Old Android devices

b/Tech, Science & IT publicado por u/gameblabla November 24, 2016, 01:14:31 AM

Old Android devices

When you look at Android websites, they often talk about new devices coming out but once they're out,
it's no longer being mentioned ever again.

Feeling sorry for my old devices, i started to put custom ROMs on them.
Thanks a lot to the XDA community for keeping those devices alive !
They really brings some life to otherwise useless junk.

Today, i'm taking a look at the LG Optimus L3 E400.
Read my blog post about it for the full review

Do you happen to own such a device ?
Next time, i will look at the Xperia X8 and talk why it's no longer usable these days.

Last Edit: November 24, 2016, 01:20:51 AM by gameblabla

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u/Yuki November 24, 2016, 01:20:55 AM

I still have a Samsung Galaxy Note 1 here, still works. Kinda. I have CM11 on it, someone probably compiled the latest version. Some batteries issues, but at least it's not exploding like the 7.

u/gameblabla November 24, 2016, 01:29:51 AM

Quote from: Juju on November 24, 2016, 01:20:55 AM
I still have a Samsung Galaxy Note 1 here, still works. Kinda. I have CM11 on it, someone probably compiled the latest version. Some batteries issues, but at least it's not exploding like the 7.

You're kind of lucky to own a Samsung device, as they are well supported by the community.
There's a working Marshmallow port for your device currently.

Yeah, the battery thing needs to be mentioned.
It's definitively the only thing in a device that does not age well lol

As for me, i own :
a Sony Xperia neo V, a Sony Xperia X8, an LG Optimus L3 E400 (will be sent to Jkolade936), an Hisense CMB405 and a Fire HD 7" (fifth generation).

u/Dream of Omnimaga November 24, 2016, 01:35:52 AM

By old ANdroid devices, do you mean this?

http://www.fanboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/first-cell-phones.jpg

Kidding aside, the worst part is that at some point, phone carriers stop supporting certain old devices, forcing you to switch. Personally, though, on old devices, I am pretty much stuck with Tapatalk to chat on forums, due to being too slow. But I wish we didn't have to switch phones every 2 year. My Samsung i5510 was heavily resistant despite having a sliding keypad that could be easily torn off the phone. The only real issue besides speed was that its screen cover got scratched easily.

I hope I can continue using my Nexus 5 for the foreseeable future. It's in terrible condition, though, and the battery lasts 4 times shorter than it used to, so I have to accept that at one point or another, I might be forced to switch.

u/Yuki November 24, 2016, 01:50:33 AM

You know what's nice with Android devices, once it's no longer supported, the community and 3rd party OSes are still going to support it as long as the device is going to support the new versions. Because, well, there's a point your device won't support the new versions because they're going bigger and bigger. At this point, better buy a new phone anyway.

u/gameblabla November 24, 2016, 02:04:50 AM

Quote from: DJ Omnimaga on November 24, 2016, 01:35:52 AM
By old ANdroid devices, do you mean this?

http://www.fanboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/first-cell-phones.jpg

I'm too young to get this ;(

But yeah definitively, you're right about the short-term support : It's definitively has become the norm these years.
But like @Juju said, unless you own some obscure android device, you should still expect to have update third-party custom ROMs on it.
There's a time however when the battery losts 90% of its capacity or it just isn't compatible with modern apps/games.
For the last one, try to run any apps on an Armv6 device like the Xperia X8 and it will most likely won't work due to most developers dropping support for them. (My own games still work on them tho)

In that case, you should consider buying a new phone. (or just replace the battery if that's the only issue)

Last Edit: November 25, 2016, 05:01:32 AM by gameblabla

u/gameblabla November 25, 2016, 05:04:08 AM

After the LG L3 E400,
i'm now taking a look at the Xperia X8, first released on September 2010 :
Read my full review here.

In my review, i explain why, despite the fact the device has a relatively modern android version,
it is almost impossible to use it as a daily driver.
This applies to most Armv6 devices as well.

u/p2 November 25, 2016, 09:19:47 AM

OMG gameblabla you REALLY have to fix the stuff like ' and < in your blog... look at my comment

QuoteWell that ure looks like a low-end device O.o But I somehow really love it's back color (that while-blue) ^^ why did they chose to use CPUs with low support in the first place? <_<

vut I like your blog

u/gameblabla November 25, 2016, 04:01:25 PM

Quote from: p2 on November 25, 2016, 09:19:47 AM
OMG gameblabla you REALLY have to fix the stuff like ' and < in your blog... look at my comment

Sorry, that was due to the broken HTML correction feature. I have fixed your post.

For my next post, i will talk about the Sony Xperia HD Neo V (aka haida).
It's really a cool device to use and own.

u/gameblabla November 26, 2016, 09:39:00 PM

I have finally reviewed the Sony Xperia Neo V,
my full review is here as always.
It's a much better device than the two previous one was talking about so my review is a bit longer.

Also, don't enable KSM if you don't run out of memory, even with deferred timers.
It will slowdown most CPU-depending apps by a crawl.
Disabling KSM, i went from 75% in Project Diva (PPSSPP) to 100 % !

u/Dream of Omnimaga November 27, 2016, 02:03:18 AM

I'll check the reviews out later. i'm definitively interested in learning a bit about those devices

u/gameblabla December 02, 2016, 06:45:06 PM

I know this is a thread about Android but some months ago, i was given an Iphone 4 to play around with.
...
I can tell you one thing : it hasn't aged very well but not due to hardware issues.
Simply put : almost every game now requires at least iOS 8 and web browsers dropped iOS 7 due to Nitro not being
exposed due to them.
Performence on iOS 7 is awful and PPSSPP no longer works. (it used to tho...)
My Xperia X8 from 6 years ago is probably more useful than this iPhone 4, it's sad.

I might do a review on it.

u/gameblabla December 18, 2016, 01:48:32 AM

I have reviewed all of my old Android devices so now, i'm taking a look at the Fire HD 7', which was released in 2014.
It is still on sell, as a cheap refurbished device for only 39$ in the US.
See my review here :
https://blog.gameblabla.nl/index.php?controller=post&action=view&id_post=7

In short, the software in it absolutely kills any kind of enjoyment you could potentially have.
It has horrible battery life, especially with the screen turned off.
It also charges very slowly. (as if i needed that lol)

In other word, it's kind of a piece of s***.
It's too bad, the hardware is decent considering the price it sells for.