Dear Google, dear Android OEM`s,
This is an open letter addressed directly to your development teams, which I hope will sooner or later arrive at the right places. I`m an avid Android user and fan since quite a while and was also an active part of the XDA development community (mainly Milestone, Desire HD). I really appreciate what you have done with the Android OS, especially now with the latest and greatest – ICS. Nevertheless with all the beauty and customization of Android, there is still a lot of room to improve, especially when it comes to user configurable customization. Following I want to illustrate, where I strongly believe, based on my experience in many threads here at XDA or my home forum, where there is a lot of room to improve.
@ GOOGLE - Users like new features, but not all users are equal.
Whether it`s widgets, shortcuts to settings or toggles, everyone has different preferences. So please add user selectable features to next ROM generations, that can be activated by users (say customers). If you follow XDA carefully, you will recognize some sort of consensus, which kind of customizations people would like to have in future stock ROM`s. The following features should all be user configurable to reflect the different tastes and user patterns. I will only post the Top features, but these would already add a lot and allow users to customize their experience.
1. Battery icon option with 1% steps in statusbar
2. Quick toggles to settings in statusbar
3. Custom shortcuts for Lock Screen
4. Reboot option in Power Menu
5. Position of clock in status bar
6. Customize Auto Brightness
7. T9 dialer
8. “Unread only” email tabs
9. Home Screen animation
10. Widget color and transparency
11. Color Themes (see Windows Phone)
@ OEM`s - Some users like custom skins, other`s don’t
We all know that OEM´s need to differentiate their products by hardware and user experience, BUT…. There are many consumers who fall in love with a certain phone, but don`t buy it, since it is covered by a custom UI (say Sense or TouchWiz), which some not only don`t like, it also adds huge delays to updates and in some cases completely prevents these. Please understand that users love choices and also having the latest version of Android on their phones. Also note that with the arrival of ICS, for most users suddenly stock Android delivers a better visual experience, then current custom UI`s.
1. Present your custom UI as add-ons, which allow the user to choose in settings, whether he really wants to use it.
2. You can break down your custom UI in Theme and features. That way the user can both select the visual aspects and the features he needs.
3. If you allow this freedom, you will sell more products and the result is win-win
Bottom line: If both Google and OEM`s understand and respect, we all have different preferences and like to have a choice, you will have even more loyal followers.
@ Community – it will be interesting to hear your opinion. Please don`t discuss details like more features you would like to see, it`s way more interesting whether you agree with the general approach or whether you are happy as it is.
..goodluck
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
Instead of wasting time trying to convince google or samsung just install a custom rom which has many of these features. Give your support and donations to the awesome developers who do this on their own time and are always open to your suggestions.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk
The problem with such 'requests' is that Google is probably looking at a much bigger picture than us. Some people actually get turned off by too many customization options.
..and not everyone likes them. For example, I think percent in the battery is stupid and annoying.
Your effort in writing appears to be good but sadly I think your post is going to be unnoticed by the people you addressed it to. Good luck.
Sent from my Gummy Nexus
+ 1 on all aspects and +11 on T9 dialer. Coming from HTC Desire I really miss this smart dialing feat.
adrynalyne said:
For example, I think percent in the battery is stupid and annoying.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why? I keep thinking about this too.
On the one hand, it's useful if you want to test battery against usage patterns etc. You also get better estimates of when you'll run out of charge.
On the other hand, it's extra information you have to remember and could easily do without, it also gives you a habit of wasting time by looking at it repeatedly and remembering that information. I never have to worry about running out of charge before I get home so it's kind of pointless.
I see the battery percentage every time I unlock my device. Percentages on a battery image are cluttered, and doesn't increase my battery life. Instead, I watch myself staring at them. I can't judge my battery life off of them, because drain is not linear most of the time. I just have a personal distaste for them.
he_stheone64 said:
1. Battery icon option with 1% steps in statusbar
2. Quick toggles to settings in statusbar
3. Custom shortcuts for Lock Screen
4. Reboot option in Power Menu
5. Position of clock in status bar
7. T9 dialer
8. “Unread only” email tabs
9. Home Screen animation
11. Color Themes (see Windows Phone)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This would defeat the purpose of Android would it not? Google does not want to do all of this, because that's what the developers are for. They make stock android with some enhancements they think will push android to the next level and let all the devs make stuff for us to use to customize our phone.
If i want these features i download apps.
I've always agreed with this, from day one. However, OEMS pump out Android phones more than they do Windows phones for one simple reason, because they can modify Android and they are not bound to upgrade it. Yes, there is that whole 18-month window thing, but it takes phones sometimes 18-months just to get one update. Windows on the other hand requires phones to be built to handle long-term updates, as does Apple. Personally, Google needs to really force manufactures to come closers to upstream AOSP. There's really no need for locked bootloaders, or closed-source skins such as Sense.
Either way, good luck.
How is that working out for windows phones?
Think their model is working for them? So far, wp7 has been an afterthought in most stores. Most of them are EOL'ed before they see much of updates. A long update cycle is worthless without...updates.
Droid Razr. Three months later Droid Razr Maxx.
Atrix. Half a year Later Atrix 2.
Droid 2. About 11 months later Droid 3.
Android phones really are not a shining example of longevity either. The general philosophy of the OEM's has been to release new phones, not upgrade existing ones.
Notice a pattern there?
Motorola.
They are idiots.
Besides, you missed some.
droid 2 > droid 2 global > droid 3 > droid 4
razr > razr maxx > razr dev edition
atrix, atrix 2
bionic
photon
Did I miss any big ones?
he_stheone64 said:
1. Battery icon option with 1% steps in statusbar
2. Quick toggles to settings in statusbar
3. Custom shortcuts for Lock Screen
4. Reboot option in Power Menu
5. Position of clock in status bar
6. Customize Auto Brightness
7. T9 dialer
8. “Unread only” email tabs
9. Home Screen animation
10. Widget color and transparency
11. Color Themes (see Windows Phone)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. i don't wanna see 1% battery icon, because it is annoying. if you want it, install ROM.
2. quick toggles is great thing. i don't understand why galaxy nexus doesn't have it since the manufacturer of gnexus is samsumg?!? all samung devices has quick toggles but gnexus. though, it is not really a big problem. there is GREAT app from market called Notification Toggle and it's even better then stock samsung's quick toggles.
3. i do not care. i guess it is up for developers, not for google.
4. well, this could be really usefull.
7. not bad idea
so in fact i don't really wanna change anything.. well maybe add a reboot or t9 dialer...
I believe his original point that was overlooked by nearly everyone in the thread was "user customizable," i.e. the ability to change or toggle most of the features. Of course many of us might not wanna see battery percentage, but have we not seen just about every feature in our ROMs have the ability to be toggled on/off or easily customized from a settings menu? Remove the need for all fifty Nexus devs to put essentially the same basic features in their ROMs that everyone wants to see, allowing them to focus on further development.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App
Nah, I didn't miss it. One of my points was that too much customization options scares some people away. You can increase, and hinder sales in such cases.
Personally, more customization options on phones is a must. Everyone bangs on about android being really customizable, but im already bored with the limited options.
Custom roms arent the answer because none of them work properly and have things missing. Even stuff like miui, oxygen and all the roms on Htc Desire dont work 100 percent and ive always had to return to stock.
They need to start offering more STOCK customization options that work if android is going to continue to flourish.
Ive yet to find a phone or rom i can customise to my tastes that works perfectly, still on hunt for perfect phone and i doubt i will ever see it.
Good luck.
my perfect os is;
- stock android, but if coming from e.g HTC, when setting up the phone give me a choice whether to have sense or stock.
-unlocked boot loader
- let me change the colour scheme. Amoled screens last longer on darker colours so let me gave dark scheme. LCD I don't care.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
biffsmash said:
Custom roms arent the answer because none of them work properly and have things missing. Even stuff like miui, oxygen and all the roms on Htc Desire dont work 100 percent and ive always had to return to stock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This has more or less been my experience too. Plus, you get the options the dev chose. Some you like and some you don't.
biffsmash said:
They need to start offering more STOCK customization options that work if android is going to continue to flourish.
Ive yet to find a phone or rom i can customise to my tastes that works perfectly, still on hunt for perfect phone and i doubt i will ever see it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You probably won't. The reason being that the majority of people don't even know those options could exist. What most people really want (need even) is simplicity. Put a smartphone in your average person's hands and they are overwhelmed. Again, I am talking about the majority which isn't XDA users. XDA is the 1% of smartphone users!
What Google product managers should consider is a tiered option system. Basic simple options for the masses and then an expert user set of options buried a layer deeper for the people like us who really want it a specific way. However, these additional options cost a lot of effort to develop and regression test. That cost needs to be weighed against the perceived benefit.
Thx for your feedback so far, but it's important to note, that this is about giving users the choice. So if you don't like percentage battery, just don't choose it. I'm also aware I can flash Custom ROMS for this and I probably flashed more then most here, but don't forget that 90% of Android users don't even root their devices. So it would be a great advantage, if they get this flexibility out of the box.
Send from my Galaxy Nexus
I know that CM doesn't really have a request thread, they don't monitor the development threads and I know of no way to request particular features to be added but I wanted to start a thread anyway of all the CM10.1 items I wish they would impliment when time is permitted.
This isn't a thread to discuss the known issues (obviously we all want A2DP to work) and this isn't a thread to discuss other apps that will do something we wish CM would do, it's a place to mention and talk about all the features we would like to see added/changed in CM.
Who knows maybe we will learn some things HAVE been added but we didn't see it.
So I'll start it off with 2 things I wish they would impliment.
1. Allow the user to enter in specific hex values for the LED notification colours. It's really hard getting some colours to look natural and the ability to use hex values would allow us to get better looking LED colours. I know Task's AOKP allows for this and I would love to see it added to CM.
2. More advanced quiet hours. I'd love to see the ability to set more than one quiet time for the day (say at work that uses vibe and LED notifications and overnight which would turn off all vibe, LED and only let phone calls come through). It would also be great if we could set each day of the weekend differently as I wouldn't have the same quiet hours as I would on lets say a Wednesday. The framework is already there, I'd love to see it expanded on.
So there are my 2 wishes. Does anyone else have a feature they would like to see CM impliment that would make your life easier? Is there anything in another ROM such as Task's that you wish was in CM?
Cheers.
I don't really get this. Not to be a stick in the mud, but is it really necessary to state things you wish a rom had?. Some people might agree with you, but is this thread really necessary?
I guess to contribute: I wish CM10.1 had the same circle battery icon as AOKP and vice versa.