Database Users

New Galaxy Tab owner, some questions and comments...

So I just came over to the galaxy android side of things from the ipad. The so far, (and with my verizon 4g mobile hotspot in hand), I'm mostly impressed. It's really a beautiful device and I really enjoy honeycomb.
However, my stock tab is incredibly laggy in normal use. This manifests most notably when moving App icons around. Another good enough example is angry birds which runs MUCH smoother I on the ipad. Honestly, my galaxy s2 feels much more responsive in normal usage also. What's going on here I thought tegra was supposed to be better than that? So far I'm a bit underwhelmed with the performance.
Also, what the heck is up with the lack of sd card slot? I'm absolutely baffled by this missing feature as I foolishly assumed it would obviously have one. 32GB is nowhere near enough storage for what I plan on using it for.
And what's up with the lack of netflix?
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Forgive the grammatical errors I'm still not used to this swift key keyboard.
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Hmm... First of all,ios does have a smoother build than android. Android has been released like tero years? But ios has been here for more than four years. Android needs time to catch up. well, then samsung's own tweek about android does slow down the system quite a bit. however about angery birds I myself feel it's about resolution.i feel the one on ipad has lower resolution than the one on android(this is my own observation,i have absolute no evidence to bakup my theory), anyone can confirm or correct me please.

Would any of the dev made launchers work properly with a Honeycomb talent and would it likely help with the lag? It is bothersome especially when my galaxy s2 feels much smoother. Thanks guys.
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Suggestions
1. If you want to stay stock honeycomb and it starts to lag between screens, click on + symbol on top right of homescreen, then click other or wallpaper or one of the other options, don't do anything else, then just click the home button to back out. Lag should be gone. Don't know why it works but read it on one of the other forums and it works.
2. Spend $3.50 and buy ADW EX in the market and make it your default launcher. Spend a day tweeking the settings to your liking and you will not see much lag. There is also Launcher Pro Plus but the new update makes ADW EX better IMO. Many forums here will help you set up or tweek ADW EX. Leave your lag behind!
3. What else are you doing while playing Angry Birds? I have never had an issue with a game except for the ones that aren't optimized for honeycomb and are made for a phone. (Which I don't know how anyone plays these games on a phones screen)
4. For typing I absolutely suggest Thumb Keyboard on the Market. I don't know how I went that first week with the stock keyboard. Worth the $2.
Happy Tabbing!

Thanks for the tips! Unfortunately I need another. I just performed that system update thinking it was a good idea but it put that god awful touch wiz ui on my tab!!! Is there any way to get stock honeycomb back??
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I much prefer stock honeycomb to this touch wiz bloat. The please tell me I can go back.
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I'm literally freaking out. What is wrong with these companies and their inability to stick to the stock android ui. I'm horrified by how bad this updated looks.
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you can go back
But you would have to do too many things above my pay grade to get it back. Not sure if a factory reset would do it, pretty sure you would have to root the device and flash a honeycomb 3.1 rom.
I like the touchwiz, I'm just hoping somebody comes up with a way to make the task bar black so it doesn't look so bad while watching Netflix. That is my only real dislike. And the innability to switch apps on the swipe up. A world clock, wtf am I going to need that for?

Everything you need to get your tab exactly how you want it is here. Including getting back to stock 3.1 as well as putting a black bar on touchwiz, or overclocking your processor, or yes even using custom launchers from the Market or from some of the great devs we have. The whole beauty of Android, IMO, is that we don't have to accept what the manufacturers give us. Everything you need, files, instructions, and further reading is in the "Look here first" sticky in the development section. The key is read read read, read some more, search, read read, and read. I love my tab because I can make it my own.

A factory reset will not remove the TouchMyWilly update. Honestly, it seems like you rushed into this purchase, especially given that you didn't know it doesn't have a MicroSD slot prior to buying it. 32 GB is actually quite alot if you use cloud storage. You can also get the USB adapter and transfer files that way.
But, it seems like you're not pleased with the Tab. There's no reason to force yourself to like a gadget. If you're still able to return it and give yourself some time to properly shop around for something that fits your needs then maybe you should consider that.
You can also check out the Android Dev forum a few links down from the General. That will show you how to root and flash a pre-TouchWang ROM. I didn't like the update at first, but it's grown on me.

SaosinEngaged said:
I much prefer stock honeycomb to this touch wiz bloat. The please tell me I can go back.
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not as bad as it seems. But it would be great if Samsung published a sdk to make use of their customization of the Android shell. For one thing I love to see more of those apps that are able to stay on top of other apps and still let you use the other apps. Would also be great to get dirty with the launchbar

+1 for ADW it fixed all lag
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wish there was an easier way
FillTheVoid said:
Everything you need to get your tab exactly how you want it is here. Including getting back to stock 3.1 as well as putting a black bar on touchwiz, or overclocking your processor, or yes even using custom launchers from the Market or from some of the great devs we have. The whole beauty of Android, IMO, is that we don't have to accept what the manufacturers give us. Everything you need, files, instructions, and further reading is in the "Look here first" sticky in the development section. The key is read read read, read some more, search, read read, and read. I love my tab because I can make it my own.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I have read a little of the forum for the black taskbar but I am not that well versed in android to go messing around with folders. If it was on a PC I would be good to go, just need a simpler solution, hopefully an update. At least the taskbar matches my keyboard, just looks awful when watching Netflix.

Thanks for all the responses.
The tab itself is definitely growing on me. I still find it perplexing Samsung left out the micro SD slot; it's one of Apple devices worst "features" and for Samsung to copy that seems bizarre.
To be honest, I have no idea how to go about setting up cloud storage. I'm just used to old fashion storage methods. I have Google Music but really don't know how to get it set up as a network sharing player. I know I'll have to read read read, but I simply don't have the time right now to get into such an endeavor.
Really, don't let some of my negativity fool you. This tablet is awesome. It's just a bit of shell shock coming from my comfortable experiences with the ipad and my knee jerk dislike of the Touchwiz UI I had no idea would pop up in that update.
I'm very much a fan of stock OS's. Especially Honeycomb, I feel like if it ain't broke, why fix it?
But I'm looking into ADW right now.

SaosinEngaged said:
Thanks for all the responses.
I'm very much a fan of stock OS's. Especially Honeycomb, I feel like if it ain't broke, why fix it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Because Honeycomb IS broke. It's a beta, an interim build, came out of the oven months and months before it was ready. The TW update is a partial attempt to address some of these problems, and add some extra functionality.
As for looks, for a lot of people, Honeycomb is an eyesore in stock form, color-wise. The very cold color choices are not welcoming.
I daresay most non-geek people aren't fans of neon blue on black, or of faux-retro computer fonts, and above all else, the Galaxy Tab 10.1 was meant to compete in the mass market, so it needs mass market visual appeal.

Croak said:
Because Honeycomb IS broke. It's a beta, an interim build, came out of the oven months and months before it was ready. The TW update is a partial attempt to address some of these problems, and add some extra functionality.
As for looks, for a lot of people, Honeycomb is an eyesore in stock form, color-wise. The very cold color choices are not welcoming.
I daresay most non-geek people aren't fans of neon blue on black, or of faux-retro computer fonts, and above all else, the Galaxy Tab 10.1 was meant to compete in the mass market, so it needs mass market visual appeal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey, I totally understand.
I actually really liked the neonish theme of stock honeycomb. It matches very well with the neon color of swiftkey keyboard and just gave a very futuristic vibe.
The added functionality is nice, but that can always be addressed through widgets and apps.
As an aside, what is the name of that app that organizes widgets by grouping similar ones in the widget menu?
Like all of beautiful widgets would lump together into one until you click it?

SaosinEngaged said:
As an aside, what is the name of that app that organizes widgets by grouping similar ones in the widget menu?
Like all of beautiful widgets would lump together into one until you click it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ooh, ooh. When you find that, please postback! My collection of widgets is getting unwieldy. Takes quite a while to scroll from left to right thru the whole collection. Its begging for some organization.
I had a Superclean ROM running on my Fascinate phone that collapsed widgets into folders (ex: all the Beautiful widgets into ONE).
I'd love that on my Tab.

SaosinEngaged said:
And what's up with the lack of netflix?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can grab the APK here - just sideload and you'll be streaming
http://www.multiupload.com/XTEWL8CLCZ

It's a matter of preference. I like the TouchWiz update as it eliminated the worst feature of HC 3.1... the typing lag in forums. I also like the Quick Access panel in the bottom-right corner. One or two clicks to get to what you need, unlike the 4-5 clicks it takes to get to the same things on HC 3.1/3.2.
I am also wondering if this was a rush purchase for you if you didn't realize the Tab 10.1 doesn't have an SD card slot. Not picking on you, please don't misunderstand, but if an SD card slot was important, you could have picked up a 32GB Asus Transformer ($460) instead of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 32GB ($600) and used the savings to buy SD cards. I don't have money to burn (says the guy with a Galaxy Tab 10.1 and an Asus Transformer, lol ), so I do a lot of research before I drop $600 on something.
You can't "uninstall" the TouchWiz update once you have it. Wiping the Tab with a factory reset does not remove TouchWiz. You'd have to load a custom ROM to get rid of it.
And as far as Netflix, just head to the Themes and Apps part of the Galaxy Tab forums and grab the Netflix .apk from there. Easy to install, even for an idiot such as myself. That's the only thing that's making me want to keep the Galaxy Tab over the Asus Transformer at the moment.

Amazing launchers............. for gnote

There is no shortage of launcher replacements for Android
Once in a while a new one comes along and takes the launcher experience to a new level
1. TSF Shell Pro[Upcoming]
A new launcher currently in development by a team of developers.
Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=SYzYQ6YtepU#t=78s
2. ROU Launcher[Coming Soon]
Looks To Bring A Whole New Experience To Android.
Team ROU is looking to bring a whole new kind of interface to Android and it looks damn good.
Check it
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=oySGu0ztiqM#t=0s
Stay Tune For The Update!
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Looks interesting, thanks for the links. Androids one strength definitely is the ability to modify it to look and behave exactly as any individual personally wants it to.

Duplicate thread? One already exists for the best launchers
Though they do look nice.

Theylook interesting but none of them mention, changing icons thats a must for me and my launcher of choice!

They both look great. Thanks!

https://market.android.com/details?id=com.gau.go.launcherex
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=20827514&postcount=12

Go Launcher! Go!

go launcher ex is my personal choice, been using it when was on the hd2

The TSF looks really fluid im wondering if the locked the governor into performance mode for that clip.

I like LauncherPro
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.fede.launcher

I am a big fan of Go and ADW, but I will ditch them in a split second if TSF Shell Pro runs that well on the note.

I'm not sure about these launchers. It's amazing to see the youtube clips but I've got the feeling that with so many bells and whistles they may be limiting in a way. It can be difficult to find matching widgets and icons so you may end up kinda stuck with what you got out of the box.
My personal preference is a launcher that's simple, "transparent", highly customizable and with really good performance.

Which launcher and why...

First of all, I should say, if this topic has already been discussed, then I apologise, and pelase just point me to the right direction. If not, let's get the discussion going!
I started this thread really for 2 reasons. One is to find out for myself (and hopefully for others) which launcher app is more suitable for my needs. And the second one is to have a discussion on the pro's and con's of the different launchers available.
For the GNote as a standard there is the TW launcher of course. I haven't seen any real shortcomings with it. I quite like it. it's clean, smooth and it works.
I am aware of three others: ADW, GO launcher, and launcher pro. I think ADW has a free and a pay version, and I assume the pay version has more features.
I haven't used any of the others on the GNote, and I never used the GO launcher. However, I did use ADW and LauncherPro both on my viewsonic Gtab. On that particular device I found launcher pro more suitable for my needs. Again, it was clean, simple and smooth.
I've never attempted using addons for either, and I am now becoming aware of the different ways to change icons, themes, etc. It'd be interesting to know what can be done with which launchers...

SS launcher
Why: cause it doesn't suck
Sorry, all I can write for now
From the Beast : Galaxy Note

If I'm not mistaken, only the stock TW Launcher has true hardware acceleration thanks to Samsung's work on it. Every other launcher should be software driven (i.e., CPU taxing).

Go Launcher Ex. I tried almost all popular ones and Go is just the best IMO. I can resize widgets, easily create folders and it's highly customizable.
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QQLauncher is the beat imho
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ssLauncher
ssLauncher because:
It's truly different
It is completely configurable, down to the pixel
All widgets can be resized (although some get funny)
shortcuts can be of any style whatsoever (individually) making for a unique layout
It does not lag at all on my set-up (although transitions are a bit tricky to set up right)
You can have page names (the main thing I wanted)
It's truly different!

Nova Launcher!
Otherwise ADW, I like it's customizability. Never tried SS Launcher though.

If you use gb i think go launchr is optimal choice, but for ics nova is the fastest one
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sprintuser1977 said:
SS launcher
Why: cause it doesn't suck
Sorry, all I can write for now
From the Beast : Galaxy Note
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow you are damn right. This app makes so much sense. very unique indeed.

I personally use now Go Launcher Ex-highly customizable etc...but I recommend you to have a look at the "Post your homescreen" threads where you'll see different types of homescreens and launchers by the users.
Another site which is quite good for this is mycolorscreen.com/ where you'll see different homescreens and normally the Widgets in use with the market link. So you'll be able to learn how to customize your screen on your own
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Am I the only one who dislike multi pages launchers? On the Gnote this artifice is not necessary anymore, I just have ADW with only one screen and with some tuning I have enough room for my often used apps, two folders and a off off my kid. I even disabled auto rotate. On such a big screen landscape makes no sense for home screen and most apps but pictures and video.

guibog said:
Am I the only one who dislike multi pages launchers? On the Gnote this artifice is not necessary anymore, I just have ADW with only one screen and with some tuning I have enough room for my often used apps, two folders and a off off my kid. I even disabled auto rotate. On such a big screen landscape makes no sense for home screen and most apps but pictures and video.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One word: Widgets!

I used to use ADW but it ha gotten too buggy, and it looks like it's not being developed anymore .
These days it's go launcher, but really it's just a place holder until I can load ICS, and the stock launcher
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Am I the only one who thinks the none of the launchers are doing it right?
For all I know, TW launcher is the only launcher that uses hardware acceleration. It NEVER lags. Compared to other launchers, I'd stick with it. (I'm on RR v22, ICS for RR v1.6)
TW launcher on ICS for RR looks so much better than stock TW. It makes it bearable. Plus it doesn't lag.

VTL launcher 1.7.0 with left and right docks active, absolutly the more versatile one!
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AA1973 said:
I personally use now Go Launcher Ex-highly customizable etc...but I recommend you to have a look at the "Post your homescreen" threads where you'll see different types of homescreens and launchers by the users.
Another site which is quite good for this is mycolorscreen.com where you'll see different homescreens and normally the Widgets in use with the market link. So you'll be able to learn how to customize your screen on your own
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Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great site, thanks! Just opened it and found a great homescreen containing several widgets I've been literaly looking for and didn't know they exist. Can't post links yet unfortunately, but you can go have a look and see if it also catches your attention Its on a Note too!
guibog said:
Am I the only one who dislike multi pages launchers? On the Gnote this artifice is not necessary anymore, I just have ADW with only one screen and with some tuning I have enough room for my often used apps, two folders and a off off my kid. I even disabled auto rotate. On such a big screen landscape makes no sense for home screen and most apps but pictures and video.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not that I dislike them, but I'm sure gonna go for as few as I can. Thinking about 2 or so, depends on how many widgets I'm actually gonna need. I don't like to keep scrolling to find what I want.

I installed several launchers and launcher modifiers. Most modifiers sucked. I think they put adware on my phone because once a day or so I get an advert pop up that is not from my provider (I recognise some new type of icons in the notification bar). I uninstalled the launcher modifiers very quickly so I forgot their names. I tried ADW, and so far decided to stick with launcher pro, as it gave me what I needed (customised icons for apps and dock). Anything else wasn't really of interest for me from a functional perspective.

Im using launcher pro on the chinese leak ICS and its so smooth its insane. It looks to be rendering in 60p while using a live wallpaper with absolutely no lag at all. I like the animations and options in it but it is getting a little dated and could do with an upgrade to add some more widgets and functionality.
This was fairly smooth on GB roms pretty much the same as TW launcher but on the ICS leak this flies
You can shrink and zoom all widgets in the paid version from 1x1 to full screen and this works well with nearly every widget I have tried. This is very useful when reducing DPI even though atm I am using the stock 320 incase it breaks something reducing this.
The TW launcher is so low for me when scrolling left and right even though its smooth it just moves across pretty slow, I like to get to where I want quick and launcher pro does this. I havent tried many other launchers lately but tried them all before and keep going back to launcher pro even though it hasnt been updated in a while.

@martcerv: So how is that ICS leak working out for you? Many seem to have problems of all sorts with it...

I have been using spb shell 3d in tablet mode with resizable widgets and for me its the best.
It displays 8 rows x 6 columns and is really suited to the Note. The labels maybe small for some, but not really needed.
For me its the best experience, its compatible with the ICS chainfire release and is very smooth and responsive.
I have adjusted dpi to 213 for better views in gmail etc, but this does not effect shell 3d. At 213 dpi you loose the top bar for some reason, but have put info onto homescreen, see pic
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TSF Shell available on Market!

Does any of you already have TSF Shell? I myself have it and it's probably the greatest launcher ever made. It doesn't lag at all, lots of functions. I was so surprised. It is available for 12.50$. It's definately a must have!
I was also really surprised how good it works on Desire HD.
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.tsf.shell

It is 17.00$/12.50€.
Not really worth it right now in my opinion.
Less fantastic than in the video, few things are missing.
Takes some getting used to since you can't swap between the home screens.
The lasso thing isn't really doing it for me since the 'gather' option isn't available.
Plus, once you have a nice arrangement of your apps and stuff, you better watch out not to accidentally lasso it and press arrange.
Also, re-sizing widgets doesn't work for me? Pretty annoying.
And the video had nicer looking icons but that doesn't really bother me.

they probably just hurried and released the launcher asap, and now just constantly update the launcher with all the missing bits, according to user experience

I wouldn't worry about missing functionality, that will be added quickly. I really like the concept, but it has some flaws in basic functionality - like changing home screens and lasso which is used only rarely until you setup the shell... also, no sounds when you press icons/folders... player widget displays SONGS individualy which is silly - it would be better to display artists or albums... etc etc... Pretty cool and smooth but basic functionality is missing... he better concentrate on basic functionality than on eye-candy....

markslo112 said:
Does any of you already have TSF Shell? I myself have it and it's probably the greatest launcher ever made. It doesn't lag at all, lots of functions. I was so surprised. It is available for 12.50$. It's definately a must have!
I was also really surprised how good it works on Desire HD.
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.tsf.shell
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you made it your self ore what?
Just not that grate.. more funktionality before i use it as daily drive...

The launcher is just missing a few features.
What I'm missing most is just a Settings function.
I mean, the lasso is awesome if you're setting up your 4 screens but after that it's annoying.
There should be a mode where lasso is disabled and you can swipe through the home screens.
Also, when I lasso like 15 apps and select Arrange or something, it jumbles them all up in an order I don't like.
It's great that you can turn apps and put them anywhere you like, but for some screens I prefer if they're all neatly lined out, which is a pain to do by hand because it enlarges the icon when you hold it a few seconds.

Kinda sucks, but that's just my opinion though.

djolebih said:
Kinda sucks, but that's just my opinion though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is pretty good once you get used to it, but it needs some adjustments.
IMO, looks are simply awesome but functionality is a C at the moment.

New Launcher idea request

Im thinking about putting together a new launcher exclusively for the Ouya. I see a few have arised but died over time so id like to build one that gets alot of users and support.
Just wanna see these forums spark up. We have a great device but appearance and style is important to alot of people so i think thats why alot of people look down on the ouya.
It will only be for stock firmware and for both rooted/non-rooted users and work beside the ouya store launcher.
Id like to see some request and il see what i can put together. Its a game console, not a tablet, not a phone and all those 3rd party launchers make it feel more like an original device and not a console
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That would be great, I'm looking forward to try this. Anytime you want to test something, please let me know...

I think XBMC (for the most part) is the ideal "launcher" for any console. Really the stock Ouya launcher is pretty good, at least in terms of appearance. I'd be happy to test a launcher (or possibly contribute) as well. I've written a few Android apps, no launchers though. I'll be done with summer classes in a couple weeks (still work full time though), so I could definitely lend a hand if you wanted.

Take a look at custom ouya launcher which was really great replacement for the stock launcher unfortunately it's not updated any more but I think it did a lot of things right, more customisation would have been nice, like reordering apps but the dev stopped updating. Here's a link to the old forum
http://ouyaforum.com/showthread.php?6515-Custom-OUYA-Launcher
I still use this over the stock launcher
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I would love a launcher specifically for the ouya. The original launcher has no options and limited capability. It would be nice to have a custom launcher with the ouya discover store integrated... But I know that is probably a ton of work. So just a good "TV oriented" launcher would be really nice.

..