I was not a very pleased user of the Archos 10.1 ever since I got it last December. The issue centered on the Archos supplied “AppsLib” which was not all that efficient nor useful. It would startup slowly sometimes, crash at other times, and a lot of apps that I’ve got in my Nexus One was not even available (like ConnectBot for example). Apart from these inconveniences, the tablet is really a nice device, quite responsive and despite it’s plasticky feel, it is robust and quite well built.
The lack of the standard Android marketplace was gnawing at me for the longest time and last night, I came across a post that suggested that the XDA developers forum has a specific hack to address this. So, 10 minutes after downloading and installing the gAppInstaller, and two reboots later, the Archos 10.1 now has a pride of place and has become a delightful device to be used well.
I am not entirely sure why Archos decided not to include the standard Andriod marketplace, but I reckon this has to do with them trying to differentiate. I think it is a huge mistake to take a path of differentiated marketplace for it splinters the ecosystem and does not leave the user in a good place.
What I would like to complete the Archos next with is a decent jacket. That is elusive still!
At some point, I’d like to run Fedora on it as well.
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by harishpillay, harishpillay. harishpillay said: Setting up the standard Andriod marketplace on the Archos 10.1 http://wp.me/pj2fj-na […]
>I am not entirely sure why Archos decided not to include the standard Android marketplace,
a) You have to pass certain compatibility test to be able to officially install the Market (and until recently Tablets would not pass these tests)
b) You have to be member of the Open Handset Alliance to be able to install the official Market and other Google apps.
thanks for this pointer. and it is good to know.
harish
Install “Arctools” from the appslib marketplace.
http://www.arctablet.com/blog/archos-tablet/arctools-news-google-market-installer-for-your-archos-20101228/
[…] Setting up the standard Andriod marketplace on the Archos 10.1 I was not a very pleased user of the Archos 10.1 ever since I got it last December. The issue centered on the Archos supplied “AppsLib” which was not all that efficient nor useful. It would startup slowly sometimes, crash at other times, and a lot of apps that I’ve got in my Nexus One was not even available (like ConnectBot for example). Apart from these inconveniences, the tablet is really a nice device, quite responsive and despite it’s plasticky feel, it is robust and quite well built. […]