Tag: DisplayLink

Build an Android Superbook with DisplayLink adapter

About Superbook A couple of days ago, I saw an interesting Kickstarter project called Superbook. The Superbook is a shell that turns your Android smartphone into a laptop. It’s created by the Andromium team, backers have pledged more than eight hundred thousand dollars for this project. You should take a look at their Kickstarter project page: http://getsuperbook.com/ After reading the introduction of Superbook, I think it is kind of familiar with LapDock 100, which is launched by Motorola couple of years ago. While LapDock is designed for Motorola smartphones like ME865 or Atrix. If you want to use LapDock for other devices, then your device must be capable of USB Host/OTG and HDMI output function, also you need to prepare kinds of converter adapters/cables. The main features of Superbook includes: Support all Android smartphone with USB OTG function; 11.6” HD Display with 1366x768 resolution; 10 hours of battery, charge your phone when connected; Support Raspberry Pi and other MiniPC type devices; Multi-Touch trackpad & keyboard, also include an extra USB port; Access all data in Android phone (familiar with LapDock and ASUS PadFone Station). Your Android phone will switch to Andromium OS UI after it is connected to Superbook, Andromium OS also supports running multiple Android App in different windows, which really looks like Remix OS. After looking at Superbook’s technical details, I know it does not depend on smartphone’s HDMI or MHL video output function. Superbook is based on DisplayLink’s Android video output function, you can refer to DisplayLink for Android web page for more details. Now it seems that the biggest different between Superbook and Motorola Lapdock is: a DisplayLink USB graphic adapter is integrated into Superbook’s USB hub. USB graphic adapter starts working after it is connected to Android phone with USB OTG port, then Superbook can […]

Ubuntu for Android on XOLO X900

This post is synchronized from (click here for best display effect): https://zohead.com/archives/ubuntu-for-xolo-x900/ Lava XOLO X900 smartphone use Intel Atom Z2460 x86 CPU, so we can try to make some modifications to default Android system, then we can get a tentative Ubuntu for Android system. The important part of this is we can run x86 version Ubuntu, which is much more useful than ARM version Ubuntu (you can do nothing without source code, no proprietary software at all). Let’s see the final Ubuntu for Android effect (on Motorola LapDock 100): For now, I can run some quite useful program like: Skype, Ubuntu One, sopcast in this Ubuntu system on Android. And the most brilliant thing is we can run Ubuntu and Android system simultaneously, Ubuntu is running on another display screen, doesn’t affect Android system at all, we don’t need VNC to remote login to Ubuntu. Click here for introduction about Canonical’s Ubuntu for Android: http://www.ubuntu.com/devices/android Requirements of Canonical’s Ubuntu for Android: Dual-core Android smartphone, at least 512MB RAM; support secondary frame buffer; support USB OTG While sad point is secondary frame buffer is not enabled on XOLO X900, cause stock kernel only register a /dev/graphics/fb0 frame buffer device. But we the powerful USB OTG, so we can use USB external display adapter to provide secondary frame buffer. Devices & accessories we need: Motorola LapDock 100 (for display screen, keyboard and mouse input, quite convenient, of course you can use your own display device) DisplayLink USB display adapter USB OTG cable HDMI cable 1. Prepare x86 Ubuntu system: Cause XOLO X900 only has 16GB ROM space, and consider about speed and expansibility, you’d better use Class 10 microSD card (otherwise your Ubuntu system’s performance may not be good), and install Ubuntu in hidden microSD slot of XOLO X900. You can check […]