Android Tablet Roon Controller

Hi All,

I’m still in thei middle of my Roon trial but I’m leaning towards jumping on board and subscribing.

Once I subscribe I will need to do a little more investing. One thing is getting a tablet to use as a Roon remote. The phone is fine for when I’m in the kitchen but when I’m sitting down I’d rather have a tablet that will work in landscape mode and give me the desktop experience. Could someone recommend the minimum size tablet that will automatically launch Roon into landscapw mode? I’ve seen some threads that suggest Roon remote treats some tablets as phones and keeps it in portrait mode.

Apologies if this is rehashing already discussed topics

Cheers

My LG 7" and Samsung 10" Tab A 2018 can work in Landscape Mode

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I see you mention Android.

Before you buy check the OpenGL version , Roon needs 3 or better . I have a Samsung Tab A 6 in that stopped working a while back due to this limitation ( quite clearly defined in the system requirements but only implemented a year or so ago) . Admittedly it’s an old spec but only 2 yeas old

If you are not hung up on Android ,(I am no Apple fan BTW) there are a selection of iPads that work great. There are mini 7 in, 10 in and pro 12.9 My old Mini served me well but the battery barely last 2 hours now (morning news read !) so I faced the same question.

My answer was iPad Pro 12.9 128 g wi fi only , it’s too big to carry out the house so no mobile.

Expensive yes but the disclaimer. It was my 70th pressy :joy:

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Not hung up on Android, only mentioned because its what all of my other devices are. Wouldn’t be apposed to an IPAD if it worked.

Don’t think i’ll be splashing out for an IPAD Pro, but I’ll definitely pay attention to the minimum requirements you posted above.

There seems to be a kids entry level 10 in , not highest CPU spec but reasonably priced ( at least for Apple)

In the Developer Options you can change the “Minimum width”. This can force your device into phone or tablet mode. I’ve done this in the past, but can’t provide numbers (because I can’t remember what values I used!). I’m pretty certain that all 10" tablets will register as a tablet and thereby allow Roon to be shown in landscape.

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Thanks for your reply. The minimum requirements for Roon in tablet mode say 8 inches and above will give me the full experience. (Once it meets the other criteria stated too)

Just bought a Samsung Computing SM-T500NZAAEUA Tablet a couple of weeks back. It works great.

I use an Amazon Fire10. It has served me well and very affordable.

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I was looking at the Fire 10 last night, went to buy it and the European Amazon sites wont ship it to Ireland. I could order from the UK but with the import charge it wouldn’t be worth it and the price of Fire tablet in Ireland I would be better off getting something just a little higher spec.

Been looking at Lenovo tablets this morning. They seem to fit the bill and affordable.

Roon becomes very expensive very quickly if you let it.

I was looking at them the other day. They’re just a little bit more than i’d like to pay for specif purpose tablet, but if I can’t find anything that fits the bill. They are close to the top of my list.

If I may ride along on this thread…, are anyone using the Samsung Galaxy TAB S7 plus and would it be a safe bet \ alternative to the iPad Pro 12.9

In the sense that it’s an android device, I can’t see a problem. Good device, great screen, therefore suitable remote.

I’ve had the TAB S7 plus for a couple of months - haven’t used it with Roon, though. I’ve set it up to use for work as a “Laptop lite” with Office 365 and as an electronic notebook - I do loads of handwritten stuff in OneNote alongside typed notes and documents . My wife uses an iPad Pro (she’s fully invested into the Apple ecosystem) and I reckon the TAB is a very good alternative. If you use the optional keyboard, there’s also Samsung Dex mode which makes it look and feel more like a laptop. It’s by far and away the most capable tablet I’ve ever owned.

Edit: Just installed the Roon Controller. Runs in landscape mode, works well and looks great!

Thanks for the reply and effort in loading the app to test, much appreciated. Dropping that kind of money on a Tablet, I would expect it to replace my current laptop and would not use it solely as remote. My thought is to hopefully also be able to cast via DEX mode wireless to smart TV. Of course these are things you can’t test in store.

For what it’s worth, I use an original MS Surface Pro (5+ yrs old) with and without keyboard. Works great as a Roon Controller. I also set up Win10 with a generic account so that no one who picks it up will get access to any of my email or other MS account info. The battery doesn’t last as long as it used to but it sits on charger 90% of the time so it’s not an issue. Tharger connection is magnetic so it doesn’t stick out to get tripped on or bent out.

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