IQ Android Apps for PocketBook IQ 701

[K-Thom]

You have to insert a SD card first to which you upload the Apps via USB or WiFi.

And make sure to disconnect the device from USB and pull out the cable before installing any Apps.

[speedtouch]

Whoops, wrong post. Mods, please delete this post.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by asjogren

When installing from a file copied via the USB cable, it just says "Not installed" when I use the File Explorer App.

I've gotten that response with a couple apks. Trying it a second time immediately has gotten the install to work.

I've also gotten a couple of "APK failed to parse" error messages. One from an app that won't settle for Android 2.0 but demands 2.01 or higher. Not 2 or 2.1. but 2.01

Most apks install fine.

And the bundled file manager sucks rivets. Haven't found a good one that wasn't ad-ware yet.

[Dulin's Books]

i am going thru my apps one at a time making sure i have the correct apks that install and then i will revive the list. sorry its taking longer than anticipated. strange day and busy tomorrow.

the good news is that i do have a nook and you tube and a few others i didnt have before- including launcherpro mentioned above. skyfire too

[syoggy]

Most of the free ones have ads... But my favotrite is Astro File Manager, it does a lot more than manage files. You can back up apps, install apps, look at pictures, etc. Very powerful and easy to use.

[katzki]

Originally Posted by asjogren

I just received my PocketBook IQ yesterday. And I cannot seem to install any App or download any App. When downloading, "There is not enough space". When installing from a file copied via the USB cable, it just says "Not installed" when I use the File Explorer App.

There must be something very simple that I missed. Any suggestions?

I have the pre-November 20 firmware. I have deleted all the included eBooks except those in English and Spanish. I have copied 3 PDF eBooks of my own to the IQ and they work reasonably well.

I have the same problem. After installing 7-8 apps, I could not install apps any more for the lack of memory. So I had to uninstall one to install another. It's kind of annoying that you have to deal with such a small memory space. I'm assuming this is a problem of the android 2.0, then am eagerly waiting for the Froyo update.

[asjogren]

What *is* the limitation you run into? Is it space on the internal SD card? If so, can this be replaced?

The PanDigital Novel (white) apparently can easily replace the internal SD card. There are instructions on how to do it that are easily found online.

Would increasing the capacity of the internal SD Card relieve the memory constraint? Or, is there another barrier?

On my IQ, it shows that I have 40MB available when no externals SD card is inserted. Yet I have not been able to install anything. It is a pre-November 20 firmware.

[katzki]

Originally Posted by asjogren

What *is* the limitation you run into? Is it space on the internal SD card? If so, can this be replaced?

The PanDigital Novel (white) apparently can easily replace the internal SD card. There are instructions on how to do it that are easily found online.

Would increasing the capacity of the internal SD Card relieve the memory constraint? Or, is there another barrier?

On my IQ, it shows that I have 40MB available when no externals SD card is inserted. Yet I have not been able to install anything. It is a pre-November 20 firmware.

The limitation is not from the space of the internal SD which has more than 1.5gb free space now. I guess there is a flash memory part in the device and that memory space is so small that we cannot install many apps. I think this problem is from the OS, android 2.0. Or I'd like to hear any other answers or solutions for this problem.

[asjogren]

Update: I found an old version of Astro File Manager and was able to install it. It did not work, however, because it had expired and I could not accept the license agreement. It did uninstall successfully.

I get 2 different views of space availability on the internal SD card. The view from a Windows PC attached by the USB cable shows 1.5GB available. But, on the IQ "Settings/SD Card" it shows only 40MB.

[speedtouch]

Originally Posted by katzki

The limitation is not from the space of the internal SD which has more than 1.5gb free space now. I guess there is a flash memory part in the device and that memory space is so small that we cannot install many apps. I think this problem is from the OS, android 2.0. Or I'd like to hear any other answers or solutions for this problem.

Right. The limitation is the 256MB flash memory where Android resides. Unfortunately, right now, Android doesn't know how to use other storage areas as places to install programs. Hopefully Android 2.1/2.2 will resolve this for us.

[mtravellerh]

Originally Posted by asjogren

I just received my PocketBook IQ yesterday. And I cannot seem to install any App or download any App. When downloading, "There is not enough space". When installing from a file copied via the USB cable, it just says "Not installed" when I use the File Explorer App.

There must be something very simple that I missed. Any suggestions?

I have the pre-November 20 firmware. I have deleted all the included eBooks except those in English and Spanish. I have copied 3 PDF eBooks of my own to the IQ and they work reasonably well.

Um, do you use an SD card?

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by mtravellerh

Um, do you use an SD card?

I do. And I have the same issue.

I'm looking into it.
It's looking like the built-in Pocketbook bookshelf is eating up major chunks of flash storage to index ebooks, cause it is currently using up as much as 14 MB of the very limited program installation space and I can't add more than the six currently installed.
Earlier it was using 7Mb and I had about 10 installed apps.
Plus its been chewing up CPU cycles like crazy and popping up "Pocketbook widget is not responding" alerts.

I'll have a more detailed report when I'm done, but this looks like the time and place to report that I've been testing ebook readers and browsers left and right and sadly the only reader that passes muster is... Kindle.

Not sure where the other apps get their reps because they all come with show-stopping limitations and quirks.
One, Laputa, won't even open its own sample book.
fbreader has a zillion tag-based settings but when fed a calibre-generated ePub it dropped all "character" formating; no bolds, no italics.
Aldiko can't see ebooks until you put them into a special "import" location and then it seems to copy them into the same limited space as the program installs. It looks pretty and it does use the volume buttons to page but it looks to be more interested in fronting for its online book sources than managing an SD card full of books.

And, most... bewildering... from a book reading point of view, a device with an instant redraw display is burdened with reading apps (Pocketbooks included) that *intentionally* slow page turning down with distracting slideshow paging. The only app that (when all OS animations are shut down) instantly redaws the page is... Kindle.

Now, I haven't tried Kobo or Nook yet; I wanted to try the open ePub apps first. But so far, the best use for the IQ is as a color Kindle.
Easily worth the price for me. And that was my minimal expectation for the device: a color Kindle that can surf the net. I *was* hoping for some added value from the Pocketbooks apps (the dictionary app is *exactly* what I expected. Great. Too bad the reader app doesn't let me tap on a word to feed it to the dictionary.)

I can live with this thing but I don't think it'll be doing the Bookland effort much good if the best reading experience is with the Kindle app.

Now, I suspect the Bookshelf and Pocketbook reader app issues will go away if and when the mystery update drops but I have to wonder about the internal communications and development process that *created* that Bookshelf and reading app. (It doesn't look like something the Guys in Kiev would put out, frankly. Was it contracted out?) A device with a limited pool of application-installation space does not look to me like it should be hosting an application that eats it up with housekeeping files than can easily be allocated to the 2GB storage space or the SD card. Especially when its a non-removable piece of the package.

I'm satisfied enough but I suspect there are going to be a few really ticked off folks out there with how un-Pocketbook-ish this Pocketbook is, right now.

[mtravellerh]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

I do. And I have the same issue.

I'm looking into it.
It's looking like the built-in Pocketbook bookshelf is eating up major chunks of flash storage to index ebooks, cause it is currently using up as much as 14 MB of the very limited program installation space and I can't add more than the six currently installed.
Earlier it was using 7Mb and I had about 10 installed apps.
Plus its been chewing up CPU cycles like crazy and popping up "Pocketbook widget is not responding" alerts.

I'll have a more detailed report when I'm done, but this looks like the time and place to report that I've been testing ebook readers and browsers left and right and sadly the only reader that passes muster is... Kindle.

Not sure where the other apps get their reps because they all come with show-stopping limitations and quirks.
One, Laputa, won't even open its own sample book.
fbreader has a zillion tag-based settings but when fed a calibre-generated ePub it dropped all "character" formating; no bolds, no italics.
Aldiko can't see ebooks until you put them into a special "import" location and then it seems to copy them into the same limited space as the program installs. It looks pretty and it does use the volume buttons to page but it looks to be more interested in fronting for its online book sources than managing an SD card full of books.

And, most... bewildering... from a book reading point of view, a device with an instant redraw display is burdened with reading apps (Pocketbooks included) that *intentionally* slow page turning down with distracting slideshow paging. The only app that (when all OS animations are shut down) instantly redaws the page is... Kindle.

Now, I haven't tried Kobo or Nook yet; I wanted to try the open ePub apps first. But so far, the best use for the IQ is as a color Kindle.
Easily worth the price for me. And that was my minimal expectation for the device: a color Kindle that can surf the net. I *was* hoping for some added value from the Pocketbooks apps (the dictionary app is *exactly* what I expected. Great. Too bad the reader app doesn't let me tap on a word to feed it to the dictionary.)

I can live with this thing but I don't think it'll be doing the Bookland effort much good if the best reading experience is with the Kindle app.

Now, I suspect the Bookshelf and Pocketbook reader app issues will go away if and when the mystery update drops but I have to wonder about the internal communications and development process that *created* that Bookshelf and reading app. (It doesn't look like something the Guys in Kiev would put out, frankly. Was it contracted out?) A device with a limited pool of application-installation space does not look to me like it should be hosting an application that eats it up with housekeeping files than can easily be allocated to the 2GB storage space or the SD card. Especially when its a non-removable piece of the package.

I'm satisfied enough but I suspect there are going to be a few really ticked off folks out there with how un-Pocketbook-ish this Pocketbook is, right now.

Aldiko works quite nicely for me. Fbreader has hyphenation. Of course, if you say that Aldiko gobbles up memory .... Kindle is (looks around if nobody sees him stating that) indeed the best and fastest reading app on the IQ. But just you wait till our guys have developped their final version.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by mtravellerh

Aldiko works quite nicely for me. Fbreader has hyphenation. Of course, if you say that Aldiko gobbles up memory .... Kindle is (looks around if nobody sees him stating that) indeed the best and fastest reading app on the IQ. But just you wait till our guys have developped their final version.

I sure hope so.
I'm looking for a universal "hardcover" reader to supplement my go-everywhere PB360 "paperback" reader.
I'm willing to wait and I'm willing to experiment but I'm pretty sure I'm atypical in that.
Pocketbook has worked hard to build its reputation and credibility in the ebook reader space and this is a pretty critical time (the end of the beginning) and native software quality is Pocketbook's calling card. The IQ reader needs more than just one sans-serif font; it needs to integrate its dictionary support. Ideally you want to match the PB360 reading experience and let readers use an extensions file (or panel) in a unified bookshelf to centrally manage multiple reader apps for different file types. (Send Kindle azw to Kindle, DRM'ed epub to the native, app, etc). Lots of room to add value above the generic Android webpad floor.
The good news is the GIK obviously understand this; they implemented it in the eink readers, after all. :-)

I can wait.
I just fear that others won't be as patient.
(Off to try Kobo, next. And to verify where Aldiko puts its stuff.)

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

(Off to try Kobo, next. And to verify where Aldiko puts its stuff.)

Correction: I'm off to test an update.
See here.
Thanks, Mtraveller.
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...&postcount=436