[Review Draft] IMX515 APAD 8" Experiences

xaueious

Administrator
Staff member
Jul 9, 2010
3,483
436
Video I made was a draft for a review, but the touchscreen broke soon afterwards, so this is all the material I have:


Regarding the APAD IMX515 (UTOPIA or otherwise) 8" Android 2.2 tablet.

Commoner recommendation: 0 of 5 stars
Android fan recommendation: 1 of 5 stars
Electronics enthusiast recommendation: 3 of 5 stars


Cons:
touchscreen shake (fixable for those with skill with soldering iron)
lack of suspend mode
fragile, with difficult to locate replacement parts
pathetic external speaker volume
g-sensor does not work properly in most games
low game compatibility
poorly put together firmware and no promise of ongoing future updates
no GPL compliance expected

Pros:
PDF and other reading
Quick websurfing or other web app
decent range on wifi
Casual videos
price vs performance ratio
potentially a powerful device
partial source (from Freescale), lots to try
firmware easy to flash
difficult to brick (flashes via onboard microSD)

Hardware
30-pin connector was a bad idea. You cannot transfer files and charge at the same time. You can't buy another connector easily. You can't get your own charger tip easily.
microSD sticks out 1 mm or so from the slot
Buttons require more force to press than desired, and have some wiggle. Toggle style soft power switch has bad tolerance, and does not feel sturdy
Some give between the front panel and the shell assembly
You can feel the touchscreen glass panel under the plastic film. Front is not completely even
Looks a lot better in black, even better when in the leather case
Leather case stands upright, adjustable, is nice. Inexplicable camera hole.
Viewing angles are decent for portrait and landscape views
Touchscreen shakes in a left-right pattern (relative to landscape mode). Responds to finger touches well. Shakes do not affect keyboard or other tap input, mainly only long-presses and scrolling actions.
Feels extremely fragile overall.

Software Performance
Can install multiple apps from market at same time
Rarely feels like it is slowing down, everything feels instant. Task killers simply unnecessary.
Tap typing feels great in both portrait and landscape modes
Linpack score of around 11

Android
Items of Note
Do not force screen to turn off. You may end up with a white screen and a frozen device.
Reset button is the hole close to the 30pin adapter
Recovery mode cannot be entered via reboot recovery or adb reboot recovery, but can be accessed from fully off via holding menu+home buttons and toggling the power switch
Unless you apply the hardware fix for touchscreen accuracy, apps that require dragging are not very fun to use.

General Tweaks

Go into Spareparts and disable Compatibility mode
Install a custom launcher of your choice
Alarm and notification sounds can be copied from any existing ROM or pack such as [AUDIO] Most of Android ringtones, notification & ui sounds and alarms - xda-developers
Use AnyCut to create shortcuts to Calendar and Contacts applications (Phone) as necessary
Google Calendar and Contacts sync can be enabled with flashing the files from the latest Google pack for Froyo

Root Applications

SetCPU - set to conservative governor on boot, up threshold 65% on boot
ADBWireless Widget - ADB access while charging

Some Applications
Pulse News Reader - very nice looking news reader
ADW Launcher - set to single screen with launcher shortcut
Rockplayer/Vplayer/ArcMediaplayer/QQPlayer - video playback supplement
QuickSettings - quick access to important settings
DroidIris - visual image search
Dolphin Mini (enable fullscreencontrols, user agent to Desktop)
AnyRadio (中文)
VivaReader (中文)
Douban Radio (Chinese)
Pixiv (日本語)
AndroidTablets.net Forum

Working with Bugs
Engadget (not fullscreen if compatibily mode is checked)
Google Reader (not fullscreen)

Applications that Do not Work
Shoutcast apps Winamp, StreamFurious, XiiaLive
 
Last edited by a moderator:

prashen

Member
Jan 31, 2011
3
0
Hi,

I had changed wifi files and after that my apad 8 single speaker one could not scan WIFI. it gives error "unable to scan network"

I did the 3 button reset and recovered the apad but I think it used the new wifi files only and could not get back fully to its original firmware files.

I am still unable to scan wifi networks....

is there a possibility that you have the original firmware files? if yes, can u zip and provide for download?

if not, can u confirm me what is working and what is not working in ur firmware?
 

prrookie

Member
Jan 26, 2011
4
0
HI I am a new user, and will lake to now how to install the sound, lake where they go, what folder etc. Just what to install some not really a pack. Thanks
 

dcfit1

Member
Jan 12, 2012
1
0
nice review, does anyone know how to get into a locked apad, I forgot my pattern and now too many attempts, i'm locked out I can't use my gmail address to get back in!!!
any help would be appreciated.
 
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