Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh)
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Thinking about grabbing this Moto G Plus unlocked phone on Amazon:
Is it good? Is it crummy? Will I hate it?
Rules:
- No iPhone unless you make a REALLY good case for it
- No Samsung
- As close to stock Android as you can get (aka. no crapware installed)
- $200-ish price range
- Unlocked so I can just slide my ATT SIM in it and go, no fuss, no having to drive to ATT store
- Brands I've had in the past: Motorola (pre-smartphone), Apple, HTC (twice), Nokia (Windows Phone)
- Wireless charging would be a nice-to-have, but I'm not sure any phones in this price range have it
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@blakeyrat I like my Moto G Plus. I had one annoyance that sometimes it start detecting touches that didn't happen (like several per second, rendering it unusable). It usually stopped when I brushed it's screen with my shirt.
Then I read on the internet that it's a common problem with this model, and it doesn't happen if the brightness is below around 33%. I reduced the brightness and it didn't happen anymore.
Edit: Mine is the 4th generation
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I had a first generation Moto G, and it was pretty decent for a budget phone. Unless Lenovo owned Motorola has changed a lot from the Google owned days, it's probably going to be one of the closest to stock Android you can get without going full Pixel.
I've recently been looking in this sort of price range and I went for a Sony Xperia XA1. Similar to the Moto G, better camera but no fingerprint scanner. I've been pretty happy with it so far. A few extra apps installed with various degrees of pointlessness, but they mostly seem to be uninstallable (it comes with some sort of AVG thing which I could only deactivate not uninstall, but other apps like Facebook and Spotify are installed like normal play store apps)
There are also some Nokias at the same sort of price, but all they share with the Nokia of old is the name, which some other manufacturer has bought the rights to. The Nokia 5 is the middle of the road one, and the reviews I saw were pretty good.
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I've heard good things about Motorola's smartphones. They're cheap, have close to if not completely stock Android, and don't have Chinese spyware like some other low-end Android manufacturers.
For wireless charging you can get a qi receiver. In my experience, I got a cheap one that stopped working after a couple months, but maybe a good one will last.
Also depending on the sim format you may need to cut it or get an adapter.
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@jaloopa said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Lenovo
Ugh.
@jaloopa said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Sony
Barf.
Samsung, Sony, Lenovo-- do any good companies make phones?
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Thinking about grabbing this Moto G Plus unlocked phone on Amazon:
I bought an unlocked, next-to-latest generation (cheaper and smaller, i.e., not too big to put in a pocket) Moto G last year at Fry's, and I've been happy with it.
@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Unlocked so I can just slide my ATT SIM in it and go
Went from full-sized SIM to micro (or, um, nano?) SIM, so I couldn't do that, but otherwise painless.
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@hardwaregeek said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Went from full-sized SIM to micro (or, um, nano?) SIM, so I couldn't do that, but otherwise painless.
I don't suppose anybody knows what SIM size a Nokia 1020 uses? And more specifically, whether it's the same size as that Moto phone.
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@blakeyrat Google tells me it uses a micro SIM. Moto uses nano.
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@hardwaregeek Goddamned so I have to go to the phone store anyway. Oh well, there's one pretty close to where I work.
Well I guess then I'll be good until MegaSuperNanoSoNanoYouCantBelieveIt SIM cards come out in 27 minutes and every phone instantly switches to those.
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
I don't suppose anybody knows what SIM size a Nokia 1020 uses? And more specifically, whether it's the same size as that Moto phone.
The Nokia is a micro SIM, the Moto is a nano, so a size smaller.
You can get tools to cut SIM cards down, or it's possible AT&T will mail you a replacement SIM in the right size? My provider does that. Most new phones now will probably be nano, so you'll need to find a solution whatever you get.
The Nokia 6 is just over $200 and they say it's a stock Android experience. It's made by a Finnish startup called HMD, and seems decent for the price from the reviews I've read
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@blakeyrat I think they're currently working on not having a sim at all. Not sure how that works with non-carrier-funded phones.
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@blakeyrat You can also cut it with some scissors and a template. Or you may have one that's pre-cut in which case you can pop it out.
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@hungrier Well I'll buy the phone first, then take a look at my current SIM and see if I can just pop it out.
Who's Jio? They're shitty at Valentine's gifts.
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@hungrier said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Or you may have one that's pre-cut
Considering the Nokia 1020 is 4 years old, unless he bought it when it was already quite old his SIM probably predates nano being a thing
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@blakeyrat No idea, it was the first image I found of the multi-size sim I was talking about.
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Whoa I get free one day shipping.
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@jaloopa said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
@hungrier said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Or you may have one that's pre-cut
Considering the Nokia 1020 is 4 years old, unless he bought it when it was already quite old his SIM probably predates nano being a thing
The iPhone 5 (with nano sim) was already out then, so it's possible that the carrier would have had multi-size sims down to nano by that time.
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Samsung, Sony, Lenovo-- do any good companies make phones?
The worst thing is, the manufacturers get bought up or go bankrupt and other companies just buy up the names, so a Moto might be made my Motorola, Google or Lenovo depending how old it is
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@jaloopa said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
a Moto might be made my Motorola, Google or Lenovo depending how old it is
Crud. Now you remind me, after I recommended it. At the time I bought mine, I remember reading reviews criticizing something (I don't remember what, specifically) about the newer model, but not about the older one I bought. I wish I could be more specific, but I just don't remember.
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@jaloopa said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
The worst thing is, the manufacturers get bought up or go bankrupt and other companies just buy up the names, so a Moto might be made my Motorola, Google or Lenovo depending how old it is
Well this Lenovo laptop sucks in ways that don't apply to a cellphone so maybe it's fine. Except the shitty wifi chip that doesn't work right.
The screen, touchscreen, and fingerprint scanner on it seem to work ok.
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Samsung, Sony, Lenovo-- do any good companies make phones?
Does LG count as a good company?
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Samsung, Sony, Lenovo-- do any good companies make phones?
Mine's a Blackberry. One of the very few manufacturers to not be infected by full-on iDiocy and remove the keyboard. I'm very satisfied by the way it works so far.
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Who's Jio?
IT IS I, JIO!
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@sockpuppet7 said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Does LG count as a good company?
I've never owned an LG anything, so I couldn't say.
Sony destroyed my Alien, Aliens, Alien 3 box set DVDs. Samsung ripped-off my friend on a Smart TV a few years ago when less than a year later like 80% of the "smart" no longer (or never did) works, and Lenovo provided this ass laptop I've been suffering with for the last 3 months.
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@masonwheeler said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
IT IS I, JIO!
I AM I, DON QUIXOTE!
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@blakeyrat Well I am the knight of the mirror!
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@masonwheeler I love that musical so much. I loved how his nemesis was reality (that is, looking in a mirror). I loved how it made a point of showing that Cervantes wrote that great work in a grimy prison. Everything about it is great.
... also the film version has 1972 Sophia Loren.
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@blakeyrat I really do feel like the Knight of the Mirror a lot of the time, in the Garage. Problem is, some of the people in there are simply too crazy for that trick to work. :P
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@jaloopa said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
I don't suppose anybody knows what SIM size a Nokia 1020 uses? And more specifically, whether it's the same size as that Moto phone.
The Nokia is a micro SIM, the Moto is a nano, so a size smaller.
You can get tools to cut SIM cards down, or it's possible AT&T will mail you a replacement SIM in the right size? My provider does that. Most new phones now will probably be nano, so you'll need to find a solution whatever you get.
The Nokia 6 is just over $200 and they say it's a stock Android experience. It's made by a Finnish startup called HMD, and seems decent for the price from the reviews I've read
I cut two cards to the nano size without any issues. Then again, this doesn’t mean you might want to risk it.
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@jaloopa said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
@hungrier said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Or you may have one that's pre-cut
Considering the Nokia 1020 is 4 years old, unless he bought it when it was already quite old his SIM probably predates nano being a thing
I think nanos became a thing for iPhone 5 or 5c/5s, so what was it? 2012/2013?
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
@sockpuppet7 said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Does LG count as a good company?
I've never owned an LG anything, so I couldn't say.
Sony destroyed my Alien, Aliens, Alien 3 box set DVDs. Samsung ripped-off my friend on a Smart TV a few years ago when less than a year later like 80% of the "smart" no longer (or never did) works, and Lenovo provided this ass laptop I've been suffering with for the last 3 months.
I think I have Stockholm Syndrome with LG.
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
@sockpuppet7 said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Does LG count as a good company?
I've never owned an LG anything, so I couldn't say.
Sony destroyed my Alien, Aliens, Alien 3 box set DVDs. Samsung ripped-off my friend on a Smart TV a few years ago when less than a year later like 80% of the "smart" no longer (or never did) works, and Lenovo provided this ass laptop I've been suffering with for the last 3 months.
I have an LG 3D Smart TV. The TV has been going strong for many years. The 3D part I don't really use anymore. The smart part is kind of useless, never worked right with HULU for example. On the other hand it keeps cranking away.
I also have a Samsung TV. That one started smoking right after the warranty ran out. One corner of the TV literally melted. Luckily we were home at the time and turning it off and then back on later and it seemed to still work (except for a funny picture in that corner).
To their credit, Samsung fixed up the TV free of charge, even though it was out of warranty. They even called me twice I think and asked if there was any property damage (There wasn't).
I also have a Samsung washer and dryer. They seem to be going strong (5+ years now), although the dryer had a broken roller wheel that we got replaced under warranty. It's not drying as well now, I think I will have to take it apart and clean it or something.
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
@hardwaregeek Goddamned so I have to go to the phone store anyway. Oh well, there's one pretty close to where I work.
I've been fairly successful with shrinking down my SIM card using kitchen knife, if you don't want to go out that much.
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@gąska Yeah I'd end up with it permanently jammed into the phone.
Hopefully the card I have now is a pop-out kind. If now, I'll just suck it up and drive the 10 miles to an ATT store.
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
I love that musical so much.
I do too. Unfortunately, bittersweet memories. First date with my ex-wife was going to see that, and it was the start of a wonderful relationship that, alas, had a not so wonderful end.
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I ended up cutting the card down.
You need REALLY sharp scissors. Other than that it's pretty easy operation. Phone works. Now to get up all my emails and such.
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@kt_ said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
@jaloopa said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
I don't suppose anybody knows what SIM size a Nokia 1020 uses? And more specifically, whether it's the same size as that Moto phone.
The Nokia is a micro SIM, the Moto is a nano, so a size smaller.
You can get tools to cut SIM cards down, or it's possible AT&T will mail you a replacement SIM in the right size? My provider does that. Most new phones now will probably be nano, so you'll need to find a solution whatever you get.
The Nokia 6 is just over $200 and they say it's a stock Android experience. It's made by a Finnish startup called HMD, and seems decent for the price from the reviews I've read
I cut two cards to the nano size without any issues. Then again, this doesn’t mean you might want to risk it.
The first time I did it, I was worried until I realized that whether I messed it up or didn't try it, either way I'd have to buy a new one. The only risk is that you ruin something you'd throw out anyway and waste a bit of time, vs saving a trip to the store and a bit of cash.
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@hungrier said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
The first time I did it, I was worried until I realized that whether I messed it up or didn't try it, either way I'd have to buy a new one.
Right, same here. If i had to go into the ATT store to get a new one, they wouldn't need the OLD one to print it up-- they'd just dispose of it. So why not give it a go.
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If I wanted to talk to a friend on Google Hangouts, what app do I use? Is that what Duo is?
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@blakeyrat Eh nevermind, I guess Hangouts still exists on Android, which makes me even MORE confused about Google's messaging
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
@blakeyrat Eh nevermind, I guess Hangouts still exists on Android, which makes me even MORE confused about Google's messaging
This post:
Embeds this tweet:
https://twitter.com/mulligan/status/839924209757245440(Caveat: the poster, who seems to work at google, said later in the thread "not official, just opinion & a nice way to think about the apps")
It also embeds this video, which I'd guess you'll find rather expressive of your feelings toward some aspects of modern software development practices:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ml92QEqE-RQ
This article says pretty much the same thing, but more focused:
- Hangouts
- "At the moment you can use Hangouts to chat in real time with contacts from your Google account, send files, and make voice calls. Plus it can still technically be used on Android as your default SMS app, but given the misunderstandings generated by unifying text messages with IMs they decided to relegate this service to Android Messages, whose future also appears quite dark."
- "Google’s plan is to relegate Hangouts to the business world"
- Allo
- "We’re talking here about the umpteenth IM app decorated with some flourishes to give it a “youthful” touch: stickers, line drawings, and such tried-and-true features as the option to change the font size to suggest you’re shouting or whispering. The only really attractive thing about it is its integration with Google Assistant."
- Duo
- "Allo’s sister app is in charge of video, allowing users to easily make video calls, though just yesterday a new feature rolled out to allow audio-only calls too."
- Hangouts
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@dreikin Yah and Microsoft, who never saw a bad idea they didn't like, decided to follow their lead and start fragmenting their IM clients-- MOMENTS after they'd FINALLY finished consolidating all of them under the "Skype" brand name. (Skype and Skype For Business.) Now Teams is replacing Skype For Business, because God-forbid things be easy and simple. (Also Teams is more like S-Teams-eaming Pile Of Shit.)
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The default home screen icon for Gmail mailboxes (it looks like a red luggage tag with three white lines through it) doesn't show unread count on the home screen. Even the the OS has the feature of doing live-updates to home screen icons, the stock Gmail app doesn't fucking implement it.
Seriously.
The feature iOS and Windows Phone has had since like 2011? Android does not have now. Fuck you, Google.
So: now I need recommendations for a app/widget I can download that puts fucking unread email counts on the home screen, because you need to DOWNLOAD an APP to do something SO FUCKING BASIC.
Does anybody know of one that won't serve me ads or haxor me or anything? Jesus.
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
The default home screen icon for Gmail mailboxes (it looks like a red luggage tag with three white lines through it) doesn't show unread count on the home screen. Even the the OS has the feature of doing live-updates to home screen icons, the stock Gmail app doesn't fucking implement it.
Seriously.
The feature iOS and Windows Phone has had since like 2011? Android does not have now. Fuck you, Google.
So: now I need recommendations for a app/widget I can download that puts fucking unread email counts on the home screen, because you need to DOWNLOAD an APP to do something SO FUCKING BASIC.
Does anybody know of one that won't serve me ads or haxor me or anything? Jesus.
Nova Launcher will do that for you. Might need Nova Prime, which costs like $5, but that'll work.
(Also, no apps do that by default. That's what the notification panel is for, which iOS didn't have when it launched)
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@sloosecannon Someone recommended the Microsoft Launcher for that but it doesn't work.
How is it possible Android is missing this feature? It boggles the mind.
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
How is it possible Android is missing this feature? It boggles the mind.
Because it's not a thing on Android. There are better ways to get that information that other OSes didn't have when this feature was created. What really boggles the mind is why people would use something like this, when you have better ways to get that information available to you.
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@sloosecannon said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Because it's not a thing on Android. There are better ways to get that information that other OSes didn't have when this feature was created.
I had it on Mac Classic in fucking 1997. Right there on my menu bar, a count of unread messages.
This is just another example of an open source product not having an obvious feature, and all the open source-y people defending it with "well you don't actually need that feature...". Well fuck you, yes I do, and I'm pretty upset this $200 phone doesn't have something that was trivial to implement in fucking 1997.
It also apparently doesn't have visual voicemail. (EDIT: oh it's an app. Every goddamned thing, including "a home screen with working icons" is a fucking app. I hate Android.) It's like going back in time. I'm so much MORE upset knowing Windows Phone is dead after seeing how shitty Android is, even at version 7.
EDIT: wait, so since Visual Voicemail is an app that only does Visual Voicemail, I can't put my recent calls and recent voicemails on the same screen? You know, another Windows Phone 7 feature that apparenly isn't on Android 7 years later? Jesus.
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@sloosecannon said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
(Also, no apps do that by default. That's what the notification panel is for, which iOS didn't have when it launched)
BTW, Android has "Widgets" which are SPECIFICALLY "icons that can draw their own content in real-time". So yes it can do that by default.
Secondly, the icon I'm using for my Gmail inboxes is a "Widget". So there's nothing technically preventing Google from fixing this shitty ass broken ass stupid missing feature, except Google is really shitty at everything ever.
Why did they even bother making their Gmail icon a "widget" if they weren't going to use the only feature Widgets have over icons: that they can draw on the home screen? Why? What was the point? Just to piss off users I guess.
@sloosecannon said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
What really boggles the mind is why people would use something like this, when you have better ways to get that information available to you.
Why don't you tell me what the "better ways" are instead of just sucking Android cock in this thread.
So far the only ways I know of are:
- New messages appear in that dumb notifications thing off the title bar, but all my email inboxes are glommed together along with updates, text messages, and all kinds of other shit, so it's annoying and confusing
- Actually having to CLICK INTO the icon every fucking time I want to see if I have new messages, then STILL not seeing if I do because it's impossible (AFAICT) to sort the inbox by "unread first". (You know; the most OBVIOUS way to sort any inbox. And something you can also do in all other mobile OSes.)
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@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
dumb notifications thing
Yeah, see, there's your issue.
That's what you're supposed to use for content that is some form of... wait for it... notification.
If you're relying on your unread count to determine if you've got new email, you're using the system in a way it was never intended to be used. Take the 5 seconds it takes to learn how notifications work, and you'll be much better off.
Or just try to force the system to comply with your own made-up requirements. You can do that too, but it won't work very well.
@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
BTW, Android has "Widgets" which are SPECIFICALLY "icons that can draw their own content in real-time". So yes it can do that by default.
Also, that's not what a widget is. A widget is an interactive panel you place on the home screen. It can be an icon, but that's not the intended purpose (because that's what icons are for...). It's intended to, for example, be able to show the first couple emails in your inbox on your home screen, and maybe provide some actionable controls (delete, reply, compose, etc). It's not just an "icon that can draw its own content in real-time".
@blakeyrat said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
Why did they even bother making their Gmail icon a "widget" if they weren't going to use the only feature Widgets have over icons: that they can draw on the home screen? Why? What was the point? Just to piss off users I guess.
They didn't. They made a Gmail widget that provides access to your inbox and the first couple emails in it. I see no 1x1 Gmail widget "icon" on my system.
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@sloosecannon said in Recommend to me a cellphone (running Android I guess, sigh):
They didn't. They made a Gmail widget that provides access to your inbox and the first couple emails in it. I see no 1x1 Gmail widget "icon" on my system.
See here, which is also on my Pixel (so stock Android):