While I was on holidays I received the notification that I could automatically download and install Windows 10 on my Turbo-X Wintab 2 in 1 Τablet. Since WiFi was pretty slow there, I waited until I got back home and decided to give it a try. Installation was automatic, pretty quick and soon I was introduced to the new Windows 10 interface – alas, the touch screen was not responding!
After unsuccessfully trying to find touch screen drivers that would work (Plaisio does not share the set of Windows 8 drivers for this tablet – for unknown reasons), I decided to reset the tablet and send it to the service, as it was still under warranty (it was only 1 month’s purchase). I was warned by the system that I only had one month to roll back to Windows 8.1 if I wished (which I didn’t) so I went on to delete all files and have it cleaned before it was serviced. In the meantime I had contacted the Plaisio service dept. describing the situation and they asked me to bring the tablet to them for an inspection.
After the reset process completed, the tablet rebooted for the last time – and it was then that I saw the blue screen of death, warning me that the boot device was inaccessible!
No matter what I tried, the tablet kept rebooting into the same blue screen so I had to find a way to make it boot into something bootable.
- Create a bootable USB with Windows 10: I was lucky enough to have upgraded my tablet first to Windows 10 within Windows 8.1 and then make this attempt. This means that I did not need any serial or activation number, as the system was already prepared for the update, so I would have a legitimate copy of Windows 10. The process is described here.
- Make tablet boot from the USB: That was the tricky part as the BIOS was not accessible by pressing any of the buttons (F2, F10, F12 etc.). I found online that you have to power on some devices (not mine) by pressing the power button and Volume Down, in other cases it was Volume Up – after many attempts, I realized that in my case I had to press simultaneously Power, Vol Up and Vol Down in order to get in the BIOS! Then I changed the boot order (it was not easy, as options were not very clear) but I did it.
- Fresh install Windows 10: The process went smoothly, even though the tablet became unresponsive at some points (after periods of inactivity during the installation) and I had to reset it. In the end I ended up with a fresh installation of Windows 10. However, screen resolution was low, touch screen was not working, battery icon was not available in the tray etc. Damn!
- Find appropriate drivers for hardware: As I mentioned earlier, drivers for this tablet are a well-kept secret so I had to look for alternatives. I found out that the Onda v101w tablet might be similar to mine so drivers worked for my tablet, too. Indeed, display drivers worked, bluetooth worked, battery icon appeared etc. The only thing that didn’t work was the touch screen.
- Reset the tablet (again): The last resort was the authorized service. I reset the tablet again (this time it worked nicely and all devices were recognized so the drivers remained intact), created a temp account for accessing the tablet (that the service guys could also use for fixing the tablet) and let it there.
- Have the tablet restored: On 17/8/2015 I left the tablet at the Plaisio service, explaining the issue with the touch screen, the battery not charging more than 95% with the provided charger and the cable that was worrying me. I received a call later on from them, letting me know that the charging was going beyond 95% (apparently they used a micro-USB charger but I gave up on that), that the cable was indeed placed there and that there was no risk of being damaged after use (I hope that this is true) and that they would have to send the tablet to the central service in order for them to see if the touch screen would work with Windows 10 or if we would have to revert back to Windows 8.1 (which I said I didn’t mind, as long as the touch screen works ok – I may try the update at a later stage, when the drivers will be updated). I was also congratulated by the tech guy for managing to install working drivers for Windows 10 (this might have been shocking even for them!).
I am expecting the tablet by Thursday or Friday (in a couple of days, as they said), so I may receive it on time for my upcoming trip 🙂
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