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I was searching the Android Market for a new launcher for my Sidekick, but most of them are more likes themes of the basic Android launcher. The handful that offer something truly different aren't developed enough to warrant using. So, is there a dev out there interested in making a home screen replacement launcher that's a clone of the old Danger Sidekick homescreen?
Looking at the few videos of the older sidekicks ui i want to say....... why? seams like it uses alot more space compared to the asop launchers. closet thing i can even remotely look at an comes to my mind when i see a old sidekicks user interface is what sony puts on their phones.
Circle launcher looks promising: https://market.android.com/details?id=de.dbware.circlelauncher (also a free "Lite" version)
pintek said:
Looking at the few videos of the older sidekicks ui i want to say....... why? seams like it uses alot more space compared to the asop launchers. closet thing i can even remotely look at an comes to my mind when i see a old sidekicks user interface is what sony puts on their phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why? Well, it's unique for one thing. There are other launchers available that do similar things, but they aren't refined enough in their functionality and/or don't look right. Here's basically what I have in mind. I'd want a launcher with 2 home screens. The 2nd one would be where I'd want the bubbles to be. That would be the one on the right. The bubbles would have to be on the right hand side of the screen in landscape and at the bottom in portrait mode. The other screen on the left would be for widgets only. The launcher would need to support folders well too for things you want to keep in them like an 'All Apps' folder. This carousel would need to play nice with the trackpad too (a lot of docks on other launchers are similar but don't work well with the trackpad). In other words, the carousel concept is a blend of the dock and icon grid. Here's another WHY: Putting all of the icons on the carousel would clean up the screen so I can see pictures of my wife and children without all the icons blocking the view. So, that's a bit of my thinking in a nutshell. There simply isn't anything like this out there for Android.
ged92781 said:
Why? Well, it's unique for one thing. There are other launchers available that do similar things, but they aren't refined enough in their functionality and/or don't look right. Here's basically what I have in mind. I'd want a launcher with 2 home screens. The 2nd one would be where I'd want the bubbles to be. That would be the one on the right. The bubbles would have to be on the right hand side of the screen in landscape and at the bottom in portrait mode. The other screen on the left would be for widgets only. The launcher would need to support folders well too for things you want to keep in them like an 'All Apps' folder. This carousel would need to play nice with the trackpad too (a lot of docks on other launchers are similar but don't work well with the trackpad). In other words, the carousel concept is a blend of the dock and icon grid. Here's another WHY: Putting all of the icons on the carousel would clean up the screen so I can see pictures of my wife and children without all the icons blocking the view. So, that's a bit of my thinking in a nutshell. There simply isn't anything like this out there for Android.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. This is something i would enjoy very much.
the only issue with this is a lot of people (including me) have disabled their track pads on the phone due to the optical joystick glitch when out in sunlight. I wish I had my old launcher from my old sidekick, but I do not see how it would work with this phone considering its physical fault.
Both the sk4g n the og sk have the same landscape based design I think it would be very possible to have the wallpapers and theme icons. For the og line
Sent from my SGH-T839 using XDA App
shadowscott said:
the only issue with this is a lot of people (including me) have disabled their track pads on the phone due to the optical joystick glitch when out in sunlight. I wish I had my old launcher from my old sidekick, but I do not see how it would work with this phone considering its physical fault.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I'd imagine you could manipulate the bubbles with a touch of the screen as well. Believe it or not, some actually did this already...to an iPhone! If you dig around enough on YouTube, you can probably still see it.
ged92781 said:
Well, I'd imagine you could manipulate the bubbles with a touch of the screen as well. Believe it or not, some actually did this already...to an iPhone! If you dig around enough on YouTube, you can probably still see it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
FYI, here's one of the 2 videos on YouTube where a guy made a functional Danger Sidekick homescreen for the iPhone.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDG11kliWWw&feature=youtube_gdata_player
here is the closest thing i've come to find thats like the interface you are wanting though there is no landscape mode for this which is a "mild" pain.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wU2gGI8KVhY
My suggestion is to drop a message to the dev of that launcher on market place an see if they can do some minor addons to work in landscape an possibly ability to change icons (if you so badly want the older danger icons)
"Orientation Control" can force any program into landscape. It's inexpensive and effective.
It's the only app of its kind that works. And, it works like a charm.
Developer support for landscape is no longer an issue. It all runs landscape now; rather it wants to or not.
Recommended.
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.coinsoft.android.orientcontrol
pintek said:
here is the closest thing i've come to find thats like the interface you are wanting though there is no landscape mode for this which is a "mild" pain.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wU2gGI8KVhY
My suggestion is to drop a message to the dev of that launcher on market place an see if they can do some minor addons to work in landscape an possibly ability to change icons (if you so badly want the older danger icons)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a very cool launcher. Thanks for the suggestion. It just might work if it had some more functionality. I'll send the dev a message.
oh well, this launcher, while cool isn't going to cut it soon enough. I wonder if that guy who made the Sidekick launcher for the iPhone would be interested in making one for the Sidekick 4G.
Hi all,
New to Android here. Just got a AT&T Galaxy S II Skyrocket after 4 frustrating years with iPhones.
So far I really like Android, especially that it lets you change what you don't like. I do feel that both devices are unacceptably tethered to their respective corporate landlords - and google is not necessarily better than apple in that respect - but Android lets you change that more readily. For instance myphoneexplorer lets you sync with outlook pretty flawlessly if you don't care to upload your info to google's "cloud", etc.
OK, I'm done ranting now but I do have 2 specific questions:
1. My particular SIISR does not display a visual reminder nor sounds a loud enough alarm when (a) I get a text, or (b) a calendar event comes due. It just makes a ridiculously soft noise that I miss every time I'm not standing in an empty recording studio, and even worse when I pull the phone the screen is dark so I have no idea what the feeble alarm was about. I expect the same level of alert as when I get a call, i.e. the lock screen lights up and I can read / snooze / dismiss as the case may be. This is really pretty amazing that such dirt-basic functionality is not included in the software, at the very least easily enabled in Settings. Am I really expected to turn on the phone and pull down the Notifications curtain to find out what is going on? If there is no workaround this will be a showstopper for me and I'll have no choice but to return the phone.
2. I like the idea of upgrading to a rom like cyanogen when it becomes available for the SIISR, but I am concerned about how at&t cottons up to having rooted and OS-reflashed devices on its network and what they might do about it, and more specifically what happens when updates are pushed down the pipe. What is you guys' real world experience with that?
Thank you for your feedback! I'd really like to stick with my new Android phone!
you go into setting and the sound option. click on volume and make sure it maxed out, then click notification ringtone and you can change the sound.
As for visual reminder its at the top left of the screen. Text shows an envelope and calender alert a different icon.. I use handcent for sms and it works way better than stock program.
Not sure if BLN works on the this model but try it. it will leave your softkeys lit when you have a text.
you can try different lock screens via golocker so that you dont have to unlock your phone to see what the alert was but to actually read the alert or know more than if it was a message or email or phone call you have to unlock it for security reasons as perhaps you get confidential material that not just ANYONE should see.
as for rooted and custom firmware its safe, and prevents stock updates from your provider. as android is opensource you are allowed to customize it.
As to #1, you can change the notification sound both in your email settings and in the phones settings/sounds area. As to it being a dark screen when you go to check it.. thats one of the downsides to this particular model, no notification LED.. there is an app on the android market called NoLED that will put a little picture on the black screen to make up for it. BUT I cannot vouch for whether or not it drains battery (my chief concern), just have to try it out.
#2 I've been on AT&T with a rooted/flashed phone of various models since 2008 and I've never had them notice/say anything. It does void your warranty flashing, but there are ways of getting it back to stock if you do end up needing that. At the moment on this phone I believe you can't get it *perfectly* back to stock, but just have to give the devs here time and it will be available eventually.
*NoLED is on my list of apps to check battery usage, I'll get on it and post again tomorrow
while the forums are a great resource for things, you will get answers faster if you just google (or youtube) things like 'how to change android sms sound'
jacobharasimo said:
Not sure if BLN works on the this model but try it. it will leave your softkeys lit when you have a text.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds even better than NoLED.. givin that a try too
sulpher said:
Sounds even better than NoLED.. givin that a try too
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
BLN requires a kernel that supports BLN, its only a matter of time when one of these great devs on here creates one.
Handcent SMS (free in the market) has the option to have your message pop up and remain on your screen until you cancel it. Almost like the iPhone.
As what Jacob said, when you are running a rooted device, you are most likely running a custom Recovery like CWM. Its actually the custom recovery that prevents you from getting the updates Over The Air. HOWEVER, the way the devs work... those new updates will generally be available for you way before your carrier sends it to your device. So rooted or not, you're gonna wanna root it anyway cause you'll end up being one of the few who wont have ICS, or whatever.
cue_32 said:
BLN requires a kernel that supports BLN, its only a matter of time when one of these great devs on here creates one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Da_G supports it - look in the dev forum.
fedupey1 said:
2. I like the idea of upgrading to a rom like cyanogen when it becomes available for the SIISR, but I am concerned about how at&t cottons up to having rooted and OS-reflashed devices on its network and what they might do about it, and more specifically what happens when updates are pushed down the pipe. What is you guys' real world experience with that?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like it was said, you won't get updates from AT&T, but why would you want AT&T updates to overwrite your Cyanogen ROM?? When you flash Cyanogen (or any ROM), you follow that ROM and reflash when updates are available. So instead of relying on AT&T for updates, you'll rely on the developer of the ROM for updates. Also, as long as you're not trying to exchange the phone or anything like that, AT&T has no right to tell you how to use your phone. Root it, flash it...throw it against the wall...it's yours. Do what you want. Now, when you try to warranty your wall smashed phone, you better hope you have a stock AT&T ROM on there if it powers up. Every time I've warrantied a phone, it's been dead, so it didn't matter. If it won't turn on, they can't tell what ROM you have, and really, most of those "techs" just want to give you a new phone and get you on your way. Personally, I've never had a problem getting a new phone.
#1 go into sms press settings in there change your SMS ringtone. If you want an iPhone SMS type of visual reminder (bubble alert) download SMS popup from the market tinker the settings to your liking.
I'll suggest every new iPhone to android user to read the phones manual or Google your questions before jumping to conclusion that android doesn't have this and that. Most likely it does. You can customize android how ever You want.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium
Has anyone had experience with the Chinese GO Launcher and the widgets that come with it? They look pretty cool, and it seems they have the functionality I'm missing.
btw I can understand the "read the manual first" comments; I did read the manual and, not unpredictably, it said nothing about functionality that doesn't exit.
Thanks for all the input so far everyone!
I recently upgraded from the iphone to the Skyrocket, and am loving it. I wasn't sure whether I was going to like it the first few days, but now when I pick up my husband's iphone it seems like a toy compared to the Skyrocket.
I just started using Go Launcher Ex two days ago. It has a lot of slick and useful features. I haven't finished exploring all of the options available, but so far I'm enjoying the themes, locker options, and SMS pro. It's easy to try Go, and you always can uninstall it if you don't like it. I did have to redo my widgets after installing it, but that was actually kind of fun with the new theme I installed.
Not a huge deal but something to keep in mind with GO launcher.. recently noticed with system panel that GO launcher drains battery excessively when the phone is idle (device on but screen off), so i switched to launcher pro which drains FAR less with the screen off. The app is nearly the same as far as functionality, with one or two exceptions that can be added by purchasing the the pro version if you really need them (resizing widgets). I decided it was worth it to use less battery.
*note, im a battery stickler.. I can't stand any extra drain
more then happy to help you out.
fedupey1 said:
Has anyone had experience with the Chinese GO Launcher and the widgets that come with it? They look pretty cool, and it seems they have the functionality I'm missing.
btw I can understand the "read the manual first" comments; I did read the manual and, not unpredictably, it said nothing about functionality that doesn't exit.
Thanks for all the input so far everyone!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know switching from the Iphone to Android is a big change. I was so confused for about a week. Anyways, if you want I would be happy to answer any questions you may have about your phone. I use the Go Launcher and Go SMS , I know a lot about them. Anyway just PM me if you'd like.
it has been my experience, because all returned/exchanged phones are sent out for reconditioning, att nor does the manufacturer care what OS modification has been performed on the phone. I returned my cappy at the atrix launch and asked specifically about the issue of "stock" or not, then I handed my serendipity cappy right over. Never heard back from att since and I'm still upgrading phones today without any heat. no worries.
sulpher said:
Not a huge deal but something to keep in mind with GO launcher.. recently noticed with system panel that GO launcher drains battery excessively when the phone is idle (device on but screen off), so i switched to launcher pro which drains FAR less with the screen off. The app is nearly the same as far as functionality, with one or two exceptions that can be added by purchasing the the pro version if you really need them (resizing widgets). I decided it was worth it to use less battery.
*note, im a battery stickler.. I can't stand any extra drain
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good to know, thanks for the info. I'm really happy with Go launcher, and in fact have noticed much better battery performance than I had previously with a live wallpaper. But I'll look into launcher pro if the battery performance is a problem in the future.
i can confirm that Go Launcher DRAINS battery very much.....but i still use it i like to functions.
just letting you know
I installed GO Launcher EX, it looks very cool; polished and very usable UI is a massive improvement. I recommend it. Ditto GO Dialer / contacts, a huge improvement over stock. GO calendar widget is OK but not fabulous; it looks good though with the Transparency theme. GO locker was pretty but rather useless, I uninstalled it.
Installed SMS popup, works excellent. I'm happy with it. Who knew I'd get excited over functionality that used to be standard 6 years ago.
Then for my calendar I looked for an iPhone type of visual reminder (bubble alert) that wakes up the phone and displays even when the screen is locked. I only found two:
- Calendar Snooze, of which I am currently running the free version. It does the job, but it's sort of aesthetically challenged.
- The pathetic Nudnik, which I uninstalled immediately. It looks like it was designed by a pre-schooler.
Now I need to resolve my lock screen issue, then I'll be content (it locks up immediately whenever I press Power although I set the delay to 10 mins in Settings).
I think I'll give Cyanogen a whirl if it becomes available for Skyrocket.
Try iPhone Notification.
Went from a G2 to this One S yesterday. I'm not too impressed.
No dedicated menu button
There is enough room for one on the bottom but they only put 3.
What happens now is that Android (or Sense or something) detects when there are menu options and puts a button on the screen for it taking away real estate from the application.
No trackball
I used this a lot on my G2 especially on web pages with small links that I didn't want to missclick. I already miss it. I also used the trackball wake feature in CM on my G2. Now there is only one way to turn the screen on and its a little hard to do one handed. The trackball was in a very natural position to turn on with your thumb. Now without it, it is very awkward to power on with your thumb, you have to hold it very high and I'm affraid of dropping it. Alternatively I could turn it on with my index finger but it spreads my hand way out and still feels weird.
No folders
I'm not sure if this is an ICS thing or a Sense thing (because this phone is an unholy bastardization), but I can't figure out a way to create folders on my home screens. I'm not talking about the Sense folders for applications either. In normal Android builds you can add shortcuts, widgets, folders. The Pandora application shipped with a folder called "My Stations" or something like that. I used this because it only took up 1x1 on a homescreen and let me choose which station was opened. Without it, you need to open the application and it immediately starts playing the last radio station. This is annoying.
Resolution
The DPI isn't any better than my G2, its just a bigger screen. This is pretty disappointing. I would like a crisper display in a flagship device.
Bloat
Its pretty bad. I know most users want Facebook, Twitter, Dropbox, etc... but how about you let us select what we want during the phone setup.
Misc
This is my first Sense device and my first ICS device so again, not sure where this crap is coming from.... When you install an application it creates a shortcut for it on one of your home screens. Putting a shortcut is the simplist thing you can do in Android, why not leave it for the use to do if they want to do it.
On my way to work I was listening to I Heart Radio and while the live streams were okay when I went to the "pandora"-like functionality it would only play one song and then stop. This never happened on my G2. Don't know whats going on here.
I don't care for the browser (which they stupidly call "internet").
I don't care for all of the account options. I went to share a page in the browser, I wanted to email it to myself. So when I went to share page it let me select how to share it. I got "Facebook for HTC Sense", "Mail", "Twitter for HTC Sense", and "Dropbox". I did set up Facebook, but I did not set up mail, twitter, or dropbox. What I wanted was GMail which I had to select "See all..." Then I saw a plethora of garbage bloat that they bundle with the phone and had to scroll down to get to GMail. After I went though this experience I went to share another page to see if GMail showed up at the top... it didn't.
I'm sure I'll have more complaints the more I use it. I used my fiance's upgrade for this one but I get an upgrade in 3 months. If CM9 isn't out by then she'll be using this phone and I'll upgrade to a SGSIII or that yet to be named quad-core LG phone.
Summary
CM9 can't come fast enough.
EDIT
I'll add some good things here.
Good things
Again, this is coming from a G2 so in 2 years things should be better anyways....
It is very thin, and very light.
It has a front facing camera which my G2 did not.
The flashlight, though not as bright as the "High Brightness" Cyanogenmod setting on the G2, is still pretty bright.
The speaker seems to put out a lot of sound. Can't attest to the quality yet but the volume is there.
EDIT #2
Some more good and bad....
Skype Useless
... probably related to Wifi crackling. One of the things I was looking forward to with this phone was the ability to make video calls via Skype. My fiance has an iPad2, my in-laws each have a G2X, and my brother has a SGSII. Skype is useless on this device. There is echoing / cracking and video lag even when on Wifi. I called my brother with this One S and it was useless. I then called him on an iPad2 and it was great. I'm wondering if the problem has to do with Beats Audio. We'll have to wait for an AOSP ROM without Beats to find out.
So I unlocked/rooted/ROM'd ...
I am now running Black Dragon 4.0. I LOVE the menu hack to get rid of the stupid 3 dot menu on all the screens. I like that they kept the ability to longpress home to get the default behavior as well. The launcher seems nice though I haven't played with it too much (which is a good thing, means they have good defaults).
Can't wait for the kernel sources to be released so we can make some more CM9 progress. I really miss the buttons in the dropdown for wifi, brightness, bluetooth, etc. Now I have to dropdown, click settings, scroll down and find brighness.
How's the battery life? My G2 has some HORRENDOUS battery... like it can drain 20% an hour... I go to school for like 6/7 hours and I can leave with like a <20% battery life. Currently using MIUI because that seems to be the best battery life.
Edit: As for a menu button, Google is trying to get rid of that. I read a post about it a couple of months ago. They say it was useless. I completely disagree because I use it quite a lot. I use it way more than the search button which I have literally probably used less than 30 times and I've been on an Android device since the G1 came out.
For everything you just said mostly there are workarounds.
The deidcated menu button now exists through roms...the three button thing on screen is removed. Change of dpi works fine on no sense roms I'm set on 195 on sense not as good. Play market you can stop adding apps onto screens
Bloat just remove yourself root explorer..
Sent from my HTC One S using XDA Premium App
Battery lifes good also...
As I said workarounds exist
Also get a different launcher and ditch sense or just get Nova or apex
Sent from my HTC One S using XDA Premium App
Love this. G2 FOORRREEEVVVAAAAHHHH
.ili.music.ili. said:
How's the battery life? My G2 has some HORRENDOUS battery... like it can drain 20% an hour... I go to school for like 6/7 hours and I can leave with like a <20% battery life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm the wrong person to ask about battery life (at least during the week). I work in one of these new fancy energy efficient "Green" buildings. We have coating on our windows that block UV with the side effect of also blocking cellular signals. Everyone that works here puts their phones on airplane mode to save battery because we have 0 signal and the phone search all day.
I'll know better this weekend about battery life.
arknailed7754 said:
For everything you just said mostly there are workarounds.
The deidcated menu button now exists through roms...the three button thing on screen is removed. Change of dpi works fine on no sense roms I'm set on 195 on sense not as good. Play market you can stop adding apps onto screens
Bloat just remove yourself root explorer..
Battery lifes good also...
As I said workarounds exist
Also get a different launcher and ditch sense or just get Nova or apex
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How did they implement the dedicated menu button?
How do I ditch Sense?... what is Nova / apex?
Do I need root to install another launcher?
--
FunkyELF said:
How did they implement the dedicated menu button?
How do I ditch Sense?... what is Nova / apex?
Do I need root to install another launcher?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
no you can install launchers without root..from market just look for them
to ditch sense though you will need root..and to change dpi you will need root..my advice root lol
by ditching sense i mean install a non sense rom like black dragon or untouchables that strip sense away so the majority is ice cream sandwich without the bloatfest. some apps will be kept in but just use root explorer to rid the rom of it.
the dedicated menu button and ridding the screen of the three dots at the bottom is also because its been taken away and remapped by devs..so again..you need root
most of all..development will kick in soon..so better to root..or if not just use a different launcher but you dont really accomplish what your setting out to do
leedroid should be here soon with a rom,and will do away with most of the bloat anyway...so youll keep sense and most things you complained about will be sorted..
the main thing here is..root..worth it..yes..without..pointless and youll be stuck with htcs crap stock rom..pretty poor for me..but coming from another phone with loads of development..probably biased of how it should be
No Folders?
Just long-tap on the icon and drag it to another icon. THe folder will creat automaticly.
FunkyELF said:
Went from a G2 to this One S yesterday. I'm not too impressed.
No dedicated menu button
Root and ROM it. People are remapping the multitask key as the menu button, and hold-home now does the multitask. You're on XDA, so I assume you're enthused enough to root and ROM it.
No trackball
Seriously. Please find me an Android device with a trackball nowadays. It's gone...you're just gonna have to deal with it.
Resolution
This display seems pretty crisp. We're working with phones with relatively small displays. There's only so many pixels you can pack into until it doesn't even matter. 720p is about as far as we need to go on phone screens. The qHD screen on this phone has vivid colors and all the qualities of Super AMOLED. The resolution seems plenty high to me. Are you starting 1inch away from the phone and observing pixels?
Bloat
Welcome to flagship carrier devices. Again, you're on XDA, and fully capable of rooting it and removing all that crap. The G2 was a 1-off device that had pretty much stock Android. Consider it a Nexus device, more or less. With a flagship phone, you're going to get bloatware.
Misc
This is my first Sense device and my first ICS device so again, not sure where this crap is coming from.... When you install an application it creates a shortcut for it on one of your home screens. Putting a shortcut is the simplist thing you can do in Android, why not leave it for the use to do if they want to do it.
Sense has nothing to do with this. The new Google Play Store now by default places new apps' icons on the homescreen. It's as easy as going to the prefs in Play Store and disabling. Blame Google if you're going to blame someone.
On my way to work I was listening to I Heart Radio and while the live streams were okay when I went to the "pandora"-like functionality it would only play one song and then stop. This never happened on my G2. Don't know whats going on here.
Don't know what to tell you, but it's obvious that you're describing some sort of software issue, not a hardware issue. If it worked fine on the live streams, then your data connection worked. Talk to iHeartRadio.
I don't care for the browser (which they stupidly call "internet").
So install a new one! ICS Browser+ is exactly like the stock browser. There's also Chrome and Opera. Cmon...
I don't care for all of the account options. I went to share a page in the browser, I wanted to email it to myself. So when I went to share page it let me select how to share it. I got "Facebook for HTC Sense", "Mail", "Twitter for HTC Sense", and "Dropbox". I did set up Facebook, but I did not set up mail, twitter, or dropbox. What I wanted was GMail which I had to select "See all..." Then I saw a plethora of garbage bloat that they bundle with the phone and had to scroll down to get to GMail. After I went though this experience I went to share another page to see if GMail showed up at the top... it didn't.
This is the one thing I disliked and will agree with you on, although once again, rooting and ROMing can take care of it. That or removing bloatware.
I'm sure I'll have more complaints the more I use it. I used my fiance's upgrade for this one but I get an upgrade in 3 months. If CM9 isn't out by then she'll be using this phone and I'll upgrade to a SGSIII or that yet to be named quad-core LG phone.
Suit yourself. 4.7 inches is just too big, and at these speeds, you're at the mercy of your data connection, not the processor.
Summary
CM9 can't come fast enough.
AMEN
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think nearly all of your points are moot. A lot of your review seems to be based on your lack of willingness to change some preferences and MANAGE your device. If you were on a G2, then you never had to manage stuff like this. Consider it a new experience. If you wanted stock Android, you should've gotten a Galaxy Nexus. I just upgraded from a Nexus S and while I screamed at first at all the Sense crap, I quickly had it rooted, debloated, de-Sensed, and up and running with a nice, fast ROM (Black Magic 4.0).
Give it time. The phone JUST came out.
nickmv said:
I think nearly all of your points are moot. A lot of your review seems to be based on your lack of willingness to change some preferences and MANAGE your device. If you were on a G2, then you never had to manage stuff like this. Consider it a new experience. If you wanted stock Android, you should've gotten a Galaxy Nexus. I just upgraded from a Nexus S and while I screamed at first at all the Sense crap, I quickly had it rooted, debloated, de-Sensed, and up and running with a nice, fast ROM (Black Magic 4.0).
Give it time. The phone JUST came out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i agree with you there,its all about learning curves..no sense roms are fairly close to stock..its just the settings that are different now..he_stheone has already added certain elements of stock android..so its fairly close..just the settings..that are the main difference now.
jacakowal said:
No Folders?
Just long-tap on the icon and drag it to another icon. THe folder will creat automaticly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Those aren't the folders I'm talking about. I think what I'm talking about are called live folders. In AOSP builds of Android when you long press on an empty space on one of your screens you can choose widgets, folders, shortcuts, contacts, and other things I can't remember.
With Sense you only get widgets and shortcuts.... no folders, no contacts, etc... just widgets and shortcuts.
Isn't that minor thing?
Sent from my HTC One S using XDA Premium App
nickmv said:
I just upgraded from a Nexus S and while I screamed at first at all the Sense crap, I quickly had it rooted, debloated, de-Sensed, and up and running with a nice, fast ROM (Black Magic 4.0).
Give it time. The phone JUST came out.
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Click to collapse
I didn't see this one listed in the ALL ROMS post here.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1584163
Where is the info on that ROM?
Dude its in development section
Black dragon 4.0
Sent from my HTC One S using XDA Premium App
nickmv said:
I think nearly all of your points are moot. A lot of your review seems to be based on your lack of willingness to change some preferences and MANAGE your device. If you were on a G2, then you never had to manage stuff like this. Consider it a new experience. If you wanted stock Android, you should've gotten a Galaxy Nexus. I just upgraded from a Nexus S and while I screamed at first at all the Sense crap, I quickly had it rooted, debloated, de-Sensed, and up and running with a nice, fast ROM (Black Magic 4.0).
Give it time. The phone JUST came out.
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Click to collapse
Going to have to side with you on this one. This phone is definitly a great device, give it some time, dig in a little bit. Much better than my Tmo-SGS2.
most of things you mentioned isnt a "bad thing" just you dont know how to operate the phone, or its just different (opinion at that point).
Also you didnt like things which are for all devices, not just one S
FunkyELF said:
Those aren't the folders I'm talking about. I think what I'm talking about are called live folders. In AOSP builds of Android when you long press on an empty space on one of your screens you can choose widgets, folders, shortcuts, contacts, and other things I can't remember.
With Sense you only get widgets and shortcuts.... no folders, no contacts, etc... just widgets and shortcuts.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The long press, dragging and combining of icons together is AOSP folders in Ice Cream Sandwich. The long press on the desktop to add folder is long gone and is not coming back.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
arknailed7754 said:
Dude its in development section
Black dragon 4.0
Sent from my HTC One S using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry... you said Black Magic, not Black dragon.
I'll give it a try in a couple weeks. I like to use my phone a bit before rooting to make sure I didn't get a lemon.
Does the camera work on this one?
Just got the phone and here are my negatives:
1. With lowest brightness setting the screen is horrible (but if you increase it a bit, its ok)
2. No switches in pulldown menu ? I though Sense always had that.....
3. Bottom plastic is not 100% flush at one corner (maybe will exchange, maybe not)
4. In navigation I just couldnt find "setting" button anywhere.....whats up with that ?
gonna go to Verizon and compare to Nexus....I still need Tmo SIM and stores are in same place anyway....I am not a phone freak not wasting time here
Its also very true that until you have 2 devices in hand you cant really compare screen quality...I though my G2x IPS panel for super great, but compared to One S its very warm colored and whites have red tint. Its also hard to use in lowest brightness even in dark room....but with G2x case its because screen is simply too dark, with One S its bright but disgusting to look at due to some "noise"
Really don't understand what all the fuss is about re. the release of Lollipop. When looking at some of the options under "Settings", for example, there are some things that are missing that KitKat had. Selecting the font you wanted to use, for example. Seems like there are less options to control your phone.
Maybe there are some other things under the hood that make Lollipop better, but I'm not seeing it on the surface!
There are somewhat less options now but its a different look and feel. Folks get bored and need something new.
MaverickCoast said:
Really don't understand what all the fuss is about re. the release of Lollipop. When looking at some of the options under "Settings", for example, there are some things that are missing that KitKat had. Selecting the font you wanted to use, for example. Seems like there are less options to control your phone.
Maybe there are some other things under the hood that make Lollipop better, but I'm not seeing it on the surface!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Simple answer is no.
Loss of xposed framework support is huge too.
MaverickCoast said:
Really don't understand what all the fuss is about re. the release of Lollipop. When looking at some of the options under "Settings", for example, there are some things that are missing that KitKat had. Selecting the font you wanted to use, for example. Seems like there are less options to control your phone.
Maybe there are some other things under the hood that make Lollipop better, but I'm not seeing it on the surface!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd have to agree that , no, there isn't anything magical about it really. I like the look, but something similar could easily be achieved with the proper themeing/ROM combo. The animations are nice, but I usually turn them off anyways. There may be some "under the hood" changes but nothing that will drastically change the user experience. Honestly, I think smartphones as a whole have hit a plateau. Minus some tweaks here and there, nothing really innovative has come along in some time. Perhaps the industry rushed towards advancement too fast. I think this is evidenced by the fact that how many pixels a manufacturer can cram into a screen, how awesome a selfie camera is and now animation styles have become selling points. Just my opinion though.
bjoostema said:
I'd have to agree that , no, there isn't anything magical about it really. I like the look, but something similar could easily be achieved with the proper themeing/ROM combo. The animations are nice, but I usually turn them off anyways. There may be some "under the hood" changes but nothing that will drastically change the user experience. Honestly, I think smartphones as a whole have hit a plateau. Minus some tweaks here and there, nothing really innovative has come along in some time. Perhaps the industry rushed towards advancement too fast. I think this is evidenced by the fact that how many pixels a manufacturer can cram into a screen, how awesome a selfie camera is and now animation styles have become selling points. Just my opinion though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looks like the unlocked developer edition m8 getting the lollipop today.
Sent from my HTC6525LVW using XDA Premium HD app
Call me a cranky old man. I don't like Lollipop. Have it running on my Nexus 7 (FHD) and another device I'm testing. Just a few things I don't like:
1. Used to be easy to EITHER swipe for notifications OR quicksettings, now what used to be simple takes at least two-taps
2. The dialogue for which app to use is at the bottom of the screen and looks like it's "falling off" the screen instead of in the middle.
3. Really not happy about the need to decrypt on boot (for some devices). It's just too darn easy for someone with evil intent to completely wipe another person's device "just for a hoot."
4. I do not see a speed increase with ART that makes it worth losing Xposed Framework.
5. Material design does not require Lollipop; it's just window-dressing and styling.
That's just off the top of my head. Every couple of days have to put the test device down and return to my M8 for the look and feel I like.
Newer isn't always better.
hgoldner said:
Call me a cranky old man. I don't like Lollipop. Have it running on my Nexus 7 (FHD) and another device I'm testing. Just a few things I don't like:
1. Used to be easy to EITHER swipe for notifications OR quicksettings, now what used to be simple takes at least two-taps
2. The dialogue for which app to use is at the bottom of the screen and looks like it's "falling off" the screen instead of in the middle.
3. Really not happy about the need to decrypt on boot (for some devices). It's just too darn easy for someone with evil intent to completely wipe another person's device "just for a hoot."
4. I do not see a speed increase with ART that makes it worth losing Xposed Framework.
5. Material design does not require Lollipop; it's just window-dressing and styling.
That's just off the top of my head. Every couple of days have to put the test device down and return to my M8 for the look and feel I like.
Newer isn't always better.
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Click to collapse
Specifically relating to your first point, I'm not sure what you mean. On Lollipop, you can pull down the notifications menu with a single finger or go straight to quick settings with 2 fingers. Just like Jellybean and KitKat. If you use the single finger swipe down to access notifications on Lollipop, you can simply swipe down again to access quick settings. On JB/KK, you had to tap a button to get to quick settings after pulling down the notification shade with 1 finger. Since the 2-finger gesture to go straight to quick settings still works in Lollipop, I'm really not sure I understand what's so inconvenient about how it's implemented vs JB & KK.
maxpower7 said:
Specifically relating to your first point, I'm not sure what you mean. On Lollipop, you can pull down the notifications menu with a single finger or go straight to quick settings with 2 fingers. Just like Jellybean and KitKat. If you use the single finger swipe down to access notifications on Lollipop, you can simply swipe down again to access quick settings. On JB/KK, you had to tap a button to get to quick settings after pulling down the notification shade with 1 finger. Since the 2-finger gesture to go straight to quick settings still works in Lollipop, I'm really not sure I understand what's so inconvenient about how it's implemented vs JB & KK.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sometimes the other three fingers are busy ?
One thing that kinda bugs me is that the notifications overlay the top part of the screen so if you are trying to type there (chrome) and someone is texting you like crazy it gets annoying quick.
maxpower7 said:
Specifically relating to your first point, I'm not sure what you mean. On Lollipop, you can pull down the notifications menu with a single finger or go straight to quick settings with 2 fingers. Just like Jellybean and KitKat. If you use the single finger swipe down to access notifications on Lollipop, you can simply swipe down again to access quick settings. On JB/KK, you had to tap a button to get to quick settings after pulling down the notification shade with 1 finger. Since the 2-finger gesture to go straight to quick settings still works in Lollipop, I'm really not sure I understand what's so inconvenient about how it's implemented vs JB & KK.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well smack me upside the head. Had no idea about the two-fingered pull down.....
My name is Harold and I'm a flashaholic.....
I think it's great. I'm running stock Lollipop (GPE), not the Fauxpop that just got released today for the international M8. KitKat is just the latest build of what started in 2011, about three and a half years ago. With Lollipop, we're living in 2015. It's really a lot of little things, though. ICS was, too, when it was new. The big changes came with Jellybean.
Regarding Xposed, none of the blame for that is on Lollipop. The Xposed developer had, I don't know, but I'm sure it was over a year, probably more, since ART came out, to get it working. He/They wanted to wait for the release of Lollipop to port it to ART. Now, having had all this time, it's all on them. But if Xposed was that good, and Xposed was open source, where's the community in porting it to ART on their behalf? Seems to me that not that many people even want Xposed. The supply follows the demand. Google isn't lifting the smallest finger to fight Xposed. They don't care. And apparently neither do the developers. Or maybe Lollipop's market share is too small. Last I heard, it was still under 0.1%.
Yeah, Lollipop's great. I might sooner go back to KitKat than switch to an iPhone, but vs switching to Windows Phone I might have to think about it. Realistically on my M8, I'm never going back to Android 4.x. It isn't worth considering. It's like, why would you go back to Windows XP? Sure, it was stable, but so is 7. So is 8.1. Hell, even the 10 tech preview is good enough for most people. Why would you go backwards? Or to put it another way, why would you make your phone all retro? Retro games are cool. Retro cars are cool. And retro music, or more precisely, classic rock, is cool. But personal computer operating software? Not just no but hell no. Give me the latest code I can safely and securely run.
Seriously... HTC One M8... On Verzion... Running the GPE... I have the best phone, on the best network, running the best software. I envy no phone... okay, the Nexus 6 just a little, but it's too big. M8's a little too big. I think the HTC vanity bar should have been at the top. Better thumb reach. But really, nobody's got it better.
no worries, lollipop will be great
Awwww - now that's just plain cruel! Share or shut up [emoji14]
Hey everyone.
So I've recently taken up ricing, and naturally stumbled upon the KWLP app, which allows for incredibly in-depth custom live wallpaper creation.
I hit a snag through, something that I picked up on as I finished creating my first homescreen: It messes with the theme engine on my HAM7! Basically, if you go into any stock app (Dialer, Contacts etc) there is a very blurry, blown up red square in certain UI elements like the top bar of the dialer and so on. I believe it is the background of the KWLP app icon, which is the same red square with rounded edges.
Does anyone have any idea as to why this strange bug is happening, or a possible fix for this? I tried just ignoring it for a while, but it kind of sticks out like a big, blurry pixelated ,red sore thumb. For now I have stopped using it, but would really love to go back to it as there really is little else that comes near it in terms of functionality.
Thanks a bunch!
Hi
Scruffykid said:
Hey everyone.
So I've recently taken up ricing, and naturally stumbled upon the KWLP app, which allows for incredibly in-depth custom live wallpaper creation.
I hit a snag through, something that I picked up on as I finished creating my first homescreen: It messes with the theme engine on my HAM7! Basically, if you go into any stock app (Dialer, Contacts etc) there is a very blurry, blown up red square in certain UI elements like the top bar of the dialer and so on. I believe it is the background of the KWLP app icon, which is the same red square with rounded edges.
Does anyone have any idea as to why this strange bug is happening, or a possible fix for this? I tried just ignoring it for a while, but it kind of sticks out like a big, blurry pixelated ,red sore thumb. For now I have stopped using it, but would really love to go back to it as there really is little else that comes near it in terms of functionality.
Thanks a bunch!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got the same problem on huawei mate 7.
Did you find any fix for this ?
KLWP right? I used it a few months before and had no problems at all. The only thing not working was loading some themes from playstore, but no bugs like you described it. Which launcher did you guys use? I used smart launcher. If you share your wallpaper I can try it.