Greetings,
Long time contributer to XDA here for Windows development. Since the windows phone is essentially dead I had to move over to Google. I picked up the Pixel 2 from VZW and I have a pile of questions about this phone. Hoping you can answer me as may friends with Droids, Galaxys, and Essential phones tell me this is the Google phone so their version of Android is different.
1. Can you customize the screensaver with something better? Just the clock and icons sucks. It plain sucks. My wifes Droid has circles you hold down to view at a glance. It's there other apps that make the screensaver show weather and calendar info etc. My windows phone had that and it was awesome.
2. I was able to respond to texts outside the pin or device lock. If I wanted to do anything else with message I had to unlock it. Is there a way to do this on the Pixel 2?
3. Going through the Play Store shows the same home screen apps over and over that just customize the background and make the same overall look of the Android OS. Are there home screen apps that tear that down and make it look completely different that are customizable? I used to live the Manilla UI of the late 2000s. Does anyone do that? Android has the ability not sure why noone though of bringing it back. It was clean a d smooth and highly functional.
Thanks in advance for helping me out. Currently running a home screen app toake it look like the windows phone but it VASTLY lacks the ability to show information, make it look clean, and all around is not as good as the metro style live tiles are. Also repsonding to messages and having to unlock all the time is so infuriating.
Phone info attached. Thanks!
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Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk
Since you bought the VZW version instead of buying from the Google Store, root might be hard to acquire if that's something that you want. Some of the apps that I'm recommending give you more flexibility and control if you have root access.
1) Take a look at "Widget Locker."
I'm not sure how well it works on the pixel 2. I just use the stock lock screen. Though I used it on my HTC M8 for a long time and it worked very well.
2) You could probably just turn off your lock screen, or find an app that lets you bypass it. Though your disabling part of the security of your phone if you choose to go that way.
3) Check out Nova Launcher, and Zooper Widget. There's also YouTube videos of a reviewer that goes over custom phone setups. When I get to my computer I will try to find them and post the link to their page.
Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk
3) try Nova launcher (prime) and/or Klwp. Klwp let's you do practically anything you can or can't imagine, including windows-phone-like setups.
There are also some launchers like smart launcher, using a different approach then the standard launchers, although I don't use smart launcher some people really seem to like it
Try Microsoft launcher app. It will make your Android system have some windows phone behavior. But still not windows phone and I don't like it.
Related
I just bought the captivate yesterday, What tweaks should I do and is it a must to root the phone to sideload apps? and what apps and widgets should I download, I remember some from my nexus one but Im hoping some of you can help me with great apps and games
First of all, CONGRATS on buying this sexy phone !
Ok I'd recommend you first check out the "Pimp my Captivate" thread that's stickied at the top, and download the pdf.
When you reach the step where you have to root your phone, don't.
Instead flash the Unleash the Beast rom/update
forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=751182
Then continue on with the guide as normal, with the exception that you don't have to root anymore, remove the att apps, or use a side load script since there's instruction how to enable it after flashing the Unleash the Beast.
i'm not much of a gamer but depending on how old you are, you might remember labyrinth. that is a pretty fun game to me. the samsung user interface (Touchwiz 3.0) to me was pretty neat, but Launcherpro is much much better. its much more customizable, and the fact that you can have 7 screens + 3 dockbars makes it near impossible for you to run out of room for shortcuts. some people will say that you will need to have an all black background to preserve your battery life, i disagree with it, as i am running live backgrounds like Galaxy without a problem. If youre willing to pay for any apps the first one that i recommend is Beautiful Widgets as it has tons and tons of skins for the weather and clock widget on your home screen.
I rooted mine as it was a simple process, and tried a couple of the lag fixes. if you are happy with the speed of your phone, then dont mess with any of those fixes imo.
I recommend setting up Pandora if you havent already, as well as iheartradio. and ive been using ringdroid to clip songs into ringtones as well.
my captivate lags sometimes, not as smooth as the nexus, will the lag fix help? for example when i put that live wallpaper with the leaves and the water that was also on the nexus, it lags alot when moving from one homescreen page to the next.Also I saw a really great wallpaper from the original galaxy with the water rippling, is there any way to get it on the captivate and also the avatar movie from the vibrant
also is there any way to stop the phone from vibrating with the swype and samsung keyboard?
I also Agree, beautiful widgets has a weather animation, and many skins.
I paired up the Droid Does skin, with the Droid X Live wallpaper
Here's a pic
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what launcher are u using with the droid x theme, adw or launcherpro, btw which one is better. I still havnt tryed adw, I had launcher pro on my n1
Launcherpro is where it's at, when you download it customize it and find the option to enable 3d app drawer- it's great!
You can find the Droid X Live Wallpaper here (many different colors)
forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=6952878&postcount=13
But for the DROID does clock/weather widget, you need to download or "find" beautiful widgets.
Like I said before though, flash the unleash the beast rom, it's makes the Captivate way faster, and your life easier.
So did anyone ever tell you how to get the avatar movie from the vibrant to work on the captivate? I have the file saved on my phone but can't get it to play.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
The swype options are in settings/locale and text/swype ... Or you can hit the swype key on bottom left of the keyboard.
I havn't found a browser that I like 100%. I like Dolphin but I want something a little more clean/simple. Thats why, yesterday, I thought of making my own in photoshop (for now).
Let me know what you think.
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So, that would be the main page. The three dots next to the Google logo would be a drop down menu for switching search engines and including others like Wikipedia, Wolfram-Alpha, Yahoo, ect. The icons at the bottom are from left to right: Home, Tabs (like when you do a home screen view on Sense/Launcher Pro/ADW/Go Launcher), Back/Front (Can be used on websites or tabs), Bookmarsk, Options.
The whole thing would also go into full screen mode and the top and bottom navigation bars would be brought up using the menu button (optional).
Again, very simple. At the bottom you have your main operations. Sort by (most viewed, alphabetical, ect.), Edit bookmark names/urls, and batch delete.
This is options menu. Options are seperated into three categories, Display, User and Misc.
I just realized that I forgot the enable/disable toggles (duh).
Anyway, this is pretty much my dream browser more or less. Im still working on some other things in photoshop.
Let me know what you guys think.
By the way, I got most of the icons from here...
http://yankoa.deviantart.com/art/Windows-Phone-7-Icons-166077852
I guess I would have to make my own if I actually developed this.
It's nice but i hate apps that doesn't use the native style of Android...why does everyone think that he needs to create an own UI?
Looks clean. I'd give it a try.
Unintentionally sent from my Nexus One using xda premium.
I'd definitely use it
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App
bluefisch200 said:
It's nice but i hate apps that doesn't use the native style of Android...why does everyone think that he needs to create an own UI?
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Not sure what you mean by that. If I used the native style of Android wouldn't it be just like the stock browser? Therefore, it would be pointless in me making one?
Im by no means a professional UI designer so im probably misunderstanding what you are saying.
I do agree with you about apps that Android doesn't already have stock though.
Hmmm.. It has WP7 icon style
ebe_robert said:
Hmmm.. It has WP7 icon style
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Lol, yah. Im in love with how the Metro UI looks. Pretty much why im so excited about ICS.
Folks,
My wife is a devout Iphone user who broke her phone (dropped it, glass shattered) and so she's using my old Cappy for the time being, as I recently upgraded to the Note.
She is wise enough to understand that the Android user experience can be much broader than that of IOS, so she wants to know what apps and widgets might be good for her to download (free is best, but pay is ok).
She loves her music and is attached at the hip to Itunes so I've heard that DoubleTwist is the answer there, and here are other apps I suggested to her (keeping in mind the Cappy is rooted and running CM 7.1:
-TIBU
-Zedge
-Lookout
-Taptu
-TuneIn Radio
-Weatherbug
-Kayak (travel app)
-Convertpad
-Android Pro Widgets
-AdFree
-App Cache
-Evernote
-Spool
-ShopKick
Please add to this based on your preferences and I'll pass along to her.
Many thanks to all.
-Ryan
I would add Rom manager to make backups/restores simple on CM7 and also Update to the latest kangs, Weather and toggle widget for a time/date/weather widget or use Go Launcher, Go weather, go Widgets, themes for go widget in the market, go keyboard to match a theme. Google music beta to store all her music in the cloud and be able to get it anywhere anytime. Netflix and/or HBO go for watching shows it movies.
Sent from My KickAss CM7 Captivate
ROM manager, really? Why? All that can be done in cwm, no need for a seperate app...and how much do you think she'll be flashing to need backups?
Op i would suggest a nice launcher with a bunch of animations and whatnot... Give her the ole razzle dazzle lol
And hit up the uot kitchen and cook her up a theme she'll like, that way it's got a personal "just for her" appeal going on.
Thanks guys.
I was planning on throwing GoLauncher on there for her on top of CM 7.1, etc.
Just trying to make it an overall good media experience for her too, since all these Iphone devotees are so music-happy. This is why I'm also looking for a good way to either port all of her Itunes library to Android or find a player/app (I'm told DoubleTwist??) that will allow her access to her Itunes library with little or no fuss.
Thanks for the suggestions, and please keep them coming if other pop into your heads.
-Ryan
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I have been using go launcher on my personal crappy since day 1. I suggest getting the android 4.0 theme from the market. (ics) Also get app planet (go to applanet.net on the phones browser, it has most popular apps free to download. I am using the sense clock as it can a wide range of specs. (battery, weather, internal phone temp) YouTube, angry birds, also show her some live wallpapers, I am using the galaxy one from the market right now get swype also. will add more in a bit ^„^.
edit: added Ss of my phones home.
Sent from my I897
Hi, I got a KF when it came out last year. I wanted to give it to my niece this year for her birthday. I'd like to put something other than the KF OS on it. Maybe CM9? That seems to be popular around here. Also I'd like to customize the screens so that a 4 year old can get to what they need and not get lost in all the extras.
Q1: Can anyone recommend an OS for it? CM7, CM9 or other. I don't need it to have all the gadgets or widgets. Just wifi, video, sound and the google market. Maybe I can strip down something already made?
Q2: I guess I would have to make some sort of custom theme for it. Does anyone know of one for kids? I want to get rid of the carousel and do maybe 3-5 BIG icons on the main screen. No extra screens (swipe to next screen). And a password protected settings icon.
I've done lots of windows and Mac programming before, but no android yet. I've got the SDK and have gone through several beginner tutorials ("Hello World", ect.)
Thanks.
Im using Cm7 currently, i suggest you to use the same! Very cool, smooth and fast.
Cm7 is quite stable, and its been fun customizing it to my liking.
Sent from my ADR6400L using xda premium
Ok cool. I'll start on CM7 then. Do I need to modify the source code to customize it or can I just manipulate the configuration files and graphics?
MIUI
I'm using MIUI.us, It's still quite buggy, but it promises lot!
If it's for kids, maybe the easier way should be:
Keep stock rom
Root KF. do not register in order to keep out amazon's further upgrades
Install the apps you like
Set another launcher as default and customize it as you like. Hide/unistall what you think the kids don't need
No need to flash roms, IMO
Put the MoDaCo Rom on it. It comes preloaded with the Android Market and uses the regular Kindle Fire OS. I've used it and I think it would be perfect for your niece!
Here's a preview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2QtQeOdOZg
He says in the video that the Rom is v6.2.1 (Gr2), but it is actually been updated to v6.2.2 (Gr6).
Here's the Rom: http://android.modaco.com/topic/350682-24-jan-gr6-622-modaco-custom-rom-for-the-kindle-fire/
CM7 is the only one that can do video for now. I recommend you use GO Launcher or the stock one. Don't go too overboard trying to make your own. Actually did one a few years ago for my brother to browse the internet.
Desktop VisualizeR lets you do "stickers" and put them where you please and then point them to an app. Kinda like this:
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That's a really nice screenshot you have. Is that with the stock KF OS? or did you put something else on? I've downloaded the app, but the icons I get are always small, even when I give it a big image. Do I have to buy their image crop app or another one of theirs to get mine to look as good as yours?
Hi everyone!
Today I've created a mockup of my own idea: A Quick Settings interface for Wear!
As lots of other users out there, I hate to scroll 5-6 times to finally turn on airplane mode when I want to use my smartwatch as a watch only. This would be a much better and of course, faster option to turn settings on- and off quickly with only one slide...
Maybe we could add Location and theather mode to the bottom line, but as I see, three icons would do the job.
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I hope if we create a bit of a hype Google will consider creating something like this in the M edition of Android Wear...
Anyway... Do you like the idea?
Looks cool. Doesnt 5.1.1 already have something similar?
No, it does not. This is especially annoying because you cannot use WiFi directly without putting the device in airplane mode first.
This is awesome and would be incredibly useful for me.
NickM_27 said:
This is awesome and would be incredibly useful for me.
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Thanks! Feel free to repost on other forums! I hope if we reach out enough users Google would implement it in the next update
lekofraggle said:
No, it does not. This is especially annoying because you cannot use WiFi directly without putting the device in airplane mode first.
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Why would you want to do this? Airplane mode disables interaction in the google apps. If you want to force wifi, better to turn bluetooth off on your phone.
The reason is if you want to use an app online. For instance, if you need a web browser or es file explorer on your watch. Bluetooth has no bearing. The system does not allow user apps to go online. There are two solutions (not one like I said before).
1, enable airplane mode, and then enable and connect to WiFi.
2, Put the app you want to have WiFi access in the system folder (I think both priv-app and app work).
Of course both have drawbacks, but that is the way it is right?
Sent from my HTC6500LVW using Tapatalk
lekofraggle said:
The system does not allow user apps to go online.
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Apparently, like a lot of other solutions that have been found in android wear, there's an unofficial way to do things.
See web browser for a.w.
Looks awesome, maybe I'm slowly considering to get one of these petting watches
Yes please.
I like it ? should really be in it
yes please! I don't understand why google insists on coming up with a more "watch specific" interface for Wear, when scaling down vanilla android would have been a more familiar experience: pull down for toggles, swipe left/right to access your screens where you can deploy icons for quick launch apps, or one screen dedicated to notifications ala samsungs' touchwiz widgets page? I would pay for a mini version of Nova launcher on my watch.