. Its a free app. A MEMBER here actually created it. It has a great look to it also.
demandarin said:
Android still has plenty of great apps. ICS is the merging of phone and tablet apps. So there won't be a need for either. Instead it'll be a universal app that would work on wither and if its tablet, then it'll take advantage of it.
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Unfortunately, until we see many more ICS devices, developers won't focus on it and thus we'll not see apps that make good use of tablets because of it. It's true that right now the number of really good tablet apps is low, and it's frustrating. I'd think that 5-10 million Honeycomb or ICS tablets in the wild would be enough to generate more developer interest.
I honestly think developers are gun shy about spending the time on tablet apps because the press on the Android tablet market has been so universally horrible (and the hype on the iPad so universally and nauseatingly high). Those developers who've made tablet-optimized apps have done a great job with it, but really the iPad has a HUGE, HUGE advantage here. Even I find myself sometimes wanting to switch because of all the excellent iPad apps, and I can't stand Apple.
You can find a good tablet app for a most typical uses, and in many cases the phone apps work fine (because they scale better in many cases than iPhone apps scale to the iPad), but it remains a limitation. It's also another area where Google has done a bad job, either of making it easy to make tablet-optimized apps (I don't know either way) or of providing incentives for developers to make them.
I really don't get the fascination and need for all these "apps". I hate that word too, sounds so gay.
Give me a good browser, some good media players and you're pretty much good to go.
There is no need for a Facebook program at all. No need for XDA program, a Twitter program. You don't use them on your Windows desktop do you? The browser is all you need for all that.
I just don't get it. I don't even have one homescreen filled on my tablet.
litetaker said:
That is Android Market on the whole. I've been talking about tablet optimized apps.
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Android doesn't longer have seperate Apps. Since ICS and fragments well written Apps will deliver an optimized layout for phones, tablets as well as Google TV. One App for all, that was the approach of Android and that's why the Google Play / Market doesn't have an extra Tablet section (beside the editors choice for tablets).
In the last years there was really a lack of good apps for tablets, but most of the new Apps make use of this new fragments and offer a great tablet ui.
New 8track app, tweetcaster, new official TED app, Astrid since their last update - just to mention a few.
In my opinion this will be the first serious year for Android Tablets and Apps which was also the reason for me to finally buy the Prime.
MysteriousDiary said:
Android doesn't longer have seperate Apps. Since ICS and fragments well written Apps will deliver an optimized layout for phones, tablets as well as Google TV. One App for all, that was the approach of Android and that's why the Google Play / Market doesn't have an extra Tablet section (beside the editors choice for tablets).
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One think I've always wondered is: do fragments work on Android versions previous to ICS? Because if they do, then I wonder why more developers aren't using them. If they only work with ICS, then it makes sense--ICS is still only about 1% of the total Android population, and only on the Prime and Xoom in tablets.
And seriously, it should be MUCH easier to find tablet-optimized apps. While there are a handful of decent tablet-optimized apps, they're relatively hard to find and that fact alone contributes to the perception (real or imagined) that this is a real weakness of Android tablets.
Download Tablified Market
/thread
Here's a good reference for tablet apps...
http://www.tablified.com/
And yes, many popular apps do suck on a tablet and will continue to until ICS reaches critical mass.
litetaker said:
I mean i have all the apps i need now
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What's the problem?
I guess the question is what do you want to do with your Prime that would be fulfilled by an app? Or somewhat sarcastically; what could you do app-wise with an iPad that you want to do with your Prime? I suggest asking if your searching has yielded nothing suitable.
While it's fun to have lots of apps available, what if they are all crap?
Bye.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using xda premium
Well, I got a solution. Buy an ipad 3 and a tf700 later in the year. All problems have been solved. Except for money.
jdeoxys said:
Well, I got a solution. Buy an ipad 3 and a tf700 later in the year. All problems have been solved. Except for money.
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You got banned? Just recently?
Developer here...
Even with older OS versions the only difference between a phone and tablet app is the layout. Android already has some pretty killer tools for handling that. ICS makes it easier with some new tools (fragments), but by no means is it necessary. Few devs will target ICS for awhile. There are just too many older devices.
So... the biggest inhibitor is time. It takes a great deal of work to develop an app that makes both screen sizes happy. It also takes some practice. Since Android is behind compared to iOS, and the Android tablet market is smaller, we just have to wait. People have to learn how to take advantage of all this extra space.
By the way, its not really any easier to develop an iOS tablet app. In fact, even using the older versions of Android, its easier to deal with different layouts than on iOS.
I think as long as theres fragmentation most app devs are not gonna put as much effort with android. Why when there are so many ipad users and they only have to develop for 1 single platform and can concentrate on making it better rather than concentrating on making it more compatible across every different android devices. ICS was supposed to be the answer but not all ICS compatible app will work on all ICS devices. Then google is supposedly now gonna come out with jelly bean? Whats gonna happen then? So if i was a dev right now I wouldnt want to develop even for ICS not knowing what road block jelly bean will bring when apple is more guaranteed. The return profit is just not as good on android tablets right now. Until we match apples ecosystem I dont think we will ever have the benifits that ipad users have.
demandarin said:
You got banned? Just recently?
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Yes, why?
10char
facepalm...
Do you remember when blueray players first came out, you could only get a handfull of movies for it? and now you can get damn near everything in blueray.
Remember a year or so ago when there was like, maybe 5 tablets total on the market? and now you cant turn the corner without finding yet another manufacturer of them?
Tablets are the fastest growing consumer trend in north america giving Apple a good run for their money. Considering this boom in the last year or so, developers are scrambling to try to support everything and find standards for how graphics will be displayed, etc. (which is why theres so many different versions of the same gameloft games)
Give it a few more months if you cant find what your looking for, it will be here then.
Also considering that ICS is still relatively new and developers need to make sure their apps work well on it before they release it, test, etc. its not surprising that there is limited support for ICS. If you want something thats tried, tested, and true then get the TF101. If you want to live on the edge like with the 201 then you have to expect some bugs along the way.
Give it time, it will come. Guaranteed.
Hi, folks!
I am seriously thinking about buying a TF201 to repace my Vaio. The main obstacle for me seems to be the way to handle my mail. I am used to keep my mail locally (with pop3) and backing it up later. Can anyone, please, clarify a few moments:
1. Is there any decent email application that would be able to handle about 25-30 Gb of email, show it with threads, use Android addressbook, etc? I hear about K9 but this one seems to be rather rudimentary in comparison to a full blown desktop client. Don't suggest a GMail app beuase it's a cloud based app.
2. Did anyone try to use a wired network on a Prime, say with USB-to-Ethernet?
3. Did anyone try to use a 128 Gb flash drives on a Prime?
Thanks a lot in advance,
I'm right in the same boat! I have an HP Touchsmart TM2-2057sb and I'm deciding right now to sell it and just run with the Prime. All of my tests seem to line up that way!
1. Touchdown is a good email client. On my A500, I used that to get my work email and it's probably your best bet.
2. Yes, the latest .21 update has given the ability to do this. Check the herehttp://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1581824 for the Prime for several threads describing which ones work the best.
3. Not sure. But hard drives yes. Considering the SD can handle 64 and the microSD 32, plus the ability to connect a portable hard drive. I think you're safe.
I'm still going to keep my laptop for another few weeks just to make sure I can do everything I need to but the real test will come on our next vacation somewhere.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201
rorytmeadows said:
I'm right in the same boat! I have an HP Touchsmart TM2-2057sb and I'm deciding right now to sell it and just run with the Prime. All of my tests seem to line up that way!
1. Touchdown is a good email client. On my A500, I used that to get my work email and it's probably your best bet.
Click to expand...
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Can it import emails from another client? Say, from an mh folder structure?
vomus said:
Can it import emails from another client? Say, from an mh folder structure?
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Not sure as I wouldn't store my emails that way.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201
rorytmeadows said:
Not sure as I wouldn't store my emails that way.
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I looked at the program but it seems to be an Exchange client only. No "normal" pop3/imap mode of operation. Would not work for me this way.
vomus said:
I looked at the program but it seems to be an Exchange client only. No "normal" pop3/imap mode of operation. Would not work for me this way.
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I thought it could handle that. The default Android email app handles POP3/IMAP. What do you have in your email folders that's so precious? Upload it to a cloud based email service and call it a day. Then you'll never have to worry about questions like these ever again.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201
I have been using GMAIL routing all my accounts to it and have not had any issues. Also have been using OWA on chrome beta with no issues to get my work email. I think it is a great replacement for a laptop
Droidmail and advanced email both have the option to store your emaail locally.
The TFP is a terrible laptop replacement as far as productivity is concerned. I tried really hard to use it in that capacity, but despite my best efforts, Android in general just isn't up to that task yet.
Granted, if your idea of a laptop replacement is nothing more than something to check/store email on, you should be able to get by. It's when you roll into making presentations and spreadsheets that you begin to feel the pain. Anything beyond the most basic of tasks is either impossible or at best, a chore.
Web browsing utterly blows as well. Soooooo slow, and crashes/freezes frequently. My phone slaughters the TFP as a browser, and I only consider it tolerable. (Galaxy Nexus)
Even Google's own services offer sub-par experiences on Android compared to what you can get on Mac/Win PCs. Try editing a spreadsheet in Google Docs' Android app. Activate an entire row of cells for editing, enter values, save row? No thank you! Google Hangouts? Good luck finding how to start one, much less getting it to actually work. My wife's TFP always fails to connect to the other party--unless she opens the Hangout session on her laptop, leaves, and then joins on the TFP.
The gmail app crashes constantly for some as well, so even something as basic as email is finicky. (but you can get around that by using other apps at least)
imho, the only way this would be a decent laptop replacement is if all you do is check email, keep a calendar, and read pdfs. (It's like, the best PDF reader ever). Maybe if you type up Word docs occasionally that contain nothing but text.
My prime is my 'tabbook'. A netbook in concept is not really intended for the 'locally' bit so much as the cloud bit, hence the 'net' part in the name.
Although in reality a netbook is just a compact laptop with low end hardware, so people use it like a regular laptop instead. Android tablets are closer to how Netbooks were originally intended, and lack powerful software by comparason. Things like MS Office, full Photoshop, etc. That's the big difference. Access to the most powerful tools on this device requires going closer to bare Linux, and that is most easy at terminal level.
1.) I'm only familar with stock email applications (Froyo - ICS) and gmail. Storage space matters aside the principal problem is attachments. The clients can be pissy about opening certain types of files. I think K9 lacks tablet friendly UI but it does say, it's intended for large mail chewing. When I need to go outside the stock email/gmail, I've always just reached for mutt. Simply put, the device is cloud oriented. I rely on "Caching" such as having a months worth of e-mail stored and sync when Internet access becomes available again.
2.) Some threads have existed, between TF101/TF201, and I've considered getting one of these. When I get my tablet back from RMA, I want to try the adapter that came with the Zenbook.
3.) I've only tried 4GB flash drives formatted in FAT32. You should have no problems AFAIK as long as the file system is supported. That can vary by kernel/rom setup on any such device.
punitenshu said:
The TFP is a terrible laptop replacement as far as productivity is concerned.
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All of the issues you point out are software issues. And why e.g. you can use a Windows/Linux/Mac netbook as a laptop, but you cannot (so easily) use an Android anything as a laptop. E.g. you won't get MS Office unless you remote to a PC.
Browser wise, speed seems to leave a lot to be desired on the 10" transformers. I think either the software isn't tuned for Tegra 3 properly, or there is just not enough power being devoted. I'm curious about how the Kait powered models are gonna do later in the year. I really would like to know what the hell is with the GMail app too.
Sadly, stuff like Google Docs while decent on a PC, is not so good on mobile. Microsoft's solution was crippled off Windows Phone last I looked at reviews, and Android apps offer much more features than Google Doc's mobile clients.
These are issues people should look at when deciding if a device like this is right for them. For me, all the heavy duty software I need can be run from a Debian chroot and a terminal emulator, so I'm good lol.
Personally, I don't feel productive on a notebook to begin with. I need 2+ screens, a real keyboard with number pad, and a real mouse. So, for me, the Prime is indeed a notebook replacement. I just don't consider a notebook to be a desktop replacement
bedoig said:
Personally, I don't feel productive on a notebook to begin with. I need 2+ screens, a real keyboard with number pad, and a real mouse. So, for me, the Prime is indeed a notebook replacement. I just don't consider a notebook to be a desktop replacement
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All of which can easily be had in a normal person's laptop setup even without resorting to the "desktop replacement" class laptops. (I'm typing right here with my spare monitor, mouse, and number pad-sportin' Samsung Series 7).
I'd say the term "desktop replacement" when applied to laptops is leagues closer to being a realistic term than "notebook replacement" when applied to an Android tablet. Heck, even a sorely-underpowered Ion Netbook is better for productivity.
But, yeah, you're right--it's a great laptop replacement for people that don't really do anything with their laptops, sort of like how a microwave is a great oven replacement for people who eat out every day.
punitenshu said:
All of which can easily be had in a normal person's laptop setup even without resorting to the "desktop replacement" class laptops. (I'm typing right here with my spare monitor, mouse, and number pad-sportin' Samsung Series 7).
I'd say the term "desktop replacement" when applied to laptops is leagues closer to being a realistic term than "notebook replacement" when applied to an Android tablet. Heck, even a sorely-underpowered Ion Netbook is better for productivity.
But, yeah, you're right--it's a great laptop replacement for people that don't really do anything with their laptops, sort of like how a microwave is a great oven replacement for people who eat out every day.
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Click to collapse
Woah, relax. I'm just saying I find the notebook form factor limiting. Of course you can add peripherals to a notebook to duplicate a traditional "desktop" environment. But as long as we're adding peripherals, let's add external monitors, a keyboard, and a mouse to the tablet along with an external PC to VNC into...
Edit - I just realized I may have been reading some combativeness into your post that wasn't really there. If so, my bad
punitenshu said:
All of which can easily be had in a normal person's laptop setup even without resorting to the "desktop replacement" class laptops. (I'm typing right here with my spare monitor, mouse, and number pad-sportin' Samsung Series 7).
I'd say the term "desktop replacement" when applied to laptops is leagues closer to being a realistic term than "notebook replacement" when applied to an Android tablet. Heck, even a sorely-underpowered Ion Netbook is better for productivity.
But, yeah, you're right--it's a great laptop replacement for people that don't really do anything with their laptops, sort of like how a microwave is a great oven replacement for people who eat out every day.
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Click to collapse
I agree with this. My tm2 is really just a mobile desktop for checking email, looking up things on the web, FB, looking up eateries/attractions while travelling. I would never use this as anything for productivity.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201
bedoig said:
Woah, relax. I'm just saying I find the notebook form factor limiting. Of course you can add peripherals to a notebook to duplicate a traditional "desktop" environment. But as long as we're adding peripherals, let's add external monitors, a keyboard, and a mouse to the tablet along with an external PC to VNC into...
Edit - I just realized I may have been reading some combativeness into your post that wasn't really there. If so, my bad
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No problem...I'm used to coming across that way on the interwebz, just don't want to confuse the TC by being unclear about what each of us actually thinks constitutes "laptop replacement".
Where I work (university) most people actually do commonly use laptops in "desktop environments"--and having a desk with a second monitor/mouse isn't really excessive considering you'd need even more than that for an equivalent desktop setup. As far as I'm concerned, I just exchanged two static pieces of hardware for one and gained portability in the process.