[Q] USB Support

[cojaw]

Has anyone explored the USB support on the Xperia Z4 tablet? If you have, can you confirm that if an external memory device such as a memory stick is connected it disables the internal SD card? If any apps have been transferred to the SD card they then become inaccessible and the Z4 can become unstable. The only way to restart the apps is to remove the memory stick and manually restart the Z4!
This is so serious that I am about to contact Sony and tell them that with its current configuration, the Z4 tablet is unfit for use!

 

[DHGE]

external USB does not work here <- wrong, corrected

I plugged in an USB-Adapter to connect several USB-Sticks. That did not work.

I remember it worked with an ancient Toshiba AT300 Tablet three years ago. Have not used it since then ...

Nowadays I use Software Data Cable but this is no fun (permission wise) on my stock, unrooted Z4 Tablet.

I have a 128 GBytes MicroSD card plugged in but this is no fun (permission wise) on my stock, unrooted Z4 Tablet.

I did not unplug the MicroSD card.

EDIT: I stand corrected by ITotem (next Post #3)

It works - but not automagically (as it does on my Toshiba Tablet). Both - SD Card and external Storage - work simultanously!

 

[ITotem]

Has anyone explored the USB support on the Xperia Z4 tablet? If you have, can you confirm that if an external memory device such as a memory stick is connected it disables the internal SD card? If any apps have been transferred to the SD card they then become inaccessible and the Z4 can become unstable. The only way to restart the apps is to remove the memory stick and manually restart the Z4!
This is so serious that I am about to contact Sony and tell them that with its current configuration, the Z4 tablet is unfit for use!

I don't own the Sony Xperia Z4 tablet yet... .but have you tried the solution described here? http://forum.xda-developers.com/z4-tablet/general/usb-otg-support-t3147871?

According to him:

If you try to connect USB storage to your Z4 Tablet it seems not to work (tested on 28.0.A.6.8).
But as found out at w ww.coolsmartphone.com/2015/06/27/xperia-z4-tablet-missing-usb-otg-support/ it is! Its only unneeded complicated...

In short: go to "Settings" -> "Xperia Connectivity" -> "USB Connectivity" -> "Detect USB device" while storage is already connected. Then it's showing up in /storage/usbdisk as it should be.
(under "USB Connectivity" -> "Tips for connecting with USB device" you can add a shortcut to quicksettings)

Let's hope Sony will fix this to auto connect as it was working e.g. in Tablet Z. There it is showing up immediately when you plugged it in without a need to touch minimum 3 times!!!!

 

[cojaw]

I don't own the Sony Xperia Z4 tablet yet... .but have you tried the solution described here? http://forum.xda-developers.com/z4-tablet/general/usb-otg-support-t3147871?

According to him:

Thanks for the reply.
I have used the solution mentioned, but the issue is not connecting to the USB memory, which does work as described, but what happens to the Z4 when you do get connected. Losing access to the SD card in the memory expansion slot is a major problem.

 

[DHGE]

please read post #2 above

... is a major problem.

please read post #2 above

 

[cojaw]

please read post #2 above

Thanks for your response.
Have you tried running an app that you have transferred to the SD card using the standard Android 'Move to SD Card' function while a USB memory stick is installed?

 

[DHGE]

external USB-Stick disables apps moved to SD Card

Thanks for your response.
Have you tried running an app that you have transferred to the SD card using the standard Android 'Move to SD Card' function while a USB memory stick is installed?

Yes

DOES NOT RUN - holy cow!

Needs a reboot to join the app pool again.

Bad design/functionality IMO

 

[cojaw]

Yes

DOES NOT RUN - holy cow!

Needs a reboot to join the app pool again.

Bad design/functionality IMO

Thanks for confirming it! I thought it might be me!

 

[cojaw]

More Z4 USB information

Thanks for confirming it! I thought it might be me!

I have been in touch with Sony 'Xperia Care' about the issues I have raised with the USB support on the Z4 tablet. I have the full transcript, but the following extracts from their email confirm my worst suspicions. They said:

'I can confirm that when a USB device is connected to the tablet the SD card is meant to unmount.'

and

'We would also not recommend using a USB hub on the tablet as this not the intended purpose of connecting a USB device to the tablet, the main one being for external storage. '

What follows is based on my experience so far:

• This means that while a USB memory device is attached to the Z4 tablet, any app which has been transferred to the SD card will stop. If an app attempts to run in the background, the Z4 tablet can crash. This has happened on my Z4 tablet.
• Using 'Tap here to safely remove USB storage' does not re-mount the SD card. The only way to restore access to the SD card is to restart the Z4 tablet.
• On some occasions, both USB memory AND SD based apps work, despite what Xperia Care say! However this not the norm!

Although Sony do not recommend the use of USB hubs, they do work. However:

• If the hub offers power to the Z4 tablet, the Z4 will go in to 'charge' mode and disables the OTG data mode.
• If the hub is completely non-powered, the Z4 tablet is likely to disable power to the USB port and close it down if you attach multiple devices. It certainly can't power a USB powered hard drive, unlike my LG G3 phone which can!
• If the hub powers USB devices but not the Z4 tablet, it seems to work normally. However, the USB implementation on the Z4 can only support ONE memory device, again unlike my LG G3 phone which supports the two I have tried and probably more!

I have told Xperia Care that I think the USB support on the Z4 tablet is a mess!

 

[pdes]

I was going to start a new thread but then found this. I like to use a mouse with my Z4 - it completes the PC-like setup. However, I have found that whenever I want to use a wireless mouse, the dongle connectd to the OTG cable is not recognized until I reboot the tablet. I wondered if I had a problem but it looks as though it could be the same issue as reported here.

 

[>Helsinki<]

I was looking for a thread for USB experiences on the Z4 tablet and found this. At the same time, I've been experimenting with different setups and also testing the problems cited here. I've had NO problems so far, so I'll give a run down on what I've been running.

I have a USB non-powered hub attached. From that, I'm running wireless keyboard/mouse combo. At the same time, I've attached a powered external Maxell HDD, which happens to be NTFS.

To mount the HDD, I've used ExFAT/NTFS. This opens directly into another required file management app called Total Commander (TC). ExFAT/NTFS needs to be running for the file commander app to access the HDD, but once it is, it appears in the list fine. I can also then switch between SD card browsing and HDD browsing in TC without any problems.

I also tested the concurrent running of apps via SD Card while the HDD is mounted. I moved Firefox over to the SD Card. When I did this, the transfer process unmounted the HDD in the background. So, I had to remount via ExFAT/NTFS, but once done, it ran again without problems. I then concurrently ran Firefox and Total Commander together, switching between the two and found NO problems. Again, I can also switch from the HDD to the SD Card without problems.

Assuming that this is the required level of concurrent use (browsing HDD and using SD Card mounted apps at the same time), then I'd say that Sony must have fixed the problems. There has been a major update to both the Sony UI and to Google's Nougat since this thread was active.

Just to add, I've had several keyboards and mice running at the same time via the one USB hub, without crashes, which was pleasing, though completely pointless

Will try to run some controllers via the USB next.