Tight lipped

[J515OP]

This was a phone conversation with a Tech Support rep at their call center. I'm just repeating what she said--I'm not a power user (at least not with Andriod--Windows PC guy), so I have no more than a layman/user's understanding of this.

I think he just wanted to see something in writing if you were doing a chat with a rep. and had a log or screen shot of the statement. Unless your idol was Nixon I doubt you'll have a phone recording you can post and even if he was your idol the crucial moments of the tape would be missing

 

[james23p]

Well HC is here and when I called tech support about my flash issues today the tech said they just found out last night they were pushing out HC.

Jim

 

[Androidfonefan]

Pity I done sold my Vizio, I might look back in a few years to see if they are treating their customers like people, or if they are still looking at us as stupid sheep.
Use to be a big supporter of Vizio but I think their handling of the rollout and to 3010 has lost me to them as a future customer.
Any company that hopes to retain customers should never treat their customer like dumb animals, and I unfortunately feel that that is how Vizio is treating their current customers.
We pay good hard earned money for their products, they should support ALL their products with updates for a minimum of 5 years, longer would be better. They would service the competition right out of competition.
Two year old tvs no longer getting updates? Telling us about updates that have no due date and just show up in the middle of the night, if they don't know when this crap is going to roll out don't tell people and just surprise them, doing it the way they did just pisses people off.
Same with the new tablet, if they have no clue when or where, just don't say anything, roll the new unit out and surprise everyone. They way they did it just pisses people off.
No company is perfect but it truly amazes me how some companies never learn.

 

[J515OP]

You make some good points. I think Vizio has hurt themselves dearly in the Android tablet races. I actually wouldn't be surprised to see them give it up. Possibly they'll keep limping along with a toe in the pool until they see an established Android tablet market and then try more seriously again. Hello companies, we are already here and buying but if you don't treat us right we are likely not to buy from you in the future.

Honestly my Nook Color runs circles around the VTab even with experimental nightlies and is the go to tablet 99% of the time. I hold out hope for the VTab but it wouldn't be the end of the world to see it go if Vizio gives up on it, which they haven't yet given this update.

 

[james23p]

I have a different take with respect to Vizio customer service its the best I have come across with the exception to maybe apple who has stores you can say fix this. I have had nothing but trouble getting help with my Nook ereader serviced and my boys vewsonic customer service is nonexistent.

As far as roll out dates well Nikon is notorious vague and secretive (I shoot semi pro) and it doesn't hurt them. I think Vizio is going thru growing pains with it moving into the PC and Tablet world. As far as the Nook its a nice tablet but I love the 8 inch size. My friend who had a nook color just switched to a Vtab he likes the size also, not to big not to small.

But all that said I tend to always be a late adopter when it comes to tech. I buy later in tech cycles and tend to be a version behind so I am never in a hurry. The new 10 inch Vizio tablet hasn't even hit my radar yet.

Kind Regards Jim

 

[J515OP]

Size wise I reel both are right in the pocket (pun not intended). I don't have anything to say about customer service for either company as I haven't used either. From what I have seen Vizio does seem to be very responsive on this front and it certainly isn't like buying a Chinese knock off. I just don't like companies messing with Android too much. I realize I don't have to buy a particular device if it isn't setup the way I want but there is a larger issue to me. I actually want all these different tablets to succeed. I'm rooting (again no pun intended) for it.

The problem is when a company like Vizio goes about it half baked. It just makes their device look bad and Android look bad. Then we have to hear all about how there are no Android tablets that are as good as the iPad (not true) and there are no options other than the iPad (not true). The Vizio is a good example of good hardware at a good price that has been flubbed by a butchery of Android. Like the Nook Color this thing can be so much more than Vizio is letting us have.

I don't have a problem with them being tight lipped abut updates. There are several reasons why you would want to be and I get that. However, throwing your product into the market gimping it and then not making your user base have any reason to believe it will get better makes a hard sell.

Vizio isn't the only company struggling with this. Look at HP and Blackberry. HP gave up Blackberry messed up badly but has largely fixed their issues. One is totally gone and the other has left people scratching their heads wondering why it wasn't like this to begin with but also with no intention of touching their product with a 10 foot pole. I would like to see Vizio not become either of these.

I realize they are a TV maker who wants to move into computers and tablets. Ok, fine they were able to come from no where and be a well known TV company through quality products at good prices. They can't expect they can throw just another Android tablet out there and reap market share. Maybe they don't have the resources to go at it like ASUS and Samsung with a million different models but what those companies have done right its to give good options and prompt updates. They make their users feel like they can buy one of their tablets and not be left out in the dark.

In my opinion if Vizio wants to play in this game they just need to get their game together on the software. Get it updated to the latest version (ICS), don't waste time overly skinning it to look like an iPad and add value where they can. To me this means leveraging the TV aspect. Put IR in it, don't waste time redoing what Google has already done. Focus on some Vizio apps including a killer remote feature. Make sure it works with HDMI and is able to sling media. This is what you are good at, so focus on that.

How many of you would like a sub $300 tablet with one generation bump in hardware from the current VTab (slightly better camera, dual core, 1GB RAM, ICS and 8-16GB storage), IR remote capabilities, some killer remote/tv apps, stable HDMI out, the ability to see media files on other devices (a good media server function) and the ability to move things back and forth between the tablet and tv screens with minimal effort? ME! and Vizio could do this. Why not be the unique tablet that leverages their tv capability?

Sony and Samsung are working on this area but Vizio has the opportunity to be a big player here if they don't squander their time alienating users who feel somewhere between hopeful and abandoned.

Are you listening Vizio? I'm putting it all out here in the open for you to read

 

[james23p]

Ah very well thought out post and I understand the software side of your post. I am curious on the specs on the 10 inch tab rumors are its hidg spec'd. I guess not being one to mess with my software I don't know much about the different android Os versions. Not new to computers (my first was a tandy TRS 80) I worked on an 8086 Zenith I find the vtab running HC to be a lot more responsive and stable.

Reading your post again I see your passion for the android Os and understand and appreciate that. I have an iphone and don't find it any better than my android tablet. I like my iphone and will upgrade to the next iphone but no interest in an ipad, it's over priced and does very little more for me than my Vtab does.

Thanks for the post. Jim

 

[J515OP]

Yep, there are pros and cons to everything out right now. iDevices have their strong points and weaknesses as do Android devices. I'm not sold on the bigger tablets and like a little more portability but more size than a phone 7s and 8s seem quite nice to me. As for Android OS, the pc way of putting it is Gingerbread = XP stable and gets the job done but getting dated, Honeycomb = Vista ill thought out and implemented but hinting at the future and Ice Cream Sandwich = Windows 7 fixing the shortcomings of the previous version to have a truly improved software.

You might want to check out this link to the awesome Verge article about Android http://www.androidtablets.net/forum...sions/28063-android-visual-history-verge.html

JP

 

[james23p]

Thanks JP(By the way those are my intials too) great stuff.

Many Thanks Jim

 

[gmanvbva]

Pity I done sold my Vizio, I might look back in a few years to see if they are treating their customers like people, or if they are still looking at us as stupid sheep.
Use to be a big supporter of Vizio but I think their handling of the rollout and to 3010 has lost me to them as a future customer.
Any company that hopes to retain customers should never treat their customer like dumb animals, and I unfortunately feel that that is how Vizio is treating their current customers.
We pay good hard earned money for their products, they should support ALL their products with updates for a minimum of 5 years, longer would be better. They would service the competition right out of competition.
Two year old tvs no longer getting updates? Telling us about updates that have no due date and just show up in the middle of the night, if they don't know when this crap is going to roll out don't tell people and just surprise them, doing it the way they did just pisses people off.
Same with the new tablet, if they have no clue when or where, just don't say anything, roll the new unit out and surprise everyone. They way they did it just pisses people off.
No company is perfect but it truly amazes me how some companies never learn.

5 Years? What type of support are you expecting for 5 years? Continuous OS and feature updates?
Bug fixes I can see... But I'm not sure it's reasonable to expect OS/Feature updates for 5 years in the electronics marketplace. Maybe in the 1980's... but not today with the pace of technology advancement.

That's like telling Dell that you expect your Windows XP/Vista desktop you purchased 4 years ago to be upgraded to Windows 8...

Edit: BTW, I'm actually suprised that Vizio is even updating this tablet to HC. Most low-end tablets are lucky to see major OS upgrades.

 

[Androidfonefan]

5 Years? What type of support are you expecting for 5 years? Continuous OS and feature updates?
Bug fixes I can see... But I'm not sure it's reasonable to expect OS/Feature updates for 5 years in the electronics marketplace. Maybe in the 1980's... but not today with the pace of technology advancement.

That's like telling Dell that you expect your Windows XP/Vista desktop you purchased 4 years ago to be upgraded to Windows 8...

Edit: BTW, I'm actually suprised that Vizio is even updating this tablet to HC. Most low-end tablets are lucky to see major OS upgrades.

Ok... The precedence has already been set by the market, devices have been getting bug fixes and OS upgrades for years now, example? IPhone. My friend in Jeff City has a IP3GS that started with IOS 3x and is now running 5.1
Maybe IProducts are the only ones that get them but to be competitive Android products should do the same. Maybe not OS upgrades for 5 years but they should at least cover two from the OS installed, again the precedent has been set. And yes bug fixes for that length of time. On the flip it is also reasonable that if the consumer installs a third party ROM on the device, before the warranty expires then the warranty is void and the company has no further obligation to the customer.

 

[gmanvbva]

Ok... The precedence has already been set by the market, devices have been getting bug fixes and OS upgrades for years now, example? IPhone. My friend in Jeff City has a IP3GS that started with IOS 3x and is now running 5.1
Maybe IProducts are the only ones that get them but to be competitive Android products should do the same. Maybe not OS upgrades for 5 years but they should at least cover two from the OS installed, again the precedent has been set. And yes bug fixes for that length of time. On the flip it is also reasonable that if the consumer installs a third party ROM on the device, before the warranty expires then the warranty is void and the company has no further obligation to the customer.

Somewhat bad example (imo). The iPhone 3GS has only been out for ~2.5 yrs and it's already lacking some vital features offered in iOS. Sure you can continue to update the iOS version but with the 3GS... you really aren't gaining much (if anything) in most updates. iOS updates also address the entire Apple ecosystem so they are going to be more frequent by nature.
Legacy equipment is also part of what is holding iOS back (again imo).

Android has grown and evolved rapidly from just 2 years ago. Ensuring something like ICS would run perfectly on a MyTouch 3G or a HTC Hero would just hold Android back and be a complete support nightmare for a manufacturer. There is a much larger change (from a OS perspective and functional perspective) from Android 2.0 to Android 4.0 than from iOS 3.x to iOS 5.x.

I honestly think that (in general) device manufacturers are doing a decent job of upgrading existing devices with new Android OS updates/upgrades. You should understand that if you move further from the center... to a more obscure/low-end manufacturer... that updates/upgrades are going to be less likely. I'm very surprised to see this HC update for the VTAB. I had actually read an article that said Vizio was looking to exit the tablet market.

I agree that bug fixes should be supported for a more lengthy period and at least a minimum of 2-3 years. I tend to agree with your 5 year time frame.

 

[Androidfonefan]

After having a few days to mull it over, I will concede that your probably right about this, I admit I was aggravated at the time I wrote the above post so the 5 year point is probably beyond reason but I still feel that if companies like Vizio want to leak information about updates and new products they should be smart enough to know people are going to want to know more, and know specifics so they can budget for new things or at least know when to expect that update. After all some apps work on 2.3 but not 3.2 and versa vicea.
If they are not willing to provide further information to their customers because they just don't know themselves or are just keeping it secret, then they should not say anything until said product is ready to roll out. Be it rolling out the update or rolling out the new tablet to the store shelves.
Sadly I feel Vizio handled both of these all wrong, I truthfully thought Vizio was smarter than this, but not for the first time, I was wrong.