MediaPad 5080B ICS update

Today Prestigio publicly announced the release of ICS for the MultiPad 5080 range of Android tablets, although it was actually posted on their site two days ago. The MultiPad 5080 is a re-badged budget end tablet and the fact that Prestigio have seen fit to support it to ICS level is really worth applauding. So many Android consumers who purchased top end tablets & handsets not too long ago are still waiting for their own slice of official ICS goodness, many from market leaders and multi-national manufacturers, making Pretigio's commitment to the end user all the more welcome.

The ROM itself is a stock affair, with the launcher being the only difference I can find. That said it's not as though they have replaced the launcher with a fancy TouchWiz type experience, but rather they have played with the source code for their own needs, so think more Nova than custom UI. The version is 4.0.3 so there is still room for future updates, and having had the tablet for a few months I can tell you that Prestigio are no slouches at putting new versions out. The upgrade procedure is a simple and quick affair although I would recommend that you backup any data you have on the internal SD. Full instructions and Windows drivers are included in the download and once you have them installed it is a simple app that carries out the update for you.

In the few hours I have used the ROM I have found two small issues. Firstly, and most annoyingly, there are a few market apps that show as not being compatible, most noticeably the official Twitter app, so installing from an external source is your only option. The second issue while less annoying is a little more alarming, if you wake the tablet from being in a deep idle state, you have to turn off Wifi and re-enable to get a connection. It’s not a major hassle, but you would really expect it to have been picked up during testing. Now the pluses, well it’s ICS so instantly your tablet looks so much better, it also seems to run faster. I’ve not benchmarked, but the way the tablet performs tasks and feels in the hand really is noticeably different. Previously I used the tablet for reading, Kindle, Google Currents and other similar apps, but I can actually see me using it more now; gone is the sluggish behaviour when I have too many tasks running at one time. With full GAPPS and only a couple of OEM added apps the ROM is pretty sleek or sparse depending on your point of view, but remember you do have full market access unlike some budget tablets. From what I can tell at this stage, battery life is also showing as being pretty decent and depending on use you should get most of a day out of it.

Now is the really good news, the ROM has already been rooted and as an added bonus those apps which showed as non-compatible before will now install. The rooted version also has some app adjustments with the removal of the Prestigio-added apps being most noticeable.

The official Prestigio download can be found here :-

http://yf.value4it.com/Service_Files/TabletPC/PMP5080B-BRU/PMP5080B_2.0.0_20120401.zip

The rooted ROM is downloadable from here :-

http://www.androidiani.com/forum/modding-mediacom-smartpad-810c/130659-rom-prestigio-2-0-0-ics-4-0-3-a.html

(This ROM will probably update at a fast rate to begin with, so I have linked to the original thread)

I'm Three, to do what I want (any old time)

We all know that mobile phone companies are there to make money, that is their only function and everything else is just a means to keep making money. We do however all expect a certain level of customer service, how high a level will depend on each of us individually, and possibly how much we are paying for that service. For me there are four deciding factors when taking out a contract, price, product (handset), network service, and lastly customer service. I put customer service last on purpose. Its the one area we tend not to think about until we have a problem, and so carries less weight than the other three at the outset of a contract. The thing is, unlike the other three its the one area that you cant test beforehand. The price wont change, the handset remains the same, its not often that network coverage or allowances will change during the duration of a contract (and yeah I know there has been the odd occasion when data limits have changed).

So what happens when it all goes Pete Tong? Well for one you expect that the carrier will do their best to resolve your problem quickly, and with as little fuss as possible, and to be fair I think it works that way most of the time. The problem is, when it goes wrong it is at best an inconvenience and at worst a major headache that leaves you pulling your hair out. 

This is a little story about a recent upgrade I had with Three UK. I have been with Three for years, more than I can actually remember, I have had at least 5 handsets with them, all for the duration of the contract. I also now have 5 other contracts with them and 2 PAYG data SIM's for mobile broadband. The upgrade phone call itself was a fairly painless, but drawn out affair, with the advisor trying to change little bits of the new contract here and there but eventually putting through the upgrade that I wanted. It is also worth noting that the handset I ordered, was of a far lower value than I was entitled to (a Wildfire S as opposed to a Desire S). So the deal was good for them, and what I wanted, happy faces all round you would think, and for the first four days it was. Then the phone arrived!

That's right, don't adjust your screen, two security seals on the box, both opened. Obviously it has been a terrible mistake, an unfortunate mix up in the depot, where I have been sent a return/refurb due to the young Lithuanian immigrant who was on picking duties that day reading the order form wrong. After a bit of too'ing and fro'ing with three customer service, I eventually manage to convince them that I am not making the whole thing up and arrange a doorstep exchange (sounds exotic) for another new handset. So two days later the doorbell goes and 'the courier' arrives for our exchange. I am immediately crestfallen when I notice the 'new' handset is in an un-sealed bag, which he then uses to put the refurb/return in, and hand me bits of paper and the box. I sign anyway hoping that this is the end of it, and take the box into the living room. Then things go from bad to worse. This is the condition of the box as it arrived.

Not only is there 2 security seals this time, but they could not even be bothered to close the box!! I mean come on, put a little effort into conning me will you. I was actually beginning to doubt myself, and checked on twitter if I was being unreasonable, or a little bit paranoid about the whole thing. So after some clarification that it wasn't me who was at fault, I tried to sort the whole sorry mess out with Three customer services, and again it took time to convince them that I did indeed receive the handset the way it arrived. Eventually after admitting that a new handset should not come in that condition I was offered another doorstep exchange, but this time I said no, I had already wasted an extra day awaiting the delivery, and as the weekend is approaching it would not arrive till Monday at the earliest. I suggested that I could drive to one their stores and exchange it there, only to be told that the stores hold different stock than the on-line sales department. I explained that as they had messed up twice it would be a nice gesture to allow it this once, but alas they didn't budge. They did however come up with this cracker after I had said I was not happy wasting another day waiting on a courier. The rep told me to cancel my on-line upgrade and upgrade at the store instead, the fact this meant I would have to waste a day for the courier to pick the old-new phone up seemed to completely pass him by. At that point I kindly thanked him for his lack of any help and said goodbye. I am now between a rock and a hard place, I want to cancel the upgrade, the new contract handset that also arrived today, and my contract which expires ina months time and move on. My daughter, who the phone is for doesn't want to lose the contract, as she really wants the One Plan, and my wife wants everyone to be on the same network as well. I have filled in a complaints form, but hold out little hope of it achieving much. The is a section on it that ask how I would like the situation resolved, and to be honest I am unsure how they can fix it now. A fancier handset wont work, we turned one of them down when we took the contract out, and its not about the money, the one plan costs the same even if you don't take a handset, so I am at a loss as to how they can restore my confidence in them. The only question is, have I just been really, really unfortunate, or is this kinda common really ?

Lighting can strike twice!

So what do you know, a matter of 3 days after I blog to the world about my great luck in winning my LG G2x, I've gone and done it again :-). This time my prize is a shiny new iPhone 4 courtesy of @ThreeUK. I believe this now puts me firmly atop the #jammygit league of spawny sods. My first response was to ask if they could exchange it for an SGSII or GNex, but I was firmly told no, and then received a smattering of twitter abuse for being ungrateful. Nothing could have been further from the truth, I was incredibly grateful, but 'if you don't ask you don't get' I was always told.

Now I need to decide what to do with it, my original plan was to sell it, £350ish on ebay looked good. But when I got home from work I was smothered in requests and reasoning from my 3 daughters as to why each of them should have it. I knew I was not going to keep it for myself, first I am not a big fan of IOS, and secondly I am happy with my G2x and my contract is due renewal in just over a months time anyway, and I know that my wife would not look at it either (smaller is better in her universe, guess that's why she likes me). This means that I have the joys of making one child ecstatically happy, and having the other two despise me to the pits of hell. Its great being a dad, I just need to work out how to piss them all of at once, and I'm a happy man. Logically its pointless giving it to the youngest, she has a phone now and never uses it, so it would just be an iPod to her and she has one already. I could give it to the middle daughter, about to turn 13 it would be a nice birthday present for her, but I really think a 13 year old with an iPhone 4 is just asking to get mugged, plus it then sets the birthday present bar a little higher than I want it to go when the rest of them are looking for their own pressies. That just leaves the eldest, 22 and out the house (so she annoys me less than the other two by default). Her emotional plea (for plea read blackmail) is that she has returned to full time education and cant afford nice things, plus she has pulled an ace out of the pack by getting herself a place in Strathclyde University, not sure what the course is, but its an 'ology' of some kind. I also know its now become traditional to get your kid a laptop for heading of to university, but she already a decent enough one, so this is the perfect alternative.

Now I just need to wait on the phone being delivered, jailbreak it and pass it on, and make at least one daughter happy.