Android: Phone News and Discussion Thread
in my pocket, it just feels like a big thing/object is just sitting there.
im not too fond of it, but i've just been bearing with it cause i have no choice.
BTW i feel the same about my wallet.
im not too fond of it, but i've just been bearing with it cause i have no choice.
BTW i feel the same about my wallet.
so, I finally found the perfect protection for my Galaxy Nexus... it isn't a "case" per se... but a bumper. The back side is exposed but the way I look at it, the backside doesn't get scratch as much (depends on how you handle/use your cell I guess). Plus the battery door/panel can be replaced for $10.
But what's cool is, the corners, sides/edges are all protected, yet keeping the stylish curve with minimal bulk.
the best part is... $4 shipped (from Hong Kong), the worst part is/was... it took 3 weeks to be delivered (no express shipping was offered)
But what's cool is, the corners, sides/edges are all protected, yet keeping the stylish curve with minimal bulk.
the best part is... $4 shipped (from Hong Kong), the worst part is/was... it took 3 weeks to be delivered (no express shipping was offered)
Unfortunately, not all AMOLED screens are alike. You have to calibrate it but that requires root access. After calibrating the screen properly its beautiful especially with the contrast ratios which is unmatched by any LCD screen at the moment. CM9 has a built in color hack now and most custom kernels support RGB and Gamma calibration. Voodoo Display is in the beta stages as well and the Cold Temp setting works great on my Display making it closer to 6500K. The gf actually prefers the Nexus screen over her 4S every time we watch a video and she tries to find nitpicky things to complain about my phones which she can't with the Nexus. Lol.
I was gonna get that case but the waiting part...Maybe I'll come around to picking it up though since its pretty cheap. Someone at XDA did say the rubber peeled off where it meets the TPU but that's because he had a spare battery and was always removing the battery cover every now and then. I may go naked as well since it would give me a reason to pick up the white casing house which will get cheaper in the next few months.
There's a whole thread on it at XDA:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1521365
Some pics here with the Gray battery cover:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...&postcount=152
From a Samsung Service center:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...&postcount=182
They're saying that if you order directly from Samsung, its a lot cheaper than buying it off eBay. You will have to take the phone apart and what not so it would depend how comfortable you are at doing that.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1521365
Some pics here with the Gray battery cover:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...&postcount=152
From a Samsung Service center:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...&postcount=182
They're saying that if you order directly from Samsung, its a lot cheaper than buying it off eBay. You will have to take the phone apart and what not so it would depend how comfortable you are at doing that.
flashed my first ROM onto the GNex today...used the Liquid Smooth 1.35 ROM..seems pretty snappy!
I'm pretty noob to all this stuff, but is Titanium the only way to back up applications and their data? is there anyway to flash a ROM and still have things like the home screen intact?
I'm pretty noob to all this stuff, but is Titanium the only way to back up applications and their data? is there anyway to flash a ROM and still have things like the home screen intact?
^ If you use a replacement launcher, you should be able to backup the homescreen settings, either through Titanium Backup or the launcher itself.
It may be possible to do the same for the stock launcher, but I dont backup system apps. Ive run into issues when restoring, so I just backup/restore user apps.
There was another backup app that I read about within the past 2 weeks, but I cant for the life of me remember the name of it.
It may be possible to do the same for the stock launcher, but I dont backup system apps. Ive run into issues when restoring, so I just backup/restore user apps.
There was another backup app that I read about within the past 2 weeks, but I cant for the life of me remember the name of it.
flashed my first ROM onto the GNex today...used the Liquid Smooth 1.35 ROM..seems pretty snappy!
I'm pretty noob to all this stuff, but is Titanium the only way to back up applications and their data? is there anyway to flash a ROM and still have things like the home screen intact?
I'm pretty noob to all this stuff, but is Titanium the only way to back up applications and their data? is there anyway to flash a ROM and still have things like the home screen intact?
ADB has a built in backup function if you have ADB installed:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1420351
MyBackup is another app:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...TXlCYWNrdXAiXQ..
There's a few more in the market and they all do the same thing. Like civicdrvr mentioned, you can backup the Launcher in Titanium backup and restore it on each build. I'm not sure which Launcher LiquidSmooth uses but I believe its Nova Launcher. You can only restore to the same launcher that you backed up from. Also, you will most likely have to replace the widgets each time. Nova, Apex, and other Third Party Home Launchers have a built in back up feature within their settings that does the same thing as Titanium Backup.
For people running CM9, apparently there's a mod to get some of the features that AOKP and the other custom ROMs have:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1531222
Here's a sample video of it on the Sprint Galaxy Nexus running CM9:
You just flash it over your build which enables a few other customizations currently missing from CM9. I guess CM9 is going more for the functionality stuff than eye candy at the moment. Hopefully, this will be built into the future builds.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1531222
Here's a sample video of it on the Sprint Galaxy Nexus running CM9:
You just flash it over your build which enables a few other customizations currently missing from CM9. I guess CM9 is going more for the functionality stuff than eye candy at the moment. Hopefully, this will be built into the future builds.
Galaxy S III just revealed:
http://www.androidpolice.com/2012/05...moled-display/
http://www.engadget.com/2012/05/03/g...whats-changed/
Kinda glad I didn't wait. Wonder why they didn't stick to the no hardware buttons. Maybe that's the US variant since the international version always had that hardware home button. Looks pretty snappy but besides the 1.4 GHz Quad core nothing too different.
Specs:
4.8-inch 720p Super AMOLED HD Display
1GB RAM
16/32GB storage, 64GB version "available soon"
microSD Card slot
Eye Tracking
Smart stay: keeps the screen awake while you're looking at the display
S-Voice: advanced voice recognition, "like a good friend who listens attentively"
Floating videos: lets you resize videos and move them around on the display whilst they float atop other windows.
8MP rear shooter with zero shutter lag, 3.3 shots per second
Best Photo: takes a burst of eight shots, automatically chooses the best one
S Beam: Wi-Fi direct meets NFC
1.9MP front camera with "face recognition" and HD video capabilities
2100mAh Battery with Wireless Charging technology
Bluetooth 4.0 (LE)
Wi-Fi a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi HT40
GPS/GLONASS
NFC
136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6mm, 133g
Android 4.0
4.8-inch 720p Super AMOLED HD Display
1GB RAM
16/32GB storage, 64GB version "available soon"
microSD Card slot
Eye Tracking
Smart stay: keeps the screen awake while you're looking at the display
S-Voice: advanced voice recognition, "like a good friend who listens attentively"
Floating videos: lets you resize videos and move them around on the display whilst they float atop other windows.
8MP rear shooter with zero shutter lag, 3.3 shots per second
Best Photo: takes a burst of eight shots, automatically chooses the best one
S Beam: Wi-Fi direct meets NFC
1.9MP front camera with "face recognition" and HD video capabilities
2100mAh Battery with Wireless Charging technology
Bluetooth 4.0 (LE)
Wi-Fi a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi HT40
GPS/GLONASS
NFC
136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6mm, 133g
Android 4.0
http://www.engadget.com/2012/05/03/g...whats-changed/
Kinda glad I didn't wait. Wonder why they didn't stick to the no hardware buttons. Maybe that's the US variant since the international version always had that hardware home button. Looks pretty snappy but besides the 1.4 GHz Quad core nothing too different.
Last edited by CGFebTSX04; May 3, 2012 at 02:02 PM.
That rectangular home button and chrome on the side just kills the overall design. Also the back is kinda ugly. If they stick to the capacitive buttons or software buttons on the US variant it'll probably less ugly in the front. They should've made a unibody like the HTC One X or the Lumia 900. The new TouchWiz features do look nice and useful. Although, I'm sure that will slow down future updates. I hope XDA or CyanogenMod ports those features to the other Android devices like the Nexus. (They probably will.)
I don't really care if it's a unibody or not. They prob did it this way so that people who wants removable battery and sd card can have choices.
Also this phone will arrive in the US on all carriers starting June.
Also this phone will arrive in the US on all carriers starting June.
Finally got a chance to take a look at it. I like. A lot.
Interesting story:
http://androidandme.com/2012/05/smar...-galaxy-s-iii/
Interesting story:
We expect that AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon will all offer the LTE version of the device, while T-Mobile will go with a HSPA+ version. That means that only T-Mobile is likely to get the quad-core version that will be similar to the international version.
The rest of the Galaxy S III models with LTE will likely feature the dual-core Snapdragon S4, if previous rumors turn out to be true. This chip might not have as fast of a GPU as the Exynos 4 Quad, but it should still be very competitive in normal usage and battery life.
One smaller possibility is that Samsung might surprise US customers and go with their newer Exynos 5 Dual processor, the first chip to use ARM’s Cortex-A15 CPU core and Mali-T604 GPU. This chip was said to go into mass production in Q2, and it should be ready for the summer release of the Galaxy S III in the US.
The rest of the Galaxy S III models with LTE will likely feature the dual-core Snapdragon S4, if previous rumors turn out to be true. This chip might not have as fast of a GPU as the Exynos 4 Quad, but it should still be very competitive in normal usage and battery life.
One smaller possibility is that Samsung might surprise US customers and go with their newer Exynos 5 Dual processor, the first chip to use ARM’s Cortex-A15 CPU core and Mali-T604 GPU. This chip was said to go into mass production in Q2, and it should be ready for the summer release of the Galaxy S III in the US.
The phone holds its own specs wise but I was really hoping Samsung would've used a different material instead of plastic for the S III. Then again, I haven't held one in the hand so I can't really say how it is compared to the other phones considering the Nexus is also made of plastic but doesn't feel like one in the hand. Maybe I've been reading too many articles about the HTC One S and HTC One X Micro Arc Oxidation and ceramic bodies which is what I was hoping the S III would've gotten in some form.
S III benchmark scores from Anandtech for those who care about that sort of thing:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/5810/s...rmance-preview
http://www.anandtech.com/show/5810/s...rmance-preview
Hasnt HTC been having issue with the ceramic coated cases?
I really wish it didnt have the physical buttons on the bottom, and the body just ended where the screen ended. I cant stand how large the GN is.
I really wish it didnt have the physical buttons on the bottom, and the body just ended where the screen ended. I cant stand how large the GN is.
Last edited by civicdrivr; May 3, 2012 at 05:48 PM.
holy crap, I saw a video the other day on the HTC ONE X... the resolution on it was simply amazing! I honestly thought at first it was a dummy phone because when the guy in the video turned and angled the phone, the screen was still super clear
Supposedly LG has something coming up though to put the AMOLED and the HTC One X display to shame. So they say...http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/13/l...sses-samsungs/
Lol at the Wood Chuck test:
http://androidandme.com/2012/05/smar...video-roundup/
Looking forward to XDA porting those software changes Samsung made. I'm sure it'll only be a matter of time before we see them on a custom ROM.
http://androidandme.com/2012/05/smar...video-roundup/
Looking forward to XDA porting those software changes Samsung made. I'm sure it'll only be a matter of time before we see them on a custom ROM.
while I'm fairly happy with my GNex... I don't know if I'll buy another Nexus phone. The whole "getting the updates before anyone else" is BS. Go to the forums, there are plenty of people (including I, myself) that aren't getting OTA updates. And people having to do it manually... then, what's the point?
THAT said... I still love the GNex... best phone I've had... my gf that has the iPhone 4S compliments me on it quite often (she "helped" me fund it for my birthday in March)... and She's a totally Apple fan-girl.
THAT said... I still love the GNex... best phone I've had... my gf that has the iPhone 4S compliments me on it quite often (she "helped" me fund it for my birthday in March)... and She's a totally Apple fan-girl.
Last edited by is300eater; May 3, 2012 at 06:09 PM.
I'm a Samsung fan all day long. But I don't see the spec jump from a G2 to the G3 worth the non-contract price. And I was really hoping they would get away from the plastics. As now, I like the Skyrocket's design over the SIII's.
I'll wait until they hit ATT stores to get a real idea, but then again, I might jump ship to an Apple 5 if the screen gets larger.
I'll wait until they hit ATT stores to get a real idea, but then again, I might jump ship to an Apple 5 if the screen gets larger.
Has anyone upgraded to Gingerbread 2.3.6.
What I have read it was a disaster a few months ago, but I updated tonight... slight icon changes, but the battery life is suppose to improve. Well see and report.
What I have read it was a disaster a few months ago, but I updated tonight... slight icon changes, but the battery life is suppose to improve. Well see and report.
I love Samsung, I just wish their service department wasnt worthless. But if you talk to the managers and are very firm, you should get your way.
With that said, the GSIII isnt wowing me. I like it, but not enough to ditch the Nexus S thats served me very well for over a year. I also think the GSIII is just too damn big.
With that said, the GSIII isnt wowing me. I like it, but not enough to ditch the Nexus S thats served me very well for over a year. I also think the GSIII is just too damn big.
So I haven't gotten around to trying this mod/ROM out but it turns the Galaxy Nexus into the Tablet layout:
http://youtu.be/tfVdUA9k11A
Despite him saying Netflix and YouTube not working, its not true. You can sideload both APKs and they work fine according to the people at XDA. It even uses the Tablet YouTube Layout which is better IMO.
More info and screenshots:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1619582
Looks pretty cool especially with the lower DPI setting making it even more high res. This mod works for all other Android devices running ICS but you would have to get the appropriate modded Market, Phone and other APKs so that they look and work properly.
http://youtu.be/tfVdUA9k11A
Despite him saying Netflix and YouTube not working, its not true. You can sideload both APKs and they work fine according to the people at XDA. It even uses the Tablet YouTube Layout which is better IMO.
More info and screenshots:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1619582
Looks pretty cool especially with the lower DPI setting making it even more high res. This mod works for all other Android devices running ICS but you would have to get the appropriate modded Market, Phone and other APKs so that they look and work properly.
This article pretty much sums it up: http://www.theverge.com/2012/5/4/299...broke-my-heart
This article pretty much sums it up: http://www.theverge.com/2012/5/4/299...broke-my-heart







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