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Q: anybody buy an android tablet in the mainland? any issues?
Usually I never buy electronics in mainland china, but i'm not scheduled for a vacation/business trip anytime soon so it may come to that.
Any reason not to buy an android tablet here? It would be connecting through a VPN strictly so i'm not asking about USING the tablet here (i know it'll work fine), just the hardware/software itself.
Any language issues? Can it be set to english without any bugs popping up?
Is it the same OS/Software?...it's not same shady China-only version is it? I did see that once on a phone, the OS was built around baidu rather than google, but that was for a carrier exclusive phone.
FYI the tablet i've got my eye on is that Xperia Z2
9 years 48 weeks ago in Health & Safety - China
recently got a sony tablet.. working fine..
software/hardware have no issues but just that the touch is not as delicate as apple or samsung but ofcourse it's a chinese tab..
plus it gets warm while using and charging..
mine was a cheap one...
you get what you pay for 
expatlife26:
which one did you get? I didn't think sony made a cheaper tablet, the only one I see is the Z2 which seems pretty high-end.
hunny797:
http://item.jd.com/794491.html
hehe..the funny part:
Its a Chinese made Sony ericcsson..My Google auto translated 索爱 into Sony Ericsson..and i am very happy.. because i convinced my wife into buying a Sony Ericsson at a cheap price for her brother 
But it really works fine
Android tablets in China don't come with Googleplay.
RiriRiri:
I have been offered a tablet from a small Chinese brand, very average product but actually better than I expected it to be, and to my big surprise, not only Google play was installed but also fully functionnal (haven't tried lately though).
I guess small enough local manufacturers can get through a bunch of approval bullshit.
expatlife26:
thanks, im gonna visit the store tonight...see what the tablet itself has loaded on it. If it has google play i'll buy it on the spot
if it doesn't i'll just have my buddy in HK buy it this weekend and mail it to me.
I'm just being impatient
mike695ca:
Any major retailor ( or minor one) will install google play for you. They do some crap on baidu and poof you have it. Just ask them to do it before you fork over the cash.
expatlife26:
@mike, good idea...I'll see if they can install it. I was just gonna buy it from the Sony Store cause they have a deal for the tablet and the keyboard cover.
but yeah no google play from the store...no go.
Oh no shit...they don't have google play?
Is there any way to get it on there? That doesn't involve any kind of silly software hack or anything...I don't want mine "rooted" because I dont fully understand what that means.
Ill go to the store and check it out, the Z2 is a pretty expensive tablet i'm not gonna drop hundreds of dollars on some half-ass chinese bullshit.
Is it just a matter of getting the app loaded on the tablet and installing? That's easy enough...or is the OS somehow configured so you can't do that. Hell with that then, i'll just have one shipped.
Englteachted:
Trying to install google play through apk will not work.. Try it in the store, and you will see for yourself.
hunny797:
my tablet which i mentioned already had google play pre installed in it and worked fine
You can install Google Play n most of them, it is the same for phones. Buy one that has been on the market for a few weeks, maybe one that has an online user forum, there will be instructions on how to install Play (it is just 3 apk files you need, I think they will work from different devices, as long as the android version is about the same)
Rooting is not always needed for installing Play, I've done so on a couple of Xiaomi phones without having to root.(or are they pre-rooted I wonder, some cheap tablets could also be rooted from the factory)
My MIL has a Samsung Galaxy Tab...... or that is, she doesn't. She has a copy. The main giveaway is the screen that just isn't very good, as soon as you view the screen at an angle image quality drops. Other things that gives this one away... well, it is running stock Android, which is fine (even better perhaps) just not when you think you have a Galaxy Tab.
expatlife26:
I just don't know if I want to fuck around with that. If I buy a high-end tablet of any brand i'm expecting a few years of good use of it you know?
I'm looking to transition back to the US in the next year or so, once I hit that magic 5 years of experience to get a mid-senior level position.
I don't want any bullshit ROM or whatever they do to add a little chinese crappyness to what otherwise looks like a great tablet.
Scandinavian:
I don't know about Sony Ericsson Z2, but most of the Samsung devices I've had between my hands, the hardware may be the same, but the hardware version isn't, so you cannot take a US ROM and stick on them. Maybe it is possible for some. Alternatively, Cyanogenmod would always save a crappy device if supported.
Scandinavian:
oh, why not get a Xiaomi tablet. It is dirt cheap, and you get English support (sort of, on Facebook) and their devices are sold outside of China now, so I'd be darned if there wasn't a software to make it usable.
I can completely understand you want to avoid any extra Chineseness
expatlife26:
Scan, if you don't mind. I have a feeling that you have much more of a technical background than I do.
I am somewhat aware of what Cyanogen is, I looked at it to upgrade my old gingerbread phone to 4.0 about a year ago (original galaxy ace...great phone btw but maybe not up to running ICS) but opted out because I was worried about stability/compatibility.
what does rooting/modding a phone really mean or entail?
That said, if I was looking to go the budget route I'd be very much open to a local tablet + modded ROM and that would make me feel very clever...but frankly if i'm gonna spend $600+...it needs to just work out of the box.
I never buy anything cool, and just this once I want something cutting edge.
Why bother getting a nice one with the bells and whistles if you have to screw with it just to get BASIC functionality?
Scandinavian:
Cyanogenmod is a 3rd party Android distribution. It will most likely run on most devices, but I wouldn't unless the device is listed as supported. It differs slightly from device to device what is needed to be done, but most often you can find step by step guides for your phone. Generally you should consider it a pretty easy thing to do.
If it is a slightly older phone, say Android 2.3 (not older) chances are that getting it to Android 4.4 will actually work really well, from 4.3 to 4.4 the system requirements for Android was "tweaked". It will of course not run as a new 4 core phone, but will run on par with the phone in it's original state.
This is another thing. Sometimes a factory reset does wonders.
Mind you, if unsuccessful, your phone will only have value as a paperweight.
expatlife26:
interesting...yeah I thought about it for the Galaxy Ace, but basically the phone worked great (and still does for that matter) and I figured if it aint broke don't screw with it.
I'm not exactly a phone power user so there wasn't any single app I couldn't run on Android 2.4, just so long as I had a few puzzle games to pass the time I was happy.
only reason I upgrade at all I wanted a bigger screen.
I got the Nexus 10 tablet on Taobao, Googleplay works...no problems, amazing tablet!
My wife bought the Nexus 4...same 
expatlife26:
yeah those nexus devices are sweet, supposed to be really stable.
I bought a a Lenovo tablet years ago right when the first ipad came out and everyone was making shitty copies... I forget the name but it was funny. Lepad? I think so. Anyways, it didnt have google play. But anyone that reads chinese with even a moderate amount of computer knowledge can install it for you in 5 minutes. In the store they can and will as well.
Anyways, i cant offer much help as tablets have changed a bucketload since the first ipad, but i will say, its PERFECT to this day for what i use it for. 32G for movies. The web is fast so streaming porn is instantaneous and the screen works great as well. I have had it for years with no problems. A great buy.
Update: So I went to an official Sony Store to check it out...they WILL install google play (and have it on a couple of the demo models) but they DO have to root it.
I dunno...I passed. Again if was gonna get a cheapo one I wouldn't mind going that route, but if i'm gonna spend 3500 RMB...it needs to just be functional. I'm not spending that much and then having to mess around with it just to get basic app functionality.
What the fuck is wrong with this place? What stupid little piece of shit made that decision?
manasyt:
Well get a Nexus, why does it have to be a Sony? Unless you wanna shower with it 
.
The N10 has the highest reso screen on a tablet...2560 x 1600 pixels (300 ppi), its friggin insane! All Google things work, gets updated daily, before any other brand...It has front speakers as well! Watching movies on it still amazes me...No issues whatsoever 
expatlife26:
because sony has a keyboard case that really looka great, very elegant. my idea is that now that there is ms office for android i can get that and replace my laptop AND add a tablet (which ive never had) i know there are keyboards for other tablets, but the z2 and its keyboard case really look great.
To answer your question about rooting, rooting is the equivalent of getting administration access with a computer. Which is the only way you can modify certain essential system functions. Root access is disabled and inaccessible to the end user in Android systems as a security measure, so the whole machine cannot be fucked up easily.
Now the problem is that this whole root-freezing philosophy is also (and actually mainly) a way for manufacturers to pre-fuck up your system for you before it gets in your hands. Like installing a shitload of useless stock apps you will not be able to remove, or blocking Google servers to give way to the local shitty app market. Or anything you can imagine for that matter. Which is why most of Android stuff you will buy in mainland will have to be rooted before it can be functional.
My guess is that a mix of commercial deals and government pressures push manufacturers to load their firmware with shit in mainland. Most Chinese users just don't know better than the crap they're served and will rarely go beyond.
Android is supposedly "free and open source", what they forget to mention is that it's "free and open source for manufacturers", not to the end user.
expatlife26:
right of course...I'm about the most pragmatic person there is and I think brand loyalty is just a lame form of tribalism or at best validation (i bought a samsung so if others buy it i'm proven right!)
iOS is great, I like apple. Android is also pretty great, I'm sure windows mobile is also a perfectly fine OS though I have no experience with it.
I don't really care about open source, I just want it to work right. So I guess i'm not buying one here. Not the end of the world. Thanks again for the advice!
RiriRiri:
I'm not an open source propagandist or anything, I'm only saying that people often mistakenly assume Android somehow means more freedom because it's open source. Which is only half true for the reasons I explained.
