to the people who switched from the iphone 4 to focus. any thoughts?
In the last year and a half, I've gone through a Nexus One, iPhone 4, Samsung Captivate, and now I'm on a Focus.
TLDR version at the bottom, since after writing this out I realized this is a mini essay..
Here are my thoughts:
Android is the OS you should be on if you want (nearly) complete control and lots of features not necessarily supported by your carrier (free tethering!). Unfortunately, assuming you're on AT&T, your options for serious Android phones are limited to a Nexus One or a Captivate. Between the two, I actually preferred the Nexus. Slightly weaker CPU, but you'll get updates pretty immediately, and it's a lot easier to mod that phone vs the Captivate. Also, I never had a single problem with the Nexus One as a GPS unit, but like many others my Captivate was sketchy at best when it came to GPS.
So far, the iPhone in my experience has the best battery life. I never really had to worry about it, and I'm a fairly heavy text/web browser/email user. It's obviously going to have the widest selection of apps, though that didn't necessary mean they were all useful. If games are your thing, the iPhone was also ahead of that by a long shot. However, without jailbreaking, it really is locked down. Tethering through AT&T's rate is a joke, seeing as it uses your already purchased data plan, and outside of changing your ringtones and wallpapers, you're fairly limited in customizations. Despite this, there isn't currently an option to tether at all on WP7.
Now having a Focus with WP7, I can say that the interface is very refreshing. Sometimes I just want to stare at the home screen because 1) the live tiles are cool and 2) the SAMOLED screen is amazing with a black background and brightly colored tiles. The web browsing experience is fast, but noticeably lacking compared to Android and iPhone (due to lack of webkit/html5). It's not a deal breaker by any means, but it was something I noted. The keyboard is about on par with the iPhone.
Build quality compared to the iPhone feels just as sturdy, in my opinion, despite the plastic body. It actually feels better in the hand to me, because of the curve back and slight lip on the bottom. It's also noticeably lighter to hold and carry around. So far the battery is holding up nicely with moderate to heavy text/web browsing/email/staring at pretty tiles.
Call quality was good, found the ear piece to be a bit clearer and louder than the iPhone. The biggest difference for me at the moment is of course the Marketplace. This is where the iPhone's ~4 years on the market really shows the gap. But given that this is Microsoft we're talking about, I don't expect their market to go the way of the Pre (which I also briefly owned) and be a barren wasteland (comparatively).
TLDR
iPhone 4 has ~4 years of exposure behind it with it's marketplace and iOS functionality, and it shows. Focus/WP7 has a fresh UI and is promising with Microsoft backing it. Build quality is very different between the two, but both feel sturdy and reliable. If you're making the leap to Focus/WP7 from an iPhone 4, you shouldn't have any big regrets, so long as you're not tied deeply into the iTunes ecosystem or your life depends on certain iOS only games.
I have both still and am trying one against the other for everyday use for my needs. So far, the Focus lacks on a few things, but no deal breakers, as the functionality should come with future updates like cut and paste.
Since I fired up the Focus, it has given me hope that this OS will give Apple a run for the money.
I like the iPhone 4 but the whole iOS thing has gotten kind of stale for me after 2 1/2 years of iPhones so I bought a Focus to try out and so far so good. It lacks many of the nicities and features in the iPhone but overall it's been easier to use, it's MUCH lighter and doesn't feel like brick in my hand. I'm also a big user of Slingplayer and man, there's no comparison with the video and audio. HD shows up as bright, colorful and full screen and the audio is much louder and more understandable then when using the iPhone or iPad. I still have 3 weeks to return the Focus and I'm not committed yet but it's a damn good Rev 1 phone.
I agree with all of you but for me there have been some things I just don't understand why MS did what they did.
Notifications - There is a noticeable space at the top of the screen that hardly used. It is sometimes used for notifications as in text messages but not for email or twitter notifications.
Keyboard - In portrait its on par with iphone and even MT Android but why not a full landscape keyboard have you guys seen it? The empty space at the top of the screen is there on the side now and wasted.
Phone - 2 keystrokes to get a dialer why and to make it worse why no smart dialing in the dialer. I know you can use the search button but its not the same.
From a hardware perspective the phone is great light and long battery life so far. I just wish MS would have polished it a little more I dont really see a lot of Apple users jumping ship to it. Just my 2cents
boogieboogie said:
to the people who switched from the iphone 4 to focus. any thoughts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have both a Droid Incredible and an iPhone 4 and I love the Focus and WP7 interface over both. what I'm having trouble with is the little things that allow you to control the phone more that are still missing from WP7, probably because MS rushed it to get it out before the holidays. What I miss and need on WP7 include:
A Sound Profiler that allows you to control various preset sound modes and volumes for Alarm, ringer, music, system and keyboard clicks...why is this missing
An equalizer in the zune music App
An integrated favorites app for quick dialing. I'm using the tile approach for some contacts, but it does take more real estate than necesary.
Ability to change system font size. Some of the fonts are a bit too large.
Background processing for Facebook, Twitter, and some of those other things that require that.
That ability to connect to hidden Wifi networks! Come on MS this is suppose to be a corporate phone, corporate networks are often hidden. how do you miss that!
Abiltity to fast dial using the number keys in the phone app, ala HTC Sense! Much quicker to look up contacts that way.
Contact Pictures in Call history and SMS. they are everywhere else, why not there.
Native turn by turn directions Like Android has. Come on, this is a big one the iPhone is missing out of the box and MS is making the same mistake.
the notification system is a little wacky on WP 7...if the tiles that are changing are within view, then you are good, or if you are on the lock screen you can see certain things change via the icons at the bottom, but I'd still like to see an android like pull down.
this isn't microsoft, but can someone tell me why Google Reader doesn't format on WP7 and Windows Mobile like it does on the iPhone and Android. It's annoying! and none of the Google Reader market apps like gReadie and WReader work very well....
And why can't I get WP7 on Verizon! the AT&T network seems to be extremely slow, even more so with teh focus than the iPhone.
When will this stuff be fixed!
codyt01 said:
I have both a Droid Incredible and an iPhone 4 and I love the Focus and WP7 interface over both. what I'm having trouble with is the little things that allow you to control the phone more that are still missing from WP7, probably because MS rushed it to get it out before the holidays. What I miss and need on WP7 include:
A Sound Profiler that allows you to control various preset sound modes and volumes for Alarm, ringer, music, system and keyboard clicks...why is this missing
An equalizer in the zune music App
An integrated favorites app for quick dialing. I'm using the tile approach for some contacts, but it does take more real estate than necesary.
Ability to change system font size. Some of the fonts are a bit too large.
Background processing for Facebook, Twitter, and some of those other things that require that.
That ability to connect to hidden Wifi networks! Come on MS this is suppose to be a corporate phone, corporate networks are often hidden. how do you miss that!
Abiltity to fast dial using the number keys in the phone app, ala HTC Sense! Much quicker to look up contacts that way.
Contact Pictures in Call history and SMS. they are everywhere else, why not there.
Native turn by turn directions Like Android has. Come on, this is a big one the iPhone is missing out of the box and MS is making the same mistake.
the notification system is a little wacky on WP 7...if the tiles that are changing are within view, then you are good, or if you are on the lock screen you can see certain things change via the icons at the bottom, but I'd still like to see an android like pull down.
this isn't microsoft, but can someone tell me why Google Reader doesn't format on WP7 and Windows Mobile like it does on the iPhone and Android. It's annoying! and none of the Google Reader market apps like gReadie and WReader work very well....
And why can't I get WP7 on Verizon! the AT&T network seems to be extremely slow, even more so with teh focus than the iPhone.
When will this stuff be fixed!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
WP7 is coming to Verizon in January along with turn by turn directions and Flash support.
I've been playing with mine for a couple hours now. I like the device itself but it's probably going back in the morning. Couple thoughts, IMHO:
The back cover is worthless. Cheap. I never know if it's going to break when I pull it off. Having a removable battery again? Priceless. The SIM slot, specifically the contact nodes themselves, are poorly designed and I think mine bent/broke when I inserted and removed my microSIM adapter with my microSIM inside it. That's insane for a new device. They are just three little prongs waiting to break. Love the TILES!!! Love the font and the clean look of the whole OS!!! Gmail refuses to display my full email box. This makes me angry. Love the screen, when displaying the primary colors of tiles and most of the apps. On the other hand I Can't stand the washed out appearance of the IE and the screen when browsing. PTI podcast works, so big points on that one. Contacts sync is annoying, particularly since I don't have anything save for email in my Gmail contacts. My choice, my fault. I don't have a Live account and really don't want one but see no choice to download anything from the Marketplace. This is tomfoolery. Love the lightness of the phone along with the 4 inch real-estate.
Interesting so far but nothing that makes me want to replace my iPhone.
bmstrong said:
I've been playing with mine for a couple hours now. I like the device itself but it's probably going back in the morning. Couple thoughts, IMHO:
The back cover is worthless. Cheap. I never know if it's going to break when I pull it off. Having a removable battery again? Priceless. The SIM slot, specifically the contact nodes themselves, are poorly designed and I think mine bent/broke when I inserted and removed my microSIM adapter with my microSIM inside it. That's insane for a new device. They are just three little prongs waiting to break. Love the TILES!!! Love the font and the clean look of the whole OS!!! Gmail refuses to display my full email box. This makes me angry. Love the screen, when displaying the primary colors of tiles and most of the apps. On the other hand I Can't stand the washed out appearance of the IE and the screen when browsing. PTI podcast works, so big points on that one. Contacts sync is annoying, particularly since I don't have anything save for email in my Gmail contacts. My choice, my fault. I don't have a Live account and really don't want one but see no choice to download anything from the Marketplace. This is tomfoolery. Love the lightness of the phone along with the 4 inch real-estate.
Interesting so far but nothing that makes me want to replace my iPhone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just out of curiosity, where do you keep your phone contacts?
emjee87 said:
Just out of curiosity, where do you keep your phone contacts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In my head and in a backup email labeled "contacts" that sits in my inbox. I redraft and resend the email to myself when I need to update any information. I only have about 10-15 or numbers to remember.
I like the OS very much. I think it has great potential, great upside. But the hardware side still leaves much to be desired against the gold standard Apple offering.
bmstrong said:
In my head and in a backup email labeled "contacts" that sits in my inbox. I redraft and resend the email to myself when I need to update any information. I only have about 10-15 or numbers to remember.
I like the OS very much. I think it has great potential, great upside. But the hardware side still leaves much to be desired against the gold standard Apple offering.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"redraft and resend"
What?
Really?
mcmexican said:
I agree with all of you but for me there have been some things I just don't understand why MS did what they did.
Notifications - There is a noticeable space at the top of the screen that hardly used. It is sometimes used for notifications as in text messages but not for email or twitter notifications.
Keyboard - In portrait its on par with iphone and even MT Android but why not a full landscape keyboard have you guys seen it? The empty space at the top of the screen is there on the side now and wasted.
Phone - 2 keystrokes to get a dialer why and to make it worse why no smart dialing in the dialer. I know you can use the search button but its not the same.
From a hardware perspective the phone is great light and long battery life so far. I just wish MS would have polished it a little more I dont really see a lot of Apple users jumping ship to it. Just my 2cents
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree about the notifications. I would of love to seen Twitter or Facebook notification heck even e-mail for that matter pop up and have a option to disable it if need be. I'm sure this is something coming in the future.
Also agree about the keyboard. I am shaking my head and wondering why there is a significant amount of unused space on the screen in landscape mode.
More active live tiles. I would love to have a live tile that would update the weather for me. I'm sure there is a app in the making but it would be nice to see that.
Also...there is no YouTube app? (I'm not talking about the YouTube that brings you to the mobile version of YouTube) Is that just a way for Google to stick it to M$?
Update:
Spoke to soon about the live tile for the weather. Weather bug has an app out for it.
AllTheWay said:
I agree about the notifications. I would of love to seen Twitter or Facebook notification heck even e-mail for that matter pop up and have a option to disable it if need be. I'm sure this is something coming in the future.
Also agree about the keyboard. I am shaking my head and wondering why there is a significant amount of unused space on the screen in landscape mode.
More active live tiles. I would love to have a live tile that would update the weather for me. I'm sure there is a app in the making but it would be nice to see that.
Also...there is no YouTube app? (I'm not talking about the YouTube that brings you to the mobile version of YouTube) Is that just a way for Google to stick it to M$?
Update:
Spoke to soon about the live tile for the weather. Weather bug has an app out for it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been using Lazy Worm as my YouTube app in the mean time. It doesn't have all the functionality of the other YouTube apps yet, but it does keep the theme of WP7 and it works well enough.
i know this is an old thread, but i will add my 2 cents.
i owned the 3G, the 3GS, and the iphone 4. the worst of the 3 was the iphone 4. it was practically worthless as a phone. i dropped 80% of my calls with it. i returned it after a few weeks because of this.
the 3G was fine and i owned it for a year and a half, but it was really slow. the 3GS was my favorite by far, and really i have very few complaints with it.
obviously the iphone was revolutionary. it started the wave of multi-touch displays and the app world was pretty phenomenal. but the truth is that technology is uncapped now and apple doesn't have the entire market, nor should they.
while MS has some glitches, they were to be expected. the marketplace doesn't provide the number of apps that the iphone market does, but how cool is it that you get to own a focus now and be on the ground-level and see new and refreshing apps as they come to life? i find that pretty cool.
my main reason for switching was just to do something different, and so far i am very pleased with the phone. i think it does everything the iphone does and potentially more, you just have to be willing to learn new techniques as you would with any new phone.
Gonna try to not repeat what others have already said.
Loving WP7 OS and everything it does. Fresh start, smooth UI and a great design paradigm. Missing some features but nothing has been a deal breaker yet. I can tell it's just a matter of time (short time) and a lot of these features will land in the OS.
Focus is OK. It's not great. I don't like the camera as much as I did on my iPhone 4. I used to take a ton of pics with my iPhone 4 but not as much now with the focus. You have to tinker with the settings to get similar quality pics and even then not all the time. Specially in low light settings, the iPhone crushed the focus clarity-wise. In day light, they are mostly the same.
If I could have WP7 on my iPhone 4, I would be extremely happy. But that's not the case. WP7 is good enough to make up for me missing my iPhone 4's hardware so far though.
The camera is actually the reason I've shelved the Focus until there's an update for it. I have to change a bunch of settings to get a half decent picture out of it and then, of course, it doesn't save those settings so I have to do it....every.....single..........time. Hard to believe Microsoft hasn't released a fix for this by now. Well, no...not really. Typical Microsoft, actually. And the hardware button isn't doing the phone any favors, either. The iPhone's on-screen button is nice because it takes no pressure so the phone doesn't budge when you take the picture. The hardware button means you can't help but move the camera when taking a picture and if it's not taken with plenty of light good luck getting a picture that isn't smeared. And finally there's the complete lack of any real features. No panoramic shots, no effects, nothing. I use the camera all the time and the Focus' software makes it almost useless so I went back to the iPhone.
nazeeh said:
Gonna try to not repeat what others have already said.
Loving WP7 OS and everything it does. Fresh start, smooth UI and a great design paradigm. Missing some features but nothing has been a deal breaker yet. I can tell it's just a matter of time (short time) and a lot of these features will land in the OS.
Focus is OK. It's not great. I don't like the camera as much as I did on my iPhone 4. I used to take a ton of pics with my iPhone 4 but not as much now with the focus. You have to tinker with the settings to get similar quality pics and even then not all the time. Specially in low light settings, the iPhone crushed the focus clarity-wise. In day light, they are mostly the same.
If I could have WP7 on my iPhone 4, I would be extremely happy. But that's not the case. WP7 is good enough to make up for me missing my iPhone 4's hardware so far though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To be honest, I have to strongly disagree....I am a photographer, not a pro, but lots of experience and the iphone 4 camera is NOT that good. Im actually able to produce much nicer results with the focus now than my friends iphone 4. Downside is the focus doesn't save the settings you use...which will be fixed. The iphone 4 quality is WAY to oversaturated...Im not saying the focus quality is amazing...but when I change my settings its definetly acceptable quality. EV and ISO can be your best friends when used properly.
to me the focus wins hands down, my friend who is a self confessed iphone/ iphone 4 BIG time fanboy, has had all the other iphones he had got his iphone 4 like a week before he met up with me tooled around on my samsung focus for like a hour packed up his iphone 4 went to at&t store and exchanged it for a samsung focus....
Paolo01 said:
"redraft and resend"
What?
Really?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was my thought maybe it is time for him to setup a Hotmail account,
iPhone vs Focus
I have no regrets switching from iPhone 3GS and 4G to Focus.
They both have pluses and minuses, but I thing WinMo 7 is a new OS and the market place is catching up quickly.
What I miss in WinMo 7 is the customization and low level access (e.g. registry, file system).
1. how do I turn off mobile web settings? I hate the mobile view.
2. what's the screen size so I can make a picture fit the whole screen as a background image.
3. Was I smart to pay $533 for this today, with the Xoom and a Tab 2 in the works?
- personally, would install dolphin browser, under the options it lets you turn off mobile view.
- screen res = 1024x600
- that questions a bit ambiguous... for no contract, with a contract? imo, when the Xoom or Tab 2 came out, would you then wait for the next gen to come out? (just my thought... )
1) Definitely install Dolphin HD. It has all the settings for 'user-agent'. Turns the Galaxy Tab into what it should be.. totally awesome! (Cannot believe Samsung have not yet fixed their default browser.. NAUGHTY SAMSUNG! )
2) The Screen res is 1024x600 but if you have the background moving when you swipe across, which I think looks a lot nicer, you'll want a bigger image. Just Go Large!
3) When it comes to teck, there is ALWAYS a new product round the corner. Get on the train and hang on.. The Galaxy Tab 1 really is a very competent little machine once you get all the tweaking and foibles out of the way. $533, sounds like a bargain to me, and I have to say I'm a little under-whelmed about the Xoom's average screen res.. It's only marginally bigger than the Tab's (1280x800).. and I prefer the 7inch form factor. Plus the Xoom weighs a lot more than the dinky little Tab.
In general - Love My Tab!
Thanks, guys...I installed Miren and I love it. I was able to set the user agent to one that I like. It's also tabbed browsing....Sweet! I also added the launcher I have on my EVO and love it (ADW ex). I am thinking I may return this and get the Tab 2...then be happy with that. I don't think I am willing to foot the bill for a Xoom. Also, I read it's slightly bigger than the iPad.
What I like about this 7" screen is this. I have been placing it in my inside coat pocket. When I leave the house, I tether it to my EVO. When I get places...I pull it out and use it. With the iPad or Xoom, I wouldn't be able to do that...simply cause you need a case or something to hold that big boy. I think the tab is where I wanna be.
Real quick...I change my wallpaper to 1024X600 and it still only gives me the small orange box to select a section of the image. I can't for the life of me figure out how to get the whole image to display.
Yep.
I use ADW too and by the looks of things it will only let you choose square areas.
Go Larger than you need and Crop! Nice big fat image.. The aspect ratio is correct so no worries.
spartacusrex said:
Go Larger than you need and Crop! Nice big fat image.. The aspect ratio is correct so no worries.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Am I doing the crop on the Tab or crop the image in Photoshop and add to Tab? Forgive my questions, but I have tried sizing and cropping and I just can't figure it out.
Can you attach one of your images that fit so I can see the aspect ratio of it?
I've noticed Xscope is the fastest; however it has its issue. Pinch to zoom any flash screen will behave undesired result.
I had the same problem with the DroidX. I purchased dodol Wallpaper Maker from the market. It will resize any wallpaper and use the whole image when scrolling. I was frustrated by the stock software not being able to apply a wallpaper properly, but am glad I found dodol. Its actually a pretty good app and has worked great on my tab.
The orange box for selecting the wallpaper size is retarded. It never fits the whole picture, especially if the aspect ratio isn't square (and our fracking screens aren't fracking square!!) and is glitchy. I've never even tried on the tab as dodol transferred right over.
EVOme said:
Real quick...I change my wallpaper to 1024X600 and it still only gives me the small orange box to select a section of the image. I can't for the life of me figure out how to get the whole image to display.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sent from my SCH-I800 using XDA App
Mandelbrot.Benoit said:
The orange box for selecting the wallpaper size is retarded.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, It is...It drives me nucking futz! I am going to buy that app you just mentioned to see how it works. Thanks for the info!
EVOme said:
Thanks, guys...I installed Miren and I love it. I was able to set the user agent to one that I like. It's also tabbed browsing....Sweet! I also added the launcher I have on my EVO and love it (ADW ex). I am thinking I may return this and get the Tab 2...then be happy with that. I don't think I am willing to foot the bill for a Xoom. Also, I read it's slightly bigger than the iPad.
What I like about this 7" screen is this. I have been placing it in my inside coat pocket. When I leave the house, I tether it to my EVO. When I get places...I pull it out and use it. With the iPad or Xoom, I wouldn't be able to do that...simply cause you need a case or something to hold that big boy. I think the tab is where I wanna be.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=950696 , a look at the GT2 ... agree with them some of the comments, why WOULD i want to "downgrade" to a 10" when the 7" fits my pockets so much better? i know the tablet market is becoming highly competitive, but as one poster (and apologies, cant find the post now) said - the IPad and the GT are tablets, and thats where the similarities end. they were built and aimed at pretty separate markets...". i agree to a large extent, and just hope that Samsung keeps this in mind (well, that hope's dashed for the GT 2 )
The image size needs to be 1200 by
1024. In addition you need to use the program gTab (search these forums) to install the image at the correct resolution and avoid the yellow box.
Sent from my GT-P1000 using XDA App
Does anybody know what the default background image resolution will be for the Xoom?
I had gotten the impression from the demo videos that Honeycomb didnt do the whole "pan slightly left and right when moving through the homescreens" thing, but AndroidPolice just posted a few backgrounds that were ripped out of the SDK and their resolution is 1920x1280... which Im having a hard time making sense of. Most notably, the fact that the height is off so much.
I think it's going to be 1280x800, same as the screen resolution.
Maybe the wallpapers in the SDK are covering the xtra large resolution.
And maybe the wallpapers in the final Xoom will be at 1280x800.
let me try...
when you turn the xoom into portrait mode, the height effectively becomes 1280px. So any wallpaper would have to have a height of 1280px to fit the screen.
I read that tegra 2 devices support full hdmi out...meaning if you have an hd tv hooked up to your device running at 1920x1080, the wallpaper would need a width of 1920px to fit the tv....
creating wallpapers at 1920x1280 covers all situations...
sounds good in theory...anyone have a different perspective?
Ahhh, someone else asking a similar question. Although I've posted this elsewhere, and since I'm not the thread starter, I'll post this here...
I’m about to purchase a Xoom, and simply stated, the Xoom has 5 ‘desktops’ that you can ‘pan across.’
I’ve seen a few videos of the Xoom on YouTube, where the ‘wallpaper’ shifts slightly when you pan right or left to another ‘desktop.’
I plan on using this device for a unique purpose, and when I pan right or left, I want the entire background to change.
For the sake of this post, let’s assume I want each desktop wallpaper to be a different color…red, blue, green, yellow, and orange. Further, when I pan, I don’t want to see anything but THAT one color.
So again, the distinction here is…
1) A slight shift in the ‘wallpaper’
Versus
2) a whole new image (color or otherwise) on each of the 5 ‘desktops.’
I'm looking for number 2. Is this possible?
I think the second comment was the good one, it's when the Xoom is put into portrait mode, I should have thought about that.
About the "a whole new image on each of the 5 desktops", I think we'll have to wait for a developer to make a tablet Home replacement with this option.
513 said:
I think the second comment was the good one, it's when the Xoom is put into portrait mode, I should have thought about that.
About the "a whole new image on each of the 5 desktops", I think we'll have to wait for a developer to make a tablet Home replacement with this option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bummer, that seemed like a simple enough request. lol.
sadiqa122 said:
let me try...
when you turn the xoom into portrait mode, the height effectively becomes 1280px. So any wallpaper would have to have a height of 1280px to fit the screen.
I read that tegra 2 devices support full hdmi out...meaning if you have an hd tv hooked up to your device running at 1920x1080, the wallpaper would need a width of 1920px to fit the tv....
creating wallpapers at 1920x1280 covers all situations...
sounds good in theory...anyone have a different perspective?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That makes a lot of sense. The idea of handling portrait also completely escaped me. Thanks
The only thing that still sounds fishy would be the re-scaling the UI resolution to fit the TV, rather than simply scaling to fit. I would think that would (seemingly) open the door to all sorts of shifting and alignment issues that they would have had to handle.
Hmm... well, so much for the idea of using the posted default backgrounds to identify "the" size. Downloaded a few and I'm seeing 2 at 1920x1408 and at least one at 1920x1280
Hmmm...Well if 1920 is the default height for portrait mode, and 1280 (or greater) is the width. Maybe the variation in width causes a "broader" slide when swiping left to right (so more of the image is exposed)?? So you could concievably create a wallpaper that's 1920 x 4000?
Hi everyone. I have been fighting with the Galaxy tab 7.7 since I got it over the issue of its design as a tablet and not a "large phone". The 7.7 screen is too small to be usable as tablet and despite all sorts of attempts to change fonts sizes etc, the reality is an endless list of the apps I use are poorly displayed n the screen with items too big or small, check boxes out of place, ridiculously small areas of the screen and other too big or everything just plainly a gigantic mess.Coming from an original Galaxy Tab 7 and now using a newer 7 Plus, both these units display every item on the screen perfectly proportioned and as it should, because they handle everything as large phone display, NOT a tablet.
How can I have the 7.7 behave the same? Originally with Honeycomb all attempts to fix the issue were a disaster and the only thing I was successful was in tweaking the DPI enough to make some items legible but not too much and then loose the bottom task bar that automatically vanishes past it gets a certain size. Now with ICS, the problems seems to be the same.. the 7.7 is still in tablet mode and not in phone mode like its 7.0 siblings.
I tried editing my build.prop, removed the lcd density line altogether, and changed:
ro.build.characteristics=tablet
to
ro.build.characteristics=phone
But still no luck. Can someone guide me to a proper and easy way to covert natively, the display of the 7.7 to phone mode like the 7.0 and 7.0/2 and Plus?
Thanks a lot in advance for the advice
There are many who would agree with you, but there doesn't seem to be a simple answer to increase the size of the fonts in a workable way. I had hoped ICS would fix this issue, but it didn't. Mind you, some people seem to like the small fonts.
But the issue is NOT one of fonts! I dont care about fonts! I care about that in many applications elements are all so displaced and badly proportional that they are unusable. Dolphin browser? Almost cant type on the address bar because of its size and menus! FoxNews? The thumbnails are so small you can hardly select the video you want to see while the rest 80% of the screen space is just white with nothing! CnetTV? Each video selection is millimeters in size while most of the screen is just a black blob of unused space. And the list of apps foes on and on. It just doesn't work and when U compare screen arrangements and filling from a galaxy tab 7, 7/2 or 7/Plus you clearly see something is terrible wrong on the 7.7. Its just disaster to use! This makes no sense.
Screenshots?
Sent from my GT-P6800 using xda premium
have you tried different browsers to view your favorite sites? and also switch between 'mobile' and 'full' site views in each browser till you find one that can be the lesser of the evils.
i believe the stock Samsung ICS browser has a 'force zoom' option for site controlled views too.... might want to try that out.
good luck...
and post your results here too.. keep us updated with your solutions.
thanks.....
VeEuzUKY said:
It just doesn't work and when U compare screen arrangements and filling from a galaxy tab 7, 7/2 or 7/Plus you clearly see something is terrible wrong on the 7.7. Its just disaster to use! This makes no sense.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry for the off-topic but I am tired of seeing the same topic and hate statement again and again. You should have seen what Honeycomb looked like on this device before buying it. I believe more people agree original GT 7 has had wrong interface, a.k.a. Big Phone. And the GT 7.7's tablet-style interface is correct for this size.
Posting numerous times how un-*****-usable and horrible and trash it is will not change this. Just stop it already or sell your tablet.