10.1 vs transformer. Same or should I go Ipad?

[tester007]

Just got a 10.1 and really am starting to wonder why all the great reviews. Considering returning it and wonder if someone has compared as an owner to say a transformer?

I have had an original Ipad since launch. I hated the lack of flash, but other than that it runs fairly well. Lately it has been a little boggy, and a couple months ago the browser started to randomly crash to the home screen. So I wanted to get something new. I have had a Samsung Captivate (original) phone for a while now and got it over an Iphone due to customization (I have always been a pc guy) and the fact it supports flash. Going from a Bberry I still felt for what I used it for mainly, email, phone and web surfing that it was a step down outside of the screen quality.. I mean email is just horrendous on android, and a few days ago all of my 4 accounts just decided to vanish off the phone.. But the browser always worked well outside of vbulletin websites where you cannot do a dropdown search... you have to go to an advanced search that is embedded in the page and not a dropdown. Anyways, I went to the 10.1 tab because I was familiar with Samsung and thought things would be the same. I thought long and hard between transformer/10.1 at the store and before hand and the fact I had a Samsung phone, just got one for wife, swayed it for me.

But I am finding that things are not the same. It seems using the native browser, or Dolphin, this thing is just so flaky and unworkable on many sites that I have been reaching for my old Ipad in spite of the lack of flash. I don't understand why with a similar operating system and browser, that these things cannot function the same.. I assumed android was android and if you got a xoom, or a 10.1, or a transformer, it was only about the differences in hardware.. I am starting to think not. If you have a 10.1, go to a site like welist.com .. click on 'Alberta', then 'Calgary', or probably any town and then click on the SW portion of the map to search for listed houses. You will see that in Dolphin or the native browser, you may get the whole page.. or maybe not as you scroll down the list of houses for sale. Click to page 2 or 3 and it will definitely happen one one of the pages. Or, If you click into a house to see it, then back out using the arrow at the bottom of screen, pretty well every time if you now try and scroll to the bottom of the screen/list only half the list will be rendered.. you can never get to the bottom of the screen. both browsers do this. Native browser you can go to next page by clicking on a page number, but not the turn page arrow.. dolphin both work. However, on my Samsung phone this site works fine.

Go to the app store.. try and download a bloody app.. it sits on 'downloading app' or whatever forever... absolutely ridiculous. You have to go out of the store, back in, or backwards, then forwards..refresh.. what a joke.. who does QC testing on this stuff??? This isn't some obscure bug... this is the app store for * sakes. There is another website.. memoryexpress.com . Go there, chose something from the dropdown list like hard drives... it will take forever, but you will eventually see a bunch of hard drives to buy.. now refine your search on the left side and pick say sata2 only and check that off... nothing changes on the page. What you have to do is scroll the page so all the hard drives shown are off the bottom of the screen, then scroll back down and magically all of them have changed to the correct choice.. its like you have to manually refresh the screen by making it all disappear off the bottom, then bring it back up.. just a total joke.

Anyways, so I figure I am only going to grow more frustrated and feel more ripprd off the more I play with this thing as I have found so many web issues so soon with it. So I am wondering if anyone has also tried a Transformer.. I don't want to give up on Android, yet... If you have, is the browser the same junk and things like app store non-functional without jerking around to try and get it to actually work? I'd hate to do it, but a new Ipad is starting to actually look good.

 

[YBCold]

Being as you just got the tab you should run a check for an update as I believe most of the tabs are still coming out if the box with 3.1 on them. I think mine did and once I updated things ran rather smooth after that. I think Still not as smooth as the ipad but better.

If you really want it to run fast you need to try a different launcher and root the tab with a custom ROM.

Best of luck!

 

[tester007]

yes its 3.1.. I decided to try the Task Rom and see how that goes. Frustrating the software for these seem so incomplete for some of the most important features and uses. Thanks for the reply.

 

[Wookiee]

I'm currently running a non-stock rom, but I am using the stock browser, and I just tested the websites and circumstances that you mentioned.

Both welist.com and memoryexpress.com run like a champ for me. All pages render fully (I loaded them on my PC just to be sure), everything is fast and responsive. I've run into the market issue you mentioned a handful of times over the past several months that I've owned the Tab, but it's not something that happens to me with any sort of regularity.

I'm not sure what to suggest (other than rooting/tinkering with custom roms, if you're willing), but I hope you figure something out.

EDIT: Just saw what you posted while I was typing this. Good luck with Task's rom, and if you decide to run stock, I would suggest updating to 3.2. It's a worthwhile upgrade.

 

[YBCold]

There are 3.2 ROMs over on XDA if you wanted a better experience.

 

[tester007]

I just put on Task @ 3.2... pretty painless steps. Seems to function a lot better.. the websites I listed run fine now. Forums (vbulletin) tho in stock browser now crash browser completely when you try and search, popup crashes in Dolphin. I guess I can live with that if that is the only issue with surfing. Overclocked as well on demand.. loads are faster.. pretty nice overall.

Now have to look at doing my phone..

 

[YBCold]

Glad to hear its working better for you! Sorry about the search issue with vbulletin, though I had issues with using it on the stock 3.2 so it is not something the ROM has created (I don't think).

Good luck with flashing the phone over!

 

[tester007]

I am finding now (I think it might only be in Dolphin) that there are quite a few times I am surfing the web, and the back arrow at the bottom of the screen does not go back.. The screen almost looks like it refreshes but stays on the same one.. if you pound it enough times occasionally it will back out. Some websites I know are coded to hold you on a page, but this was like the Sears website or Ikea or something like that I was on.. Anyone else have this happen with Task?

 

[whiteshadow001]

I am finding now (I think it might only be in Dolphin) that there are quite a few times I am surfing the web, and the back arrow at the bottom of the screen does not go back.. The screen almost looks like it refreshes but stays on the same one.. if you pound it enough times occasionally it will back out. Some websites I know are coded to hold you on a page, but this was like the Sears website or Ikea or something like that I was on.. Anyone else have this happen with Task?

Idk about dolphin as i just use the stock browser but ive had the tab since lzunch day and it never gives me these kinds of problems.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1

 

[YBCold]

I'm running the task10 ROM which has the xoom browser I believe and it works quite flawless. I think just don't try to back up the browser before flashing as the book marks from the oem ROM crashes the ROM browser.

 

[tester007]

Its Dolphin that does that non-back thing.. does it consistently now.. I was just on Yahoo this morning reading a news story and it wouldn't back out to main page unless I double tapped the back arrow.. it did it on every news story. I guess the 'stock' browser then with Task is Xoom? It seems to function well but I still have some vbulletin issues (I use vbulletin sites a lot). If I am reading a thread, occasionally it will just crash back to home screen. It first did it when I was about 5 pages deep into one, but then the second time did it immediately upon chosing a thread to read. Since internet is pretty well all I use a tab for this is a little irritating.. I wonder why in the numerous reviews I have read on Android tabs that this has never been mentioned.. In fact I went back the day after I made the first post here specifically searching for browser error threads and reading reviews, many the sort of 'three weeks with xxx tab impressions' sort of reviews and not a single mention.
And p.s. I didn't restore anything from backup.. I backed up a fair amount of things I thought 'might' not come with Task but it looks like pretty well anything I would use is there so I didn't restore. The only other ad-on I am using is the cpu overclock.. that cause any issues for people?

 

[WAldenIV]

Its Dolphin that does that non-back thing.. does it consistently now.. I was just on Yahoo this morning reading a news story and it wouldn't back out to main page unless I double tapped the back arrow.. it did it on every news story.

I think most people use tabbed browsing these days in order to not need to backtrack. For example, when I visit a site I will click on every story I wish to read and open in a new tab. Then I can read and close each one. I don't need to go back and forth to read each story.

 

[6tr6tr]

But I am finding that things are not the same. It seems using the native browser, or Dolphin, this thing is just so flaky and unworkable on many sites that I have been reaching for my old Ipad in spite of the lack of flash.

I highly recommend you put Firefox Beta on instead (it's in the Android Market). It doesn't have flash but it's damn close to a desktop browser.

Also, are you using Dolphin HD or Dolphin for Pad?

Go to the app store.. try and download a bloody app.. it sits on 'downloading app' or whatever forever... absolutely ridiculous. You have to go out of the store, back in, or backwards, then forwards..refresh.. what a joke..

Hmmm, this has never happened on my device. Have you updated to the latest rom? (In settings, go to system updates and check for them and install any there)

 

[tester007]

I think most people use tabbed browsing these days in order to not need to backtrack. For example, when I visit a site I will click on every story I wish to read and open in a new tab. Then I can read and close each one. I don't need to go back and forth to read each story.

I dont do that for individual pages i read or i would have a pile of open tabs on some threads that are 30 pages long. Wife ran into this today and this really was bought for her. She is back to the old ipad over it as sometimes it takes 5 or 6 hits of the back arrow, and sometimes 10 and then it flies back 5 pages prior.. Does it now in both dolphin and the task browser consistently. I'm leaning more to just returning it if i can or sell on kijiji... Ridiculous for 450$

 

[tester007]

I highly recommend you put Firefox Beta on instead (it's in the Android Market). It doesn't have flash but it's damn close to a desktop browser.

Also, are you using Dolphin HD or Dolphin for Pad?



Hmmm, this has never happened on my device. Have you updated to the latest rom? (In settings, go to system updates and check for them and install any there)

Ill try firefox as a last try on this and see how it goes. I am using dolphin hd. If this is no dif i think its just going back. Like to stay with android but i cannot see how a different hardware platform with the same software would run differently, although the fact my phone browser works 99% perfect, and this such a dog makes me wonder, and thus the original question....

That app store issue was with the shipped 3.1 rom. If you search for something like 'galaxy tab app store stuck on download' or something like that you will see a huge amount of posts. It doesnt actually hang though i found out.. It stays on that but actually installs and finishes while it continues to look like its downloading. If you go out to thehomescreen usually app would have installed.

 

[tester007]

Firefox pops up the keyboard, and then it retracts on every page I go to.. why do they bother releasing such buggy software like this... Reminds me of EA with their games.. rush the stuff out and worry about fixing it later. Oh well.. not a big fan of Apple, but I guess I gotta go back.. Big fail for Android in my book on something so simple and necessary.

 

[YBCold]

What sites are you going to? I I only ask cause I have never had the issue you talked about with the browser session closing.

Also, I you may want to try a forum app if you are on them that often. If you end back at the ipad I wish you best of luck! For me I just wouldn't be happy with that as it is simply an over sized phone.

 

[tester007]

Actually i will correct my last post, firefox seems to so far only do the irritating keyboard pop up and down every page on yahoo and any news page off of it. seems to be working elsewhere fairly well. myself can handle messing around and tweaking (even though you shouldnt have to if you dont want) but this is in the end something for the wife to use so it cant p her off or it will get shelved and be a waste of $$.

i had the forum at klov.com crash twice on me last night to homescreen. i have acomputer for games, work, torrents.. etc. tablets i use for surfing, and controlling my qnap nas remotely, and youtube for the kid... thats about it. they are not good enoug for much else to me which is where the frustration comes from. if ipad had flash (another in a long line of apple moronic moves that will come back and bite them like they always do) then it would be perfect for our use even though i cant stand not having more control like android affords.. hate to say it.. phone android is pretty good, although email sucks the big one coming from bberry, but on the tablet it just seems everyone rushed out to join the tablet craze thinking someone in the app world would come out with something to carry them.. feels incredibly incomplete.. and i got my first computer 30 years ago so have seen a lot of 'new things'... the trend i really hate lately seems to be its acceptable to release things sooner than they should be and rely on updates later to fix it.. but gotta hand it to apple they just seem more together.. sorry gotta vent.

 

[tedj101]

Ill try firefox as a last try on this and see how it goes. I am using dolphin hd. If this is no dif i think its just going back. Like to stay with android but i cannot see how a different hardware platform with the same software would run differently, although the fact my phone browser works 99% perfect, and this such a dog makes me wonder, and thus the original question....

That app store issue was with the shipped 3.1 rom. If you search for something like 'galaxy tab app store stuck on download' or something like that you will see a huge amount of posts. It doesnt actually hang though i found out.. It stays on that but actually installs and finishes while it continues to look like its downloading. If you go out to thehomescreen usually app would have installed.

If you check in the lower right of your screen, you will note a dialog box that tells you first that it is downloading and in just a few seconds that the app is installed. Yes, the market screen is still sitting there, but the app is on your tablet and ready to go - as you have noted.

<TED>

 

[tester007]

Any way to force firefox or the task browser to desktop mode? I don't know why anyone would buy a high-res device with a large screen to go a mobile version.. all browsers should have this choice built in.
Also, I am not sure as I have never used Yahoo mail in mobile mode but in both of these browsers if you get an email it looks like it may be forcing this mode. Today I got a notification from Ebay on a saved search showing items for the day that were just listed based on search terms (I get about 20 a day), and none of the item pictures show up in the email of the items or the 'ebay' header with graphics. You cannot seem to change the settings anywhere to 'view pictures', or go to desktop mode within Yahoo like that main page (which was in desktop mode), but there is a link to' view as html' or something like that just under the mail header area. If you click on that it goes to a new screen that just shows the email with all pictures..etc. If you want to delete that email though you have to go back a screen to the original one and delete it there... like 3 steps to view and delete an email.

So right now after several complete reboots,
Task browser - Needs multiple back clicks to back off of pages fairly consistently.. Sometimes it seems to work ok for a while, then sometimes this is constant. Renders Yahoo mail poorly. But has a pretty cool interface with the buttons that come out of the sides.. sucks because I could get to like this one with that interface.
Firefox - On Yahoo the keyboard pops up and down like it thinks you have tapped the search field even though you have not. Quite often I go to Yahoo not to search, but to read news, go into one of 2 email accounts, and check the markets (a huge reason why I hate apple as the stock graphs are flash) so that popup is irritating. Yes I can just lower it, but thats not the point. Email in Yahoo renders the same way as the Task browser so I will assume its a mobile version and cannot be set otherwise?

have read online that there is a link on yahoo if you search for 'yahoo classic view' that will go to desktop email layout.. will try this and maybe bookmark it if it works.