Will Ubuntu save my now unsupported android tablet?

[hyperlinxe]

Hi guys, I was wondering what the status is for ubuntu working with android tablets/phones, I have an old tablet, that I got several years ago, and it was a very nice system for a long time. But when I starting playing around with it again recently I discovered that android stops producing updates for older systems. It's an older tablet, but it's really strange that in the time I stopped using it, there are no updates whatsoever... maybe 6 years? So they basically stopped updating it, soon after they put it on the market because I got it brand new, used it for a couple years, had it updated, then have left it off for a long time after that, so I am totally unable to get any more updates for it from that time period.

It's really strange to me, firefox which has darkmode and support for security extensions is totally broken, even though the system hasn't changed since I last used it several years ago, google products all work fine, and I can't get any system updates now whatsoever. I've never even turned on the system since it was working perfectly years ago, and all of the sudden firefox is broken? And chrome is just fine? Anyways I searched around android forums, and other forums for answers, and discovered they simply stop supplying updates, so I am unable to fix my android tablet at this point, unless I can get a custom linux operating system for it.

( I even managed to update firefox, from the google play store, and it was still broken!)

I *could* technically fix it as well by installing a new android version with unsupported methods, but why the hell would anyone do something that stupid, when we have linux!

[TheFu]

Linux moves forward every day. Devices that use non-standard hardware, which nearly all Android devices do, lose any desire for anyone to ensure they continue working. The GPU drivers are usually proprietary and nobody makes any others. When those cannot link to the newest kernels, which happens quicker with proprietary driver "blobs" and when a new libc is created based on the newest kernels, things start to break.

If you remove the GUI, you'll find other, newer things, can work. When I put xubuntu onto my 2010 tablet, the method used was to use the Android kernel at the time and run xubuntu inside a chroot and access it using VNC. As you can imaging, in 2010, the tablets only had 1GB of RAM, so it was a tight fit to have RAM and CPU capable of running

• Android
• chroot - xubuntu
• VNC-server
• VNC client

In the end, I wasn't able to get the keyboard mapping correct and gave up. My solution at the time was to get the cheapest chromebook I could ($200) and use that instead. After a few months running LUbuntu inside a chroot under ChromeOS with a "guest" login, I wiped the system, broke the hardware protection to prevent loading other OSes and loaded Lubuntu into the Chromebook. With only 16GB of SSD storage, it wasn't exactly tight, but it wasn't clear fields of empty storage either.

I haven't touched that old tablet in years. It must be around somewhere. I need to wipe the storage and see about getting some "recycle" credits from the local office products store. It is recycling season here. I've been saving all my old electronics in a few boxes for that specific use. Same for old, dead, batteries. Too bad old paint cans don't get any credits.

[hyperlinxe]

Maybe I can fix it if I can use something besides google play store to manage my apps.... I ran that old tablet just like any other computer, but now certain apps I like such as firefox are totally broken! The support we get from android and the manufacturer is summed up in, buy something new, or update. I want to get the system I already have working basically. I'm not concerned about having the newest kernel or gpu driver. I just want to use basic apps like firefox instead of chrome...maybe download a video or a pdf file and use a pdf viewer or vlc. In other words I just want to restore it's basic functionality, which is now mysteriously broken.

[him610]

@TheFu

Too bad old paint cans don't get any credits.

Loved that comment; it made me chuckle.

[Irihapeti]

There are other varieties of Linux that will run on old phones and tablets. You could try looking at postmarketOS and see if your tablet is one that it will run on. I have it running on an old Motorola phone from 2016, which originally used Android 6.

[hyperlinxe]

I thought Ubuntu was making a "mobile" OS? Isn't that what I'm talking about? Is ubuntu making an OS to replace android and google OS's on phones and tablets?

[QIII]

That project was abandoned years ago.

[hyperlinxe]

Alright guys thanks for the advice. I know there are a few projects out there in internet land that can fix it. I might try playing around with the old os, ..., i think it's android 7.1 or something, and see if I can get my mysteriously shouldn't be broken apps, not broken again. It's really strange that for an OS that undergoes literally no changes. 100% no changes whatsoever. All of the sudden apps start breaking. Ideally I'll find a linux OS to fix it? Maybe not? Same problems there?

[QIII]

Android is a 'nix.

[hyperlinxe]

google nix... not gnu nix right...