Hello all - Got a brain twister for all you geniuses out there -
I'm running a NON_ROOTED Samsung Galaxy SII i727 Skyrocket on ATT
Currently running the ICS 4.0.4 ROM
A few months back - I lost the ability through Google Search to find anything located on my device. Google search is limited to only searching the web now.
The option to define ON-DEVICE SEARCH called "Searchable Items" located in Google Search Settings Menu - well, it is GONE.
After I decided to do a full factory reset and wipe the slate clean to start over again - thinking something got corrupted - I found it's still missing.
So, I spoke with Google and a rep there told me that there was some legal nonsense they could not discuss but it was removed from the official ROM - no other details.
I spoke to a Support Mgr at Samsung - who was surprised to learn that the removal is inconsistant accross the product line (works on one carrier but not the other - works on one device for one carrier but a different device for a different carrier)
Anyone have a work around for this? Preferably one not requiring me to root the device? It's never been very stable even running a factory rom so i'm not really looking to play with experimental ROMs and end up in crash central with a rooted cooked rom - it's my only phone, although frankly at this point I might reconsider my position on that...
Please help!
Regards,
Chris
I'm not sure what items you want to search, but I'm running embryo 6, android 4.1.2 and Google search does have some on the phone items that can be searched. Contacts, apps, etc. Is that what your trying to search?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda app-developers app
You can thank apple for that...
Basically here is what happened in a nutshell.
Apple sued Google's partners, Htc, lg, motorola, and samsung over there global search feature that is implemented in android. Before this, you could search the following things: Music, files, web, apps, pictures, and the like.
After the case, apple won. Which means the carries and companies had to "update" there phones to remove the global search feature found in android or the companies customization. This is probably why you can no longer do universal search on your phone. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find an app for you that would do what it used too. Google now allows you to search music in there music app, as well as youtube etc. But you need to be in the app for what your searching for. Universal search was nice, sadly apple won. The way I see it, they are losing the war.
If you really cannot stand not having universal search and want extra features, try a custom rom out.
Example: pcworldDOTcom/article/259828/samsung_removes_local_search_feature_from_galaxy_s_iii_as_patent_suit_nears.html[/url]
Related
Source: HERE
AT&T: The most crippled Android experience
We try to be fair to every handset, but the are some we just can’t help but make fun of. Everyone thought Verizon was going to cripple Android, but they became friends with Google and offered the full Android experience.
AT&T is in bed with Apple and has gone to extreme measures to make sure their first Android phone, the Motorola Backflip, was under-powered and locked down. We already knew about the lack of Google search and today another limitation has surfaced.
The Backflip has no option to install applications from unknown sources (aka non-Market applications). This is important to note because every Android phone (that I know of) has included this as a default option of the Android OS.
Maybe it was done to “protect” the users, but this blocks the install of apps purchased on alternative markets and beta apps like Swype. Developers will also be unable to easily load and test their apps on the device before they release them.
Basically, AT&T is offering the same locked-in market experience that iPhone users get to enjoy put up with.
To add insult to injury, customers are also not allowed to remove the dozen or so AT&T apps that come preloaded with the device (bloatware). Android phones already struggle with limited storage space and having the carrier dictate which ones are installed on a user’s phone is a disappointment.
So to recap the AT&T Backflip:
1. Outdated Android 1.5 with Motoblur
2. No Google search (replaced by Yahoo)
3. Unable to remove AT&T bloatware apps
4. Cannot install non-market apps
Let us hope that AT&T offers a more open experience on their future devices, because this is not the Android that we know and love.
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Click to collapse
Honestly, I am SO... SO SO SO SO SO SO glad I am not on AT&T with my Android devices, nor that I waited for them to FINALLY get one, I would be PI$$ED about this!!
Well, until it was rooted and custom ROM's released... but still... seriously??
Yep, they just don't get it & continue to screw their customers!
Why is Samsung Apps (the store) removed from custom ROMS, for instance, sky ICE? They offer some good apps sometimes, and also offer sale/discounts. Is there a way to install it back?
u can get all those apps from market. I think you're the first person I've seen who actually wants it.
You can extract the apks from stock image but you may lose the advanced integration since its been removed from the settings menu in sky ics.
You can also try mhx-superlite, which is stock and has the market still, but has a lot of other bloat removed
Ok thanks. Like I said, sometimes they offer good deals, last month they had Asphalt 6 free. Also, they have Voice talk (vlingo but customized) specifically for Galaxy 2, among other things.
Hi, I'm thinking of rooting my Vodafone HTC Sensation 4G ICS and putting CyanogenMod on it. Will I still be able to access the Play Store and download apps without restrictions? Will I still be able to update my device if Vodafone push out any updates? Will Google stop my device from doing anything?
Thanks a lot.
- Sam
Ive never had an issue browsing and purchasing apps after rooting a phone. Ive done this with a samsung captivate, htc inspire 4g, and now my SGS2. The one and only complication ive run into was with google play movies. If ur rooted it wont work. The app allows u to purchase, however prior to playback a notification pops up that says "your phone appears to be rooted, click here to request a refund".
Sent from my SGH-I777 using xda premium
Access play store - yes, for apps. Purchases can be a bit more tricky, your mileage may vary.
Vodaphone updates will almost certainly not work. To get the updates, you'll have to flash back to the stock rom, get updates, and then flash back to a new rom. If these are updates to the vodaphone OS, then they are irrelevant, however updates to things like the PRL (for CDMA based phones) are useful and is something you would want to update and can only be done via the stock OS.
Google could mostly care less about what you do with your phone. Nearly everything will work, however they have contracts in place with content providers that will check to see if the software has been modified and may prevent DRM protected content from playing on the device.
speak to the ROM developer. I dont know much about the actual dev of Rom's, but I know the custom Roms i've flashed mostly had something hacked in them to allow for updates to come through.
I naver had a problem with Google Play after rooting. On RunnyROM-s and also CyanogenMod it works fine. One issue what occurs sometimes is that apps download and install really slowly.
I got the ICS update on my Galaxy Tab 7.0 plus and now Google Search does not return results from the local device and Searchable Items is no longer an option in the Google Search settings menu. So now I can't search for contacts, music, apps etc except by going to those individual apps. This is highly annoying. I've read I can root and sideload Google Now but voice search isn't working on it yet.
I know this is specifically a Samsung thing as my HOS still has it as do all my other android devices. The Google Search app in the Play store still allows local device searching but I can't download it (incompatible device?!?!)
Are there any third party apps that can get this functionality back?
Are any work arounds available?
Just wait a little
ashenriot said:
I got the ICS update on my Galaxy Tab 7.0 plus and now Google Search does not return results from the local device and Searchable Items is no longer an option in the Google Search settings menu. So now I can't search for contacts, music, apps etc except by going to those individual apps. This is highly annoying. I've read I can root and sideload Google Now but voice search isn't working on it yet.
I know this is specifically a Samsung thing as my HOS still has it as do all my other android devices. The Google Search app in the Play store still allows local device searching but I can't download it (incompatible device?!?!)
Are there any third party apps that can get this functionality back?
Are any work arounds available?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think they are updating most of the apps for the latest ICS firmware, a few days ago Ebooks app was disabled and this morning I got an update from Play Store (previously it was saying that was not compatible in my country) and TA-DA!, it's working now.
I recommend you to wait a little, maybe a few days....
If you can get the apk, you could side load it, most apps work with our devices even if the play store won't let you download it. You may even be able to get it from the Amazon app store
Sent from my myTouch 4g via Tapatalk
Hi ... I'm a n00b when it comes to phone hacks but not technology so please don't dumb your answers down on account of me.
We bought two Tmobile Samsung Avants a cpl days ago (one to use and one as a spare) because the price was right and I'm leaving a WM device for Android. HOWEVER I don't like the idea that Google, who has no personal or business relationship with me, has access to all my personal information just because I'm using a phone they've branded. So I'm looking for an Android ROM that doesn't have Google tentacles in it.
I've been researching this since we got the phones but I'm not clear on what ROMS are avail for my phone ... it doesn't look like cyanogenmod has one (although they have one for my gf's old Exhibit T599!! ) - is there a repository, website or thread I haven't found that has a list of what's out there? am I stuck rooting the phone and MANUALLY removing everything? The phones have Kitkat installed.
I saw a youtube vid where they've ported Lollipop to the Avant - would that come de-Googled?
Do Android ROMs from Android come without a Google footprint? Some users have posted that Android as an independent company is not necessarily Google and their OS is NOT a Google product so my thoughts are you can have one without the other.
Any help / info is appreciated. thanks!
master-richie said:
Hi ... I'm a n00b when it comes to phone hacks but not technology so please don't dumb your answers down on account of me.
We bought two Tmobile Samsung Avants a cpl days ago (one to use and one as a spare) because the price was right and I'm leaving a WM device for Android. HOWEVER I don't like the idea that Google, who has no personal or business relationship with me, has access to all my personal information just because I'm using a phone they've branded. So I'm looking for an Android ROM that doesn't have Google tentacles in it.
I've been researching this since we got the phones but I'm not clear on what ROMS are avail for my phone ... it doesn't look like cyanogenmod has one (although they have one for my gf's old Exhibit T599!! ) - is there a repository, website or thread I haven't found that has a list of what's out there? am I stuck rooting the phone and MANUALLY removing everything? The phones have Kitkat installed.
I saw a youtube vid where they've ported Lollipop to the Avant - would that come de-Googled?
Do Android ROMs from Android come without a Google footprint? Some users have posted that Android as an independent company is not necessarily Google and their OS is NOT a Google product so my thoughts are you can have one without the other.
Any help / info is appreciated. thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is a project that doesnt have google stuff but you lose alot. Like no app store and things like that. Also Android is a google project. Like WP is by microsoft.
No there is no site like you are looking for.
Android is not a company but an OS like IOS, Windows, Linux and such.
The issue is mainly that if your device is not widely used then there may not be anything available for it. You also need to find out if the bootloader is locked or not and if kernel source is available for the device.
Google doesnt brand phones persay. The android operating system is theirs.
master-richie said:
Hi ... I'm a n00b when it comes to phone hacks but not technology so please don't dumb your answers down on account of me.
We bought two Tmobile Samsung Avants a cpl days ago (one to use and one as a spare) because the price was right and I'm leaving a WM device for Android. HOWEVER I don't like the idea that Google, who has no personal or business relationship with me, has access to all my personal information just because I'm using a phone they've branded. So I'm looking for an Android ROM that doesn't have Google tentacles in it.
I've been researching this since we got the phones but I'm not clear on what ROMS are avail for my phone ... it doesn't look like cyanogenmod has one (although they have one for my gf's old Exhibit T599!! ) - is there a repository, website or thread I haven't found that has a list of what's out there? am I stuck rooting the phone and MANUALLY removing everything? The phones have Kitkat installed.
I saw a youtube vid where they've ported Lollipop to the Avant - would that come de-Googled?
Do Android ROMs from Android come without a Google footprint? Some users have posted that Android as an independent company is not necessarily Google and their OS is NOT a Google product so my thoughts are you can have one without the other.
Any help / info is appreciated. thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Google has not shown itself to be a malicious company. Is it a little creepy that they know everything about you? Yes. Will it make your user experience better? Probably. When you flash a custom ROM it removes all of the Google apps but the Google apps are really useful. Play Store, Maps, Gmail (can store all your contacts so if you get a new phone you can just import them), etc. are all very useful in my opinion. I don't personally need Google Music for example so I deleted that. All of my music comes through Spotify and Bandcamp downloads. But I can't imagine my phone without the Play Store and Gmail. It would make the experience very annoying. Cyanogen Inc. is looking into pushing their ROMs on to retail Android phones so the phone would come with Cyanogenmod and have their own equivalent to GApps. But, that won't happen for a while. The best bet to get Google out of your hair is to root it and delete the apps you don't need, or use SlimRom.
Edit: Make sure your phone is the same model as the ones that SlimRom is created for.
dictatorkara said:
Google has not shown itself to be a malicious company. Is it a little creepy that they know everything about you? Yes. Will it make your user experience better? Probably. When you flash a custom ROM it removes all of the Google apps but the Google apps are really useful. Play Store, Maps, Gmail (can store all your contacts so if you get a new phone you can just import them), etc. are all very useful in my opinion. I don't personally need Google Music for example so I deleted that. All of my music comes through Spotify and Bandcamp downloads. But I can't imagine my phone without the Play Store and Gmail. It would make the experience very annoying. Cyanogen Inc. is looking into pushing their ROMs on to retail Android phones so the phone would come with Cyanogenmod and have their own equivalent to GApps. But, that won't happen for a while. The best bet to get Google out of your hair is to root it and delete the apps you don't need, or use SlimRom.
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Click to collapse
This is not true. Even without gapps there are still many google base system files that are built into the system. There is only one Google-less project that is being worked on but they do have issues as the OS is not built to run without them. Even Slim Rom still use alot of googles stuff.
zelendel said:
This is not true. Even without gapps there are still many google base system files that are built into the system. There is only one Google-less project that is being worked on but they do have issues as the OS is not built to run without them. Even Slim Rom still use alot of googles stuff.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't say you can completely de-Google an Android device. But, you can make it appear to be de-Googled, although the system files you mentioned will still be there. But you can completely opt out of Gmail and the like.
dictatorkara said:
I didn't say you can completely de-Google an Android device. But, you can make it appear to be de-Googled, although the system files you mentioned will still be there. But you can completely opt out of Gmail and the like.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I used to have an IT company not too long ago and I run a bunch of commercial grade servers in my house - My needs aren't the same as the typical phone user with respect to data redundancy, cloud computing, etc - I have that capability already. I pretty much use my phone to snap photos, internet browsing, texting, making calls and sometimes use the gps when driving. What I don't need is a copy of all my activity, contacts, calls, texts and browsing history stored on google servers to be sold or given to entities that I a. wouldn't consent to b. have no clue it's happening.
I don't really care if there is a Google footprint left in the phone, I just want to remove Google's ability to mine my personal data from my phone which also includes registering my device via a google+ account.
With respect to playstore, isn't Aptoid a suitable alternative?
What is SlimROM? where can I get more info on it? I saw the post you had linked to originally which prompted me to post my OP because I couldn't find any other info on it
master-richie said:
I used to have an IT company not too long ago and I run a bunch of commercial grade servers in my house - My needs aren't the same as the typical phone user with respect to data redundancy, cloud computing, etc - I have that capability already. I pretty much use my phone to snap photos, internet browsing, texting, making calls and sometimes use the gps when driving. What I don't need is a copy of all my activity, contacts, calls, texts and browsing history stored on google servers to be sold or given to entities that I a. wouldn't consent to b. have no clue it's happening.
I don't really care if there is a Google footprint left in the phone, I just want to remove Google's ability to mine my personal data from my phone which also includes registering my device via a google+ account.
With respect to playstore, isn't Aptoid a suitable alternative?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No Dont use that. They are all warez and are known for including data miners, Keyloggers and screen recorders.
Ill be honest. You picked the wrong OS for that then. GPS itself uses google software to connect to the satalites.
This is your best option
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1715375