Database Users

My 1st 38 hours lol

I picked this up yesterday so thought id share what I think about it ill try and give some structure to this but will end up waffling.
Feel of the phone: the feel of the phone is solid id say it feels way better then the s1 no where near as slippy or creaks as much. The textured back actually helps but the body definetly could do with being thicker... Just gives me an excuse for a bigger battery . If you have small hands like myself then using the phone one handed becomes difficult especially going for the notification bar or an app thats in the top left or right corner.
Call quality etc etc brilliant... turning the messaging app sideways changes the interface where you can scroll through all your different threads and view whats been said in each which I mentioned because its ingenious. I can't remember whether s1 did that :-\ .
The screen... Where to begin lol. Okay well remember when you went from lcd to super amoled.... The change to the + isn't as drastic but definetly noticeable. Not as blurry with text and brilliant colors obvs... The screen actually feels so smooth lol I dont know if its because its new but it feels like silk.
Music playback is brilliant and once youve downloaded power amp player or similar the s2 is incredible for music playback clear and loud. It plays everything In my library which has an array of formats so thats good news.
Camera I haven't used much to be fair... But im thankful for the flash handy as a light more then anything.
Touch wiz 4... Brilliant so integrated and together not laggy and actually looks brilliant... I actually havent changed the launcher more then satisfied with it. The phone has not stalled on me yet. The s1 was terrible for that straight out the box but this is the complete opposite functionality out the box definetly 10 out if 10 should be a relief for those who had bad experiences with the s1. It has loads of nifty features that you find by accident lol and then spend 10 mins looking for more.
Gps... fixed and works perfect... thats the honest truth lol.
Battery life... I'm definetly a fidgety son of a... so my phone barely gets put down texting calling browsing... Then browsing the same thing again lol this phone holds its own definetly brilliant battery life after I get used to owning an s2 it will definetly last a day... Atm im pulling it out my pocket every 30 seconds.
The browser is super slick on the s2 will give desktops a run for their money... Flash support is flawless... I wont mention what site I used for it though lol. There seems to be no problem downloading files like there used to be on s1.
I think thats about it.
Sorry for any idiosyncrasies or for any thing used in the wrong context
Ive seen a few posts in other threads about the head set quality... Personally the head phones supplied in the box are great they cancel noise out almost completely. if your an audiophile they should be good enough.
swyped from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

Good info man - Definitely helps sway me even closer to buying one. Let me ask this: how does the battery life compare to another device? For me, that's a better comparison as I get 2-3 days battery life on my Nexus One because of my usage. Does the battery double the Galaxy 1? Triple?
Thanks!

Galaxy 1 doing the same thing would not last me a day. Im geussing this will easily...
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

Arron123 said:
swyped from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thx for your review but just out of curiosity I have to ask: How long did it take you to write up your review with your SGSII ?

Hey mate, thanks for expressing your impressions on the galaxy s ii
Gd to see you love your device!
This is actually going to be my first android device. So i'm glad my first one is going to be absolutely aswesome!
I'm currently using a windows mobile phone (ancient) called the touch diamond, which ive had for 2 years.
Ive pre ordered it and waiting for it.
IM SOOO EXITED!!

Lmao that took me 20mins.... Not tooo bad tbf especially with swype picking some nonsense words lol
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

Definetly the best android phone thats out youll love it
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

Almost everything about this phone have been very good so far.
Seem like a good replacement for my Liquid which isn't working that well since the 2.1 update.
If it's relatively free of big problems I'll probably pick it up when it is released.

Awesome 38 hours! Wonderful write up! thank you!!!

Cheers dont know if I covered everything lol
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

Your review was brilliant, so brilliant that it uses brilliant so many times in this brilliant review.
Kidding
Not Swyped from my soon to be GT-I9100 using a custom build desktop PC

Haha should of downloaded a thesaurus from market
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

Good info.
I really appreciated that Vlad Savov's review of the SGS2 on engadget was written from the perspective of someone looking at the usability of the phone in ways it normally is not. Yours and Vlad's observations give me hope that it will truly be a solid replacement for my Nexus One.

Arron123 said:
Cheers dont know if I covered everything lol
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After reading your words, i am satisfied and currently i dont have any requests for you, except one. If you can, just keep updating the first post in your thread with your observations! Swype Away!!
Thanks once again! Waiting to join the ranks of SGS2 owners

Nexus S VS SGS for CM7/MIUI

If anyone has experience with both devices on MIUI and/or CM7 could you share the difference between them? Im weighing whether Nexus S is a worthy upgrade so any input would be appreciated
Btw im not considering SGS2 because of no voodoo sound
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

Good thread, I was actually wondering the same thing (not after upgrading).
I know that for Vodafone AU the Galaxy is maybe a better device. The Nexus S here does not have the Amoled screen and also does not have the external SD (which I don't use myself).
I had a quick go at the stock 2.3.4 on a Nexus S and it is definately laggy compared to my CM7 with launcherpro. I cannot say if it is the combination as I would like to see CM7 with LP on the nexus S.
I find Miui laggy on the Galaxy when it comes to the menus in the settings. I am not sure if it is better on the Nexus S as they have access to full sources AFAIK.
K.

If external SD is important then its pretty easy which one you should get.
With Nexus S you will get latest updates from Google (which again might not be necessary if you are staying with CM7).
SGS just got merged in mainline for CM7 so now we get nightlies everyday. From my personal experience, there is 0! ZERO! lag with CM7 and only a few quirky bugs.
Also wouldn't the SGS be much cheaper than the Nexus S? Especially for the AMOLED screen version of the Nexus?
Therefore I suggest SGS imo.

If you use CM7 ... SGS is probably the best choice.

I agree with the consensus....if you are planning on using CM7 or MIUI then that nullifies the advantages the Nexus S has as a "flagship" (early updates from google, etc).
In terms of sheer hardware then, the AMOLED and the external SD make the Galaxy a clear winner over the Nexus S.

Nexus S camera sucks. I moved to Nexus S but gladly back to Galaxy S. No 720p recording, no SAMOLED, no gorilla glass, no SD slot, no radio, poor speakers, no TV out - Nexus S is actually a downgrade if you ask me.
I love Galaxy S. I just wish it had a body of Omnia 7 and a dual LED flash.
Sent from my GT-P1000 using XDA App

rschenck said:
I agree with the consensus....if you are planning on using CM7 or MIUI then that nullifies the advantages the Nexus S has as a "flagship" (early updates from google, etc).
In terms of sheer hardware then, the AMOLED and the external SD make the Galaxy a clear winner over the Nexus S.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
10 Chars

No GorillaGlass in Nexus S is very strong "NO" for buying the device.
Maybe a few bonuses in Nexus, but really? You wanna have micro (and not only) scratches after month of using the phone? I know what happened with my Xperia after three months of daily using... :/

All the replies are very interesting.
Not many people seems to say but despite not using samsung roms recently i think having them as options are a bonus as well.
I totally agree with the omnia 7 build quality. If there was one thing that i didnt fancy about my SGS it would be the extreme lightness and build quality. I mean i prefer light to heavy but SGS feels a tad too light
For noobs like me download mode is life saver lol
EDIT does anyone know the reason to lag in MIUI settings?
Btw there are few combination of kernel rom and radio which almost removes the lag
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

jay_993 said:
All the replies are very interesting.
Not many people seems to say but despite not using samsung roms recently i think having them as options are a bonus as well.
I totally agree with the omnia 7 build quality. If there was one thing that i didnt fancy about my SGS it would be the extreme lightness and build quality. I mean i prefer light to heavy but SGS feels a tad too light
For noobs like me download mode is life saver lol
EDIT does anyone know the reason to lag in MIUI settings?
Btw there are few combination of kernel rom and radio which almost removes the lag
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am going to speculate without even knowing why but my theory is that Miui uses non standard menu options. Also on a Miui Rom the actual values of the different options are on the main screen (not sure if that makes sens).
If you use an application like GPS test for example, when you go to the menu, you actually can see what the values are set to before you even click on the different options. It is nice to see this but Miui problem in my opinion is that it lags in these settings menus and maybe that's the reason .
Your title did ask about (CM7/Miui) so nearly all the extras don't work anyway (video calling, FM radio...etc). I am sure they will work at some stage as I saw codeworkx started doing some changes for the radio.
https://github.com/teamhacksung/and...mmit/f2d5a4d164a9dec59ce486e77c451c81439526f1
https://github.com/teamhacksung/and...mmit/bd097d8b7f12634192edc1e953ed057a25fcbc86
I did not know the handset did not have the Gorilla glass either so in my opinion apart the actual flash everything else is a downgrade.
K.

Worst JB any company will ever release.

I am using note from last 1 year. Used GB for six months then upgraded to ICS.
I am always FAN of Stock TW look.
But this time: SAMSUNG crossed limit by releasing worst, ugliest, laggy, slowest JB firmware.
When I tried JB leak in FEB. I thought that this is not ready and samsung will work on it and will clean it by little more makeup.
But bloody sammy released it as it was. I mean no cleanliness, no smoothness, no quickness.
I can feel the slow response of apps opening and closing which I never felt in ICS.
Even battery drains like HELL.
I am reverting back to ICS. I like quickness of ICS. I am not a heavy user.
I disable few apps or bloatware I don't use and ICS works awesome.
Your views.

Maybe you do not know how to make clean flash...
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2

JB is good for me..
Battery , smoothness, stability( with latest kernels)..
<<<The CRACKS on my NOTE shows how often it KISSES the FLOOR>>>

its very smooth in my note.even app transitions are awesome but there is lag in gallery.

Agree, battery drains like hell, many lag, hot issue... i will never buy a sammy device again
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2

JB is running better than ICS on my note. Its butter smooth and faster. Job done well samsung!
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda app-developers app

Sv: Worst JB any company will ever release.
shahkam said:
Dude stop bashing their work go make your own software if you find theirs that ****ty... Needless to say you have the solution you said ics runs better for you.
Well use ics stop bashing and quit making useless threads like these.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Stop bashing about it? He paid for it!

Agree i am saying the same. Ics release was way better than the jb release.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda app-developers app

Kinda harsh language, but I must agree:
- it's slow, at least Germany stock (maybe because I did only factory reset, still Ultimate ROM is incredibly smooth)
- S Note is a joke (laggy and for the reason below)
- S Memo is missing and there's no Page widget - I looked at my Note's box, there's a neat picture of the phone there, it has 3 Memo widgets on it... WHAT THE HELL SAMMY? Why you delete a feature you advertise on box without giving any substitute?
- battery life is worse, on ICS using WiFi didn't make any significant changes to usage time, on JB WiFi drains battery like crazy
- its general appearance is bad (ugly icons, switches etc but it matters the least)
- it's just quick mashup port of Note II's/GSIII's ROM, but that's the biggest advantage of it - airview, multiwindow, ink effect and other stuff work without sweat
I'll be using Ultimate for some time, but I'll probably return to ICS, few features I like doesn't compensate for stuff I miss or hate

Gambolputty said:
Kinda harsh language, but I must agree:
- S Note is a joke (laggy and for the reason below)
- S Memo is missing and there's no Page widget - I looked at my Note's box, there's a neat picture of the phone there, it has 3 Memo widgets on it... WHAT THE HELL SAMMY? Why you delete a feature you advertise on box without giving any substitute?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
Bloody idiots. They miss ******* simple things.

the multitask and battery life for me makes all the difference, jb is a keeper they made touchwizz my favorite. The additional mods, with clean install and no recovery of app+data do the trick for me.
maybe you guys have rogue apps or something. Check you logcats
cm is really really awesome to, my fav vanilla flavour, but those touchwizz features wootwoot. I get same free mem after bloatware remove on touch as on cm.

Agree with this thread worst software update ever. Intead it should be considered as a downgrade in software quality very much unsatisfied this time
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2

shahkam said:
Dude stop bashing their work go make your own software if you find theirs that ****ty... Needless to say you have the solution you said ics runs better for you.
Well use ics stop bashing and quit making useless threads like these.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's true, I am the software.

It's not sooooooo bad after all, battery really drains fast but the ROM is quite normal i think.
I really like TouchWiz because we have some features like Multi-Window, S Note, Fully integration with the S Pen, etc.
Always wanted to use pure Android(CM and others) but i would miss the way to organize the apps on the Drawer as i want and they aren't non-Wiping ROMs, once that all these features are included on a ROM i would be free from Samsung ****ty updates.
Better an resonable Jelly Bean than no Jelly Bean.

Gambolputty said:
Kinda harsh language, but I must agree:
- it's slow, at least Germany stock (maybe because I did only factory reset, still Ultimate ROM is incredibly smooth)
- S Note is a joke (laggy and for the reason below)
- S Memo is missing and there's no Page widget - I looked at my Note's box, there's a neat picture of the phone there, it has 3 Memo widgets on it... WHAT THE HELL SAMMY? Why you delete a feature you advertise on box without giving any substitute?
- battery life is worse, on ICS using WiFi didn't make any significant changes to usage time, on JB WiFi drains battery like crazy
- its general appearance is bad (ugly icons, switches etc but it matters the least)
- it's just quick mashup port of Note II's/GSIII's ROM, but that's the biggest advantage of it - airview, multiwindow, ink effect and other stuff work without sweat
I'll be using Ultimate for some time, but I'll probably return to ICS, few features I like doesn't compensate for stuff I miss or hate
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Totally agree with you. Now I really think that its not only me who finds this ROM ugly.

Have you all moaners done full backup and wipe?
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda app-developers app

bhatia.mani said:
Totally agree with you. Now I really think that its not only me who finds this ROM ugly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I actually like the appearance of the new icons/weather themes/wallpaper, that's why I was so looking forward to this release. But I agree with you guys, it sucked. When I bought my Note with 4.0.4, the impression it I got from it was the same as the Note II with TW UX gave me: smooooooth! I updated my Note officially through Kies, so I'm sure nothing went wrong in the 'flashing' process. I've also done a factory reset. But everything else lags except for home screen transitions, it's kind of a disappointment. S Note, Camera, Contacts take at least 4-5 seconds to load. Music player has stutters in music playback. There's a delay when using the S Pen.
But now I've moved onto a custom ROM, and it's keeping me really happy.

It's 50:50
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium

jakethesnakeuk said:
Have you all moanersthe done full backup and wipe?
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First of all I don't care about back up. So forget about it.
Secondly, I was using ICS with philz kernel. I did all 3 wipes and then wiped preload which says now install newROM.
Then I installed original ICS using PC odin. Then I updated JB using KIES. Then I reset internal memory by using factory reset.
If you think that this process is not good enough: then please come to india, new delhi and do it for me you moaner.
Hope every one who wants to say that full wipe do the trick. Please read this post.
My brother bought iphone 5 2 weeks back. I was the one who was insisting that he should not by iphone rather by android because of few OS limitation of bluetooth and no card slot.. But luckily he bought IPHONE. And now I feeel guilty that why I was insisting on android if this the quality.
I bought sony xperia for my father with A7 cortex processor which is lower than what note has. But guys believe me. Smoothness of that phone is way beyond our note. We cannot even expect that from crappy sammy.
I will never buy sammy again. Apple or sony will be the preference

bhatia.mani said:
My brother bought iphone 5 2 weeks back. I was the one who was insisting that he should not by iphone rather by android because of few OS limitation of bluetooth and no card slot.. But luckily he bought IPHONE. And now I feeel guilty that why I was insisting on android if this the quality.
I bought sony xperia for my father with A7 cortex processor which is lower than what note has. But guys believe me. Smoothness of that phone is way beyond our note. We cannot even expect that from crappy sammy.
I will never buy sammy again. Apple or sony will be the preference
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agree with you bro. same story with me but the difference is that my friend bought an iphone.. Although it is not big as note but the plus point is that it never lags for me the next change is gonna be a iphone 5s
Ps: when you paid $600 or Inr 32000 for a phone you atleast expect that the phone should not hang.. I am very much disappointed with jellybean
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2

[Q] Stock Android with couple of select Samsung apps, dream come true

Sorry, this is not a statement rather a wish.
Can anyone guide us noobs and un-initiated S4 owners on how to get stock android on the device and the best samsung apps like the dual camera shot etc working?
I am not a fan of the lag at all. I hate that samsung phones are so sluggish despite their claims of the fastest processors around.
NOTHING BEATS THE NEXUS 4 HANDS DOWN..
Perhaps we can achieve close to the Nexus 4 benchmarks with getting the S4 down to the bare minimum?
Any thoughts?

alitech said:
Sorry, this is not a statement rather a wish.
Can anyone guide us noobs and un-initiated S4 owners on how to get stock android on the device and the best samsung apps like the dual camera shot etc working?
I am not a fan of the lag at all. I hate that samsung phones are so sluggish despite their claims of the fastest processors around.
NOTHING BEATS THE NEXUS 4 HANDS DOWN..
Perhaps we can achieve close to the Nexus 4 benchmarks with getting the S4 down to the bare minimum?
Any thoughts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Benchmarks dont mean jack. If your after numbers go get a Nexus 4. Either use AOSP or a very refined TouchWiz ROM. Also, I must be the only person here in XDA that doesn't have a "laggy" Galaxy S4. My "last year" Note II doesn't even lag so I should see no problem with yours. Maybe its ther user than the phone? Turn S Voice off and make the animation scales all at 0.5x.
AOSP with Samsung wont go. It requires the Samsung framework
~ Taylor_Swift
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note II GT-N7100 using XDA Premium HD

Taylor_Swift said:
Benchmarks dont mean jack. If your after numbers go get a Nexus 4. Either use AOSP or a very refined TouchWiz ROM. Also, I must be the only person here in XDA that doesn't have a "laggy" Galaxy S4. My "last year" Note II doesn't even lag so I should see no problem with yours. Maybe its ther user than the phone? Turn S Voice off and make the animation scales all at 0.5x.
AOSP with Samsung wont go. It requires the Samsung framework
~ Taylor_Swift
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note II GT-N7100 using XDA Premium HD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd like to keep the S4 thanks. The Nexus 4 benchmarks is not what I am after. What I am after is a fast OS which does not lag when moving from screen to screen or doing just the basic functions like going to the call or text app. Have you seen the time it takes to render the photos that the phone itself has taken?
Hit the home button, there is always a half a second lag no matter what.
All animations and S Voice turned off.
Yes, it seems like its the user not the phone in your case too. Have you ever owned a Nexus 4?

alitech said:
I'd like to keep the S4 thanks. The Nexus 4 benchmarks is not what I am after. What I am after is a fast OS which does not lag when moving from screen to screen or down just the basic function.
Hit the hit button, there is always a half a second lag no matter what.
All animations and S Voice turned off.
Yes, it is the user not the phone in your case!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Screenshot your animation scales . Im having trouble believing if S Voice and the scales are all about 0.5x lol.
Erm, Im a dev for the Nexus 4. So yeah, I have.
Im running stock deodexed with root. Working well and fast
~ Taylor_Swift
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note II GT-N7100 using XDA Premium HD

Taylor_Swift said:
Screenshot your animation scales . Im having trouble believing if S Voice and the scales are all about 0.5x lol.
Erm, Im a dev for the Nexus 4. So yeah, I have.
Im running stock deodexed with root. Working well and fast
~ Taylor_Swift
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note II GT-N7100 using XDA Premium HD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is set at 0.5x.
Now what?

All questions belong in the Q&A section.
Thread moved.

Taylor_Swift said:
Benchmarks dont mean jack. If your after numbers go get a Nexus 4. Either use AOSP or a very refined TouchWiz ROM. Also, I must be the only person here in XDA that doesn't have a "laggy" Galaxy S4. My "last year" Note II doesn't even lag so I should see no problem with yours. Maybe its ther user than the phone? Turn S Voice off and make the animation scales all at 0.5x.
AOSP with Samsung wont go. It requires the Samsung framework
~ Taylor_Swift
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note II GT-N7100 using XDA Premium HD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No lag for me too. Stock Rom. I normally root and start messing as soon as I get a phone but just ha dot felt the need so far, and I got it on launch day!
Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk 4 Beta

I also have no lag at all.
I have the device rooted, but I did not remove anything, actually.

I am quite surprised by the responses here.
Since no one has disputed the liquidity and smoothness of the Nexus 4, let me re-phrase my question.
How can we get the S4 to be as fast as the Nexus 4?
I would like to keep the S4 but I want to be as fast as the Nexus 4.
1. Fast fluid response to swiping home sceen
2. no lag when you press apps icon
3. no lag on swiping apps
4. no lag when you press home button
5. no lag in rendering photos in gallery (when you swipe to a new picture, it is blurry for a second or 2 while it renders and then shows full resolution)
6. no lag in phone and messaging apps
All animation fixes and S_voice already done but lag still experienced.
Please advise.

Taylor_Swift said:
Benchmarks dont mean jack. If your after numbers go get a Nexus 4.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why would he do that when the S4 has significantly higher results in all benchmarks?

Im confused as well I am sorry I do not understand why you would want the S4 to be like the Nexus when the S4 has no issues I have 3 S4s they are all smooth with no lag and run fast between screens going on the web all is well here..........I haven't even rooted my phone yet lol

jprocket45 said:
Im confused as well I am sorry I do not understand why you would want the S4 to be like the Nexus when the S4 has no issues I have 3 S4s they are all smooth with no lag and run fast between screens going on the web all is well here..........I haven't even rooted my phone yet lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you fail to realise that there is a significant lag in all S4s, you are immune to it because you don't know any better.
Can someone respond to the points I have made above ?

Really need some help setting this thing up

Help everyone. After a brief affair with the iPhone 5 this dinner, I have returned to Android via the Samsung Galaxy S 4.
Only problem is the bezels. They are too thin!! I literally can't type on this thing. Its not the size of the screen, I used to run a note, it's the bezels. Mainly the bottom one.
At the moment I run the GPE ROM. This is all fine and dandy, I'm loving the Nexus 4 like experience. But I miss the on screen buttons. They brought the bottom bezel size up significantly, making the typing experience amazing. I need that on this phone. But I also don't want the capacitive buttons. Luckily they dissapear when not lit up. And I found a flashable script to disable their functionality. I just need to find a ROM as stable as the GPE ROM and with on screen buttons and IR support like the GPE ROM.
Does anyone have any ideas? Other than the typing issue I like the phone. It's not nearly as comfortable as the 4.7" screen of the Nexus but its usable and really my only choice to get back to my Android home.
Thanks!
Sent from my GT-I9505G using Tapatalk 2

WOW, talk about picky! Maybe I'm just a noob, but what do you mean by on screen buttons?

agent929 said:
WOW, talk about picky! Maybe I'm just a noob, but what do you mean by on screen buttons?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
He means soft buttons. Like on the nexus devices.
OP, there's a couple aosp roms in the original Android development section that include soft buttons.

xBeerdroiDx said:
He means soft buttons. Like on the nexus devices.
OP, there's a couple aosp roms in the original Android development section that include soft buttons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Got ya...guess I'm not totally familiar with some of the jargon
Sent from miPhone using XDA Premium HD app

Orange_furball said:
Help everyone. After a brief affair with the iPhone 5 this dinner, I have returned to Android via the Samsung Galaxy S 4.
Only problem is the bezels. They are too thin!! I literally can't type on this thing. Its not the size of the screen, I used to run a note, it's the bezels. Mainly the bottom one.
At the moment I run the GPE ROM. This is all fine and dandy, I'm loving the Nexus 4 like experience. But I miss the on screen buttons. They brought the bottom bezel size up significantly, making the typing experience amazing. I need that on this phone. But I also don't want the capacitive buttons. Luckily they dissapear when not lit up. And I found a flashable script to disable their functionality. I just need to find a ROM as stable as the GPE ROM and with on screen buttons and IR support like the GPE ROM.
Does anyone have any ideas? Other than the typing issue I like the phone. It's not nearly as comfortable as the 4.7" screen of the Nexus but its usable and really my only choice to get back to my Android home.
Thanks!
Sent from my GT-I9505G using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
xBeerdroiDx said:
He means soft buttons. Like on the nexus devices.
OP, there's a couple aosp roms in the original Android development section that include soft buttons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My girlfriend had the exact same problem and he's right - there are some great ROMs on there that will have exactly what you're looking for. There are some that coincide with the haptic buttons and some that are stand alone and do not use them at all.
Some can be found at:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=2257#romList
You can also find more by searching for specific ones.

Orange_furball said:
Help everyone. After a brief affair with the iPhone 5 this dinner, I have returned to Android via the Samsung Galaxy S 4.
Only problem is the bezels. They are too thin!! I literally can't type on this thing. Its not the size of the screen, I used to run a note, it's the bezels. Mainly the bottom one.
At the moment I run the GPE ROM. This is all fine and dandy, I'm loving the Nexus 4 like experience. But I miss the on screen buttons. They brought the bottom bezel size up significantly, making the typing experience amazing. I need that on this phone. But I also don't want the capacitive buttons. Luckily they dissapear when not lit up. And I found a flashable script to disable their functionality. I just need to find a ROM as stable as the GPE ROM and with on screen buttons and IR support like the GPE ROM.
Does anyone have any ideas? Other than the typing issue I like the phone. It's not nearly as comfortable as the 4.7" screen of the Nexus but its usable and really my only choice to get back to my Android home.
Thanks!
Sent from my GT-I9505G using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should give Task's AOKP a try. He works really hard to make sure it is as stable as possible, and you can activate the on-screen buttons.

mattdm said:
You should give Task's AOKP a try. He works really hard to make sure it is as stable as possible, and you can activate the on-screen buttons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you know if that ROM supports the IR blaster? Its not extremely necessary just a nice thing to have
Sent from my GT-I9505G using Tapatalk 2

Orange_furball said:
Do you know if that ROM supports the IR blaster? Its not extremely necessary just a nice thing to have
Sent from my GT-I9505G using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes it does. the latest 4.2.2 build works superbly. Grab the gapps from the 14th (in his thread). Cheers.

Orange_furball said:
Do you know if that ROM supports the IR blaster? Its not extremely necessary just a nice thing to have
Sent from my GT-I9505G using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As a second confirmation - yes it does
Sent from miPhone using XDA Premium HD app

One last question, is vibration alerts like really weird on this phone? Not just the ROM, I mean the phone in general. The vibrator is extremely loud, doesn't buzz very well, and with notifications it'll either go off in three very strange bursts or two very short bursts.
This is nothing like my iPhone, nexus 4, galaxy bite 10.1, or really any device I've ever used.
You might think I'm being really picky, but I just want to make sure this is normal
Sent from my GT-I9505G using Tapatalk 2

Orange_furball said:
One last question, is vibration alerts like really weird on this phone? Not just the ROM, I mean the phone in general. The vibrator is extremely loud, doesn't buzz very well, and with notifications it'll either go off in three very strange bursts or two very short bursts.
This is nothing like my iPhone, nexus 4, galaxy bite 10.1, or really any device I've ever used.
You might think I'm being really picky, but I just want to make sure this is normal
Sent from my GT-I9505G using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mine isn't very loud. I think you can adjust what it does for vibrations in settings but if it's new I would exchange it just in case.
Sent from miPhone using XDA Premium HD app

agent929 said:
Mine isn't very loud. I think you can adjust what it does for vibrations in settings but if it's new I would exchange it just in case.
Sent from miPhone using XDA Premium HD app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately its not new :/ I'll just have to pick up a replacement one and toss it in
Sent from my GT-I9505G using Tapatalk 2

Orange_furball said:
Unfortunately its not new :/ I'll just have to pick up a replacement one and toss it in
Sent from my GT-I9505G using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you mean a replacement phone, or a replacement vibrator?? Remember, if you get a replacement phone, you won't be able to flash any custom roms.

mattdm said:
Do you mean a replacement phone, or a replacement vibrator?? Remember, if you get a replacement phone, you won't be able to flash any custom roms.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Replacement vibrator. I'm out of warranty already I think
Sent from my GT-I9505G using Tapatalk 2

So, this ROM is amazing!!! Well I just have one small issue, the nav bar covers up the bottom portion if NY screen, so typing in the message fields in the Messages app doesn't work, and I can't see the footer in most web pages in Chrome.
Other than that, wow! Smoothest ROM I've ever used! With Dynamic Notifications from the play store the ROM is literally perfect, once I figure out the NavBar issue and how to disable the capacitive buttons (the flashable script I found didnt work :/)
Sent from my SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 2

Orange_furball said:
So, this ROM is amazing!!! Well I just have one small issue, the nav bar covers up the bottom portion if NY screen, so typing in the message fields in the Messages app doesn't work, and I can't see the footer in most web pages in Chrome.
Other than that, wow! Smoothest ROM I've ever used! With Dynamic Notifications from the play store the ROM is literally perfect, once I figure out the NavBar issue and how to disable the capacitive buttons (the flashable script I found didnt work :/)
Sent from my SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A couple of things:
1. Keep in mind, using Dynamic Notifications on an Android 4.2 rom will result in battery drain while the notification is active. An Android 4.3 rom would be better for that, since it has the new "NotificationListenerService" feature.
2. For disabling the capacitive buttons, it might be worthwhile to move to a rom that has full hardware key rebinding. I'm a big fan of SlimBean. There is a settings screen that lets you choose exactly what each of the buttons does, and you can just set it all of them to "none", and then disable button backlighting in Display settings.
SlimBean has it's own look and feel, because the DPI is very low and the Slim logo is inserted a few places. All of this can be changed, though, if you prefer a more stock experience.
Feel free to PM me if you have any questions; I'll be happy to help.