Seeing as being a module developer would involve developing both the hardware and the software, basically giving you almost total control over what you can make (within the constraints of the MDK itself), what kind of module would you build?
Open discussion for anyone really, dreamers and doers alike.
If I had the knowhow and the materials to do so, I think I'd build a solar-charging module to attach to the phone (possibly removing the charger/USB cable module?) so that the phone can be charged on the go.
I'd stick w/ usb charging/jtag module ... Phone's memory blocks would be laid open should one combine the two into a single module option. Solar cells good idea but they take a lot of surface area to generate a substantial/adequate amount of power to run device. I'm interested in seeing the mdk to know what kind of parameters we might be working with either way.
Sent from my HTCEVODesign4G using Tapatalk
When it comes to Solar cells, I honestly hope that this actually inspires the development of solar cells that are transparent - much like the capacitive layer on touchscreens today. That way, the solar cell could cover almost the entire front of the device - and that way not only act as a source of power, but also as a replacement for today's Ambient Light Sensors (what is the abbreviation for that? ALS doesn't come out right...) - since a solar cell could measure the entire amount of light shining on a device, and not just the amount of light on a small area on the fascia, it would be a lot more accurate. Plus, while you probably wouldn't be generating energy while using your phone in the sun (I'm thinking of the law of conservation of energy here), it would make battery life much better, not to mention much more steady, because the brighter your display would have to be, the more energy it would be getting - and that's assuming you're using it constantly, and, oh, I don't know, putting it down to enjoy what is probably beautiful weather at that point. Unless you put it in your pocket, the way I usually do...
My initial response could prove false in some short span of time. I read http://inhabitat.com/researchers-bu...00-times-more-powerful-than-conventional-pvs/ and albeit they have their challenges, making thinner, smaller cells that are more efficient seems plausible. I love research & tech
Rob
Sent from my HTCEVODesign4G using Tapatalk
Instead of a phone id be happier if this project spawned a new class of android devices (not tablets not phones) that with modules could be more standalone camera or camcorder like (maybe this is actually backwards thinking but illustrates we dont have to stick to our current notions), or have more sensors (really just throwing out star trek ticorder) to be used in scientific applications (eg geology, biology, etc, in mind more field work type situations). Maybe scanner, projector, 3d camera, better speakers, sylus/no stylus, stylus capable screen. Different cameras (infra red or whatever more in line with idea of device being a gadget)
I'm actually thinking that this is where this project will actually go. At the very least it'll be a device that you can transform from your "everyday"phone into a specialized powerhouse built for [insert your abstract scenario here] and back again. As I see it, they're bringing the flexibility of the Android OS to similarly flexible hardware. So I think you've got the idea that they're running with, that this will eventually become a "build your own ________ powered by Android" project, not simply a "upgrade your phone pieces" project.
Sent from my DROID RAZR using xda app-developers app
Yes upgrading phone pieces immediately sounded like a cool idea but probably not immediately pratical (maybe not yet). A device that can become a more specialized device through hardware offers a broader approach that can in the end include upgrade modules being practical. Laptop docks for android phones is similar but wasnt avaiable for all devices. If recall on the droid x2 the kernel and ram was not capable of supporting a moto dock option. Even if this were to expand to a specialized hardware module more like a peripheral, universal support would be difficult. I think all the OEMs would need to get on board. I dunno.
trainman261 said:
When it comes to Solar cells, I honestly hope that this actually inspires the development of solar cells that are transparent - much like the capacitive layer on touchscreens today.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That wouldn't be good. Solar cells don't CREATE electricity when they are hit by light. They TURN light into electrical power, and it couldn't be otherwise as energy cannot come out from nothing. Photons are absorbed by electrons, which detach from their atom and start moving, generating a current, and the ideal solar panel should have its electrons absorb all the light and let no light back: it should be completely BLACK. Transparent (or white) ones would generate no current.
Gspin96 said:
That wouldn't be good. Solar cells don't CREATE electricity when they are hit by light. They TURN light into electrical power, and it couldn't be otherwise as energy cannot come out from nothing. Photons are absorbed by electrons, which detach from their atom and start moving, generating a current, and the ideal solar panel should have its electrons absorb all the light and let no light back: it should be completely BLACK. Transparent (or white) ones would generate no current.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What about the entire back of the phone being a big solar panel?
Gspin96 said:
That wouldn't be good. Solar cells don't CREATE electricity when they are hit by light. They TURN light into electrical power, and it couldn't be otherwise as energy cannot come out from nothing. Photons are absorbed by electrons, which detach from their atom and start moving, generating a current, and the ideal solar panel should have its electrons absorb all the light and let no light back: it should be completely BLACK. Transparent (or white) ones would generate no current.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think you understand what I'm saying, I know energy isn't created, and I understand the concept of solar cells - that's specifically what I was referring to when I said that you wouldn't be able to use it in the sun and charge it like that because of conservation of energy - because otherwise there would be more of an imbalance - it would be charging, and shining out about the same amount of light as it is receiving. Of course, stupid me forgot about UV and infrared, which negates that part of my argument . What I meant was that I was hoping that some day there would be a solar cell that could be on top of a screen, and you could still the screen. One option would be semi-translucent - the screen would just have to be tuned a bit brighter, which wouldn't be a problem, either, as most of the light that doesn't make it through the solar cell would be re-captured as energy anyway. The other option - the ideal one - would be a solar cell that would only transform light landing on one side. This definitely wouldn't absorb all the light because of the law stating that light can go back the same way it came, and when I think about it, it probably couldn't work at all, but who knows what science will provide us with in a couple of years - there have been surprises in the past...
Wroleader said:
What about the entire back of the phone being a big solar panel?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
At the current state of technology, that would probably be the best option (plus maybe a bit on the bezel, but depending on the efficiency of the solar panel, that could just be a waste) - We don't have any (semi)-transparent solar panels AFAIK, so they have to be dark like that, so yes, at the moment, the entire back of the phone being a solar panel would probably be the best option.
You mean something like a cell absorbing light coming from side A and letting through light coming from side B? Then sorry, I didn't get it .
Project Ara designs.
I wouldlove to have a pocketable service monitor that has a wide spectrum analysis capability, is frequency agile, and has HEMPT devices in the RF measuring section for ultra low noise figure, high gain, good IP3 and selectivity.
You can exclude the generate function, I prefer a device I can take screen shots of signal paths, attenuation, spectrum purity and bandwidth of measured signals, and be capable of printing the output to a printer via Bluetooth or even WiFi.
AECRADIO said:
I wouldlove to have a pocketable service monitor that has a wide spectrum analysis capability, is frequency agile, and has HEMPT devices in the RF measuring section for ultra low noise figure, high gain, good IP3 and selectivity.
You can exclude the generate function, I prefer a device I can take screen shots of signal paths, attenuation, spectrum purity and bandwidth of measured signals, and be capable of printing the output to a printer via Bluetooth or even WiFi.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Some day we can have the omni tool. That is ultimately what I hope in the long run ideas like this lead to.
Rear touchpad and e-ink screen
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
Research and such
As a budding computer engineer at MTU, I can see this being used for specialized research devices. I can also see somebody building a digital oscilloscope and logic analyzer as modules. No need to get these super expensive bench devices when I can whip out my phone, plug in the wires, and open an app.
I'm nowhere near being an engineer/programmer/etc., but I saw a dongle somewhere a while ago, maybe on Kickstarter, which was like a virtual credit card. You'd plug in which ever card(s) you wanted into the little dongle through your phone via Bluetooth or NFC or something, and all you had to do was swipe the thing over the credit card reader strip on a typical point of sale reader; somehow it created a magnetic field (magnets....how do they work?) and the field replicated the information on your credit card such that it would complete the transaction.
If there was a small module for this that you could plug onto the Ara 'skeleton' which made having a separate thing on your keyring unnecessary, I think it'd not only be a neat feature but also something very practical which might also speed along the use of your phone as a method of payment for goods and services. There's a few different competing NFC services but no universal standard to encourage wide-spread use of NFC (at least not here in the U.S.), but everyone takes cards these days.
Like good ol' days!
Now here is the idea:
*I go to a store.
*I BUY an app/game CARTRIDGE :laugh:.
*Plug it in my ara.
*Enjoy!
Yeah yeah those environmentalists out there will say "why more plastic garbage?" But just think of it like this:
*If the module has inbuilt memory then my phone's internal memory (oh! so precious!) will be saved.
*The apps/games can be as memory hungry as they want to be.
*No more TIME-WASTAGE in downloading GBs of game data.
*People will feel better when they get a piece of hardware for their money!
*Guys from the 90's can showoff their cartridge collections once again in a modern way!
I am very much interested to use such cartridges one day on my ara phone and I will be glad to help anyone who is interested in taking this idea further!
Hit thanks if I helped you!
@gautam360: Single screen Nintendo DS! xD
Not too awe inspiring, but something I would definitely use: USB/Ara Module combo. When on the phone, it mounts just like an SD Card. Slide it out, plug it into a PC, no different than a Flash/Pen/Stick/Thumb/WHATEVERwhocares drive. Formatted as something cross platform. Form factor designed so that you physically can't mount both ends simultaneously.
I would also probably make use of a WiFi Direct module and an IR Blaster module.
At least at first, I expect we will see a lot of modules similar to what showed up with Handspring/Springboard, then a bunch of audio/DJ type stuff like you see for iOS, then more scientific/industrial applications (thermal imager? stud finder? voltmeter? oscilloscope?). Maybe Sound Blaster could make a comeback... Amazon could release their barcode scanner in module form... OneTouch diabetic blood sugar sensors could scan your levels every time you pick up the phone... ThinkGeek could sell an Ara module version of the annoy-a-tron... so many possibilities.
I would use a light meter, that would be nice. Also a Digital Multimeter...
Sent from my HTC6435LVW using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Related
Ever think that the XDA was released a little early, and that there should have been a few 'basic' features.
Ok, we all love the XDA / MDA / 'whatever', but I bet some of us feel that we'll have to upgrade just a bit sooner than we'd liked, just for some really useful stuff.
So here is the beginnings of a wish list. Things that I consider should be standard on the next PDA I buy, because after all, that one WILL be the last one I ever buy :wink:
Some of this is availble as 3rd party, but it should be standard. It is standard on most Nokias
1) All the stuff currently on the XDA. (We don't want to lose anything do we)
2) At least 64Mb RAM - how many people went and hung themselves when the 64Mb version was released for less money than the 32Mb!!
3) >16bit colour
4) SDIO - it seems a waste not to include this
5) CF slot. CF is so flexible, and fast. It should always be there really.
6) Back-up battery. You can't run off this (or you would, wouldn't you?), but it should try and hold the memory for at least 2 weeks.
7) WLAN. You're sat at home, in your armchair, and you just want to look up who played that part in that film - do you get up and use your broadband for free, or use your GPRS on your phone.
8) Bluetooth. not as important when the above is availbable, but would be nice to have the headset, and communication with other phones etc.
9) MMS. How did they miss this one? A perfect money spinner for the network op.
10) Voice recognition.
11) Some kind of contact profiling. Ring tones, call lenth counters, etc.
12) Character counter for SMS messages (I realise this is an outlook shortfall, but still).
13) An easy way to re-send failed SMS in outlook.
14) Microsoft CE.NET (one day, maybe)
15) Consumer IR - should have been higher on the list. Unfortunately the IR port on a XDA is not powerful enough to transmit consumer IR signals very far. This is available now on some iPAQs. Why not use your phone as a universal remote control? design your own remotes, create macro buttons that enter '129' in sky for example (Paramount).
16) Fingerprint reading. Now available on iPAQs. With the right type of touch screen, this is a reality. What an excellent security measure. No need to get out your pen to enter your PIN, just touch the screen.
17) Master USB. Wouldn't it be great to be able to plug in all those USB devices you have. cameras etc.
Feel free to add your own dreams
Oooh, some of those are really good!
Out of the ones you put I'd rank the memory highest, followed by Bluetooth and SDIO. CF I'd put lowest, especially as it would increase the size of the device.
Here're my suggestions:
How about user-definable buttons? Would stop XDA-gaming being crippled.
Tri-band would be very nice too - if only to make ROM upgrades easier for everyone
Integrated answerphone
A T9 input method for texts - no stylus needed, and very fast.
A proper headphone jack?
Volume rocker instead of button - down as well as up!
Some excellent ideas. Point noted about CF - probably not needed either if BT, WLAN and SDIO are present.
I was thinking about some of those things too, but never got them down - well done. I'm actually looking to produce a T9 solution, but it requires a good think first.
oooh, if you can do a t9 i'd love you forever - not in that way, you understand
especially something akin to the smartphone's solution that can find a contact / predict a number for use on the dialling screen, but i'd be more than happy with a soft-input method for text entry that emulated t9. iirc, tegic did something like this but not for pocket pc. am i wrong?
cheers
movies
I looked at the nokia communicator aka Brick.
I found this device works well with movies, well so they said!!
But what I wanted more than anything is to sit on those long journeys watching a movie. a few short coming swith this though.
-Battery life too short (with screen light on, with phone activated)
-Memory, need more colours & smoother rendering.
-Storage Cheaper compact flash much better.
Or WLAN for watching TV at home...
Imagine sat on the bog watching the re runs of red dwarf!!!!
A few dreams, but those "proper pda's" look so appealling in comparison.
Well lets see what we can do with it....
Martin
Yeah... I always forget about storage when thinking of WLAN.
You can browse, watch a film, connect to your PC with terminal server, all while sat on the bog.
How about this:
plug a TV card into your PC (running Windows 2000 server and media services), and then retransmit your Sky TV over the WLAN. Then you can watch 'Men and Motors' in any room on your PocketPC. Get caugt short in the middle of a film? take your PPC with you.
Well, if this is to be the last device I ever buy, it better contain GPS and a camera as well.
#Peter Poelman
"The last device I'll ever buy"
will be purchased around the time I die
And a giant LASER!
Being realistic, I don't think a fully integrated do-everything device is the best choice:
partly due to size constraints, but also the battery drain would be immense - and if your camera ran out of batteries, so would your PDA, phone, GPS unit, mp3 player and whatever else you'd decided to put in it . It would also be non-upgradeable, hugely expensive (see the new Clie for proof), and if anything broke the whole unit would have to go off, leaving you gadgetless. Oh, and you can only do one thing at once - no phone and camera combo at once, laddy!
So while it may sound cool to integrate everything, I would prefer connectivity options - then you can bring along new devices as you need without having to change the main one. Kind of like Apple's new Powerbooks - heavy on the connectivity, not necessarily on the built-in features.
I dunno, I just think the connectivity and battery should be dealt with (as well as the OS tweaks we've listed) before any funky new features are added.
2 cents and all that
To a certain extent I would agree. It would be nice to have things like BT and WLAN integrated, and also consumer IR should be integrated too, but things like a camera should be an external option.
I think that falls into connectivity - which was precisely my point
Blue Angel still is a great device (especially regarding D-Two and his Android for BA-project:good with its large sized screen.
The only thing i always missed was GPS. Of course there are car cradles with GPS, but for hiking you always needed an extra device.
Unscrewing BAs i often wondered what this empty black box on top should be good for except carrying the antenna.
Took me some time for research till i found what i was looking for: Teleprovodnik Keychain Bluetooth GPS-Receiver.
The smallest one i could find, fits exactly to the backcover of Blue Angel. (eBay, € 19,--)
So i took a BA-Antenna (pic1,left/middle), peeled it off its carrier straight to the connectors and cut off the carrier right next to them (1/left/top).
Took Teleprovodnik, cut the battery cables and added some wire to connect the battery jack in the middle of the GPS-board with two flat brass contacts fixed to BA's backcover. These contacts are positioned into the outer gaps between those of BA Mainboard (pic4).
[Red is (+), black/blue is (-)]
Now the GPS device can drain its power as soon as BA has booted. If phone is off, the GPS receiver can't drain battery capacity.
Two lucky incidents: on/off switch of GPS is right next to top of backcover, so i mounted a BA volume switch that now serves the on/off of GPS.
(Another possibility would be replacing the IR-Screen by a microswitch (does anyone here still use infrared connection?) and let the one on GPS board turned on.)
And second the LEDs for bluetooth and satellite appear to sit right behind the camera hole. (Yes, i had to dismount the camera; maybe one day i'll find some smaller device, but as i still use a 30 years old analogue Praktika, i don't really miss it.) (both pic3)
Unfortunately Teleprovodnik doesn't have data output through his USB jack, so cable connection is useless and i have to use bluetooth.
But after all it works- after some fight against bluetooth&gps-settings on my BA , i now have a fully working GPS in my blue angel- just tap on wireless/bluetooth on my homescreen, turn the switch and start navigation
One small problem had to be solved- the level of network connection.
During my mounting experiments i didn't treat the antennafoil very well, cut off some parts...
...and lost about 15% of of network level compared to a second BA on same Network.
Now that the whole system is running, i'll work on optimizing the antenna.
If you put it in the wrong place, it shields the bluetoothconnectors or GPS-signal.
Maybe i'll add some ringantenna...
edit: 10.11.: took new antenna, now folded the parts i in former version had cut off, partly for giving place to switch inwards, and: excellent!
No difference to a non-modified phone any more.
The problem had been less disturbing if you used onboardnavigation; with google maps for example
you sometimes saw where you are on the map, but not the map itself until you reached an
area with better coverage. Tested on O2, which isn't this strong around here.
With Vodafone it's running better, but i keep O2 for testing.
Still sometimes occurs, but now only in areas where i know radio coverage is poor or worse.
I'll add some more detailed pics soon.
Mounting the switch:
First drill two holes, size and place as shown in pic below.
Use a file to remove the plastic between them.
Take a volume switch for Blue Angel, cut off the outer two silver parts.
After checking if the range it serves when placed into the longhole
fits to GPS' switch glue it into the Backcover of your BA.
You need to take two small right angled pieces of plastic, placed on the right side
and in front of the two vertical ribs on both sides of switchhole
(from the now useless antenna holder, has three different sizes) to
connect the switchholder to the upper side of the backcover and a
7x2mm strip roundet at one long edge to support the switch from underneath,
parallel to the horizontal line in backcover under the switchhole
(can be seen on the pic where the red switchholder is missing).
In first version this strip was broader, so i had to cut off a piece of antenna,
which came out to be no good idea. Obviously.
Now antenna fits under the horizontal part of switchholder.
The battery contacts:
Here i've taken some pieces of brass, 2x10mm bent to a hook at one side
so after installation they come parallel to the battery contacts on motherboard.
To place them two gaps have to be filed into the backcover.
The middle of each of these two gaps has to be 2,4mm from the side of the contact hole (a).
By this the GPS contacts sit right between the two outer contacts on each side of battery connector.
(For my proper version i've taken the two battery housing ground contacts from a dead BA, see (c). )
To fix the contacts a strip of black plastic (the thin material from antenna holder,
there's not enough room for the thick one) is glued over them.
At the same time you're doing this remove plastic at point (b) so GPS' board fits in.
Inbetween i found out CMOS backup battery CR2032 cable&plug is similar to the original of GPS receiver,
so i can replace the original one by one coming in one piece.
(some pics will follow)
Awesome work!
Thanks.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
Don't just say thanks- klick it! (Of course i'm nevertheless glad 'bout it...)
Project is getting better and better, antenna problem solved.
Now working on a proper version for my own everyday-use.
Because of gsm-network-coverage, double-sim should be next project.
Together with D-Two we're heading for Blue Angel 2.0 !:highfive:
...of course i'm just providing a pearl on the icicle of D-Two's cake...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/BT-Mini-Key...0570828383?pt=GPS_Devices&hash=item1e66a0ba5f
Found this, in case anyone want to buy something less...russian. Just ordered one.
EDIT: Also, how's your battery life with this thing?
ares93 said:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/BT-Mini-Key...0570828383?pt=GPS_Devices&hash=item1e66a0ba5f
Found this, in case anyone want to buy something less...russian. Just ordered one.
EDIT: Also, how's your battery life with this thing?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's quite the same device. All come from Taiwan, and mine also looked different when i ordered it.
They just change the coverprint...
Came without any description or datasheet except a sticker on the back- good luck
password as always is 0000 (if not it for shure would be 1234).
"Teleprovodnik
Bluetooth GPS Receiver
Model Keychain GPS2000
FCC ID: OUP961300101
Serial N°: xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Made in Taiwan" That's all.
(Funny: There's a company called Teleprovodnik in Bremen/Germany.)
Just found this:
General
GPS Chipset: MTK GPS
Frequency: L1,1575.42 MHZ
C/A Code: 1.023MHz chip rate
Channels: 51 CH for tracking
Antenna: Built-in patch with LNA
Datum: WGS-84
Acquisition Rate
Cold Start: 36 sec, average
Warm Start: 33 sec, average
Hot Start: 1 sec, average
Reacquisition: <1sec
Accuracy (none DGPS)
Position: Without aid: 3.0m; 2D-RMS DGPS:2.5m,2D-RMS
Velocity: Without aid: 0.1m/s; DGPS:0.05m/s
Sensitivity: -158 dBm (tracking)
Dynamic
Altitude: < 18,000m
Velocity: < 515m/sec
Acceleration: 4g
Protocol
GPS Output: NMEA-0183(V3.01) - GGA, GSA, GSV, RMC (default)
Data bit : 8, stop bit : 1 (Default)
Interface
Bluetooth? Version 1.2 compliant
Output Power: Class 2 (10 meter in free space)
Frequency: 2.4 to 2.48 GHz
Power
Battery: Li-Ion
Operation Time: 10 hrs
Power Charge: Mini USB
Environmental
Operating: -10°C to +60°C
Storage: -20°C to +60°C
Charging: 0°C to +45°C
Humidity: 5% to 90% non-condensing
Physical
Dimension: 46(W) x 32(L) x 14.7(H) mm
Weight: 22g
Others
Certification: CE / FCC / C-tick
LED: Bluetooth / GPS / Battery / charger status
Battery life i can't tell exactly, but with standard 1450mAh battery it's at least more than two hours
(which is more than twice as long as my HTC Kaiser runs on GPS);
i didn't yet make a long run test with 100% charged battery.
Tomorrow.
Of course it's also a difference, if you have your maps on SD card and don't continuously connect to internet.
And as there are batteries with up to 3600 or 4200 mAh i yet don't worry much about it.
edit: found a small manual in german and french on PDF.
NavGear KeyMate MK-51.
Download here: http://www.mediafire.com/file/1b8c2yj0802q5s8/NavGearMK51_Manual.pdf
B-44 said:
It's quite the same device. All come from Taiwan, and mine also looked different when i ordered it.
They just change the coverprint...
I'll post all Data as soon as i find again the backcover of mine.
Came without any description or datasheet except a sticker on the back- good luck
password as always is 0000 (if not it for shure would be 1234).
Battery life i can't tell exactly, but with standard 1450mAh battery it's at least more than two hours
(which is more than twice as long as my HTC Kaiser runs on GPS);
i didn't yet make a long run test with 100% charged battery.
Tomorrow.
Of course it's also a difference, if you have your maps on SD card and don't continuously connect to internet.
And as there are batteries with up to 3600 or 4200 mAh i yet don't worry much about it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ta, mate. Any chance you could throw in some high res pics in the update tomorrow? Is a bit difficult to see which power pins you used.
Btw, this is one of the best mods i've seen. I stopped using my BA because my bluetooth GPS died. But this mod, combined with D-two's Android build and maybe an early series motherboard (high OC) will give new life to my BA.
ares93 said:
Ta, mate. Any chance you could throw in some high res pics in the update tomorrow? Is a bit difficult to see which power pins you used.
Btw, this is one of the best mods i've seen. I stopped using my BA because my bluetooth GPS died. But this mod, combined with D-two's Android build and maybe an early series motherboard (high OC) will give new life to my BA.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you mean the pins connecting to the battery- those are just flat pieces of brass (~3mm broad), which i bent to the same shape as the pins of the Mainboard. of course they shouldn't be fixed with tape but a piece of plastic glued over them. The tape solution i only chose for the pics.
And if you look at your battery: + and - each serve two of the mainboardpins.
As we're about it- on the Photo you see (a) where flat gaps have to be filed for the battery connectors, a piece of plastic with the same gaps should be taken as counterpart to fix the connectors (i'll upload a pic as soon as i've finished my version).
at (b) the vertical plastic has to be removed where indicated to give place to the GPS' board.
There's really no space to be spent
That's crazy what you just did
I'm not using GPS, but it still is a great piece of work from you! Did you test if it doesn't interferes with the Radio? I mean, for example making a call with GPS on.
ares93 said:
maybe an early series motherboard (high OC) .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
??? i think i could learn something right now...
miki100 said:
That's crazy what you just did
I'm not using GPS, but it still is a great piece of work from you! Did you test if it doesn't interferes with the Radio? I mean, for example making a call with GPS on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good question. In first phase when i tested GPS hunchbacked, nothing special occured.
But since i've build it in - i'll do my homework and report.
(But i don't expect it, as GPS is no NFC, and the frequencies are far different enough.
You could imagine some strange interference.)
B-44 said:
??? i think i could learn something right now...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Early Blueangels overclocked better than the newer ones. I had one that ran on 600mhz (594 or something similar). My current BA, one of the last ones ever manufactured according to HTC, based on the serial number, only does 471mhz stable with the original board. Everything above that locks up the device. I bought a busted mid-series BA for cheap and transplanted the motherboard, stable at 530mhz.
EDIT: Its a hit or miss really. Its almost impossible to identify early models if they're in good nick. I look for the ugliest, most used BA when I'm parts hunting. Bigger chance of the being older. If you have a few spare boards, it might be worth checking which one clocks best and use that.
EDIT2: Might just be dodgy statistics since I only own seven of these things, but from my experience, branded devices clock better. Again, might just be accidental but still.
ares93 said:
Early Blueangels overclocked better than the newer ones. I had one that ran on 600mhz (594 or something similar). My current BA, one of the last ones ever manufactured according to HTC, based on the serial number, only does 471mhz stable with the original board. Everything above that locks up the device. I bought a busted mid-series BA for cheap and transplanted the motherboard, stable at 530mhz.
EDIT: Its a hit or miss really. Its almost impossible to identify early models if they're in good nick. I look for the ugliest, most used BA when I'm parts hunting. Bigger chance of the being older. If you have a few spare boards, it might be worth checking which one clocks best and use that.
EDIT2: Might just be dodgy statistics since I only own seven of these things, but from my experience, branded devices clock better. Again, might just be accidental but still.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You know there's some overclock-function in D-Two's ROM?
Aside from this- IMEI-Number should be a good indicator. Last number is checksum, and those i think eight before it should tell you if you've got an early model...
Tested yesterday. Took a 1490mAh Battery, unchecked Display Off after XX minutes and ran Googlemaps. After 2 1/4 hours battery was down to 45% and device turned off.
I'm now rebuilding the whole installation to rediscover little steps i may have forgotten in between, as i'm working on the whole thing cince early in july with several interruptions.
And think about antenna as in the place i've got it now it may shield GPS antenna a bit.
edit:now tested with 2400mAh battery. I couldn't believe it! Amazing! After last test - but now running and running; after three hours warning/battery low/ of course dismissed... BA keeps on running with lumid display for at least 5hours44 (no joke!)minutes. Imagine now 3xxc or 4xxx mAh! Power management and age of battery seem to be really important. Will countertest with Sundreams ROM, has got superb data management, but mean keyboard.
edit2: gps fix in new area ~5 minutes, re-log in less than 2.
B-44 said:
Don't just say thanks- klick it! (Of course i'm nevertheless glad 'bout it...)
Project is getting better and better, antenna problem solved.
Now working on a proper version for my own everyday-use.
Because of gsm-network-coverage, double-sim should be next project.
Together with D-Two we're heading for Blue Angel 2.0 !:highfive:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dual-sim adapter like this: http://www.ebay.de/itm/DUAL-SIM-Ada...94541452?pt=Handy_Zubehör&hash=item4abcc3ff8c should work.
I tested one in my xda flame. There are a lot of brands out there. Mine was a Magicsim 3G - no cut. Look for: dual sim adapter 3G on ebay. About 15 Euro used. I like the no cut version with the foil board in between, as it is more flexible to build in.
SpecTec SDG-810 2-in-1 SDIO GPS Receiver Card & Micro SD
It would be nice if this had a linux driver, wasn't $50+, and didn't stick so far out of the top. Link
notime2d8 said:
It would be nice if this had a linux driver, wasn't $50+, and didn't stick so far out of the top. Link
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've seen those devices but they are useless to us. First as you said they stick out totally uncomfortably, and second they would hinder us from using a 16GB storage card.
The ones i yet couldn't cope with are USB-sticks... maybe we could unshell them. Data connection will be the question.
muckelmaus said:
Dual-sim adapter like this: http://www.ebay.de/itm/DUAL-SIM-Ada...94541452?pt=Handy_Zubehör&hash=item4abcc3ff8c should work.
I tested one in my xda flame. There are a lot of brands out there. Mine was a Magicsim 3G - no cut. Look for: dual sim adapter 3G on ebay. About 15 Euro used. I like the no cut version with the foil board in between, as it is more flexible to build in.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cool you're here. As i wrote- double sim is NEXT, i know different devices, but first i'll take a look at optimizing antenna. I often don't see a difference to normal BA, but just want to get a little trick more...
October Edition just arrived, 6 months late, but it did arrive and it did work (albeit with the additional Cradle not in the box)
Charged, set up email to send myself the Google Play apk; double clicked it and everything worked fine. Activated my Android and all working well.
Downloaded some apps, inc spotify and mapmyrun. Added a sim card and sd card - not well designed really. The galaxy s5 shows how simple it is to do and retain waterproofing. The Omate, with tiny fiddly screws, rubber bits, non symetrical cover etc was something I hope not to have to do again; which renders my spare battery a bit pointless. I was expecting to pop off the back and swap a drained battery for a charged one, as I can do on a mobile.
However, with battery at 67% went for a 1 hour run and with GPS, Wifi, Data and Bluetooth active (music to BT Headphones and running data being tracked) battery only went down 20% - impressive! and confirmed I can give up the GPS watch...
All good, but definitely some sticking points. Wifi at one point wouldn't re-activate, without a long reboot. The keyboard can drive you insane, especially entering masked passwords - the keyboard can be supersensitive and fire off several characters at once by accident, so you have to start again. The 'show passwords' option doesn't always work.
The navigation seems awkward and inconsistent - i wish there was a back button, the swipe left often triggers an option or menu unintentionally so you have to go back twice and when the same thing happens again, it's not long before you give up and press the home button...
Maybe it's just some getting used to - day 1 and all that!
Overall this is an incredible piece of tech and will be a big benefit to my lifestyle. It requires a change of thinking I suspect, but one that is welcome, so overall I am very pleased with the first impression.
I think the answer to your question about whether you have day 1 frustrations is: yes and no.
I put on Lokifish's latest ROM and did a few other tweaks (principally Daniel Ortiz's recommended GPS fix) and then started from there. I played with the out-of-the-box version for a total of two minutes before I became monumentally frustrated with the sensitivity of the touch screen, and the keyboard seemed to trigger letters even when I was just hovering over the screen trying to make a more accurate 'tap'. Maybe it was placebo effect but the Lokifish ROM seemed to be better calibrated, though I still avoid using the keyboard for anything other than tapping in passwords to get accounts setup.
The first app that gave me an inkling that the TS is a 'keeper' is Runkeeper. (pun!) I'm actually not so much of a runner, but I use Runkeeper on my main device to track my cycling and I log my circuit and swim training data on the web which integrates across the other apps I use to collect and manage fitness data (Withings Body Analyzer, Myfitnesspal, Fitbit). The thought of being able to dispense with multiple tracking apps/devices and perhaps even leaving the big phone at home (the Z1s doesn't have the brightest screen anyway) was one of the main draws of the TrueSmart. But the real 'killer app' feature for me was the ability to use this TrueSmart as an 'all day wearer' *and* have it work in-water to capture swim data. But After six months of waiting (like you) and seeing the not-really-waterproof drama unfold, I was pretty much ready to put this thing on eBay on day 0.
However, Runkeeper/Ride with GPS plus Cyril Preiss' "SWApps" has just about sold me on keeping the device, or at least rekindled my interest enough to see whether its worth pursuing some form of aftermarket waterproofing approach. (currently being hashed out in another thread here)
So in essence I concur with/confirm your findings. I still haven't found out how to get the auto-correct to behave on the keyboard, but I think that's as much about taking a grand-daddy step back to understand how the Fleksy is designed, and how to properly inflect the gestures to keep things from getting out-of-hand (pun!). I remember having *some* of the same trouble when going from the iPhone 4s to the Xperia Z1 (before the Z1s) and that keyboard drove me kuh-ray-zee until I figured out the whole swipe-your-finger-to-spell-the-word thing worked. Then suddenly I wondered how anyone would type on one of these things any other way.
So - I'm coming around to seeing the advantages of the TrueSmart, and more to the point *really* understanding why Lokifish, Cyril, Kurt, Daniel and so many others here see in the platform - and continue to invest time and effort into it.
Oh - and as to the battery drain, I just ran my TS down to 15% and then connected it to a Waka Waka to charge, and while I didn't have it timed it's already back to 100%. Solar powered smartwatch - now we're talkin'. So instead of thinking about a snap-in/out solution for the battery I'm looking at/for a 'gator glip' charger cable or some other light-weight charger connection for the TS (I thought I saw them online somewhere, and OMate was offering them at first - I'd prefer that to the case for workout/outdoor activities where space is a premium). I'm also looking into how to/whether I can set up profiles that are more like "give me what you got" versus "all-day wearer" mode. On the Sony Xperia Z1s there's a "Stamina Mode" which tamps down on battery drain, but can also kill functionality of apps that are not in the foreground (bad news for Panobike cycling cadence meter, etc) so while I have *some* apps exempted from Stamina Mode, when I'm doing a dedicated outing I just switch it off completely - knowing that I'm going to be putting the device on charge by either using one of the portable packs I'm carrying with me - or when I get back to the car.
Anyway, food for thought...
Thanks for the reply, it's good to share tips and tricks!
I saw that Loki has actually abandoned TrueSmart. Frustrations with their updates and lack of support I think.
Primarily for me this watch was a replacement sports tracker, but my hopes for an all-purpose watch are not looking good as the blue-tooth tethering is not working with my S5; it pairs successfully, but doesn't connect, so the TrueSmart Master app is useless.
The TS also doesn't connect to my BT headset for voice, but it did connect with the JayBird headphones (although the cutting out was super irritating).
In Summary - BlueTooth not reliable and will be a deal-breaker as I would have to carry my phone anyway.
Couple with the infuriating keyboard and inconsistent navigation, (I've now tried the LMT dial thing, which also doesn't work properly) I'm losing interest fast - which is a shame as it could be so good.
For charging, my GPS watch uses a clip as you describe. So much better than the cradle which renders the watch inaccessible while it's charging. But why not a simple USB port with a cover, like the S5....(a proper waterproof phone). Even the solar charger will then require carrying two separate items for the TS...
You can set up profiles on an app called Easy Battery Saver - I used it on my last phone and installed it for TS. It works as described and easy to activate/de-activate.
I will keep with the TS a while longer, but I suspect the next Galaxy Gear, which is rumoured to be stand-alone, will be what we are really looking for...
Hope to hear more from you - I will post my next findings on the TS too.
lphovercraft said:
I think the answer to your question about whether you have day 1 frustrations is: yes and no.
I put on Lokifish's latest ROM and did a few other tweaks (principally Daniel Ortiz's recommended GPS fix) and then started from there. I played with the out-of-the-box version for a total of two minutes before I became monumentally frustrated with the sensitivity of the touch screen, and the keyboard seemed to trigger letters even when I was just hovering over the screen trying to make a more accurate 'tap'. Maybe it was placebo effect but the Lokifish ROM seemed to be better calibrated, though I still avoid using the keyboard for anything other than tapping in passwords to get accounts setup.
The first app that gave me an inkling that the TS is a 'keeper' is Runkeeper. (pun!) I'm actually not so much of a runner, but I use Runkeeper on my main device to track my cycling and I log my circuit and swim training data on the web which integrates across the other apps I use to collect and manage fitness data (Withings Body Analyzer, Myfitnesspal, Fitbit). The thought of being able to dispense with multiple tracking apps/devices and perhaps even leaving the big phone at home (the Z1s doesn't have the brightest screen anyway) was one of the main draws of the TrueSmart. But the real 'killer app' feature for me was the ability to use this TrueSmart as an 'all day wearer' *and* have it work in-water to capture swim data. But After six months of waiting (like you) and seeing the not-really-waterproof drama unfold, I was pretty much ready to put this thing on eBay on day 0.
However, Runkeeper/Ride with GPS plus Cyril Preiss' "SWApps" has just about sold me on keeping the device, or at least rekindled my interest enough to see whether its worth pursuing some form of aftermarket waterproofing approach. (currently being hashed out in another thread here)
So in essence I concur with/confirm your findings. I still haven't found out how to get the auto-correct to behave on the keyboard, but I think that's as much about taking a grand-daddy step back to understand how the Fleksy is designed, and how to properly inflect the gestures to keep things from getting out-of-hand (pun!). I remember having *some* of the same trouble when going from the iPhone 4s to the Xperia Z1 (before the Z1s) and that keyboard drove me kuh-ray-zee until I figured out the whole swipe-your-finger-to-spell-the-word thing worked. Then suddenly I wondered how anyone would type on one of these things any other way.
So - I'm coming around to seeing the advantages of the TrueSmart, and more to the point *really* understanding why Lokifish, Cyril, Kurt, Daniel and so many others here see in the platform - and continue to invest time and effort into it.
Oh - and as to the battery drain, I just ran my TS down to 15% and then connected it to a Waka Waka to charge, and while I didn't have it timed it's already back to 100%. Solar powered smartwatch - now we're talkin'. So instead of thinking about a snap-in/out solution for the battery I'm looking at/for a 'gator glip' charger cable or some other light-weight charger connection for the TS (I thought I saw them online somewhere, and OMate was offering them at first - I'd prefer that to the case for workout/outdoor activities where space is a premium). I'm also looking into how to/whether I can set up profiles that are more like "give me what you got" versus "all-day wearer" mode. On the Sony Xperia Z1s there's a "Stamina Mode" which tamps down on battery drain, but can also kill functionality of apps that are not in the foreground (bad news for Panobike cycling cadence meter, etc) so while I have *some* apps exempted from Stamina Mode, when I'm doing a dedicated outing I just switch it off completely - knowing that I'm going to be putting the device on charge by either using one of the portable packs I'm carrying with me - or when I get back to the car.
Anyway, food for thought...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
More success with BT pairing
More success today - got the bt headset (MyVoice 312) paired for calls, plus the jabra sport wireless+ bt headphones for music.... both devices paired and switch automatically when powering on and off.
Galaxy S5 also paired, but no joy with the SWAPPS app. I will keep trying with that, but it's actually a low priority since I have a sim for the TS ($10 per month for second sim with same number as primary sim)
Tonight I hope to try the Endomondo app on the TS paired with the Jabras, since they have a special feature that gives realtime data from the app when pushing a button on the headphones.
I can see it's going to take a while with the TS, but the tech is really good and offers a lot of promise. It's all about expectations I guess.
If the BT goes all intermittent again tonight I will be v disappointed as this is a basic but critical feature.
One problem I have had after exercising is that if you hand/fingers are sweaty then the TS goes nuts when you touch the screen - there really needs a sensitivity option (like on the S5)
Any pointers for best option for gaining Root Access to Omate TS? I notice that you have flashed Loki's 'latest' ROM, so presumably you have Rooted and flashed a Custom Recovery??
Best way to proceed--I would be grateful for a 'Heads-Up'.
BTW--I have, today, just received my October Dev Edition 1 GB 8 Gb 2100 Mhz version--and am looking at flashing Loki's ROM 20140328--is that the one to which you are referring?? or, do you have a different device version?
Any pointers--gratefully received.
I can't help you with the technical nuts and bolts as I am going to keep it all simple and hopefully working. No ROM flashes, install PlayStore and get your BT headset working.
Just that alone gives you a mobile on your wrist which is pretty damn cool for checking email, facebook, text, whatsapp and voice calls. Plus spotify, endomondo and maps!
The keyboard is a problem though, being so sensitive. And if it's raining, forget using it at all - not because of the water resistance, but because the screen just goes crazy with the water drops.
I am going to try Google Search/Voice to see if I can use voice commands on it.
Anyone else had luck with using voice?
haybill said:
Any pointers for best option for gaining Root Access to Omate TS? I notice that you have flashed Loki's 'latest' ROM, so presumably you have Rooted and flashed a Custom Recovery??
Best way to proceed--I would be grateful for a 'Heads-Up'.
BTW--I have, today, just received my October Dev Edition 1 GB 8 Gb 2100 Mhz version--and am looking at flashing Loki's ROM 20140328--is that the one to which you are referring?? or, do you have a different device version?
Any pointers--gratefully received.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey guys, I'm like a dev October backer and I get my watch this week-end. I have just started it today and after reading the lokifish topic I don't think it is a good idea for us to use our watches until we flashed a ROM with a secure kernel (the kernel of the 1/8/2100 is unsecure).
If you want to root your TS there is tons of solutions as it i a mediatek chip.
Can you recommend me a BT Headphone to par with my TS.
Blue-rayer said:
Can you recommend me a BT Headphone to par with my TS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using Backbeat Go 2 with my TS, I love the "minimalistic" approach to it. When not used I wear them like a necklace (you can attach the earbuds to eachother) and it's not in the way the slightest. It works great for taking phone calls, and I've tried it with both walking, biking and running with no issues. Volume controls, checking battery level, taking calls and such works great from the remote. Battery life is ok:ish, maybe a bit more than 3 hours total listening time. That is if you play music or talk on the phone non-stop, with moderate use (taking a few phonecalls during the day and similar) they last for days.
From what I hear the Backbeat Go 2 is more or less a ripoff of Jaybird Bluebuds X headphone (looks very similar), but the Jaybirds have better battery life, fits more securely in your ear for sporting and such - not that I ever had issues with that. The main thing that made me go with the Backbeat though is that it's about half the price.
Ok thanks. I'm gonna give a look to this.
Headphones
Blue-rayer said:
Can you recommend me a BT Headphone to par with my TS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After going through two Backbeats (not the Go, think it was 903 or something similar) I can state they are useless for exercising with, no resistance to water or sweat.
I then tried a pair of Philips SHB6017/10 and lasted a month before starting to randomly calling strange numbers due to shorting out. I'm not a sweaty person, honest!
Finally settled on Jabra Sport and they're awesome, have been using them for a year now.
Thanks to Amazon who refunded and replaced every single failed headphone, even sending out the replacements before I'd sent in the dead ones.
Cheers,
Andreas
I was actually playing around with the voice commands, you do have to setup loads of Google Apps, like Google search and Maps etc and give it permission to everything but it does work... I highly recommend using Nova launcher as it places the Mic search option right on the home screen.... which launches Google search... "Ok Google" and you're off.... I'm not sure how to get it to recognise OK Google without first having started the search app... Anyway some of my favourite things to ask for....
Take me home.... (Starts maps navigation)
Play some music (starts Google music and tries to play music)
Order Pizza (finds the nearest dominos)
What is iPhone (reads out definition of an iphone)
Hello folks! I wanted to explain the solution I came up with to the problem of the very lengthy startups on my android car radio.
Your typical car radio is wired like you see below:
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_X6EY6VJIXNRk8tR3VobmxOdUk/view?usp=sharing
With a OEM radio, your startup is just a few seconds for a modern Linux- or android-based car radio. Even some aftermarket radios like the mainline AVH Pioneer series are up and running in seconds.
Not so much with our favorite android aftermarket car radios. Boot up times are something on the order of 20 to 30 seconds. This isn’t too bad in and of itself, but if you’re the sort of individual that likes to “get up and go” this starts getting very annoying after a while. If you’re refueling your car then start up the motor when finished, that cuts the power to the radio and you witness another 30 seconds before everything is up and running, and that’s before the stereo does its media scan and the audio apps get loaded into the RAM. So you’re almost a minute on your drive before the tunes start.
A straightforward solution is what you see below:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_X6EY6VJIXNcVFYZG1mamhVN00/view?usp=sharing
I’ve wired the ignition trigger line directly onto the positive. This keeps the radio on at all times. This eliminates the annoying boot up delay, however we run the risk of draining the car battery this way. I have seen discussions on this forum where standby power consumption for aftermarket android head units runs somewhere on the order of 25 mA, all the way up to 300 mA or more. I have not tested this out although it would make for an interesting study. The point is this is a potential problem if you plan to leave your vehicle parked somewhere for an extended period of time. You don’t want your car in the long term parking lot at the airport to have a dead battery when you arrive back late at night from your trip, because the android radio was running off your car battery for the days or weeks you were gone.
If you wish to eliminate the lengthy android boot up time and also save your car battery, allow me to propose the following solution:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_X6EY6VJIXNV2pUUmNiN3RLMDg/view?usp=sharing
In this example, I have purchased a battery isolator and a very small auxiliary battery just the power the car radio. This involves the addition of some extra electronics in your trunk, and some extra 4-conductor wiring from this new battery and battery isolator up to the car radio. If you know what you are doing you can do this all in one afternoon, which was my experience.
You’ll need a few things in order to get this project rolling:
A 12V 18-amp-hour battery that is typically used in an uninterruptible power supply. $35:
https://www.amazon.com/ExpertPower-EXP12180-Rechargeable-Battery-Bolts/dp/B00A82A3RK/
Battery isolator:
https://www.amazon.com/NOCO-IGD140HP-140-Battery-Isolator/dp/B001DKRF2M/
or http://www.westmountainradio.com/product_info.php?products_id=iso_pwr
(There’s plenty of different choices here. Look around and see what you like. I chose the IsoPwr unit because it is solid-state diode-based and has no mechanical relay inside it.)
Four-conductor wire:
https://www.amazon.com/16AWG-4-Conductor-Speaker-White-Mediabridge/dp/B0193RRUBM/
Butt splices, and splicing tool.
Fish tape, for running the wire underneath the carpet in the car.
Toolset for removing the seats, center console, removing the radio, etc.
A stiff drink for when the trolls show up. (Just kidding! )
I also purchased a pair of trailer wire extension cables, which are four conductor wires with plugs.
https://www.amazon.com/Hopkins-48145-Wire-Extension-Length/dp/B0002RNSNM/
This works well for keeping the wiring in place in case I need to remove the battery or the radio.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_X6EY6VJIXNbGswdW04V010akU/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_X6EY6VJIXNTDhfY3hLT2Rlc3M/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_X6EY6VJIXNVUc5TXJSMzN2STQ/view?usp=sharing
As you can see in the pictures, I fabricated a wooden stand to retain everything, and I had a plastic battery box laying around from an earlier car stereo installation.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_X6EY6VJIXNNElSUDUtOGhDNXc/view?usp=sharing
The procedure is simple, you place the battery and isolator in the trunk and run the wire up to the car radio. You cut the power leads on your aftermarket car wire radio harness, and splicing your four conductor wire. This wire runs all the way and hooks up to your isolator in the trunk, which in turn is connected to the auxiliary battery.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_X6EY6VJIXNVE9peGZGZF91MXM/view?usp=sharing
Also, an important point: LABEL YOUR WIRES!
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_X6EY6VJIXNaVhPVWg4OHlGMGs/view?usp=sharing
You really don't want to mis-wire anything and screw up your car.
An optional switch on the positive line running to the radio prevents discharge of the auxiliary battery, in case you’re parked for an exceptionally long amount of time.
If it seems like a lot of running around to get around a technical limitation on the part of the radio manufacturers, it really is. This was an experimental project on my part to expand my technical prowess in to give me the android car audio experience I desired minus the tire some waiting for the radio to boot up every time I got in the vehicle.
I’ve been running this for a few days now and the result is excellent. I can restart the car after filling up at the gas station, and now there is little delay other than the OS scanning the USB and MicroSD drives. And the radio works almost from the start first thing in the morning, before I even pull out of the driveway.
If you know what you are doing it can’t be beat.
Any questions?
Nice, I thought about this a while back. Quick question, when you turn your vehicle off, the radio stays on? You have to manually turn it off right?
ffwd4490 said:
Nice, I thought about this a while back. Quick question, when you turn your vehicle off, the radio stays on? You have to manually turn it off right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is correct. You turn your radio off manually, with or without the key in the ignition.
The standby current is the question. Some folks that do CanBus monitoring through their radio report large current draw when the radio is in standby mode, but those that don't do canbus seem to see standby current on the order of 80 mA down to about 25mA. It's an ongoing debate.
The separate battery eliminates the worry of draining your main car battery dry.
Make sense?
Yes totally, I've wanted to do this, just not sure if I want always on and manual turn on/off, or the wait... So as usual I do nothing lol. Great write up though! Cheers!!
That seems like a lot of parts and expense for very little gain.
Wouldn't it be easier to just put a switch or a timer on the ign line into the radio?
EDIT:
Like this;
http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Circuit...-delay-relay-Turn-on-off-switch-/131776109221
So for $3, it will hold the IGN line powered when IGN source is terminated, adjustable for anything between 0.1 seconds and 1 hour. Now when you go and fill up your gas tank, the radio stays on, but if you leave the car parked overnight, it will still do a full bootup the next morning.
EDIT2: This $5 unit is better;
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Digital-LED...itch-Relay-ON-OFF-Module-12-24V-/262503313875
1) it will accept a higher voltage range, safe for car 14.5 volt.
2) it accepts a separate power and trigger input, meaning that it is a DIGITAL timer rather than analog timer that is potentially sensitive to temperature.
I didn't think of this for the short term pit stop boot up delay. We already have that solved with the software mod that allows you to keep the Hu powered for 2 hours. For me this would be for the overnight/work shut down.
The problem with the software mod is that only works after the radio has booted.
In my push to start car, I insert the card and the radio starts to boot but when I press the button the power is cut to the radio and it reboots again since the mod wasn't loaded yet.
So one of these mods could solve my problem.
Great,
I have been looking for a long time after this solution.
I want to install this but thinking about the next problem. My power-off function does not work. When pushing the power button, i have a black screen, the leds off the buttons are still active and after pressing the power button the system reboots. Not a perfect sleep or standby modus. If i don't fix this first the extra battery won't be a solution.
I can fix this by adjusting the software?
RK3066 800 x 400 with MALAYSK ROM (12 June)
I think it's absolutely absurd that these head units simply do not have a built in standby power supply keeping them in a sleep state rather than shutting down entirely.
Nine years ago with my atom-based desktop PC installed in the dash, using a dc-dc switching power supply, that desktop computer based infotainment system was able to sleep for weeks on battery power, always instantly resumed to the centrafuse software interface.
doitright said:
That seems like a lot of parts and expense for very little gain.
Wouldn't it be easier to just put a switch or a timer on the ign line into the radio?
EDIT:
Like this;
http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Circuit...-delay-relay-Turn-on-off-switch-/131776109221
So for $3, it will hold the IGN line powered when IGN source is terminated, adjustable for anything between 0.1 seconds and 1 hour. Now when you go and fill up your gas tank, the radio stays on, but if you leave the car parked overnight, it will still do a full bootup the next morning.
EDIT2: This $5 unit is better;
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Digital-LED...itch-Relay-ON-OFF-Module-12-24V-/262503313875
1) it will accept a higher voltage range, safe for car 14.5 volt.
2) it accepts a separate power and trigger input, meaning that it is a DIGITAL timer rather than analog timer that is potentially sensitive to temperature.
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If i were to do something like the second unit that you posted, how long would you think would be the most amount of time to allow the radio to stay on safely (with the screen off) before it negatively affects the car's battery (either the battery dying, or doing longterm damage to the battery). Thanks!
In fact probably radio should go down after 3 days in stand by. Then battery will still more than fine and 3 days is a long time to no impact slow starting.
I think it's absolutely absurd that these head units simply do not have a built in standby power supply keeping them in a sleep state rather than shutting down entirely.
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Amen to that, Brother. I’ve seen extremely fast startups with the AVH series from Pioneer, on the order of 2-3 seconds, but those lack the versatility of these android units and the more recent ones tend to be comparatively expensive.
The “big-label” android units like the NEX series are reportedly buggy, expensive and not terribly friendly towards you running anything else other than a handful of their approved apps. They are not truly universal in their approach, so we are stuck working around the limitations of the current crop of android stereos until better, faster technology shows up on the doorstep soon.
Hopefully "soon" really does mean soon.
Below I'll list a few questions and answers about this modification project, as asked by another member:
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What Rom do you have installed? And what kind of radio do you have?
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The radio I have is a Pumpkin Auto KD-C0248. It uses the RK3188 quad core CPU, and it has 800 x 480 resolution on a 7” touchscreen, and it is ultimately manufactured by “Klyde”. You might find here: https://www.amazon.com/Pumpkin-Universal-Navigation-Steering-Mirror-link/dp/B015PZVRXS/
It works okay, I don’t have a lot of complaints about it, except that I would’ve preferred a volume knob rather than the push buttons for volume adjustment. Strangely enough the volume buttons are on the right hand side of the unit, even though I own a left-hand drive vehicle. This means I have to reach across the screen to push buttons for volume up or volume down. Since I have this wired into the volume controls on the steering wheel this isn’t too big of a deal, but if I did not have the steering wheel controls it would become a real pain.
This model comes with a DVD player, and in retrospect, now having the option of loading music from the microSD card or a USB drive, I realize I no longer need the DVD. It’s somewhat superfluous at this juncture in the technology’s development.
Knowing what I now know, I would instead recommend something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Pumpkin-Universal-Muti-touch-Navigation-Bluetooth/dp/B0151KNXJ8/ or maybe this: http://xtrons.com/td695ab-6-95-inch...ayer-with-screen-mirroring-function-obd2.html
In other words avoid radios that don’t have a volume knob. It lacks ergonomics to be driving down the road and having to look over to adjust the volume, and in my opinion it is also somewhat dangerous.
I use the Malysk ROM, the latest version, and I must say it is a night and day difference between the stock ROM and this. It’s a hair slower in the loading (if coming up from a cold boot) but the added bells and whistles more than make it worth it.
This ROM comes with built-in ad blocking as a system setting, five different home screen launchers I can choose from, and a handful of aftermarket music players built-in by default, including JetAudio and PowerAmp (demo).
Note that I am using the android 4.4.4 ROM here. I could download the 5.1.1 android lollipop ROM for this radio, but android 5 is slower than android 4. There is more lines of code involved. See here for further information: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUZjOGIV7zg
Additionally, this RK3188 processor is about one third slower than a galaxy S4 CPU (snapdragon 600 CPU). For what we are doing with a radio, android 4 is just fine. If this were smart phone, I’d want the latest operating system instead.
Please see attached pictures: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=68082412#post68082412
Can you switch your radio in standby or off?
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I have not yet installed a hard switch, so this is on at all times. When I push the power button on the radio, it goes into a standby mode, fed by the auxiliary battery when the car is off. Boot up is just a few seconds. Because my battery isolator unit works a little bit too well, and because I purchased a small, cheap readily available UPS battery, I have to recharge the secondary battery every few days. I already own a battery charger, but the small size of the battery means it requires somewhat frequent maintenance, and this is a hassle. If I had a larger battery, or a regular car battery in the auxiliary battery box, this would be happening nearly as much.
I also think that my amplifier consume a lot of battery when connecting directly from the main battery. So i want to connect this after the ignition key.
I thought you've had installed a rechargeble battery? Does it recharge when driving the car?
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I have indeed install the rechargeable battery, is a typical led-acid battery, fully sealed, and these are what is frequently used in UPS’s. It does recharge it a little bit when driving, although not as much as I would like.
How many time do you have to recharge the extra battery?
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I figure I have to recharge the battery about once or twice a week, depending on how frequently I am driving, and how far. Again, I have a very small capacity battery in here 18 AHr only, this is about 1/6th the capacity of a regular car battery. So I have to recharge it more than I would like.
I had previously done what I will suggest you when I was running in amplifier in my car, namely I had purchased a much larger battery, what is referred to as a deep cycle marine battery. This means it is specifically used in small personal fishing boats the power an electric propeller motor that won’t disturb the fish.
Here is one example: https://www.amazon.com/100Ah-SOLAR-WIND-CYCLE-BATTERY/dp/B00S1RT58C/
This this battery is meant to go a long time between recharges, and to discharge quite a bit between charges. With something like this in the trunk of my old car, and running a 1200-watt amplifier and (2x) 15” subwoofers in a sealed box, I could go one to two weeks between recharges. I would simply park the car in the garage, hook the battery charger up to the auxiliary battery terminals, let it charge all night while I sleep, then put everything back as it should be and hit the road in the morning. I did this for a few years. It worked fine.
Again, it’s a lot of running around to work around what is, in my opinion, a latent fault with these car stereos, but if you’re serious about your music, and you like the insurance of having an extra battery for jump starts in your trunk, then this is the way to go.
Power Consumption Figures
Addendum 9/3/16:
I wanted to relate that the initial battery size was really not adequate for my needs in this affair. The 18 amp-hour battery would discharge in a matter of days, to the point where it was no longer doing its intended job. I would have to recharge the battery about two times per week. This is not acceptable.
So today I went out and purchased a marine deep-cycle battery with about 500 CCA. I’m not quite clear on the amp-hour rating. This was about $80, plus tax.
More importantly, I went on to eBay and for around $10 I purchased a very small, cheap power meter with a simple wiring set up. I wired this into the output circuit from the battery isolator to the radio, so I could see what the actual power draw is for this set up.
My results are as follows:
At start-up we see about 3 Watts being consumed, 0.25 amperes of current, plus or minus a little bit.
When the radio is fully booted up, the screen is on, and music is playing, we see about 10 W of power consumption.
When the radio is in a standby mode, after you’ve hit the power button and the screen is off and the radio is about as “turned off” as it’s going to get, we see around 1 W of power consumption.
Mind you, this is a RockChip 3188 CPU, and the power usage will be similar across all brands that use this CPU.
As I’ve emphasized earlier, the advantage of this set up with the (now larger) battery is you can run a large amplifier and subwoofers off of it, without potentially taxing your electrical system.
Otherwise if you’re going to run a powerful car radio, you have to buy a larger battery and a larger alternator to go with it. This may not be everybody’s cup of tea.
:good:
Hi - been away from the forums for a three months now - been v busy with work, but was following this thread and really like your attempt here.
It's got be thinking on a few things - especially your last post with actual measurement of power usage.
It's raised a couple of interesting points for me.
The first is effect on your standard car battery if left on all the time. My car battery is a 72Ah, 12V, so please correct me if I'm wrong - but does this make it 864Wh. Therefore, at 1W draw, the car battery would support it for 36 days? Now I imagine that a car battery would need to have a reasonable level of juice in it to start a car so it's not like you could leave it for (e.g.) 35 days and still expect it to start but if you were leaving the device on overnight/out of working hours (i.e. not weeks on end), on this basis it shouldn't really kill your battery.
Further thoughts I had was
1) could there be some kind of software mod to make the power off function on the radio even more power efficient and so it really be a minimal drain on apps. I think this is what QuickBoot does on Cyanogen, but possibly it could be done by throttling the CPU, airplane mode and greenifying the apps. If the power usage was halved etc, then it really could be inconsequential relative to the standard car battery.
2) Maybe a rechargeable 'powerbank' could be used instead of the battery you have. Along the lines of say this 12V 23000mAh one which I think could sustain the head unit for almost 300 hours if 0.08A are drawn or 12V 10000mAh one which I think could do 125 hours if 0.08A are drawn - if the discharge side of this could switch on when the car ignition is switched off, but it plugged into a ciggy lighter (which are only on when the car is on in my car), then it would charge when the car is on and discharge when the car is off. Not sure how feasible/tricky that is.. ,also found this which seems to be able to do the switching required...
Ok, so the newer head units (i.e. with Intel) are much more able to deal with the momentary "off" situation that is caused by starting the engine -- essentially, they have a WORKING shutdown delay, that is effective right from initial power blip.
They also start up a lot faster (around 10-15 seconds FULL BOOT).
I recall an interesting feature that was introduced by Parrot into Asteroid Smart; it had an advanced startup. In the case of the Parrot, it was based on a motion sensor in the unit -- when it sensed you opening the door, it would begin its power up.
Now while these chinese units don't have motion sensors, we could actually do something else that would give it an advanced startup -- hook the ignition switch line into the INSIDE LIGHTS of the car -- you open the door, the lights come on, the radio starts booting, you sit down, stick the key in, start the engine, and guess what? Its booted!
This modification will require a couple of DIODES. Run the inside lights circuit through a diode to the IGN input to the car radio. Run also the car IGN source through a diode to the IGN input of the car radio. Without the diodes, the ignition would turn on the lights, and the lights would power on all kinds of things you don't want powered on.
For an older unit, the same kind of thing would work, IF you combine it with the capacitor shutdown delay hack -- software hacks won't work since the unit won't be booted far enough for the software hack to actually run. And while it might not be enough time to fully boot an older unit, it will at least shave a bunch of time off of it.
Parrot Asteroid --> Android™ 2.3 platform :/
and you shouldn't power your HU from the lights circuit not mentioning that when they are off, the HU would be off too.....
It could be done by using a relay and lights circuit as a trigger, but not as a power source itself.
doitright said:
Ok, so the newer head units (i.e. with Intel) are much more able to deal with the momentary "off" situation that is caused by starting the engine -- essentially, they have a WORKING shutdown delay, that is effective right from initial power blip.
They also start up a lot faster (around 10-15 seconds FULL BOOT).
I recall an interesting feature that was introduced by Parrot into Asteroid Smart; it had an advanced startup. In the case of the Parrot, it was based on a motion sensor in the unit -- when it sensed you opening the door, it would begin its power up.
Now while these chinese units don't have motion sensors, we could actually do something else that would give it an advanced startup -- hook the ignition switch line into the INSIDE LIGHTS of the car -- you open the door, the lights come on, the radio starts booting, you sit down, stick the key in, start the engine, and guess what? Its booted!
This modification will require a couple of DIODES. Run the inside lights circuit through a diode to the IGN input to the car radio. Run also the car IGN source through a diode to the IGN input of the car radio. Without the diodes, the ignition would turn on the lights, and the lights would power on all kinds of things you don't want powered on.
For an older unit, the same kind of thing would work, IF you combine it with the capacitor shutdown delay hack -- software hacks won't work since the unit won't be booted far enough for the software hack to actually run. And while it might not be enough time to fully boot an older unit, it will at least shave a bunch of time off of it.
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oscyp said:
Parrot Asteroid --> Android™ 2.3 platform :/
and you shouldn't power your HU from the lights circuit not mentioning that when they are off, the HU would be off too.....
It could be done by using a relay and lights circuit as a trigger, but not as a power source itself.
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Click to collapse
I like this line of thinking... so could you set it so if the lights are on OR the ign line is on, then the run that output as the new IGN feed to the radio?
And I might be getting confused here, but I thought the HU takes it power directly from the Fuse board, but the ignition feed effectively triggers it on - or is it actually drawing quite a bit of current from the ignition feed?
Or, sticking with doitright suggestion, how about a motion sensor like http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/motion-detector-kit-n27fl located low so it picks up the driver footwell, somehow reset it though.
Or an electrical contact switch on the driver door that can sense it opening when the ignition is off?
Might be some kind of alternate switch idea which would work?
Mr Bigglesworth said:
Or, sticking with doitright suggestion, how about a motion sensor like http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/motion-detector-kit-n27fl located low so it picks up the driver footwell, somehow reset it though.
Or an electrical contact switch on the driver door that can sense it opening when the ignition is off?
Might be some kind of alternate switch idea which would work?
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Any trigger + relay circuit would be good. No big deal.
Mr Bigglesworth said:
I like this line of thinking... so could you set it so if the lights are on OR the ign line is on, then the run that output as the new IGN feed to the radio?
And I might be getting confused here, but I thought the HU takes it power directly from the Fuse board, but the ignition feed effectively triggers it on - or is it actually drawing quite a bit of current from the ignition feed?
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It is NOT drawing ANY (measurable) current from the IGN line. At most, it is just enough current to activate a BJT. If China decided to spend the extra 0.001 cents, then they used an FET, and the current is zero. All of its current is through the radio fuse, which remains powered up full time, as long as the car's battery is installed and has charge.
Yes, that is what I'm talking about. Just OR it with the inside lights and make sure there is no backflow.
---------- Post added at 02:52 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:51 PM ----------
Mr Bigglesworth said:
Or, sticking with doitright suggestion, how about a motion sensor like http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/motion-detector-kit-n27fl located low so it picks up the driver footwell, somehow reset it though.
Or an electrical contact switch on the driver door that can sense it opening when the ignition is off?
Might be some kind of alternate switch idea which would work?
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Click to collapse
That is what I'm talking about. What do you think causes the inside lights to turn on when you open the door?!!!!
Another thread regarding a locked up phone (making loud noises, etc) brings to mind another SERIOUS problem I have just remembered, a situation I have experienced already...
How many of us have had "problems" with our Phones in the past where they have Locked Up and wouldn't shut down even with the Power Button (holding down for multiple seconds even) where the ONLY option was to remove the Battery?? I have certainly experienced this scenario a few times over the years with my Note 4 and 2 and S2.
So. Say this happens to us, even with electrical appliances, machinery can always "crash"/hard freeze/blue screen of death, etc. Computers are notorious for this.
So now what, with an unremoveable Battery, that seems most likely one of the most stupidest/unsafest (potentially dangerous/hazardous) designs that have literally been forced upon us.
(And conspiracy theorists have always said "they" can always listen in to your phone/track you, etc, even when it's turned off, the only way to make sure you are FREE from this is to remove the Battery.
Hmmm. Think people. Think!
Incorrect
If you hold down the power button for 15 seconds on any Android phone without a removable battery. it will ALWAYS turn off. For Samsungs it's the power and volume buttons (because Samsung). It's literally the same thing as removing the battery. Don't worry about not being able to restart the phone.
As for the NSA listening to your phone when it's off.. you can make a tiny tinfoil hat for the phone. Stops the signal and looks really fashionable. \s
This reminds me of the days when people were experimenting CPUs from Intel and AMD by overclocking them until processors explode.
In the case of consumer electronic batteries, I would say its less violent compared to an overclocked CPU. The possibility for the battery is to bloat at abnormal conditions. When vent gets blocked or the pack is sealed, bloat leads to pinching of anode-separator-cathode-separator layers. Excessive pinching will eventually lead to torn layers or squeezed anode-cathode layers. This is then where the shorted layer ignites and produces fire. Fire generates heat. Heat melts nearby materials...in the end, its a Note 7 with distorted (melted/charred) appearance near and around its battery compartment (Left side when facing the screen) as what I've seen from the net.
Personally, I am not worried about the possibility of my Note 7 exploding. It's less likely. A pop maybe. But that worries me is when the unit starts to combust. While at home, my Note 7 safety companion is a metal can. This is to isolate the unit from the rest of combustible materials in case it starts to heat up and catches fire. I always check for the temperature of the unit. This is so far my only indicator that something bad is about to happen. I am tempted to pry open the Note 7 to see what the real story about this "exploding" battery reports. But then, my pocket is telling me, its not yet worth my curiousity. Will try to negotiate with Samsung if they can give me a potentially defective Note 7 as a freebie when I go for a replacement.
Thread closed.
Use this one for replacement discussion: Samsung Note 7 faulty and replacement or had enough
Regards
Razvan
Forum Moderator