Of course the release date of 5.1 is also, like all Android releases, a matter for speculation to keep us all on the edge of our chairs. Sometimes, I personally think it's all rather pathetic.
Android 5.1 is reportedly coming in March. No fixed date, but definetely March so it's maybe only a few weeks away.
Well according to a recent report on Android Police Google will be releasing some Android One phones in the Philippines in the next couple of weeks which will come pre-installed with 5.1.
My Nexus 4 has been perfectly fine but My 2012 N7 varies between slow and totally unusable.
Mine seemed ok after a couple of reboots, but now it freezes or goes very slow and I have to reboot often. I've even gone into recovery and cleared the cache, but still no improvement.
Mine seemed ok after a couple of reboots, but now it freezes or goes very slow and I have to reboot often. I've even gone into recovery and cleared the cache, but still no improvement.
I think it's about time to reach for my credit card and replace the N7. Even if Lollipop was working the tablet is starting to get a little dated now. The only question is what to get? I have played with the N9 and while it is very quick, I just don't like the form factor - it's too big for small tablet and too small for a big one.
I'm still really happy with my 2013 Nexus 7 (LTE) and don't think I'll get rid of it until it stops working or I lose/break it (or my 2 year old son does).
My 2012 Nexus 7 has always been a nightmare though. Only good if you don't dare fill it up with anything. For all the tricks to fix the storage issues, it will never run well once you use it a lot - and if you want to download films to watch offline, just forget it.
It's a shame but there's nothing much that can fix it. But I have an idea to put it in our kitchen in the original Asus dock and use it to stream iPlayer or similar, as a pretty decent little TV. Probably better than giving it away, as I doubt anyone would buy it.
Like you, the latest Nexus tablet doesn't appeal to me at all.
Possibly the best tablet I've used recently, that's still at a good price (like the Nexus models used to be) is the Tesco Hudl2. It's faster than the N7 2013, has a great screen, decent audio but no Lollipop and no LTE option. However, hopefully Android 5 will come eventually.
My N7 spends most of its time in the dock by my bedside where it makes a decent alarm clock/internet radio and media player which I can also use to check the newspaper headline before I get up. I just don't trust it enough to take it out and about with me and you never know when it is going to hang.
The Hudl 2 is tempting. It may not the best tablet on the market but the price is good and it would do everything I need it to.
Not sure I agree with the comments about the 2012 N7 personally. I've never had any trouble with it prior to Lollipop, and it's been loaded with crap...tons of games and movies etc. Kit Kat was awesome. In my opinion, Google needs to fix Android on the device, as the hardware is fine. It might not be the most up to date spec, but it's capable enough. It's this in-built obsolescence I hate with these things. I thought Microsoft was bad enough, turns out Google's worse.
...It's this in-built obsolescence I hate with these things. I thought Microsoft was bad enough, turns out Google's worse.
You can still roll back or install an alternative. (though watch out in future for Cyagenmod being packed with Microsoft bloat, the future is now looking short term for them.)
On thing for sure, it is that manufacturers always want new sales. There is still too much incentive to hinder old kit.
If you had updated your Nexus 7 (2013) WI-Fi to the latest version then it would be running 5.0.2, as mine is. Generally it works quite well, except for a tendency to drop the WI-Fi connection. Hopefully the fix for this will be included in 5.1.
It'll be interesting if it restores performance, as it has been getting increasingly (unusably?) slow since 5 was installed.
Although I may have broken the wifi antenna connection (battery had become disconnected, fingers slipped when reconnecting and knocked off the two pins). Which is slightly embarrassing ... but as long as I'm close to the wifi router, it seems to be okay ....
My 2012 N7 has been sitting with the 5.0.2 update ready to install for ages (I chose not to). Does anyone know if I have to install it before I can get the 5.1 update, or will that eventually replace the pending update without me doing anything?
My 2012 N7 has been sitting with the 5.0.2 update ready to install for ages (I chose not to). Does anyone know if I have to install it before I can get the 5.1 update, or will that eventually replace the pending update without me doing anything?
Yes you do. 5.1 is an update to 5.0.2 not an earlier version but if you do them immediately you shouldn't notice the problems that was 5.0.2
It'll be interesting if it restores performance, as it has been getting increasingly (unusably?) slow since 5 was installed.
If the update causes the N7 to stop working entirely it would still be an improvement over 5.0.x. At least you wouldn't be having to charge it up, thus saving money, or suffer the horrid lagging and moments of 'Has it crashed? Oh, no, wait, it's just going slowly'.
The 2012 N7 was always a nightmare, but Google surpassed itself with the way it took all of the worst aspects of various updates over the years and seemed to incorporate them all into one big.
(But thanks for the heads up, I've just powered up my N7 and am downloading the update now. 101.6MB suggests quite a few changes).
If the update causes the N7 to stop working entirely it would still be an improvement over 5.0.x. At least you wouldn't be having to charge it up, thus saving money, or suffer the horrid lagging and moments of 'Has it crashed? Oh, no, wait, it's just going slowly'.
The 2012 N7 was always a nightmare, but Google surpassed itself with the way it took all of the worst aspects of various updates over the years and seemed to incorporate them all into one big.
(But thanks for the heads up, I've just powered up my N7 and am downloading the update now. 101.6MB suggests quite a few changes).
I'm so glad that my experiences with it aren't isolated. 4.nn was generally okay, but 5 has been an absolute nightmare. Sometimes pressing the "home" button would bring up google now. Well, when i say "bring up", it would take up to a minute to appear, during which time you may have pressed the task list button .... then everything started to get a little confusing.
It does have a stupid number of games on it, and thankfully my youngest (who now uses it after his Hudl broke) is VERY patient.
However ... after the update, decided to switch it off. It wouldn't switch on until i pulled the back off, disconnected and then reconnected the battery .... I think it is now time to make use of those clubcard vouchers that I've been saving and pick up a Hudl 2.
I've done the update but won't say 'Wow it's so much better' for a few days as a lot of the problems don't reveal themselves straight away.
I stopped using this as my main tablet before I even got the 2013 Nexus 7, but with the dock it makes for a nice media player or desk clock, but it wasn't even nice to use it for playing media before thanks to the lagging. And for those that think of lagging as a few stutters or dropped frames here and there, I'm actually meaning pressing things and nothing happening for 5-10-20 seconds, and so you press things again and again and it eventually catches up making a mess of everything!
The Hudl2 doesn't have any of these problems and is a fantastic device, and a bargain too, but the one thing I have noticed is that screen protectors (even the Tesco sold one) do seem to seriously affect the sensitivity of the screen and create 'dead spots' that come and go (I wonder if it's an earthing issue or caused by static build up) so you would be better off NOT protecting the screen and just seeking to be extra careful with it.
However ... after the update, decided to switch it off. It wouldn't switch on until i pulled the back off, disconnected and then reconnected the battery .
Did you try holding the power button down for 30 or so seconds before that?
I take it you aren't convinced by the 5.1 update?
.... I think it is now time to make use of those clubcard vouchers that I've been saving and pick up a Hudl 2
I bought one a couple of weeks ago and I've been very impressed with it. All I had to do to get it how I wanted was to ditched the stock launcher in favour of nova and delete a few unwanted apps. It's much faster than the N7. Oh, and the slightly larger screen size is more of an improvement than I expected, while still being fairly convenient to carry around.
My N7 (still on 4.4.4) had become ridiculously sluggish at times, though it seems to have improved now I've been paring back the apps to the minimum. I'm still undecided whether to update it to 5.1 (via 5.0.2).
Did you try holding the power button down for 30 or so seconds before that?
I take it you aren't convinced by the 5.1 update?
I bought one a couple of weeks ago and I've been very impressed with it. All I had to do to get it how I wanted was to ditched the stock launcher in favour of nova and delete a few unwanted apps. It's much faster than the N7. Oh, and the slightly larger screen size is more of an improvement than I expected, while still being fairly convenient to carry around..
Aside from installing 5.1 and doing another darned hard reboot, I haven't had much of a chance to play with it. Seems okay ... but as has been said, problems don't tend to appear immediately.
My primary tablet for a while has been my W4-820, Windows 8.1 tablet. For my use, it blows Android away quite comprehensively.
With what I've done to the wifi pins, the N7 will probably become a temporary drawer dweller, my youngest is deserving of something after a recent school report .... so I'll probably just go ahead and order a hudl2 for him.
After holding for back months and months i finally downloaded Android 5.0.2 on my Nexus 7 (2013) Wi-Fi.
Everything went well downloading OTA and i can't say i noticed much difference apart from the new UI. It seems a bit speedier.
The only complaint i have is that when you tap to switch on the Wi-Fi connection it sometimes doesn't come on. So you have to tap and tap again to switch it on. Other times when it does come on it takes longer than it normally should. It gets annoying after a while. I think this must be some sort of bug.
Still haven't received a notification for Android 5.1. Either way i won't be downloading immediately.
I now know why my 2012 N7 has been running so darned bad.
It isn't down to 5.1. It is being caused by multiple profiles. My son has a profile on there for some of his games, and when you switch from the primary profile (mine) to his and back, you lose a HUGE amount of ram (especially when you only have 1gig), and running something like fast reboot doesn't free it.
At startup, 650mb free
Switch profile to secondary, 468mb free.
Switch back to primary, 468mb free - even after running fast reboot.
That second profile is still effectively running as a task, taking up memory. Way to go, google.
One thing that is definitely down to 5.n - startup time is now roughly similar to my BB Playbook.
Comments
My Nexus 4 has been perfectly fine but My 2012 N7 varies between slow and totally unusable.
Android 5.1 is reportedly coming in March. No fixed date, but definetely March so it's maybe only a few weeks away.
I don't wish to be harsh but I see this again and again on DS. How do you know it's definitely March. Do you work for Google?
I think it's about time to reach for my credit card and replace the N7. Even if Lollipop was working the tablet is starting to get a little dated now. The only question is what to get? I have played with the N9 and while it is very quick, I just don't like the form factor - it's too big for small tablet and too small for a big one.
My 2012 Nexus 7 has always been a nightmare though. Only good if you don't dare fill it up with anything. For all the tricks to fix the storage issues, it will never run well once you use it a lot - and if you want to download films to watch offline, just forget it.
It's a shame but there's nothing much that can fix it. But I have an idea to put it in our kitchen in the original Asus dock and use it to stream iPlayer or similar, as a pretty decent little TV. Probably better than giving it away, as I doubt anyone would buy it.
Like you, the latest Nexus tablet doesn't appeal to me at all.
Possibly the best tablet I've used recently, that's still at a good price (like the Nexus models used to be) is the Tesco Hudl2. It's faster than the N7 2013, has a great screen, decent audio but no Lollipop and no LTE option. However, hopefully Android 5 will come eventually.
The Hudl 2 is tempting. It may not the best tablet on the market but the price is good and it would do everything I need it to.
On thing for sure, it is that manufacturers always want new sales. There is still too much incentive to hinder old kit.
http://officialandroid.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/android-51-unwrapping-new-lollipop.html
Anyone got this on their Nexus 7 (2013) Wi-Fi yet? Haha!
Has anyone downloaded 5.0.1. on theirs and had it working successfully without any problems?
It'll be interesting if it restores performance, as it has been getting increasingly (unusably?) slow since 5 was installed.
Although I may have broken the wifi antenna connection (battery had become disconnected, fingers slipped when reconnecting and knocked off the two pins). Which is slightly embarrassing ... but as long as I'm close to the wifi router, it seems to be okay ....
Yes you do. 5.1 is an update to 5.0.2 not an earlier version but if you do them immediately you shouldn't notice the problems that was 5.0.2
If the update causes the N7 to stop working entirely it would still be an improvement over 5.0.x. At least you wouldn't be having to charge it up, thus saving money, or suffer the horrid lagging and moments of 'Has it crashed? Oh, no, wait, it's just going slowly'.
The 2012 N7 was always a nightmare, but Google surpassed itself with the way it took all of the worst aspects of various updates over the years and seemed to incorporate them all into one big.
(But thanks for the heads up, I've just powered up my N7 and am downloading the update now. 101.6MB suggests quite a few changes).
I'm so glad that my experiences with it aren't isolated. 4.nn was generally okay, but 5 has been an absolute nightmare. Sometimes pressing the "home" button would bring up google now. Well, when i say "bring up", it would take up to a minute to appear, during which time you may have pressed the task list button .... then everything started to get a little confusing.
It does have a stupid number of games on it, and thankfully my youngest (who now uses it after his Hudl broke) is VERY patient.
However ... after the update, decided to switch it off. It wouldn't switch on until i pulled the back off, disconnected and then reconnected the battery .... I think it is now time to make use of those clubcard vouchers that I've been saving and pick up a Hudl 2.
I stopped using this as my main tablet before I even got the 2013 Nexus 7, but with the dock it makes for a nice media player or desk clock, but it wasn't even nice to use it for playing media before thanks to the lagging. And for those that think of lagging as a few stutters or dropped frames here and there, I'm actually meaning pressing things and nothing happening for 5-10-20 seconds, and so you press things again and again and it eventually catches up making a mess of everything!
The Hudl2 doesn't have any of these problems and is a fantastic device, and a bargain too, but the one thing I have noticed is that screen protectors (even the Tesco sold one) do seem to seriously affect the sensitivity of the screen and create 'dead spots' that come and go (I wonder if it's an earthing issue or caused by static build up) so you would be better off NOT protecting the screen and just seeking to be extra careful with it.
I take it you aren't convinced by the 5.1 update?
I bought one a couple of weeks ago and I've been very impressed with it. All I had to do to get it how I wanted was to ditched the stock launcher in favour of nova and delete a few unwanted apps. It's much faster than the N7. Oh, and the slightly larger screen size is more of an improvement than I expected, while still being fairly convenient to carry around.
My N7 (still on 4.4.4) had become ridiculously sluggish at times, though it seems to have improved now I've been paring back the apps to the minimum. I'm still undecided whether to update it to 5.1 (via 5.0.2).
Aside from installing 5.1 and doing another darned hard reboot, I haven't had much of a chance to play with it. Seems okay ... but as has been said, problems don't tend to appear immediately.
My primary tablet for a while has been my W4-820, Windows 8.1 tablet. For my use, it blows Android away quite comprehensively.
With what I've done to the wifi pins, the N7 will probably become a temporary drawer dweller, my youngest is deserving of something after a recent school report .... so I'll probably just go ahead and order a hudl2 for him.
Everything went well downloading OTA and i can't say i noticed much difference apart from the new UI. It seems a bit speedier.
The only complaint i have is that when you tap to switch on the Wi-Fi connection it sometimes doesn't come on. So you have to tap and tap again to switch it on. Other times when it does come on it takes longer than it normally should. It gets annoying after a while. I think this must be some sort of bug.
Still haven't received a notification for Android 5.1. Either way i won't be downloading immediately.
It isn't down to 5.1. It is being caused by multiple profiles. My son has a profile on there for some of his games, and when you switch from the primary profile (mine) to his and back, you lose a HUGE amount of ram (especially when you only have 1gig), and running something like fast reboot doesn't free it.
At startup, 650mb free
Switch profile to secondary, 468mb free.
Switch back to primary, 468mb free - even after running fast reboot.
That second profile is still effectively running as a task, taking up memory. Way to go, google.
One thing that is definitely down to 5.n - startup time is now roughly similar to my BB Playbook.
Android 5.0 update bricks several Nexus 7 units both first and second-generation - http://www.phonearena.com/news/Android-5.0-update-bricks-Nexus-7-slabs_id68155