did anyone answer about wifi tether? can u use a tether to access internet? i can tether my mac laptop thru my palm pre (i mention brands in case I misspeak terms

does this make connection very slow?

i tend to figute out hoe to gt things to do stuff but...don't understand the whys

You probably could stick the new Amazon App store on this easily and get a free new app everyday. Since the other markets are more tied to their devices, the Amazon one should still work.

It's a sad mock of an iPad. I've had the chance to play with both and I would still get an iPad over this pile. Choppy, slow, with a failed attempt to be an iPad. I own neither and havent decided what to get, but it won't be this one. Aww... hang on, I'll grab some kleenex... I have to plug it in to get stuff on and off other memory? Don't be lazy.. I don't think the iPad makes you look cool, more pompous and arrongant. That's the only real hesitation on getting one.... that and the price. But, you pay for what you get.

BethC wrote:Okay, how hard will this thing be to "root" (whatever that means) for someone who doesn't even know what you mean by "rooting" this (I'm not totally clueless, I just don't know anything about modding or Android OS). And equally importantly, will it cost me anything to mod it?

Is there a kindle app for it?

Or since I'm lazy should I just wait for iPads to get cheap?

It's hard for a geek like me to say. Personally, I found it to be really easy. I'd hedge your bets, however, and find someone who's rooted their phone and ask them to do it for you. You have to be comfortable on the command line, and understand where you are when mucking around (there's times you're working on your tablet through the command line on your computer that seem to trip people up).

just bought my FIRST WOOT!! woot woot!

mstrommen wrote:These aren't that hard to root and put a custom rom on. 2-3 hours of work and you can use whatever market you want.

Actually you can easy root in under 20 mins if you've ever done it before. Even those that have not, just use a little PC program called "unrevoked." That will root the phone and give you "super user" permissions. Think of "unlocking" or "jailbreaking"-----> = "rooting". Now you can use a little app called clockwork mod which, if you boot into, will allow you to switch between roms. Think of roms as the operating system, or maybe more correctly skin, of the tablet.

Here's a list of just about every major rom out there.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/wiki/index.php?title=HTC_Supersonic/ROMs
Some are a lot like the stock rom, others are radically different. "Fresh" is close to the stock one... but has all/most of the super user features enabled (wifi tether for example). I'd go with that one for beginners.

Are there any compiler apps out there that I could use on this? Specifically for C++. Only cause I'm in a class and have to travel and would like to avoid buying a laptop right this moment...

I've been considering this for a while; IN FOR ONE!

Winner for apps!!??
No way!!

The iPad has thousands of apps developed for a large screen tablet. So far, Android apps are mainly developed for a small screen phone... very few are any good on a tablet.
I'm speaking from experience, I've owned three Android tablets this year!

zbk12000 wrote:Are there any compiler apps out there that I could use on this? Specifically for C++. Only cause I'm in a class and have to travel and would like to avoid buying a laptop right this moment...

No compilers exist on the android platform as an app. though there is an ubuntu build for the tablet (still in beta though)

DaZoneRanger wrote:Are there any apps for this thing that will allow it to interact with Apple's Face Time and games like Words With Friends (with iPod/Phone/Pad users)?

Words With Friends is on the Android network now... of course you'll need to root it to get access to that. But yes, words with friends exists. Don't know about face time.

countryloving wrote:did anyone answer about wifi tether? can u use a tether to access internet? i can tether my mac laptop thru my palm pre (i mention brands in case I misspeak terms

does this make connection very slow?

i tend to figute out hoe to gt things to do stuff but...don't understand the whys

if you have a phone that can share it data connection by beaconing an ad hoc network.
and you flash and use a custom rom, you can tether to your phone...

This actually looks like a great deal!
Wow.

Ok, from someone who owns and uses one with a VEGAn ROM daily - to recap:

Amazon Appstore = yes
Youtube = yes
Netflix = yes
Android Market = yes
USB = Yes
Micro-SDHC = yes
HDMI = yes
Flash = yes
Bluetooth = yes
ALL ebook reader programs = yes
Honeycomb upgradeable = YES!
Android phone tether = yes
Use Office docs = yes
Smoother and faster than ipad = YES!!!

Did I mention that last week a salesman at Staples told me that Staples had to ship their entire stock of this tablet back to manufacturer due to some malfunction?

pphilipp wrote:Winner for apps!!??
No way!!

The iPad has thousands of apps developed for a large screen tablet. So far, Android apps are mainly developed for a small screen phone... very few are any good on a tablet.
I'm speaking from experience, I've owned three Android tablets this year!

Ummm, I owned the Xoom tablet, and everyday more of my favorite apps were popping up with Tablet support. Within a few months, it won't even be a question; EVERYBODY is making their apps Tablet compatible!

If I can load a good copy of Honeycomb on this, I might get this one as well. Took the Xoom back because Verizon's data plans are TERRIBLE. 5GB??? In a day maybe, not a month!

I'm writing this from my g tablet. This is a steal, if your looking for a non 3g tablet. Viewing angle on this screen is not good. Few if any cases available, hard to find a dock. Have to root and install custom ROM to get the most out of the devce. I like market, lots of free apps. Not an ipad. But for what I do-- surfing the net, it works great. Also supports flash.

MaxSMoke777 wrote:Ummm, I owned the Xoom tablet, and everyday more of my favorite apps were popping up with Tablet support. Within a few months, it won't even be a question; EVERYBODY is making their apps Tablet compatible!

If I can load a good copy of Honeycomb on this, I might get this one as well. Took the Xoom back because Verizon's data plans are TERRIBLE. 5GB??? In a day maybe, not a month!

Nevertheless, Woot's announcing winner status to apps is exceedingly misleading. If you do the math between ipad apps and android TABLET apps at this point in time, it's not even a close race.

When 50% or more of apps you load onto a device don't fill the screen and are highly pixilated it means they are not doing justice to the hardware.

When will this unfettered taunting of we HD-DVD folks subside? Pity us, don't ridicule us.

Bunnywafer wrote:I so long for a tablet, but I am so technologically challenged.

I don't even know what rooting means. *blush* What is it?

How hard is all this adapting you all are talking about? I'm fine with following directions and all, but if I run into any snags I'm not going to be tech savvy enough to fix things on my own. Should I just wait for a better out-of-the-box tablet to come along? Be honest. I had already resigned myself to waiting anyway....

Thanks for any advice!

"Root" basically means 'I can do what I want on this machine'. You can install things how you want, wipe the machine, uninstall things, etc.

Most people do not have root on their work computer, meaning they can't install what they want, and they can't delete everything on the machine and start over if they need to. On the flip side, most people have root on their home computer.

Phones and tablets are just like computers, but with funky casing and some extra capabilities. When you get root on a tablet, you can reinstall the OS, or install things that the parent company didn't want you to install. Many people remove the manufacturer's OS (in this case, Android) because they added things to it that the end user doesn't want. Some do it because they want the latest version of the OS, or they want to install software that isn't blessed by the manufacturer.

Or, if they're like me, they get a bug up their butt about someone telling them what they can and can't do with the hardware that THEY bought with their HARD EARNED MONEY and THIS IS AMERICA DAMMIT so they root and do things to their phone/tablet BECAUSE THEY CAN.

jaburg wrote:Ok, from someone who owns and uses one with a VEGAn ROM daily - to recap:

Amazon Appstore = yes
Youtube = yes
Netflix = yes
Android Market = yes
USB = Yes
Micro-SDHC = yes
HDMI = yes
Flash = yes
Bluetooth = yes
ALL ebook reader programs = yes
Honeycomb upgradeable = YES!
Android phone tether = yes
Use Office docs = yes
Smoother and faster than ipad = YES!!!

Thanks. Nice summary. Hulu?

pphilipp wrote:Did I mention that last week a salesman at Staples told me that Staples had to ship their entire stock of this tablet back to manufacturer due to some malfunction?

Complete FUD from staples (and you) the problem was with the early software (wifi would drop out and the tablet would crash) was solved by december. Staples got jumpy and dumped the product. Sears and many others are still selling them.

akodoreign wrote:No compilers exist on the android platform as an app. though there is an ubuntu build for the tablet (still in beta though)

mmmmm...Ubuntu...me likey!

pohlmacs wrote:Did anyone else notice that step 1 under the Safety Precautions section of the User Guide states: "DO NOT press our touch the LCD screen..." Um, isn't it a touchscreen? :/

The directions are obviously in Engrish, so I wouldn't take them to heart. I'll be fingering mine all day long

I have this tablet and I love it. I've had it for a few months now. You too many cookies to use it right out of the box, so make sure you root it, which is pretty easy to do. Touch screen is great, even with a screen skin, and I have loaded all of my apps on it. I mainly use it for an ereader, recipe book, email, and entertainment for the kids. I paid a lot more for it in the store, but it is still worth every penny!

I have no issues tethering mine through my palm pre. Bought this 3weeks ago for $379. Good buy at this price. Rooted mine and I am now running Vegan 5.1 ROM.

Wagnbat wrote:Was almost tempted. Then the "G-Market" instead of the Android market killed it for me.

Google apps including market a very easy to install. just google it!

hustlertwo wrote:Is anyone really interested in taking pictures with a 1.3 megapixel camera these days?

Must be.....Apple put a .7 (yes, that's POINT 7) camera in the iPad2

Actually you can. Google it...

That being said. It would look VERY funny holding a 10" tablet to your head

I haven't tried installing skype on mine yet. Still hoping for a video version of skype to be released... three front facing android devices in the house, and no skype.

promyst wrote:Even with Android and all her glory, I don't think that is possible my friend but if it is, more power to Android

Lilwolf wrote:Actually you can. Google it...

That being said. It would look VERY funny holding a 10" tablet to your head

I haven't tried installing skype on mine yet. Still hoping for a video version of skype to be released... three front facing android devices in the house, and no skype.

I use sipdroid with google voice callback and use mine to make and receive phone calls over wi-fi. Definitely plan on getting an android phone to tether too.

BTW (for those who wonder) the name of this very website is derived from a variant of the word "ROOT." Look it up.

jaburg wrote:I own this device and once you root and load a better ROM (I use VEGAn) it is smokin'! Outperforms (max)ipads and xooms in many ways. Full support for USB, HDMI out and will take a 64GB micro-SDHC card.

If I didn't already have two I would be on this like stink on ... well, you know.

I agree with this post. I bought this about two months ago and I have been running the Vegan Mod... it has been amazing. I also agree with the people saying the viewing angles are great. The viewing angles is a bigger deal when you want to watch videos, but you can find the right angle. I have very much enjoyed my purchase of this device and recommend it all the time.

TechFan wrote:Thanks. Nice summary. Hulu?

You can make Hulu work with a hacked version of Flash. It is a pretty simple process if you can find someone who has already hacked flash and you just have to install it. It took me about 10 minutes to find the hack, file, and complete the hack.

I have two of these: one for me, and one for my wife. We both love them. I am using VEGAN ROM available at xda-developers.com while my wife is using TnT Lite. There are new developments being made almost daily to include putting elements from Adam onto the gTab.

GREAT device. Super fast and responsive. The only downside would be the viewing angles; if you want to view it while it's laying flat on a table, it works better to put it upside down (although it really doesn't matter).

My daughter has an iPad and I have compared the two side-by-side non-scientifically. My gTab loads Flash pages and some websites better. The iPad is a more polished product, but if you're a tinkerer or someone who likes to be able to customize your PC's desktop and would like to do that on a tablet, then the gTab is for you.

HIGHLY recommended.

firebirdude wrote:Actually you can easy root in under 20 mins if you've ever done it before. Even those that have not, just use a little PC program called "unrevoked." That will root the phone and give you "super user" permissions. Think of "unlocking" or "jailbreaking"-----> = "rooting". Now you can use a little app called clockwork mod which, if you boot into, will allow you to switch between roms. Think of roms as the operating system, or maybe more correctly skin, of the tablet.

Here's a list of just about every major rom out there.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/wiki/index.php?title=HTC_Supersonic/ROMs
Some are a lot like the stock rom, others are radically different. "Fresh" is close to the stock one... but has all/most of the super user features enabled (wifi tether for example). I'd go with that one for beginners.

This device does not need to be rooted to install Clockwork. You can access the developers interface by holding the power button and the volume up key at the same time. You can install clockwork at this point without rooting.

Is this made in the USA? I'm trying to only buy electronics that are made in the USA these days to support our economy.

Is there a video input on this device?

Thank you woot! I asked for one for my birthday about a week ago, to my surprise you are selling them today. These are normally about 360 on amazon and other electronic stores. 280 is a slamming deal.

arctiki wrote:Current owners - can this tablet tether to an android-based smartphone to add 3g/4g support?

Yes, I use wireless tethering from my Nexus One for mine quite often. You can even set up bluetooth GPS tethering with a bit more work allowing you to use Google Navigation on the Gtab in your car. (Note that I haven't done this myself, I find the N1 screen plenty big for navigating but people over on XDA have done it and there are walkthroughs to set it up)

For anyone looking at this, if you're not comfortable with the idea of rooting it and installing a custom ROM I don't recommend it. The hardware is great with 2 catches: 1 being the screen, it's comparable to a netbook screen of the same size and suffers from poor viewing angles. 2, the stock OS really holds this tablet back and the lack of Android Market and Google apps can be a dealbreaker.

That said, the viewing angles aren't noticeable in landscape orientation, they're a tad annoying in portrait. If you can get past this the second issue is easily fixed by installing one of the custom roms developed by some of the great guys over at XDA Developers forums. It's straightforward to do, if you can follow instructions you can root the tablet and install the ROM.

This tablet has the same Tegra 2 CPU/GPU as the Motorola Xoom and the battery life is solid. For anyone willing to tweak you won't find anything that can even come close anywhere near this price and I highly recommend it. Head on over to http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=841 and grab a rom from the G Tablet Android Development section. If you like the look and feel of the stock OS I recommend TnT-Lite, otherwise I recommend going with VEGAn. Both of them are very stable and will give you a great experience with the tab.

Keep in mind there are other app stores out there that are trustworthy (to the extent that you feel you can trust anybody). Amazon has just launched their own app store and I've installed that on my EVO and it works fine (and has many of the same free apps I see on the HTC-Sprint store), so maybe it'll work here, too.

Regarding browsers, if you don't like the default browser, but are worried about messing up in this "root" stuff they keep talking about, consider fetching Firefox and trying that.

ethilbert wrote:You can make Hulu work with a hacked version of Flash. It is a pretty simple process if you can find someone who has already hacked flash and you just have to install it. It took me about 10 minutes to find the hack, file, and complete the hack.

Thanks. Will contact you if I have trouble. Ordered one, will have to wait for it to be reshipped from family since woot won't ship here direct.