# running out of storage what are my options?



## yeahman45 (Oct 16, 2011)

I hate that you can't insert an sd card on the touchpad!!







... i don't have much storage space atm.. what are my options? can you guys know if there is some portable sd card reader(without the need for external cumbersome power) ?


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## nuttaone (Jun 16, 2012)

Not without serious mods... Suggest you do some house keeping....


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## Colchiro (Aug 26, 2011)

+1

16 gb or 32 gb TP?

What's on it taking up so much space? Mine's mostly empty.


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## JohnA2u (Jan 9, 2013)

+1 on the housekeeping. There should be plenty of room for anything you really need. 
1.Uninstall unused apps.
2. Use cloud storage such as drop box
3. Get a micro usbOTG cable. Then you will be able to plug in a thumb drive. I have one on another tablet and it works with no external power.(I'm hoping the touchpad works the same despite guides that show a powered set up.) I ordered one for the touchpad but it won't be here til mid February. It is literally on a slow boat from China.
4. Clean up your download and back up folders. How many nightly zips to you have stored? How many backups?


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## Colchiro (Aug 26, 2011)

There's a reason they say to use a powered hub with the OTG cables.


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## JohnA2u (Jan 9, 2013)

I know and I use one when running multiple devices on my Le Pan ll. It won't work with an unpowered hub. But if I just plug in a thumb drive directly to otg it works. I'm hoping the touch pad is the same.


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## resturg (Jan 1, 2013)

JohnA2u said:


> +1 on the housekeeping. There should be plenty of room for anything you really need.
> 1.Uninstall unused apps.
> 2. Use cloud storage such as drop box
> 3. Get a micro usbOTG cable. Then you will be able to plug in a thumb drive. I have one on another tablet and it works with no external power.(I'm hoping the touchpad works the same despite guides that show a powered set up.) I ordered one for the touchpad but it won't be here til mid February. It is literally on a slow boat from China.
> 4. Clean up your download and back up folders. How many nightly zips to you have stored? How many backups?


I just checked it our and my usbOTG cable did not work on my touchpad. It look like no power to the USB stick.


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## levite805 (Jan 21, 2012)

Start with using dropbox for your pictures and videos. If you made any nandroid backups, I would delete the old ones.

Also you get 50gb free with Box. Check it out!


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## yeahman45 (Oct 16, 2011)

internet connection is not super fast here and i am most of the time offline when using my touchpad (wifi not reachable in my room).. i have the 16gb.. any very slim selfpowered sd card reader?


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## Gradular (Feb 1, 2012)

resturg said:


> I just checked it our and my usbOTG cable did not work on my touchpad. It look like no power to the USB stick.


the usb port is unpowered. You need a y cable with the otg cable to connect to either a powered hub or a portable battery. Or you can crack it open and Follow Mpgrimms2 mod. http://rootzwiki.com/index.php?/top...G-on-the-HP-Touchpad!-(v2-Full-Size)-11-30-12

Sent from my cm_tenderloin using RootzWiki


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## Mpgrimm2 (Dec 6, 2012)

resturg said:


> I just checked it our and my usbOTG cable did not work on my touchpad. It look like no power to the USB stick.





mpgrimm2 said:


> You can see pictures of my hardware & working OTG setup with links in the OTG Tips & Tricks Thread. At the very least I think you should pick up the OTG Adapter with power $7. The applecable hub $7 works also.
> 
> [URL!=http://myworld.ebay.com/applecable?_trksid=p2047675.l2559]AppleCable's EBay Page[/URL] shows them away/not taking orders until Feb 12th. You can view their store link from the linked page also.
> 
> ...


Sent from my "Up all night, sleep all day" HP CM9 Touchpad


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## uwndrd (Oct 13, 2011)

As far as i know, there are some portable USB hubs with built-in battery that don't require Y cable, you just connect it to TP with microUSB and you are ready to go. I've bought this one http://www.ebay.com/itm/140511970998?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649 , but have not received it yet, will get it somewhen during this week i guess.


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## Mpgrimm2 (Dec 6, 2012)

uwndrd said:


> As far as i know, there are some portable USB hubs with built-in battery that don't require Y cable, you just connect it to TP with microUSB and you are ready to go. I've bought this one http://www.ebay.com/itm/140511970998?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649 , but have not received it yet, will get it somewhen during this week i guess.


 If u don't have some form of microUSB OTG adapter (shorts pin 4&5) to use between the Touchpad and that Powered Hub it won't work.

Sent from my "Up all night, sleep all day" HP CM9 Touchpad


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## nevertells (Oct 29, 2011)

Mpgrimm2 said:


> If u don't have some form of microUSB OTG adapter (shorts pin 4&5) to use between the Touchpad and that Powered Hub it won't work.
> 
> Sent from my "Up all night, sleep all day" HP CM9 Touchpad


I believe uwndrd is suggesting this hub will provide power to a usb device when plugged in to it so one would not need an otg "y" cable to provide the power. I agree it will not charge a Touchpad. But if it powers a usb thumb drive or keyboard/mouse, then I think it would provide a portable solution for usb devices. When he receives it we'll find out.


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## Colchiro (Aug 26, 2011)

You can do as many band-aids as you like, but the OP simply needs a bigger device or figure out a way to compress the content using a more efficient file format.


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## nevertells (Oct 29, 2011)

Colchiro said:


> You can do as many band-aids as you like, but the OP simply needs a bigger device or figure out a way to compress the content using a more efficient file format.


Huh?


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## Colchiro (Aug 26, 2011)

nevertells said:


> Huh?


a. sell the 16 gb, buy a 32 gb.
2. if he's storing videos, save them in a more efficient format (higher compression).
iii. this is a tablet, made to be portable. Any discussion of OTG is a band-aid.


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## nevertells (Oct 29, 2011)

Colchiro said:


> a. sell the 16 gb, buy a 32 gb.
> 2. if he's storing videos, save them in a more efficient format (higher compression).
> iii. this is a tablet, made to be portable. Any discussion of OTG is a band-aid.


I don't know, a 128gb thumb drive in that battery powered hub would sure hold a lot of video. (-:


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## Colchiro (Aug 26, 2011)

Wouldn't that cost more than the tablet?


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## Gradular (Feb 1, 2012)

Colchiro said:


> Wouldn't that cost more than the tablet?


 unless you got it in july of 2011. You can hook up a portable hard drive though. 

Sent from my GT-P3110 using RootzWiki


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## avefyre (Oct 13, 2011)

Best bet is to increase your wifi range... either with a secondary wifi router (turned access point) with just a decently long ethernet cord towards your room (in my case i did this in a shop 200 feet away). Alternatively you can use a dd-wrt (or tomato but i haven't used this firmware much) compatible router as a repeater for your wifi signal (note that some wifi speed will be lost this way). This lets the router connect to an access point and then make its own access point that connects to your main one (put it at the half way point from your room to the main router). Belkin N300 is one example of such a router ($25.90 atm, watching for sales it can go as low as $18 if you are not in a hurry) that can be used for either option that i presented.

From there you can either stream (from net or local drives from samba shares) video or whatever else you want to access. This is a much simpler thing to solve then trying to devise an external storage device for your tablet. Alternatively that same N300 router i listed can be used as a samba server (router comes with usb ports for storage devices) with dd-wrt; so if you don't care about net access (or you happen to live in a room in a faraday cage preventing any kind of outside wifi signal) you can have wifi with no internet but you can hook a usb hard drive to it alone and stream data from it.

You could technically have that router powered in a car (by power inverter) and it would still work to stream you files. Planning on that next time I go on a road trip with friends.

I guess if you have a laptop you could just put it aside and make it a wifi host... that would also work... but then you could just be using said laptop to watch stored media.

Also to note is that you can use samba shares to store game data (anything stored on /sdcard/ ) if setup correctly. That is why i recommend this if you aren't concerned with vast mobility with your data (which does not seem to be your case). Note you may have issues with streaming some 720p/1080p video this way but most standard video will buffer just fine.


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## nevertells (Oct 29, 2011)

Colchiro said:


> Wouldn't that cost more than the tablet?


OK, a 64gb thumb drive and they are selling for well under $50.

However, check this out: http://compare.ebay.com/like/251146937599?var=lv&ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar


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## uwndrd (Oct 13, 2011)

uwndrd said:


> As far as i know, there are some portable USB hubs with built-in battery that don't require Y cable, you just connect it to TP with microUSB and you are ready to go. I've bought this one http://www.ebay.com/...984.m1497.l2649 , but have not received it yet, will get it somewhen during this week i guess.


Well, i've received this thing. 
Pros: well, it really works. This hub + OTG cable = 4 usb slots for touchpad, no Y-cables at all.
Cons: well, there is one con, but it makes the thing unusable: it works from a battery for, like, few minutes. I'll try to charge it again (maybe, i didn't charge it enough), but considering how small and light it is... I doubt that there is even 500mah battery inside it. Also, it starts to charge TP itself when i connect it, so no wonder why it turns off quickly. Shame, because it would be really convenient to have such thing. I wonder whether hubs with similiar functionality are out there...


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## nevertells (Oct 29, 2011)

uwndrd said:


> Well, i've received this thing.
> Pros: well, it really works. This hub + OTG cable = 4 usb slots for touchpad, no Y-cables at all.
> Cons: well, there is one con, but it makes the thing unusable: it works from a battery for, like, few minutes. I'll try to charge it again (maybe, i didn't charge it enough), but considering how small and light it is... I doubt that there is even 500mah battery inside it. Also, it starts to charge TP itself when i connect it, so no wonder why it turns off quickly. Shame, because it would be really convenient to have such thing. I wonder whether hubs with similiar functionality are out there...


Google is your friend.


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## Gradular (Feb 1, 2012)

uwndrd said:


> Well, i've received this thing.
> Pros: well, it really works. This hub + OTG cable = 4 usb slots for touchpad, no Y-cables at all.
> Cons: well, there is one con, but it makes the thing unusable: it works from a battery for, like, few minutes. I'll try to charge it again (maybe, i didn't charge it enough), but considering how small and light it is... I doubt that there is even 500mah battery inside it. Also, it starts to charge TP itself when i connect it, so no wonder why it turns off quickly. Shame, because it would be really convenient to have such thing. I wonder whether hubs with similiar functionality are out there...


 so it is working for a lil bit ? I use a portable usb charger to provide power to it. Got it from Bestbuy but there are tons of places to get them.

Sent from my cm_tenderloin using RootzWiki


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## Mpgrimm2 (Dec 6, 2012)

uwndrd said:


> Well, i've received this thing.
> Pros: well, it really works. This hub + OTG cable = 4 usb slots for touchpad, no Y-cables at all.
> Cons: well, there is one con, but it makes the thing unusable: it works from a battery for, like, few minutes. I'll try to charge it again (maybe, i didn't charge it enough), but considering how small and light it is... I doubt that there is even 500mah battery inside it.
> Also, it starts to charge TP itself when i connect it, so no wonder why it turns off quickly. Shame, because it would be really convenient to have such thing. I wonder whether hubs with similiar functionality are out there...


Another user (Amikaos I think) and I over at xda (OTG Tips & Tricks Thread) went through this same setup/discussion a month ago. Simply put, there is not a better/larger solar hub, nor a hub with a larger internal battery, which is why people typically go after a separate 6000mah & Up external battery. It should be no surprise that a 500mah battery runs out fast hooked to the TP because it's able to draw b/w 500ma/hr to full 2000ma/hr from the original charger. The discussion at one point went to buying individual parts from "Adafruit.com" and building one around a hub.


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## nevertells (Oct 29, 2011)

uwndrd said:


> so it is working for a lil bit ? I use a portable usb charger to provide power to it. Got it from Bestbuy but there are tons of places to get them.
> 
> Sent from my cm_tenderloin using RootzWiki


Since you are powering your OTG via a battery, you should try the same idea, a data only usb cable going to the TouchPad. If fact, it wouldn't be all that big of a stretch to modify a usb cable by just cutting one of the power wires to make it into a data only cable. That would make your battery source last a long while.


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## Mpgrimm2 (Dec 6, 2012)

nevertells said:


> Since you are powering your OTG via a battery, you should try the same idea, a data only usb cable going to the TouchPad. If fact, it wouldn't be all that big of a stretch to modify a usb cable by just cutting one of the power wires to make it into a data only cable. That would make your battery source last a long while.


A modified cable would be like schematic 1 or 2 with pin 1 (+5v) disconnected at host device (TP) end.
http://rootzwiki.com/index.php?/top...ouchpad!-(v2-Full-Size)-11-30-12#entry1067359

Sent from my "Up all night, sleep all day" HP CM9 Touchpad


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## Gradular (Feb 1, 2012)

nevertells said:


> I had this bright idea that may allow you to use this. There are usb cables around that are data only cables. I have seen folks complain that they purchased certain usb cables that would not charge their TouchPad. In this case, a cable like that would be a good thing. I would allow you to use a usb device, but would not allow your TouchPad to draw power from the powered hub. Worth a try.
> 
> I also saw this today that could provide the needed power to the usb device and as long as the TouchPad could not draw power would last a while just powering a mouse or thumb drive.
> 
> ...


I guess my y cable is data only because it never has come up that its charging when plugged in to the second usb-a connector. This battery wont charge my TP for long anyway. The way the TP charges makes the battery shutdown because its not drawing any power. With my phone and SGT2, it will shutdown when the battery of the device is full.

Sent from my GT-P3110 using RootzWiki


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## yeahman45 (Oct 16, 2011)

uwndrd said:


> Well, i've received this thing.
> Pros: well, it really works. This hub + OTG cable = 4 usb slots for touchpad, no Y-cables at all.
> Cons: well, there is one con, but it makes the thing unusable: it works from a battery for, like, few minutes. I'll try to charge it again (maybe, i didn't charge it enough), but considering how small and light it is... I doubt that there is even 500mah battery inside it. Also, it starts to charge TP itself when i connect it, so no wonder why it turns off quickly. Shame, because it would be really convenient to have such thing. I wonder whether hubs with similiar functionality are out there...


i have bought a similar solar usb hub but the white version! i don't know how much is the battery inside.. my problem is i don't know how much battery is remaining as there is no led indicator.. only a blue led saying it's on.. any idea/suggestions to know how much battery is remaining so that i know when to charge it?


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## Mpgrimm2 (Dec 6, 2012)

If it's a slim rectangular up its likely 450ma.

Sent from my "Up all night, Sleep all day" EVO3D!


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## yeahman45 (Oct 16, 2011)

anyone succeeded in finding a data-only usb cable on ebay? My battery powered usb hub lasts like 1hr reading video files from my usb thumb drive


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