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Hello!
I just bought a HTC Desire (was using an iPhone 3G until a few days ago).
I haven't rooted (yet?), so I'm running stock 2.1. Didn't install any task manager.
I have a few questions I couldn't find answers to...hope you'll help me!
Maybe they are just differences between Android and IOS, everything is so different from the iPhone...
1. Why doesn't wifi turn off when I turn off the screen? The only option I found is to turn it off after 15 min (I don't see the point).
2. I turned off every autosync in every possible setting/app. (turned it off in all apps such as Newsrob, etc). When I'm out I continue to see the HSDPA icon with blinking arrows, as if something was transferring data. I only have the Astrid todo widget and battery snap. no weather, no mail, nothing else.
3. Do I have to switch off wifi and gps using the power widget? If so, why? On the iPhone if you don't use them they won't drain the battery...if I don't open Maps, why would I want to turn off GPS? Isn't it off by default?
4. Sometimes when I receive a text message and I read it, the 'Messages' icon displays a little '1' for a while, then disappears (don't know exactly when).
5. Since I turned off autosync, I have to open mail, press menu, hit refresh to check if I have new mail. I checked the 'Refresh on open' in the default mail app (not gmail). This works, but once the app is in the background and I switch to it, it won't count as a new 'open', so it won't check for new mail and I have to go through 2 additional keypresses. Frustrating, since mail is my most used app. This happens in both mail apps.
6. Is there a way to enable the clockwise landscape rotation?
7. Is there a way to enable a gesture to perform the 'back' action on the browser via the touchscreen? Maybe I need to get used to it, but for now I really don't like to hit the physical 'back' button.
8. The compass works randomly. Sometimes, using Maps, it's perfectly smooth and accurate. Then I close maps, open it again (i.e. switch to it, since it's in background) and it's a mess, doesn't work with the phone on a flat surface but moves if I hold it up vertically. Weird. Also, do I need gps activated to use it?
9. The auto-brightness is way too bright indoors, way too dim outdoors. I tried to trust it for a few days, but always end up going to the power widget and activate the lowest setting while indoor and the highest while outdoors. Any fixes for it?
Quite a long post, I'm sorry...
Thank you, this forum already helped me figure out a lot of stuff
I haven't had my desire long but here's my n00b point of view...
1. So your listening to streaming music the screen goes off your wifi goes off too personally i just leave wifi on unless i'm on holiday.
2. I have never turned off any auto sync options, If you want to be sure of not incurring extra charges, untick data roaming in mobile network settings.
3. My gps is set to off, If i use maps it switches on unless my desire is magical
4. I have had the 1 stick around before too, I have seen an answer to this before but i have forgotten where.
5. you could use the sync widget, or get a task killer to force close the mail app.
6.
7. Dolphin browser has gestures
8. Its been a while since i used the compass because i know where i am i believe a message popped up about enabling gps otherwise it would use the network to determine position or some such thing.
9.
6. enable rotation in settings/display
9. the auto brightness works off the light sensor so no, i have no problem with it tho works fine for me
1. In Advance Settings of my WiFi I found a sleep policy with 3 options:
a) After 15min. b) Never when plugged in. c) Never. I think that 15th minutes is fine, It wont drain so much power.
2. You could use a program like APNDroid to disable mobile internet, there is a widget for faster ON/OFF switch.
3. In Android programs can't change GPS status and you have to turn off/on manually. But for my personal option if the GPS is turned on it won't drain power if you not using it.
4. It bugs me too, It was the same on Windows Mobile.
5. I don't use mail programs on Desire and I'm sorry that I can't help you.
6. Not found my me - asking same question ?
7. Dolphin browser .
8. For me is working fine, but I don't lose myself often
9. I'm using manually brightness settings, but in sunny days AMOLED screen makes me crazy.
6. For this one you need a custom rom as the default rom only allows anti-clockwise rotation I believe
9. The Auto Brightness is rubbish, The power widget is your best and fastest option, Give Extended Controls a look if you dont want a full 1x4 widget bar
UPDATE!!! There's a new XPosed Framework module in town that makes this whole thread obsolete. Check out the new NFC Unlock module, forked from the NFC LockScreenOff Enabler module already used in this project. Way simpler, fewer moving parts to configure, and works well. Check it out. Otherwise, this has been a fun way to learn how to use Tasker! Thanks, all!
Original Post
This is a guide to show you how to set up your phone to be unlocked by an NFC tag. There are several other threads on the subject for various phones and carriers, but it took me several weeks worth of research and testing to come up with something that actually worked on my phone, and this tutorial is the culmination of that effort. In theory, it should work for a wide variety of ROMs (including Stock), phones and carriers, and even survive ROM updates (provided you maintain root), but I have only tested it on a Sprint Galaxy S3 (model d2spr) that is rooted and running CyanogenMod 10.1.
DISCLAIMER! I am NOT responsible for any damage to your phone, loss of data, use of your phone, or spontaneous sharknadoes that may occur if you try these steps! It worked for me, but I make no guarantees that it will work for you! Back up all your data and your ROM, and use this at your own risk!
HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS
An NFC capable phone, like your Sprint Samsung Galaxy S3 with Root Access enabled
An NFC tag, such as Samsung TecTiles
SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS
XPosed Framework
ONE of these XPosed Framework plugins:
MoDaCo Toolkit Plugin for the XPosed Framework (NFC Always On or On When Unlocked)
NFCLockscreenoffEnabler.apk for the XPosed Framework (lets you choose between Always On, On When Unlocked OR On At Lockscreen for better battery life)
NFC Task Launcher from the Play Store
Tasker from the play store
Secure Settings Plugin for Tasker
STEP 1: Install the software!
Install all of the software listed above.
Open XPosed Framework and enable the MoDaCo Toolkit OR the NFCLockscreenoffEnabler.apk in the Modules tab
STEP 2: Turn on NFC scanning all the time
Normally, Android only scans for NFC tags when the phone is unlocked. We need to scan for NFC tags when the phone is locked, and in our case, when the screen is off. Open the MoDaCo Toolkit app and check the box to Enable NFC when screen is off under Settings -> Wireless
WARNING!!! Turning on NFC scanning when the screen is off may adversely affect your battery life!
STEP 2 ALTERNATIVE: Turn on NFC scanning at Lockscreen
Open the NFCLockscreenoffEnabler.apk app and select Enable NFC when phone is locked, but the screen is on. This option should be a little easier on your battery. (Thanks to @nacron for finding this!)
STEP 3: Make Secure Settings a Device Administrator
Open Secure Settings and go to the Configuration Menu by tapping the wrench icon in the upper-right hand corner. Once there, check the box next to Device Administrator and select "Activate" on the confirmation screen.
STEP 4: Teach Tasker how to Lock and Unlock your phone
We can either do this the easy way, or the hard way.
Easy Way - Import the Tasks
Download and unzip NFC-Unlock-Tasker-Tasks.zip and copy the enclosed XML files to your phone
Open Tasker and long-press the Tasks tab
Select Import and open the files that you just copied
There is no step 4.
Hard Way - Manually Enter the Tasks
If you don't trust the import function, or just want to learn more about creating tasks in Tasker, you can create the tasks manually.
Open Tasker and select the Tasks tab. Create a new Task by tapping the big "+" sign, name it "LOCK", and add the following actions:
Select Task -> If
Under Condition on the LEFT side of the condition, type TRUN (the variable for Tasks Running)
Tap the Condition Operator icon (the grey button in the middle) and select Doesn't Match, or !~
On the RIGHT side of the condition, type *Unlock*
Under the If statement, select Plugin -> Secure Settings then tap Edit.
Select Keyguard and set the following options:
Select radio button On
Select Plugin -> Secure Settings then tap Edit.
Select Lock Device and set the following options:
Box for Device Admin Enabled is checked
Select Task -> End If
Create a new Task named "Unlock", and add the following actions:
Select Task -> Stop And select the Lock Task that we created earlier.
Select Plugin -> Secure Settings then tap Edit.
Select Wake Device and set the following options:
Wake Type: Screen & Keyboard Lights On
Duration: 30 seconds
Select Task -> Wait and set duration to 100 MS
Select Plugin -> Secure Settings then tap Edit.
Select Keyguard and set the following options:
Select radio button On
Select Task -> Wait and set duration to 100 MS
Select Plugin -> Secure Settings then tap Edit.
Select Keyguard and set the following options:
Select radio button Off
Check box Run in background (No Notification)
If you run this Task now, you probably won't notice anything different right away. However, if you lock your phone and then unlock it, you'll notice that any security that you had set up is now bypassed. That's why we needed to teach Tasker how to lock your phone, as well.
STEP 5: Teach NFC Task Launcher to Unlock your phone
Open NFC Task Launcher and create a new task for NFC named "Unlock Phone".
Take your NFC tag and follow the instructions on the screen to write the tag for this task.
Add a new Task by tapping the big "+" icon in the upper right corner.
Select Category Tasker
Check "Tasker Task" and tap "Next"
Type "Unlock" in the field next to the magnifying glass icon under Tasker Task and tap "Add to Task"
Congratulations! You can now unlock your phone with your NFC tag! Of course, as we mentioned above, this leaves your phone without any passcode protection that you may have previously enable. Which leads us to our final step...
STEP 6: Teach Tasker to Lock your phone
Open Tasker and select the Profiles tab
Create a new Profile with the big "+" at the bottom of the screen and select Event
Select Display -> Display Off
Go back to the Profiles page by tapping the "< Event Edit" icon in the upper left corner.
Select the Lock Task that you made earlier
Now when the screen goes off, your phone is secure again.
That's it! My hope is that this tutorial is easy to follow so that anyone who wants to unlock their phone with an NFC tag can get it working. While there are a lot of steps, I tried to make them clear and specifically looked for a method that was flexible enough to allow me to update my phone or even use a different phone with this method, without having to track down a modified NFC.apk for my specific firmware every time I wanted to update.
In regards to how battery life is affected by having NFC turned on all the time, my personal experience shows no appreciable decrease in battery life. I went all day yesterday without charging (about 15 hours) with typical usage for me, which includes 2-3 hours of podcast playback over both wired and bluetooth headphones, occasional GMail and Facebook usage, Solitaire, and 45-60 minutes of phone calls, which is on par with what I was getting before the hack. As with all things, your mileage may vary. If battery life becomes an issue, try the new NFCLockscreenoffEnabler.apk plugin that @nacron found instead of the MoDaCo one which gives you the On At Lockscreen option in addition on Always On. It should save you a bit on battery life.
Many thanks to the authors of the software I used (XPosed Framework, MoDaCo Toolkit Plugin, NFCLockscreenoffEnabler.apk, NFC Task Launcher, Tasker, Secure Settings Plugin), as well as this thread and this web page for giving me the framework to construct this rather elaborate NFC hack.
I would love to hear from others if this works on other phones.
Changelog:
2013-09-05 - Add NFCLockscreenoffEnabler.apk option for NFC on at Lockscreen (thanks @nacron for this!)
2013-08-14 - Changes to the Tasker Tasks that make the lock and unlock functions run a bit more smoothly by avoiding collisions. (i.e., if you're unlocking the phone, it won't try to lock it until the unlock is done.) I've also added easy-to-import XML files for the Tasks, so you don't have to type them in manually anymore!
2013-08-09 - Initial release (can you "release" a process?)
Wow, thanks for the info.
New instructions and importable task files make getting this set up a whole lot easier! Updates in the OP!
I've attached a cheap NFC tag to my watch wristband, cleverly disguised by gold nail polish, and unlock by NFC is now my preferred unlock method.
I like this. Posting to keep track of it.
Well, as soon as root is found for the DROID MAXX, I will be using this.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2
Hello,
After trying this on a Samsung Galaxy S3 Stock 4.1.2 and Slim Bean (worked like a charm), I have found a glitch on the stock firmware. When making a call the screen would go off via the Proximity sensor so <b>Tasker</b> would lock the phone.
So I made a little addon to the following part and the problem stoped:
Original:
STEP 6: Teach Tasker to Lock your phone
Open Tasker and select the Profiles tab
Create a new Profile with the big "+" at the bottom of the screen and select Event
Select Display -> Display Off
Go back to the Profiles page by tapping the "< Event Edit" icon in the upper left corner.
Select the Lock Task that you made earlier
Modified:
STEP 6: Teach Tasker to Lock your phone
Open Tasker and select the Profiles tab
Create a new Profile with the big "+" at the bottom of the screen and select Event
Select Display -> Display Off
Go back to the Profiles page by tapping the "< Event Edit" icon in the upper left corner.
Select the Lock Task that you made earlier
[*] Select Display off (long-press) -> Add -> State -> Sensor -> Proximity sensor -> Check invert
That's it!
Now when you get a call and answer it Tasker will know that the proximity sensor is used and will not lock the phone
Hope it works for you too.
Thanks,
[/QUOTE]
stealthdave said:
New instructions and importable task files make getting this set up a whole lot easier! Updates in the OP!
I've attached a cheap NFC tag to my watch wristband, cleverly disguised by gold nail polish, and unlock by NFC is now my preferred unlock method.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thats slick man. I may have to use that for myself lol :good:
This is great, thanks man but one problem. When I use my tag to unlock the phone, use the phone then hit the android home button to return to my default screen, it locks the phone instead. If I unlock it normally (Entering PIN) it doesn't display this behavior. What am I doing wrong.
Deleted
LevanG said:
Hi, can I use this method to unlock my LG Lucid2?
I want to use it on GSM network...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wrong kind of "unlock", I'm afraid. This unlocks your screen so that you can bypass the lock screen; it doesn't do anything for carriers locking the phone to their network. Think of this as using an NFC tag as your password.
OK, sorry and thanks for your reply
lloydcabraham said:
This is great, thanks man but one problem. When I use my tag to unlock the phone, use the phone then hit the android home button to return to my default screen, it locks the phone instead. If I unlock it normally (Entering PIN) it doesn't display this behavior. What am I doing wrong.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try adding a 200ms delay to the beginning of the LOCK Task. This seemed to make things a bit more predictable on my phone.
stealthdave said:
Try adding a 200ms delay to the beginning of the LOCK Task. This seemed to make things a bit more predictable on my phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, already have added a delay at the beginning to the Lock task but it didn't do anything to correct the behavior to the Home button. I should probably add that I'm using this with an HTC One that already has a funky Home / Menu button configuration. Home button works fine when I unlock normally but seems to get remapped to go back to the lock screen when I unlock it using NFC.
lloydcabraham said:
Actually, already have added a delay at the beginning to the Lock task but it didn't do anything to correct the behavior to the Home button. I should probably add that I'm using this with an HTC One that already has a funky Home / Menu button configuration. Home button works fine when I unlock normally but seems to get remapped to go back to the lock screen when I unlock it using NFC.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Likewise. I have the same problem as well. The physical Home button just takes me back to my pin lockscreen if I had unlocked via NFC. If I unlocked my phone manually by entering my pin then everything just works fine.
EDIT: Should also say that my phone is the S3.
@lloydcabraham and @bleAf! , what version(s) of Android are you running? I'm on 4.2.2 (CM 10.1.2), and my Home button is working as expected. I'm also using Nova Launcher as opposed to the stock Android launcher. Also, I presume that you haven't inadvertantly remapped the Home button, either by Tasker or some other setting or app? (Forgive me if some of this sounds like basic tech support stuff; just spitballing ideas since I can't reproduce.)
stealthdave said:
@lloydcabraham and @bleAf! , what version(s) of Android are you running? I'm on 4.2.2 (CM 10.1.2), and my Home button is working as expected. I'm also using Nova Launcher as opposed to the stock Android launcher. Also, I presume that you haven't inadvertantly remapped the Home button, either by Tasker or some other setting or app? (Forgive me if some of this sounds like basic tech support stuff; just spitballing ideas since I can't reproduce.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not at all, I appreciate your help. I'm using ElementalX kernel that remaps the HTC logo as a menu button but leaves the back and home button alone. Maybe that's the issue? It's just funny that I only have the problem if I use my NFC to unlock the phone using the supplied scripts. Oh well, no biggie but if you can help me figure it out, it would be great. I can send you a cwm backup (wiped of course) if you'd like to try my setup?
lloydcabraham said:
Not at all, I appreciate your help. I'm using ElementalX kernel that remaps the HTC logo as a menu button but leaves the back and home button alone. Maybe that's the issue? It's just funny that I only have the problem if I use my NFC to unlock the phone using the supplied scripts. Oh well, no biggie but if you can help me figure it out, it would be great. I can send you a cwm backup (wiped of course) if you'd like to try my setup?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, it would probably be easier for you to just try a different kernel and see if it still works. Given the description of what it does, my guess is that might be the issue.
It also might be an issue with the XPosed Framework or MoDaCo plugin on the HTC One specifically. (It does have its own special installation procedure.)
- Dave
stealthdave said:
@lloydcabraham and @bleAf! , what version(s) of Android are you running? I'm on 4.2.2 (CM 10.1.2), and my Home button is working as expected. I'm also using Nova Launcher as opposed to the stock Android launcher. Also, I presume that you haven't inadvertantly remapped the Home button, either by Tasker or some other setting or app? (Forgive me if some of this sounds like basic tech support stuff; just spitballing ideas since I can't reproduce.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm on 4.1.2 (Samsung based rom with stock kernel). I'm also using Nova launcher and I just tried stock Touchwiz launcher but same result.
I'm thinking it may be just something to do with Samsung Touchwiz or HTC Sense based rom (If lloydcabraham is also running HTC based rom or stock).
Thanks for your help stealthdave.
For some reason I can't get my phone to recognize the NFC tag when the screen is off or even in the lock screen. Only when I'm past the lock screen will the NFC tag recognize. The xposed framework was part of the ROM i'm using (M.O.A.R.) and I just installed the MoDaCo mod via the link. I checked off NFC on always and restarted several times but it still won't recognize when the screen is off.
[EDIT]
Got it to work using this xposed module instead of the MoDaCo one for always on NFC.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2122019
Also having issues of lock coming back on after doing any action post unlock via NFC. I think it's a hack Samsung put together for the latest firmware upgrade after the whole problem with the bypassing the lockscreen by going through the emergency screen. The op wouldn't have this issue as he's not using a TW rom. I wonder if there is a way to have it input the key instead of bypassing the key.
[EDIT 2]
Overcame this issue by using the secure settings to reset the pin to nothing when unlocking via NFC and enable the pin when the screen goes off. This method even prevents the phone from locking during a call. I have a new issue of the swipe screen coming back right after NFC unlock. I'll post my findings a little later. It's not the most elegant of fixes but it prevents the lock screen from coming up when pressing the home button. I also removed all the waits and made lights and keyboard on for 5 seconds, makes unlocking faster.
The action for password/pin reset in Secure Settings is in All Actions > Dev Admin Actions > Password/Pin. You just select disabled when unlocking and it removes your existing pin and when you select enabled for lock, it prompts you to enter your pin twice in the settings. Not sure how secure this is or where it stores your password/pin. The only problem with this method is that you'll have to change the password/pin in secure settings if you decide to change your password/pin in the android settings or you'll end up with 2 different passwords/pins
Not sure if this works if you have pattern unlock. Haven't had time to test that.
So this is how my unlock task looks like:
1. Stop task lock
2. Secure Settings > configuration > Screen and keyboard lights on for 5 seconds
3. Secure Settings > configuration > clear password
4. Secure Settings > configuration > Keyguard disabled
and my lock is simply
1. Secure Settings > sonfiguration > Set Pin
and my profile is
Display Off > Lock
[EDIT3]
Figured out why it was presenting the swipe lock screen when doing a quick NFC unlock removal . I'm using the hacked version of AnyTAG NFC Launcher, instead of the NFC Tag Task Launcher, that detects NFC Tag removal as well as placement. Thought this app would be more extensible in the future. The only problem with this is that it will keep insisting on launching on NFC Tag removal if you don't set something so I just set the task to do nothing and that was locking the swipe screen again. I just set it to the same task as unlock and it doesn't pull up the swipe screen anymore.
Also, the battery replacements from Sprint suck. It's a generic sprint branded battery that DOES NOT have an NFC antenna in it. Picked up the replacement along with tectiles yesterday and couldn't figure out for the longest time why this unlock thing wasn't working. Their battery part number is BSML71021L. Gotta call them up to see if they can give me back my old battery or give me a real samsung replacement.
[EDIT 4]
After trying to get this to work consistently, I've disabled it. I can get tasker to remove/reenable the pin consistently but only sometimes will it clear the lockscreen automatically.
nacron said:
For some reason I can't get my phone to recognize the NFC tag when the screen is off or even in the lock screen. Only when I'm past the lock screen will the NFC tag recognize. The xposed framework was part of the ROM i'm using (M.O.A.R.) and I just installed the MoDaCo mod via the link. I checked off NFC on always and restarted several times but it still won't recognize when the screen is off.
[EDIT]
Got it to work using this xposed module instead of the MoDaCo one for always on NFC.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2122019
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for this find! I've added it to the OP for others. It's worked pretty consistently for me with this new module for the 30 minutes I've had it installed, and hopefully it will lead to better battery life. (Battery life wasn't too bad, but I was starting to notice a difference with NFC always on.)
nacron said:
[EDIT 4]
After trying to get this to work consistently, I've disabled it. I can get tasker to remove/reenable the pin consistently but only sometimes will it clear the lockscreen automatically.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm sorry to hear that it's not working for you. Hopefully Google will eventually enable this functionality in Android proper. The Moto X certainly shows that it's not only possible, but practical.
- Dave
I have seen in other threads that people use tasker to turn of their tablet when there is no power, for example when you turn of ignition in cars etc.
I want to do the same, since it will be getting cold here in a couple of months. This together with fastboot, will be good. But i see no option in tasker to turn off the tablet completely when there is no power present?
Anyone want to help me out?
edit; http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2657308
Here you can see someone used tasker to turn off tablet completely
henrikrox said:
I have seen in other threads that people use tasker to turn of their tablet when there is no power, for example when you turn of ignition in cars etc.
I want to do the same, since it will be getting cold here in a couple of months. This together with fastboot, will be good. But i see no option in tasker to turn off the tablet completely when there is no power present?
Anyone want to help me out?
edit; http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2657308
Here you can see someone used tasker to turn off tablet completely
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hope you're familiar with how Tasker works. If not, please read some basic tutorials.
Create a new profile State->Power->Power
On the State edit leave the Source as Any and tick the Invert box, so this works when it is not charging.
Create a new task and add a new action System->Reboot
On the Action edit view there is a Type selector, when you tap it you're presented with a list of different options, one of those is shutdown, select it and that's it.
alresave said:
I hope you're familiar with how Tasker works. If not, please read some basic tutorials.
Create a new profile State->Power->Power
On the State edit leave the Source as Any and tick the Invert box, so this works when it is not charging.
Create a new task and add a new action System->Reboot
On the Action edit view there is a Type selector, when you tap it you're presented with a list of different options, one of those is shutdown, select it and that's it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you, only problem is system reboot is red here and says unavailable for me, i already rooted using geohots method, do i need to do more?
nvm, i haven't installed superuser
im so stupid
Thank you so much for answering me Really appreciate it
Hey everyone! I just got an XZ1C myself a few days ago, and I'd like to share a few of the little quality of life changes I personally use to make the everyday experience with this phone more to how I like it. I figured maybe everyone could contribute a few ideas here and there to help other users deal with things they might be frustrated with, but not know a solution for.
A couple of notes - I gave up the root life a while ago, so all of these solutions are non-root! Also, some of these apps are paid apps (though they might have lite or free versions). Sorry! But as a software developer myself, I have the obligation to pay it forward when I find a nice app.
So here goes!
Making the volume keys default to Media Volume:
Having owned a Samsung phone before, this is one of the things I miss most in almost any other Android phone. But, as they say, there's an app for that! There's a very simple app called Media Volume Only (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=catchpower.gogo.mediavolumeonly&hl=en), which binds your volume keys to Media by default. It asks for Call permissions to see if you're in a call, where it will then bind the volume keys to call volume. Otherwise, it will always be Media, which is great!
However, that means there isn't a super easy way to changing your ring volume, unless you first press the volume key to bring up the sliders and hitting the down arrow to show the rest of the sliders....which brought me to:
Re-adding the missing Ring/Vibrate Mode switch to quick switches:
I am using Central Europe .374 + US oem file to get Fingerprint+VoLTE on T-mobile; I'm not sure if it's because of the CE1 region or whatever else, but I couldn't find any button in the quick settings that would just toggle the phone to ring mode, vibrate mode or silent.
To remedy this, I use Shortcutter (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.leedroid.shortcutter&hl=en). This allows you to enable a ton of different switches in the quick settings dropdown, though some of them may not work properly without root and only with other phones. After installing Shortcutter, swipe over to the "Pull-Down" tab, then hit "System Setting Tiles". In this list, scroll down and you'll find "Ring Mode". Turning this switch on will put the Ring Mode icon into the box of icons you can edit your quick settings with. Finally, pull down your quick settings, click the pencil icon to modify the quick settings and scroll down to find Ring Mode.
This way, it's easy to switch the phone to silent before going into a movie, or a meeting at work.
Fixing the crazy stock backlight control:
The stock backlight is a little crazy right now. It jumps around when the room is dark and it does not transition smoothly. A great app for controlling backlight is Lux (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vito.lux&hl=en). It even allows you to keep different profiles and define exactly how bright you want the screen to be in any lighting situation, and it will keep a map of your selections for you! You can control all sorts of variables, like how quickly it will transition, if it should only transition given what % of lighting change, so on and so forth. It's really very powerful and useful. I haven't had any trouble with the XZ1C display since installing Lux, which I've used on previous phones as well. Highly recommend this one! There's a free version called Lux Lite (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vitocassisi.luxlite&hl=en), but I've never tried it so YMMV.
Alternative for No Double Tap to Wake (or not having Ambient Display):
This is another one I have almost always used on phones that aren't Nexii/Pixel or Motorola. Gravity Screen (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.plexnor.gravityscreenofffree&hl=en) gives you a ton of different ways to automatically wake up the phone to the lockscreen. I find that using ONLY the Proximity Sensor setting to turn ON the screen (and turning everything else off) has negligible effect on the battery, and maintains extreme usefulness. With just that setting, when my phone is on the desk I can poke the phone where the proximity sensor is (as if I one-tap it) and it will wake up. If I take the phone out of my pocket, the phone turns on and is already waiting for me by the time I look at it. Super convenient!
UPDATE: Another user (quack3d) mentioned the app WaveUp(https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jarsilio.android.waveup) which does exactly how I have Gravity Screen set up. If you want just that, this seems to be a great and simpler alternative! Thanks!
If you want more options, it has all sorts of other things like turn on by motion, etc. etc....I personally don't use those though, so I can't vouch for how well they work.
Double Tap to Sleep
I'm pretty sure you have to pay for this one, but Nova Launcher Prime (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.teslacoilsw.launcher.prime&hl=en) is an incredible launcher, and it allows you to specify custom gestures on the desktop. The gestures can trigger all sorts of things, one of which is Screen Lock. If you select the Time-Out method of locking the screen, it will work with fingerprint unlocking.
Custom Auto-Rotation Switching:
Normally, I don't like auto-rotation. I use my phone a lot in bed (lying sideways), but I still want to use it in portrait. So, I prefer to have my phone default to NO auto-rotation. That being said, it's annoying when you pull up a funny gif or the photo album or youtube and you want to just flip your phone over to watch a video. Sure, you can drag down the quicksettings and flip that switch, but there's a better way! That's where Automate (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.llamalab.automate&hl=en) comes in! Automate allows you to program your phone to do just about anything (especially if you have root) based on custom triggers.
In Automate, if first select "More flows..." and search for a script called "Auto Enable Rotation" by the author Anthony Beaumont. Once you download this script and run it, it will present you with 2 options, either to "start" the script service, or to "modify" the list of apps. You'll want to "modify" the list of apps and start a new one. To this, you can add apps such as Album, Youtube, Twitch and whatever else you want to watch in landscape mode. Finally, once that's done, stop the script and start it again, but this time select "start". (You can also select in the 3 dot menu to have this script run at start-up. Highly recommended!) Now, when you open Album/Youtube/Twitch etc. the phone should automatically flip to auto-rotation.
Enter all your app and website passwords automatically with fingerprint:
For better or for worse, I keep all of my online passwords saved in Lastpass. It turns out that once you have an account and saved passwords, Lastpass has an incredible app (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lastpass.lpandroid&hl=en) that can pop up over Chrome and just about any other app on your phone that can fill in the username/password fields for you using your fingerprint! It doesn't work for all the different browsers out there (I just use Chrome), and there may have been a pay wall for the in-app password filling, I forgot (sorry!). That said, it's super convenient to head to any site and just tap the fingerprint to log in.
Additionally, if you're a Lastpass user already, they also have a Lastpass Authenticator (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lastpass.authenticator&hl=en) that works in place of the Google Authenticator (you can add Google Authenticator 2factor sites to the LastPass one), which is IMHO superior because the keys are linked to your account rather than to the physical phone. Also, if you have LP Authenticator + the Chrome addon on your PC/Mac, on some sites you don't even have to enter the Authenticator number, you can just press "approve" on your phone to get into the website on your PC. Awesome!
Send links from your PC to phone or phone to PC
Ever read something on your PC and wish you could link it to your phone super quickly and not have to go through emailing it to yourself? I use Pushbullet (Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pushbullet.android&hl=en PC: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/pushbullet/chlffgpmiacpedhhbkiomidkjlcfhogd?hl=en), which allows you to directly link webpages from PC to phone and vice versa. Additionally, if you give it the permissions, it can hook up your phone's notifications to your Windows notifications (not sure about mac), including allowing you to read and send SMS from your PC. I believe it also has file transfer capabilities, but I don't use it.
I think that's it for now...I'll add more when I think of them. These are just a few of the mods I run which makes using the phone more effortless and enjoyable; please, feel free to add more and I'll add them to the list if there's something you want to share! Hope this helps someone out there!:highfive:
maidguitar said:
Re-adding the missing Ring/Vibrate Mode switch to quick switches:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alternative implementation that I use: Add a toggle on the home screen to quickly switch between Ring/Vibrate/Silent modes
First install Media-Mute [free & ad-free]. What this app does is automatically mute the media volume whenever the ringer volume is also muted, which applies to both Vibrate mode and Silent mode.
For some reason, since Android 4.x Google has decided that Silent mode should only apply to the ringer, instead of silencing everything that can make sounds out of the speaker. Media-Mute fixes that.
Next, install Silent Mode Toggle [free & ad-free], then add the widget on the home screen. Switching modes is now super easy, just tap on the toggle.
What I really appreciate about this app is that it allows customization to the toggle order. For example, I never use the vibrate mode, so I can set it to toggle between Ringer > Silent only.
As a bonus, it also lets you use your own custom icons for the toggle, super cool and makes it possible to perfectly complement your home screen layout.
Hide the annoying "running in the background" notification that comes with Android 8.0
With Android 8.0 Oreo, Google thought it would be a great idea to permanently remind you of any background processing currently running in the form of an impossible to dismiss notification.
While the intention was well meaning, the execution leaves a lot to be desired.
Thankfully, there's an app for that! Just install this cleverly named app Hide "running in the background" Notification [free & ad-free], problem solved!
Vibrate phone when call connects, ends
Yet another app to the rescue! VibCall [free & ad-free] brings this useful feature found on some OEM phones to any compatible Android device.
Basically, your phone will vibrate once to let you know that a call has connected, and twice when a call has ended. It's something that once you've used, you wonder why it's not baked into the Android system as a default option.
Add a fingerprint (Smart Lock) compatible screen lock toggle on the home screen
So Sony has unilaterally decided to remove double tap to sleep feature with no sign of bring it back. But I still want to turn off the screen and lock the device by tapping on the screen instead of waiting for the system to hibernate or hitting the power button.
The OP listed a paid solution which brings back double tap to sleep, but for those looking for a free alternative, this is the solution I'm currently using - Smart Screen Lock Pro [free & ad-free].
It's not a double tap anywhere convenience, but a toggle that is better than nothing, and most importantly it's compatible with fingerprint unlock. I've tried numerous screen off apps in the Play store, and this is the only one that I was satisfied with.
IMPORTANT: Take the time to carefully read and follow setup instructions, it's necessary for it to work properly due to OS restrictions. Once it's setup correctly, simply add a shortcut on the home screen and tap it to lock.
It's worth mentioning that it's not a true "instant" screen off and lock, but without root this is probably the best solution we'll get.
Non-root ad blocking
Ads are a necessary evil for the current economics of the Internet, but aside from the annoyance factor, they eat up precious mobile data, plus there's also very real security risks with ad networks, potentially hogging your phone's resources and draining the battery.
Whatever the argument, if you do decide to block ads, there are quite a lot of ad blockers to choose from.
Personally, I use dns66 [free & ad-free]. In my experience, it's very lightweight, and I haven't seen any ads in my browser or apps.
It does have its quirks though, sometimes downloads fail, such as OTA update or file in browser, for one reason or another (the author says it's a bug with the Android OS itself, see linked post).
But it's easy to workaround, just temporarily disable dns66 by tapping pause on the notification, and download again. After download has completed, tap the notification again to resume.
By the way, this is also the main reason I installed the hide background notification app.
Hi guys,
There is 10-15 mins delay or no notification at all from some third party apps until I press the power button to turn on the screen - not unlock, just turn on.
It mostly happens to Gmail and the Reolink App for my security cameras.
After I turn on the screen I can receive real time message from these two apps for a while but soon goes back to how it was before.
Things I have done but doesn't help:
1. Enabled “Stay connected when device sleeps” in battery setting.
2. Set apps to "Manage Manually" in App Launch
3. Enabled all notification for Apps.
4. Set "Don't Optimise" for Apps in Battery optimisation
I even followed the instruction below provided by @klaus27 to disable PowerGenie but it is still behaving in this way.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/mate-20-pro/themes/remove-powergenie-to-allow-background-t3890409
I really dont have any idea now can any one please help me out? Thanks in advance.