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When the G1 came out it was the only Android powered device so modding it worked for everybody. And it was just one brand, HTC, so this forum was a one stop destination for modding our phone.
However, things have changed, now there are multiple phone with incompatible hardware from different manufacturers. Now a custom rom made for the G1, won't work on a DROID for example and vise versa. This complicates things quite a bit.
Right now Cyanogen mods are the best thing for our G1 and maybe the best thing for Android as a whole. I'm used to the build in tether capability and apps to SD and compcace and the other perks of a modded rom. But if I wanted to upgrade my phone, I would lose it all.
There are no Cyanogen mod for anything other than G1 and myTouch phones as far as I know and if I were to upgrade to DROID, I would lose root, lose tether, lose apps to SD, lose everything about my phone that makes it my phone.
Everything I wrote may not be facts, I don't really know what goes on at other forums, but I know that we don't have roms build to run on the DROID and we don't have them built to run on the HERO hardware, it's all for G1 and myTouch, and it seems to me that if I don't ha.ve on of those phones, I lose everything.
I do understand that this forum is for HTC devices which DROID and a few other's are not which is why I don't see homebrew for them. Is there a another website similar to this that supports all Android hardware?
These are thoughts that have been running through my head lately. If I am totally wrong here, please let me know.
I would say check out websites such as androidcommunity.com, androidandme.com, phandroid.com. The developers might not be on there but you can probably find links to where there are custom roms for the phones.
And you are right about different phones having different development oppurtunities. I thought about this today and realized that the next android phone I get not only has to be what I want but also be a popular phone that will attract developers such as cyan, maxisma, jac, manup and everyone else. My best guess and hope is that it will be a snapdragon android handset, hopefully for T-Mobile USA.
What we'll end up having to do is pick our phones based on it's community support and what kind of home brew is available for it.
The reason I love the G1 is the fact that it's rooted and has a large community. This phone is the best on the market, all things considered, because the rooted OS allows so much.
If and when the Droid is rooted, when a GSM version is released, and when it has T-Mo's 3G bands, I will move to it. But all those may not happen for another year or more. If you haven't played with a Droid yet, do so. Incredible speed and the best screen I have ever seen on a phone. Till then, G1 all the way.
The man is right, we have a problem on the dev side.
I think though, once 2.0 gets standard, we'll only need root for a few things like tethering and setting the CPU clock. Really cyanogen's only advantage is optimization, but once 2.0 and snapdragon rolls around, who cares? We'll always want to tinker, but it won't eclipse getting the phone you want.
The big problems right now are that the market isn't getting what it needs. Nothing compares to the HTC widgets, yet instead of cloning them on the market, we try and run a ROM that doesn't even work on our phones! We still don't have BT in Hero and it may just never happen.
2.0 will be what we need as a base, but the market needs our help now.
I'd contest the cyanogen are the best rom's.. maybe for someoen who wants to flash an upgrade every 3 days.. but for the majority of users.. Dwang is the way to go. Lengthy discussion about this, is over here..
alec.baldwin said:
I'd contest the cyanogen are the best rom's.. maybe for someoen who wants to flash an upgrade every 3 days.. but for the majority of users.. Dwang is the way to go. Lengthy discussion about this, is over here..
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Thanks but this thread is not about who has the best rom.
The point is, when you get a new Android phone, your rom of choice won't be available for it. So what do you do?
alec.baldwin said:
I'd contest the cyanogen are the best rom's.. maybe for someoen who wants to flash an upgrade every 3 days.. but for the majority of users.. Dwang is the way to go. Lengthy discussion about this, is over here..
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Click to collapse
I think we all get it already, YOU are dwang's biggest fan
But, to stay on topic. My G1 is the first HTC device I've ever owned and I've only discovered XDA since I've had it, and I think that because of the community involvement here and the custom roms that have come out, I will definitely lean towards another HTC phone when I look for my next upgrade, and it will definately be an android phone.
Also another thing to look at is the availability of the phones that are out to actual dev's. Unless people are donating phones, I doubt everyone can just run out and pick up all the latest devices, and network restrictions/preferences that come along with them.
I think the easiest solution is as follows:
1. Find the dev you like best.
2. Find the phone you like best.
3. Buy phone you like best.
4. Buy/Create a donate link to get said dev the same phone.
Assuming said dev doesnt turn around and craigslist the phone you bought him/her, you have (hopefully) ensured said dev will migrate and develop on your favorite hardware.
Not the best solution but probably the most reliable.
alec.baldwin said:
I'd contest the cyanogen are the best rom's.. maybe for someoen who wants to flash an upgrade every 3 days.. but for the majority of users.. Dwang is the way to go. Lengthy discussion about this, is over here..
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Seriously dude, are you going to diss me in every thread? What do you even contribute to this community? I've not received any patches or even logs of the "problems" you claim.
cyanogen said:
Seriously dude, are you going to diss me in every thread? What do you even contribute to this community? I've not received any patches or even logs of the "problems" you claim.
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For real.
Alec, you're like the little annoying brother that no one wants to be around.
Grow up, let your balls drop, and enjoy your phone, your life, and whatever rom you want.
But, you don't have to go around dissing well-respected devs.
The Droid hasn't been out long enough for a community to gather around it. Many of the Android big names are waiting to get GSM versions before tinkering.
Also, remember that the HTC Dream was in circulation well before it launched last year. The Android development phone is identical to the Dream, with the only difference being some swish art on the back cover. The hardware and software were free-flowing long before it landed in our hands. In contrast, the Droid was a much more secretive launch; we've only just got Eclair source code, and the SDK was kept under wraps by a non-disclosure agreement (probably to conceal the nuclear bomb that is Google Maps Navigation).
I find the cracking of the Droid to be inevitable. The poor thing is going to be broken just as much as our Dreams were. Just give it time.
As for ROMs being available over a span of phones, I'm not sure that's even a good idea. Android variants like XROM, cyanogenmod, The Dude's ROM, yadda yadda... they're all about maximising the capabilities of the Dream. Not the Droid, the Dream. Adding in features that the hardware can support, changing CPU frequencies, Apps2SD, all that jazz. Droid ROMs will be built around adding in core features, like Apps2SD, and whatever else the Droid has tucked away. Likewise, speed optimisations may not be portable between phones, as what gives the Dream a boost may hinder the Droid.
For me, features of a ROM are not the best part of homebrew Android builds. The best part is being able to upgrade your phone outside of the carrier's say-so. If T-mobile have no plans to push Eclair to Dreams, I will install it myself. I am not tied down by the say-so of a room full of suits three thousand miles away. If T-mobile don't include an app that I like, such as the IM app or the Amazon MP3 store (which T-mobile UK don't), I can get ROMs with them myself. If a carrier would rather I didn't tether without paying for my bandwidth twice, I can do it anyway, so long as I'm not an idiot.
You may have guessed that I have a very dim view of cell carriers.
With root, we are free to do as we like. This is the real killer feature of homebrew, and the Droid will benefit from it too.
Anyway...
dwang said:
I want to acknowledge cyanogen, daproy, cyrowski, loccy, and alla for their contributions to the android community.
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It seems dwang himself has a much higher opinion of the man than a certain other someone.
AthlonBoy said:
The Droid hasn't been out long enough for a community to gather around it. Many of the Android big names are waiting to get GSM versions before tinkering.
Also, remember that the HTC Dream was in circulation well before it launched last year. The Android development phone is identical to the Dream, with the only difference being some swish art on the back cover. The hardware and software were free-flowing long before it landed in our hands. In contrast, the Droid was a much more secretive launch; we've only just got Eclair source code, and the SDK was kept under wraps by a non-disclosure agreement (probably to conceal the nuclear bomb that is Google Maps Navigation).
I find the cracking of the Droid to be inevitable. The poor thing is going to be broken just as much as our Dreams were. Just give it time.
As for ROMs being available over a span of phones, I'm not sure that's even a good idea. Android variants like XROM, cyanogenmod, The Dude's ROM, yadda yadda... they're all about maximising the capabilities of the Dream. Not the Droid, the Dream. Adding in features that the hardware can support, changing CPU frequencies, Apps2SD, all that jazz. Droid ROMs will be built around adding in core features, like Apps2SD, and whatever else the Droid has tucked away. Likewise, speed optimisations may not be portable between phones, as what gives the Dream a boost may hinder the Droid.
For me, features of a ROM are not the best part of homebrew Android builds. The best part is being able to upgrade your phone outside of the carrier's say-so. If T-mobile have no plans to push Eclair to Dreams, I will install it myself. I am not tied down by the say-so of a room full of suits three thousand miles away. If T-mobile don't include an app that I like, such as the IM app or the Amazon MP3 store (which T-mobile UK don't), I can get ROMs with them myself. If a carrier would rather I didn't tether without paying for my bandwidth twice, I can do it anyway, so long as I'm not an idiot.
You may have guessed that I have a very dim view of cell carriers.
With root, we are free to do as we like. This is the real killer feature of homebrew, and the Droid will benefit from it too.
Anyway...
It seems dwang himself has a much higher opinion of the man than a certain other someone.
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You seem to have almost got my point but not quite. Of coarse DOID doesn't need Cyanogen MOD specifically. But would you buy an Android phone if there weren't a mod that lets it do the things that we are used to and have only become available by modding? Apps to SD, tethering, themeing?
Sure DROID might get all these things though a custom rom but we won't see it on this website. The problem is that things will get too spread out and hard to find with all these new hardware options.
What would be nice is a rom that works on nearly every Android device that just adds root access to the phone and some basic universal packages like A2SD and tethering etc. That way you can buy any Android device you want and still have these basic privileges.
Do you think something like that would be possible?
Pinesal said:
You seem to have almost got my point but not quite. Of coarse DOID doesn't need Cyanogen MOD specifically. But would you buy an Android phone if there weren't a mod that lets it do the things that we are used to and have only become available by modding? Apps to SD, tethering, themeing?
Sure DROID might get all these things though a custom rom but we won't see it on this website. The problem is that things will get too spread out and hard to find with all these new hardware options.
What would be nice is a rom that works on nearly every Android device that just adds root access to the phone and some basic universal packages like A2SD and tethering etc. That way you can buy any Android device you want and still have these basic privileges.
Do you think something like that would be possible?
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Click to collapse
Beats me, man. I'm not a developer. But I think it's unlikely.
For the DROID (and other/future android phones) is Apps2SD really necessary? The only reason why we need it on our phones is because of the pathetic amount of internal space the G1 has, the same goes for Swap Partitions etc.
As long as people buy the phone there is always going to be someone who is smart enough to work on rooting it IMO. And even without root what do you really lose? The only things I think I would really miss are Wireless Tether and Bluetooth File Transfer (Which I THINK is in 2.0 anyway).
I'm not buying a new phone until it's rooted and Cyanogen has it too.
My biggest requirement for any android phone..and any cell phone in general is the keyboard. I bought the G1 because of the keyboard and lucked out with the high number of developers available for it. I didn't find this place for several months during the time when the grandfather of the G1 mod program was still active =) JF!. I enjoyed all the modding and updating because I personally feel that the phone is, well mine. And I should be able to do what ever I want with it. I had picked up the V3C Razer because it could play MP3's. I get it home and then discover that the Verizon Nazi's completely locked down that feature so you where forced to use their service at an additional cost. Of course the motorola dev/repair/store software allowed us to get in a enable the various features that Verizon required to be locked. I also love the Aps2sd. No matter what phone you have, the internal memory will never be enough. And with the Cliq supporting 32gig sd cards, a full keyboard, and NOT verizon was enough for me. I'm patient and confident it will be rooted eventually. If not, I still have my G1 and I still do Cyanogen updates and play around with it. And when my contract is up with Tmob(renewed for the Cliq), I'll see who has the next most popular rooted phone with a keyboard and switch over. I just really hate people telling me how to use a device I own. Its like going to McDonalds and having them dictate what condiments to put on my BigMac and Fries, and then telling me I can only eat it a certain way and which hand to use. If Cyanogen was down with the Cliq, or interested in it. I may be willing to ship him my phone to see what he can come up with.
As far as a universal O/S for all phones, isn't that just the core Android software with specific drivers provided by each manufacturer and custom UI? There should be a way to make 1 O/S for all android phones, then have update packs with the drivers and UI enhancements and add-ons for each android phone released? Not sure of the SPL locks though. Thats a bit beyond me. But i wouldn't think it would be to hard to run Cyanogen on the Cliq or droid provided the correct drivers and such where bundled with it. Kind of like slipstreaming a service pack into a bootleg Windows OS . Each phone eventually has to release the source code which contains the drivers for that phone. Thats how we get the Cliq's OS onto the G1, should work the other way around too. Sounds easy, but Cyanogen's Rom should run on my Cliq, provided the drivers are slipstreamed into it for the Cliq...right? Only problem is root.. :/ hehehe
and there he flames again...alec.baldwin, no one has the problems you have with cyanogen's latest. actually, lets delve into this...what exactly are your "problems" with 4.2.5? PLEASE, answer this question so cyanogen can dutifully fix the "problems" you are having.
You might check out some of the Q/A threads to first learn how to properly flash cyanogen's ROM. It is slightly different than Dwang's because Cyanogen uses the legal method. In fact, check out www.cyanogenmod.com and you might find a ton of useful info on getting cm to work on your phone.
Best of Luck,
njuncos
P.S. Cyanogen, mad props on once again reaching over a million thread views on your latest. Now you own 3 of the top 4 most viewed threads of all time in Dream Android Development!
I'm having serious contemplations about picking up a TP2 and flashing it over to 6.5 with the Leo Sense UI ROM. With that beautiful keyboard, it almost seems too good to pass up. I can keep the Imagio sidelined for a while until the community grows and we start seeing real customization happen for this device. What do you guys think? Honestly, money isn't an issue and my phone is literally the most important thing I touch all day (aside from my girl, man if she saw this haha) so "wasting" the money isn't something I'm concerned with.
I'd be very happy using the flashed TP2 for several months or longer until the Imagio community picks up, then I can always switch back and Ebay the TP2.
It seems like the Imagio launched with very little push from Verizon; a lot of stores by me don't even carry the device in the store, and I pretended not to own the device and ask about it and they seem to have been told to downplay the Imagio in favor of the Droid. Leaves me scratching my head a bit, but oh well. Honestly I love the Imagio, but the lack of customization and the seemingly small amount of people that have one right now are shying me away over to the TP2. I have too many issues with the stock ROM including the memory issues and apparent GPS problem (it's like using QuickGPS is a necessity and that the GPS won't work without it, very annoying).
Any comments guys? I'm sitting on the Verizon site wondering if pushing the purchase button laying before me on the TP2 will be worth it. That Leo ROM looks too promising >_>.
Ive been having the thought of trading my Imagio for a TP2 or even a Droid cross my mind several of times the past week.
7 More days till I can trade it for anything.
Fairly certain I'm going to keep it as I find it's styling is much better than the TP2's, definitely better than the Droid's, and I like it's thickness.
SaosinEngaged said:
I'm having serious contemplations about picking up a TP2 and flashing it over to 6.5 with the Leo Sense UI ROM. With that beautiful keyboard, it almost seems too good to pass up. I can keep the Imagio sidelined for a while until the community grows and we start seeing real customization happen for this device. What do you guys think? Honestly, money isn't an issue and my phone is literally the most important thing I touch all day (aside from my girl, man if she saw this haha) so "wasting" the money isn't something I'm concerned with.
I'd be very happy using the flashed TP2 for several months or longer until the Imagio community picks up, then I can always switch back and Ebay the TP2.
It seems like the Imagio launched with very little push from Verizon; a lot of stores by me don't even carry the device in the store, and I pretended not to own the device and ask about it and they seem to have been told to downplay the Imagio in favor of the Droid. Leaves me scratching my head a bit, but oh well. Honestly I love the Imagio, but the lack of customization and the seemingly small amount of people that have one right now are shying me away over to the TP2. I have too many issues with the stock ROM including the memory issues and apparent GPS problem (it's like using QuickGPS is a necessity and that the GPS won't work without it, very annoying).
Any comments guys? I'm sitting on the Verizon site wondering if pushing the purchase button laying before me on the TP2 will be worth it. That Leo ROM looks too promising >_>.
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Click to collapse
I have had it over a month now and really like it.There are issues but nothing that will be a deal breaker.I thought about the droid but didnt want to re invent the wheel.I don't regret buying the phone.Having internet email at the touch of a button is very cool.I am happy with my decision
I guess it depends on what you want to do. I'm not particularly interested in cooked roms (for now) so I don't mind the absence. I've been able to customize with tweaks so that the things that bugged me are either gone or invisible. And I find it phenomenally useful for work.
I love this phone!!!
I like that it is not main stream, since I can still use most of the TP2 hacks and make it do all I like, I find my self with a very unique phone that does all and more than I wanted or needed and still look gorgeous. My battery issues are a thing of the past after tweaking the memory some and it is very reliable.
Many use Iphones/Droid and when I pop out my HTC Imagio people still jawdrop off how nice it looks, as americanmetal says, it is thick and feels strong yet perfect size.
Only thing I miss is a hardware keyboard, but this makes up for it nice enough. Other than that, I love my Imagio. I have no idea why it doesn't seem to be popular at all.
y0himba said:
I have no idea why it doesn't seem to be popular at all.
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Part of it could be that "Windows Phone" sparks excitement in no one at all. What a terrible marketing campaign.
untitled_one said:
Part of it could be that "Windows Phone" sparks excitement in no one at all. What a terrible marketing campaign.
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Dido, Exactly. Unfortunately, it released in a time when Moto droid commercials where running ramped, the imagio was doomed from the start. Not to mention my fiance and I were exchanging our droid for a new one and the whole store is set up around android. They have a booth with bright colors with the droid and droid eris. It took me searching through the entire store to even find the imagio it was put next to the freakin casio exilim. The only people who buy it are the ones who actually know enough about mobile devices to know that as of right now the imagio is the most functional device in the store. I am finally starting to see imagio ads on sides of websites but honestly it is a bust on the imagio. I think once sprint gets their diamond2, which actually is a whitestone, not a topaz, we'll have more support. Sprint I hope will promote the device, I'm not looking for droid or iphone type bandwagoning, but enough to entice those moderately tech savy.
But let's face it both the imagio and moto droid phones are out of date currently due to the upcoming passion and hd2 so sprint needs to hurry and mobilize the cdma diamond 2. Of course when you buy anything it is immediately out of date. The imagio has a much better chance of staying as current as possible due to flashing than the moto droid, which you can flash new roms, however, there is a limit to what you actually can acheive. this is one of win mo's strong points.
Yeah the fact is, the Imagio is on 1 carrier worldwide and has only been out like 6 weeks. Other devices like the TP2, have been out in other countries, and on more carriers both GSM and CDMA so the support/demand is higher there. It will come, but it will be slower with less overall demand by the userbase.
Droid - No Exchange
I have a friend who just did the opposite and traded in his Droid for the Imagio. The lack of corporate Exchange support was a MAJOR factor in his trade. I traded in my TP2 for an Imagio myself and I'm very happy with it.
Now someone please get the new Sense UI working on this thing!!
Yeah, honestly if I could be using the new Sense UI on my Imagio I'd be much happier.
I don't get why HTC went with WM 6.5, but didn't throw Sense UI on there as well. It seems stupid.
SaosinEngaged said:
It seems like the Imagio launched with very little push from Verizon; a lot of stores by me don't even carry the device in the store, and I pretended not to own the device and ask about it and they seem to have been told to downplay the Imagio in favor of the Droid.
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Click to collapse
It's all ABOUT the MONEY.
Moto is trying to BUY their way back into the Cell Phone Market
that they lost. Moto is buying TV ads to get back in the game and
who is Moto Promoting - Verizon. If you had a Company Paying for
your Advertising - which product would you push onto Customers.
I just thought it was funny that the add on the top of this page right now is for Windows Phone and it has the tiniest pic of the imagio. You really can't tell what it is even unless you are familiar with it.
My only issue with the Imagio is that it lags, when browsing and moving from app to app. The Exchange support on the Droid is just plain half ass'd. You cannot accept appointments and move emails or see your nested folder stucture. Exchange integration is primary for me so WinMo wins despite its shortcomings. Unfortunately, WinMo has a bad wrap and then forum posters all over just want to follow the crowd.
It should be.........
I've had my Imagio about 2 weeks now and I think it's a fantastic device. Although issues have been posted on this site, most appear to be solvable as the product matures. My biggest issue has been that the phone has no "hold" button.
I'm trialing an imagio for 30 days. Coming from the tp2 which I love I thought it was a no brainer to have basically the same device in a more lightweight package, sans hard kb. I still like to whip out the stylus tho and find it's location on the left side cumbersome. I'm right handed. I am missing my hardware kb also, but hope to get used to not having it in some more days time. I hate getting finger grease/smudges on my beautiful device, So dealing with that. I may find I'm just a hardware keyboard kinda guy. Keeping the tp2 so no worries going back. Was going to try a droid, but I have so many wm apps that would go to waste,I hate to do that. I'm on the fence, love the lesser weight and good looks, but , but, but.......gotta keep going with this trial.
Side note: I'm dealing with the imagio's seemed memory issues and apps like opera not loading fully because of lo mem issues. When I look at my free ram I see an ample amount so I think this a bug. I've heard rumors of a patch that fixes this from htc, nothing solid, but if it becomes a pita then it will go back and tp2 will again reign supreme.
I see more Imagio commercials than Droid commercials now
The Forgotten Phone
This is really strange, I know in the on going battle between form and function everyone on this site will always pick form, but lets face it, the iphone is sexy
HTC finally makes a phone with the function of the glorious HTC touch pro 2 and the sexiness of the iphone and its a flop. I mean I really enjoy this phone ( I even signed up for the Vcast TV... Lame I know
It has real open platform availability (not like the iphone or even the droid )
There are tons of reviews about who's browser is better the iphone or the droid, I current have 3!!! browers on my phone ( I just pick which one I like better at the time ) (internet explorer mobile does better at mobile websites then opera or skyfire ). My friends at work were wondering whens flash going to be added to the iphone or droid, so I showed them sky fire
5 Megapixal Camera (eat your heart out TP2, and Iphone )
Real (not hacked ) Tethering (sorry Iphone, Droid)
Real FULLY functional exchange support, which some of us NEED!!!!!
ability to run simultaneous apps ( sorry iphone ) ability to EASILY close and running apps (sorry droid, 5 clicks to close an app is way too much)
Yeah I know the droid as the google maps navigation, which is buggy, but it is kool. But its windows mobile, you can purchase your own nav software or download ( from a site that rhymes with ppcTorez ) the windows mobile version of google navigation.
Free and functional Microsoft Office!!!!!! *sorry iphone and droid
I should give a shot out to the TP2 for having an awesome keyboard, but when I'm watching comedy central on the highway ( not driving of course) while shooting 5 megapixal shots, while the girl in the next car is starring at my oh so sexy phone. I dont feel so bad
Although it does bug me to have to explain to folks all the time its not an Iphone or a blackberry storm!!! Jesus christ Microsoft can we freakin get just one commerical!!
But as much as I love this phone, and I regret sending in the rebate form ( now I cant exchange the phone ) this lack of support from the gods of windows mobile ( in this forum as well as the great guys at ppcgeeks ) means less cool customizations except for the ones we can mooch off the TP2 threads
PS Hey guys, this new Samsung Omnia 2 that just came out, any thoughts
it has a bigger screen
faster processor
a flash
I feel like those samsung guys went straight after this phone
I like my Imagio. When I went to the standard Windows Phone interface instead of HTC's, my memory issues disappeared. I always have 40-50% of my memory available.
I probably would have gone to the Omnio II if it had been available within my 30 days, just for the faster speed and flash. And the issue of faster speed for me is how fast it rotates when I turn the phone to landscape. Oh well. Otherwise, I'm happy enough.
To me, google nav has the same problem google maps has: you don't always have a 3G signal even with Verizon, and relying on downloading maps as you're moving is...not reliable. I use Garmin XT for nav. Try using Google Nav while you're in the mountains!
Heck, I even got my Imagio Garmin nav to work while I was flying to Philly (in airplane mode no less). Funny seeing that speed indicator at 520mph over Toledo (I was trying to figure out where we were).
Like others, I've certainly impressed some iPhone users with live video via Justin.tv on Skyfire, and they had to gather around my little phone on its funky pop-out stand like everyone else.
3 weeks now
I love mine , heavy MS exchange user and it works great . would like to get my tomtom working or at least a really good 3d gps. i put swipe and finger keyboard on it and love the swipe keying. find new apps every day. it really is the phone that gets me.
Getting ready to make the move from running and modding Windows Mobile phones for the last 6 years to give the android phones a try.
Was at store playing around this past weekend and down to two phones. I love the Droid 2 feel, slideout qwerty, but hated the motorolla interface. Also looked at the HTC incredible which I loved the interface but really missed the slider qwerty, and it has a slower processor.
I know if it was a windown mobile phone I could flash out a new ROM cooked with the HTC interface and have the phone I want, but been looking around the flash ROM's here and not seeing any cooked like that. So just looking for opinions/suggestions or links if I am just not finding what I am looking for.
There are currently no ROMS for the Droid 2 that have the Sense UI (HTC's interface). You can get close using a mixture of ADW.Launcher, WidgetLocker, and Fancy Widget Pro along with some other apps/widgets.
Spitemare said:
There are currently no ROMS for the Droid 2 that have the Sense UI (HTC's interface). You can get close using a mixture of ADW.Launcher, WidgetLocker, and Fancy Widget Pro along with some other apps/widgets.
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Feeling like a fish out of water trying to get my head around all the differences coming from Winmo for so long.
Should it be possible to get the Sense UI and no one has yet done it, or are there reasons why it hasn't been done (is it open sourced)? I am not afraid to get the phone and dive into figuring out ROM cooking an Android phone. Just trying to get some idea because while I really like the feel and specs of the Droid 2, that Sense UI was just so far superior (probably helps that it was much more similar to the ROM I am running on my HTC Fuze WinMo phone for the last 2 years)
Sense is not open source. Besides most folks usually want to remove the proprietary junk and move the ORMs closer to the AOSP as that's a lot easier to modify and customize to one's liking.
Your best bet is to use free/cheap programs and widgets, as originally advised by Spitemare, to duplicate the look and feel as much as possible.
Wait for the htc merge.
mrkite38 said:
Wait for the htc merge.
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LOL, if there is one thing I have learned from having various smart phones for the last 6 years it is this. The perfect phone is always just around the corner, best to just pick from phones available now
fishzine said:
LOL, if there is one thing I have learned from having various smart phones for the last 6 years it is this. The perfect phone is always just around the corner, best to just pick from phones available now
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lol, too true, man. droid 2's got nice hardware and it's pretty cheap compared to the other offerings. with fission on it you're back to almost aosp. runs really nicely. it's possible that we'll get a sense port but don't count on it.
plus, as 'freeness' goes, the d2 (and x, and d2g, and milestone, etc) are all locked pretty tight. no custom bootloaders, recoveries, etc. so you might go with the dinc just for that reason if it's important to you.
Well the reason he said it is because the HTC merge will have a QWERTY keyboard and HTC Sense.
Other than that, you could always get a Droid 2 and put LauncherPro on it to run like HTC Sense.
The best home replacement is ahome... it cost 5 bucks but it makes the phones home screen sooo smooth its ridiculous.
Sent from my DROID2 using Tapatalk
Not really relevant at all but I glanced at the thread title and read "Making love to Android" LOL four hours of sleep doesn't help anything.
Hey Guys... don't know if my topic on off-topic makes much sense... so I'll link it right here as I'd like to get answers from MS2-users:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=926288.
Would you advice me to buy a MS2?
I'd like to get a fast device, updateable to Android 2.3 when available (don't care about a few month...), hardware keyboard, 1Ghz, lots of memory, 3,5mm headphone-out
I'm (as I wrote on my topic) also interested in LG P990...but it has no hardware keyboard...and I don't know when it'll be available.
MS2 perhaps could be available tomorrow for me...
I'm not glad to read that MotoBlur sucks the battrie...guess it's not neccessary for me...
I just got the MS2, if I were in your position I'd be waiting another month or two and either getting the LG P990 or one of the other models currently prepping for release
MS2 is a nice solid phone, but I honestly doubt it will see 2.3, has a locked bootloader, is pumped full of useless MotorBlur apps and has no interest from ROM makers other than Angdroid.
After a lot of screwing around my phone is relatively motoblur free, but with the locked bootloader and Motorolas poor support in mind, I wish I had bought something else or waited
If only I had a time machine!
I have had my MS2 for over a month and it is a solid performer.
No need to worry about MotoBlur as it can be removed. I use Launcher Pro and froze blur with Titanium Backup, no problems.
It is fast and has loads of memory for apps.
As for 2.3 upgrade I have no idea when or if it will get it.
I've had my MS2 for a week now, and yes Motoblur is annoying, though I'm living with it for now. Also a few other niggles like the '£' on the keyboard actually produces '$'. But apart from that it is fast and feels really sturdy.
If you're not in a rush, I'd hang on for while to see what other phones come out with hardware keyboards or if any ROMS surface as there's definitely room for improvement, but it's probably the best thing out now with a keyboard.
Szadzik said:
I have had my MS2 for over a month and it is a solid performer.
No need to worry about MotoBlur as it can be removed. I use Launcher Pro and froze blur with Titanium Backup, no problems.
It is fast and has loads of memory for apps.
As for 2.3 upgrade I have no idea when or if it will get it.
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Sorry, out of topic, but how did you froze up blur with titanium? Show me the way =P
About MS2, just buy it if you really want the physical keyboard. It's a pretty heavy phone (not a problem to me, but others might not think that way) and blur is really a battery hog and poor designed homescreen, it lags for no apparent reason, but the good news is that any homescreen replacement fixes it. Pretty solid phone, but not to everybody.
since my Xperia X1's weight is 159g and Milestone2 is 169...weight doesn't matter for me
good to know that any today-screen-replacement will deactivate that MotoBlur.
I guess I'll buy one
If I'm waiting for another good phone...i could wait for years... That earlier I buy a new phone that earlier I'm able to buy a new one xD
At least it has to rest for two years...and in two years I'll get a new phone with physical keyboard, hdmi-out and quadcore with a better batterie
>>>So if I can't find out that it has legs like Xperia X1 (sometimes it doesn't do anything for about 4-10 seconds...) or lags playing music (xperia X1 has small legs of some milliseconds while using TCPMP...) I'll order it today
Since today it's out for sale on O2 Germany...but no dealer has it on storage
pukeboy said:
...a few other niggles like the '£' on the keyboard actually produces '$'...
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FYI - If you press and hold the £ sign, you get a popup with a bunch of currency symbols on it, one of which is actually a £ sign.
Hope this helps.
Cheers,
Steve
pukeboy said:
I've had my MS2 for a week now, and yes Motoblur is annoying, though I'm living with it for now. Also a few other niggles like the '£' on the keyboard actually produces '$'. But apart from that it is fast and feels really sturdy.
If you're not in a rush, I'd hang on for while to see what other phones come out with hardware keyboards or if any ROMS surface as there's definitely room for improvement, but it's probably the best thing out now with a keyboard.
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Set up your locale correctly and the problem with pound sign and dollar sign will be corrected.
You can use Launcher Pro and a dozen other launchers so Blur IS NOT obligatory AT ALL.
Guys...changing launcher does not deactivate BLUR. BLUR is a set of widgets and system services and it's not that easy to disable it. One of milestone 2 subforums has a nice topic about disabling BLUR for real; I cant remember exactly where it is but there are not so many posts around here so far, so it should be easy to find
edit: found it: it's in general section and you can't miss it.
Du you mean deactivating or completly removing MotoBlur?
Removing should effect in lost warranty....and deactivating should be reversable?!
If I'll get a MS2....I'd like to use a docking station later on....and as far as I know, MotoBlur is needed for that docking station display mode?
hmmmmm...after MotoBlur is a battery-killer and with the encrypted bootloader...I'm not sure if I should wait for another device which fits to Android 2.3 specification and has a physical keyboard...
After the Xperia X1 I wouldn't like to get another device which needs hands on it to run fluently!
good to know that any today-screen-replacement will deactivate that MotoBlur.
I guess I'll buy one
If I'm waiting for another good phone...i could wait for years... That earlier I buy a new phone that earlier I'm able to buy a new one xD
At least it has to rest for two years...and in two years I'll get a new phone with physical keyboard, hdmi-out and quadcore with a better batterie
>>>So if I can't find out that it has legs like Xperia X1 (sometimes it doesn't do anything for about 4-10 seconds...) or lags playing music (xperia X1 has small legs of some milliseconds while using TCPMP...) I'll order it today
Since today it's out for sale on O2 Germany...but no dealer has it on storage
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It has no lag when watching movies.
I came from Xperia X1 and was happy with Milestone 1 and now am happy with Milestone 2.
Home replacement does not really deactivate MotoBlur but even if it runs in the background you will see no performance degradation because of that.
Guys...changing launcher does not deactivate BLUR. BLUR is a set of widgets and system services and it's not that easy to disable it. One of milestone 2 subforums has a nice topic about disabling BLUR for real; I cant remember exactly where it is but there are not so many posts around here so far, so it should be easy to find
edit: found it: it's in general section and you can't miss it.
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You can simply use Titanium Backup's Freeze feature.
Du you mean deactivating or completly removing MotoBlur?
Removing should effect in lost warranty....and deactivating should be reversable?!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can do either, the easier way is to freeze it with TiB.
If I'll get a MS2....I'd like to use a docking station later on....and as far as I know, MotoBlur is needed for that docking station display mode?
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Who told you MotoBlur is needed for docking station? I have a docking station and am using a totally different app then the one built-in.
MotoBlur has NOTHING to do with docking station.
hmmmmm...after MotoBlur is a battery-killer and with the encrypted bootloader...I'm not sure if I should wait for another device which fits to Android 2.3 specification and has a physical keyboard...
After the Xperia X1 I wouldn't like to get another device which needs hands on it to run fluently!
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You will not be dissapointed with this phone. You can deactivate MotoBlur and never think about it again.
Here is the tutorial someone else mentioned here too.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=10800001&postcount=26
It tells you what services/ apps you can freeze/ delete. I delted some of them and froze others.
Szadzik said:
Set up your locale correctly and the problem with pound sign and dollar sign will be corrected.
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Can you be more specific. My locale is set to "English (United Kingdom)" and it enters a $ instead of £, and tabs instead of € which is what the Droid 2 does.
Cheers,
Steve.
yesterday I've been testing a HTC HD2 Windows Mobile on-screen keyboard...since the sice is that tall and multitouch works fine I wouldn't need a physical keyboard I guess. Dows the software keyboard on Android work so good as well? So I could wait for LG P990 or Moto Atrix or Nexus S.
And it seems that I'm changing provider...as my O2 Germany contract is getting more expensive...those wired guys didn't tell me that my free-sms were only for two years...and now this contract seems to be more expensive than another provider...
If you are in Australia, and thinking of going with Optus for the Milestone 2, maybe call them to confirm.
I put in an order almost 3 weeks ago now for a Milestone 2 (re-contracting) and still haven't received the phone even though they have stock and it was apparently only going to take 3 days for delivery.
After half a dozen calls to Activations/Delivery Dept. @ Optus, still no phone...some "problem" with these phones at the warehouse in Sydney.
It's been escalated twice by team leaders to no avail.
So yeah, if you're going with Optus, maybe call them to confirm issue with the Milestone 2s before ordering or you may get stuck waiting in limbo too...
I learnt my lesson the last two times I tried ordering a phone from them, easier to cancel the order and go walk into a store. (Obviously you don't get the same 3 months free etc as you do ordering online).
Szadzik said:
Set up your locale correctly and the problem with pound sign and dollar sign will be corrected.
You can use Launcher Pro and a dozen other launchers so Blur IS NOT obligatory AT ALL.
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The keyboard issue is a problem with the rom. There is a thread about it on android forums.com but I'm not aloud to post a link.
Hello.
In a few months (march) i gone get the new phone from the operator. I have a dillema what to choose - Orig. Moto Milestone or Defy which i would to sell and buy Milestone 2. But I would like to know about the future of this phone because at this moment there is no roms for this phone. How do You think, there will be some roms in a future or Moto has discouraged developers and users (known reasons...) at all? I'm asking because with stock FW with motoblur it is so laggy but i know it can more with this realy good hardware.
As I was going to by a MS2, i googled around...and found out that a lot of better devices, but without physical keybaord, will be released soon! Have a look at benchmark-results of LG Optimus 2X Speed or HTC Desire HD or HTC Glacier, Samsung Galaxs S2... if you don't need a physical keyboard, I'd wait till WMC is over and manufacturers provide some really good devices as far as MS2 is still out of date: encrypted bootloader and no android 2.3?! Sorry...no way. Especially since there are no patches for known issues...
I was going to buy a MS2 cause of it's physical keyboard...but since I've tried onscreen keaboard on WinMob6.5 HTC HD2 and HTC Desire with Android 2.1 I think I don't need physical keyboard any more!
Give it a shot and try out the 4" onscreen software keyboard - it's really good, u won't regret it!
That way u can get a big ammont of speed by buying a phone without MotoBlur and that crap...and especially without encrypted bootloader!
If u'd like to get newest Android updates....go for the Nexus S. It seems to be one of the devices with the fastest updates!
You are right.. dont buy it its just annoying to have a locked bootloader... buy the Optimus x2 its a awsome device with a big future and Dual core zomg!...
or even the Desire HD, i was about to get it ... but no i got the stupid MS2..
when I'd get a new device, I would choose between them.
HTC Thunderbolt 4G - DualCore 1,2Ghz??, stand on it's back, 1800 mAh battery!
Samsung Galaxy S2 - 16GB + SD, DualCore
Xperia Arc - Android 2.3, nice components....but as my actual phone is a Xperia X1 and there war bad support...I'm not going to buy a Sony-Ericsson next time!
Nexus S - fast updates, delivered with Android 2.3 or even 2.4?!
LG P990 - HDMI-out, DualCore, delivered with Android 2.2 and updateable to 2.3 soon
Motorola Atrix - big advantage: ability to get a laptop-dock. put the device in, use it like a netbook. The revolutionizer! xD
I have a chance to get a Droid X in "mint" condition today for about $75 and I'm considering it, but I wanted to ask a few basic questions that I wanted to just consolidate into one post instead of dropping questions all over the place in various threads. I did spend a few hours doing thread research and reading here and HowardForums and the Rootzwiki (and Cyanogenmod as well) so here goes:
- I'm assuming the bootloader is still locked on the Droid X as I see/saw threads with people doing a petition (like that's gonna change anything), so what exactly does that mean for the Droid X overall - I see some custom ROMs available so I'm confused: I thought having a locked bootloader meant you couldn't have custom ROMs or, are they all running from the microSD card?
- for anyone that bought a Droid X and used the stock ROM(s) from Verizon, does using a custom ROM (if you do so) help the battery life at all, and to what degree (and how bad/good is/was the stock ROM battery life anyway?)?
- I saw mention of ICS in several instances, and also along with some ROMs but, there doesn't seem to be a full fledged ICS ROM available (or is Liberty just such a thing?) so, are the chances high that ICS will never be fully fleshed out for the Droid X? I think I saw mention that there's "some" ROM now with ICS features but isn't the full fledged build, and that the camera doesn't work at all... just hoping for clarification on this. If it's an issue of "at some point we'll have ICS working proper, completely" then I suppose it's worth taking a chance now.
- Last question: would people think that $75 for a Droid X in near "mint" condition (seller's comment, haven't actually held it in my hand yet), a memory card (unknown size but most likely the stock 2GB card), and the charger/USB card is a somewhat decent deal? I've gone through several HD2's over the years and run all sorts of OSes on it, and while it arguably is the best damned enthusiast phone ever created, I am currently on the lookout for something different - can't afford a brand new dual core monster phone (I really want that Samsung Galaxy Note but it'll probably never happen).
While the Droid X is getting older, it seems like it's still a somewhat useful device overall so I'm really leaning towards getting this.
Any advice, info, or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Edit: the X came with a 16gb [not 2]card, btw...so make sure to ask for that if you can.
br0adband said:
I have a chance to get a Droid X in "mint" condition today for about $75 and I'm considering it, but I wanted to ask a few basic questions that I wanted to just consolidate into one post instead of dropping questions all over the place in various threads. I did spend a few hours doing thread research and reading here and HowardForums and the Rootzwiki (and Cyanogenmod as well) so here goes:
- I'm assuming the bootloader is still locked on the Droid X as I see/saw threads with people doing a petition (like that's gonna change anything), so what exactly does that mean for the Droid X overall - I see some custom ROMs available so I'm confused: I thought having a locked bootloader meant you couldn't have custom ROMs or, are they all running from the microSD card?
- for anyone that bought a Droid X and used the stock ROM(s) from Verizon, does using a custom ROM (if you do so) help the battery life at all, and to what degree (and how bad/good is/was the stock ROM battery life anyway?)?
- I saw mention of ICS in several instances, and also along with some ROMs but, there doesn't seem to be a full fledged ICS ROM available (or is Liberty just such a thing?) so, are the chances high that ICS will never be fully fleshed out for the Droid X? I think I saw mention that there's "some" ROM now with ICS features but isn't the full fledged build, and that the camera doesn't work at all... just hoping for clarification on this. If it's an issue of "at some point we'll have ICS working proper, completely" then I suppose it's worth taking a chance now.
- Last question: would people think that $75 for a Droid X in near "mint" condition (seller's comment, haven't actually held it in my hand yet), a memory card (unknown size but most likely the stock 2GB card), and the charger/USB card is a somewhat decent deal? I've gone through several HD2's over the years and run all sorts of OSes on it, and while it arguably is the best damned enthusiast phone ever created, I am currently on the lookout for something different - can't afford a brand new dual core monster phone (I really want that Samsung Galaxy Note but it'll probably never happen).
While the Droid X is getting older, it seems like it's still a somewhat useful device overall so I'm really leaning towards getting this.
Any advice, info, or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
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Click to collapse
A locked bootloader means no custom kernels...
But with the 2nd-init this means next to nothing that is negative for us.
We can run CM7, MIUI, and ICS.
These are 2nd-init roms that don't use any of Motorola's framework.
EncounterICS is definitely a daily driver rom...if you don't mind missing out on your camera.
This is the stock ICS experience.
Cm7 is fantastic.
Everything works.
Miui is fantastic.
Everything works.
Liberty and the other roms are 1st-init...meaning they use blur framework...and varying amounts of blur features...depending on the rom.
Battery?
On 2nd-init...we're at about stock levels.
1st-init may get slightly better than stock.
The X gets pretty darn decent battery life anyway...I wouldn't worry about it.
Our ICS ports might not have a working camera for quite some time...
But I'm sure they'll get there.
Is it a good buy?
I'd say yes.
The X has these features missing from the current top-tier phones...
4G
NFC
Front facing camera
Dual core.
We can even spoof the market into letting us download dual core games...
And overclock and use Chainfire3D to run said games.
It's a surprisingly nice phone...
If we had an unlocked bootloader...we'd have a fully functional ICS already.
But that's something for the devs to work on...and it really has no effect on us aside from a longer wait.
Check my sig for DX specific rom/root/tuts if you end up getting it.
Sorry for jumping all over the place...writing this on my phone!
Came with 16GB originally, really? Damn that would be nice, but I won't find out till later today when I meet to get my hands on it. That would be awesome if it was one of the original ones but, I don't want to get my hopes up for it. Hell, Fry's carries 16GB microSD cards under $20 most every day now so it's not like it'll be a lot of money to get one.
No worries about the jumping all over the place - I've been online since 1977 (seriously, at a whopping 50 baud!) so I can keep up with disjointed thoughts and whatever.
As for the "missing features" on top tier phones, none of those are relevant to me at all, as weird as that might sound. I'm in Las Vegas and we're fairly blanketed here for 4G coverage but, I think that kind of speed (when it works) for cell/smart phones is still just a gimmick but that's just me.
So a solid CM7 ROM might be the best for me to get started I suppose. The owner texted me earlier to set the meeting time (another few hours) and confirmed she did reset the phone to factory condition which iirc means it's at the Android screen which means it's waiting to be activated - can you or anyone else confirm that the old 4-corner trick will bypass that activation so I can get into it and verify everything works? I probably won't bother with the actual activation anytime soon unless I find some good local pricing here in my area, but being able to demo the phone and make sure everything works is an absolute must.
And thanks for the response, the info was very helpful.
I'd agree with ya there.
We've yet to get 4G in my area...but even connecting to WiFi loading web pages takes about the same time...not like I'm downloading 3gig torrents on my phone.
But yes, 4-corners works.
Edit: Do an esn check too.
I think there are online tools to do so.
Or possibly calling Verizon if need be.
Calling ##program will bring I believe...or check behind the battery.
(I'm actually on a loaner right now...getting my phone repaired through Best Buy...so I can't verify this.)
So I got the Droid X, it's in great condition but certainly not "mint" (people always say that and I don't think most know what mint actually implies - it should practically untouched by human hands).
Anyway, that CheckESNFree.com site says this one is clean and ready for activation so that's a plus, if that site is dependable of course. Always have to worry that someone would be creating a database of ESNs/ESIDs/IMEIs for some dastardly and nefarious purposes!!!
It's definitely a LOT snappier than my HD2 (listed in my sig) but it's also a slightly better internal architecture than the HD2 was, of course. Everything seems to function fine, not sure where to start so I'll much with it for the evening and see what gives. Came with a very tiny HTC 5V USB adapter, the original Motorola USB cable, and a separate USB charger as well.
Oh, and it does have the 16GB microSD card in it too.
I'm the admin/founder/owner of CheckESNFree.com
I can assure you that we do NOT log/store/record ESNs in any way shape or form.
We process roughly 14,000 ESNs per day, and we have a huge following of supporters, including places such as ReCellular, Gazelle, and FastLaneWireless.