Develop Bugs

CM6 vs Vaelpak

I am thinking about flashing CM6 this weekend just to see what it's like. I have been on Vaelpak 2.2 and been very happy with it. I tried some of the sense roms first (Baked and Myn mainly) and didn't think I would like a non-sense rom but I am digging Vael w/Launcher Pro and haven't really missed sense.
I know that the ultimate test will be to try it out myself and I plan to. I am also not trying to start another blanket "which one is best thread" but I would like to hear some thoughts from some of you Rom Warriors that have spent some decent time with both to see what I should expect as far as these two are concerned.
Other factors: I am not in a 4G area, HDMI isn't important (right now anyways) and I never listed to the FM radio anyways. I also have one of the Chinese batteries on the way, so as long as the weight of it don't scare me off, I hopefully won't have battery issues with either rom.
With those factors in the mix, can some of you offer your informed opinions of what I should expect to see/miss if I flash CM6?
I think both have new versions cooking (see what I did thar) so just give me your thoughts on the current versions.
Thanks a bunch!

I am doing that right now but I am coming from Fresh. So far don't like it. No Market- so far, I found a "fix" but it doesn't work, so I have a phone with web and that is about it!! Need to search some more but tied up with kids etc...
-Art

HTCinPA said:
I am doing that right now but I am coming from Fresh. So far don't like it. No Market- so far, I found a "fix" but it doesn't work, so I have a phone with web and that is about it!! Need to search some more but tied up with kids etc...
-Art
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you install gapps, per chance?

AOSP is something you either like or dislike ... there is no middle ground. I have used CM6 extensively, but I also maintain a nice "Sense" rom, for whenever I'm in a 4g area. On that point, I may not need it much longer, as CM6 will be going 4g very shortly. Also looks like HDMI will be working soon ... FM Radio has already been added.
Basic aosp, like in Cyanogen's rom is very quick, very smooth, and just works. You will hear about people who are having an issue here and there, but it's almost always "user error". That doesn't mean that CM6 is perfect, but it is highly evolved and almost there.
Most of the people coming from "sense" will not like it. Although it doesn't have all the widgets and stuff ... almost everything can be replicated. For example, I like the look of the clock/weather widget and so I use "fancy widget", an almost exact replica. I also like launcher pro, and it works perfectly. I could go on and on, but you will need to decide for yourself.
Do a nand back up of whatever you're currently using, and jump in. And don't give up after a couple of hours. As with everything new, there is a learning curve ... and you should do some reading/exploring. Ask lots of questions ... there is plenty of help available ... all be it, with the usual XDA "style". I will leave you with this final thought ... Cyanogen is without a doubt, the foremost Android developer ever.

CM6 will be smoother, less lockups and just overall run better. I haven't run Vael's so I don't know if he uses AOSP contacts and dialer, but I prefer the AOSP contacts and text apps. I download Dialer One from the market to get T9 dialing.
Integration with facebook contacts and twitter is much better on CM6. CM6 may have 4G working soon, FM Radio is working now, and HDMI is close as well. The camera app on CM6 is leagues better than any of the other camera apps.
Just make sure when you install cm6 that you install the Gapps zip since you need that to get maps, market, gmail and the basic google services.

I have a lot of time with both roms. Vaelpak's rom is fantastic and his support is quick and spot on. probably the developer that is the most reachable when you have a problem or question. Very smooth, stable, and fast. CM6 takes a lot of fine tuning to get all the apps you want and get it set up to exactly the way you want it. Its so damn fast and smooth that people in 4g areas run the rom anyway because it's performance out weighs the lack of 4g and hdmi. And snap's kernels and his support team are second to none. When 4g makes it to CM I will run that rom as my daily exclusively on my EVO until the new dual core phones come out or the EVO 2.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

What is the appeal if CM7?

Hello. I am fairly new to the Android root/ROM universe, and have a few questions.
I recently flashed the most recent version of CM7, and after spending a few hours with it, immediately reverted back to the stock UI.
I'm going to list a few reasons I disliked it, and maybe you can tell me if I'm just doing something wrong.
-- Only five screens? I have my apps stored perfectly in the seven screens given to me in stock, and hated the limitations of only five.
-- The entire look of the UI feels outdated. Comparing just the top bar with battery level and clock and such, CM7/Gingerbread's version looks like they've stepped back a few years in design.
-- I lost my Sense widgets. I know this is a matter of preference, but is there any way I can flash them with CM7?
-- Whenever I push the power button to unlock the phone, there is a delay in the screen turning on. With the stock, the screen turns on almost instantly.
-- I can't sync my contacts for some reason. Maybe I'm just an idiot though, I don't know.
While I very much dislike these things, I'm open to what you have to say. Maybe there's something about it I'm missing?

ejsholly said:
Hello. I am fairly new to the Android root/ROM universe, and have a few questions.
I recently flashed the most recent version of CM7, and after spending a few hours with it, immediately reverted back to the stock UI.
I'm going to list a few reasons I disliked it, and maybe you can tell me if I'm just doing something wrong.
-- Only five screens? I have my apps stored perfectly in the seven screens given to me in stock, and hated the limitations of only five.
-- The entire look of the UI feels outdated. Comparing just the top bar with battery level and clock and such, CM7/Gingerbread's version looks like they've stepped back a few years in design.
-- I lost my Sense widgets. I know this is a matter of preference, but is there any way I can flash them with CM7?
-- Whenever I push the power button to unlock the phone, there is a delay in the screen turning on. With the stock, the screen turns on almost instantly.
-- I can't sync my contacts for some reason. Maybe I'm just an idiot though, I don't know.
While I very much dislike these thigs, I'm open to what you have to say. Maybe there's simething about it I'm missing?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you should switch back to sense because the widgets you have to get replacements for in the market and the delay has to do with the kernel. syncing contacts is done with the facebook app from the market or other apps. The look, you could install launcher pro and get 7 screens. I personally like sense because it feels better.

With CM7 you can customize pretty much the ENTIRE ROM.
It's really cool if you're willing to put some time into it to get it the way you like.
With the 5 screen thing.... You can download a different launcher and change that no problem. I recommend ADW EX or Launcher Pro.
But if you want something basically already perfect with little or no work needed on it.... Try out Skyraider 4.0

A big reason a lot of people like CM7 is that it's Gingerbread aka, android 2.3.3
Any Sense ROM will be 2.2 at the latest.
The default launcher CM7 comes with is ADW. You can change it to Launcher Pro (downloadable from the market), honestly when I first flashed CM7 I reverted back to a sense ROM just because I didn't like the ADW launcher and didn't know you could change it out.
You will lose your sense widgets but if you look, there are comparable widgets you can get that are very close to the Sense widgets. Also if you buy Launcher Pro Plus, they provide a bunch of cloned Sense widgets.
The delay in the screen I can't comment for, mine seems instant. I don't have that animation though, that thing has always bugged me. You may want to try a different kernel (chad's incredikernel is excellent) to increase battery life and performance.
There are also theme's for CM7 so you can actually change the way the top bar looks, I prefer how it looks and haven't seen any older style phones with that type of look but everyone has their preference.
And another side point, gingerbread has a few security fixes that Froyo is open to. There's been a few apps exploiting this in dangerous ways, so gingerbread is a smart choice if you're worried about that.
+ ADW and Launcher pro, there are settings where you can add more or less screens.
If you like Sense then you should definitely stick with it, just don't be shy to try out new ROM's.

On your home screen hit menu then edit. You can add home screens for a total of 7.
Search the market for cm7 themes and you can change the look to something different.
You can't get the actual sense widgets but like has been said you can get close with apps in the market.
Syncmypix in the market lets you sync your contacts to facebook friend photos.
If you still don't like it I would you with skyraider 4.0
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA App

Number of home screens is easily changed, I like to keep it simple and go with 3. Contacts should be synced with Google, all mine came back after signing in to my Google account. Sense Widgets can be emulated with launcher pro, for the stock clock/weather widget use fancy widget pro with HTC skin. Screen wake issues are kernel related, you can swap different kernels to see which works best with your phone. CM7 has the most themes out of any rom so its not hard to find something to fit your taste although I personally like the way gingerbread looks stock, to me anything below android 2.3 looks outdated.
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA App

ejsholly said:
Hello. I am fairly new to the Android root/ROM universe, and have a few questions.
I recently flashed the most recent version of CM7, and after spending a few hours with it, immediately reverted back to the stock UI.
I'm going to list a few reasons I disliked it, and maybe you can tell me if I'm just doing something wrong.
-- Only five screens? I have my apps stored perfectly in the seven screens given to me in stock, and hated the limitations of only five.
-- The entire look of the UI feels outdated. Comparing just the top bar with battery level and clock and such, CM7/Gingerbread's version looks like they've stepped back a few years in design.
-- I lost my Sense widgets. I know this is a matter of preference, but is there any way I can flash them with CM7?
-- Whenever I push the power button to unlock the phone, there is a delay in the screen turning on. With the stock, the screen turns on almost instantly.
-- I can't sync my contacts for some reason. Maybe I'm just an idiot though, I don't know.
While I very much dislike these thigs, I'm open to what you have to say. Maybe there's simething about it I'm missing?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
CM7 comes default with ADW... you can change it up to 7.
The reason the UI feels outdated is because your used to Sense, it's one of the selling points for HTC, and why a lot of people buy there devices. It's one of the reasons I bought the Incredible(originally..)
Your right, the sense widgets are gorgeous... but you can definitely find ways to make your homescreens on CM7 gorgeous too.
You can change your screen transition settings with the Spare Parts app... and flash a custom kernel that takes care of that.
You need to enable sync under Accounts and Sync under your settings... make sure you have contacts clicked... and make sure you have the facebook app... a lot of contacts are synced from there as well.
Sense is an overlay from HTC in which consumes more resources on your phone, and contains way more bloat. CM7 is a ROM in which has the most basic of apps pre installed in it, with tweaks you can do to your UI. Pretty much what you would refer to as Vanilla android.

I think the philosophy behind CM is that it's for customizers. You have to be willing to spend hours going through option screens, and downloading mods and themes to see what you like. If that's not you, CM7 is NOT for you. I cannot stress this enough. I've talked to too many people about rooting/switching ROMs, and they don't get it.

My answers in bold
ejsholly said:
Hello. I am fairly new to the Android root/ROM universe, and have a few questions.
I recently flashed the most recent version of CM7, and after spending a few hours with it, immediately reverted back to the stock UI.
I'm going to list a few reasons I disliked it, and maybe you can tell me if I'm just doing something wrong.
-- Only five screens? I have my apps stored perfectly in the seven screens given to me in stock, and hated the limitations of only five.
Easily changed to 7, as stated above.
-- The entire look of the UI feels outdated. Comparing just the top bar with battery level and clock and such, CM7/Gingerbread's version looks like they've stepped back a few years in design.
I know a lot of great themes for CM7; a great place to start is Honeybread of DarkGinger.
-- I lost my Sense widgets. I know this is a matter of preference, but is there any way I can flash them with CM7?
You might like Regina Launcher or SPB Shell 3D. Both are in the Market, offer 7 homescreens if you want that, and have some great widgets included. Regina is free, and SPB Shell is $15. However, SPB has a lot more widgets.
-- Whenever I push the power button to unlock the phone, there is a delay in the screen turning on. With the stock, the screen turns on almost instantly.
Non-issue for me, on CM7.0.2.1 with Tiamat 3.3.8 noSBC
-- I can't sync my contacts for some reason. Maybe I'm just an idiot though, I don't know.
I use MyBackup Root in the Market to back up all my data before flashing a new ROM.
While I very much dislike these thigs, I'm open to what you have to say. Maybe there's simething about it I'm missing?
As many have already said, CM7 is all about customization. Don't like stock lockscreen style? Change it. Don't like stock theme? Install a new one. The possibilities are endless. I, too, was a Sense lover. However, I took the time to find replacements for the Sense widgets I liked, and from there I didn't look back. For the Sense Weather Clock, I recommend GO Weather. IMO, it looks just as good, lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hope I did a decent job explaining some things.
If you need help, you can always PM me and I'll usually get back to you within a couple days

That GO Weather widget is awesome, really the only thing I missed from stock sense rom
I like CM7 because it offers better performance, battery life, features, customizations, updates,.....the list could go on. I just like it. I also updated the baseband radio on my Dinc as well as updated the kernel from the CM7 kernel to the latest incredikernel. This has been an awesome combination for me so far.

Rant about hardcore users, productivity and the Sense launcher

There are some things I can't get my head around.
From the screenshots of all the cool user ROMs and themes available it's clear they've been designed by clever people who use their phones a lot. So why does it appear from these shots they use the Sense launcher, and their default home screen has a big Sense clock and hardly any apps?
Presumably, like me, these people are pulling their phones out their pocket and putting them back there many times a day. Presumably also, like me, these people use a number of apps and widgets in a day that hits two figures. With this in mind, I want to be able to get to those apps and widgets easily and quickly. I.e., with as few swipes/clicks/screen presses as possible. I'm sure these people do too, right?
So that rules out the Sense launcher doesn't it, with its 4x4 grid limitation and non-resizeable widgets. Not to mention its time-consuming spin-in carousel effect every time the phone's security screen is unlocked. I haven't found anything useful the Sense launcher does that another launcher can't, at least after downloading other apps.
Furthermore, who really keeps that big clock on their home screen, when 1. you probably wear a watch; and 2. you can see the time on the top right. It seems like a silly amount of screen 'estate' to use.
Or is it that these people in fact have a more practical default home screen and it's just tradition to post the screenshots they show?
Finally, why do so many of these otherwise brilliant ROMs not mod the battery icon to show how much battery is remaining, percentage-wise? Appreciate this can be modded using the kitchen website. But surely everyone wants this info from the off, so is it not included?

Well, I'd never call myself a hardcore user - although I believe that term should be defined too, because I'm not sure it's interpreted the same way by everyone. That aside though, here's what I think on tinkering with the launchers. You buy an Android phone - be it of any manufacturer. In general, and especially considering the top level models, it can be said that there isn't much diversity hardware-wise. What does make a difference is the UI, the services integrated and how the phone handles them. (And let's exclude synthetic benchmarks for now, I don't believe they represent real-life scenarios.) So, someone knowledgeable going for an HTC device (meaning it's not chosen because of price or because of how "pretty" it is), imo, means they're attracted to Sense: those little nuances that do make the difference. Ditch the launcher and you've pretty much ditched at least about half of what Sense - of what HTC is about. But then, why did you go for HTC in the first place? And the same can be said with Samsung and SE as well, those who quite heavily modify the Android UI. Sure, you can do it, you can dump the whole customized everything...but can doesn't mean that you should: if you're a "hardcore user", however we define the rest of it, you know you'll have an easier life with a phone that runs stock Android, there's no point in choosing something customized (read: more complicated), with risk of locked bootloaders and whatnots.
And you're right: you can get the puzzle pieces from the Market (or elsewhere) to create a Sense-like experience. That's because Sense offers so many good things in one package that ppl are aiming at re-creating it, but ask this: if you want to re-create it, why not spare yourself the hassle and use the real thing right out of the box?
As for the clock: I haven't even owned, much less worn a watch for at least about ten years, nor do I feel the need. Actually they seem pretty redundant now that mobiles have become as complex as they are and being carried everywhere. But as for the battery percentage - I couldn't agree more, I wish I knew why HTC itself doesn't make it available at least as an option.

In addition to the great points made by breathlesstao, I'll add the following:
Many devs concentrate on performance, stability and removing bloat when developing their ROMs, so if you want UI mods like battery percentage etc then the option is there for you to do it yourself. It would be nice if HTC could add percentage but they do have a battery widget that shows it.
As for on screen icons, I suppose many people like a sleek looking interace with not a lot of clutter. Plus, the more you have on the homescreens the more likely you are to experience lag when scrolling between the screens. Personally I have every app I use often on one of the 7 screens and if I need anything else it's only a few presses away in the all apps menu. I like it to be set up with each page having similar types of app, so on one I have music / media related stuff, another tools / settings type stuff... etc. See my helicopter view screenshot below for an example. My screen aren't crammed, but then they're not too sparse either.
I actually like the flipclock as it integrates local weather and just generally looks cool... I also haven't had a watch since the 1990s.
Choice and the ability to customise things are part of the many joys of Android, you set it up your way and use it your way.

The replies are right in. As for the launcher I have people coming to me all the time cause their phone is slow and lagging and whenbi unlock screen they have dozens of shortcuts all over the screen. Of course its gonna be slow when it need to reload a the launcher and all those Widgets. I swear some look so much like an icrap with all the shorcuts when I see it I have to double check. Lmao
As for the battery icon, you have to edit the coding for the file to add the extra 150 images that make up the % battery and charging icons and the bigger the file......
Now the clock well to be honest I remove the clock from the top bar any chance I get as I see it as pointless. We have Widgets for that.
As for sense it has its pluses like everything is prebuilt in. Social networking (not sure as I don't use FB at all) built into contacts and all the other handy apps that it comes with. I mostly run a senseless Tom my self but that is only due to it be long a resource hog. But the contacts and dialer work so well together that I have not found a better dialer/contact combo. The sense 3 lockscreen is just too good. I have widget locker but prefer the sense lock screen

Some very good replies, and here is my take, i've been modding my phone(s) now for a few years now (Since the Windows Mobile 5 Genre) and I would say function is not the only thing i look for. I want "coolness", "graphics"... I love the way the flip happens when you unlock a Sense ROM ..I strive to make it smoother !
Having said that I do resort to simplicity at times however, and you can too. have a look at Cyanogenmod and get Launcher Pro.. Ain't nothing simpler than that with the most "Function".
The ROM above will satisfy anyone who loves Function over Heavyness and also it has the option of showing percentage battery amongst plethora of other customizations neatly laid out in the settings menu.
But sometimes that just isn't enough for me..I want a ROM with More......Sense framework is probably the best Integration of everything I've ever seen. Yes its huge ! But then...this phone ain't that weak either...It is a beast
That is why you have an "option" my friend...an option to choose non-sense ROM or a Sense ROM. You could go for a Sense ROM (if you like all the integration of sense) and get yourself a different launcher from the market if you choose..customize it with the battery percentage mod.... yourself... The Dev's like to leave the option customize some aspects of their ROM's to the users... mostly because its personal preference.
The Sense Rom cooks, mostly, give u the most basic thing... A highly optimized ROM with a stock-like UI. You can choose to customize it the way you like ! After all thats what XDA is all about ..do it youself modding..

Hi all,
Your responses are appreciated and it's nice to have a polite conversation about this!
You're right breathlesstao, what the hell's a hardcore user. I just meant anyone who'd flash a ROM, root their phone, perhaps mod some element themself.
So I guess many of you - suprisingly for me - are happy to swipe between screens to get to their apps or widgets. You like what less clutter for doing this. Can see your point of view! I don't experience any lag though, zelendel, for packing my homescreens.
I suppose it was assumed that if you're more knowledgeable you'd be aware of apps and widgets with more options and functionality than the Sense launcher and its own widgets, and choose to use the former instead.
To be clear, I do like using other HTC features such as their contacts and dialler. It's just the homescreen layout I'm ranting about.
In particular for me, a good GUI, as well as looking pleasant, is as simple and quick to to use as possible. So when, for example, I'm going for a lunchbreak at work it's satisfying to be able to put my music or podcast-player on in a second without having to hunt it down.

i keep meaning to try a non sense rom but i like virtuous unity 2.39 sense 3.0 rom so much i´m loathe to part with it.
i know it only takes twenty minutes to go back to it but i just find it does everything in such a pleasant manner.. its smooth fast responsive and most of all it looks the buisness. plus as others have said you dont have to use all that sense stuff if you dont want to.
for music i do tend to use the stock player but i have been playing with other ones of late same with video but things like the clock and weather widgets for me are much more polished on the sense versions than anything comparible available from the market. plus i´ve not had any problem running low on ram or anything, the dhd is more than capable of handling sense 3.0 and whatever else one cares to throw at it without any hiccups

Circle launcher 1x1 widgets are the best
Sent from my Inspire 4G using xda premium

killersloth, thanks for the heads up - it looks very useful.
ponk2k, you know I also use VU (2.39) but with Launcher Pro - have uninstalled the Sense widgets that aren't connected to anything else. You probably think what's the point! To answer my own question, I wanted a custom ROM for things like battery life optimisation, and the VU team's branding has seemed more user-friendly to me than the non-Sense ROMs. Though maybe I'll try one soon. While I've got you though, can I ask if you have a problem with the brightness dimmng slowly on command in most scenarios with that ROM version? More info in my question here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1292894

Capys runny 1.5 is perfection
Sent from my Inspire 4G using xda premium

killersloth said:
Capys runny 1.5 is perfection
Sent from my Inspire 4G using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
100% bug free? I was thinking of trying it.

CitizenLee said:
100% bug free? I was thinking of trying it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just a fair warning man. No rom will be 100% bug free. That is what the stock roms are for. The roms here are for learning and trying new things. So there will always be bugs that need to be fixed. Plus some things that one person may see something a a bug while another sees it as a feature.

zelendel said:
Just a fair warning man. No rom will be 100% bug free. That is what the stock roms are for. The roms here are for learning and trying new things. So there will always be bugs that need to be fixed. Plus some things that one person may see something a a bug while another sees it as a feature.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks lol.
&by 'perfection' I definitely don't mean bugfree but it is everything I expect in a good rom. From the improvements to audio, the good battery life, and now decent skins too...
If it was bugfree what would be the fun in developing with it ?
Sent from my Inspire 4G using xda premium

zelendel said:
Just a fair warning man. No rom will be 100% bug free. That is what the stock roms are for. The roms here are for learning and trying new things. So there will always be bugs that need to be fixed. Plus some things that one person may see something a a bug while another sees it as a feature.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I meant with the basic day to day phone functions and stuff like WiFi, video playback etc. To me that's an expected level of functionality for any non beta ROM. I've flashed and tested many over the last 2.5 years of owning Android handsets so my standards are quite high

CitizenLee said:
I meant with the basic day to day phone functions and stuff like WiFi, video playback etc. To me that's an expected level of functionality for any non beta ROM. I've flashed and tested many over the last 2.5 years of owning Android handsets so my standards are quite high
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is fully functional. I believe there is the bug in camcorder still where you have to watch play.the video in the same orientation you recorded it.
Sent from my Inspire 4G using xda premium

I haven't had any problems with vu dimming slowly no. I do find that the dimming settings on the ROM are a bit brighter than on the stock ROM though but with no noticeable battery drain incurred.

Thanks will have to investigate further.

zelendel said:
Just a fair warning man. No rom will be 100% bug free. That is what the stock roms are for.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
...aaaand potentially not even those. I mean, they're made by humans as well, and humans are bound to make mistakes, aye? It happens.

The most productive thread i ever encountered !!! Thanks to OP

Why is touchwiz so "bad"

So I'm coming from a G1 and now a Nexus One, so i've always had the plain vanilla google experience.
I just purchased a Epic 4g touch and I'm worried I won't like the UI, given the fact that I use a launcher, what else will be there to possibly bother me?

Honesty I don't mind touching at all. Now I hated it on the og epic but 4.0 is pretty decent. Coming from someone who likes to use costume roms, I have been running my phone stock since lunch and I'm pretty satisfied with it.

Thanks, my plan is to not even root at first and see how that goes.
I want to keep the Nexus one to play around with until I sell it, but I kind of want the phone to work without me playing with it too much. I'm sure that'll change after a bit.

The only thing that bothers me about touchwiz is the lockscreen. And that was fixable with widget locker. I tried the various launchers but I hated how laggy/bloated they were compared to stock.

Touchwiz seems so smooth to me. I've been running stock EG30 for like a month now.
Sent from the future.

I was using launcherpro back on my Moment and I don't really see anything wrong with touchwiz on the E4GT.

I used to hate the lockscreen, but it grew on me.
I use ADW for the launcher, I just like it better.

clamknuckle said:
I used to hate the lockscreen, but it grew on me.
I use ADW for the launcher, I just like it better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use adw launcher ex. the only thing I like about touchwiz is it's speed.. it's very fast and smooth, but it reminds me too much of ios plus I set my density to 200 and touch wiz doesnt play nice at that density

graffixnyc said:
I use adw launcher ex. the only thing I like about touchwiz is it's speed.. it's very fast and smooth, but it reminds me too much of ios plus I set my density to 200 and touch wiz doesnt play nice at that density
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ADW EX here too. I like that I can adjust the size of the dock kind of like you are adjusting LCD density. I also like that you can set it to swipe to hide status bar and dock so screen is clean
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium

I used to not like TW either but it grows on you. I ised it for a month or so and now i went to launcher pro just because i want widgets for facebook twitter messages ect and i love the 3d app launcher

Yeah, I forgot SPB Shell 3D runs really well on this phone..sooo smooth
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk

Touchwiz, or any interface for that matter, is not bad. The problem comes from something called fragmentation. Google invests millions of dollars into developing Android. They think it through and do their best to make sure everything works together.
And then companies come along, with less money, less testing, and developers who didn't write the base code, and modify a bunch of stuff, frequently not improving it but just modifying it. And then developers writing apps have to sort through so much code finding bugs caused by the various undocumented modifications.
And then when Google releases an update, the update is delayed because the manufacturer has to figure out and test their own custom UI. If the UI's added something, it would be worth the wait, but they usually just change things that didn't need to be changed.

Didn't like it really, it's not bad but I guess I see no reason to switch from my launcher pro that I'm used to.
I tried go launcher but it has so much crap I couldn't deal with either.
Samsungs messaging app on the other hand I hated so I'm giving go SMS a "go"

kingsway8605 said:
Touchwiz, or any interface for that matter, is not bad. The problem comes from something called fragmentation. Google invests millions of dollars into developing Android. They think it through and do their best to make sure everything works together.
And then companies come along, with less money, less testing, and developers who didn't write the base code, and modify a bunch of stuff, frequently not improving it but just modifying it. And then developers writing apps have to sort through so much code finding bugs caused by the various undocumented modifications.
And then when Google releases an update, the update is delayed because the manufacturer has to figure out and test their own custom UI. If the UI's added something, it would be worth the wait, but they usually just change things that didn't need to be changed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Kingsway just hit it right on the nail with this one...at the same time, this is what makes android so great..there's always room for improvement and better customization
Drunk Browsing

I like Touchwiz, and I'm usually pretty picky about UI's.
I've rooted it using the exploit: [ROOT][NCIQ][EG30/EG31/EK02] Auto root your existing stock ROM (w/o ODIN/ROM Flash) so that I could remove Carrier IQ, upgrade swype, and do wifi thethering...

Twiz 4.0 is sooooooooooooooooooo much better, and like leaps and bounds I had the gs1 vibrant and I hated Twiz 3.0 was half assed attempt to compete with sense and it failed but 4.0 is a contender... That being said, I still prefer aosp over anything else give it to me as vanilla, cm, or even omfgb I will take it over any other android experience!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium

[Review] Sense4a - The joys and gripes of running HTC made software

So now I am running the TSM UltimateKangBang made possible by Nitsuj17 and the deluge of other people whose work is ingrained into the 0's and 1's that is currently making my phone's MSM8255 chip brim with life! Previously I ran the stuff from the good people behind TeamKang and their AOKP - essentially Android 4.0 as Google envisioned it with a little spice and Unicorn Porn! (Trust me, there is an app called that on AOKP, but it isn't what you may think it is ) Since this is a review, expect a fair share of biased opinion being present and categorical truths about Sense4a and the AOSP design! You've been warned.
I am not all in for the Spartan and frankly "cold" and unfriendly feel that Google went for on the ICS.. It seems too clinical, too sterile. Nevertheless, I do like it over previous iterations and I love the fact that there seems to be a level of consistency in the UI.
On the other hand, I love the feel of Sense4. It is cheerful and friendly-looking AND at the same time looks smart and professional, a feeling that I didn't get during my brief experience with a Honeycomb Samsung Tablet. On the flip side, the Sense4 apps seem to lack the same ease of use and simplicity that Google's vanilla version has. For instance, even though it has been sometime since I used the Email app on AOKP, I know exactly where each button is and how to go about the app. The Email app on Sense4, not so much.
The Good:
Let us get down to it. Things that are nice about Sense4 are the animations. Many are subtle, but the best is the most conspicuous animation of them all - the screen unlock. The little metallic ring zooms out of the screen in a magnificent way. Also, if you randomly touch the lock screen, the ring jitters with a forceful smash on the ground-like effect, causing ripples to emanate from it. I say, cool
The whole ensemble of animations makes the phone super smooth and slick. I had issues with animations and screen transitions on AOKP, on a regular basis. But on this ROM, I have yet to experience one, and I have installed ALL my apps to the point where I ran out of internal space to install apps! And still, the OS is smooth. At one point, I was contemplating the possibility of buying a new phone as my DInc2 with AOKP was not smooth enough, leading me to believe that it must be the poor hardware. Well, with Nit's Sense4a ROM, I am happy to note that that is simply NOT the case. Well, for once I am pleased with the outcome of a skin made by a manufacturer. It means a lot when a not-so-average Android phone user, like me, says "Well, HTC, your skin is *not* the worst!"
HTC also did a pretty good job with the lockscreen. The missed calls, messages, calendar events, etc. appear prominently on screen. I like the alarm and timer events too. And then to activate any app or action icon, you need to drop it into the ring. Neato! A constant issue I had with AOKP and I believe CM9 was that after locking the device with the power button, when I turn on the screen with the power button, the phone momentarily displays the app/homescreen I was viewing before realizing that the phone is actually "locked" and then showing the lockscreen. No matter what setting I changed, this issue didn't go. Thankfully, however, this is not a problem on the Sense4's lockscreen which does what it should and not reveal my secrets unauthorized, even for a moment!
The widgets are nice as well. I've been dying to find a Calendar widget that works as well as the one on Sense, and now I have it. The email, music and weather widgets are great too. However, I am a bit disappointed that the homescreen is a 4x4 grid. That is a waste of screen real estate, but unfortunately I was unable to use HTC widgets on a third party launcher (bummer). I also do not like Google's decision OR HTC's to make the app drawer have horizontal pagination. That is a major PITA and slow. A vertical scroll is so much faster to make you reach the last app... On the plus side, it has tabs for frequent and downloaded and you can sort apps alphabetically or date used or installed (I didn't figure that out).
The annoying:
However, it is not all rosy, even for rosie. My main gripe is with the design decisions that HTC made with their apps. Many of those decisions seem to add to the time needed to use the app and makes it cumbersome.
Let's start with Music. To go from Now Playing to the music on the phone, I need to press the back arrow (on the top) and choose "My phone". And then to flip through songs/albums/artists etc., I have to use a drop down menu. Meanwhile, Google Music lets you swipe the lists horizontally to change them. And it always seems to take a moment to load the song list or album list etc.
Next offender, the Email app. Its faults include needing to use a drop-down menu to choose folders that in turn brings up a list of folders to choose from. Google's email app does it better. Also, I need two button presses to go from an email to the next or previous compared to one button on Google's email app, though the AOSP Email app should have been made consistent with the Gmail app where you can swipe to the next or previous email . Nevertheless, it has the ability to show emails in threads, good support for Exchange email.
The phone app also hits a nerve. I believe Google's implementation is pretty much perfect and HTC's doesn't add anything new, excepting annoyances. All you get when you open the app is a dial pad and a list of names. I need to go to a menu to see call history and my phone book. Well, why not just add tabs like Google? The "People" app is basically what I am talking about. If you simply added a 4th tab in that app with the dial pad, that would be a perfect phone app. :disapprove:
Now the camera app is good except for one teeny problem (and I am nitpicking here) which is I need to go to settings to change the camera from back to front. But otherwise, that is well laid out. In fact it is better than Google's in terms of looks (I was always of the opinion that Google's ICS Camera app was made by someone who couldn't make small graphics and so chose plain colors to make the UI. Something I would've done) and also because you can either take a photo or video by just changing the button you press unlike in AOSP where you need to go through some button presses before that happens.
At this juncture, I'd like to note that I <3 the Camera on TSM ROM! It works! 720p video and panorama mode and the many other modes (except slow motion capture, which recorded at normal pace)! And no tearing in Camera360 or other apps! There are still some glitches with the app and the framerate of the 720p doesn't seem smooth, but that is understandable given that we are working with leaks only! So you heard me folks! If you want a proper camera on ICS, this Sense4 ROM should do the trick...​
Back to taking a swing at Sense4!
Now comes the notification panel. There are way too many icons on the top bar, especially when I listen to music. There are a total of 3 icons telling me I am listening to music: The headphone icon (thanks, but I jolly well know there are headphones attached to the phone, mainly because I put it there!), the beats audio icon (I believe this is a product placement decision. It is obvious that HTC is making a ton of money simply due to that software redundancy...) and of course the "play" icon of the music player. I also don't like that there are no notification toggles that can be hidden/shown as one pleases like on CM9 or AOKP (activating it in the tweaks causes it to show ONLY the toggles and no other notification when I have no notifications that can be cleared, even if I have notifications that CAN'T be cleared... )
Frankly I don't care for the "Beats audio". It may work better with some beats audio hardware in the phone and may be the actual earphones themselves, which I can't be bothered to buy. But I liked Google's MusicFX app... It gave me a nicer sound. At times I feel the beats audio sounds richer and more even, but the volume is low to appreciate the whole dynamic range... I heard louder sound at the same volume on AOKP.
So there you have it. My impressions on Sense4. The central theme behind the shortcomings of the HTC apps seems to be the usage of the drop down menu rather than using the more accessible tabs available on most default google apps.
But still, I must admit I like how the whole interface feels. I find myself unlocking my phone, swiping through screens and then simply relocking it as I have nothing to do! I can't take my eyes off of that gorgeous interface... As and when more tweaks become available, rectifying the shortcomings of Sense4, I'll be deeper in love with it.

One thing I have to say about the dialer is that full sense 4 is more like the sense 3.5 dialer where it has the people app included in the dialer. Sense 4a is more based on sense 2.1 where it didn't have this feature.
Sent from my KangBang'd out vivow

Thanks for the review. I was running MIUI weeklies from about July 2011 until a couple weeks ago. If we didn't get stuck with no new stable builds after 1.12.09, I probably would still be running it. But I wanted to go back and try something else anyway. MIUI customization is second to none, so maybe I'll go back to ICS MIUI as Nits does amazing work.
As of a week ago, I'm running TSM Sense 5.01 M. It runs incredibly smooth and stable on my phone, and everything works.
With the increasing stability of ICS roms, I'm thinking of trying one out. TSM UKB seems to be the ICS rom of choice for many. I appreciate your feedback, and may jump to UKB in the next couple weeks. One thing you didn't mention was battery life. How does it compare to stock, or other roms you've tried? I've been through the rom thread, but since you gave a thorough review of the rom, I thought I'd ask.

ttupa said:
Thanks for the review. I was running MIUI weeklies from about July 2011 until a couple weeks ago. If we didn't get stuck with no new stable builds after 1.12.09, I probably would still be running it. But I wanted to go back and try something else anyway. MIUI customization is second to none, so maybe I'll go back to ICS MIUI as Nits does amazing work.
As of a week ago, I'm running TSM Sense 5.01 M. It runs incredibly smooth and stable on my phone, and everything works.
With the increasing stability of ICS roms, I'm thinking of trying one out. TSM UKB seems to be the ICS rom of choice for many. I appreciate your feedback, and may jump to UKB in the next couple weeks. One thing you didn't mention was battery life. How does it compare to stock, or other roms you've tried? I've been through the rom thread, but since you gave a thorough review of the rom, I thought I'd ask.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh battery life is superb.. refer to this post I made: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=27465676
That is the battery life with just stock battery!!!
Sent from my vivow using XDA

litetaker said:
Oh battery life is superb.. refer to this post I made: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=27465676
That is the battery life with just stock battery!!!
Sent from my vivow using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Excellent! This one sounds very promising, and I will probably make the leap when I've got some time.

Indeed battery is great. I took 29 photos today while at a job site and have been using my phone since 7:30am (now 6:33pm) and battery reads 58%. Skyraider hated when I took photos. It had great battery life, but camera would eat it up. UKB does not. Fantastic ROM. I do not foresee myself changing ROMs until I change phones at this point.
Sent from my Droid.

ttupa said:
Excellent! This one sounds very promising, and I will probably make the leap when I've got some time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Battery is great on ukb. I left for work this morning at 5am. I work in a poor reception building...the signal is constantly at 1 or no bars and switching between 3g and 1x. After 13 hours at work my battery is at 52%.
Sent from my vivow using XDA

I figured I'd ask here instead of the dev thread, but does the hot reboot option not work for anybody else on UKB 3.5?
Sent from my vivow using XDA

litetaker said:
So now I am running the TSM UltimateKangBang made possible by Nitsuj17 and the deluge of other people whose work is ingrained into the 0's and 1's that is currently making my phone's MSM8255 chip brim with life! Previously I ran the stuff from the good people behind TeamKang and their AOKP - essentially Android 4.0 as Google envisioned it with a little spice and Unicorn Porn! (Trust me, there is an app called that on AOKP, but it isn't what you may think it is ) Since this is a review, expect a fair share of biased opinion being present and categorical truths about Sense4a and the AOSP design! You've been warned.
I am not all in for the Spartan and frankly "cold" and unfriendly feel that Google went for on the ICS.. It seems too clinical, too sterile. Nevertheless, I do like it over previous iterations and I love the fact that there seems to be a level of consistency in the UI.
On the other hand, I love the feel of Sense4. It is cheerful and friendly-looking AND at the same time looks smart and professional, a feeling that I didn't get during my brief experience with a Honeycomb Samsung Tablet. On the flip side, the Sense4 apps seem to lack the same ease of use and simplicity that Google's vanilla version has. For instance, even though it has been sometime since I used the Email app on AOKP, I know exactly where each button is and how to go about the app. The Email app on Sense4, not so much.
The Good:
Let us get down to it. Things that are nice about Sense4 are the animations. Many are subtle, but the best is the most conspicuous animation of them all - the screen unlock. The little metallic ring zooms out of the screen in a magnificent way. Also, if you randomly touch the lock screen, the ring jitters with a forceful smash on the ground-like effect, causing ripples to emanate from it. I say, cool
The whole ensemble of animations makes the phone super smooth and slick. I had issues with animations and screen transitions on AOKP, on a regular basis. But on this ROM, I have yet to experience one, and I have installed ALL my apps to the point where I ran out of internal space to install apps! And still, the OS is smooth. At one point, I was contemplating the possibility of buying a new phone as my DInc2 with AOKP was not smooth enough, leading me to believe that it must be the poor hardware. Well, with Nit's Sense4a ROM, I am happy to note that that is simply NOT the case. Well, for once I am pleased with the outcome of a skin made by a manufacturer. It means a lot when a not-so-average Android phone user, like me, says "Well, HTC, your skin is *not* the worst!"
HTC also did a pretty good job with the lockscreen. The missed calls, messages, calendar events, etc. appear prominently on screen. I like the alarm and timer events too. And then to activate any app or action icon, you need to drop it into the ring. Neato! A constant issue I had with AOKP and I believe CM9 was that after locking the device with the power button, when I turn on the screen with the power button, the phone momentarily displays the app/homescreen I was viewing before realizing that the phone is actually "locked" and then showing the lockscreen. No matter what setting I changed, this issue didn't go. Thankfully, however, this is not a problem on the Sense4's lockscreen which does what it should and not reveal my secrets unauthorized, even for a moment!
The widgets are nice as well. I've been dying to find a Calendar widget that works as well as the one on Sense, and now I have it. The email, music and weather widgets are great too. However, I am a bit disappointed that the homescreen is a 4x4 grid. That is a waste of screen real estate, but unfortunately I was unable to use HTC widgets on a third party launcher (bummer). I also do not like Google's decision OR HTC's to make the app drawer have horizontal pagination. That is a major PITA and slow. A vertical scroll is so much faster to make you reach the last app... On the plus side, it has tabs for frequent and downloaded and you can sort apps alphabetically or date used or installed (I didn't figure that out).
The annoying:
However, it is not all rosy, even for rosie. My main gripe is with the design decisions that HTC made with their apps. Many of those decisions seem to add to the time needed to use the app and makes it cumbersome.
Let's start with Music. To go from Now Playing to the music on the phone, I need to press the back arrow (on the top) and choose "My phone". And then to flip through songs/albums/artists etc., I have to use a drop down menu. Meanwhile, Google Music lets you swipe the lists horizontally to change them. And it always seems to take a moment to load the song list or album list etc.
Next offender, the Email app. Its faults include needing to use a drop-down menu to choose folders that in turn brings up a list of folders to choose from. Google's email app does it better. Also, I need two button presses to go from an email to the next or previous compared to one button on Google's email app, though the AOSP Email app should have been made consistent with the Gmail app where you can swipe to the next or previous email . Nevertheless, it has the ability to show emails in threads, good support for Exchange email.
The phone app also hits a nerve. I believe Google's implementation is pretty much perfect and HTC's doesn't add anything new, excepting annoyances. All you get when you open the app is a dial pad and a list of names. I need to go to a menu to see call history and my phone book. Well, why not just add tabs like Google? The "People" app is basically what I am talking about. If you simply added a 4th tab in that app with the dial pad, that would be a perfect phone app. :disapprove:
Now the camera app is good except for one teeny problem (and I am nitpicking here) which is I need to go to settings to change the camera from back to front. But otherwise, that is well laid out. In fact it is better than Google's in terms of looks (I was always of the opinion that Google's ICS Camera app was made by someone who couldn't make small graphics and so chose plain colors to make the UI. Something I would've done) and also because you can either take a photo or video by just changing the button you press unlike in AOSP where you need to go through some button presses before that happens.
At this juncture, I'd like to note that I <3 the Camera on TSM ROM! It works! 720p video and panorama mode and the many other modes (except slow motion capture, which recorded at normal pace)! And no tearing in Camera360 or other apps! There are still some glitches with the app and the framerate of the 720p doesn't seem smooth, but that is understandable given that we are working with leaks only! So you heard me folks! If you want a proper camera on ICS, this Sense4 ROM should do the trick...​
Back to taking a swing at Sense4!
Now comes the notification panel. There are way too many icons on the top bar, especially when I listen to music. There are a total of 3 icons telling me I am listening to music: The headphone icon (thanks, but I jolly well know there are headphones attached to the phone, mainly because I put it there!), the beats audio icon (I believe this is a product placement decision. It is obvious that HTC is making a ton of money simply due to that software redundancy...) and of course the "play" icon of the music player. I also don't like that there are no notification toggles that can be hidden/shown as one pleases like on CM9 or AOKP (activating it in the tweaks causes it to show ONLY the toggles and no other notification when I have no notifications that can be cleared, even if I have notifications that CAN'T be cleared... )
Frankly I don't care for the "Beats audio". It may work better with some beats audio hardware in the phone and may be the actual earphones themselves, which I can't be bothered to buy. But I liked Google's MusicFX app... It gave me a nicer sound. At times I feel the beats audio sounds richer and more even, but the volume is low to appreciate the whole dynamic range... I heard louder sound at the same volume on AOKP.
So there you have it. My impressions on Sense4. The central theme behind the shortcomings of the HTC apps seems to be the usage of the drop down menu rather than using the more accessible tabs available on most default google apps.
But still, I must admit I like how the whole interface feels. I find myself unlocking my phone, swiping through screens and then simply relocking it as I have nothing to do! I can't take my eyes off of that gorgeous interface... As and when more tweaks become available, rectifying the shortcomings of Sense4, I'll be deeper in love with it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This rom really is awesome. Nits has given a gift to the dinc2 community and I still can't help but feel satisfied with this rom (havent switched roms after I used ukb 3.5!!!
But you have an error. The droid incredible 2 has an MSM8655 chip (same as the HTC Thunderbolt)
Also, my only gripe with the rom is the music when you're using headphones, earphones, etc. The volume goes to its max when you raise or lower the volume once. Raise and lower it again and the volume becomes either lower or a little quieter. That's pretty much it. Doesn't bother me too much, but it can get tiring at times. Doesn't change how much I enjoy using this rom as my DD. I'd give this rom a 10/10 for its awesomeness.
AJGO23 said:
I figured I'd ask here instead of the dev thread, but does the hot reboot option not work for anybody else on UKB 3.5?
Sent from my vivow using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hot reboot doesn't work in the rom. Hope this helped.
Sent from my Galaxified ICS phone!!! Don't be hating bro!!!

david_hume said:
This rom really is awesome. Nits has given a gift to the dinc2 community and I still can't help but feel satisfied with this rom (havent switched roms after I used ukb 3.5!!!
But you have an error. The droid incredible 2 has an MSM8655 chip (same as the HTC Thunderbolt)
Also, my only gripe with the rom is the music when you're using headphones, earphones, etc. The volume goes to its max when you raise or lower the volume once. Raise and lower it again and the volume becomes either lower or a little quieter. That's pretty much it. Doesn't bother me too much, but it can get tiring at times. Doesn't change how much I enjoy using this rom as my DD. I'd give this rom a 10/10 for its awesomeness.
Hot reboot doesn't work in the rom. Hope this helped.
Sent from my Galaxified ICS phone!!! Don't be hating bro!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Huh, I thought that Droid Incredible S and 2 had same processors... Whoops!

litetaker said:
Huh, I thought that Droid Incredible S and 2 had same processors... Whoops!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nah, the s has a different processor cuz it's GSM only.
Sent from my KangBang'd out vivow