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I took my time while testing the new firmware version. Overall performance of the drive has drastically improved and I tested it using both the stock Playbook browser and the GoFlex Media Android App. I was able to convert the app with the help of SCrid2000 who provided the .apk file to me. There are issues with the app, but it loads nevertheless. For those of you who would like to sideload it and test it out, you can find the .bar file here:
com.seagate.goflexsatellite-973.bar - File Shared from Box - Free Online File Storage
The improvments are seen in the overall access speed of the drive. When the browser is connecting to the drive for the first time, it loads much quicker. Once inside the interface, the first problem that stands out are the truncated file names in each section. In the list view there are 12 characters displayed, the thumbnail view has 8 characters displayed and in the folder view it is down to 6 characters. I have read on the Seagate forums that people who had the drive connected to their laptops can hover over the tile with the mouse in order to display the full file name. That is not the case on the Playbook while using the remote control function from my Bold 9900. Firmwares 1.2.0.012 and 1.1.0.005a did not have this issue. The only way one can see the full file name is to start streaming the file and it will appear on the top of the screen along with the resolution of the video.
Every video file that I have tried opens within 1-2 seconds in the browser and starts playing without any issues. I have ran the drive constantly for 6 hours while playing back to back videos without experiencing any drops in streaming. The .m4v demo videos, that came on the GFS and were inaccesible in previous firmwares, now stream perfectly. I have attempted to play .mkv files with Playbook compatible codecs and at first had the same issue as in my previous posts. A message pops up asking me if I want to save the file onto the Playbook. I then changed all the file extensions from .mkv to .avi and files started streaming from the drive instantly. Most of my collection are mkvs with H264 - MPEG-4 AVC (part 10) (avc1) video and AAC or MP3 sound. I wish RIM would bring on .ac3 and .dts support but I understand there are licensing costs. The files with 720P format will stream without stuttering. I have tried videos up to 7-8 GB in size. The 1080P format on the other hand will begin to stutter 5-10 mins into the movie. If one decides to save any file onto the Playbook from the GFS, it will transfer roughly 700mb in 5 minutes. This is the path I'll take to transfer any large file onto my Playbook since the WIFI transfer from my desktop is painfully slow.
I really like the internet WIFI access implemented in this firmware, but it's a hit or miss on the Playbook. When I hit the + sign next to Enable Internet Browsing, the new window most of time appears black and I lose the connection to the GFS alltogether. I have to reconnect to the drive, close my browser, open it again and then proceed to connect to my network. If you only refresh the browser while reconnecting, the crash of the connection to the GFS will keep occuring. Once connected to the internet, any new tab that is open will take you to the browser homepage. In order to access the drive you will have to go to www.goflexsatellite.com. At this point the keyboard somehow wouldn't come up when I tried to enter the web adress so I had to manually bring it up by swiping towards the center from the bottom left corner of the screen. I was not able to find the way to disconnect from the WIFI network. There is a way to forget it which will stop it from automatically connecting in future, but that does not disconnect you from the household wireless network. After using the GFS make sure to close the drive interface in the browser. I tried accessing the internet a few hours later by just being connected to my WIFI network and the browser page kept hanging. I then realized it was looking for the GFS web interface.
The battery life of the drive seems to have gotten worse. I can squeeze out 3 hours of streaming 700 mb avi files before the red light would come on. At this point, according to the manual, there are 50 minutes of the charge left. I never attempted running it until its dry. Streaming HD videos will eat into the battery at a faster pace. I experienced 2.5 hours on average before the red light would appear. With previous firmware versions I was able to get around 4 hours until the red light, while testing 700 mb avi files.
Onto the app.
I was really happy that I was able to convert it to a .bar file. There were minor errors that were seen during the conversion. I can post a log for someone more knowledgable to take a look at it. Initially the app did not start, but after restarting the Playbook I was able to get into it. It seems to only work in portrait mode. The layout is nicer compared to the browser and the file names are fully shown. However, when I try to watch videos I keep getting the "Format not supported in native or currently installed apps." error. If you click done it takes you back to the file list. Hitting next will play the same original demo in the browser no matter which file you try to play. The app is also missing the Stream and Download option from the iOS app that supposedly extends the baterry life of the GFS to 8 hours.I would appreciate if someone can try the app and post their comments.
That's it for now. Overall I'm very happy with the new firmware. A few of these bugs need to be ironed out and that would make me completely satisfied. Ability to use the app would be the icing on the cake.
03-17-12 09:06 AM
