How hard would it be to add Sense?

[foneguy]

How hard is it to plug Sense into the Motorola phones? I love the Sense UI, and hate MotoBlur, but I'd really like to have the HDMI port and bigger screen.

 

[MolecularGraph]

How hard is it to plug Sense into the Motorola phones? I love the Sense UI, and hate MotoBlur, but I'd really like to have the HDMI port and bigger screen.

....
1. As said a million+ times before, its not Motoblur.
2. Why would you put Sense on a non HTC phone? Doesn't that strike you as wrong in some way? I'd personally feel like I was cheating on Motorola... but thats just me.
3. The Ninja/Phil/Invisiblur on the X is great, I can't see why someone would feel the need to get rid of it.
4. You can't run custom roms on it due to the whole encrypted bootloader thing, so I'm assuming that you cannot plug sense into it..

 

[Cory Streater]

You can't run custom roms on it due to the whole encrypted bootloader thing, so I'm assuming that you cannot plug sense into it..

That's correct.

 

[foneguy]

As a direct employee with hours of hands on with the X, I'm quite familiar with what it is, and I find it kind of plain. Plus the I like the HTC widgets better.

Since Sense is only a UI, as opposed to a ROM, I would think it could be installed.

 

[Cory Streater]

Since Sense is only a UI, as opposed to a ROM, I would think it could be installed.

Unfortunately it's not that simple. It is heavily integrated with various areas of the OS, and phone components. There is no simple APK for installing Sense. All attempts to provide Sense on various phones, has been the result of ROM chef's baking it into their ROM's. However, There are some pretty darn good launchers in the Market, that can substitue for the Sense like experience you are looking for.

 

[Menno]

As a direct employee with hours of hands on with the X, I'm quite familiar with what it is, and I find it kind of plain. Plus the I like the HTC widgets better.

Since Sense is only a UI, as opposed to a ROM, I would think it could be installed.

Sense isn't a UI, it's a custom version of android (a "rom") that changes or replaces several key functions of the OS.

If it was just a UI/skin you could download it from the market.

 

[didiwags]

My BIL put sense on his droid and he has nothing put issues!!!

 

[foneguy]

Hmm, so its not as easy as WinMo...that sucks. I may have to stick with my incredible until HTC launches a bigger screen device then, assuming that I don't like any of the launchers out there. Is there one that stands out as pretty darn close?

Thanks guys!

 

[kinster02]

If you want sense on your phone it only makes sense to buy a phone with it on it, if not don't.

 

[Cory Streater]

Hmm, so its not as easy as WinMo...that sucks. I may have to stick with my incredible until HTC launches a bigger screen device then, assuming that I don't like any of the launchers out there. Is there one that stands out as pretty darn close?

Thanks guys!

Unless something has changed in the last year, it was difficult to port on Windows Mobile devices as well. I remember the guys over PPC Geeks trying to port more current versions of Touch Flo onto the Touch Pro 2 and the Touch Pro, and the <fill in the blank>, and every time they did so, it was always full of bugs. Also, the common denominator that made it easier to port Touch Flo from 1 device to the other, is that they were all HTC devices. Getting it on a Samsung or other manufactures device proved to be just as complicated as doing so with different Android devices.

Whenever I flashed a MightyMike or Juicy ROM, with a ported build of Touch Flo, I always went back to the Stock ROM, because I couldn't handle all the bugs that would come up.

 

[foneguy]

I built my own ROMs for WinMo. I used mostly HTCs, but did do some Sense ports to other non Samsung devices. I didn't get TF3D to any previous generation stuff because the hardware wouldn't run it right. Caused all sorts of problems.

 

[Cory Streater]

Yeah, based on your experience then, it's pretty much the same answer that we would give people over at PPC Geeks when they asked if there was a cab for TF3D.

There's a lot of reviews on Launchers in the apps section, but checkout LauncherPro and GDE Home. I like both launchers. None of the launchers will give you the Sense phone dialer though, which in my opinion is top notch.

 

[foneguy]

I just put launcher pro on one of x's and it is pretty smooth, like the Sense UI, now to find an HTC like weather/clock program, then I'm set, mostly. The dialer is pretty slick as well, but I'm sure that will be a plug in too. Lol

Im still working a couple Imagio ROMs at the moment, so I will still be contributing to WinMo for a while. These I may publish over a ppcgeeks soon.

 

[Cory Streater]

I just put launcher pro on one of x's and it is pretty smooth, like the Sense UI, now to find an HTC like weather/clock program, then I'm set, mostly.

The closest legitimate app to that is called Beautiful Widgets. Once you install it, there are a bunch of skins you can choose from and one of them gives you the Sense UI weather/clock. There have been other widgets that duplicated the Sense clock, but HTC eventually sends them C&D letters and they are forced to pull them.

 

[foneguy]

Figures. I'll find a way to side load it and avoid the whole mess with that. Gives me an excuse to learn to program for Android. It would be worth it. Thanks for the tips! I've noticed a whole lot more in the "instant gratification arena with Android, whereas with WinMo you have to wait or do it yourself.

 

[Rudolphe]

You want sense just install LauncherPro. Has some of the UI elements of it and seems to move a lot faster than the normal launcher.

 

[coerulea]

A little off topic... but as a Droid X user whose partner has the Incredible... and who has seen motoblur on previous devices... the X is nothing like the motoblur of old... and the X has far superior battery life to the incredible (Ive heard rumour that sense has aprt to play in that, dunno how true it is) and honestly there isnt anything about sense that makes me jealous of my partner's phone... the slide to unlock is a little easier on your thumb with sense, and the weather widget integrating and animating on the screen of the incredible is pretty cool... but that alone wouldnt make me want sense... theyre both great phones, both good UI experiences... but I love my integrated swype haha

 

[foneguy]

I put Swipe on my Imagio, its not that special to me to be honest. I think its the smoothness of the HTC devices that I prefer over the Moto devices. But Launcher Pro makes up the difference in smoothness.

As far as battery life on the HTC...it sucks. However, the extended battery rocks by all accounts. In the end it comes down to screen size and the HDMI port as the things that will be the deciding factor for me.

No matter what I decide, both are excellent devices!

 

[moosc]

Yeah, based on your experience then, it's pretty much the same answer that we would give people over at PPC Geeks when they asked if there was a cab for TF3D.

There's a lot of reviews on Launchers in the apps section, but checkout LauncherPro and GDE Home. I like both launchers. None of the launchers will give you the Sense phone dialer though, which in my opinion is top notch.

also i like the stock sense app from the incredible i miss this also

 

[Cory Streater]

also i like the stock sense app from the incredible i miss this also

Yeah I spent a lot of time today looking at my Incredible, and I will definitely miss some of the Sense eye candy. Specifically, the calendar widget/app, Friendstream, the weather app that opens when you push the widget, the various clock apps with built in timers, and the favorites panel. I've been scouring the market for options that look the same, but visually nothing comes close :/