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    All Things Android - Apps, Phones, Tablets - Discussion

    Discussion in 'Smartphones and Tablets' started by H.A.L. 9000, Aug 1, 2010.

  1. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    I don't buy Samsung for their designs, although I do think they're nice, clean designs. Their hardware is number one, and that is fact.

    You can get rid of the TouchWiz launcher easy, but I doubt you'd want to get rid of any more of it... it's, seriously, very nicely done, except for the launcher. It's lightweight and smooth as glass.

    Motoblur, on the other hand, is like a cancer. God it's aweful. The only way to get rid of it is to flash CM7. That is the ONLY way. Blur is so deeply ingrained into Android it's crazy.
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 7, 2011
    #3151
  2. Kaelang

    Kaelang Requires more Witcher.

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    I prefer stock Android. I liked nothing about TouchWiz, at least UI related.

    I don't like Sense either. I like the widget. That's it.

    As far as hardware... meh. It has to look the part too. And feel the part, although I didn't really have a problem with the back of the Nexus S, even though it's plastic.

    Like I said before, part of the turnoff with Samsung phones especially is the MASSIVE "SAMSUNG" and then carrier badge that adorns the front of these devices. I don't need to see who makes it and who my carrier is every time I look at the damn phone. And, it's not Samsung's phone or AT&T's. It's mine. I paid for it. If anything, it should have MY name on there. Not theirs. Even then I'd still hate it though.

    Maybe I've taken too many bites out of the ol' Apple. I hate them as a company but they sure do make nice products, and it's spoiled every other Android phone on the market for me, with a few exceptions. I REALLY like the Nexus S, even though I feel that Android can use a bit of maturing before I can get back into it.

    That said, I'd take almost any Android phone over the Samsung Focus with WP7 on it (I have to use this every day, as well as the iPhone and Nexus S, for work). Initially I liked WP7, but after using it for a while, it's driving me crazy. I think the version I have needs some updating, but holy crap, there's almost no redeeming qualities to that phone. It takes FOREVER to charge (so does the Nexus S), has horrid battery life, and what is this "resuming" crap it does when you wake it up and have a running application? A half-baked product released before it was ready, that's what it is. =/ Some could say that's what iOS was when it first started, though...
     
    Kaelang, Sep 7, 2011
    #3152
  3. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    You seriously remind me of someone I know... lol. But I won't go there. I guess we can just agree to disagree. Stock Android is good, but bland and lacking in areas. The main thing that TouchWiz adds is the hardware toggles in the notification drawer. I LOVE that feature. Plus the video codec support on Samsung devices second to none.

    I think we can both agree on one point though: Aside from the antenna problems (debatable there were any in the first place), Apple has the best build quality of any OEM. They put together a really nice device. Like Jobs said, "...like an antique Leica...".
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 7, 2011
    #3153
  4. Kaelang

    Kaelang Requires more Witcher.

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    Yeah, build quality is a strong suite. I haven't had the antenna issue myself. I actually went through an iPhone bashing phase where I was trying to convince myself that the iPhone was horrible and Apple was for brainwashed sheeples, and I tried showing the antenna issue to my dad and cousins and couldn't do it. It was either fixed by the time I did this, or I was doing it wrong. To this day I still can't do it.
    The LG "enhancement" on like the Optimus T also has the hardware toggles under the notification drawer. It was alright, but nothing that I'd ever consider a selling point, especially when there are widgets that do the same thing. Not in-app like with the launcher, but it doesn't kill me to go to the home screen. I never found myself using the toggle that often anyways. /shrug

    I do agree that stock Android is a bit...lacking, and I could live with TouchWiz if it weren't so... meh.
     
    Kaelang, Sep 7, 2011
    #3154
  5. mrXniick

    mrXniick 8

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    @Kaelang

    Have you actually used touchwiz 4 on the galaxy s2?
     
    mrXniick, Sep 8, 2011
    #3155
  6. Phistachio

    Phistachio A. Scriabin

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    Phistachio, Sep 8, 2011
    #3156
  7. Kaelang

    Kaelang Requires more Witcher.

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    I've used TouchWiz on my co-workers Samsung Captivate.
     
    Kaelang, Sep 8, 2011
    #3157
  8. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    AT&T ships the Captivate and the Infuse with their own "customized" TouchWiz interface which, frankly, is an abomination compared to stock Samsung TouchWiz 3/4. TW4 is actually a launcher I wouldn't mind using everyday... it's just that I'm addicted to the Nexus's Launcher2. :rolleyes:
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 8, 2011
    #3158
  9. ahl395

    ahl395 Ahlball

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    Newer Touchwiz on the Galaxy S II is a bit different.


    Personally I like some of Touchwiz, dont like other parts. The lockscreens and toggles are awesome. Otherwise meh, I use ADW Launcher so other than what I like, there isnt too much TouchWiz left except for menu colors, which arent really important to me and can be changed with a ROM/Theme.
     
    ahl395, Sep 8, 2011
    #3159
  10. Kaelang

    Kaelang Requires more Witcher.

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    It's mainly the launcher I don't like. The color schemes are not my cup of tea either (for messages and whatnot).

    What's the difference between TouchWiz 4 and the version that I've used on the Captivate? Is it really a difference worth noting?
     
    Kaelang, Sep 8, 2011
    #3160
  11. Phistachio

    Phistachio A. Scriabin

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    HAL, have you tried playing Asphalt 6 HD? It runs quite bad... And is extremely blurry... Bad optimizations/port?
     
    Phistachio, Sep 8, 2011
    #3161
  12. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    Big difference. TW4 is a total revamp of the whole launcher. You'd just have to use it to see... but it has much more going for it than the version of TW on the Captivate or Infuse. The Attain will launch with TW4. I've already had my hands on one. ;)

    Interesting... It must be an issue with the stock firmware because I don't have any issues with it. :confused:
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 8, 2011
    #3162
  13. Phistachio

    Phistachio A. Scriabin

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    Mmm, maybe... I did a run of SB2011 just to see if I didn't screw up something when deleting cache partitions and the scores are normal... ~2200 gaming and ~4100 productivity...

    I thought that something was messed up on the install, and as it isn't running on native resolution, it screwed up some settings... I'll try to re-install it.

    MC2 : BP works just fine... :confused:
     
    Phistachio, Sep 8, 2011
    #3163
  14. ahl395

    ahl395 Ahlball

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    True i absolutely HATE the Touchwiz messaging app. I use Handcent SMS though. ;)
     
    ahl395, Sep 8, 2011
    #3164
  15. godly_skillz

    godly_skillz Notebook Consultant

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    whats a good camera app
     
    godly_skillz, Sep 8, 2011
    #3165
  16. Step666

    Step666 Professional chubby Chris Pratt impersonator

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    Step666, Sep 9, 2011
    #3166
  17. DEagleson

    DEagleson Gamer extraordinaire

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    Samsung "International" mobiles be the best. :D

    Been hearing that the carrier branded ones in the US struggles with getting timely updates, but at least the pros at XDA got our backs. hehe

    Had to change back to Cyanogen 7 nightly on my SGII cause of lame YouTube force closes on Oxygen.

    Still, AOSP + Zeam Launcher > TouchWiz 4
    Eats Quadrant like a Sandvich ^_^ but everyone knows that benchmark is broken as ****.
     
    DEagleson, Sep 9, 2011
    #3167
  18. Mastershroom

    Mastershroom wat

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    Check out Go SMS Pro. It does everything Handcent can do (including the pop-up) and has a few other neat features. It's free as well, but doesn't have annoying ads in the menus, unlike Handcent. And it runs significantly faster and smoother than Handcent, which is important on my piece of s*** phone. :p
     
    Mastershroom, Sep 9, 2011
    #3168
  19. ahl395

    ahl395 Ahlball

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    Might as well try :D :p

    I havent noticed many slowdowns, but occasionally. Ill check it out :D
     
    ahl395, Sep 9, 2011
    #3169
  20. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch.

    Too. Many. Adjectives...
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 9, 2011
    #3170
  21. Fishon

    Fishon I Will Close You

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    Fishon, Sep 9, 2011
    #3171
  22. ahl395

    ahl395 Ahlball

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    I know :p They really needed to drop the "Epic 4G" branding :rolleyes:
     
    ahl395, Sep 9, 2011
    #3172
  23. godly_skillz

    godly_skillz Notebook Consultant

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    i asked this already but no reply. but what is a good camera app
     
    godly_skillz, Sep 9, 2011
    #3173
  24. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Maybe you can be more specific? What functions are you looking for exactly, in a camera app?
     
    sgogeta4, Sep 9, 2011
    #3174
  25. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    AT&T was selling the refurbished Infuse yesterday for $19.99. Today it's $189. Can anyone say price fixing?
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 9, 2011
    #3175
  26. booboo12

    booboo12 Notebook Prophet

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    It needs one more word, starts with a K and slides out horizontally ;) :(
     
    booboo12, Sep 9, 2011
    #3176
  27. usapatriot

    usapatriot Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    I love Handcent, works really well for me. I don't mine the ads since they only appear in the settings menu.

    Does anyone know of a good widget app that has all the connection widgets (wifi, 4g, blueooth, gps) on it?

    So what apps do you guys use that you feel are indispensable?
     
    usapatriot, Sep 10, 2011
    #3177
  28. Mastershroom

    Mastershroom wat

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    I'm picking up the Motorola Triumph from RadioShack today! I got paid yesterday, and between that and tips, I can finally afford it. About damn time; this Intercept is just killing me with all the bugs and random force closes and crashes and freezes and reboots and general slowness.

    Also, apparently the Triumph comes pre-rooted. wat

    Easiest Root Method for Triumph(No App or Computer Involved!)
     
    Mastershroom, Sep 10, 2011
    #3178
  29. usapatriot

    usapatriot Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Is there any way to use the default Android 2.3 interface on my MyTouch4G instead of T-Mobile's customized one?
     
    usapatriot, Sep 10, 2011
    #3179
  30. ahl395

    ahl395 Ahlball

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    idk, I just use the stock one :p

    Thank god it doesnt :rolleyes: :p


    Yeah, use an AOSP ROM like Cyanogen ;)


    :eek: Nice!! :D

    Power Control Plus :cool:
     
    ahl395, Sep 10, 2011
    #3180
  31. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    WOW. Rooted from the OEM. Just, WOW. I wonder if they meant to ship it that way?!

    Define the default interface... like the green status bar icons and such? The default GB theme?

    I would say try CM7. :) Stock Android, only better... especially on the Snapdragon devices like your MT4G.
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 10, 2011
    #3181
  32. ahl395

    ahl395 Ahlball

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    I'm worried why theres no XDA page for the Sprint Galaxy S II yet :eek:
     
    ahl395, Sep 10, 2011
    #3182
  33. Step666

    Step666 Professional chubby Chris Pratt impersonator

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    You mean a separate section for it?
    They're pretty hit-and-miss about getting new sections set up, pretty much seems to depend on whether or not a Mod/Admin has or is interested in the device in question...
     
    Step666, Sep 10, 2011
    #3183
  34. ahl395

    ahl395 Ahlball

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    Yeah.

    Yeah i guess so, I'd be surprised id they arent seeing as its the first GS2 in the US :p The Evo 3D got a page as soon as it was released. If theres not one made im sure one will be requested.
     
    ahl395, Sep 10, 2011
    #3184
  35. Step666

    Step666 Professional chubby Chris Pratt impersonator

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    The Droid Bionic's had one for ages, the Xperia Neo has only just been given one.

    The Arc section was filled with Neo threads and had a couple for the Xperia Mini, so what did they do first?
    That's right, created a section for the Xperia Mini :rolleyes:
     
    Step666, Sep 10, 2011
    #3185
  36. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    I've sold my Galaxy S II, Thrill 4G, 1 Captivate, and the Atrix.

    I is sad. :(
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 10, 2011
    #3186
  37. Step666

    Step666 Professional chubby Chris Pratt impersonator

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    Why?

    And what have you purchased instead?
     
    Step666, Sep 10, 2011
    #3187
  38. Phistachio

    Phistachio A. Scriabin

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    WHY?! :(

    I hope you'll compensate your loss with the Nexus Prime?
     
    Phistachio, Sep 10, 2011
    #3188
  39. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    Reasons.

    Nothing. All I have now are some NIB phones I got from my contract stipulations from AT&T... and my Infuse. All in all though, the Infuse can actually take the place of a GS2 quite nicely, if you disable Flash in the browser. I never use Flash anyway though.

    Maybe. Maybe not. Depends...
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 10, 2011
    #3189
  40. Step666

    Step666 Professional chubby Chris Pratt impersonator

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    Does that reason possibly have a 7.7" S-AMOLED+ screen? ;)
     
    Step666, Sep 10, 2011
    #3190
  41. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    I wish. But, sadly no.
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 10, 2011
    #3191
  42. Mastershroom

    Mastershroom wat

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    Holy crap, this Triumph is awesome. The display is amazing compared to the Intercept's, and it's just so amazingly responsive at...well, everything, including stuff that would bring the Intercept to its knees. Even on the stock ROM with all the Virgin Mobile bloatware still installed, I have over 150MB of free memory according to Advanced Task Killer, while on the Intercept, running a custom ROM with all stock bloat removed, I'd have between 10 and 20MB freshly after killing tasks.

    And the battery life is notably better than my Intercept's, despite having a much larger screen and beefier specs all around.

    Best $300 I've ever spent.
     
    Mastershroom, Sep 11, 2011
    #3192
  43. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    The MSM8255 is no slouch... which I guess you've found out. :p

    Run a quick linpack on it... ;)
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 11, 2011
    #3193
  44. Mastershroom

    Mastershroom wat

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    Single Thread

    MFLOPS: 30.765
    Time: 2.73 Seconds
    Norm Res: 5.68
    Precision: 2.220446049250313E-16

    Multi-Thread

    MFLOPS: 34.669
    Time: 4.87 Seconds
    Norm Res: 3.24
    Precision: 2.220446049250313E-16
     
    Mastershroom, Sep 11, 2011
    #3194
  45. ahl395

    ahl395 Ahlball

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    Congrats :cool: :D

    I thought the same about the money i spent on my Vibrant, coming from an HTC Magic :p So i know exactly how you feel right now haha




    Found an Epic 4G Touch (Galaxy S II) for pre order at walmart for only $100 bucks!! :D They seem legit and dont try to add plans on... we'll see.
     
    ahl395, Sep 11, 2011
    #3195
  46. Phistachio

    Phistachio A. Scriabin

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    W00T! That's like the best deal in the world right now :eek:
     
    Phistachio, Sep 11, 2011
    #3196
  47. ahl395

    ahl395 Ahlball

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    Yeah :D Unbeatable

    Pre-Ordering it now, with 2 day shipping it should be here Wednesday :cool:
     
    ahl395, Sep 11, 2011
    #3197
  48. Phistachio

    Phistachio A. Scriabin

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    OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    https://twitter.com/#!/SamFirmware/status/112481160252235776

    https://twitter.com/#!/SamFirmware/status/112483868539494400

    THIS MONTH! :D

    I'm so excited :D

    EDIT : And as always, bad news... The eighth major release of Android to be named 'Jelly Bean' - GSMArena.com news :(
     
    Phistachio, Sep 11, 2011
    #3198
  49. ahl395

    ahl395 Ahlball

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    Dont think it'll change that much :p
     
    ahl395, Sep 11, 2011
    #3199
  50. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    CM7 has been on 2.3.5 for, like, a month and a half... BUT, I give Samsung major props for already having "beta" 2.3.5. Samfirmware's releases are mostly betas... with some actually making it to world release.
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Sep 11, 2011
    #3200
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