5 ms·

I think that the phone companies are struggling to get a grip on the drivers on the market. The rather esoteric needs of a software developer is probably not h

by kpil 10y ago

I think that the phone companies are struggling to get a grip on the drivers on the market. The rather esoteric needs of a software developer is probably not high up on the marketing department's list of USPs... Plus, that it seems as if different regions are wanting different things - like an absurd number of cores, etc. As an example, I am very fond of Sony. They make the best android phones in my opinion, with a really nice clean design and good support for updates. A plus for me is that it's still a Swedish team that make the phones although they seem to slowly loose the fight against the Japanese mega-corp mannerisms. There is more and more shit pre-installed on the phone, etc. Unfortunately they peaked with the Z3 - anything after that is a lesser phone in some aspect. ZX is good and expensive as hell but compensates the faster processor and camera with a much much worse battery. X is fast, but is not water proof, etc. Edit: I don't think the ZX supports CDMA unfortunately.

ikeboy 10y ago
I don't develop software (not for android, at least). The reasons I need cyanogenmod are 1. Some apps only work on root 2. Stock can have restrictions, like not allowing tethering while cm doesn't have anti features 3. Updates usually far after the manufacturer has abandoned the phone There's a large community of people using custom roms. Some take it farther than others, but it's definitely not restricted to developers.
- protomikron 10y ago
  Hi there, developer here. Can you please elaborate? Actually I would very much appreciate a really open smart phone with the same customization capabilities that the PC platform provides. However I believe (maybe wrongly?) most customers do not need to have a rooted phone, so I am really interested in the type of application? I hope that we get an open phone soon (I want to `pkg install $foo`), but unfortunately most endeavors seemed to have failed (Ubuntu Phone, etc.) I always wonder why that's the case.
  - ikeboy 10y ago
    I'm not entirely clear on what you want elaboration on. You can get linux on android by using http://www.techradar.com/how-to/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/how-to-install-linux-on-an-android-phone-1322579 http://www.techradar.com/how-to/phone-and-communications/mob... Edit: "However I believe (maybe wrongly?) most customers do not need to have a rooted phone, so I am really interested in the type of application?" EDS for mounting encrypted volumes only works with root, since it needs elevated access to the kernel to mount stuff. That's probably the only app I use that requires root, but there are other customizations that I couldn't do on stock. For example, on my moto x pure the onscreen buttons were in the "wrong" places, and I needed the aicp (it's a ROM) ability to customize which button does what and icons. Mainly I wanted the back button to be on the right and not the left, and the other buttons to be the same as my previous phone. If it's a custom rom, I expect others to have the same issues I'll have and someone will have developed a workaround or fix. On stock, this won't always be the case. Then there's the whole "tethering" thing, which can be a big deal when traveling with a phone and laptop. Stock won't let you tether unless your plan allows it, while cyanogenmod or aicp doesn't care. (Still annoyed that moto x pure, aicp, and ringplus 4g don't seem to mix, and I can only get 3g on anything besides for stock.)

by kpil 10y ago

ikeboy 10y ago

I don't develop software (not for android, at least). The reasons I need cyanogenmod are 1. Some apps only work on root 2. Stock can have restrictions, like not allowing tethering while cm doesn't have anti features 3. Updates usually far after the manufacturer has abandoned the phone There's a large community of people using custom roms. Some take it farther than others, but it's definitely not restricted to developers.

protomikron 10y ago
Hi there, developer here. Can you please elaborate? Actually I would very much appreciate a really open smart phone with the same customization capabilities that the PC platform provides. However I believe (maybe wrongly?) most customers do not need to have a rooted phone, so I am really interested in the type of application? I hope that we get an open phone soon (I want to `pkg install $foo`), but unfortunately most endeavors seemed to have failed (Ubuntu Phone, etc.) I always wonder why that's the case.
- ikeboy 10y ago
  I'm not entirely clear on what you want elaboration on. You can get linux on android by using http://www.techradar.com/how-to/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/how-to-install-linux-on-an-android-phone-1322579 http://www.techradar.com/how-to/phone-and-communications/mob... Edit: "However I believe (maybe wrongly?) most customers do not need to have a rooted phone, so I am really interested in the type of application?" EDS for mounting encrypted volumes only works with root, since it needs elevated access to the kernel to mount stuff. That's probably the only app I use that requires root, but there are other customizations that I couldn't do on stock. For example, on my moto x pure the onscreen buttons were in the "wrong" places, and I needed the aicp (it's a ROM) ability to customize which button does what and icons. Mainly I wanted the back button to be on the right and not the left, and the other buttons to be the same as my previous phone. If it's a custom rom, I expect others to have the same issues I'll have and someone will have developed a workaround or fix. On stock, this won't always be the case. Then there's the whole "tethering" thing, which can be a big deal when traveling with a phone and laptop. Stock won't let you tether unless your plan allows it, while cyanogenmod or aicp doesn't care. (Still annoyed that moto x pure, aicp, and ringplus 4g don't seem to mix, and I can only get 3g on anything besides for stock.)