[GTALUG] decent cheap ChromeOS tablet -- can run debian in a container

[Ansar Mohammed]

I have the Dell Venue Pro also. In fact I have two of them and an HP Stream
7. There are lots of Windows tablets on ebay. The cheapest I have seen is
the toshiba encore series ~30USD. But they are almost identical to
the Venue Pro
Debian runs very very well on them. But it was a pain to get the wifi
recognized.
The problem wasn't so much getting it to work, but more of "ok now what?
what can I do with this?"


On Mon, Jan 24, 2022 at 11:06 AM D. Hugh Redelmeier via talk <
talk at gtalug.org> wrote:

> | From: Ansar Mohammed via talk <talk at gtalug.org>
>
> | Depending on what you want to achieve,
>
> Yes!
>
> | IMHO you can get a used HP 10 inch
> | tablet on eBay for $50 running Windows and flatten it with Debian.
> | https://www.ebay.com/itm/324124770651
> | Windows on 7-10 inch tablets are all over ebay.
>
> Not a terrible idea, but there are problems with this particular
> example:
>
> - ebay.COM:
>         US$50, not C$50
>         unknown (to me) problems and expense  getting it across the border
>         unlikely to have a useful warranty (used, across border)
>
> - specs: https://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c04553375
>
> - 1280x800 resolution
>
> - poor SoC
>
> https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/products/80274/intel-atom-processor-z3735f-2m-cache-up-to-1-83-ghz.html
>         SoC launched 7 years ago
>         intentionally crippled on launch
>         Intel's goal: compete against ARM but don't cannibalize x86
>         Microsoft's goal: compete against Android/iOS but don't
>         cannibalize existing Windows market.
>         surely 32-bit UEFI even though CPU can do x86-64.
>
> - only one USB socket and that is only USB 2
>
> Linux support is mixed for this kind of tablet (I have a Dell Venue 8
> Pro of this generation).  Typically the SoC has very odd bits.  Like:
> audio is hooked up in a non-standard and non-obvious way.  Like: UEFI
> cannot access SD card (so you cannot boot from it).  I was defeated
> when I tried to put linux on it back in the day.  I think that Linux
> mostly works these days (I tried booting the Venue 8 off a live Fedora
> stick a few months ago).
>
> There was a tremendous blossoming of Windows tablets then
> (Win 8.1 era).  Evolution could have improved them but instead it
> killed them off (Intel and Microsoft threw in the towel).  Windows
> tablets now are expensive and inferior.  This is what currently passes
> as a good deal (yuck):
>
> https://forums.redflagdeals.com/best-buy-microsoft-surface-laptop-go-12-4-i5-1035g1-4-64-emmc-499-99-2520226/
>
> Currently, there are often reasonable deals on reasonable laptops with
> touch.  But they start at over $400 new.  Ones that I've considered
> start at about $700 on sale.
>
> The Lenovo is not much more expensive than the HP (when you factor in
> cross-border friction and used versus new) and has usefully better
> capabilities. But the HP can probably run Linux natively rather than
> in a container.
>
> - USB 3.x with extras vs USB 2.0 (OTG?)
> - 4G RAM vs 2G
> - 64G eMMC vs 32G eMMC
> - 1920x1200 vs 1280x800 resolution
> - warranty support vs no support
>
> If you want a good tablet, and don't need Linux, it is hard to argue
> against iPads.  Android tablets only seem to win when you consider price
> (which I do) or tinkerability.
>
> ChromeOS tablets are probably clunkier than Android tablets but they
> can run Android apps and they get support for many more years.  Linux
> under ChromeOS is supported by Google but Linux under Android is not.
>
> Windows Subsystem for Linux is a potentially interesting thing on
> tablets.  It will not run on 32-bit Windows, and so it won't run on
> this HP.  Actually, the HP hardware is too limited to be officially
> supported by current Window 10, but I think it works.  32G of "disk"
> is a nightmare when running Windows Update.
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