Search
Sign in with
Sign up | Sign in

Linux on a generic Android netbook?

Last response: in Laptops & Notebooks
Share

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?

More about : linux generic android netbook

Register or log in to remove
Laptop Expert

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.
Related ressources
Ask the community
Laptop Expert

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.

Laptop Expert

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.

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.
Register or log in to remove
Ask the community
Read discussions in other Laptops & Notebooks categories
!