Database Users

Android and Multimedia

It has been a month that I am using Xperia X10 (which was supposed to be a multimedia phone). It might have been a month but I have been following Android for a long time. I was so sure that if not the phone then the OS is going to be really great. Well I was wrong.....
Android does have lots of apps, and lots of them are really handy. But there are some very basic stuffs that it cann't do, like playing divx or Xvid or flv files. It has been quite a while that Samsung Spica came out, it has divx player support. There are so many devs, but noboody seems to bother to copy the divx player from Spica. Most of the videos are of xvid format now days. The only option you have is to buy yxplayer, but why should I buy yxplayer when this was suposed to be built in.
There is no default file browser, you have to download that too (thank god its free). There is no battery percent indicator, unless you download it. These are pretty basic things and they should have been included with the OS.
I am slowly feeling like those winmo lovers who believes that Android is popular because of the hype created by devs. And the devs started it as they can make couple of bucks by making small apps.
Regardless of conspiracy or no conspiracy, why no xvid or divx player??? Even the devs are not working on one

Bikram said:
There is no default file browser, you have to download that too (thank god its free). There is no battery percent indicator, unless you download it. These are pretty basic things and they should have been included with the OS.
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It's like Firefox vs. Opera discussion. I think if installing something is just few simple clicks, then system itself shouldn't contain nearly anything. I would be happy if it wouldn't even contain messaging app, cause I never use it and I can't delete it if I'm not a root.
So, as you see, there are many different "should have"s, not only yours.
I don't know why there are no divx/xvid player. But I personally don't mind, these formats aren't good for mobile devices, so I wouldn't use them anyway

My thoughts after two weeks (for what it's worth)

I have had my Galaxy S for about two weeks now, previously being a very happy HTC Hero owner for about a year. Below is a short list of the things I have learned during this time, some good, some bad.
1.) Firstly, this is a FANTASTIC device; easily the best handset I have ever used. From the Super AMOLED screen that to this day still blows me away every time I pick up the phone, to the amazing 3D performance. No doubt, the Galaxy S is a desirable piece of kit.
2.) Despite this, it is let down by a single CRIPPLING flaw that we all know so well by now... The RFS file system. Make no mistake, without a lagfix installed, the Galaxy S performs at about 50% of its potential. This is true of ALL firmwares, including xxJPK. I've heard people on the forums claiming that JPK doesn't need a lagfix... Well, all I can say to that is that they haven't played around for long enough to notice, or they haven't tried OCLF at all. The difference is like night and day.
3.) So the lagfix makes the Galaxy S a monster; truly a pleasure to use. Why then does Samsung not recognise this potential and fix the problem? Looking at xxJPK and the build-date, I would say it's a pretty safe bet that Samsung are going to be sticking with RFS in the upcoming official Froyo release. That fact alone is a huge disappointment for me, and one which weighs heavily on my mind. Why should we have to rely on 3rd party "fixes" from the community to get the full performance from our phones? All of the current lagfixes have their own negatives. What we NEED is Samsung to come to the party! I wonder whether the Galaxy Tab will suffer from the same problems...
4.) The GPS problems that are well documented on the net have not affected me at all. I have successfully navigated from point A to B using Google Nav (Brut), and I have recorded a 6km trail using My Tracks, all without a single problem. I'm not saying the GPS issue doesn't exist, but if it does, it hasn't affected me yet. If anything, I would concede that the GPS is "weaker" than that of my Hero, but still fine for day to day use.
5.) My biggest concern coming in was the plastic construction of the phone, and Samsung's legendary (at least in my eyes) poor build quality. I'm pleased to report that on the contrary, the phone feels great in-hand, the weight is perfect and build quality is just fine. Now, I am not sure I would WANT to go back to one of the beefier HTC handsets I have coveted for so long.
6.) AllShare + DivX Certification + Hardware video acceleration = WIN! I tell you, the fact that I can lie in bed and stream all my media to this phone wirelessly and watch it on that gorgeous display is worth the price of admission alone.
7.) TouchWiz > Sense. When I had my Hero, I couldn't stand Sense. It felt bloated, and I always preferred a vanilla Google experience. TouchWiz is light enough that it doesn't get in the way of Android, and the overall look and feel is actually better than vanilla Android in my opinion. I'm happy to stick with stock ROMs, provided Samsung keep churning them out (something they haven't done too well so far!).
And yeah, that's about it... Thanks for reading if you got this far. Hopefully my thoughts and opinions echo true for some of you and trigger discussion.

I think you shoulda posted in general ..

PaulForde said:
I think you shoulda posted in general ..
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Sorry, you are right... Too used to posting here in Dev. Can a mod move it for me?

StNickZA said:
6.) AllShare + DivX Certification + Hardware video acceleration = WIN! I tell you, the fact that I can lie in bed and stream all my media to this phone wirelessly and watch it on that gorgeous display is worth the price of admission alone.
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May I ask what kind of server you are using? A NAS or some software, if the latter, which exactly? I gave up experimenting with PS3 Media Server a while back, though that is by far the best solution for the namegiving media renderer (and compatible to some others).

PlanetJumble said:
May I ask what kind of server you are using? A NAS or some software, if the latter, which exactly? I gave up experimenting with PS3 Media Server a while back, though that is by far the best solution for the namegiving media renderer (and compatible to some others).
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Unfortunately, I could not get PS3MS to work either, no matter what I tried. I use it already for streaming to the PS3.
To stream to the phone, I use Media Player 11. It works fine, but obviously only for formats that the phone can play natively (which fortunately is most of them).
Ultimately, I'd like to find a way to get PS3MS to transcode ALL formats for me into something the i9000 recognises.

StNickZA said:
To stream to the phone, I use Media Player 11. It works fine, but obviously only for formats that the phone can play natively (which fortunately is most of them).
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Transcoding isn't much of a problem, since the alternative I use is to download to the phone and play it natively anyway.
But having to feed WMP the media collection is cumbersome. On PS3MS, I just give it the base folder and then navigate on my PS3. Adding new files on the fly works just fine if they are moved somewhere in that tree. Maybe I am doing something wrong, but I seem to have to manually add each file for WMP and then I have them all mixed up in flat hierarchy, which sucks badly.

PlanetJumble said:
Transcoding isn't much of a problem, since the alternative I use is to download to the phone and play it natively anyway.
But having to feed WMP the media collection is cumbersome. On PS3MS, I just give it the base folder and then navigate on my PS3. Adding new files on the fly works just fine if they are moved somewhere in that tree. Maybe I am doing something wrong, but I seem to have to manually add each file for WMP and then I have them all mixed up in flat hierarchy, which sucks badly.
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Actually, I thought this to be the case as well. WMP seems to scan the mdia folders that you have added. And you don't need to browse using the library, which I agree is a pain.
In AllShare, go to Videos, then scroll down to Folders. From there you have the familiar layout you are used to from PS3MS.

StNickZA, I agree 100% with everything you have said! This should be in General though.
I haven't used AllShare that much, since I have a method that I prefer more:
First grab an app called 'File Expert' off the market. Set up an SMB file share to your movies and eps on your PC using normal windows sharing.
Then when you want something on your phone, just make sure you're on wifi, go to the SMB file share, hold down on the video and select copy. Then go back to local and paste it into the device. It will now say copying, and you can press the home button and go on with other stuff while it copies across.
The main benefit of this is that you don't have to worry about going out of range of wifi signal or anything, and it only takes a couple seconds to get the transfer started. Plus, no worrying about incompatibility or anything with streaming. Could be better, but it works.

If u have a nas like me, or wish to play videos from shared folders use CIFS Manager
No need to copy
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

I just use an HTTP server (HFS, installation is extremely simple) and the Browser to get the files on my phone.
But that is exactly what I want to get rid of, copying the files. Haven't tried CIFS Manager yet, but got that on my list.

True.. buut, another launcher, removing glasslock and taskmanager under touchwiz makes it an even smoother ride imo. )
Tapatalk, Sgs elite.

PlanetJumble said:
But that is exactly what I want to get rid of, copying the files. Haven't tried CIFS Manager yet, but got that on my list.
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That's the beauty of DLNA. AllShare works perfectly off Media Player 11, and streaming is flawless. Very happy with it indeed!

Google Music slow and useless, Gingerblur 3.1

Anyone else notice very poor performance of Google's music app? I have my libraries on etc SD card (Sandisk 16GB Class 4) and it takes forever to load, transitions are jumpy, the interface is klunky, and its not finding half my music.
The stock android music player was a pain to use at best (former iPhone user) but this one is dismal. I'm seriously considering using my old iPhone as an iPod and screw music on the Atrix. Is there any music player that's is free that works lag free and emulates the iPhones?

I believe they are still working out the kinks in the new google music app. Also, just so you know, discussions like this should be posted in the General section. Just wanted to let you know before someone came in and yelled at you.

*sigh* this is the Development section. Your post belongs in the General Section.

inb4 derp dev section posts...
o wait

everyone already said this shouldnt be in this section but...
why Ken chose to use the honeycomb music player GingerBlur is beyond me.. its absolute trash lol. So sluggish and even the background looks like 16-bit color madness.

tjjensen23 said:
inb4 derp dev section posts...
o wait
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spelling is a wonderful thing...

moved to proper forum.

lol i freeze the stock google music
miui ftw

Mr. Clown said:
moved to proper forum.
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Now moved

Pretty sure I already have a thread going about this in Q&A.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

now before people get confused, you are talking about the android music app correct? Google just launched a beta google cloud music so i dont want people to get confused.

We really need to come up with a different name for the new one. Google Music Beta makes me think of the 'cloud storage'. Google music reminds me of the new app that uses Google Music Beta. Music Player is the stock one...
We just need a name for the new App... they stupidly named it the exact same.

I typically use Songbird so I haven't noticed slowness. I'm also not using GingerBlur, though, so that could certainly have an effect.

I'm interested in seeing where this goes and hopefully canada will get some love too.
Sent from my Googletron

I use player pro and I also comefrom an iphone,i think this is one of the best music app replacements
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

Music Player
The stock app runs fine and if there were any changes made to it in Gladiatrix, that seems to run fine as well.
The new Google Music beta is a bit sluggish in the UI on the Atrix (fine on the Xoom) but streams from the cloud just fine.
The advantages of not having to use my SD card for music are massive, and I will likely be sticking with cloud streaming going forward.
Up until now I've been using PowerAMP and it is top notch. As the name implies it's got a full range equalizer along with a great number of other features. The UI is pretty quick and it has lock screen controls available. I'm really hoping they get cloud access working quickly.

Working very stable. I'm on gingerblur 2.0
Enviado desde mi MB860 usando XDA Premium App

cloud is the future no doubt. Google music is still new and working out kinks, i am using amzn cloud til that is done

Music player recommendations

Hi folks, can anyone recommend a good music player. Would new great if it could also download mp3's but guess that's asking for too much.There are just so many out there
Thanks.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA Premium App

Stock Galaxy S is the best IMHO. I wish I could get it on my Atrix.
If you want to explore 3rd party then you might want to give Winamp a chance...
Sent from my GT-I9000M using XDA Premium App

PowerAMP is really great.
Anyway, no matter what music player you take, dont forget to combine it with a voodoo sound app/kernel

Thanks guys, got the full voodoo app, just wish there was 1 app to play, download, recognise, show lyrics and allow you to place library where you wanted, would pay a lot for that, sigh!
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA Premium App

MIUI or Winamp - I use both
i love the look of the MIUI music player its really nice, with some nice features
And Winamp lets me sync with my PC so i have all my music from my hard drive sent to my phone via WiFi - love this feature

Definitely PowerAmp. It's worthed. Best sound quality and features.

gsw5700 said:
Thanks guys, got the full voodoo app, just wish there was 1 app to play, download, recognise, show lyrics and allow you to place library where you wanted, would pay a lot for that, sigh!
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA Premium App
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The other guys are right but try soundhound aswell to complete the package.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA Premium App

ccrows said:
Stock Galaxy S is the best IMHO. I wish I could get it on my Atrix.
If you want to explore 3rd party then you might want to give Winamp a chance...
Sent from my GT-I9000M using XDA Premium App
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i too love stock player, with one major issue thou, if choose albums, or folders view, and switch to thumbnail view, and than exit player, it doesn't remember where i was, but open 'ALL view' every time player starts, it's really retarded behavior, from eclair to froyo, all the same
is there any workaround for this?

DoubleTwist
mortplayer if you wan t play folders
C3 if you like a good visual interface

Another vote for PowerAMP...just an excellent all around player with a great EQ and presets.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA Premium App

PowerAmp, I've tried loads but none of them really match it, having said that I use FLAC rather than mp3. Player Pro is another decent alternative

meridian, why?
one may say it is ugly but
you can build playlist by picking files
you can play folders
you can select cue playlist
it can also play flac files
and it is also very good for video

i've only used stock SGS player and poweramp so far (both with voodoo sound module) and,regarding audio quality,the stock player is by far superior in my opinion.
just compare them by yourself and you'll find out how much weaker poweramp sounds.
there's also the new music player from launcherpro's dev,which has a really well done zune/metro interface. it's really smooth and it comes with widget,artworks download etc..it will also feature an EQ in the next builds if you are on gingerbread. on froyo you can use voodoo hw EQ which will come in the next realeases of the app.
lastest alpha build: http://launcherpro.com/music/
thread here on xda: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1089808

PowerAmp is great, but once it gets running it never wants to quit. Has anybody figured out how to stop it from running in the background, and draining juice after you quit.? It's the main reason I stick with the stock player, which has a bunch of features if you dig deep enough.

DoubleTwist, simple and powerfull, free and combining a lot of features. Good replacement for the stock player.

devonblue4u said:
PowerAmp is great, but once it gets running it never wants to quit. Has anybody figured out how to stop it from running in the background, and draining juice after you quit.? It's the main reason I stick with the stock player, which has a bunch of features if you dig deep enough.
Click to expand...
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In the advanced options, you have «keep service». Untick it.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

There is a Music Player named ³.
just type "music player" without "" in the market and scroll down. you ´ll find it quick because of its short name.
It cant download music but it has the best design for me and an equalizer. Its free and AD-free.
slimboyslim

SGS with Voodoo my experience and help required!
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I have SGS with Voodoo for last couple of months. Would love to share my experience here:
With Voodoo sound takes quantum leap from stock
I am at 2.2 froyo and Voodoo control at the moment. It has good mid range, punchy with my Brainwavz M2 and better than most phones I have ever heard, still not as detailed as most reviews make me believe
With control plus (I bought it few days back), sound quality deteriorated for me. Very muddy. So, i revoked superuser permission went back to free ver and it is much better
Yesterday tried to compare iPhone 4 with my SGS, same song, Brainwavz M2 and Senn CX 400 as earphones. I dont like to admit but iPhone was much better than SGS - Bass, clarity, stereo effect (Most pronounced); I noticed some parts which I never thought were there. SGS was much louder for sure but over all I was a bit dissapointed with SGS.
My questions to people in forum - is it my earphone? Am I doing anything wrong? I am in Darky's 9.5 with kernel having voodoo sound implementation.
I use stock and poswer amp and feel without any eq or effects, poweramp is a bit better than stock although stock's ui (in Darky's rom) is much better
Can my SGS sound as good as iPhone 4? I had huge hopes before gettign SGS after reading views of people in XDA and here. Overall I would still buy SGS again, it beats iPhone every other parameter..but SQ is close to my heart!
I couldnt post this in dev's forum as i am new and I feel most of the others here would know better than me
Any answers are welcome!

Is there any iPod touch look-a-like players? I love the ui of my Touch music player and would like to get similar to my SGS when I get it soon...

PowerAMP and the one from miui are very good

What music app do you guys use?

Just curious to see what everyone's running. I was using Google play Music until it started disorganizing my music a couple days ago in ABC order instead of actual tracklist order. So now I use nice player! What do you guys use?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 4

Testicopolicious said:
Just curious to see what everyone's running. I was using Google play Music until it started disorganizing my music a couple days ago in ABC order instead of actual tracklist order. So now I use nice player! What do you guys use?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 4
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I mainly use google play music because I have most of my music stored on the cloud, but for local I used to use PowerAmp which was awesome and sometimes I use Maple - it has some really cool features like pitch and speed adjustment.
but I think theres already a thread on this somewhere, in the apps section so you should probably look there

I hate how Google Play music makes it so hard just to get to the All Songs list. I think it requires at least three or four button presses, which I might be doing wrong but it's annoying to do if it really is that way.

yahoowizard said:
I hate how Google Play music makes it so hard just to get to the All Songs list. I think it requires at least three or four button presses, which I might be doing wrong but it's annoying to do if it really is that way.
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I agree with this. I wish Google made the music app similar to those in TouchWiz or Sony xperias. Although I don't like the UI of Play Music, I'm kind of forced to use it due the N4's limited storage and Play's free song upload feature.

vikramkhalsa said:
but I think theres already a thread on this somewhere, in the apps section so you should probably look there
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It's either been locked or disappeared forever, like this thread will be.

Shuttle+ is the best on my opinion, design, options and functions.

There is a thread made in themes and app section for all you guys.. It will help you all for knowing yhe various Music app people use..:good:

I use power amp and think it's totally worth the money. And yeah what other people said, there's a thread about this in the themes and apps forum where you can read about it there.
I personally went with power amp because the other media players annoyed me with the wrong album art work and would display the same artwork for all songs even though the artwork was completely irrelevant
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 4

Play Music. its simple and doesnt eat a lot of battery compare to 3rd part music apps -_-.

Play Music + Viper4android as my equalizer. Doesn't eat a lot of battery and it makes your 10 in ear earphones sound like Hi-end headphones.

I use Google Play Music now since I subscribed to All Access. But if I was using local files I'd be using PowerAmp.