Did Gingerbread Make Sense Or Break It?

Yesterday's post on changing your EVO's Home Screen got quite a response from people eager to swap those Sense-i-ble views for something a bit more, well, bland. Vanilla Android start screens are definitely the way Android was meant to be enjoyed. Start to finish, a little package of easy to use, yet pretty functionality. When you take that simplicity and add the beauty of Sense on top of it, you get a pretty slick interface, but also a bit of a headache.

Since the Gingerbread update, the Sprint forums are all a glow with complaints of HTC's pride and joy shutting down like a US soccer team defense against Mexico. From everywhere, the reports are flying in that Sense isn't working well since the update. The common factor appears to be when exiting any application that requires a tiny bit of 'processing power and memory' the 'white screen of death with the HTC logo' comes on taking forever to come back to the home screen.

After speaking with an HTC representative, they are aware that the Improved Power Management feature of Android 2.3 is creating some issues with Sense and may be the cause of the restarts when exiting some applications. The fix appears to be a hybrid blend of the 2.3.3 designed Sense 3.0 and the 1.6 designed Sense 2.1 that the EVO is currently running. They do not have a time table for a fix to the issue, but rest assured, they are working on some solution to the problem.

Currently, the best solutions we have to offer for the reloading issue is a three part answer. First, live with the reload when you leave memory chugging apps... Second, uninstall all Sense based widgets to decrease the load time and the drain on the CPU so 2.3 will not be as likely to shut it down... Third, try a home screen replacement like ADW or Go Launcher EX, they do not seem to be as affected by the IPM system as Sense is.

There will surely be more to come on this and we look forward to having answers for you soon!

Go Launcher EX - The Free Sense Replacement

We love Sense, we really do. There are days though, that Sense just doesn't work for us. The random restarts when coming back from the browser, or from YouTube... The slowly loading widgets when the need to refresh... The lack of customizing the active buttons at the bottom of the screen... These are all things that just keep Sense from being perfect. So, to start off our week, we installed the free home screen replacement called "Go Launcher EX".

Go Launcher EX, from the GO Launcher Dev Team, is an amazing little application. The setup is very quick and simple. Stock out of the box, we found 15 interchangeable icons located at the bottom of the screen. 5 of these were preset with standard items: Phone, People, Application Menu, Messages and Internet. With a quick swap, we changed these out to our favorites. We then added media programs to the next 5 blanks and social networking programs to the other 5 blanks. Overall, tweaking took just a few minutes.

The home screens were just as easy to customize and setup. With just a few long presses we had an amazing home experience. Except, once again, the Facebook widget seemed to leave us a bit sad, mainly due to the fact it didn't filter 'applications' from our Newsfeed, even when turned off in Facebook itself. Chalk one up for Launcher Pro and it's Facebook widget again...

The app drawer has something for everyone. The drawer offers the standard vertical layout from Android or the side to side 'feed' from programs like TouchWiz. Two great options for fans of either.

The extra bonus to Go Launcher EX is the amount of widgets that are available for use. Go has designed a few great ones that are free to download in the market. Facebook, Messages, Task Killer, Calendar, Gmail notification and Message notification were all active on our screen at one point. For the most part, we liked them all, except for those 'Farmville' notifications on our Facebook widget.

Overall, we give this a major thumbs up and since it's free, you should give it a shot as well. The program is available in the Market as are the free widget items. To enable this, you simply press your home button and select Go Launcher EX from the list. To make it your default screen (only do this after you've decided you want to use it full time) simply check the box at the bottom of the list that says, "Use by default for this action." before you select Go Launcher EX from the list.

If you decide to go back to Sense, you just enter your Application menu (Menu>Settings>Applications>Manage Applications>All>Go Launcher EX - and select Clear Defaults. This will get you back to choosing which app to use for your home screen at each button press. To remove Go Launcher, simply uninstall the app and it will revert back to Sense only. WARNING - Do Not Delete alternate launchers until you have cleared the defaults!

Go Launcher EX is free and available in the Android Market - https://market.android.com/details?id=com.gau.go.launcherex&feature=search_result

Evo 3D Heading To Europe Soon

Anytime an EVO makes the journey overseas it's just one more case for the line being one of the best lineups for smartphones on the planet. Now, with the entry level Evo Shift, the 'mid-range' 4G, the high-end 3D and the Flyer/View tablet, the EVO lineup is very solid. With news of the Evo 4G+ coming out in Asian countries soon, the European nations have been aching for something new for themselves. Fortunately, today is the day for them. HTC has announced that the Evo 3D will be coming soon to a country near them.

The 3D, with it's dual-core, dual-camera, 3D coated screen, will be making its way to various carriers across Europe next month. While most of the countries involved have already seen the similar styled (and processing power toting) Sensation, the unique 3D experience that the EVO offers is something that many will still jump on. The extra large 1730 mAh battery may also pull a few fans over to the 3D's corner as well.

Pricing and carrier information has not been released yet, but look for it soon.

5 Minute App Review: Jenga

So here we are again, looking at a way to kill time on the train, at the airport or even just sitting at the mall. If you are doing the latter, Jenga from NaturalMotionGames is a great choice. If you happen to be moving around in a car, not so much.

Jenga is a direct play off the original block stacking game from Parker Brothers where you remove blocks from the bottom of a stack, place them on top of the stack, all while not trying to knock said stack over. Everyone's seen it, almost everyone's played it, but not many have tried it on a touch screen.

The controls were remarkably good - especially on a screen the size of the EVO's, but we can see where smaller screens would present a real challenge. The graphics are phenomenal, the play was quick and exciting and overall, the game gets a positive thumbs up.

The only issue we found with game play is that if you're moving, forget about it. One slight bump, jump or flick, your blocks are tumbling.

Jenga:  3 out of 5  -  Available for $2.99 from the Android Market or Amazon Appstore


https://market.android.com/details?id=com.naturalmotion.j3n64&feature=search_result

5 Minute App Review: Baseball Superstars 2011

I have been having entirely too much fun with this game. Baseball Superstars 2011 is amazingly entertaining, speedy to play and a joy to have on your EVO. You can select from Season, League or Game modes, all with the opportunity to earn G points to purchase in game merchandise, like faster shoes, better gloves and more.

The only complaint with the game play is that baseball takes forever to play. 9 innings is just too long. Fortunately, you can swing into game settings and set it to auto play, so you only hit when your batter is up or pitch when you have a jam. The configurations are endless and you can set them however you'd like.

The game itself is reminiscent of the Nintendo games of old and the delightful soundtrack only adds to the old-school feel. The entertainment value alone of this app makes it worth the $0.99 price tag, but the game play far outweighs the cost of a candy bar. Overall, we haven't found a better way to kill time at a better price. The paid version is ad free and uses minimal data.

Baseball Superstars 2011:  5 out of 5  -  $.99 in the Android Market or Amazon Appstore


https://market.android.com/details?id=com.gamevil.baseball2011&feature=search_result

Evo vs. Evo: 4G vs. 3D

There comes a time when every smartphone user has a debate, and lately its been more like every few hours that EVO owners are facing a new dilemma... Is it time for something new?

For weeks now, EVO users have been barraged with dual-screens, pure Google, faster processors and keyboards. For weeks they've heard about the newer 3D version of their beloved handset. For months EVO faithful have been told their handsets are outdated, slow, and need to be replaced. But finally, tomorrow, June 24, 2011 is officially the day that the EVO 4G loses its stronghold and falls to the now networks latest beast.

The EVO 3D is the newest device in the EVO line and it will be hitting stores tomorrow for the general public to grasp up and begin shooting life in 3D. The first instinct is to go plop down your $500 and get the newest and greatest, but let this serve as a warning - you just might want to hold off on that thought.

The original EVO 4G is still a whopping $149.99 on Sprint.com. The 3D is slated to hit at $50 more than that. Now, Sprint has always been about keeping their price points on their devices a bit higher than the 'BOGO' loving VZW, but seriously, if the 3D was more than a niche device, that 4G should be down under $100 right now to clear shelf space for it. Most of the online retailers are selling the 4G for nothing - our own http://www.getsmartphones.info has had the 4G running free for a week now - prior to that, both the white and black versions were down to $85 with new 2 year agreement.

It doesn't make sense to keep a device that has been out over 12 months now at full price, unless, it's still the best device you have to offer. Maybe, just maybe, Sprint isn't sure whether or not the 3D will take the throne from the 4G? Maybe there is the 4G+ refresh coming down the pipe that was just leaked in Korea. Everyone thought the Samsung Epic would bring the 4G down, it didn't happen. Then the Evo Shift, again, nothing. Finally, the beauty of the Samsung Nexus S would take the throne, but even that amazing device hasn't slowed the 4G at all.

Perhaps, the 4G was just the perfect phone at the perfect time. Perhaps it's still the perfect phone at the perfect time. Sprint really hit one out of the park with the 4G, and from the software bugs that are already plaguing the 3D, perhaps everyone would be better off with a 4G...

  

Netflix is Back on the EVO - and in the Market!

The Evo is back with all its netflixing magic today as the newest update in the Android Market is now offered for the Evo again. Call it luck, skill or just awesomeness, but you cm start rocking those episodes of South Park and Stargate SG1 on the go once again.