New Firmware for Visture V97HD (20131120)

After nearly 6 months without noticeable activity around the RK3188 devices from most tablet manufacturers, any new release is good to take...




Visture released the update 20131120 (date of compiling), which is confusingly named 20131206 (date of publishing) on their web page and readme.

However, the actual file is VISTURE V97 HD FW 20131120.zip
It is better to google for mirror as it is nearly impossible to download from the official link as usual.

It is a minor update aimed at resolving the following problems for those affected:

- fix for HDMI to TV which failed to work on some units
- fix for an issue preventing the tablet to boot while charging

Other than that, no dramatic change in any aspect. I did a clean re-install of the tablet for the occasion and found it as stable as before, but no visible boost in Wi-Fi or overall performance.

Other news from Visture: 
- Android 4.4 should be expected soon for their RK3188. All the value of this information is in the meaning of "soon", of course.
- New i10 tablet is coming soon. Based on MTK8389, it's more like a 10.1" smartphone, with 3G, GPS and even FM Radio onboard: http://visture.com/more.asp?id=15
Apart from the screen size, specs looks similar to the Freelander PX2.

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RK3188 Tablet: Visture V97HD review

The Visture V97HD is the quad-core successor of the V5HD and shares the specs with most RK3188-based tablets on the market like the Cube U9GT5, Chuwi V99, Yuandao N90FHD, and Hyundai Play X900.
With so many similar tablets on the market, the difference is in the details...



Visture is well known by modders for their clean firmware giving a great base to cook custom ROMs.
Their flagship product is advertised with a neat leather case featuring a Bluetooth keyboard.
The whole bundle, including shipping, costs about 200€.





The specs:

CPU: RK3188 Quad Core 1.6Ghz 
Android: 4.2.2
Screen Size: 9.7"
RAM/ROM: 2GB RAM/16GB Storage
Display: 2048x1536 Retina
Cameras: 5MP AF back camera + 2MP front 
Bluetooth: Yes


Unboxing
The Visture V97HD comes in a rather thick box containing accessories (MicroUSB cable, an OTG cable, a 12V2A charger and a US->UK plug) and a flier with beginner's instructions and links to get full manual and firmware updates.

The Bluetooth keyboard suite (Leather case and keyboard)
The leather case is the best I've seen so far for a tablet. It offers a good protection and keeps the tablet in place with a Velcro flap.
The integrated Bluetooth keyboard is powered by its own rechargeable battery and pairing is straightforward.




A gutter on top of the keyboard keeps the tablet stable in upward position.
The keyboard is removable and kept firmly in place with magnets.
Keys are large enough for fast and comfortable typing and there are convenient shortcut keys to the common Android functions.
Kudos to Visture for bundling that accessory with their device! It also can be purchased separately for ~25€.

Wi-Fi range
Android rates the Wi-Fi signal strength from Poor/Fair/Good/Excellent.
Under Poor to Fair conditions (where the access point was 2 floors away), the Wi-Fi first struggled with frequent drops and re-connections during my initial test. I saw an slight improvement when taking the tablet outside its thick leather+keyboard case, which, once folded, adds an extra layer of blocking material I guess.
Under Good to Excellent signal conditions, with an AP on the same floor, the connection was stable.

The Garden Test: at least the V97HD was usable outdoor and the Fair signal had rare and quickly recovered signal drops. The Cube was worse in all the above situations.

Cameras: The only physical difference with the Cube U9GT5 is the 5MP back camera. It takes decent pictures under good lighting conditions. The 2MP front camera does the job for video chat.

5MP camera test, click for full size.

Software, Performance...:

Antutu score in HD mode

As said previously, the bloat-ware free ROM is one of Visture's strong points and there's no need to root the tablet unless you want to.
The Android 4.2.2 installed was the most recent V97 HD_4.2.2_20130729_ZZ. This ROM has the multi-user profile feature but not the Quick Settings drop-down menu. An update is expected in September with the multi-windows feature.
The device achieves a respectable Antutu score of 14919 out of the box.
As for all RK3188 devices I tested so far, any browser but Chrome performs well. There was not lag playing HD movies with the Android 4.2.2 video player. This was my first test because of problems seen with the Cube on this version of Android...

I tested the Retina display with various games, Galaxy On Fire 2 HD, Beach Buggy Blitz, Riptide GP2, CSR Racing, The Room (great to test the contrasts), ...and as expected the display is fluid, bright and sharp with deep blacks! I also noted that no noticeable heat was produced even after hours of gaming ...testing. I met no incompatible apps on the Play store.






The routine of rooting
As for all RK3188 tablets, the script from TPSarky-VonDroid does the job after 3 reboots. It's a formality once the adb drivers are properly installed.

Conclusion
Compared to my Cube U9GT5 (which maybe was a Monday-built unit), the Visture V97HD did slightly better with Wi-Fi and Android 4.2.2. I guess that the sleek-looking aluminium casing remains responsible for the below-average signal quality.
Together with the clever addition of the Bluetooth Keyboard Suite, the product feels well built and complete. Also worth noting was the excellent responsiveness from Visture to my feedbacks and questions.
Do not hesitate to leave your feedback here as Visture will take them into account!

Pros:
Good build quality and finish
Excellent HD display
10 points multi-touch
Bloatware-free Android 4.2.2 ROM
Long battery life (10000 mAh)
Real stereo speakers located on each side (won't be covered by the leather case)
The quality leather case with embedded Bluetooth keyboard is definitely a plus!

Cons:
Below average Wi-Fi reception, but more stable than Cube U9GT5 under similar conditions.

Many thanks to Lencho from Visture for providing me with this sample.

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RK3188 Tablet: Pipo Max M6 review

I have a preference for the 9.7" tablets, but almost changed my mind earlier for the 10.1" because Pipo only had the M9 available.

But all is well now as the Pipo Max-M6 is here, and with interesting twists that made it worth waiting for...





The previously reviewed tablet had problems running SDK2.0 Android build (apparently affecting some RK3188 tablets randomly).
Fortunately, the Pipo M6 Max is finally available so I can see for myself what makes that brand so popular in the forums.

The specs:

CPU: RK3188 Quad Core 1.6Ghz 
Android: 4.2.2
Screen Size: 9.7"
RAM/ROM: 2GB/16GB (only 2GB internal are allocated for /data and most custom ROMs would tweak it to 4GB)
Display: 2048x1536 Retina display
Cameras: 5mp A/F with flash + 2mp
Bluetooth: Yes
3G: option

The Max-M6 exists in 4 versions:
The M6-Wifi-W (white) and M6-Wifi-B (black) costs around 200€ 
The M6-3G-W and M6-3G-B adds 3G support and is ~30€ dearer.

The Pipo Max M6 comes with a complete set of accessories with the usual USB cable and UK type A/C adaptor (9V/2.5A), but also an OTG cable and a pair of earphones.

I particularly liked the little "Tips" card included in the box to guide the beginner from the very start! The user manual stored on the tablet is complete and includes instructions for future upgrade operations.

Picture taken with the rear 5mp camera, click for full size.

First launch







In addition to the classic Android launcher, there's also the PIPO launcher, giving a colourful presentation of the applications sorted by categories, in a style reminding of the Windows 8 Metro panels.
It is partially customizable and operates with some pre-installed productivity apps.
Overall it's a nice-looking launcher that deserves to be given a chance.







Some of the applications are however redundant (IncStage Reader/E-Book, IncStage Explorer/ES explorer, ...) but most can be removed without the need to root the device. Their footprint is negligible though (~200MB).

List of pre-installed apps on first launch.

Design and connectivity
The M6 differs in its design by an aluminium back cover surrounded by plastic panels and the front speaker slots on each side of the screen.
Although it doesn't have the classy aluminium surrounding of the U9GT5 and likes, it's very nice looking, feels solid and well built.

Wi-Fi
The lighter use of aluminium by Pipo is probably why it is not affected by the usual Wi-Fi range limitation seen with other models.

The "garden test": 

The Wi-Fi connection remained stable when used outside, with a signal as low as -55dBm, situation where the U9GT5 failed consistently.

Like all the RK3188 devices, the micro-USB OTG port will not charge the tablet.

I felt that the 9V/2.5A A/C adaptor provided was charging the tablet slightly faster than the 12V/2A common to other brands.
The 2 x 5000 mAh batteries allow at least 8 hours of uninterrupted fun.
3G option: HSDPA connection was obtained quickly on the Irish operator network tested. The SIM card snaps deep into the casing and is a bit of a challenge to eject afterwards.

Performance and compatibility
The Pipo Max-M6 shipped with 4.2.2 (rk30sdk-eng 4.2.2 JDQ39 eng.ljh.20130625.200611)
SDK2 firmware should bring significant improvements over the previous generation, and indeed, the system is snappy, with only Chrome (again...) showing occasional lags, even with the "Force GPU rendering" option enabled (by default). Update Sept 2013: After a few months of use, the tablet hung a few times. Unlike other tablets, pressing the power button for 10 secs does not work and you have to use the Reset pin hole at the back. I'm currently testing the Riley ROM 1.8 to see if it helps.

Score obtained in HD mode

The M6 benchmark score is 14740 in HD mode.

I could only find one app on Google Play that didn't want to install on it, not enough to justify messing with the build.prop file.








Heavy recent games tested ran smoothly.
"Galaxy on File 2 HD" required the developer option "Force 4x MSAA" to run properly.



Display:
The retina screen is -as you would expect- bright and contrasted with deep blacks and wide viewing angle.

HDMI test with Riptide 2 

Cameras
I found the cameras on the M6 conform to what I expect them to do most:  "Face unlock" and video conferencing for the front one, read bar-codes and take occasional pictures for the rear one. This one has a 5 mp sensor with auto-focus and flash.

Picture taken with the rear 5MP camera, click for full size.

Side speakers= Good
Front speakers= Better!

Sound
Having the speakers located on the front of the tablet is a particularity of Pipo M6. This is even better than side located speakers which could be blocked by the hands when holding the device in landscape position.
The pair of earphones produces a good sound, but note that the A/C charger generates a persistent humming sound when plugged.



The protection case:
Although very nice looking on picture, the original Pipo M6 protection is just a thin PU sleeve that is affixed to the tablet with a "sticky pad". It provides very little protection and, really, this tablet deserves better!











Conclusion
While built around the same specs as most 9.7" RK3188 tablets, Pipo made a few subtle and advantageous improvements to the Max-M6: Front facing speakers, 5MP AF camera, and WiFi-friendly back cover. That attention to the details is seen within the first seconds of unpacking with a tip card explaining how to start the tablet and where to find the user manual.

Good:
- Good accessory pack with OTG cable and earplug
- Android 4.2.2 runs smoothly in both high and normal video modes
- The ROM is clean with minimal space used for Pipo launcher and a few apps that you could actually find useful. This makes rooting optional.
- Functional cameras suitable for "face unlock", bar-code reading and video conferencing
- Front facing speakers
- Good Wi-Fi range, no connection drop

Not so good:
- The original Pipo case is bit light to protect the tablet. The M6 is worth investing in a better one.
- Occasional crashes with the original ROM (Riley ROM greatly helps).
- Need to use a reset hole (instead of a long press on the power button) in case of hard crash.
- Speakers could have been louder.

Pipo in the forums:
http://www.flashmyandroid.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?1041-Pipo-Max-M6-ROM-Development
http://www.freaktab.com/forumdisplay.php?132-PIPO-Tablets
http://www.arctablet.com/blog/forum/pipo-max-m6
http://www.slatedroid.com/forum/634-pipo-rk3188-tablets
http://tablette-chinoise.net/pipo-max-m6-f94 (French)

Many thanks to Ben from Pipo for providing me with this sample.

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Setting your Android device to your Language

If your brand new Android device was not set in your own language, finding the right settings can sometimes be challenging without visual clues.


This very short illustrated guide can be used for Android smartphones version 4.x onward.

Press the "menu" button

In the menu appearing, select the last option (goes to system settings)

Scroll down until you see the icon with "A..." (goes to languages & input)

Select the first option... 

Find and select your language in the scrolling list.

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THL W100: The noLED workaround

The THL W100 phone does not have any notification LED for missed phone calls and text messages.

A simple software solution exists if your phone is rooted.




This solution for smartphones without notification LED was  released some time ago on forum.xda-developers.com and consist in a small app that hacks either the power LED or the back-light of the soft buttons to give a visual indication of missed calls.

It works perfectly on the THL W100.

After the installation of the noLED.apk app, the setup will try to locate the files to tweak.


Off the 3 locations detected, two are actually usable:

The first one, will hack the power LED for notifications...





... and the third option will use the back-light of the soft buttons.

Once tested from the app, the ButtonLED feature can be enabled from the Accessibility section of the system menu.

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