Develop Bugs

Define "the Google Experience"

Maybe I'm missing something. People talk about The Google Experience a lot in this forum. For me that sounds like saying "I don't install programs on my PC because I like the pure Windows experience."
I guess for me, the Google Experience just means that AT&T doesn't get to molest my phone with their apps, weird settings or worst of all, imprint their name indelibly on the front of my phone. To a much lesser extent, it means that I don;t have to worry about TouchWiz.
Is there more to it than that? What does it mean to you?

For me, it means Android as Google designed it, rather than how manufacturers think it should be to separate their phones from the competition and it means an unlockable boot loader out of the box without having to register with the manufacturer. It also means no carrier pre installed apps except stuff necessary for the phone to operate on their network.
When you buy a PC, you don't get manufacturer customized versions of Windows. You get the same Windows no matter what system you buy, so manufacturers compete on hardware, extras, etc. Sure, manufacturers pre load apps on Windows installations, but the fundamental UI remains the same.
Unfortunately the only way to get Android the way Google designed it is to either get a Nexus, or get some cheap budget Android device that uses the stock UI because its hardware can't handle anything more than that.
It's a shame that for each new major version of Android, Google needs to issue a Google-experience de ice to showcase the raw vanilla UI, but alas that's reality.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

You mean pure Android Experience.
But I agree with you on most counts.

Pure Google experience is just that, pure.. Foundation for customization. Everything is built on top, if you strip any android phone down to the bones you''ll get get pure android, AOSP sitting on top of the Kernel. Some like it, some don't, some prefer something else. That's the way I look and understand it maybe I'm wrong in thinking this way.

Most of the replies have focused on the Android experience. I think the Google experience can also mean that you use many of the Google services (search, reader, drive, gtalk, voice, etc). Using all of this is easier on an Android phone vs iOS because of the apps and single sign on.

Simply put, not only do carriers install apps and themes, such as their custom interfaces (touch wiz sense); but they go further into the operating system. They edit and tweak various code in the underlying OS (framework kernel mods), block stock features like AT&T removing the option to install non market apps. Install tracking software however invasive you allow yourself to believe it to be (carrier iq). Ultimately these developers for the carriers and manufacturers might not be as good as the Google developers. Having used a phone both with and without having carrier iq installed (og epic) i know it performed significantly faster sans the carrier code. Pure google is just that, the code and features that Google released, not touched by outside developers which a majority of its code is still in every spin off to be found. The question is does your potential rom enhance that experience or hinder the phone from what it performed stock.
Sent from my Sprint Galaxy Nexus
-Everything i post is opinion based on my experiences and should be taken a such.

dreamsforgotten said:
Simply put, not only do carriers install apps and themes, such as their custom interfaces (touch wiz sense);
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Carriers do not install custom interfaces, the OEMs do. The carriers can decide the layout, color scheme, and features of the interface, but the skins and overlays are all on Samsung, HTC, Moto, etc. There was a regional carrier that had a phone with the stock Google experience on a device that was skinned on other carriers, so the carrier can also specify to remove the overlays as well.
As for what Google Experience is, look at stock ICS and that is the Google experience. Nothing on the phone that isn't coded by Google,except for a couple items from VZW on their Nexus, which are easily disabled and removed with no change in functionality. All apps come from Google that are installed, and if you want more features or functionality, you choose it from the market or elsewhere. You don't use other services if you don't want to, and you aren't forced to have them either.

Its more of a minimalist philosophy. Simplistically having nothing but the core functions I use, which happen to be a load of Google apps, is what its all about. Then having all that extra ram resources not wasted on crap and fully available to my usage needs only. Its the less is more theory, elegant yet functional on the basic core stuff.

RogerPodacter said:
Its more of a minimalist philosophy. Simplistically having nothing but the core functions I use, which happen to be a load of Google apps, is what its all about. Then having all that extra ram resources not wasted on crap and fully available to my usage needs only. Its the less is more theory, elegant yet functional on the basic core stuff.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is pretty right on. I think you will find, generally, that the people who like stock Android like it because they subscribe, as Google does, to the design philosophy that less is more. Therein lies my problem with custom Android implementations, both at the OEM and open source level. So many of them throw in everything AND the kitchen sink. I find that pointless.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

Archpope said:
Maybe I'm missing something. People talk about The Google Experience a lot in this forum. For me that sounds like saying "I don't install programs on my PC because I like the pure Windows experience."
I guess for me, the Google Experience just means that AT&T doesn't get to molest my phone with their apps, weird settings or worst of all, imprint their name indelibly on the front of my phone. To a much lesser extent, it means that I don;t have to worry about TouchWiz.
Is there more to it than that? What does it mean to you?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Google Experience:
GSM Quad/Pentaband
Completely Unlocked (fastboot oem unlock)
No bloatware or custom skins
Instantly getting the newest Android version
----
This is basically what defines the "Google Experience"
There are also many specific things about the phone that add to the Google Experience.

oldblue910 said:
This is pretty right on. I think you will find, generally, that the people who like stock Android like it because they subscribe, as Google does, to the design philosophy that less is more. Therein lies my problem with custom Android implementations, both at the OEM and open source level. So many of them throw in everything AND the kitchen sink. I find that pointless.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It actually goes with Google's whole design. Ever notice how most Google services like Gmail are functional but not really flashy so much and sometimes a tad bland, like Gmail for many years in the beginning. More about simple to use rather than fancy and fully loaded. This is slowly changing though.

In my opinion, having a Nexus device is a much better experience than using a device that has had an AOSP ROM ported or kanged. I can't remember which phone(s) it was but I remember a carrier adding apps to an AOSP ROM as well as another one themeing their overlay to look like it AOSP. Lame.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

DeezNotes said:
In my opinion, having a Nexus device is a much better experience than using a device that has had an AOSP ROM ported or kanged. I can't remember which phone(s) it was but I remember a carrier adding apps to an AOSP ROM as well as another one themeing their overlay to look like it AOSP. Lame.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The HTC G2 (great phone BTW) and LG G2X both ran stock Android builds, but they were loaded up with T-Mobile bloatware. Maybe those are the phones you were thinking of?

Google Experience to me:
Turning a phone on without having to see a app draw full of apps that are trial versions or just plain bloat (Verizon loads Tunewiki on my Thunderbolt by default, I will never touch this app but unless I root there is absolutely no way to remove it, it will inevitably launch and eat up my resources, not cool).
Not seeing some OEM skin. I like android's stock look, I like that I can get different launchers to change it up a bit but stock android is still the best to me. If I need extra features there is always the Play store, where I can download what I WANT, not be forced to have widgets out of the ass that I will never use.
I really feel like I could go on forever but I will stop there and just get to the point, when I turned on my Nexus I saw an open canvas, there was nothing on it but I could see the potential. If I wanted to keep it to only a few apps I could, if I wanted to load it with features and apps and go the whole 9 yards I also could. Basically to me the "Google Experience" is choice. Being able to turn the phone on and just do what I want with it without being told you have to use this skin or you have to have these apps preinstalled. Yes I know I can root (And always do) to remove the bloat but that doesn't remove the OEM skin (Unless I install a kanged AOSP ROM which almost always have a bug or two) but why should I have to? This is my phone, right? I just payed up to $700 to own it, I should be able to do what I want with it from the get go, and make it mine.
Sadly, not enough people see Android for what it is. The see bloated up phones, that run slow 2 months down the road, they see 4 different "Versions (OEM skins)" of Android and don't know which is which. They don't experience Android as it was meant to be experienced, which to me is way better than any iProduct could ever be.

For me the Pure Google Experience means being a good 'lil soldier and using my phone in such a way that adds useful info to their databases.

My Google Experience :
US first
Rest of the world : months later

New Android feature suggestions...

Is there someplace people can go to make requests for new Android features? (Someplace were developers might actually see it and perhaps implement the requests?)
I have had ideas for several features that I think would make my Android devices (I have owned about 6) far better...
- One of my ideas was the ability for more than one Bluetooth device (ie: wireless headphone/earphones) to be able to connect to a single Android device at the same time. I go running, hiking, etc... When I go alone, I often listen to music. It would be great if when I run with someone else, if they could listen to the music I am playing on my Android device at the same time I am.
- I have changed ROMs many times, but when I do, it is always a pain to have to setup (or recreate) my music playlists on the new ROM. Many (not all) Android music players seem to allow users to import music playlists that have been created on PCs or whatever. None of the music players or the Android OS itself seem to allow me to save a music playlist as a file (ie: export) that I can reload later, use on another device, or give to someone else.
- None of the Android ROMs I have come across seem to provide a (relatively easy) way to change the the the resolution (LCD density) so that I can make images and text larger or smaller on my display. This is something that is very easy to do (change a setting and hit save/apply) on every PC I have ever owned, but the few ROMs that seem to allow this seem to have a complex procedure for doing it.
- Ability to put Widgets in folders (on the desktop). I like widgets. I sometimes even like the UI of a widget better than the associated app. (Sometimes widgets provides a nice condensed view of the information/features, or provide simple capabilities like a switch to turn on/off a feature without launching menus and digging through them.) Unfortunately the Android OS (or the "Home" apps that currently exist) does not (do not) allow widgets to be put into a folder on the desktop. I would like this feature for many reasons. 1) The folder could limit the widget from consuming battery or system resources until the folder was opened. That way widgets would not use up my battery or CPU cycles until I opened the folder and looked at them.
- It would be great to have a "magnifying glass" (zoom feature) that I could use to make any specific area on the display larger (so that if I'm having trouble seeing something small on the display, I can magnify it large enough to see it).
I have more ideas, but those are just a few of the things I think would make Android devices better. Feel free to add your own suggestions to this list.

Pretty good ideas as far as magnifying just pinch to zoom in that specific area or double tap. I believe there are apps to backup a music playlist the bluetooth idea is actually kind of cool
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda app-developers app

mediawiz said:
Is there someplace people can go to make requests for new Android features? (Someplace were developers might actually see it and perhaps implement the requests?)
I have had ideas for several features that I think would make my Android devices (I have owned about 6) far better...
- One of my ideas was the ability for more than one Bluetooth device (ie: wireless headphone/earphones) to be able to connect to a single Android device at the same time. I go running, hiking, etc... When I go alone, I often listen to music. It would be great if when I run with someone else, if they could listen to the music I am playing on my Android device at the same time I am.
- I have changed ROMs many times, but when I do, it is always a pain to have to setup (or recreate) my music playlists on the new ROM. Many (not all) Android music players seem to allow users to import music playlists that have been created on PCs or whatever. None of the music players or the Android OS itself seem to allow me to save a music playlist as a file (ie: export) that I can reload later, use on another device, or give to someone else.
- None of the Android ROMs I have come across seem to provide a (relatively easy) way to change the the the resolution (LCD density) so that I can make images and text larger or smaller on my display. This is something that is very easy to do (change a setting and hit save/apply) on every PC I have ever owned, but the few ROMs that seem to allow this seem to have a complex procedure for doing it.
- Ability to put Widgets in folders (on the desktop). I like widgets. I sometimes even like the UI of a widget better than the associated app. (Sometimes widgets provides a nice condensed view of the information/features, or provide simple capabilities like a switch to turn on/off a feature without launching menus and digging through them.) Unfortunately the Android OS (or the "Home" apps that currently exist) does not (do not) allow widgets to be put into a folder on the desktop. I would like this feature for many reasons. 1) The folder could limit the widget from consuming battery or system resources until the folder was opened. That way widgets would not use up my battery or CPU cycles until I opened the folder and looked at them.
- It would be great to have a "magnifying glass" (zoom feature) that I could use to make any specific area on the display larger (so that if I'm having trouble seeing something small on the display, I can magnify it large enough to see it).
I have more ideas, but those are just a few of the things I think would make Android devices better. Feel free to add your own suggestions to this list.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great ideas. I use Google Music to set up my playlists with my music on my desktop at home. No matter if I'm at work, over a friends house, or switching roms on my phone, as soon as I download google music, all my playlists and music is right at my fingertips.
As far as resolution changing, I would suggest Carbon Rom as you can change your density in less than a minute, and that's mostly because you have to reboot twice, but there are no force close issues or any of that.
As far as features go, I would like to see recovery feature addition:
The thing I hate the most about switching roms is having to log in to 15 different accounts again. I wish TWRP would construct a feature that allows me to carry over my sign in information for standard apps (Facebook, Webex, GroupME, etc.) that most people use.
Or perhaps, a ROM that offered three different login slots that attempted to log into every app that I restore using those slots first and if login is unsuccessful, THEN prompt me to enter login information.
Just a suggestion that would allow the end-user to streamline setting up his/her rom. What do you guys think?
PS: I think the multi-bluetooth device feature would be sweet as well. I have a couple of computers at home that I use my Note to control, it would be nice to have the option to control any given device in an instance.

As for resolution, that's much more easier said than done, since some apps would have to be rebuilt from the ground, or at least would have to individually be written and flashed for said resolution.
However, if there are a few apps that you really want to change (like for me, G-Mail, Chrome, XDA, gReader, etc), you really need to check out XPosed, honestly, I don't know if I'll ever buy a device that doesn't support it or something similar. It features on the fly resolution/DPI adjustments per app, one of the greatest MODs ever brought to Android, hands down.

The Note2 does what I need it to once rooted. I would like to see better prices and data first. Why have the next great thing when you pay out the ass and don't have equal speed?
I would like to see Android updates that actually make me want them, like better codex, performance, UI functions, etc. Some updates don't really seem like updates, like when Ubuntu releases a new version but you do the same thing as before, and you are left wanting more.

daswahnsinn said:
The Note2 does what I need it to once rooted. I would like to see better prices and data first. Why have the next great thing when you pay out the ass and don't have equal speed?
I would like to see Android updates that actually make me want them, like better codex, performance, UI functions, etc. Some updates don't really seem like updates, like when Ubuntu releases a new version but you do the same thing as before, and you are left wanting more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree somewhat. However, I think that the 4.2.2 roms with Linaro are noticeably faster than other 4.2.2 roms without it. Carbon is much faster without me having to use apps like Pimp My Rom and Lag Reducer without compromising my battery performance.
Halo is also another great custom feature that may one day rival the stock multi-window feature.
I also like the profile triggers built into Carbon, bluetooth and wifi triggers are wonderful, hopefully we can get some GPS triggers, then we will really be in business lol.
All in all, I agree with you though, we need some REAL POWER behind these updates. But I'm sure devs would say "Let's get some real CASH behind the devs and you guys will see some POWER!!" **Gotta look at it from both sides**
Great input guys. Let's keep it going!!!

lightning launcher has the widget in folder capabilities. It's my daily launcher
just saying.....
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda premium

Need the Android equivalent to iMessage.
Desperately needed and no, Google Hangouts (in its current state ) is not the answer.
Sent from my SGNote 2!

[email protected] said:
I agree somewhat. However, I think that the 4.2.2 roms with Linaro are noticeably faster than other 4.2.2 roms without it. Carbon is much faster without me having to use apps like Pimp My Rom and Lag Reducer without compromising my battery performance.
Halo is also another great custom feature that may one day rival the stock multi-window feature.
I also like the profile triggers built into Carbon, bluetooth and wifi triggers are wonderful, hopefully we can get some GPS triggers, then we will really be in business lol.
All in all, I agree with you though, we need some REAL POWER behind these updates. But I'm sure devs would say "Let's get some real CASH behind the devs and you guys will see some POWER!!" **Gotta look at it from both sides**
Great input guys. Let's keep it going!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
See I like Touchwiz and the stock UI bs and want more of these mods to make into a stock ROM, sometimes I wish Sammy read these types of forums.

[ROOTED] Android 11; how to install older version of google maps?

rooted/magisk samsung S21+ ...stock rom
stock version of google maps removed with titanium backup.
trying to install many different old versions (in the 9.x and 10.x range) just says 'app not installed' ...what the hell is going on here?

Android 11 scoped storage perhaps.
Try coping it off another device running on R with ApkExport then transfer it to the victim device.
11 just sucks elephant balls bad

scoped storage? sounds like got some searching to do.. i also have a rooted LG V30 that i could maybe grab stuff off of. thatd be my only other play to make though..

sraenn said:
scoped storage? sounds like got some searching to do.. i also have a rooted LG V30 that i could maybe grab stuff off of. thatd be my only other play to make though..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're stuck with scoped storage with/after Android 11. It's not fully active on Android 10, at least with older apps. My old copy of WPS office app runs fine on Q. I will continue to test my N10+/Q vs my N10+/PIE variant to see it's effects if any. So far it hasn't raised its ugly head on the Q variant, but I have played with it more then a few hours.
If you could use a rom version of Q or Pie that be best.
Workarounds for it on 11 exist to some extent but without apps coded well with special permissions it will make them useless. It's already causing issues with photo apps (even on Pixels), file explorer apps, any apps that needs access to large user databases.
Do a Google search for scoped storage sucks.
Let me know how Android 11 works for you, good or bad.
Typical battery life on my Pie variant are as follows with a 4300 mAh battery:
7-12%@hrSOT typically 8% for browser and 11% for web vids.
>.5%@hr with tap on AOD at night with cell/internet not disabled.
The Q variant seems to be better or similar but haven't ran it long enough to really know for sure. It's running cool though and not using excessive CPU cycles. Both are optimized almost the same including a package disabler. Q seems a bit snappier, but it's a fresh load vs a 1.5year old load with heavy use.

crap. that kinda sucks. honestly the battery life on my phone is doing well, granted i dont have much on it and the heaviest use it sees is watching youtube (vanced of course). maybe its time to look around for a good android 10 rom, eh..

sraenn said:
crap. that kinda sucks. honestly the battery life on my phone is doing well, granted i dont have much on it and the heaviest use it sees is watching youtube (vanced of course). maybe its time to look around for a good android 10 rom, eh..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you can find a good Android 10 rom, flash it, not losing hardware functionality. That's a tall order. The cam and display firmware will likely be the most troublesome aspects as the stock rom was built on Android 11.
After you clean up the bloatware Samsung usually builds good stock roms. Problem is Google only gives so much leeway to vendors modifying whatever base Android version it's running on.
Android 11 is a mess, Samsung had limited options and couldn't clean it up completely without disabling major "improvements" that are core elements of that OS.
The base Android OS is off the rails, dragging down Samsung with it.

Question Are apps like Naptime and Servicely relevant anymore in Android 12?

Some people are still arguing about this purely from anecdotal experiences.

That's a very good question and now I want to find this out as well... I've installed Gsam Battery Monitor, Greenify, Servicely and Naptime.
I'm on Xiaomi.eu Custom ROM (Stable). I used to have better battery life (especially on Standby!) when I was still on an AOSP-based Custom ROM (ArrowOS). I have a feeling that the MIUI Always-On-Display causes Android Doze to not activate and that my device is essentially awake the whole time. I'm not sure about this observation, but Settings > Battery > Sort by "Details" tells me that my device is on. The whole time...
I've unrestricted the Battery monitoring apps I've installed, I'll leave AOD enabled, and see for another night if it is actually preventing my phone from going into Doze Sleep. Next night I'll disable AOD, and the night after that I'll enable Extreme Doze-Mode in Naptime and see the behaviour then.
Rant about Xiaomi LOL:
One thing I know for sure is that MIUI is so horribly coded. I don't need to be an OS developer to know this, you can just feel how dirty their custom implementations are. Ranging from their AOD, their Navbar/Gesture Controls, to the Adaptive Refresh rate.
It's like Xiaomi is trying to make the software deliberately feel cheap, because otherwise their phones would be too good, because their hardware is really good for the price. You can't just make a Poco F3 300€. The hardware is insanely good, but the Stock ROM is crap.

cyanGalaxy said:
I've installed Gsam Battery Monitor, Greenify, Servicely and Naptime.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have stop using Greenify (it has not updated for 2 years) and lately have also replaced Naptime and Gsam/AccuBattery for BatteryGuru which combined both the main features (battery monitoring and aggressive Doze function).
I'm on ArrowOS 12.1 now, it seems Android11 gave me the best battery life, A12 was horrible and A12L is bearable.
I think it's time I stop worrying about battery and just replace the damn thing every 3 years lol.

mocmocmoc said:
I have stop using Greenify (it has not updated for 2 years) and lately have also replaced Naptime and Gsam/AccuBattery for BatteryGuru which combined both the main features (battery monitoring and aggressive Doze function).
I'm on ArrowOS 12.1 now, it seems Android11 gave me the best battery life, A12 was horrible and A12L is bearable.
I think it's time I stop worrying about battery and just replace the damn thing every 3 years lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think Battery Life is related to the Android Version you're using, but more which brand's ROM you use. For example Samsungs OneUI seems more trustable than MIUI in terms of Reliability.
But you're likely best served on Clean Vanilla Android, in terms of Battery Life at least.
But also make sure to use a trusted and genuine AOSP ROM. Not one of those, where the Main Dev can't write proper English and uses some obscure Custom Kernel or whatever.. Use one that's known and popular.
I did figure out that MIUI's Always-On-Display kept the CPU awake at all times. I could see it in Settings > Battery, and changing "Ranking" to "Details".
I don't know if that's normal for AOD or if it's MIUI's implementation of AOD, but my god.. AOD shouldn't drain that much. But now my battery life is normal again. ^^

cyanGalaxy said:
I don't think Battery Life is related to the Android Version you're using, but more which brand's ROM you use. For example Samsungs OneUI seems more trustable than MIUI in terms of Reliability.
But you're likely best served on Clean Vanilla Android, in terms of Battery Life at least.
But also make sure to use a trusted and genuine AOSP ROM. Not one of those, where the Main Dev can't write proper English and uses some obscure Custom Kernel or whatever.. Use one that's known and popular.
I did figure out that MIUI's Always-On-Display kept the CPU awake at all times. I could see it in Settings > Battery, and changing "Ranking" to "Details".
I don't know if that's normal for AOD or if it's MIUI's implementation of AOD, but my god.. AOD shouldn't drain that much. But now my battery life is normal again. ^^
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For all practical purposes, the best/definitive experience of Android is obtained on a Samsung device nowadays. So much so that Google released certain new features in some of their apps on Samsung devices ONLY to begin with, not even their own Pixel devices. And Pixel software experience is terrible. And Samsung has innovated so many new features that Google slowly incorporates into stock Android. Samsung Dex is still unparalleled. I personally don't like some aspects of Samsung UI. The squircle icons, the excessively round UI elements with large paddings.. Sadly, Google seems to have incorporated some of this into Android 12's Material You styling. Android 12 looks more like a Samsung One UI skin. That was my FIRST impression when I played around with Material You, i.e. how much it reminded me of Samsung's style.
I agree that Xiaomi's MIUI has a load of flaws in them. The latest is their custom per-app dark mode override has been broken since they released MIUI 13 and before that you had to do some funky things to make it show the list of apps. They never allowed us to see notification history for some strange reason. These are two issues I can think off right away. But otherwise I feel that the software is pretty decent and I had no major issues with it and the battery life with Stock ROM is quite good. I personally don't understand the vehement negativity towards MIUI. Perhaps in the past it was attrocious, but now it is decent. Just like Samsung's One UI. Remember the awful TouchWiz days!? I still have an old tablet with Samsung's touch wiz on it! Bottom line, MIUI is nothing exemplary, but definitely usable and fine, with some minor issues.
In fact, I do like some of the things in MIUI versus stock. I like the fact that the Settings button is immediately visible in the notification shade (like it USED to be on Stock Android) rather than having to swipe again to reveal the quick toggles. I do like some of their built in apps, like the Clock, Calculator (which is very feature rich) and Compass app. So, overall not too shaby.
But I ranted a lot in this thread and none of this is relevant for this topic! So back to relevance...
I do use GSam battery monitor and after a lot of usage I feel like my battery life on Stock MIUI is similar to Arrow OS. I used Arrow OS 11, I used MIUI 12 and 13 and the battery life on all of them was very similar. Arrow OS 11 had some weird bugs with incoming phone call sound and Bluetooth when using Navigation. But Stock MIUI has no such issues. I've slowly decided to stop paying close attention to battery life as it is mostly very good for my usage.

litetaker said:
For all practical purposes, the best/definitive experience of Android is obtained on a Samsung device nowadays. So much so that Google released certain new features in some of their apps on Samsung devices ONLY to begin with, not even their own Pixel devices. And Pixel software experience is terrible. And Samsung has innovated so many new features that Google slowly incorporates into stock Android. Samsung Dex is still unparalleled. I personally don't like some aspects of Samsung UI. The squircle icons, the excessively round UI elements with large paddings.. Sadly, Google seems to have incorporated some of this into Android 12's Material You styling. Android 12 looks more like a Samsung One UI skin. That was my FIRST impression when I played around with Material You, i.e. how much it reminded me of Samsung's style.
...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For me the hate for MIUI stems from all the little things.
Notification History & Log being hidden (Can be accessed through an Activity Launcher),
Holding a notification and clicking "More" doesn't bring to you to the specific notification channel,
No Gestures on 3rd Party Launchers,
Recents-Animations broken on 3rd Party Launchers,
Dolby Atmos Sound effect doesn't apply to the first volume step.
Touch Sounds are way too loud, regardless of users volume,
For Google Clock to work properly, you need to disable MIUI Battery Saver,
MIUI Boot Sound is way too loud, also regardless of users volume,
Annoying additional restrictions/permission-manager which cannot be turned off anymore,
Fullscreen Pop-Up with user-unfriendly 10 second timer when trying to change sensitive permissions,
Adaptive Refresh Rate only activating when Screen-brightness is >80%, and only after 2 second delay,
YouTube, Games etc are forced to 60 Hz,
MIUI Camera doesn't respect Default-Gallery setting and always uses MIUI Gallery,
Default Camera cannot be changed,
Monet Colours cannot be customised,
Almost all apps used to get forcibly themed dark (even when the app already had Dark Mode), and you had to individually disable it for all apps. This made text from some apps unreadable.
I do like a few changes Xiaomi has done to Android with MIUI, like bringing back down the Brightness-bar (retarded change from Google), Custom Fonts, the really cool Live Wallpapers, its Dolby Atmos and much more...
I also do like many of their apps like Mi Fitness and the Calc...
But all the little issues give me micro-aggression. It's not a 100% reliable OS in my opinion and I'm still a tiny bit concerned about its Privacy & Tracking.. it's still a chinese company and China is ruled by CCP. The chinese Gov't can control their Tech companies.
Samsungs OneUI does indeed seem like a good and stable experience. But I'm also not a fan of goofy rounded corners and padding.
I bought my Galaxy Note 8 when TouchWiz was still a thing. Then a System update came and upgraded me to OneUI 1.0 and I kinda didn't like it all that much. TouchWiz looked a bit more professional to me, but that's just personal preference.
I'm more into Edgy than Curvy ;D

Yes, Naptime still makes quite a difference with its agressive dove settings and disabling sensors.
Even with how optimized Android 12 is you cannot escape bad programmed third party apps, so use something like IceBox to freeze not often used apps too

cyanGalaxy said:
For me the hate for MIUI stems from all the little things.
Notification History & Log being hidden (Can be accessed through an Activity Launcher),
Holding a notification and clicking "More" doesn't bring to you to the specific notification channel,
No Gestures on 3rd Party Launchers,
Recents-Animations broken on 3rd Party Launchers,
Dolby Atmos Sound effect doesn't apply to the first volume step.
Touch Sounds are way too loud, regardless of users volume,
For Google Clock to work properly, you need to disable MIUI Battery Saver,
MIUI Boot Sound is way too loud, also regardless of users volume,
Annoying additional restrictions/permission-manager which cannot be turned off anymore,
Fullscreen Pop-Up with user-unfriendly 10 second timer when trying to change sensitive permissions,
Adaptive Refresh Rate only activating when Screen-brightness is >80%, and only after 2 second delay,
YouTube, Games etc are forced to 60 Hz,
MIUI Camera doesn't respect Default-Gallery setting and always uses MIUI Gallery,
Default Camera cannot be changed,
Monet Colours cannot be customised,
Almost all apps used to get forcibly themed dark (even when the app already had Dark Mode), and you had to individually disable it for all apps. This made text from some apps unreadable.
I do like a few changes Xiaomi has done to Android with MIUI, like bringing back down the Brightness-bar (retarded change from Google), Custom Fonts, the really cool Live Wallpapers, its Dolby Atmos and much more...
I also do like many of their apps like Mi Fitness and the Calc...
But all the little issues give me micro-aggression. It's not a 100% reliable OS in my opinion and I'm still a tiny bit concerned about its Privacy & Tracking.. it's still a chinese company and China is ruled by CCP. The chinese Gov't can control their Tech companies.
Samsungs OneUI does indeed seem like a good and stable experience. But I'm also not a fan of goofy rounded corners and padding.
I bought my Galaxy Note 8 when TouchWiz was still a thing. Then a System update came and upgraded me to OneUI 1.0 and I kinda didn't like it all that much. TouchWiz looked a bit more professional to me, but that's just personal preference.
I'm more into Edgy than Curvy ;D
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I guess these can be frustrating issues for some, but none of this is an issue for me. I tend not to get overly worked up by minor software issues. In fact I do not mind the additional 10 second delay for sensitive permissions. For power users it maybe too annoying, but for ordinary users it is useful to show such warnings to help them avoid making big mistakes and messing up their phones or falling for scams. And anyway, it is just an extra 10 seconds delay. I do admit that blocking access to notification history is annoying but I have learned to live with it. Having the per app dark mode option is genuinely useful as it allows me to force dark mode on only some apps that I use that don't have a dark mode built in, rather than forcing it on all apps via Developer tools. Although this is not working anymore on MIUI 13.

litetaker said:
I guess these can be frustrating issues for some, but none of this is an issue for me. I tend not to get overly worked up by minor software issues. In fact I do not mind the additional 10 second delay for sensitive permissions. For power users it maybe too annoying, but for ordinary users it is useful to show such warnings to help them avoid making big mistakes and messing up their phones or falling for scams. And anyway, it is just an extra 10 seconds delay. I do admit that blocking access to notification history is annoying but I have learned to live with it. Having the per app dark mode option is genuinely useful as it allows me to force dark mode on only some apps that I use that don't have a dark mode built in, rather than forcing it on all apps via Developer tools. Although this is not working anymore on MIUI 13.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think the Warning with 10 sec-timer is the most infuriating one. :x
About Notification History, you can download Activity Launcher, search "Notification History" and make a shortcut for that hidden Activity to your Home screen!
That's what I did, because I use Notification Log & Notification History regularly.
However Notification-History on MIUI is a bit broken. You have to enable Light Mode to see the text properly

cyanGalaxy said:
I think the Warning with 10 sec-timer is the most infuriating one. :x
About Notification History, you can download Activity Launcher, search "Notification History" and make a shortcut for that hidden Activity to your Home screen!
That's what I did, because I use Notification Log & Notification History regularly.
However Notification-History on MIUI is a bit broken. You have to enable Light Mode to see the text properly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lot for the tip on how to get Notification History! That is very useful! It is stupid that Xiaomi blocks us from accessing this useful information natively and we need to use a third party app to expose this activity, but at least now I can see the history and get some info! Sometimes I get a ping on my phone and I am not sure which notification caused it. Now I can get more clarity! Yay!

BrokeBloke1969 said:
Yes, Naptime still makes quite a difference with its agressive dove settings and disabling sensors.
Even with how optimized Android 12 is you cannot escape bad programmed third party apps, so use something like IceBox to freeze not often used apps too
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We are now 1 year on, and Naptime + Servicely doesn't matter one bit on new devices. I've been running Android 13 for a while now and have never felt the need to install these two apps.
With Android 14 around the corner, app efficiency will be addressed even further by TARE and the introduction of new background APIs.

I'm still using naptime since a9/10. And see no reason to not use it. Induce deep sleep faster.
BTW, anyone noticed that naptime was removed from play store?

lapirado said:
I'm still using naptime since a9/10. And see no reason to not use it. Induce deep sleep faster.
BTW, anyone noticed that naptime was removed from play store?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup i think Naptime and Servicely do improve my battery life! I can see from the Naptime Doze-logs that my phone goes to Deep Doze faster and the battery life does seem improved.
I just checked, and Naptime seems to be gone from Play Store, tho not Servicely. I think Google are being twats again...

cyanGalaxy said:
Yup i think Naptime and Servicely do improve my battery life! I can see from the Naptime Doze-logs that my phone goes to Deep Doze faster and the battery life does seem improved.
I just checked, and Naptime seems to be gone from Play Store, tho not Servicely. I think Google are being twats again...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I could not run Naptime on Oxygen OS without Root. Did you find a solution? It worked fine on OOS11.

skyNET said:
Hi, I could not run Naptime on Oxygen OS without Root. Did you find a solution? It worked fine on OOS11.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does the app not start for you? You don't need Root, you can grant the permissions via ADB.

cyanGalaxy said:
Does the app not start for you? You don't need Root, you can grant the permissions via ADB.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First of all thanks for your answer.
Yes, of course, it doesn't start properly, it shuts down quickly. I gave permissions with adb in OOS11 and it was doing its job really well (Naptime). But after I upgraded to OOS 12, I saw that the following command string "adb -d shell pm grant..." did not work and gave an error. I can't get around this problem, have you tried it? Naptime is a really successful app and OOS needs it.

skyNET said:
First of all thanks for your answer.
Yes, of course, it doesn't start properly, it shuts down quickly. I gave permissions with adb in OOS11 and it was doing its job really well (Naptime). But after I upgraded to OOS 12, I saw that the following command string "adb -d shell pm grant..." did not work and gave an error. I can't get around this problem, have you tried it? Naptime is a really successful app and OOS needs it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What error?
Enable USB debugging, connect your phone to PC, get the Google SDK Platform Tools, open the folder in Terminal, and type the commands exactly as written.
If you are on MIUI, you also have to enable "USB Debugging (Secure Settings)"

cyanGalaxy said:
What error?
Enable USB debugging, connect your phone to PC, get the Google SDK Platform Tools, open the folder in Terminal, and type the commands exactly as written.
If you are on MIUI, you also have to enable "USB Debugging (Secure Settings)"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let me show you the simplest with BBS!

skyNET said:
Let me show you the simplest with BBS!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try "adb shell" -> "pm grant ..........."

cyanGalaxy said:
Try "adb shell" -> "pm grant ..........."
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like this?

General No GAPPS for more freedom!

When I started installing modified ROMs a few years ago on my devices (Galaxy Y and the Nexus 5) it was to have more options than what the factory system didn't have by default.
Having all those apps that manufacturers install and Google's suite of apps didn't suit me either. Especially with new research revealing how various companies use apps to mine user data.
At the time of the Nexus 5 there were several ROM's available and if I wanted the Google applications installed I needed to install a "GAPPS" package. Otherwise I was free to use the system only with the essential AOSP applications.
Time passed and between the Nexus 5 and the Oneplus 9 Pro some movement happened and now most of the ROM's already come with the GAPPS package included in their builds.
Apparently on the Oneplus 9 Pro the only two actively supported options are LineageOS and crDroid and those that don't include GAPPS packages by default.
What happened? Why already include GAPPS in the build?
Is it for technical reasons, convenience? What is the reason for developers to take this attitude and not delegate the choice to users?
...

I hear you! I'd like to get away from Google as much as possible. I don't trust them.
I think that the way Android is nowadays, the AOSP ROMS are limited in the services they provide and many apps are written for the Google API's included with Gapps. If you don't install Gapps, many apps will not work with vanilla Android alone. You almost have to conpletely divorce yourself from all the Google API's and any apps that rely on them just to get away from Google.
What it amounts to is a spartan living on a phone that's de-Googled. You can only install apps from F-Droid and a couple other places if you want Google-freedom. It's a choice that you have to decide to live with.

I prefer installing MicroG to get around part of the problem with apps that need Google's api's. I'm currently using crDroid with MicroG and the bank apps have been working great. Just like the GPS that in other times was very difficult to use. But now with osmAnd+ it's much easier.
I also have my own Nextcloud server installed on a cheap VPS that I use for various services such as: synchronizing contacts, calendar, notes and newsreader. I also have a mail server. All with the help of the YunoHost project.
crDroid is an excellent ROM but it has some features from other projects that I would like to try out. But as now several developers decide to provide the GAPPS package already included in their builds, it becomes more difficult to make the change.

You just have to search around and find special builds of ROM's that meet your needs.
I'm on a shoestring budget, myself. I have a few Android devices/phones, and an Odroid XU4 SBC with a 4TB hard drive as a server. It's not much, but it covers my needs. LOL
Edit: OsmAnd is a great offline mapping app.

Nouty said:
When I started installing modified ROMs a few years ago on my devices (Galaxy Y and the Nexus 5) it was to have more options than what the factory system didn't have by default.
Having all those apps that manufacturers install and Google's suite of apps didn't suit me either. Especially with new research revealing how various companies use apps to mine user data.
At the time of the Nexus 5 there were several ROM's available and if I wanted the Google applications installed I needed to install a "GAPPS" package. Otherwise I was free to use the system only with the essential AOSP applications.
Time passed and between the Nexus 5 and the Oneplus 9 Pro some movement happened and now most of the ROM's already come with the GAPPS package included in their builds.
Apparently on the Oneplus 9 Pro the only two actively supported options are LineageOS and crDroid and those that don't include GAPPS packages by default.
What happened? Why already include GAPPS in the build?
Is it for technical reasons, convenience? What is the reason for developers to take this attitude and not delegate the choice to users?
...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's primarily for user convenience. Not many people are willing to use MicroG services because of it's unreliability

Nouty said:
When I started installing modified ROMs a few years ago on my devices (Galaxy Y and the Nexus 5) it was to have more options than what the factory system didn't have by default.
Having all those apps that manufacturers install and Google's suite of apps didn't suit me either. Especially with new research revealing how various companies use apps to mine user data.
At the time of the Nexus 5 there were several ROM's available and if I wanted the Google applications installed I needed to install a "GAPPS" package. Otherwise I was free to use the system only with the essential AOSP applications.
Time passed and between the Nexus 5 and the Oneplus 9 Pro some movement happened and now most of the ROM's already come with the GAPPS package included in their builds.
Apparently on the Oneplus 9 Pro the only two actively supported options are LineageOS and crDroid and those that don't include GAPPS packages by default.
What happened? Why already include GAPPS in the build?
Is it for technical reasons, convenience? What is the reason for developers to take this attitude and not delegate the choice to users?
...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
in my opinion it doesn't make sense to build a rom without google apps because all roms have google services in them (since these are also used in the background for updates "project mainline") since android 10

If you're truly into de-Google-ifying, I'd start with /e/ OS.

ArmashOnXDA said:
It's primarily for user convenience. Not many people are willing to use MicroG services because of it's unreliability
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ChrisFeiveel84 said:
in my opinion it doesn't make sense to build a rom without google apps because all roms have google services in them (since these are also used in the background for updates "project mainline") since android 10
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay, that's more convenient. But it is also not difficult for the user to add one more .zip or a reboot-to-recovery to perform just one more installation. Many already do this to install Magisk.
I think not including GAPPS in the build provides one more option for all users. Users who want it can choose which GAPPS package to install. From "Full stock" to "Core".

primarily for user convenience = care for user inability
romchefs dish-up what users want

If you care about deGoogle and hardening a ROM called DivestOS is also a choice https://divestos.org/pages/devices#device-lemonadep Never tried it tho ur on ur own

Tom Mix said:
primarily for user convenience = care for user inability
romchefs dish-up what users want
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TrumpXi said:
If you care about deGoogle and hardening a ROM called DivestOS is also a choice https://divestos.org/pages/devices#device-lemonadep Never tried it tho ur on ur own
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand the good intention of the developers to want to include and facilitate the integration of lay users in the world of custom ROMs. But you can already see that it is better to teach how to do it than to "deliver it ready".
I took a look at DivestOS but the point I want to make is that not including the GAPPS package opens up a much wider range of options for all users.
DivestOS also doesn't provide many of the features you might find in other ROMs.

Every individual learns at a different rate and level. Trying to teach one message at a time is not the most efficient way to teach. If someone is interested in installing a custom ROM, they should start with Google search and get questions answered one at a time. When you put forth a serious effort to learn how to accomplish something, you retain more in memory and don't have to ask the same question again. Then if you don't like the first ROM you installed, you are more prepared to flash the second one.... Thinking out loud here.

once the idea of a custom rom was a very different one:
have control and the freedom of choice.
nowadays so called 'custom-roms' already include gapps
what a farce
[OFFTOPiC] i try to analyse if licenses are violated by
distributing 'custom-roms' including gapps.
[iLLEGAL] [LEGAL] GApps including Custom ROMs [QUESTiON] [DiSCUSSiON]
hello world unfortunately one sees more and more so called 'custom roms' including GApps by default 🤷‍♂️ this brings up a question: is this legal? as an example reading: Google apps are the proprietary Google-branded applications that come...
forum.xda-developers.com
but no one is interested at all
and so far i can understand the licence
it is not allowed, maybe can someone from
this topic help to clarify[/OFFTOPiC]

Nouty said:
When I started installing modified ROMs a few years ago on my devices (Galaxy Y and the Nexus 5) it was to have more options than what the factory system didn't have by default.
Having all those apps that manufacturers install and Google's suite of apps didn't suit me either. Especially with new research revealing how various companies use apps to mine user data.
At the time of the Nexus 5 there were several ROM's available and if I wanted the Google applications installed I needed to install a "GAPPS" package. Otherwise I was free to use the system only with the essential AOSP applications.
Time passed and between the Nexus 5 and the Oneplus 9 Pro some movement happened and now most of the ROM's already come with the GAPPS package included in their builds.
Apparently on the Oneplus 9 Pro the only two actively supported options are LineageOS and crDroid and those that don't include GAPPS packages by default.
What happened? Why already include GAPPS in the build?
Is it for technical reasons, convenience? What is the reason for developers to take this attitude and not delegate the choice to users?
...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What happened? Mostly quality went to quantity. Back then ROMs were actual ROMs instead of these trash copy paste propaganda called AOSP.
Cant wait for the reports and triggered people.