Database Develop

Impression.

I just used the phone for half a day and thoroughly enjoy it. On first impression, the phone is very light for the size and they give nice accessories considering the price; earphones, screen protector, case. The phone have an RGB notification light.
Interface:
-The interface is not stock Android, it's more like a modified version of MIUI. It's very usable once you install your choice of stock launcher, replace the default keyboard, and disable some of the bloat apps.
-Since it's not stock Android, I find it take a bit of time to get used to finding things in the Settings menu.
-The swipe up hardware toggles (Control center, similar to iPhone toggles) are pretty useful and more well organized than stock Android imo.
-Screen off gestures, you get many different commands (double tap on, camera, flashlight, customize your own, etc) and it work pretty good.
-Feature to display network speed on the notification bar
-"Close all" button in the recent apps menu.
-There is a feature to modify apps permissions called "Permissions of App".
-I can not find the shortcut to "Smart Lock" window anywhere, even though it is supported in the OS, if you pair a bluetooth device it will display the notification to enable it. But there seems to be no way to get to the actual Smart Lock window to enable other smart lock features, or I miss it somewhere.
Performance:
I installed all my programs pretty quick. I don't see any lag issues. All the apps launches fast and run smoothly. I don't intend to play any heavy games on a $100 phone, all the light games I play like Subway Surfer and Horizon Chase have no lags.
Connection:
Cell: The dual sim feature seems to work good. I still have to to test the signal quality, but I have to say the data speed is average. I get about 10 to 12mbps down for T-Mobile LTE speed test.
Bluetooth: I'm happy to report the Bluetooth have good performance, the motion of people lips in videos are in synced with the audio from the bluetooth speaker.
WiFi: Can reach high speed, no problem.
GPS: No problem.
Storage:
There is a strange quirk with the phone which is by default your microSD is acts as the main 'internal storage' of the phone (sdcard0), and the actual internal storage act as external (sdcard1). So it would help if you use a fast microSD. I think this is because I have the microSD inserted the first time I set up the phone. Maybe this problem can be prevented by not inserting the microSD for the first time you boot up the phone. I don't know, but I'll just live with it.
Display:
The screen is very nice for a 5.5" 720p AMOLED display. It's not going to be sharp, but it the pixels are smooth so you don't get so much of that pixelation effect. Pretty much deep black, saturated colors and good viewing angles you expect from AMOLED. It's definitely not the brightest of display though, so you might have some problem under direct sunlight.
Camera: I haven't used it too much, but it's pretty average. Like all lower end camera, it have issue with under/over exposure, also the white balance is really off on auto mode. I like the manual mode that let you control the ISO and shutter speed. It's no where bad in good lighting condition, I'd say it takes good enough details for a budget phone.
Speaker: Very average, don't expect much here.
Charging: I used my Anker quick charger and it seems to charge the device fast and safely.
Ringtones selection:
The only thing I don't like is that if you have music in your phone, when you go to change the default ringtones, it will display every single songs in your phone and you have to scroll through it. The way to remedy this is to use the file manager in the phone and create a file called ".nomedia" in your music folder, so the phone will not recognize songs in it. Once you set your desired ringtone, you can remove that file. Or you can simply use a third party app to do the job.
Aside from some quirks, I honestly have no complaints so far, I would have no problem paying the full $150 for this device. I definitely like it better than the Moto G3, except that Motorola phones tends to have superior signals and call quality compared to most other brands. I definitely will not use this phone without a case though since it's on the light side.

Couple of things I noticed
1. The navigation buttons at the bottom (Home, Back & Option) does not have backlight. Not sure if there is a LED there that can be enabled in settings. I couldn't find any setting for that.
2. The data connection drops from 4G LTE to 'H' (HSPA) when on a call.

One of thing I notice about the Gallery app in this phone is there is an "Encrypt" option. If you press it accidentally it encrypt the file and move it into the "Pictures\.GallerySafe" folder. To access the encrypted photo, you have to "pinch outward" in the app.
No Smart Lock support: I tested and even though the smart lock feature turned on when you paired a bluetooth device, it actually doesn't work.

Here are some photo samples. The main problem are over exposure, white balance detection and some lost of saturation. The quality suffers when you're indoor with less lights.
https://goo.gl/photos/j9BrJ7gcbDCXBQgD6

The LED notification light seem like its set a ways under the glass and has this really bright shining affect versus a little glow other devices have.
I must say, the amoled screen on this is quite impressive for $100 phone..
wifi and data speeds are very similar compared to my oneplus 2 (both running Tmobile)

I noticed that the user cannot remove home screen icons. Like when you press and hold there's no option to remove the icon. Some apps show an option to uninstall. But for some pre installed apps there is no option to remove the icon.
Like Google chrome, opera browser, BLU help, amazon etc....
I don't want to uninstall the app, just remove from home screen.
Yea I noticed the LED light being very bright. I could read a book under that lighting.

hamilLewiston said:
I noticed that the user cannot remove home screen icons. Like when you press and hold there's no option to remove the icon. Some apps show an option to uninstall. But for some pre installed apps there is no option to remove the icon.
Like Google chrome, opera browser, BLU help, amazon etc....
I don't want to uninstall the app, just remove from home screen.
Yea I noticed the LED light being very bright. I could read a book under that lighting.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
just use another launcher. google now, nova

eksasol said:
One of thing I notice about the Gallery app in this phone is there is an "Encrypt" option. If you press it accidentally it encrypt the file and move it into the "Pictures\.GallerySafe" folder. To access the encrypted photo, you have to "pinch outward" in the app.
No Smart Lock support: I tested and even though the smart lock feature turned on when you paired a bluetooth device, it actually doesn't work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The smart lock is really baffling. It prompts to turn on smart lock but never works after that.

tlxxxsracer said:
just use another launcher. google now, nova
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks, that's what i finally did

so i found that there is an option on the desktop settings to 'hide' apps that you don't want to see on the desktop. it will hide the apps, with a password / pin. i'll post a guide later.

I've been using the Honor 5X a bit today so here is a comparison.
Things I prefer on the Vivo XL:
-This is a faster device. Everything about the Blu is more responsive and I don't think it's down to just the 720p display. It seems that this Mediatek CPU is actually pretty decent, games are smoother on it as well. In comparison, Honor 5X is slightly sluggy, not just in the interface, but in apps as well. This is probably due to the EMUI OS on the Honor 5X.
-Blu's UI is actually easier to understand and getting used to, especially if you're not accustomed to MIUI style interface on the Honor 5X.
-I'm not sure if it's due to the screen protector preinstalled on the Honor 5X, but the Blu touchscreen is a bit more sensitive and responsive to touch. Though it's not bad on the Honor 5X.
-The slide up "Control Panel" on the Blu is more useful with lots of options. Hate to admit it, but I prefer this slide up behavior more than Android's default because it's faster being close to your thumb. The notification toggles for the Honor 5X is missing a few options, but not a big deal.
-Blu is thinner and more light weight.
-The USB Type C connector is god sent.
-Removable battery.
Prefer on the 5X:
-Sharper screen that is very bright, its actually brighter than some highend flagship devices. The viewing angle isn't great however, but that is non-problem because it's a phone, not a TV.
-The camera is (only) slightly better. It have a bit more details and much better handle at white balance. Although the Blu camera's tap to focus is faster and more responsive. At this price range, it's not a big difference between the two phones.
-While their EMUI interface takes time to learn, it have some useful features, such as network control for apps. This let you disable data or wifi access for any apps you want, which is a very useful security feature.
-Very nice metal body.
-Finger print scanner, which I don't use.
It's a bit hard to choose which phone I would use as the daily driver. I think that if you go with the Blu, the software is good enough that you don't need to install custom roms. If you go with the Honor 5X, I believe you will need to install custom roms if you want the most out of the performance. I would have to pick the Blu Vivo XL as better value for the money, since it performs better for $50 less, and may last longer due to removable battery and USB Type C connector (more durable than microUSB). Also I like it when companies throw in free phone case and headphones, which is lacking in the Honor 5X packaging.

hamilLewiston said:
so i found that there is an option on the desktop settings to 'hide' apps that you don't want to see on the desktop. it will hide the apps, with a password / pin. i'll post a guide later.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
wheres the guide?

Thanks you for this app

Are there animated Always on Display's? Especially Music Visualizer?

So it looks like all of the AOD's are just like stickers.. except the clock, or calender, all others they hold no purpose, they act like digital stickers/logo's.
I was wondering if I am missing out on the Aod's that are not on google play or samsung store... and are animated or even if there is a always on display for a Music Visualizer, that shows the animated spectrum equalizer or wave?
Would look really cool if the music is playing and the animated visualizer is on on the display while the phone is on sleep mode.
Is this hard to make?

well, that would totally defeat the AOD purpose, to be a light form of info while in idle, as it is, all users complain about batt drain, around 1% per hour, many preffer not to use it! I use the edge clock AOD, as it drains less than the others

winol said:
well, that would totally defeat the AOD purpose, to be a light form of info while in idle, as it is, all users complain about batt drain, around 1% per hour, many preffer not to use it! I use the edge clock AOD, as it drains less than the others
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I get your point. But not everyone has issues with charging cell phones once or twice a day. Most of us have chargers or wireless chargers at work, and always connect or place the phone in charging mode.
Most AOD's do not make any sense except they display a small cartoonish logo over the phone. Samsung should either completely remove this feature, or should inculcate additional features to enhance the AOD's, to give it some sort of meaning, probably like an animated screensaver.. or as i mentioned earlier, having a music visualizer on the screen.
I was able to find an AOD in the samsung store that is just a static Music visualizer.. doesnt do anything, and serves no purpose.
I wonder how hard it would be for someone to come out with something like this.. if an AOD can display the current time or clock surely a few waves or graphic particles be made to dance to the tune of the music.

Well, when you put it this way, well yes, we should have the option to customize it any way we like, yes, you have a point there man

Always on display (AOD) question

I just received my Galaxy S10 plus yesterday. I am coming from an S8 plus and on it I was always able to see the clock or calendar when it was on the charging stand or just sitting on the table. With the S10 Plus the screen is always dark until I tap it. Is there a way to have the clock or calendar always show up on the display?
Thanks,
Steven

wallstreet123456 said:
I just received my Galaxy S10 plus yesterday. I am coming from an S8 plus and on it I was always able to see the clock or calendar when it was on the charging stand or just sitting on the table. With the S10 Plus the screen is always dark until I tap it. Is there a way to have the clock or calendar always show up on the display?
Thanks,
Steven
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Change the display mode under LOCKSCREEN>AOD settings to always show.

Thank you.

Notifications on the AOD?

Coming from a samsung mobile, i was just wondering if there is any way to get notifications like on the samsung mobiles on the AOD screen, instead of the just red tintet clock, and the 2 analogue clocks?

Bump

Go back to Samsung. This phone has no dev work. We will never have a proper aod.

+1, came from Samsung and I miss the options it had for AOD, would also be cool if we have more digital clocks AOD options instead of the red lines garbage we have now

Bump

Have you tried any of the AOD apps in the Play store? https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.newgen.alwayson&hl=en_GB

dio62000 said:
Have you tried any of the AOD apps in the Play store? https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.newgen.alwayson&hl=en_GB
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Click to collapse
Yes, it's very good and all but the problem with it is that it takes a lot of battery in a very short amount of time, as the screen is "on" all the time in the battery consumption settings.

White balance settings S20 FE Exynos

Hello everyone,so yesterday i recieved my new S20FE from my service provider. At first glance it seems to be a decent device. Anyway,while setting up the phone,i found that the "white balance" controls under the display settings,dont appear to be changing any colour aspects of my screen at all. No matter how i adjust the Red,Green and Blue control sliders,the the screen remains exactly the same.
Am i doing something wrong,or have i missed something? When compared to my Sony Xperia XZ2 which also has white balance controls that actually work,i may add. The Samsungs screen appears very dull and the whites are more of a cream tone than actual white,which frustrates me. Has anyone else had issues with the colour adjustment on their S20FE and is there a way to get my whites from cream to actual white?
Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

@Trace.Oneil I have the 5G snapdragon version and tested Vivid screen mode today. it was so garish that had to try adjusting the RGB values underneath. that too made ZERO DIFFERENCE on my phone.
I quickly went back to natural.
PS, I can't remember much about it but I've heard there's a 3rd screen mode that's hidden and can be activated with ADB. maybe look that up.

How to Enable Hidden Screen Modes in Samsung Galaxy S20 (Natural, Vivid, Cinema, Photo and Basic) - Techtrickz
The Dynamic AMOLED display on Samsung Galaxy smartphones provides the best visual experience in any lighting condition. And on the latest Galaxy phones, there are two screen modes – Vivid and Natural – under the display settings menu to choose for the best visual experience. But, did you know...
techtrickz.com

3mel said:
How to Enable Hidden Screen Modes in Samsung Galaxy S20 (Natural, Vivid, Cinema, Photo and Basic) - Techtrickz
The Dynamic AMOLED display on Samsung Galaxy smartphones provides the best visual experience in any lighting condition. And on the latest Galaxy phones, there are two screen modes – Vivid and Natural – under the display settings menu to choose for the best visual experience. But, did you know...
techtrickz.com
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks,i actually found that online and gave it a try. Although there are some differences between the modes,the RGB sliders still dont work with any of them so you cant fine-tune your screen to your preferred colour settings which is a total waste. Why even include it in the software build if it does'nt work.

I was wondering if the other modes take too much power and that's why they were hidden.
maybe that could apply to the slider ?

3mel said:
I was wondering if the other modes take too much power and that's why they were hidden.
maybe that could apply to the slider ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I doubt it would be a power issue. The mode to me that is the most intense with colour,is Vivid and that is not hidden. I think Samsung forgot about the RGB settings to be honest,and that is probably why they dont work.