Here is the Alpha!

Hello,

Alpha ROM as expected is available for download. MrDead Locked played a lot on this new latest ROM, so lets start with a video first:

I am sure you will love this ROM.

Major fixes include:

  • Audio
  • Sensors (including Compass)
  • Bluetooth
  • Sleep bug partially fixed (you need to change the wi-fi policy for this)
    • In case you have installed and device is not coming out of sleep, there is a re-set button near the MicroSD card. Press it to reset the device. Once it boots, turn on wifi, go to advanced settings, set “Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep” to “Never”. It’s a known bug (mentioned in the blog as well) and will be resolved in the next drop. 

      You must keep the “Wi-Fi on during sleep” set to Never.

  • Hardware Acceleration
  • Accelerated Video
  • Wi-Fi
  • HDMI Video (no sound)
  • Capacitive Buttons
  • Back Buttons
  • SD Card Mount
  • GPS
  • 120dpi launcher fix
  • 0.39 Kernel
What’s left:
  • 3G, though it’s working on kernel level now
  • Camera
  • USB plugged-in at boot
  • USB mass storage and MTP
  • USB Flash Drive
  • Light Sensor
  • Sleep Bug
  • Video Acceleration for High Quality YouTube Video
  • HDMI Sound
You can download the update from these links:
Please be sure to read THIS before you install.
Further, you can follow development and comments on LINK on TR. Special thanks to RaYmAn, MrDead Locked, MrGuy, kushiels, Ankit and Rohit. 
Let’s discuss some stuff on Camera:
  • Camera implementation in ICS is very different from the older ones. There are new features and only stable platform is OMAP since they had a head start in getting ICS, add to it the lack of support from NVidia on any Harmony platform.
  • New added features in ICS are Face Detection (which is OMAP implementation), Zero Shutter Lag, Migration to Kernel 3.0, Sensor Polls the Accelerometer Input, Multiple Auto Focus Region Support, Multiple Metering Area Support, Face Unlock, Launching Camera from Locked Screen and new application of course.
  • All these changes on the User Space demands a lot of changes on the proprietary architecture of Tegra, which of course is proprietary.
  • This ultimately means that a lot of effort will be involved in fixing the camera, but we stay positive on fixing it asap.

There is a change in NInk’s strategy which was reflected in CES as well. You will seeing even lesser of NI in press. All meetings were private and confidential, and purely meant for business (in fact only business development team was at CES). Hence no public releases from CES, but there will be one coming next week, after which we will be sharing the developments on the next generation.

Post the mentioned public release, we will be starting another blog. It will focus only on development, and we will again see a new device coming to life. Unlike last time where the hardware was mostly done out-house, this time every resistor, IC, bus lane, etc is designed and selected on the very computer working on this blog. We will try to involve as many professionals as possible so the new blog can become a reference for new developments!

A very busy and productive year awaits us!

Warm Regards

Rohan Shravan

97 thoughts on “Here is the Alpha!”

  5. Good to hear from you about this “Work in Progrss”
    Thanks for the update… 🙂

  6. Hi Rohan,
    You do a good job of keeping only positive comments on your blog.
    try opening the moderation and let the world see What they have to say about you.
    do you care to tell the world what work Notion ink does and what is done by tabletroms.(which i know is the major player in all the releases).
    Stop thinking about next generation and care to deliver on the job at hand.
    And let my views be shown to the world.dnont delete my comment.

  8. Look good.Great work,
    Thank you to all who are doing the work on this.
    Looking forward to what NI bring out next.

  9. Thanks for the latest update Rohan, great work TR.
    MrDeadlocked, hope your dad is doing fine now.
    Looking forward to all the new announcements.

  10. Updated to ICS alpha.
    Thanks to NI, TR and MrDead Locked, USB MOUSE IS WORKING. 🙂
    as my touch screen is not working at the moment and for some reasons i cant send it to repair.

  12. Looks smooth . Waiting for Market. Keyboard certain keystrokes not responding consistently. But its predictive texting is good. Not worried about camera but Flex

  13. hi NI/TR!
    thank You for ICS, what a great work! i think (i´m not a geek), adam has a very good hardware, we (costumer) need just a fine working software like ICS… please don´t leave us, with eden or gingerbear (stable) and hc or ics (alpha) alone. i like my adam very much, the pixelqi is the most favorite and unique thing on the tablet market. i couldn´t find any other tablet with stable ics and working pixleqi. so, thank You so much again and please get the last things working (camera, usb, etc…)
    have a nice day, best regards!

  16. Any particular reason why it doesn’t have Android Market installed? I tried intalling it myself and tried installing apps via the webversion, but I can’t get it do download anything.

  19. There is no hiding that this is a team effort. I really don’t see why it matters if people are on the official payroll. The tabletroms guys do it for the love of open source development and community praise. I like this unique relationship as do the guys or they wouldn’t do it. I really wish more manufactures would wake up and cherish these types of relationships.

  22. so does that indicate that no camera anytime soon and then again a new version of android and NI embarks on the journey to get that right?

  23. Even though its slow, it looks stable. Not even a single crash? 😀 That’s great in itself.
    Watching the progress, on each and every step.. 🙂 🙂 Beautiful. 🙂

  24. Can some body let me know, how to watch videos, play songs(like play list) and read pdf documents with this Alpha release…

  25. Works great, first attempt thanks NI, TR
    Initially didn’t show any of my media files, rebooted started showing them now…

    Just checking ….no market? google maps? video has it?
    or only me…?

  26. I have not tried the Alpha yet. I went back to AC3v after trying preAlpha. Can someone confirm if the Alpha release has market access or there is a way to install market afterwards.
    MrD’s video clearly shows market access but its also not listed under major fixes so little hesitant here. Otherwise video looks awesome.

    Hats of to all the developers who put a lot of time in putting this together.

    Cheers,
    Neelesh

  27. Much impressed with the quick response from NI on alpha ICS.

    I’ll wait for the beta ICS for my adam.

    My Samsung Galaxy Nexus Smartphone will satisfy my ICS craving.

  30. Hi Team NI/TR, Thnx! to you all & special thanx to Mr.DeadLocked & Mr.Guy for their time & efforts 🙂
    You guys have turned a raw piece of good hardware to a considerably a better one. It is to be appreciated 🙂

    Rohan i am very much keen on using my adam primarily for note taking for business purpose espically after this ICS alpha release. Therefore expecting a direct word from you out here, to please suggest & recommend us on a convincing app for serious note taking & a perfect stylus for this purpose to pair it with our adam.

    Having that apart. I am also looking forward to a advanced control app through which i could control my RC helecopter. Some what like a digital control pad to control my RC hele with the help of may be WiFi or Bluetooth signals, if this could be technically possible. The signalling could take place with the the buildin internal Wifi & Bluetooth technology or with the help of attached external amp to the adam.

  31. Hi ramchi,

    there are already googleapps to install for market.
    Take a look at “http://www.tabletroms.com/forums/ice-cream-sandwich-adam/3560-android-4-0-x-adam-%5Bwip%5D%5Baosp-cm%5D.html”
    In the first post is a link where you can download Gapps for adam.
    Install the Gapps like you installed ICS Alpha.

    cheers, alex

  32. Was working great -> then it fell asleep. Now it won’t wake up. Red LED is on, no yellow heartbeat, holding down power button to reset does nothing.

    Any ideas?

  33. wooohooooo…..yipeeee…..finally a confirmation from the man himself about “a new device coming to life”….can’t get better than that

  35. Thanks a bunch. Let me try out.

    Is it possible to nvflash from this ROM/CWM? I could not get the recovery mode able to nvflash (just in case if I want to go back to other ROMs).

  36. For me CMW installs fine, but None of menu actions in CMW work , so I cant wipe data or install ICS Alpha

  37. Even my Adam gone into coma – any body have solution to wake it up? Should we wait till all power got drained?

  39. Try this link as well,

    notioninkhacks.com/index.php/2011/01/28/video-how-to-unbrick-and-update-your-adam/

  40. @ramchi:
    nvflash from NI should work always, I suppose. I have used it couple of times today(when my Adam gets bricked)

  41. It seems you are changing the default recovery. Is there any way to go back to the default Eden 1.0 if anything goes wrong, or do we have to go back to the original unbrick method?

  42. There is a re-set button near the MicroSD card. Press it to reset the device. Once it boots, turn on wifi, go to advanced settings, set “Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep” to “Never”. It’s a known bug (mentioned in the blog as well) and will be resolved in the next drop.

    Regards

  43. “There is a re-set button near the MicroSD card. Press it to reset the device. Once it boots, turn on wifi, go to advanced settings, set “Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep” to “Never”. It’s a known bug (mentioned in the blog as well) and will be resolved in the next drop.

    Regards”

  44. Thanks. But my PC unable to recognize USB device. Not sure if I have to install new driver after installing ICS / CWM recovery.

  50. Nice ROM !! Thanks to the works of TR guys and NI support we are now able to taste the sweet ICS.
    One small glitch, I’m unable to run Titanium Backup with root so unable to restore my applications 😦
    I installed busybox (reboot) too but the same error… any idea ?

  54. The only thing is that your external SD card is the \sdcard now and not the internal SD card. So If I install programs that i used to have in my internal(in previous ROM), it wont replace those files; it will create files in the external card again.

  55. Bluetooth keyboard and mouse works great. With this, the Adam becomes a good Google TV alternative (minus the HDMI sound).

  57. Thanks. Now I am able to get back to older version and now I am back to ICS Alfa!

    WiFi stability and coverage is really good.

    Smoother UI and browsing is also good. Initially Market was delaying but then it is OK.

    Camera is not a showstopper for me though it may be useful for Skype calling etc…

    I am really looking at educational apps from NI.

    This is lot lot lot better than AdamComb IMO.

  58. Engadget has mentioned the Notionink ICS Alpha in their website. Check out the comments too:

    “http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/16/notion-ink-adam-ics-update/”

  59. I must thank Notion Ink for releasing an usable rom. although I am using Deadcreme I believe it is same as NI release with root access. I have been now using it for about 3 days and I have found it to be reasonably stable. of course I am expecting NI to release further upgrades so that Adam becomes stable enough to be used by non-tachie like me. and that is where my worries lie. I would want ni to keep supporting people like me by making adam stable and user friendly.

    I urge Rohan to continue the communication flowing and not become insular as suggested in his post. Given that the ni website has very limited and static information Rohan’s blog has been the only means of communication and this must continue if ni hopes to sell its adam2 and other stuff in future. I suppose ni has learnt the hard way in managing user expectations and that learning must be put to good use so that ni becomes a much better company.

    I wish great success for ni.

  60. Will work on the WiFi include proper implementation of TUN/TAP & co?

    This might come in handy when using VPN connections – until now i failed with this but especially in an university environment VPN & network architecture is pretty important.

    A few days ago my adam jumped off the table… it’s still working finde, but the on the backside there are two cracks. Not as bad, though – now it’s really mine 🙂 (nobody would want it anyway)

  61. The backpanel costed me just 100 rs ( around $2) when I sent my ADAM for battery replacement to NI. Its a pity though that you can’t order panel from NI & do a self repair.

  62. I have installed this ROM however I cannot download any apps from the android market. How does the ADAM displayed have all those apps? Please let us know how to download apps.

  63. You can use recovery mode to install Market/Google Apps zip using “Install from Zip” just like you did with Alpha ICS zip file

    For this :while u were downloading the Alpha ICS file you should have downloaded the Google App zip file also.

  64. Ok, i need help. I cannot put this on my adam. I have the 2.2 version. I got my adam january 18 2012. And the videos i found dont have the links that work. If someone can make a video or something please let me kno i think it might be the type of sd card. But its brand new..thanks

  65. Can anyone please tell me if NI Plans on releasing their on OTA ICS update for the adam that can be downloaded and installed with the update buttons on our adams? or will the only way to update to ICS be by using a rom?

  66. Rohan,
    Thanks for the update on the new device.
    Although I am a tech Geek like u guys …. i find it very interesting to read the blog.
    I am eagerly looking for the new device … and read the updates.

  68. When I attempt to apply the ROM it lists out several “init: cannot find” errors and then stops at “adb_open(adbd)”. Any fix for this?

  69. LevPius: Thanks for the pointer! I got all the files from TR and finally have CWM installed! There must be something about this installer that works better than the default. Both the file from Link1 in this post and the one provided in the TR forum have the same MD5 checksum, so I think that they must be identical.
    Great NEWS! The blue tooth stuff works great! I can now use my Logitech keyboard (the one with the same semi-pregnant profile as the Adam) and it works great!
    The only thing of import that I have found so far is that the camera still doesn’t work. Google market works fine and I’m slowly installing all my old favorites. My Adam has finally become useful again.
    Great work from the masters at Tablet ROMs! Time to put some work into The Tablet Post and get a review out there.
    WOW!
    BTW, what is DEADcream?
    Luck,

  71. ICS-Alpha is running on my ADAM! Fine!!

    I have no market-access and because I’m not a technical genius I didn’t understand the advices to get access 😦

    Anyone here who can explain step-by-step??

    Many thanks!! Stefan

    By the way: If battery is fully loaded there is displayed “51%” and it drains very quick!

    No GPS (inside, at a place where I usually get several satellites-signals)

  72. @dwarf: what you did was probably Alpha ICS

    DEADcreme is another rom flavor . rooted:
    “http://www.tabletroms.com/forums/ice-cream-sandwich-adam/4171-detailed-guide-installing-ics-ni-adam.html”

  73. @bestmichels:
    Get ROMs you see here:
    “http://www.tabletroms.com/forums/ice-cream-sandwich-adam/3560-android-4-0-x-adam-%5Bwip%5D%5Baosp-cm%5D.html”

    I have not put DEADcreme (you can chose between DEADcreme or ICS alpha.as your ROM) . ICS does not have root.

    One main thing is to download all these files put them in the root folder of SD card(before you start out):
    i) Clockwork Mod Recovery. “Update.zip” — Your recovery mode
    ii) ICS alpha “adam_AlphaICS.zip” file
    iii) Gapps zip file “Google_apps_adam.zip” – Market Access

    I was writing my steps, but the steps recently updated on TabletROMS are your best bet, even in terms of readablity :
    “http://www.tabletroms.com/forums/ice-cream-sandwich-adam/4171-detailed-guide-installing-ics-ni-adam.html”

    Other points:

    1) Just dont miss any steps especially wipe data, wipe cache partition, wipe cache, wipe battery statistics

    2) Also, you can chose to use DEADcreme.zip instead of “adam_AlphaICS.zip”

    3) One bad news, since you already have ICS alpha. I think you have to do NVFlash to get all the files you need in the SD card, unless someone can suggest you any other way of getting those files there.
    (For NV Flash see : “http://conclave.notionink.com/showthread.php?739-Eden-1.5-Update-instruction-using-NVFlash-Windows”)

    4) Perseverance

  74. I followed the guide

    – Copy update.zip and adam_AlphaICS.zip to the external sdcard.
    – Start the device in recovery mode.
    – Select Install update.zip from external SD Card(Thanks to DJ_Steve for the recovery image)
    – Once complete, reboot to recovery mode again

    As i got to this point I could not choose any options(nothing happened when clicked home or when i clicked on the power button. I attempted a restart which has left my Adam in a state where nothing can be done anymore, cant get into the recovery mode and cannot boot. There is not error messages or loading screen just a litten up screen and a red led on the side. Any ideas of what to do?

    Kind regards
    Pär

  75. there is a Pin-hole for reset near the SD card slot. That should do something for you.

  78. @Percy: I am pretty sure, even I has similar issues if not same. So before you even go on to NVFlash, can you make sure you did install the correct recovery mode (update.zip) from tabletroms. That is the key I suppose.

    Do let us know what exactly you have done so far, so that we can suggest

  79. To Rohan:I have heard a lot of grumbling on this blog about how much you seem to be relying on Tablet ROMs developers to get ICS ready for release on the Adam. I know that at least one Notion Ink developer is a part of the TR team, and I also know that NI has provided funds and source code to the TR team. I was very pleased to hear you give more specifics than normal in a recent reply on the blog and suggest here that you make a clearer statement to your readers about the relationship between Notion Ink and Tablet ROMs. One of the worst features about these blogs is their ability to promote misinformation and distrust. A clear statement from you could go a long way toward repairing some of that.
    On a different note: I am very interested in seeing what the Adam II looks like, and hope that the discount for us early adopters/owners of the Adam I will be enough to allow me (and others) to actually try one out and compare its advances.
    Hoping for many new things from Notion Ink…

  80. Hey about the Adam 2. Keep that little curve on the end because it is much easier to carry. And also put a light on the menu buttons so at night I can tell where the back button is. And a minor thing is the USB ports, there upside down i don’t know if thats how there suppossed to be but it’s kinda weird having it upside down. Keep the swivel camera I think that defines the Adam and get the screen resolution up to atleast the iPad 2 because i don’t know if its me but the screen sometimes doesn’t seem as clear. And get an off button not a switch. That’s not major but it could be an improvement. And before you decide to release the new Adam PLEASE get these bugs out. And have the android market on it thru an update. Because it was nearly impossible for me to be able to root it because when I download them it won’t install for some reason. But I love how loud the speakers are already and how the QI is. But it could be improved majorly. And another must have is that it needs to be made with better quality. Because when I first got it I was disappointed how it felt, it felt plastic or something but what’s inside the Adam is amazing. I believe that once they start releasing updates through the Adam and have android market and stuff without having to root it. It will beat the iPad.

  81. i can no longer charge my battery, it says it has zero % charge
    my guess is the battery is fully charged and cannot accept any more charge, so it thinks it is empty
    how can i fix this

  83. @ levpius
    Many thanks for your detailed instructions- I will try this the next days!

    I wonder when NI will release it’s official ICS…

    best regards, Stefan

  84. bestmichels: I too am hoping for a completed, official release of ICS from Notion Ink. Their collaboration with the Tablet ROMS developers has been very productive, although both development organizations seem to have some trouble completing projects…
    Waiting is,

  85. Kevin, it is much too early in the development cycle to be expecting an official release. While I hope that NI eventually gets back to the OTA updates, that is probably one of the last steps in the development cycle. We haven’t even reached a Beta release yet, so either try the Alpha or be patient and wait for the bugs to get worked out. We are all hoping for a completed development cycle on ICS.
    Luck,

  86. Burt, If you want some help getting it fixed, let me know (dwarf42 at gmail dot com) I can get the parts and fix it for you. On the other hand, duct tape or Sugru might be just as good 😉
    Luck,

  89. Rohan, it will be great if you could share updates on the ICS beta release. Even if its going to take a while to fix ICS get it fully operational, its always to know the plan.

    Cheers,
    N_S_D

  90. Dear Notion Ink Team

    I tried to install the new OS with the shared software in Link 1 & 2. The first “update” from update.zip worked good, but now in Recovery Mode the menu is showing, but even when I activate “reboot system now” the tablet shows up a screen with a hat and a circle arrow. I waited one hour, but nothing happend.
    But that’s all… =( It’s possible to go back to the recovery menue by pressing the button on the screen above the “back” button.
    Is there a way to reinstall ClockwordMod Recovery? I have now the v3.0.0.5.
    I tried to follow all steps on the blog “http://www.tabletroms.com/forums/ice-cream-sandwich-adam/4171-detailed-guide-installing-ics-ni-adam.html” but its seems that the recory mode is not working properly.

    Thanks in advance for any help!
    Florian

  91. We are already in Feb and the email from Notion Ink said that ICS beta can be expected by end of Jan ’12.
    Any updates on this end Rohan?

    N_S_D

  92. Yes, it has been quite a while since the original Alpha release. While I can wait a while for the camera to work, and that probably means the video component as well, the freeze/lockup problem needs to be addressed. The more I use it the more often I get a system hang. The first time it corrupted encryption so I had to re-install. I’m using CWM’s backup now, so that hasn’t happened, but I’ve had one lockup while it was sleeping and the other while I was reading with the Kindle app.
    Rohan, we need continuing development efforts to bring this to Beta. I know Adam 2 is more interesting, but don’t leave us Adam 1 users out in the cold.
    Waiting is,

  93. I had already informed about those links to NI. The link(for CWMod recovery ) from wherever you got them is bad.
    (I know you got them from this blog.)
    Just go to Tabletroms, get their files and do all the steps they have recommended(especially the steps for WiFi and security lock)

  94. @dwarf4242

    I am back to AC3 as a disaster happened when I was copying files from internal Adam memory to SDCard( using internal memory as a staging area). The screen times out and I could not get it to turn on again to see if the copying was complete. Left it at that stage and eventually I think it shutdown, even on power cord. Next time when I booted Adam it refused to recognize the SDCard and found that the card is not readable anymore (from a PC) and had to destroy it. Moral of the story, I am little hesitant to work with alpha version after burning my hands and loosing some data. I understand that the risk is given and I am totally responsible for it.
    Going back to AC3 was a better choice even if it means taking a lot of pain to install and set up apps all over again.
    just waiting for goodies ….

  96. @ dwarf4242
    Not sure why but my comment with the link to AC3 has been pending under moderation, not surprised at all. Just just search for tableroms adamcomb on google and you will get to the site.

    N_S_D

  97. I figured that was where it was, I just wasn’t sure what to search for.
    I can’t ever get past moderation with embedded URLs, even when I quote them (quotes seem to work for some folks). So I do something like: dwarf42 at gmail dot com (or similar) and that always gets through.
    Luck,

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