Yes. With ES File manager you can also see a network drive

 

On both of my current Android devices (Sansung Galaxy S4 phone and Dell Venue 8 tablet), a file manager similar to ES came pre-packaged with the device right out of the box. It follows the same basic conventions as a Windows-type explorer window. So far as I can tell, it seems to give access to pretty much the entire filesystem including the kernel.

There are some devices that do not include this feature, but as bahurd notes, ES File Manager is a free download: https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...gs.android.pop

No rooting necessary for any of this.

 

+1 for ES.

BTW - I rooted my Nexus in order to run a different ROM (CyanogenMod BTW), and have been fairly happy with it. ShadowDash glitches from time to time on file uploads, but you can always connect the device to a computer and get to the logs that way.

 

There are, however, some directories you cannot get write access to without root access. And they keep threatening to make some directories impossible to write to unless the phone is on the recovery console.

 

I'm sure there are. And just as with a DOS / Windows / *NIX PC, there are some directories that you don't ever actually need to write to (or delete from) in everyday operation.

If you to have a legitimate need to write into the Kernel folder, for instance, then it's reasonable to suppose that you have already rooted the device.

For "normal" tasks such as moving media files around, managing datalogs and tune files, deleting episodes of The Newsroom after I've watched them, etc., the built-in file manager (or ES File Manager) work just fine, and are roughly comparable to the tools bundled with most non-Apple consumer OSes.

 

If I recall, "L" was supposed to redo the whole security process which was causing a lot of developer backlash. Not sure what Google will do to appease the community. With the whole 'malware' thing becoming a bigger issue I can see the rational.

If the manufacturers would keep up with OS iterations, at least within a certain time frame, people would be less driven to 'root' a device just to get some added life (or added features) out of the hardware. Other than an ipad (which I'm not fond of), my other mobile devices are Android by choice (OK, I do have a Windows 8.1 laptop). Rooting keeps them useful for a longer period for me and I remove most of the 'crap' software I never use anyway.

 

The iPad is too big. The iPad mini is just the right size, but like all the other iOS devices you are very locked down, just to things which Apple decides you can do. The proprietary cables are a huge expensive pain, too.

A nexus 7 tablet however is just the right size, much more powerful hardware at a fraction of the cost of an iPad mini (my 32gb model with LTE was under $300). Rather than being locked down, you can run any android app out there. It's more like having a full computer in your pocket, rather than a cash register for Apple... This is coming from someone who's had an iPad, three android tablets and just as many phones, also at least 6 iPhones, typing on the 5s now, which pales in comparison to last years android hardware, btw