Linux on a generic Android netbook?

[Caustic Fox]

I have a generic 7 inch Android 2.3 netbook in which I want to install a version of linux onto. Reason is, Android is as best described on my machine, 'almost useless'. This is a new tablet that has crashed 20+ times now (apps force closing, constant rebooting, kernal lockups) Once in a while, it even refuses to boot entirely (I have to resort to using the reset hole). I am quite aggravated with the Android OS to the point that I want to dump it and install a different version of linux.

Ok, enough of my ranting. Since this is a generic netbook, I will my try best to list its specs to see if we can work something out:

Shenzhen Kinstone D&T Develop Co. .ltd
Model: KS-UMPC070ZD

7 Inch 800x480 TFT LCD
Android 2.3.3 OS
4GB NAND Flash
Unknown 1GHz processor (Most likely ARM based.)
256MB RAM
802.11 B/G Wi-Fi
SD card slot, 3x USB ports, Ethernet port

What can I do?

 

[Saga Lout]

Hello and welcome to Tom's Hardware Forums.

Android is Linux anyway so it's easy to think it would work but I suggest caution first. Download a small Linux OS along with an ISO and put it on a flash drive first to see how the netbook behaves. That assumes the netbook can be booted from a USB device. Damn Small Linux, Puppy Linux os PCLinuxOS would do the trick. You could run the last one as a LiveCD if you have an external CD ROM but again, only if the BIOS allows USB Legacy Support.

I took XP off a netbook yesterday and put an Android 4 system on it but it was far from easy and not everything works - yet.

 

[abbadon_34]

Best bet is to find your EXACT model with proc and all, then google. There are many specialized sites for android/linux optimizations that do wonders for both generic and factory tablets. i.e the wm8650 has been highly "uberized" but has over 100 versions world wide.

 

[Caustic Fox]

Ok, after digging around a bit, I found an APP that tells the exact specs of the hardware. Its called: Android System Info. Here's what I gathered:

CPU: ARMv6 Rev 5

Total RAM: 184MB - WTF? I thought I had 256MB? Or is that shared system ram?

 

[Saga Lout]

I just ran a Google search for "android on a ARMv6 Rev 5 CPU" and it's all a bit confusing. I suggest you do the same but it doesn't look good to me. I would definitely take the LiveCD router first with a "conventional" Linux distro before moving on to Green Linux.

On the RAM, there's probably 64Mb on permanent loan to the graphics but the slot might be able to handle a 512Mb stick.

 

[Caustic Fox]

[strike]I believe that my CPU is a WonderMedia WM8750 or WM8850 SoC design.

http/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WonderMedia[/strike]

Scratch that.

 

[abbadon_34]

that's more the info you want, but look at another site

 

[Caustic Fox]

An Android system info app revels that my netbook uses a Imapx200 processor. And Google Playstore identifies my device as: China Telecom Infotmic m7800h

 

[abbadon_34]

I'm not always one to play by the rules, but I'm not sure if I can link it. Read my earlier post it'll tell you what to google. Sorry.

 

[Saga Lout]

I know this is going slightly off-topic but Google and its ilk of big boys are ganging up on some of the Chinese chips. As an example, Skype will not run on my mobile, purely because of its Chinese processor. Everything else I run on my rooted phone works perfectly and I bought it because it was £72 and not a £400+ something or other, made by HTC. Your netbook runs Gingerbread at the moment but may not even run in Android 4 if it's turned up on someone's blacklist.

 

[abbadon_34]

Skype has recently become a problem for video, guessing more that microsoft made some fundamental changes when merging messenger, but one of the main advantages of "Uberizing" is to restore a fully compatible google play store, based not on location or model, but hardware compatibility.