Photos Comparing Samsung Galaxy S22+ to Google Pixel 6a

 Here are some side by side photos comparing the Google Pixel 6a vs. Samsung Galaxy S22 android phones.    Side by side photos of the Pixel 6a and Galaxy S22 Plus.

Photos to compare Pixel 6a vs Samsung S22+

Compare Galaxy S22 + Plus vs Google Pixel 6a Phones

Cannot install amazon updates after marshmallow (fixed on Samsung Note 5)

I recently updated my Verizon Wireless Samsung Galaxy Note 5 to Android Marshmallow 6.0. While the upgrade to the Note 5 was pretty painless and seamless, I did experience one, sort of major problem.  After upgrading my Samsung Note 5 to Marshmallow (on Verizon), I am unable to install updates to any Amazon apps.

Get an inexpensive new case for your Note 5!

After the marshmallow upgrade to android on my samsung note 5, I found that I could not install updates to the amazon music app nor the amazon alexa (echo app).  Specifically, if I tried to install an update to the amazon music app from google play, it would get to about 4mb downloaded and then give me an error Error: -505 cannot install app.  I tried rebooting, clearing the appstore crash, and even made the mistake of removing the app and trying to reinstall it (that did not work).   I also had the same issue with trying to upgrade that amazon alexa app, it would fail to install updates as well after the marshmallow update.   


I tried removing both apps and reinstalling them from the amazon app store, and that failed too.   Finally I found a solution, and it worked quickly.   I had disabled the Amazon Audible app previously in the phone.  I went back into the application manager and re-enabled the audible app.  Then, I installed the updates to audible.  Once I completed updating audible, I was able to update my existing amazon music app and was able to reinstall the alexa app that I had previously removed.

If you are trying to update amazon music or amazon alexa echo on a phone running marshmallow, make sure you first enable the Amazon Audible app.

Amazon Kindle fire vs. Archos 70IT

As I have posted before, I already have the Archos 7" Internet Tablet, and while it does a really good job of watching movies, it is pretty limited beyond that. I probably should have came back to update this blog earlier, but the reality is, I just do not get as much enjoyment, and therefore use, out of the Archos 7" tablet that I expected.  Although it can play Angry Birds and a few other simple games, the web browsing experience and general feel of the operating system is slow, laggy and unresponsive.  I feel, that with every update from Archos, it gets worse, even after doing a complete wipe and install and formatting the device the the recommended partition types (all stuff I should not have to deal with).  I have since moved on to the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, after making a really hard decision between it, the Xoom and the iPad2. And although the Samsung is a way more capable device (especially with gaming), I can't help but occasionally miss the form factor of the 7" tablet.  That being said, I am not willing to shell out another $350 for a Galaxy Tab 7.  I will continue to make due with my Archos for traveling purposes.

That being said, Amazon recently announced the kindle fire.  At only $199, it is a really compelling price point, even approaching impulse buying or Christmas gift buying territory.  It comes in $100 less than the original Archos price, and even beats the current sale price on Amazon.  So how do the Archos 70 Internet Tablet and Kindle fire compare?

Unfortunately, I don't have a Kindle fire handy to test one out, so I will rely solely on specs (which never tell the whole truth).
Dimensionally:

The reported dimensions of the Archos 70 IT are:

• 7.91” tall x 4.49” wide x .43 thick at 11 oz

and the Amazon Kindle fire:

• 7.5" x 4.7" x .45" thick at 14.6 ounces

Winner: Tie with a slight edge to the Archos.  Keep in mind, the Samsung Tab 10.1" model is only 5 ounces heavier than the Kindle.

Processor:
Archos: 1 Ghz ARM Single Core
Kindle fire: Texas Instruments Dual Core
Winner: Kindle fire

Camera:
Archos:  front facing low resolution camera
Kindle fire: none
Winner: Archos 70

Operating System:
Archos: Relatively stock Android 2.2 Froyo
Kindle fire: Android 2.3 Gingerbread with heavy customization
Winner: Purely a guess, but I think the Kindle fire is going to win this hands down, especially with a dual core processor pushing things behind the scenes.

Battery:
Archos: Based off of real experience, I am lucky to get about 3.5 hours of video time
Kindle fire: Claims 7.5 hours.  (based on prior experience with the standard Kindle, vs Amazon's claims, I would say that they are probably going to be pretty accurate)
Winner: Another guess, but I think the Kindle fire will win with battery life.

Expandability:
Archos: MicroSD slot
Kindle fire: none, but has cloud storage
Winner: Archos, I just don't see "cloud storage" as counting, since you can do it already with various apps or ftp anyhow with other devices, and you are completely dependent on having internet available, (not good for flyers).

Gyroscope:
Archos: Yes
Amazon Kindle fire: No
Winner: Archos

GPS:
Archos: No
Kindle fire: No 
Winner: Tie

Verdict:
If this were simply up to specs, I would say this is a very close battle with the Archos possibly taking the win.  However, my experience with the Archos is that it is a bit too laggy for the everyday user, and that the non-modified Android 2.2 interface is just not a pleasant experience on a tablet of any size.   As a technical person who likes to mod gadgets, I think the kindle fire has more potential, if and when it gets rooted, but the Archos already has a year's worth of hackery behind it.  As a gift to a non-technical person, I think the choice would definitely be the Amazon Kindle fire.







vs.

Archos 70IT vs. Amazon Kindle 6” Dimensions

A lot of people have asked me how the Archos 7” Internet Tablet compares in size to the latest model of the Amazon Kindle, Graphite 6” .

The reported dimensions of the Archos 70 IT are:

• 7.91” tall x 4.49” wide x .43 thick at 11 oz

  vs.

dimensions of the Amazon Kindle Graphite 3:

• 7.5” tall x 4.8” wide x .335” thick at 8.5 oz

Below you can see a photo gallery comparing the Archos 70IT and Amazon Kindle 6”.  As you can see, the Kindle is actually slightly shorter than the Archos, slightly wider and is less thick.  However, in reality, the Achos feels thinner due to a curved back.  Even though the weight is reportedly within 2.5 oz. of each other, the Archos feels substantially heaver than the Kindle.

Amazon reports a battery of up to 30 days on the Kindle, and I agree with that.  The Archos 70 reports up to 7 hours of video playback, and I am not getting anything close to that.  With Wi-Fi and Bluetooth disabled, I am lucky to get 2 hours out of video playback on the device. After the latest update, I am getting about 5+ hours of video playback in Airplane Mode.

Amazon Kindle vs. Archos 70 internet tablet Photo Gallery:


 Read this article for a cheap carrying case for the Archos 70 IT

For search engines:
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Vulkano on an Archos 70

For those of you wondering how the Vulkano 010410VK All-In-One 8 GB Media Placeshifter, Black
media player for Android works on the Archos 70 - 8 GB Internet Tablet (Black), the answer is, unfortunately not that well.

I recently received the Archos 70 (which is identical to the Archos 101, so don't expect it to be any different), and my main reason for purchasing it was to use my Monsoon Vulkano placeshifter device.  Unfortunately, it does not work well.

First off, to even get the Vulkano Android player, you have to download the marketplace apk (sort of a hack, since it does not come from Archos pre-installed on the unit). First, you need to update your archos tablet to Froyo (android 2.2) which can be done from the settings update command.  Then, you need to go get the marketplace apk and install it. Instructions can be found here: http://forum.archosfans.com/index.php .   Once you get the apk installed, you can browse the android market and get the vulkano app.

I did not have any issues getting it installed or configured, but the first couple times I tried to access it, I got a force close.  Then, after a reboot of the archos device, I was able to access my Vulkano, but the quality is horrible.   The sound is not synced properly with the video, and the video is extremely choppy.
I tried both on my lan as well as on the wan, with both connections from Verizon Fios with the 50/35mb plans, so my bandwidth is not the issue.   I tried switching the stream quality to low, and it had no effect.

However, moving recorded programs from the Vulkano's DVR onto the Archos Android and watching them locally worked fantastic.

I hope the team out there working on rooting this device can also get the processor back up to its full 1ghz speed, so I can retest.  As it stands now, the Archos 70 and Archos 101 do not play well with Monsoon Vulkano.