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From what I've seen it IS the new homescreen and the home button always returns to it. It appears that you can't add shortcuts or widgets to it, even if you remove all the content. I saw a video (on cnet I think) where an HTC rep was demoing Blinkfeed for a journalist and he said something to the affect that if you don't like it, you can add more home screens and scroll left or right to see them. That implies that Blinkfeed cannot be made to go away, but I'm waiting for a full professional review before casting final judgement.
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Well I'm sure it will go if you're running a different launcher, and if the android feature to disable apps hasn't been removed. There's always a way
One preview I read said that the home key "remembered" if you'd used a non-blink screen last and returned to that. But tbh there's a lot of confusion in these brief hands-on things, and I expect HTC PR types' script is just to play blink up rather than address questions like this, so I'm also awaiting proper reviews.
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Engadget, a BlinkFeed partner, said that if you don't like it you can disable it but that doesn't answer the question of removing it from the screen completely. My guess is a lot of people will want it off and the ROM community will make it happen.
By default, Blinkfeed is the home screen. You do have the option to change the home screen to one of the other screens.
So I asked again like this -
Quote:
Thanks for the reply, highly appreciated.
That answered from a cosmetic perspective, fair enough, but I'm asking about data consumption.
Can I deselect all feeds so that I have none of that downloading? If the Blinkfeed screen expands to accommodate more feeds, what happens if I have zero feeds? Does that remove Blinkfeed from that screen altogether?
The feature looks really great, kudos on that. Just not sure that it would make sense for my data plan to be honest.
I don't know if they don't want to acknowledge that their feature isn't great or what.
Personally - I do think it's pretty cool. I use Google Currents and don't mind a nice news feed.
But sometimes, I'm out for a while in 3G wastelands where I just want that stuff off.
Plus everything like that goes against what we love about Android. Customization, and making our phone reflect our wants and desires. Why couldn't it have just been a full screen widget? I am disappointed in HTC deciding this will always be on one of the phones homescreens.
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What did Peter Chou say the point of Sense was in 2010 - "With Sense, you can make it your own."
Back in Sense 1.0 I had launcher profiles and I could save my Rosie settings.
They keep saying that Sense is getting lighter-weight to make the blogosphere happy.
The only differences between Sense 3 and 4 was a shift of functions and eye candy from one place to another. LoL
PS - if everyone with a Discus account goes and thanks my question on the HTC page at the link above, maybe they'll take notice and we'll get a more complete answer - just saying, couldn't hurt.
Last edited by EarlyMon; February 21st, 2013 at 01:56 PM.
What did Peter Chou say the point of Sense was in 2010 - "With Sense, you can make it your own."
Back in Sense 1.0 I had launcher profiles and I could save my Rosie settings.
They keep saying that Sense is getting lighter-weight to make the blogosphere happy.
The only differences between Sense 3 and 4 was a shift of functions and eye candy from one place to another. LoL
PS - if everyone with a Discus account goes and thanks my question on the HTC page at the link above, maybe they'll take notice and we'll get a more complete answer - just saying, couldn't hurt.
Plus everything like that goes against what we love about Android. Customization, and making our phone reflect our wants and desires. Why couldn't it have just been a full screen widget? I am disappointed in HTC deciding this will always be on one of the phones homescreens.
I'm guessing it's a source of income for HTC & part of the deal is having it embedded into the O/S as a non-removable item,ever-so conveniently placed front & center for an even better payout.
You can "vote up" a question or response without even needing a Discus account.
I'm a Discus mod and I did not know that!
Yeah, could be part of the contract.
HTC has always had a form of live news feed and live social feeds - Blinkfeed is just the logical progression on that. No big deal for a lot of people, and I'll bet many will love it.
Hi EarlyMon,
If you deselect all feeds, you will have a blank Blinkfeed screen. If you did that you would move another as home screen. I understand what you're saying about data plans, but I have not noticed a significant bump in my data usage as of yet.
I'm not going to pester the guy, the answer seems to be there - "if you did that (turned off all feeds) you would move another as home screen."
So, can definitely disable all feeds, and possibly swap out the blank Blinkfeed window (or park it to where you don't care as he mentioned earlier).
And if he's not seeing a big bump in his data plan, then maybe it has the sense to not update unless you're looking at that screen - they did say that the content only updates on demand, and isn't queued, in one of their vids.
I forgot to add, I have my Blinkfeed set up to automatically update over WiFi and I can "pull" to update when on mobile network. You also have an option to set Blinkfeed to update on WiFi or Mobile networks.
Nice.
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HTC includes new technology in the phone, it has introduced an new concept for the homescreen called “BlinkFeed”, a model similar to Flipboard, which can automatically updates news and images from social world, and thanks to 1,400 content partners such as AP, MTV and ESPN.
It can't be removed....yet, it also can't be moved from it's homescreen position.....what i mean is, it is the first homescreen, so if you add more screens the Blinkfeed stays put, as in, Blink screen-2-3-4-5.
I would have liked to move it to another position ie, 1-2-Blink screen-4-5.
Installing Nova Launcher or another launcher app removes it, but then you lose the Sense widgets as well.
I'm still in 2 minds about it TBH, it looks useful if you like to keep up on various news feeds etc, but i would like it as my central homescreen.
So i switch between Nova and Sense Launcher now and again so i can try and get used to it.
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It can't be removed....yet, it also can't be moved from it's homescreen position.....what i mean is, it is the first homescreen, so if you add more screens the Blinkfeed stays put, as in, Blink screen-2-3-4-5.
I would have liked to move it to another position ie, 1-2-Blink screen-4-5.
Installing Nova Launcher or another launcher app removes it, but then you lose the Sense widgets as well.
I'm still in 2 minds about it TBH, it looks useful if you like to keep up on various news feeds etc, but i would like it as my central homescreen.
So i switch between Nova and Sense Launcher now and again so i can try and get used to it.
Is BLINKFEED running in the background to the point where it's consuming a notable % of battery/RAM when you're using NOVA?
Which brings up a slightly off-topic question:
How much free RAM is actually available out-of-the-box?
See earlier - Blink can be configured to only update on demand day demand. Using either launcher, that should alleviate that.
Also, while the Blinkfeed screen has to stay on the Internet Sense launcher, it needn't be the default screen according to HTC.
Is this true?
Yes, you can make any of the screens your default homescreen so when you press the home key it goes to that screen, but you can't alter the position of the Blinkfeed screen to have it in the middle of 5 screens, it will always be the first screen.
PS, Memory Booster Lite.
Here you go, 3 homescreens, middle screen is set to "Home", if i add another 2 screens they get added on after the calculator screen and you can't change the order of the Blinkfeed, it stays locked as the first screen.
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This is a good thread and has given me pause for thought and the ammo to go and do a bit of a net-trawl for Blinkfeed info.
If I can add everything I need to this Blinkfeed, so Facebook, all my email accounts, Twitter plus various forums I am a member of, then I will use it. I definitely don't want it as my first page though and I really don't want it to be 'left' of my home screen. In my opinion, if we are stuck with it having to be there, then I would much rather have the option of deciding where to put it.
After some digging (link below refer), Blinkfeed works by launching the corresponding native app when the icon is tapped, so Twitter in the native Twitter app. The issue is I don't like the native Twitter app as it doesn't offer my the level of granularity I want; I prefer to use Tweetbot instead. I'm stuffed with Blinkfeed unless there is a way to get Blinkfeed to open in an app of my choosing, which there isn't at the moment (although never say never). I can't add in my own RSS feeds, nor can I add in my email accounts.
If I get this phone, I think I will find a launcher and just get rid of Blinkfeed in its entirety as it's not really allowing me the customisation I want.
Yes, you can make any of the screens your default homescreen so when you press the home key it goes to that screen, but you can't alter the position of the Blinkfeed screen to have it in the middle of 5 screens, it will always be the first screen.
PS, Memory Booster Lite.
Here you go, 3 homescreens, middle screen is set to "Home", if i add another 2 screens they get added on after the calculator screen and you can't change the order of the Blinkfeed, it stays locked as the first screen.
Being able to select any screen you wish as a default/home screen is a fair compromise w/having BLINKFEED in the #1 slot.I wouldn't expect HTC to bury it two or three clicks away,etc...,.as we all know this is part of the package.
Would we like to have the option to totally disable BLINKFEED?Sure,having choices reigns supreme.Do I realistically expect this option in a future update?
No,but,first impressions indicate that it's not in the way,or,bogging things down,etc...
As powerful as phones have become,having extra add-on features to the O/S isn't a detriment to the usability of a phone as it once was.
Just as I do w/my SGS III,I use what I like & ignore the rest.I'm holding off judgement on BLINKFEED until I actually get the phone in hand,but,w/the exception of the ANDROID purists (NEXUS crowd),I think BLINKFEED will be a pleasant surprise.
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Honestly...The more I look at the reviews the more I'm getting amped up about blink feed. Of course that can change over night once I get the one and notice it's killing my battery...I hope not!
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I know much of the complaints/quirks of the HTC ONE relate to tasks involved in Sense 5: blinkfeed, app drawer, moving apps to the home screen, from the dock, etc...
Is anyone actually going to stick with Sense 5 or are we all running Nova/Apex/GO launchers?
"Ain't nobody got time for that" persistent power save mode in the notification shade either, so I know I'll be running a custom ROM as well.
The hardware and camera features are the big hit of this phone. Pair it with a "better" launcher and even a custom ROM and this phone is damn near perfect.
I'm switching between Sense and Nova Launcher at the minute.
I think Blinkfeed could be better with more feeds etc.....so i keep trying it, and switching to Nova for a bit of what i'm used to.
One thing that is annoying is that if i choose the "Football" feed.....i get standard Football.....and that funny type of Football that they play with a weird shaped ball and wear suits full of armour plating........
I'm the same as you though, will be running a custom rom soon.....i already know the one i'll be running, but i'm hanging off to see if we can get S-Off on the device quite soon. I was very tempted on the first day to Root and rom, but managed to hold off, for how long i don't know (i lasted 2 weeks when i got my One X on launch day last year )
Sense cannot be completely remove unless you install cook ROM right?
Yeah, a launcher won't completely remove Sense, but from what I've been reading... it fixes most of the complaints, most of the "weirdness" with sense. The dialer and music player and such are pretty highly regarded in Sense, a launcher won't touch those.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RaLeX
I know much of the complaints/quirks of the HTC ONE relate to tasks involved in Sense 5: blinkfeed, app drawer, moving apps to the home screen, from the dock, etc...
Is anyone actually going to stick with Sense 5 or are we all running Nova/Apex/GO launchers?
"Ain't nobody got time for that" persistent power save mode in the notification shade either, so I know I'll be running a custom ROM as well.
The hardware and camera features are the big hit of this phone. Pair it with a "better" launcher and even a custom ROM and this phone is damn near perfect.
*taking cover* I actually LIKE Sense, or at least the iterations I've dealt with, so I'll probably hang with it a while at least. Never stayed on a Sense-less ROM for a full day.. I'm a bit of a twitter junky, and my wife can't stay off Facebook, so we'll hang with it for a while...
I like to run a "Sense" rom, but like the options to remove what i don't like and keep what i do.
The rom is already there for me (OrDroid), been using for almost the whole time i had my One X.......just waiting for the extra options to remove Blink if i want to, or at least move it around in my screens, and S-off.....although i'm getting twitchy........i feel the need to Root!
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Quote:
Originally Posted by EarlyMon
Yep.
I've liked a stock-rooted Sense rom personally....
Me too. I've tried MIUI, CM, Senseless d3rp, but never more than an hour or few. Can't seem to get the hang of the UIs.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Scootmien
I put Nova back on the One but to be honest, I prefer the raw Sense 5 interface so i'm just going to stick with that for the moment.
So before the One, Nova was your launcher, and you like Sense 5, better? That would be very interesting to find more folks that used to prefer another launcher and now prefer Sense 5.!
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Quote:
Originally Posted by toad6386
So before the One, Nova was your launcher, and you like Sense 5, better? That would be very interesting to find more folks that used to prefer another launcher and now prefer Sense 5.!
Pretty much, yes.
I do miss being able to change the number of icons in the dock and put more apps on a page but overall I really do like the clean Sense 5 look. Admittedly, it's the first time I have even played with an HTC phone, much less owned one but I really like the stock UI. I imagine I will put Nova or Apex on it at some point but for the moment Sense 5 is sitting pretty with me.
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just my non tech opinion but blink looks more like windows 8 than anything else. if this is the way of htc i may look some place else next year. if i wanted windos 8 i would have gotten a windows phone.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vicshalls
just my non tech opinion but blink looks more like windows 8 than anything else. if this is the way of htc i may look some place else next year. if i wanted windos 8 i would have gotten a windows phone.
it's only one screen. You can set another screen as your homepage and remove all the content from Blinkfeed. My nomal homepage looks like a typical Android homepage. In my opinion, the presence of Blinkfeed is certainly not a reason to forgo the phone.
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The HTC One is the manufacturer's flagship device for the first half of the year. The device's specs put it in the top of the smartphone pyramid, featuring a 1.7 GHz quad-core processor, 2 GB of RAM, a 4.7-inch 1080p display and Android 4.1... Read More
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Sense 5 discussion / setup (Blink feed, etc.)
for an even better payout.
Homescreen customisations lost
