Okay, so I've been dabbling with app development for a while now but I haven't found the motivation to actually work on a sizable project. I just don't have any good or interesting ideas.
So, I'm turning to you, XDA. Are there any apps that you'd like to see exist? Or any apps that you use that you'd like to see a better version of?
I'm not promising to actually do these and release them, I'm just looking for ideas to motivate myself to start on a project. Obviously, if I actually get something worthy of release, I'll share it.
So, any ideas? Thanks in advance.
I have way too many ideas and lack motivation lol I also have a very screwed up memory, like right now I can think of 5 ideas I had but I can't place them. One had to do with location but until I get home and find the notebook I write all my ideas in I couldn't tell you. Hell I can't even remember what happened 5 minutes ago with out seriously focusing on what happened 5 minutes ago
This is just my add kicking in but I wondered if I could parse an md5 checksum in android terminal emulator and it turns out md5sum utility is built it...neat!
The first app I ever wrote was born by asking myself, "What do I want my phone to do that it can't currently do?"
This made development much more enjoyable as it was something I was interested in and that kept me going and gave me the will to follow thru until it worked.
If you're looking to make an app for someone else, here's my suggestion:
I'd like a 1x1 toggle widget that does the following:
Toggle On (potato mode):
Screen Brightness at lowest
Bluetooth off
GPS off
Mobile Network off
WiFi off
AutoSync off
Toggle Off (radsauce mode):
Return to whatever settings I was using before pressing Toggle On
Nice.
I have a bunch of baby videos (baby Einstein and whatnot) in avi format that I use a third party player to play when traveling. The problem is that I can't give the phone to my daughter because she presses a button or something that stops the video. Same with YouTube vids. So i have to hold the phone the whole time.
Would love a kind of baby lock that disables the touchscreen and buttons but allows third party apps to run behind it (like third party media players and YouTube) so that she can hold the phone herself while her videos or music is playing. It should then be able to be unlocked by pressing a combination of buttons at the same time or something like that. This would be ideal on those long car rides. You parents know where I'm coming from...
There's an app out there already that does something similar, but it's limited to the stock video player only.
How's that for an app idea?
fachadick said:
I have a bunch of baby videos (baby Einstein and whatnot) in avi format that I use a third party player to play when traveling. The problem is that I can't give the phone to my daughter because she presses a button or something that stops the video. Same with YouTube vids. So i have to hold the phone the whole time.
Would love a kind of baby lock that disables the touchscreen and buttons but allows third party apps to run behind it (like third party media players and YouTube) so that she can hold the phone herself while her videos or music is playing. It should then be able to be unlocked by pressing a combination of buttons at the same time or something like that. This would be ideal on those long car rides. You parents know where I'm coming from...
There's an app out there already that does something similar, but it's limited to the stock video player only.
How's that for an app idea?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a pretty interesting idea. Sadly, I won't know if anything is possible until I give it a try, because I'll be learning a lot as I go (I already know Java and I've studied some guides to making apps, as well as a book that I have, but it isn't enough to just magic a useful app together). I'll keep a list and I'll give each thing a try to see if I can pull anything off.
Thanks!
louched1 said:
The first app I ever wrote was born by asking myself, "What do I want my phone to do that it can't currently do?"
This made development much more enjoyable as it was something I was interested in and that kept me going and gave me the will to follow thru until it worked.
If you're looking to make an app for someone else, here's my suggestion:
I'd like a 1x1 toggle widget that does the following:
Toggle On (potato mode):
Screen Brightness at lowest
Bluetooth off
GPS off
Mobile Network off
WiFi off
AutoSync off
Toggle Off (radsauce mode):
Return to whatever settings I was using before pressing Toggle On
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will consider this one as well. On the surface, it doesn't seem like it would be overly complicated.
fachadick said:
I have a bunch of baby videos (baby Einstein and whatnot) in avi format that I use a third party player to play when traveling. The problem is that I can't give the phone to my daughter because she presses a button or something that stops the video. Same with YouTube vids. So i have to hold the phone the whole time.
Would love a kind of baby lock that disables the touchscreen and buttons but allows third party apps to run behind it (like third party media players and YouTube) so that she can hold the phone herself while her videos or music is playing. It should then be able to be unlocked by pressing a combination of buttons at the same time or something like that. This would be ideal on those long car rides. You parents know where I'm coming from...
There's an app out there already that does something similar, but it's limited to the stock video player only.
How's that for an app idea?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As far as media players go, Mx player locks so u have to press the unlock on screen icon to unlock touch buttons.
While it doesn't work for YouTube app, u can use it as default streaming and to watch downloaded movies.
Issue ?partially? solved..
Ask me about my ability to annoy complete strangers!
Touch block comes to mind, last I checked it didn't offer a hardware unlock solution. It disables the touch screen, except for the notification bar. You lock and unlock from there
Thank both of you - I had no idea those were out there, I'll check both of them out!
How's about an app that let's you keep your extSDcard in your phone so that when flashing roms, said app would protect it from being reformatted. It's a pain in the arse having to unmount it/pull it out.
The U.S government wouldn't lie to us...would they?
I don't pull my external sd card when flashing ROMs and I've never had it get formatted. Do you use TWRP?
no app will protect you from recovery since there is no android environment to run the app. Theres also no reason to pull sd card from phone when flashing a new rom.
Iv actually been a lil preoccupied to do anything w/my phone. The only thing Iv done w/it is Zedomax's root method and have yet to flash any roms
The U.S government wouldn't lie to us...would they?
---------- Post added at 12:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:33 PM ----------
SoraX64 said:
Okay, so I've been dabbling with app development for a while now but I haven't found the motivation to actually work on a sizable project. I just don't have any good or interesting ideas.
So, I'm turning to you, XDA. Are there any apps that you'd like to see exist? Or any apps that you use that you'd like to see a better version of?
I'm not promising to actually do these and release them, I'm just looking for ideas to motivate myself to start on a project. Obviously, if I actually get something worthy of release, I'll share it.
So, any ideas? Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My other idea wasnt gud so how's about this one. There are quite a few games still floating about that were pre android. I guess this would be an emulator for pre android games. One that comes to mine is a game by glu 'Transformers'.
http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=muOBTLXUmqM&desktop_uri=/watch?v=muOBTLXUmqM
The U.S government wouldn't lie to us...would they?
There's a full java me port of that game, you just need to convert the jar/jad files and run it in an app called j2me player. Can't guarantee it will run but a lot of java games do
With JB android has started to meet expectations of using tablets and cells for audio engineering apps. I'm a comm engineer by day and run a recording studio by night and hate to admit the integrations of apple iPad etc work very well with multi track audio apps, up until now, android latency issues have preventd good audio multimedia apps so I would love to see more of that development. There is an app called audio evolution now which is amazing and touches the surface of android JB potential.
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
Wasn't the latency due to the fact that android didnt use a realtime kernel? Every distro on the PC side that I've used, I've had to patch or replace the kernel to get realtime support for audio
How about a working Bluetooth keyboard and mouse software? One that actuallys good pairing and better features.
Side stepping the Bluetooth connection would challenge you a little. The kcm and no file with matching dictionary would also be a good challenge.
an app that can decompile and recompile apk
How about an app that let's you download apps that you know will run on your phone but the playstore says your device is not supported for that app. App device support bypass?
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=
The U.S government wouldn't lie to us....would they?
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=
Related
Hi all,
I'm wonsering if true multitasking is possible...
I have been using the sgs2 for a few days now.and its.my first android.phone.
Im very happy with it but jus missing one feature...
When Im watching video in a browser or app Id like to be able to quickly do something else while the.audio keeps.playing.
Is this possible?
I do know that some apps have this featur (audio players etc.)
But id like to do this with the browser or cnn app
Greetings, dutchy
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium App
I'm not sure if it would be possible, although the video is kept in memory, it has to close in order to open another app, I don't think you could have audio playing in background during a different application. My thought, though I'm still kinda n00b-ish with Android myself.
@SgtDutchyNL
It's possible for sure, but browsers intentionally pauses/stops playback when they're "minimized", because this is what most people want in most cases. I don't know any browser app which does run flash content in the background.
Shame there isnt an option for it, maybe its possible by editing some code?
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium App
Coming from a Palm Pre (WebOS) I really hate multi-tasking on Android devices, switching from app to app sometimes doesn't even let you carry on where you started.
Bawezy said:
Coming from a Palm Pre (WebOS) I really hate multi-tasking on Android devices, switching from app to app sometimes doesn't even let you carry on where you started.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really, I've never had an issue switching between browser, sms, email, contacts and maps, all whilst listening to music.
As for video in the browser, Flash has been built to only run whilst in focus to stop the battery from draining when animation is running in a tab in the background.
To help the issue of multitasking, try installing wavelauncher on market. it is exactly like the wave launcher in webos. but it still wont fix the fact that android will close your program in the background when it needs more memory (which is why you have to restart from scratch when you "alt-tab" around)
I have a Palm Pixi Plus which I use for work email. No doubt WebOS is amazing when it comes to multi tasking, their ecosystem(h/w and s/w) should mature but I doubt if it can reach anywhere near Android. For that matter I doubt if M$ or RIM or Intel can ever achieve this.
I've been using Android for the past 2+ yrs. I must admit Android's muti tasking is rubbish. All we need is a simple button X (similar to Windows PC) to close any damn app than closing/killing in a different way in each app/phone. Its confusing at times. Good thing is Galaxy S II is a very good phone. A complete package must say..
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
You guys misunderstood, i dont hate android's multitasking, in my opinion it doesnt match that of webOS as that was the mobile os where true multitasking was derived from. As gd as the android operating system is, Galaxy s2 is making me like android more.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
I've also noticed the problem when using sites like mega upload where you have to wait a certain amount of time before downoading a file. If the counter is on 30 seconds, I think I have time to check an e-mail or a few tweets while waiting, so I do that and when I come back to the browser the counter is still at 30 seconds...
It's usually not a big deal but I find it amusing that android fanboys made fun of iOS because it doesn't have true multitasking, although from what I can see android just saves the state of your apps and restores it when you go back to the app... it's OK in most situation but it's hardly multitasking.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
BlueScreenJunky said:
I've also noticed the problem when using sites like mega upload where you have to wait a certain amount of time before downoading a file. If the counter is on 30 seconds, I think I have time to check an e-mail or a few tweets while waiting, so I do that and when I come back to the browser the counter is still at 30 seconds...
It's usually not a big deal but I find it amusing that android fanboys made fun of iOS because it doesn't have true multitasking, although from what I can see android just saves the state of your apps and restores it when you go back to the app... it's OK in most situation but it's hardly multitasking.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most sites like that do this on the desktop now to keep your focus on their ads. Not sure if megaupload does but a lot do so i could just be this.
mark2222 said:
Most sites like that do this on the desktop now to keep your focus on their ads. Not sure if megaupload does but a lot do so i could just be this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, this happens if you try the same on your computer too.
Huh ? Never happened to me on the computer but I'll check (it would make sense and seems doable w/ javascript), it could be that indeed.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
BlueScreenJunky said:
It's usually not a big deal but I find it amusing that android fanboys made fun of iOS because it doesn't have true multitasking, although from what I can see android just saves the state of your apps and restores it when you go back to the app...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, Android has true multitasking, but that doesn't mean every app should or have to use it, does it? If I browse through internet, I'm on a site with dynamic Flash/Javascript content and I exit browser then I want it to freeze any dynamic content to minimize power consumption. This is exactly what most of people want in most situations and this is why you have problems with Megaupload. It's possible to create a browser which will run Megaupload counter in the background, but no one has created one so far, because it wouldn't be that good.
You all should understand this isn't a technical issue, it's a design concern. If you switch/exit an app then OS (no matter: mobile or desktop one) has to do one of the following:
run it normally in the background
pause it
close it
give user a choice
Each of above has its pros and cons. Desktop OSes use first option, because they don't care about power and RAM consumption. They also use last option, because on a big screen, with mouse and full keyboard there is no problem to add such controls.
But using same solution on a phone would be a disaster, I think. Older mobile OSes use third option: they close app after exiting it, they don't have MT at all. iOS is somewhere between pause and close. Android is between pause and run: it pauses apps by default, but gives them a possibility to run in the background if they want. And this is a big difference between iOS and Android. On the iOS app can't run in the background even if both its developer and user want that. On the Android it depends fully on a developer choice.
What I want to say is: there is no single, perfect solution to this problem. If clicking "home" button would not pause an app by default then OS would be a piece of **** to me. Even if it would give me a possibility to easily pause/close an app - still POS. Pause should be a default action to make OS easy to use, so I think Android design is really good. One thing which could be done is to give more control to user. E.g. an option to resume/not pause an app on demand, so it will run similarly to foreground mode.
And how does work this awesome MT of webos (I don't really know)? Please, don't say it runs apps in the background by default - if so then sorry, but as I said it's a POS to me.
Brut.all said:
And how does work this awesome MT of webos (I don't really know)? Please, don't say it runs apps in the background by default - if so then sorry, but as I said it's a POS to me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Multitasking on a WebOS, for those who haven't yet seen it: http://youtu.be/wZht-a0VlD8
Brut.all said:
No, Android has true multitasking, but that doesn't mean every app should or have to use it, does it? If I browse through internet, I'm on a site with dynamic Flash/Javascript content and I exit browser then I want it to freeze any dynamic content to minimize power consumption. This is exactly what most of people want in most situations and this is why you have problems with Megaupload. It's possible to create a browser which will run Megaupload counter in the background, but no one has created one so far, because it wouldn't be that good.
You all should understand this isn't a technical issue, it's a design concern. If you switch/exit an app then OS (no matter: mobile or desktop one) has to do one of the following:
run it normally in the background
pause it
close it
give user a choice
Each of above has its pros and cons. Desktop OSes use first option, because they don't care about power and RAM consumption. They also use last option, because on a big screen, with mouse and full keyboard there is no problem to add such controls.
But using same solution on a phone would be a disaster, I think. Older mobile OSes use third option: they close app after exiting it, they don't have MT at all. iOS is somewhere between pause and close. Android is between pause and run: it pauses apps by default, but gives them a possibility to run in the background if they want. And this is a big difference between iOS and Android. On the iOS app can't run in the background even if both its developer and user want that. On the Android it depends fully on a developer choice.
What I want to say is: there is no single, perfect solution to this problem. If clicking "home" button would not pause an app by default then OS would be a piece of **** to me. Even if it would give me a possibility to easily pause/close an app - still POS. Pause should be a default action to make OS easy to use, so I think Android design is really good. One thing which could be done is to give more control to user. E.g. an option to resume/not pause an app on demand, so it will run similarly to foreground mode.
And how does work this awesome MT of webos (I don't really know)? Please, don't say it runs apps in the background by default - if so then sorry, but as I said it's a POS to me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanx for this very informative post.
And indeed I think the best solution would be for each app to have a default behavior as it is right now, but let the user force the app to keep running at all times if they need to for some reason and don't care about the performance hit.
Ty for all the info, but still, I just want the option to run some app normally in the background, its annoying when youre watching a movie and quickly need to check mail, i like having it playing on
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium App
Intresting to me that good old WM 6.5 was true multitasking and could run for the best part of a week in standby Android in all it's forms, with background program managment, can barely do a couple of days !
Interesting in the video that I didn't see any evidence of true multitasking
Like some1 mentioned already, android is a multiple task/thread OS. So you can pretty much do anything. It's down to the developer. If you wanted music/vid to play in the background when not active in foreground tis easy to extend your application to have a service that constantly runs, and the app (UI) is just the controller. A good example of multitasking is seeing 2 things update where both are either critical data or processor intense. An example being your widgets update while live wallpaper is doing something. So to me, there is either multitasking or not, not really true multitasking. I think from the video of webOs I would call it a task/app/thread visual controller, and not a few words like "true multitasking".
Just my brain dumb on the issue
I expect to get my Tab this week. Almost a year ago I remember a buddy of mine in Charleston with his iPad using it as a way of selecting method to play on his stereo. He was using the air sync (believe that is what they call it)... so it was really nice not having it wired or using an aux-input.
Is there an equivalent for the Tab? Are you guys just using Voodoo Sound and an aux-input? Would love to be wireless.
EDIT, looks like Sonos has a product called the "Connect" that I could add to my existing stereo.. they also have an android app to control it. Problem is, $350. Hell no. Others?
----
Using it as a remote for your TV?
---
Can it serve as a BT keyboard/mouse for the PS3? or PC?
---
What are you doing that is "cool" or really helpful....
160+ views and nobody could think of something "cool" to do with the Tab? That is not encouraging. I do not want this thing for just checking twitter folks. What can it do?
Angry birds.
Seriously, I use it for all sorts of stuff.
Ipod with built in speakers - I carry it around a listen to music when working around the house.
Digital picture frame - I prop it up on a shelf when we have company over with a bunch of pictures of my kids loaded on it.
TV Remote - I have Comcast, they have an app that lets me use it to choose what I want to watch (no volume control or anything, though).
Movie player - when I travel, makes a long plane ride go fast.
Guitar tuner
Level for hanging photos.
Scientific calculator.
E-mail, facebook, YouTube, internet, etc.
Fun games to kill time.
Read books/magazines.
Browse through the Android Market. There is an app for just about everything.
use of my tab
I use my tab more for remote work.
Besides email I use to connect my remote computer for many things are complex to do with a tab, but sorry, including print, but in general again for work.
If you have a Samsung TV, u can use the app Samsung Remote to control your tv
i use jefit and track my workouts - though you can use just about any of the workout apps. also use pandora while i'm working out.
and i watch netflix while running on the treadmill. helps me not think of my legs burning.
and comic and book reading.
My galaxy tab
I suppose you are speaking of the 10.1 version? Oh nevermind, it doesn't really matter actually.
I use mine for;
University stuff e.g. slide shows from the teachers, reading Google docs we made in groupwork even though it's not so good at live updating Google Docs yet as if your on a laptor writing in Chrome.
Reading e-books, which is really nice if the uploader of the .pdf file has done a good job!
Playing games
Reading news
Browsing the internet (it's nice on the Tab since it's much lighter than a laptop, has longer battery life and a bigger screen than the smartphone)
Mails
Picture-presenter - e.g. I use it to show people pictures from my Picasa web-albums. I only costs like 5$ for a years storage of 20gb, so pretty cheap and now I have all of my photos and videos online on Picasa.
Listen to music - via Spotify
I think that's primarily what I use my Tab for
Btw, I also bought a converter to HDMI, but I'm not quite satisfied with it. It only supports HDMI while the charger is plugged in, no matter how many percentage of power you have on your tablet, and the screen also flickers on the TV. I know this is a software problem though, so with ICS I expect it to work better.
80% flash
20% modding and hacking the tab(adhoc, remote, livewallpaper, bootloader animations, themes, ROMs, wii/ps3 controllers, etc)
As soon as you get it don't bother rooting, just flash cwm and the install Task's latest rom. Then you will have root, pershoot's kernal, (the best ) and the smoothest running tab you can get, then you can think of what else you want on it
beta546 said:
As soon as you get it don't bother rooting, just flash cwm and the install Task's latest rom. Then you will have root, pershoot's kernal, (the best ) and the smoothest running tab you can get, then you can think of what else you want on it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ha, booting it up now.... thought I may be able to go 24 hours without rooting.... nope!
beta546 said:
As soon as you get it don't bother rooting, just flash cwm and the install Task's latest rom. Then you will have root, pershoot's kernal, (the best ) and the smoothest running tab you can get, then you can think of what else you want on it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
how do you flash cwm without rooting the tab?
maupenabh said:
how do you flash cwm without rooting the tab?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Search the forums. It is simple
You flash cwm from a computer, takes about 2 minutes.
---------- Post added at 02:03 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:52 PM ----------
If you can't find it on xda, try here
http://forum.ppcgeeks.com/samsung-galaxy-tab/146408-how-install-cwm-root-galaxy-tab-10-1-a.html
If you just want to install a rom then don't bother with the root part, just flash the rom as soon as you get into cwm
---------- Post added at 02:06 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:03 PM ----------
s15274n said:
Ha, booting it up now.... thought I may be able to go 24 hours without rooting.... nope!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep mine was running a custom rom within 25 minutes of coming out the box lol. I would definitely go for Task650's latest rom though
If you ask 10 persons, I'm sure you will have 10 different answers!
I'm actually in a very small village in north Thailand. There is no landline telephone so no ADSL.
In my hamac, I am answering your question!
I use the tablet for a lot of things! Reading ebook, playing game, internet, GPS, emails...
Also read pdf documents, translate. Google...
Here, I have EDGE only, but at home with 3G/H or wifi, Skype is marvellous.
But also listen music and I love music.google (you can upload up to 20 000 songs, then you can listen them all over the word).
I'm disapointing with HD movies, I've tried a 720, !... But classic divX are OK.
The size and weight make it that I can carry my tablet everywhere and do everything I want!
By the way, since I have it, I drastically optimize the battery life of my phone (SGS2)!
Appreciate all of the feedback guys.
s15274n said:
Appreciate all of the feedback guys.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're welcome
I took mine backpacking. I never thought I'd be that kind of backpacker...
But with the tablet, I didn't need maps, I didn't need a gps. I didn't need books. I didn't need to bring crossword puzzles to work on in the tent... So it did save almost as much weight as it cost. And then again, when the mosquitos came out at sundown, we watched movies.
That was inconceivable to me five years ago. Now I don't go without my tab.
Soccer_Dad said:
I took mine backpacking. I never thought I'd be that kind of backpacker...
But with the tablet, I didn't need maps, I didn't need a gps. I didn't need books. I didn't need to bring crossword puzzles to work on in the tent... So it did save almost as much weight as it cost. And then again, when the mosquitos came out at sundown, we watched movies.
That was inconceivable to me five years ago. Now I don't go without my tab.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How did you use maps without an Internet connection?
cool thing to do with your tab:
take screenshot of games u play at the moment. challenge yourself to capture the nice one. like bullet-time action in 9MM or free kick shoot in PES or slo-mo in Office Jerk.
tallgrasshawk said:
How did you use maps without an Internet connection?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
He probably used tethering or has a 3g tab
tallgrasshawk said:
How did you use maps without an Internet connection?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can use one of the maps that don't require an internet connection (you download the maps on your sd card, then you only need gps). Personally, I use sygic
Cool things to do with the tab?
Go to a fancy bar, put the tab on the table then ignore it and act really posh (ie. imagine you're a stereotypical Apple user with an iPad 2)
Been stalking the forums, but mainly for the OG Droid as that was my primary phone until recently.
Recently got a RAZR MAXX and am just looking for a few functions be carried over from my Droid on CM7.
The one I need most is to change tracks in a media player with long presses on the volume buttons while the screen is turned off.
Is there any way I can get this to happen, preferably without rooting? This phone is pretty new and I wanna wait to root it for a little while if possible.
I would be more than willing to root for CM, but haven't heard anything on if it's coming to the RAZR at all.
Last time i used Winamp for android there was an option for doing this.
Ill look in to that. Is there any way to make it default for any media player though? I use pandora a lot and while riding bike, i cant pull it out to change the track, especially with my gloves on.
The developer must include the feature in the app, its an API if I remeber well.I don't use pandora so i can't help you there, sorry.
I've had a look through, and haven't found anything in either apps that would allow this. I use both Winamp and Pandora on a daily basis.
I searched for a solution before throwing up this thread, but only found solutions for other devices. I saw pretty much I need either a ROM that includes it as a feature, or an app that will change the system file, and I'm guessing it needs to be rooted to do so.
I suggest you the app ttpod with track change by shake option.
Sent from my XT910 using XDA App
gosh yes! bump! i was just thinking the other day how much i missed my old WM6 phone with lots of hardware buttons on the front that i could map to do anything i wanted. i don't know if this trend to a screen only interface is so great after all. sure, it looks cool, but it's also less functional in some real world situations, especially driving!
Ok so. I've been really wanting so much to like this new Nokia Lumia 920. I've had been waiting to get rid of this IPhone 4 because I remember the days of my brick HTC Tilt and how customizable Windows 6 phones were. So far, I'm am disappointed. It isn't that I hate the phone. It is just that I expected more. I was expecting a lot out of this phone and it has not met the high standard that I (they) set for it.
The first major complaint is the camera. Are we being fooled into thinking it is that much better in low light. Yes, from what I've seen in reviews, it is better, but in my own experience, it isn't that much greater (I have tried auto and night mode). Am I too used to SLR pictures? The camera was supposed to be a big selling point! We have already been fooled once by Nokia about their "Pure View." (http: // articles.latimes.com/2012/sep/06/business/la-fi-tn-nokia-fake-ad-20120906) I wonder if all of this is just a scam. Now it seems that Nokia is owning up to more camera flaws (http: // pocketnow.com/2012/11/05/nokia-lumia-920-camera-fix). I really hope that this isn't a hardware issue and that they fix it right and not try any tricks. It isn't that the pictures/videos I take are bad, but they aren't that much greater(if they are greater) than the competition. Duped?
Battery life: I just switched from an IPhone 4 with no 4G LTE so i'm unaware of the battery consumption of 4G LTE but I have noticed that the battery sure does drain a lot quicker. I'm used to being able to go a couple of days without having to charge. I have noticed ways of getting the phone to last longer. Ff you run Nokia Drive beta, the GPS stays on in the background even when it is closed (you will notice a target at the top status bar remains on). You can turn the background option off, or you have to restart your phone to turn off the GPS and it can consume your battery. Yes, this should be an easy fix, but think about all the people that have to deal with this. Also there is not way to switch off 4G LTE.
Limited voice commands: I'm a big user of the voice commands to play my music. One of the first things I've noticed about this phone is that there are no voice commands from the touch and hold windows button that allow you to play your music. I get it that you can get the "Hey DJ" app and use voice commands for music, but why didn't they just integrate this into the OS so that I don't have to unlock my screen, and tap a few places. Isn't the point of voice commands so that you don't have to look at the screen.
Here are some other small complaints (Maybe some XDA developers could help cook up some changes.... I have paypal ).
No separate volume for ringer and music.
Internet explorer is limited when you search through Google
It is easy to accidentally press the back or the search when using the phone with one hand and reaching across the screen.
No apparent way that I have found to get the Nokia Drive Beta to repeat the last spoken direction.
No seeking option in visual voice mail. You have to listen to the whole thing all over again to get to one point in the voicemail.
Bottom line. This phone seems rushed and unpolished. I got it that some of these issues are OS issues, but come on! Am I expecting too much or isn't this the phone that Nokia was making such a large deal about? 10 more days to give this a try before my return policy expires. Come on Nokia and Microsoft. Change my mind!
Camera taking blurry pictures is a SW issue, as you probably know from having read about it, which hopefully theyll have sorted out fast in an SW update. The nighttime pictures Ive taken are very nice, though, so I dont know whats going on there.
Battery for me is fine, Ive only had my phone for a day, so I cant really say much, but the way its worked so far it seems about the same as my SGS3 in that department. Which is quite good. But of course, I need more time for that.
Voice commands I never was a big user of, since I feel like a moron walking around yelling commands in english (especially when Im in a non-english speaking country). But Im sure its annoying.
Volume thing I agree on, that should be an easy fix for MS to make, really.
Not sure what you mean by "limited" when searching through Google?
The accidental pressing is much like on the SGS3, really. Just a habitual thing, youll get used to handling the phone so you eventually dont mispress.
Iunno, I have a single real annoyance and that is wordwrapping in IE10.
i'm not sure what you were expecting from the camera, but the low light shots are some of the best i've ever taken with a smartphone. and i've had my share of smartphones (this year i've probably had between 8-10 different handsets from various oem's) the daytime shots are a little bit soft, but on par with some of the better smarphone camera's i've used, and it's something that is completely possible to fix via firmware updates (as in, it's not a hardware flaw, but rather a software one)
battery is pretty good for me, on par with my SGS3, it's so much better than my 4s on iOS6 though. there are a couple quirks that are causing the battery to drain rapidly, but people haven't been able to point the blame completely yet. some people have had google accounts getting stuck on syncing constantly and that is killing the battery and the only solution for now is a hard reset. it's an odd issue since it wasn't present in wp7.x and afaik the method wp8 uses to sync is the same as before. it's something that will most likely be fixed via software updates as well
limited voice commands are something that wp8 has the ability to deal with but i'm also bummed they didn't add more voice controls to the built in apps. music in general seems like a really rushed revamp in wp8 which is surprising since the zune software was quite well done in 7.x and was also a major feature which i liked a lot about windows phone. they're changing a bunch of stuff though so it's something that will probably be updated over time. personally i don't like voice commands outside of when i'm driving because i feel like it's faster to just use my fingers, but i understand your disappointment.
volume is something i agree on as well, why microsoft hasn't figured out this is something people have been wanting since 7.0 is beyond me, it really seems like a pretty simple change to make, especially when one is rewriting the entire OS.
accidental pressing is something that will lessen with muscle memory, i always have a lot of issues with button presses and a lot of typos when switching phones, but after a couple weeks you learn to do it a lot less.
i remember getting drive to repeat the last direction, but for the life of me right now i can't figure out what i did. if i figure it out, i'll post it.
the OS isn't for everyone, but for people who like the curated user experience a semi-closed system provides, but don't like apple's 1 handset philosophy it's a good platform.
i admit, i get bored sometimes and end up going to android, but almost always, after about a month of whatever the latest and greatest android handset, i always come back to windows phone. once you figure out your workflow on it, it's really the most efficient and fluid mobile OS out there.
Slai said:
Not sure what you mean by "limited" when searching through Google?
Iunno, I have a single real annoyance and that is wordwrapping in IE10.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Word wrapping is exactly what I mean when I say searching through Google is limited. If you use IE and search through google, at the top of the page, you get a: "This page adapted for your browser comes from...." If you search through through the built in Bing search, you don't get the word wrap. You get the actual page. This is very lame and I think its Microsoft's way of getting us to use Bing instead of google.
Also if you just enter the URL, there is no text wrapping.
Okay? Ive set Google as my default search engine in IE10, and while word wrapping doesnt seem to exist and double-tap to zoom isnt really working perfectly, I havent seen a big change from searching with google and searching with bing or just using a bookmark or directly typing in the url :s ?
vangj said:
Word wrapping is exactly what I mean when I say searching through Google is limited. If you use IE and search through google, at the top of the page, you get a: "This page adapted for your browser comes from...." If you search through through the built in Bing search, you don't get the word wrap. You get the actual page. This is very lame and I think its Microsoft's way of getting us to use Bing instead of google.
Also if you just enter the URL, there is no text wrapping.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This will happen if you have the 'defaul view' as desktop, if you select 'mobile' they will display fine, it is annoying, what I did was install the Google app and I just use that for my search and browsing.
Slai said:
Okay? Ive set Google as my default search engine in IE10, and while word wrapping doesnt seem to exist and double-tap to zoom isnt really working perfectly, I havent seen a big change from searching with google and searching with bing or just using a bookmark or directly typing in the url :s ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok so it does text wrap well if you choose the mobile option for internet explore. I for one do not like the mobile version and chose to set my settings to desktop (sorry still a newbie so i can't post links)
ht tp://postimage.org/image/w6w5t09ml/
If you set your IE settings to desktop and search with Google, you get a funky altered website that looks like this at the top.
ht tp://postimage.org/image/j1gnmwfr1/
It seems like the phone is sending to Google that it wants to still be a mobile phone. When you search with Bing you don't get this option. If you search with Google in Desktop mode, you can scroll to the bottom to get to the desktop site but it can be a hassle.
ht tp://postimage.org/image/5zuyx1rct/
Like I said, I like the desktop mode because I can zoom in and out and make great use of this huge screen.
Hoping google releases Chrome.
Yeah normally I like using desktop mode myself, but my most visited website works really well in its mobile form, so I figured "what the hell".
Would be interesting to see Chrome for WP8. I dont see why not, it is available for W8.
vangj said:
If you set your IE settings to desktop and search with Google, you get a funky altered website that looks like this at the top.
http://postimage.org/image/j1gnmwfr1/
It seems like the phone is sending to Google that it wants to still be a mobile phone. When you search with Bing you don't get this option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you look at the URL of the page in your sample image, the URL is one on Google.com. It seems that Google recognized that you're on a phone and gave you a search results page that contains modified URLs that point back to Google itself (not to xda-developers.com) and that Google then proxied it for you, reformatting things to fit your phone.
Your complaint seems to be with Google for forcing you in to a "mobilized" view. Unless Google can't tell which "website preference" you're set to (mobile or desktop). I don't know how that preference gets conveyed in HTTP requests. Sorry.
vangj said:
Also there is not way to switch off 4G LTE.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My Rogers variant has the "max speed" option to shut off LTE. The AT&T one doesn't seem to have that... so this is an AT&T issue, not a Nokia one. And if AT&T is doing this on Windows Phone, I'd assume they are customizing their Android phones similarly, no? (I have no experience with Android.)
vangj said:
Limited voice commands: I'm a big user of the voice commands to play my music. One of the first things I've noticed about this phone is that there are no voice commands from the touch and hold windows button that allow you to play your music. I get it that you can get the "Hey DJ" app and use voice commands for music, but why didn't they just integrate this into the OS so that I don't have to unlock my screen, and tap a few places. Isn't the point of voice commands so that you don't have to look at the screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is an OS issue, so not too much to do with Nokia. The voice commands in WP8 are extensible. That means 3rd party developers can easily create apps that support it. I think Urbanspoon, Hey DJ and Audible are already out and support voice commands (meaning you can launch the apps by long pressing the windows button).
I expect a lot more apps will add that feature because it's so easy to implement. That makes the lack of voice commands for the built in apps really strange.
EShy said:
This is an OS issue, so not too much to do with Nokia. The voice commands in WP8 are extensible. That means 3rd party developers can easily create apps that support it. I think Urbanspoon, Hey DJ and Audible are already out and support voice commands (meaning you can launch the apps by long pressing the windows button).
I expect a lot more apps will add that feature because it's so easy to implement. That makes the lack of voice commands for the built in apps really strange.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Uhm, you could always launch ANY app with your voice, even on WP7.
Those new apps support voice commands for other things. For example, from your start screen you might be able to say, "Urbanspoon, find nearby burgers" and it'll launch and go straight to finding burger restaurants around you. I have no clue what their apps actually support, but I know that it's possible to make an app that does that!
Hi,
This is a pretty special use case, and I hope you guys can help me put together a solution, that will help my family.
My daughter is severely autistic, but loves music. We have worked with CD's for years, but they get destroyed by herself, and are a constant source for conflict for a variety of reasons - because we need to control her access to them (music-time vs. sleep-time for instance) and control the volume. I have to think, I could come up with a technical solution, so we could avoid physical media altogether.
Here is what I would like:
Take our Nexus 7, fill it up with music (maybe google music), mount it on the wall in her room, hook speakers up to it and let her control it as she likes. However, we need to be able to override, ie. lock her out of it if necessary, control the volume etc. I also do not want her to be able to screw up the Nexus by doing other stuff on it, so I would like to be able to lock it to just the music app, unless myself or my wife unlock it to do some sort of maintenance.
To sum up:
- Nexus 7
- Control volume / lock remotely - from pc or another android phone
- Music software
- Access restricted to limited list of apps (music app first and foremost)
How could this be done on Android? What software should I use?
I hope you guys have some good suggestions, so I can get a nice solution to this. Thanks in advance.
Hi
Never really tried to do anything like this but maybe you could create another user profile that has limited functions, I don't know how limited you can be with this but any nexus seven model should allow for a second profile, only allow her to use this one
And in this profile use a launcher that allows you to hide apps if Google won't remove enough for you.
On this profile and the one you create for yourself have a lockscreen password of sorts as well
There may even be an app or launcher in the market to do something this similar.
As for remotely controlling it, I've never tried this, I know you can if it is wired... Actually if you have an adb shell opened on a PC and connect wirelessly to that PC with adb then you could use the PC to turn it off but it would disconnect at this point
Hope you find a working solution, feel free to bounce ideas or questions off me, best of luck!
Sent from my Nexus 4 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
peanutsy said:
Hi,
This is a pretty special use case, and I hope you guys can help me put together a solution, that will help my family.
My daughter is severely autistic, but loves music. We have worked with CD's for years, but they get destroyed by herself, and are a constant source for conflict for a variety of reasons - because we need to control her access to them (music-time vs. sleep-time for instance) and control the volume. I have to think, I could come up with a technical solution, so we could avoid physical media altogether.
Here is what I would like:
Take our Nexus 7, fill it up with music (maybe google music), mount it on the wall in her room, hook speakers up to it and let her control it as she likes. However, we need to be able to override, ie. lock her out of it if necessary, control the volume etc. I also do not want her to be able to screw up the Nexus by doing other stuff on it, so I would like to be able to lock it to just the music app, unless myself or my wife unlock it to do some sort of maintenance.
To sum up:
- Nexus 7
- Control volume / lock remotely - from pc or another android phone
- Music software
- Access restricted to limited list of apps (music app first and foremost)
How could this be done on Android? What software should I use?
I hope you guys have some good suggestions, so I can get a nice solution to this. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I may have a working solution for you, But just bare with me whilst i gather it together to make sure it works like i think it will, I'm heading off to sleep now for work but when i get out i'll be right back at it again and hopefully will be able to deliver a working solution for you tomorrow.
Thanks, look forward to what you have come up with.
peanutsy said:
Hi,
This is a pretty special use case, and I hope you guys can help me put together a solution, that will help my family.
My daughter is severely autistic, but loves music. We have worked with CD's for years, but they get destroyed by herself, and are a constant source for conflict for a variety of reasons - because we need to control her access to them (music-time vs. sleep-time for instance) and control the volume. I have to think, I could come up with a technical solution, so we could avoid physical media altogether.
Here is what I would like:
Take our Nexus 7, fill it up with music (maybe google music), mount it on the wall in her room, hook speakers up to it and let her control it as she likes. However, we need to be able to override, ie. lock her out of it if necessary, control the volume etc. I also do not want her to be able to screw up the Nexus by doing other stuff on it, so I would like to be able to lock it to just the music app, unless myself or my wife unlock it to do some sort of maintenance.
To sum up:
- Nexus 7
- Control volume / lock remotely - from pc or another android phone
- Music software
- Access restricted to limited list of apps (music app first and foremost)
How could this be done on Android? What software should I use?
I hope you guys have some good suggestions, so I can get a nice solution to this. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well i hope you can bascially connect the nexus to the speakers and use a app locker just sure u wont lock the music app then it would lock other apps and through it you can allow or deny access to other apps and check these links to remotely use the nexus via ur pc http://drippler.com/google/nexus_7#!766313
http://www.yumapk.com/how-to-control-your-nexus-7-on-pc-with-airdroid.html
Hope it might help!
Best of luck
Hit thanks button if i helped
After finally getting root on the device, I hours trying to get a VNC server to work - with no luck at all.
Airdroid works, and while it is pretty damn clever piece of software, it does not really allow me meet any of my requirements. Yes, I can lock the device, but I cannot turn off the sound or exit a running application.
Limiting a profile to just a few apps seems doable, but if we cannot control volume and access to the device remotely, I cannot wall-mount it and prevent her taking it and damaging or losing it. Having a connected to a PC permanently becomes to complicated.
I am considering maybe just putting all her music on a mediaserver, installing an app for it on the nexus (like Plex) - and then creating a kill-switch for the mediaserver. That way there is no local music on the device, and I am able to cut the connection to the music, which I think eliminates the requirement to remote control the device itself.
Did you try setting up adb wirelessly? This would at least allow you to kill the app or turn off device, I don't know if you could change volume though.
Looking through the app store their are many child lock apps, maybe dig around there a bit and see if there is something that has more controls that can be done remotely
Sent from my Nexus 4 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
If I may, the style of music makes a difference too. Easy listening gospel being the best and the Lord being the very top, He listens and His yoke is light.
peanutsy said:
I am considering maybe just putting all her music on a mediaserver, installing an app for it on the nexus (like Plex) - and then creating a kill-switch for the mediaserver. That way there is no local music on the device, and I am able to cut the connection to the music, which I think eliminates the requirement to remote control the device itself.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have now set up plex with a specific section for her music, shared that folder with a user account I logged in with on the Android Plex App - and she can now see her music collection and play it. I have not yet found an elegant (read: wife friendly) way to "unshare" her music library - without taking down all plex server sharing. But I will figure something out.
I have also managed to limit the user profile on her nexus 7 to just the plex media player. However, there are many options for her to mess with in the player itself, that I am unable to lock down. I am also unable to let her use the youtube app, as it does not run on "restricted profiles" - but that was just a "nice to have", not a "need to have".
Input and ideas are still welcome.
peanutsy said:
I have now set up plex with a specific section for her music, shared that folder with a user account I logged in with on the Android Plex App - and she can now see her music collection and play it. I have not yet found an elegant (read: wife friendly) way to "unshare" her music library - without taking down all plex server sharing. But I will figure something out.
I have also managed to limit the user profile on her nexus 7 to just the plex media player. However, there are many options for her to mess with in the player itself, that I am unable to lock down. I am also unable to let her use the youtube app, as it does not run on "restricted profiles" - but that was just a "nice to have", not a "need to have".
Input and ideas are still welcome.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
try applocker it might let you active apps you need and deactive apps you dont and i dont have a solution for the music app thingy which has less settings.. Still working on it.. Ill let you know as soon as i find something. Till then try this one "Songbird Music App"
Please hit thanks if i helped!
Good Luck!