Other than reports that the Android 4.3 update has improved performance on the Nexus 7, Google seems to have addressed the performance degradation issue as well. “It appears that Google has fixed the performance degradation problem with the Nexus 7 by finally adding TRIM support in Android 4.3 (which also applies to all devices that have been upgraded, though I never had any performance issues with my Nexus 4), as noticed by Brian Klug at Anandtech. This means, in theory, that performance on the device should remain usable, even as time goes on and I continue to use my tablet to do all of the things it was designed for. I’ll be watching it closely (and probably be very vocal about it if performance drops off a cliff as it did before), but I actually have a usable tablet once again, and I didn’t have to shell out upwards of $200 again to get there.” My Nexus 7 feels like new now that I’ve wiped my custom ROM and installed stock 4.3. I’m skeptical about whether or not Google has managed to solve the performance loss over time though, since it seems to be caused by low-quality NAND, and not by software.
I’ve noticed my Nexus 7 far less glitchy since I’ve updated.
Love my Nexus 7 so much
*true love*
I must be one of the few unlucky folks to suffer bugs and issues with the upgrade on my Nexus 7. One of the worst is that MX Video is no longer supported, and so far any other third party video players I’ve been able to install (and most won’t anymore) use the built-in Gallery video player instead of their own engine, with no option to use their own. This severely limits supported formats and features like subtitle manipulation. I’m not sure if this is related to the video stack being DRMed from top to bottom as stated on the Android developer page. All I know is that my anime and classic 90s TV shows stopped working.
The other glaring issue is that my screen would lock every ten seconds no matter what I set the timer for (I prefer two minutes since I mainly read books with it).
Neither multiple reboots nor reflashing from the official checksummed 4.3 image would fix these issues, so I’m back on stock 4.2 and everything is smooth sailing.
Have the same problem — both players I used (MX Player and Dice Player) don’t support 4.3 yet.
Try VLC? It’s not available on the Play Store (at least in the US) but the developers produce apk builds.
I’ve thought about that, but it won’t fix the 10-second sleep problem and the other minor issues (Play Store bugs, jittery GUI, etc).
Thought that was for me
How can I upgrade to 4.3 and still keep root? Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that OTA Rootkeeper is supporting 4.3 yet
There are two issues with root in 4.3. Keep in mind I’m very loosely paying attention as I’m waiting for the dust to clear with 4.3 before updating anything to it. So I could be off somewhere, but this is my understanding…
1) setuid is banned on the partition where su normally lives.
2) There is some role based authentication restrictions in the thread that would launch su. Which effectively limits what root can do. I kind of similar to selinux. I’m not sure if its selinux itself or not.
The two big su apps Supersu and superuser have solutions they are working on that involve a separate daemon which the lightweight su apk communicates with. Its kind of hacky, and there are a number of bugs that are still being ironed out.
I imagine ota rootkeeper is similarly affected by these same issues. You have to flash the new supersu or superuser from recovery, it can’t be done from within android itself.
Edited 2013-07-30 22:55 UTC
It uses SELinux, but its supposed to be in permissive mode.
Edited 2013-07-30 23:07 UTC
Just update as normal. After you have 4.3 successfully installed, reboot in fastboot mode (shut down the device and boot pressing VOL-up + VOL-down + Power), connect the usb cable and run CF-Auto-Root from your pc. Follow the simple onscreen instructions and let it reboot. After that you should be good to go. Worked great for me.
Same as you would before: install a new recovery, sideload the updated SuperSU apk and reboot. Here’s a decent writeup (near the bottom): http://www.androidpolice.com/2013/07/26/how-to-update-your-2012-nex…
The main difference currently appears to be that there is no way to simply boot the replacement recovery temporarily as it used to be possible pre-4.3, so you do need to (at least temporarily) flash a custom recovery.
I’ve formatted my hard drive since getting my N7 and don’t have adb and the other crap on my machine anymore. Is there a version of the factory image rom somewhere already rooted, so I can just flash it like a custom rom?
I’ve noticed no difference after upgrading to 4.3, still as laggy as ever. I guess I probably need to factory reset it though.
Haven’t seen any lockups or lags yet, but I just flashed a 4.3 ROM. Chrome was unusable on mine with Switftkey, appears to be working now.
i thought i was seeing things, but i am reassured by seeing other people having the same experience.
unless osnews is all in my head. *inception noise*
I’ve been running CyanogenMod 10 on my Nexus 7 2012 model for quite a long time now (yes, I need those extra config options!) and have never had a slowdown with it, but I do upgrade to a nightly at least once a week.
It looks like CM 10.2 test builds based on Android 4.3 have started coming out, throw in the new CM camera app and you’ll have a setup far better than stock 4.3, IMHO of course. Just as long as they add TRIM to CM 10.2 of course 🙂
Android 4.3 as a first impression works well on my GNex. Switching apps is quicker, more responsive to touch etc.
I’ve been vocal with my criticism of my Nexus 7. I’ve never factory reset it from new (got it about 3 weeks after UK launch.) installing 4.3, nothing changed. It was just as slow. I decided to factory re-set to clear out the cruft. It basically restored my Nexus 7 to how I remember it being at purchase. It’s by no meanserfect, but it is at least usable now.
As I started messing about with AIDE to do some on board dev, I’m pretty happy. I even rooted it, so I can get the logcat info on device! I think I’m sold on a Nexus 4 to replace my iPhone 4. The simple fact that I can install packages from unknown sources wins the argument for me.