Disappointed with Soft Keys

[azetoh]

When I saw ICS and the GN unveiled with the soft keys (home, back, app switcher) on screen, I was excited at the possibility of customization. It seems like with the keys on screen, it would be simple for Google or developers to make different themes or arrangements for the different buttons, but they seem just as static as they were when they were actual hardware. The only customizations I have seen for them require a root, and I am not going to root and wipe my phone to get a blue home button that I thought I would be able to get stock.

Also, does anyone else think that the buttons take up way to much screen space? I mean, they are much larger than any capacitive buttons on any past phone and I personally would appreciate more screen space rather than larger buttons. Also, I was excited when it was announced that the soft buttons could be hidden by certain apps, but this hardly ever happens (when it does in youtube though, it is glorious, but the little glowing dot thing in camera is pointless). I did some math work and it turns out that when the buttons are showing, the screen size is only 4.42 inches. I paid for a 4.65 inch screen, not one smaller than a 4.5 inch phone's.

I'm curious to see if anybody out there shares my sentiments, and any devs out there that feel like making my customizability dreams come true, it would be very welcome

 

[samkatz]

my problem is that I hit them by mistake too often when I'm trying to do something on the bottom of the active screen. Also when they turn into those little dots, they are hard to see at all.

Lucklily, if you knock yourself out of the app you're working on, the recent app key gets you back and you haven't lost what you're working on...

 

[Stang68]

They're fine.

 

[jafels]

love the soft buttons...would like to see more apps, like the browser for instance, make use of hiding them.....could care less about customizing them....and if I did i would root.

 

[geocurt]

I agree with the OP. Not much point in having soft buttons but not letting me customize them. I would like to put a dedicated menu button back down there.

I also can't understand why with the soft buttons they didn't enable rotation on the home screen. Would like to be able to remove the search bar from the top too.

Hoping the ability to customize will come in a future release. That's why I bought an android phone, so I could set it up however I like.

 

[yosteve]

Installing nova launcher allows you to (remove and resize) the search bar.

It allows you to Google hide the top notification bar (the time, icons etc). It is the best part of NL.

However it does not allow you to hide the bottom buttons

Can any app do it sans root like the NL can do it to the top bar?

 

[Johnly]

Love the tab style OS.....perfectly fine.

 

[azetoh]

I agree with the OP. Not much point in having soft buttons but not letting me customize them. I would like to put a dedicated menu button back down there.

I also can't understand why with the soft buttons they didn't enable rotation on the home screen. Would like to be able to remove the search bar from the top too.

Hoping the ability to customize will come in a future release. That's why I bought an android phone, so I could set it up however I like.

I completely agree. If the menu button can be easily and seamlessly added for legacy apps, why take it out in the first place? It would save the user from the trouble of having to find it. And the rotation thing didn't really make sense to me either, especially on such a large phone. Customizability is one of the keystones of android, so it seems kind of counterintuitive not to allow it.

 

[superlawyer15]

i havent had a single problem with the soft keys


i just wish they would shift and be more app specific

 

[Akuma]

I agree with the OP. Not much point in having soft buttons but not letting me customize them. I would like to put a dedicated menu button back down there.

I also can't understand why with the soft buttons they didn't enable rotation on the home screen. Would like to be able to remove the search bar from the top too.

Hoping the ability to customize will come in a future release. That's why I bought an android phone, so I could set it up however I like.

If you had purchased any earlier version of android (on any other phone) you would have been able to remove that search bar on screen, you are now 0.6% of non rooted android users who can't do it. Bad luck ;(


Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

 

[DancesWithFarts]

they're not static. they change locations depending on landscape view, and they disappear when watching videos, playing games, and web surfing.

either get a different phone, or stop complaining.

 

[youngzayiles]

I love them and they work exactly how I wanted them too... Customization would be nice but if you really want to do it so bad just root... Its really easy... As far as making them smaller I dont think that would work.. Then people would complain about not being able to hit them.

 

[pauldroidr2d2]

I like the soft buttons. I especially like how they change position when you turn the phone into different positions. Something that was not possible with older versions of Android.

I also do not think they are taking up too much screen space.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

 

[CaptnJim]

Is nova launcher in the marketplace? I couldn't find it.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

 

[SuperMarioVT]

Does anyone know how I can make the soft keys transparent? Meaning how I can make the wallpaper to show up behind the soft keys?

Thanks!

 

[davidnc]

I much prefer the soft keys over the physical hard keys.
At least you can rearrange,or swap them out for other apps the soft keys on the stock launcher (except for the app drawer button).
I know you can do that on other launchers as well,but so far I'm still liking the stock ICS home launcher.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus

 

[TabGuy]

I agree with the OP. Not much point in having soft buttons but not letting me customize them.
.

No, that's not the case. Developers, and others, have been criticizing Google hard, and rightly so, about fragmentation. ICS is a step to remove fragmentation. There are two major steps you notice right away.

1. If you've owned more than one Android phone, as I have, you get real frustrated not remembering where the home and back keys are. Each manufacturer puts them in a different spot. In fact, some manufacturers have them in different spots on different models. These keys are used more than almost any on the phone. It drives people crazy. That will NEVER, EVER happen again. Every new Android device, starting with Honeycomb going forward will always have the same back, home and app list button layout. It will be soft buttons so that no manufacturer can arrange them differently. Period. No customization. No more fragmentation.

2. The theme and layout in Ice Cream sandwich is called Holo. Going forward any device Android 4.0 or higher that gets approved for the Android Market MUST adhere to the use of the Holo theme. No Holo theme, no Android Market. Period.

Fragmentation will be dealt with if the device has the Google name and access to the market.

 

[davidnc]

Is nova launcher in the marketplace? I couldn't find it.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

Google ,Nova Launcher XDA and it will be at the top of search list.
Its not in the market


Sent from my Galaxy Nexus

 

[mysterygirl]

love the soft buttons...would like to see more apps, like the browser for instance, make use of hiding them.....could care less about customizing them....and if I did i would root.

+1 I'm satisfied with them. I'd just like to see them "disappear" more often. But I hope this will happen as developers update apps.

 

[azetoh]

they're not static. they change locations depending on landscape view, and they disappear when watching videos, playing games, and web surfing.

I recognize that they rotate when you rotate the phone, but there is so much more potential here! They should be themable like the rest of the phone. I can change the rest of the home screen, so why can't I change these. Also, the buttons do not hide for me, and I haven't found a game that hides them (although I don't game too much)

either get a different phone, or stop complaining.

I'll ignore the obnoxiousness and just say, I thought this was the "different phone". To me, it seems obvious that we should be able to customize these buttons without much trouble. Love ICS otherwise though.

For those who are asking, Nova launcher is still a beta and you have to sideload it. Just google search it and go through the apk installation process. I found it to be a bit choppy and unrefined, so I went back to stock. I like the customizable icon grid dimensions though.