Root Do not root your G tablet!

[DavidET]

Actually couple of days ago I did install GrooveIP and have been using Google voice on both Gtab and my android phone. In my case, being in Brazil, I am now able to call US at no charge as a local call. However because my tablet is not rooted I am unable to call the contacts from within the contact list (using GVoice) and I have tried many different contact and dialer applications in addition to the stock.

I simply use a headphone when I want privacy. Having only ONE Google number it forwards to all my phones numbers wherever I might be in the world, being Tmobile USA, Oi Brazil or Land Line at no cost to either party.

Having said that, considering that my phone has Google Voice , I do not see much reason to use Gtablet as a phone but in case the battery is out or cell is not available, it is a good feature to have.

As for using the G-tablet outside a WIFI Zone, I have "Wireless Tether" installed on my android phone. This way I am not dependent on the wireless carrier bring in Brazil or US, no matter who my 3G is coming from.

All this from a non-rooted $269 tablet , I think I am getting more than I bargained for.

By the way, I have not been able to share GPS and I have played with the recommended applications.

 

[raywaldo]

As for using the G-tablet outside a WIFI Zone, I have "Wireless Tether" installed on my android phone. This way I am not dependent on the wireless carrier bring in Brazil or US, no matter who my 3G is coming from.

All this from a non-rooted $269 tablet , I think I am getting more than I bargained for.

By the way, I have not been able to share GPS and I have played with the recommended applications.

I also did the tether but now I have mifi which frees me from the cellphone entirely.
I am totally in agreement about getting our money's worth!

 

[xeno2011]

Thanks DavidET for the write up. You don't see too many write ups on not to root. I decided to root my G pad, and I'm really pleased with the Brilliant Corners Froyo ROM that I upgraded to. I didn't try the stock version (in fact, my Gpad seemed to have been rooted already by a previous owner, but it looks brand new, so oh well), but it's good to hear that it may not be as bad as the reviews have said.

 

[pandad]

I read Davidet's article "do not root your G Tablet" with great interest because since I rooted my G tablet I experienced nothing but trouble. I would like to un-root it and return to factory settings but I don't know what is the proper way to un-root. Can any one help.

 

[Prime85]

I read Davidet's article "do not root your G Tablet" with great interest because since I rooted my G tablet I experienced nothing but trouble. I would like to un-root it and return to factory settings but I don't know what is the proper way to un-root. Can any one help.

Flash a stock Rom.

make sure you get the one for the proper bootloader

 

[xmr405o]

I read Davidet's article "do not root your G Tablet" with great interest because since I rooted my G tablet I experienced nothing but trouble. I would like to un-root it and return to factory settings but I don't know what is the proper way to un-root. Can any one help.

You can always perform a NVFlash and restore it.

Probably the best way to start fresh with a stock ROM.

NVFlash - Viewsonic GTablet For Dummies

 

[jasonofx]

I also did the tether but now I have mifi which frees me from the cellphone entirely.
I am totally in agreement about getting our money's worth!

What is MIFI?????
By the way, I have Clemsyn and Caulkulin v8 Installed. It's ridiculously fast!

 

[pandad]

You can always perform a NVFlash and restore it.

Probably the best way to start fresh with a stock ROM.

NVFlash - Viewsonic GTablet For Dummies

THank you for your input. I did as suggested in "NV Flash for dummies" and lo and behold it worked. Only one problem. The search utility in the buil in WEATHER application does not respond so I am now stuck with 4 locations that are useless to me whereas originally I could chose any location in the world. Is there any way to fix this perhaps by downloading the application? I liked that application and used it all the time.

 

[xmr405o]

THank you for your input. I did as suggested in "NV Flash for dummies" and lo and behold it worked. Only one problem. The search utility in the buil in WEATHER application does not respond so I am now stuck with 4 locations that are useless to me whereas originally I could chose any location in the world. Is there any way to fix this perhaps by downloading the application? I liked that application and used it all the time.

Sorry I have know clue how stock roms work. I only had my gtab on the stock ROM for maybe a week.

 

[pandad]

I believe that most geeks agree that although the G Tablet has very good specs it comes with poor firmware and restrictions. It is also genelally agreed that by routing it and flashing custom ROMs it can become as good as an iPad for half the price. The problem as I see it is that most people don't have the expertise or the time to do a good job of it and they end up screwing up. My question is this: Why can't someone who has the knowledge and time prepare a micro SD, with all the necessary files including a good custom ROM and of course Android Market, and instructions that would upgrade the G Tablet and other tablets and market it for a profit. I for one would gladly pay a reasonable price for this service.,

 

[luvduchovny]

What is MIFI?????
By the way, I have Clemsyn and Caulkulin v8 Installed. It's ridiculously fast!

Mifi is a portable hotspot. Here's the wiki explaining it:

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/MiFi

I have a mifi I bought at Walmart for Virgin Mobile. It's a pay as you go service. However, since my vibrant can act as a hotspot, I use that instead.

 

[jasonofx]

Mifi is a portable hotspot. Here's the wiki explaining it:

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/MiFi

I have a mifi I bought at Walmart for Virgin Mobile. It's a pay as you go service. However, since my vibrant can act as a hotspot, I use that instead.

Ahh, yeah, thanks for the reply, I actually Googled it. As long as I can tether to my phone I personally won't shell out for one of these. Also using Share GPS and Bluetooth GPS to share that to the tablet.

 

[xeno2011]

I believe that most geeks agree that although the G Tablet has very good specs it comes with poor firmware and restrictions. It is also genelally agreed that by routing it and flashing custom ROMs it can become as good as an iPad for half the price. The problem as I see it is that most people don't have the expertise or the time to do a good job of it and they end up screwing up. My question is this: Why can't someone who has the knowledge and time prepare a micro SD, with all the necessary files including a good custom ROM and of course Android Market, and instructions that would upgrade the G Tablet and other tablets and market it for a profit. I for one would gladly pay a reasonable price for this service.,

I think the answer would be that someone would be profiting off the work of others, and all heck would break loose. I don't know of a ROM that is solely the work of one developer, so to market it would require the approval of everyone who contributed, plus the division of the profits. Much easier to offer it for free and ask for donations.

Basically all the stuff and materials you want are out there, but you do have to put all the pieces together yourself. It's not too much work, considering the time and effort spent by the developers to put the ROM's out there.

 

[stopint]

i just wish they would do an update...last one i think was in april...

 

[pandad]

Thanks for your input. Since my original writing I did some research and I came upon an outfit called DROITPIRATES that aqppear to be marketting through E-Bay something close to what I am looking. The link is eBay - New & used electronics, cars, apparel, collectibles, sporting goods & more at low prices . Has anyone tried this before?

 

[pandad]

Sorry about that the link did not copy for some reason. I will try once more:eBay - New & used electronics, cars, apparel, collectibles, sporting goods & more at low prices

 

[alaskn81]

wow, interesting but I find it odd. I got the gtablet last November and rooted it, applied some patches and moved on to ROM's. I never had any issues on the custom ROM's, only stock before. I understand it has gotten better, I did stay on it for a short time while I switched from 1.1 to 1.2. I did go to a honeycomb ROM though, and have no issues.
Overall switching from stock to custom ROM's has saved me more time, when I first bought this tablet I thought I wasted my money but after rooting it and getting a ROM that fixed what VS messed up I was really happy and surprised on the good deal I ended up with.

 

[Prime85]

wow, interesting but I find it odd. I got the gtablet last November and rooted it, applied some patches and moved on to ROM's. I never had any issues on the custom ROM's, only stock before. I understand it has gotten better, I did stay on it for a short time while I switched from 1.1 to 1.2. I did go to a honeycomb ROM though, and have no issues.
Overall switching from stock to custom ROM's has saved me more time, when I first bought this tablet I thought I wasted my money but after rooting it and getting a ROM that fixed what VS messed up I was really happy and surprised on the good deal I ended up with.

I agree, after putting honeycomb on it, i feel like i got a 500$ tab for only 260$. What makes it better is that those 500$ tabs dont have a microsd slot or a full size USB port

 

[JET314]

I was surprised and so very happy to run across David's comment today on this subject as I thought I had read just about everything on here and other places regarding rooting the Gtab. I wish I had the technical ability to understand all the hard work that developers put into the rooting processes. I'd give my right arm and maybe a few other things if I just could follow it. Sometimes it seems logical, then I read further posts and I just lose the flow of comprehension.

I also agree with the idea of having someone supply an SD card with everything ready to go for us newbies and those who just want the ease of rooting. But I also realize the time and money issues involved. SO...with that being said, I'm going to leave my G tab as it is. I'm on stock 1.2. It's the latest. Maybe someday Viewsonic will have an update, maybe not. In any case I'll be looking more into the options presented in this thread and see what happens.

Best of luck to all you G-tab'ers. And a special thanks to David and all his research. This has made my day.

JIM
Newbie in the Midwest.

 

[pandad]

I ordered the all inclusive SD micro for rooting and upgrading my G tablet from DroitPirates for $12.99. When I install it I will report results.

 

[BootcampII]

I ordered the all inclusive SD micro for rooting and upgrading my G tablet from DroitPirates for $12.99. When I install it I will report results.

Have your received the SD Micro yet and how are things going?

 

[Fhharris]

You must have not read the FIRST paragraph! So many articles have been written about how good rooting is and I didn't see anyone get offended!

In my case, if I want to own a WORKING tablet with Honeycomb 3 , I buy something else and not what Gtab was intended for.

Do as you wish with your tablet and in life always

Unfortunately there are those of us who want to use the tablet for a list of progs. I don't want to be a rom guru. The info was spot on and gave me exactly what I was looking for after getting this back from repair....(WHAT A NIGHTMARE THAT WAS)

I didn't read shouldn't, I read I didn't need to.

 

[thehoffaman]

Well I wrote this whole elegant reply and "selected all" to copy so that I would have it in case my reply disappeared. Well I selected all and accidently hit the "w" before I copied and it all got deleted. Grrrrr... so I'm not spending another 45 minutes getting this all just right etc etc... it was basically all about how easy it was to root and not to be discouraged.. just go to this gtablet for dummies site... took me all of an hour and I didn't even know what root meant: ROM - Viewsonic GTablet For Dummies .I did it last July and have never had to troubleshoot anything ...for 249$ and an hour I have a practically top of the line tablet.


Now that I look at my other post about my evo... I rooted my gtablet in May. It was so easy that I decided to root my year old evo 4g. It was like a brand new phone... love it; however, that process was not as simple as the dummy site for the gtablet.

 

[AtomicCEO]

A friend and I both bought gtablets. He's running CM7, and I'm running VeganTab Ginger. Neither one of us are really satisfied with the results. His wife needs to video chat and he says it's wonky, and I have lots of issues like random browser and game FCs and wake up issues.

I've been a ROM guy since my G1, but it always seems like I settle on some quasi-official release for stability. I'm thinking of going back to rooted stock and adding the market and a better launcher (VTL is nice).

My worry is that in this case, maybe stock OS actually isn't that stable. I didn't spend more than a few days on it to start with.

 

[AtomicCEO]

Breagh. Went back to stock with CWM, rooted, added gapps, market fix, and VTL Launcher. Now I get a bunch of Google Framework force-closes.

I hate the "Settings" setup on stock. The options are all arranged weirdly and some stuff is missing.

Is it true that none of the custom kernels support the dual-core processor? I thought I read somewhere that they were only using one core (albeit overclocked in most cases).