What Would You Change?

[Kevin Gossett]

Now that we have had a couple of weeks to enjoy this new phone and customize it to our liking, what changes would you make to the device if you could? Be as general or as nit-picky as you like. Hardware, software, physical design... You are the designer! Obviously, Bing is going to be towards the top of everyone's list, so let's steer away from the obvious...

To be a little nit-picky, why is there a lanyard slot on the phone? Does anyone really still use a lanyard?

Also, I would have liked to see a physical camera button. Using the touch screen as the shutter control can result in shakey, blurry pictures. Along the lines of the camera, I think a secondary microphone on the back for video recording would help as well. From what I have noticed so far, audio in a video recording isn't that great.

Speaker location also bugs me a bit. If it is sitting flat on a surface, I can barely hear the phone, even if it is on the highest volume setting.

So let's hear it!

 

[lolfests]

I'm going to start off and try to "like" bing. I actually enjoy the application layout and functionality of it all. I'm rooted and lag free so I'm enjoying the phone quite a bit. The design is amazing other than I almost wish they added a little more weight to it. I feel like any small gust of wind is going to take this thing away from me.

The screen rules as we have all seen on youtube etc.. I wish the resolution was a little higher (which can be fixed when you root). I honestly don't have any complaints after 5 days other than the development and I'm hoping this phone gets the attention it needs. Adb just doesn't cut it.

My only wish list is a dark mahogany phone skin such as the ones they offer for the iPhone :drool:.

 

[packerbacker]

Physical camera button, LED light, and I'd want my earbuds to work on a phone call.

 

[pounder001]

LED indicator, and slightly more weight to the phone.

 

[packerbacker]

@pounder001 I had to take mine out of its skin bc I got something on the screen protector and had to put on a new one, and I was surprised by how light the phone is. I've had it in the skin since the 10th. What also concerned me is something inside of it sounded loose with the skin off. I dropped it only one and it was on carpet and the skin was on so.. hopefully that won't be a problem in the future.

I like how light it is though, personally.

 

[Kevin Gossett]

There have been a lot of people who claim the volume rocker to be loose, and that is probably what you heard shaking around

 

[PJnc284]

Aside from the standard things like faster gps lock and a notification led, I'd like to see the brightness lowered for Desk Cradle mode. Even with the night setting, it's still bright enough to light up the room. Seems that you're better off to just leave it on the home screen. Increased volume for navigation would also be nice.

 

[M1AHD]

E-mail that actually reliably works!
LED Notification


If i could have those two things, I think i would be the happiest guy ever. lol

 

[Cory Streater]

Hardware:

1. A GPS the works! A working GPS that works right should not have a million threads where some people say it works, others say it doesn't, and others have mixed results if they use special tweaks/hacks/or 3rd party apps.
2. LED notification light for sure (does any phone not have one besides the Galaxy S and iPhone?)
3. I'd put the power button on the top, the volume rocker on the left side of the phone, and the USB port on the left side.
4. A physical camera button (although not a high priority).
5. I would have given it a Droid X like soft touch metal battery cover. The one that came with the Fascinate has a new scratch every time I set it on anything.
6. I would add dual mics for better noise cancellation.
7. I don't know what solution I'd implement for better speaker exposure, but I agree that volume is an issue if laid on a flat surface.
8. I would use whatever camera lens they are using in the iPhone 4. I think the perception is that the Fascinate takes outstanding pictures, but a lot of that has to do with the fact you are viewing them on a spectacular screen.
9. I'd fix the "it takes forever to charge" issue.

Software:

1. I would like an adjustable timer for the phone backlight. It turns off in like 5 seconds. Drives me nuts.
2. The messaging app looks nice, but it's missing key features, like the ability to insert anything other than a picture file. The UI for reading emails is terrible, and the font size cannot be adjusted. I use Touchdown for my work email address, but I have a personal Exchange email box too, which forces me to use the built in app also since TD can't simultaneously sync with 2 accounts.
3. I would dump the bloatware and let people download these apps from the Market, if they really want them.
4. I would make Facebook work properly.
5. I would have made all Galaxy S phones consistent from a software feature standpoint. Specifically, I would have added the Samsung keyboard that's available on the GSM versions.
6. I would have modified the camera app, so that it showed a clickable thumbnail after a picture was taken. It's really hookey trying to get to a picture after I've taken one.
7. I would change the Gallery app to provide an easy way to filter out specific folders.
8. The Music Player app would allow me to pick and choose folders. I like the app a lot, but I hate that it displays all media files on the SD card.
9. The Write & Go app, would have an option to search open notes after they are saved, instead of having to use a File Manager to find them.
10. I would undo whatever they are doing to only make the Samsung widgets available in the TW Launcher.
11. I'd fix whatever the heck it is that's making voice turn by turn volume in Google Maps to be barely audible.
12. Get rid of or at least provide the ability to turn off shut down and start up sounds. I'd also dump the Verizon splash screen, who's only function is to slow the boot up process down.
13. I'd push out Froyo immediately.

That's it I actually love the phone overall besides my lists.

 

[M1AHD]

Hardware:

1. A GPS the works! A working GPS that works right should not have a million threads where some people say it works, others say it doesn't, and others have mixed results if they use special tweaks/hacks/or 3rd party apps.
2. LED notification light for sure (does any phone not have one besides the Galaxy S and iPhone?)
3. I'd put the power button on the top, the volume rocker on the left side of the phone, and the USB port on the left side.
4. A physical camera button (although not a high priority).
5. I would have given it a Droid X like soft touch metal battery cover. The one that came with the Fascinate has a new scratch every time I set it on anything.
6. I would add dual mics for better noise cancellation.
7. I don't know what solution I'd implement for better speaker exposure, but I agree that volume is an issue if laid on a flat surface.
8. I would use whatever camera lens they are using in the iPhone 4. I think the perception is that the Fascinate takes outstanding pictures, but a lot of that has to do with the fact you are viewing them on a spectacular screen.
9. I'd fix the "it takes forever to charge" issue.

Software:

1. I would like an adjustable timer for the phone backlight. It turns off in like 5 seconds. Drives me nuts.
2. The messaging app looks nice, but it's missing key features, like the ability to insert anything other than a picture file. The UI for reading emails is terrible, and the font size cannot be adjusted. I use Touchdown for my work email address, but I have a personal Exchange email box too, which forces me to use the built in app also since TD can't simultaneously sync with 2 accounts.
3. I would dump the bloatware and let people download these apps from the Market, if they really want them.
4. I would make Facebook work properly.
5. I would have made all Galaxy S phones consistent from a software feature standpoint. Specifically, I would have added the Samsung keyboard that's available on the GSM versions.
6. I would have modified the camera app, so that it showed a clickable thumbnail after a picture was taken. It's really hookey trying to get to a picture after I've taken one.
7. I would change the Gallery app to provide an easy way to filter out specific folders.
8. The Music Player app would allow me to pick and choose folders. I like the app a lot, but I hate that it displays all media files on the SD card.
9. The Write & Go app, would have an option to search open notes after they are saved, instead of having to use a File Manager to find them.
10. I would undo whatever they are doing to only make the Samsung widgets available in the TW Launcher.
11. I'd fix whatever the heck it is that's making voice turn by turn volume in Google Maps to be barely audible.
12. Get rid of or at least provide the ability to turn off shut down and start up sounds. I'd also dump the Verizon splash screen, who's only function is to slow the boot up process down.
13. I'd push out Froyo immediately.

That's it I actually love the phone overall besides my lists.

A man who has thought this out and knows what he wants. lol. extensive list.

 

[lolfests]

Hopefully a lot of those software problems will be fixed with ROM development!

 

[hava123]

I'd like the speaker location to change. Listening to music isn't as good when the phone is on a flat surface.

 

[Chris3D]

Hardware:
-Better antenna design
-USB port at the bottom and mini instead of micro.
-No USB port door - if I have to charge it 1 to 2 times a day, it's pointless covering the port.
-I honestly would have preferred a slightly smaller screen. Overall, the phone is really at the very edge of what I personally consider acceptable for a cell phone's size.
-better earpiece speaker

Software:
-more range on the display brightness setting. Even at the lowest setting, it's way brighter than it needs to be. As was said, it totally lights up a room at night.
-Backlight for dedicated buttons stay on longer.
-Lower or adjustable sidetone volume.
-No bloatware/nagware/demos.
-No startup and shutdown sounds and animations, just get on with it.
-5 icon dock instead of 4 (using ADW launcher, and 5 icons is perfect)
-More intuitive UIs for many tasks - email, messaging, etc.
-Battery charge percent displayed in icon - stock blank icon is so small that it's impossible to accurately judge.
-Option to auto-mount SD card when connected to computer.
-Simultaneous drag and zoom multi-touch.
-More categorized app market
-Higher quality apps in app market, I haven't seen a single one that doesn't look like the UI was created by a 6 year old.

Service:
-CallerID (City ID thing) free, as with every other carrier.
-Visual Voicemail free, as with every other carrier.
-VZ Navigator free or leave the POS off 'cause I'm not paying a monthly fee for an app.
-Better coverage, so far it's way weaker and more spotty in my area than AT&T.

 

[imsofinite]

In general, I'm very pleased with the phone. At this point, aside from a few of the complaints mentioned, the only thing I would change is to have the soft keys at the bottom become disabled when answering a phone call or during an alarm. It's too easy to hang up a call or turn off my alarm by accident when either taking my phone out of my pocket or sliding it towards me from my table to hit the snooze.
I'm coming from an iPhone 3G, so pretty much everything is an overwhelming improvement for me, so just about anything I'd expect a phone to do, it can.

 

[voghan]

So far I like touch wiz. I just wish it ran a little closer to the T-Mobile version. I want my app drawer in alphabetical order, I don't want all four items in the daily briefing and I like T-Mobile's dialer more. Signal and battery life are much better on verizon compared to on T-Mobile.

 

[Cory Streater]

A man who has thought this out and knows what he wants. lol. extensive list.

Lol.

Hardware:
-Better antenna design
-USB port at the bottom and mini instead of micro.
-No USB port door - if I have to charge it 1 to 2 times a day, it's pointless covering the port.
-I honestly would have preferred a slightly smaller screen. Overall, the phone is really at the very edge of what I personally consider acceptable for a cell phone's size.
-better earpiece speaker

From a hardware standpoint, you probably would like the Incredible more then.

 

[Chris3D]

From a hardware standpoint, you probably would like the Incredible more then.

Yea, I'm really torn on that. The only thing that's keeping me from trading it in for an Incredible is reports that the Inc has even worse battery life and has worse reception, which because I live at the bottom of a hill would probably mean dropped calls. I had a BlackBerry on Verizon years ago, and could only connect a call from upstairs near a window.

And on the other side, none of the Motorola phones do anything for me. The X is to big and ugly with those tiny, sunken physical buttons. And I have no desire for a slide-out keyboard, so the Droid and D2 are out.

I have the phone in one of the Verizon silicon cases, which is about 1/8 in thick, so that's adding a 1/4 inch all around, which isn't helping the size issue. But I ordered one of the thinner cases, so hopefully that'll help.

The screen and the processor (overall speediness) are really great, though, which I'm assuming means it stands the best chance of any current phone to be OS upgradable farthest into the future.

 

[French]

For the boot sounds there is a free app in the market called Silent Boot. Check it to turn on and whenever you shut down/restart there will be no more sound. It does not work for a battery pull, however. Still, I'm happy to have gotten rid of it for reboots.

For a night time alarm clock I gave up and downloaded Bedside (market). It is a pay app however it is very customizable and I like that I can set it up so that just calls come through while it's in bedside mode. I do NOT want to hear all the email and text notifications, but if someone is calling me in the middle of the night presumably it's damn important, and I want that call to come through. You can even customize the ringer volume since when sleeping you don't necessarily need a ringer volume set to "high". You can only dim it to 10% but with a black background and gray numbers (fully customizable) it's dim enough for me. I'm coming from a Storm 2 which I felt was too bright.

I know this is a "what would you change" thread but thought I'd at least throw out a couple of solutions for folks that are willing to use third party apps to "fix" what's broke.

So what would I change? For me...without a doubt it's the lack of an LED. WHAT could the have been thinking????

 

[packerbacker]

@French, I am going to look into that Bedside app. I should probably have my phone on ring overnight (but lose the email/text notifs) in case of emergencies.

 

[PJnc284]

The continuous drain/recharge cycle illustrated below when plugged into the wall. Really annoying to take the phone off charger and have 96%.