I'm not sure if it has something to do with SMOLED in general, or if it's particular to the Nexus S, but I'm noticing oddities with the screen. Can't be sure if it's software related, or if it's hardware related.
There are two things. One, it sometimes doesn't register presses, even when an icon is clearly pressed; the orange highlight that surrounds an icon is clearly seen but it doesn't launch the app. It requires a second touch. I'm guessing this is mostly software related, but either way, it's disappointing to see Android like this (or, if hardware related, sad to see SMOLED like this).
The 2nd thing is, the screen seems problematic for the complete opposite reason sometimes. Has anyone ever hovered their fingers over the screen without actually touching it? Sometimes it'll register presses this way. I'm guessing this is hardware related? Either way, I have no doubt this causes unintended screen presses, and might go a long way in explaining typos and frequent errors that occur when typing quickly where your fingers glaze over the screen (like I often see double letter hits, like tthis or thiss - very annoying).
Not sure what the deal is, whether it's software or hardware contributing to these two oddities/problems - or a combination of both. Either way, these two things can make the Google Android experience feel second rate.
Additionally, I think this goes a long way in explaining my frustrations with typing on Android. Missed space bar presses are particularly frequent, resulting in words likethis; while other times, double hits occur, per my example above (like tthis or thiss). Again, it detracts from the overall Android experience and can be frustrating when thumbing out long messages.
The first issue might be related to the Launcher you're using. Are you on stock launcher or did you install something else like ADW or Launcher Pro? If you're on a third party, try it back on stock, or dig into the settings for your 3rd party launcher and see if there are tweaks you can turn on/off that might impact it. I know ADW has a "keep in memory" toggle; stuff like that is what I'd play with.
The other problem is something I've seen several people mention in here. I'm not sure I notice it or not, BUT, I just read this interesting article yesterday, which suggests to me that the screen is ultra-sensitive to touch. The article authors are amazed that they can use the back of their fingernail, or even wear gloves and still register touch on the screen. Other phones aren't so sensitive.
It seems they did something to increase the capacitive touch sensitivity, and perhaps a bit too much. Hopefully it can be software fixed.
The NS is such a lovely device, but it's got it's fair share of quirks, both hardware and software that really mar the experience for many. I love the phone, but am still considering returning it when my 30 days is almost up.
distortedloop said:
The NS is such a lovely device, but it's got it's fair share of quirks, both hardware and software that really mar the experience for many. I love the phone, but am still considering returning it when my 30 days is almost up.
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I agree.
As for the launcher, I am currently using ADW because there are a slew of glitches and issues with the stock launcher, including the unresponsive issue I wrote about in my OP. ADW Launcher is unquestionably more reliable, smoother, and stable.
It's unfortunate the experience with the Nexus S can be so polarizing: sometimes the screen is not responsive, and other times, too responsive.
And I have to reiterate, the experience typing on this phone (and on Android in general) remains a particular sore spot for me.
distortedloop said:
I'm not sure I notice it or not, BUT, I just read this interesting article yesterday, which suggests to me that the screen is ultra-sensitive to touch. The article authors are amazed that they can use the back of their fingernail, or even wear gloves and still register touch on the screen.
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No kidding. I don't have to actually touch the screen at all. Just hovering the tip of the finger 0.5mm over the screen is enough. Which is not really a problem, because it's quite difficult to do that.
I have found the same issue with the screen, it is very sensitive to touch. As for the bad selection and typing errors, I think that is more more likely software related, try a different keyboard?
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
Corvidd said:
I have found the same issue with the screen, it is very sensitive to touch. As for the bad selection and typing errors, I think that is more more likely software related, try a different keyboard?
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
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I'm currently trialing Swiftkey. It is impressive the few times it works to perfection, but this is usually a rare occurrence. More often than not, I'm still having to type out my words, however, perhaps it's still "learning" how I type. For now, I feel like the experience is actually slower than manually thumbing out messages because you're so busy concentrating on picking the correct predicted word. In some ways, it's counter intuitive to messaging quickly. I have until the end of the month before the trial expires, so we'll see if the experience is improved.
Prior to that, I was using either stock keyboard, or Smart Keyboard Pro. Both have their positive and negative issues, but those two offerings are as good as it can be on Android, it seems. Which is to say, it's disappointing. I have many typing woes. I have to say, the typing experience pales in comparison to typing on iPhone/iPod touch devices. I can type far more confidently and smoothly on an iPhone than I can with any Android device I've used so far. I'm hoping, one day, when Blindtype is implemented, this will change.
I didn't like swiftkey, and don't understand its popularity, having to check the scrolling bar for which word i wanted slowed me down. I agree that the typing accuracy on an iPhone is superior to android devices, there are many things I don't like about the iPhone keyboard but the accuracy is very good.
Have you tried Swype? I believe the beta is now open to all to try, google it, as its not in the market. Failing that, apps like Shapewriter (when it becomes available again) and SlideIT keyboard are other similar options. Or if you want to go all-out weird with text input, try 8pen.
i found the same bugs
and my guess it has to do with the Concave design, that throws off the screen calibration.
on the SGS, the touches are 110% accurate
you just hover your finger on top, and the work
Corvidd said:
I didn't like swiftkey, and don't understand its popularity, having to check the scrolling bar for which word i wanted slowed me down. I agree that the typing accuracy on an iPhone is superior to android devices, there are many things I don't like about the iPhone keyboard but the accuracy is very good.
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Agreed. However, I'm trying my best to give Swiftkey ample opportunity to grow on me, and as I said, when it actually predicts your words accurately, it's quite intuitive, but this happens rarely. Most of the time it guesses incorrectly and you end up thumbing in almost all the letters to a word anyway. Swiftkey slows me down too and I, ironically, end up taking longer to type out messages. Like you, I'm too busy making sure it's predicting correctly the next words I want to say. In many ways, it's counter-intuitive.
And it's a shame Google didn't set itself apart from Apple's keyboard. They could/should have included custom auto-corrections, etc.
Have you tried Swype? I believe the beta is now open to all to try, google it, as its not in the market. Failing that, apps like Shapewriter (when it becomes available again) and SlideIT keyboard are other similar options. Or if you want to go all-out weird with text input, try 8pen
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Thanks for the suggestions. Yes, I forgot to mention I have the Swype Beta. Swype is quite fun and often impressive, but like Swiftkey, I find it cumbersome when I'm trying to type 'personal' words like unique names of places, or uncommon lingo and words, etc. Plus, when you start getting into long words, Swype becomes difficult to track. Perhaps I just need more practice, but ultimately found it slower than thumbing it out. I have tried a few other options, like the one where the keys change sizes depending on predictions, and even 8pen (novel, but no thanks), but nothing seems capable of accurately mimicking the iPhone/iPod Touch typing experience. Anyone who has typed extensively on both platforms will know the difference.
I would just like to be able to thumb out messages minus the odd errors and mis-presses/unregistered presses, or the overly sensitive presses. Smart Keyboard Pro remains the best choice, in my opinion, but even that has hiccups and my aforementioned problems. It's probably a combination of software and hardware that is contributing to my typing woes.
Blindtype, please hurry.
I don't have problems with it not registering presses, but it certainly is sensitive. Depending on conditions, you can register a press by hovering your finger 1-2mm off the screen surface. This has rarely bothered me, but if you keep your fingers very close in while you're typing, yeah, I can see it being really problematic.
EDIT: Actually, Android Central posted a short article and video just this morning about how you can use your Nexus S with certain types of gloves on in the winter cold because of this.
zorak950 said:
I don't have problems with it not registering presses, but it certainly is sensitive. Depending on conditions, you can register a press by hovering your finger 1-2mm off the screen surface. This has rarely bothered me, but if you keep your fingers very close in while you're typing, yeah, I can see it being really problematic.
EDIT: Actually, Android Central posted a short article and video just this morning about how you can use your Nexus S with certain types of gloves on in the winter cold because of this.
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Right, you are. I mention about the hovering finger thing in the OP.
AllGamer said:
i found the same bugs
and my guess it has to do with the Concave design, that throws off the screen calibration.
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But my understanding is that the actual touch screen itself isn't curved...?
onthecouchagain said:
But my understanding is that the actual touch screen itself isn't curved...?
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Yeah, but what that basically means is there's a different thickness of glass between the touchscreen and your finger at different points on the screen. I don't claim to know much about capacitative touch technology, but that seems likely to make for a much touchier sensitivity calibration than a traditional flat screen.
zorak950 said:
Yeah, but what that basically means is there's a different thickness of glass between the touchscreen and your finger at different points on the screen. I don't claim to know much about capacitative touch technology, but that seems likely to make for a much touchier sensitivity calibration than a traditional flat screen.
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Yes, that makes sense.
Not sure if I'm liking what I'm hearing. If the screen is indeed too sensitive and is the cause of my typing woes, I don't suppose there's a way to dial it down via software, is there?
onthecouchagain said:
If the screen is indeed too sensitive and is the cause of my typing woes, I don't suppose there's a way to dial it down via software, is there?
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I don't know enough about how the technology works to answer that authoritatively. I'm curious too, though.
onthecouchagain said:
The 2nd thing is, the screen seems problematic for the complete opposite reason sometimes. Has anyone ever hovered their fingers over the screen without actually touching it? Sometimes it'll register presses this way. I'm guessing this is hardware related?
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I've had this happen to me a couple times. I could see how its annoying, but I'm coming from a nexus 1 where you could mash the screen at times and nothing would happen so its nice to have a sensitive screen.
I don't see that I've mentioned it in this particular thread, but I have in others, so forgive me for repeating myself, but for short messages I really find the best solution is to just use the voice input.
Not to dismiss the need for an accurate, fast, easy to use keyboard, but I think Voice Actions and Voice Input are one of the absolute best features of Android that don't get a lot of attention.
I won't say Voice Actions has changed my life, but it's definitely changed the way I do several things (like to-do lists), and how I interact with my phone.
edit: Another good keyboard is Better Keyboard, it lets you see where you hit the keys to help train yourself on it; not sure it's any more accurate than the others though.
distortedloop said:
I don't see that I've mentioned it in this particular thread, but I have in others, so forgive me for repeating myself, but for short messages I really find the best solution is to just use the voice input.
Not to dismiss the need for an accurate, fast, easy to use keyboard, but I think Voice Actions and Voice Input are one of the absolute best features of Android that don't get a lot of attention.
I won't say Voice Actions has changed my life, but it's definitely changed the way I do several things (like to-do lists), and how I interact with my phone.
edit: Another good keyboard is Better Keyboard, it lets you see where you hit the keys to help train yourself on it; not sure it's any more accurate than the others though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. Voice input is very good with the S, much better than it was with the N1.
Smart keyboard pro is also a good one.
distortedloop said:
I don't see that I've mentioned it in this particular thread, but I have in others, so forgive me for repeating myself, but for short messages I really find the best solution is to just use the voice input.
Not to dismiss the need for an accurate, fast, easy to use keyboard, but I think Voice Actions and Voice Input are one of the absolute best features of Android that don't get a lot of attention.
I won't say Voice Actions has changed my life, but it's definitely changed the way I do several things (like to-do lists), and how I interact with my phone.
edit: Another good keyboard is Better Keyboard, it lets you see where you hit the keys to help train yourself on it; not sure it's any more accurate than the others though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I've attempted to use Voice Actions, especially while driving. Usually it gets what I want to say correct, but unfortunately, it doesn't always get the person I'm trying to send it to correct. In fact, it never does. Same is true for when I'm not driving. So I end up having to cancel the command and type it out anyway.
I bought Better Keyboard long ago. It was one of the first third party keyboards I tried. I found the experience atrocious (at the time, it lacked true multitouch. If you think stock keyboard missed letters... you should try BK!). My understanding is that multitouch is implemented now, so perhaps I'll give it another try.
Edit: Also, Smart Keyboard Pro offers touch points and calibration to help you see where you mistype and to calibrate it to your typing style. These features help, but there's no mistaking that the phone (softward or hardware?) often misfires or misses presses altogether. Problems that appear like tthis or thiss or whenever it misses a space bar press (despite the space bar clearly being highlighted on the keyboard) resulting in words likethis are far too frequent and have nothing to do with pressing accuracy.
zorak950 said:
Yeah, but what that basically means is there's a different thickness of glass between the touchscreen and your finger at different points on the screen. I don't claim to know much about capacitative touch technology, but that seems likely to make for a much touchier sensitivity calibration than a traditional flat screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
exactly... too much empty space in between, that's why the areas around the edge at the bottom are harder to register
Hi, I wanted to know what you guys think of the Focus and is it a worth getting?
What are the ups and downs of windows phone 7?
Is there any major hardware issues that I should consider before getting one?
Thanks in advance
I bought the phone outright from Rogers for $630.00 and I don't have a single regret! I think WP7 is gonna be a VERY strong competitor against ios and android by the end of the year. Microsoft needs a few updates to give the devs more control to create better apps, it needs some more user customization, and as most complaints would be it doesn't have copy & paste (which I dont care about at all)
All these are coming in updates soon and once the ball really starts rollin' I think WP7 will be a major success.
Is it worth buying the Focus? ABSOLUTELY! I love the phone, its so fast, fluid, and feels great.
I have new hopes for MS now, and I think Im currently leaning towards WP7 more than android and ios.
just my opinion,,,,hope this helps.
Sweet! You won't regret it IMHO.
My top 5 tips for the Focus (extra important for someone like me outside US warranty cover):
1. TAKE TREMENDOUS care clipping on/off the rear plate-phone back. It is plastic, with a couple of tiny plastic clips holding it in. Break these.....replacment back plate or blu-tac required!
2. Think long and hard over a case (I got a body glove - review on this site). This can be a slippery little sucker once the back plate gets some natural body oils / sweat / humidity etc on it. It has such a small form factor – cases do not weight it down too much in my opinion.
3. Add expandable memory at your own risk until MS offer a certified list / approved card process. If you do – load up the phone above the 8GB limit ASAP to test stability over a week or so. If you add heaps of apps and custom info and then need to hard reset, you've wasted a decent amount of time.
4. Use the Samsung Profile app (marketplace) to move the MMS capability over to your preferred carrier if outside US (eg Telstra Australia = worked for me).
5. Remove the AT&T bloat/software if outside US App support.
From one very happy Aussie Focus owner.
Thanks guys I'm see about getting one in a few weeks.
So no custom roms for this device yet, no ones working with this or any of the WP7 phones?
Think again
Noz85 said:
Thanks guys I'm see about getting one in a few weeks.
So no custom roms for this device yet, no ones working with this or any of the WP7 phones?
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If you are, like me, a former WM 6.5 guy who liked to flash custom ROMs and are thinking about a WP7 device, you are on the wrong path my friend. Custom ROMs on a WP7 device? Have you not read anything in these threads? I went to the Focus from a FUZE with a 6.5.5 Energy ROM, and tweaked and upgraded constantly, including my apps. I did this becuase I wanted to and thought I needed to. It was insanity and I realize this now that I have the Focus. I no longer need to do that, and no longer want to do that. My apps update on their own, the OS will too, and I would like to see some OS updates but don't need them. If what you want to do is tweak, customize and burn new custom ROMs, look elsewhere than WP7.
While we're on topic, how is the call quality?
Call quality
mcorrie1121 said:
While we're on topic, how is the call quality?
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The best of any smartphone I've ever used - Kaiser, Rhodium, iPhone 1st gen and 3GS. It REALLY sounds good. MUCH better radio than any of the other mentioned phones, as well, in terms of reception and coverage on AT&T in my location.
wspaw said:
The best of any smartphone I've ever used - Kaiser, Rhodium, iPhone 1st gen and 3GS. It REALLY sounds good. MUCH better radio than any of the other mentioned phones, as well, in terms of reception and coverage on AT&T in my location.
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+1
that I can definitely agree with! Excellent call quality!
Samsung Focus WP7 pros and cons
Check Youtube video: "The Dark Side of the Samsung Focus"
I am hearing some a mono tone noise in the background while using my Bluetooth headset, such as Jawbone Icon, Sound ID5 etc.
The App store is still at its infancy. The interface is sometimes sluggish and crash without response especially on 3rd party apps. There is no VOIP applications yet because MS hasn't released the API. The screen of the Focus is sometimes way too sensitive that I have to do a factory reset or complete shut down of the phone.
CONS:
- Bluetooth + 3G call interfere with WiFi signal.
- Camera Settings are Not Saved after usage. I have to re-set 720P for video everytime!
- No video upload to social network nor Youtube yet.
- No dedicate Youtube app beside the mobile web interface. I really like the latest Youtube app in Android where you can have full screen in landscape and a small video still running on top with comments and related links at the bottom.... too bad it's only limited to Froyo or above version.
- Bluetooth Remote Control Protocol (No track change, No Volume Control)
- No Hidden WiFi SSID
- No native multilingual input support such as Chinese text and voice input yet.
- Voice control sometimes forces you to quite to the home page and need to press and hold the Windows Button again.
- No HTML5, Text rendering engine is sometimes very slow which results in unreadable pixelated form when zoomed in.
- Lacking confirmation before shut down when press and hold the power/sleep button. Both iOS and Android prompt for shut down not WP7.
- Charging time is very long. Sometimes it takes 8 Hours to charge from 0 % to 100%.
- Volume Button sometimes gets stuck depending on the surrounding temperature such as too cold at around 56ºF.
- Capacitive Buttons at the bottom are sometimes too sensitive which causes quitting a game and need to be restarted all over again.
- No Multitask or limited multi-task yet.
- A lot of games need to start from the beginning instead of pausing the state when quitting the app accidentally.
- No free turn-by-turn Navigation system.
- No Skype, fring, not even official Windows Live Messenger client yet (Zune HD has Windows Live Messenger already).
- No Front Facing Camera for video call
- Cannot change theme by default (without jailbreaking)
- Only Vibrate twice then ringtone instead of vibrating and ringtone simultaneously.
- No Threaded email
- Hard to manage tons of apps if MS still keep the same Metro UI without implementing some kind of folder system.
- Apps only sorted in Alphabetic order
- Text Message does not show nor highlight the phone number of the contact. I often get confused on which number did the caller call from, Google Voice, Mobile, Office, or Home??
- Cannot SMS to pager, home, and other category number except Mobile. Unless you type it in manually or go through the contact list.
- SMS doesn't use two colors or styles to distinguish you or the person you are trying to SMS to.
Pros:
- (Just Discovered) Able to record HD video with voice during any phone calls! No other Operating System can do that well and smooth. iPhone blocks the video capture during phone call, Symbian doesn't allow voice but video, Android camera is totally disabled, while the iOS allows you to take picture at least but not video.
- Thinnest and lightest WP7 phone
- 4" Super AMOLED screen
- Nice and loud speaker
- Chrome bezel and back cover.
- in-line and in-ear headphone with mic and volume control included
- Pin Apps, Songs, Website, People, etc to Home screen
- Large icons for touch
- Fast loading for MS's native interface
- Great Start for version 1.0 of the WP7. There are plenty of improvement and I'm sure MS will tackle the above issues in future updates.
Nice review, squarejp - thanks for sharing that.
User experience on the Focus is somewhat varied, I would say. Some prefer the plain glass "feel" versus having a third party screen protector like Zagg's InvisibleShield (my preference) on it, for example.
My experience with the Focus is that is an awesome phone. WP7 has some challenges ahead but I am optimistic (even if naively so) that most, if not all, of the issues will get hashed out over time. I'm very pleased with this phone and can't wait to see what the future holds for it!
Thanks guys looks like a solid device. I wasn't really looking to mod it just figured I'd ask. I got the aria for Modding anyways.
sent from my HTC Intruder
squarejp:
Some of Your cons seem to be a matter of personal preference, not an actual limitation of the phone. two colour sms? c'mon, if you can't tell that the bubble on the right is you and the bubble on the left is your sms partner, then Metro is obviously lost on you.
The best thing about this phone is what JamesAllen has said. it just works, you don't have to dicker around with it (that is unless of course you're taking it from one network to another).
If you want something to enable you to use the features most people expect in a smartphone while being able to enjoy an unlimited data plan, this is definitely a great phone.
Check out the Real CONS on Youtube.
Search "The Dark Side of The Samsung Focus"
Bluetooth + 3G interfere with WiFi signal.
Highly recommend this device and OS.
Put my nightmare X10 right back in the box.
can I chime in
the ONE thing that drives me crazy about the phone is the small landscape keyboard. I can live with almost all of the other nuances. My captivate keyboard spread accross the bottom of the screen and was really easy to type on. the landscape keyboard on WP7 is just too small.
I don't know if anyone of you guys here have experienced screen jumping around the conversation thread while texting, but I've seen pretty much elsewhere. I haven't seen any similar thread around, so just to share it.
According to my interpretation, it is both a feature and a bug.
As for the feature part, the T, B and Backspace buttons are actually keyboard shortcut in a conversation thread. Once you've selected an sms with the trackpad, pressing T will get you to the top of the thread, vice versa for B and Backspace is for deleting.
What bugs me badly is that these things happen right when I was texting. Once or twice, I thought I was accidentally touching the trackpad, but considering my hand positioning and the cursor was still in the composing box when it happened, it was rather impossible.
It seems to be an universal Sense problem as well, since I came across this in multiple Sense Rom.
The best workaround I could come up with was to press B to get it back to the composing box, and use the trackpad to reposition the cursor. Nevertheless, it was still disruptive and annoying as hell.
Please share in the thread your experience/workaround/solution regarding this
Wish I could help more than to say you're not going nuts, it happens. it's incredibly annoying, i have no idea what does it. I don't use the roms that it happens in. If you like sense roms, but hate that try out myVision, I haven't seen that happen at all. Only downside I've found to myVision is the 'favs' crap that I'm amazed tmobile still tries to call a feature.
myVision is still in RC, that's the main reason why I still haven't tried it yet, but thanks for letting me know, will see how it works then
I think they only things keeping the dev from calling it complete are:
wants to add:
Will be adding 4-way reboot (when I figure out how to do it)
Will be editing updater-script so that you aren't just looking at a blank screen while it is installing (again when I figure out how to do it.)
And there is one bug:
HTC FM radio is not working on RC3.1 - working on a fix now.
I've been using it since for a few days now and have had no problems at all (I don't use the radio because I don't carry around headphones). It seems to get good battery life for a sense rom also. I think the only thing that could get me away from this rom is a Doubleshot rom with the lock screen app shortcuts like in Unity... couldn't hurt if it were updated to the newer doubleshot base either.
This is one of the many things that drives me away from Sense.
It's pretty, but I do 10,000 texts a month, and less than 100 minutes. So little things like this kill me.