Chomp or Handcent?

[walkinhotdog]

hey im happily using the default htc text app, but was wondering if handcent or chomp had any extra to offer in terms of what i like.

1. Does it allow you to delete single messages? the htc one only allows you to delete full threads.

2. Do any of them let you preview the whole message on top of the lockscreen and give you the option to mark as read or reply?

3. I do like how the htc one doesnt wake up the phone when you receive a message. I like just having the flashing ball tell me i got a new message. No need to wake up. Can any of them do this?

I dont need a whole lot of customization, just those 3 things would be nice. Thanks

 

[bunt83]

hey im happily using the default htc text app, but was wondering if handcent or chomp had any extra to offer in terms of what i like.

1. Does it allow you to delete single messages? the htc one only allows you to delete full threads.

2. Do any of them let you preview the whole message on top of the lockscreen and give you the option to mark as read or reply?

3. I do like how the htc one doesnt wake up the phone when you receive a message. I like just having the flashing ball tell me i got a new message. No need to wake up. Can any of them do this?

I dont need a whole lot of customization, just those 3 things would be nice. Thanks

1 - Handcent does
2 - Handcent does
3 - I THINK handcent does

 

[walkinhotdog]

Thanks for the reply. Will installing and uninstalling handcent change my default sms in any way (saved messages)? And can i choose to use the default after installing, or will i be stuck with handcent only?

 

[bunt83]

Thanks for the reply. Will installing and uninstalling handcent change my default sms in any way (saved messages)? And can i choose to use the default after installing, or will i be stuck with handcent only?

If you install Handcent, none of your current SMS's will be changed in any way...

You'll still have the default app installed, but make sure you remove the notifications using the stock app, else you'll receive 2 every time you get a new SMS (1 from handcent and 1 from the stock messaging app)

 

[ticho]

1. Does it allow you to delete single messages? the htc one only allows you to delete full threads.

Just for the record - the default HTC Messages app *does* allow you to delete single messages.

 

[walkinhotdog]

Hm it appears that you can. but its a pain in the ass when you want to delete several old messages at once instead of the whole thread. I have to delete one, scroll all the way back to, repeat.

 

[ohgeez]

I've been using Handcent for quite some time and like it. After reading this thread, I decided to give chomp a try. After two days, I went back to Handcent.

 

[BiGMERF]

i was using the smspopup app because of its simplicity but have moved to handcent and i am satisfied

 

[jim_h]

Hi,

I was going to start a new thread, but spotted this one. Here's my 2p worth on the debate between the two apps...

I've used Handcent from virtually day one instead of the stock sms app and after a couple of weeks with it on my Hero, have given up as of today.

The problems I had, which seem to have been related directly to Handcent are:
Notification delays - The phone would vibrate, but no notification sound unless or until I unlocked the screen, which could be minutes later. It was driving me mad and I couldn't solve it by closing/reopening the app, clearing caches, rebooting. Nothing worked until I uninstalled Handcent. With Chomp installed, every sms I've had today (around 15 so far) has had notification sounds and vibration together as they should be. Nothing else has changed on my phone other than uninstalling Handcent and installing Chomp immediately after.
SMS failures & delays - This is the dealbreaker for me and from other comments online, it looks like I'm not alone in experiencing it. SMS messages often (as in around 10% of the time for me) fail to send or sit there delayed for a long time. I can have a full network signal strength and messages will fail to send. In one case, the sms looked to have gone (no fail message or icon next to it) and I got a call two days later from the recipient asking why I'd sent the message so long after our conversation. Two days is way too long. Again, with Chomp today, every message has gone, first time, even with a low network signal.
Lag - I didn't notice this until I removed Handcent and installed Chomp, but my phone is definitely quicker without Handcent. Why that is, I have no idea. But, the laggy gui is less pronounced.
MMS fails - As with sms messages, the multimedia messages I send, which are usually pictures, often fail to send immediately and it can take me hours to kickstart them. It doesn't matter how strong or weak my network signal is either. This seems to be completely random.
Missing messages - Now, this one is really interesting to me. When I uninstalled Handcent and got Chomp running, I noticed an sms thread I didn't recognise. I opened it up and lo and behold, there were three identical mms messages I'd tried and failed to send via Handcent in a thread all on their own!! I can't begin to explain this one.

I like the idea of Handcent because of the power it gives you over sms, which is something I do more with my phone than making calls. However, with these issues, I won't be installing it again any time soon. It's way too buggy for me. So far, there's nothing to indicate Chomp having the same problems and it has more than enough config options for me to be happy with it as my main texting app.

Cheers for this thread, it's nice to know I'm not alone with my problems.

All the best,
Jim

 

[walkinhotdog]

Thanks for the review jim. Could you also do a full review of chomp? Im pretty happy with the default one, but it never hurts to get more features if it doesnt cause problems.

 

[rre_za]

well i tried both handcent and chomp...
IMO handcent is better chomp force u to use bubble chat ( like iphone ) since i believe my Hero is way better than Iphone i dont want to use a chat box like iphone!

Handcent reminds me that im using a HTC Hero phone not an Iphone

some ppl said that they are loosing text massages while they click on notifications, i think u are wrong and u are not loosing any messages!

while u get 1msg and dont read it for a while handsent will remind u that u have an unread msg, same alert as a new msg ...

think u are in kitchen while ur phone is in ur bedroom u hear a sms alert and after a while u hear another sms alert

this way u think that u have 2msgs but in fact u got 1msg and the other alert was for reminding u to read ur unread msg...

 

[rammsky]

I've been using Handcent since I bought my HTC Hero. And loving it. Very sleek, useful, has all the right features I need.

However, I've not tried Chomp yet so no comments on that.

 

[jim_h]

rre_za - I had the bubbles displayed in Handcent too and quite like that format for texts. Never having owned an iPhone, I'd never seen texts displayed like that before.

Although I've never lost a text message, the notification delay between vibration and tone defintitely does exist when Handcent is installed - at least, it does on my Hero anyway. I've tested this any number of times. An sms arrives and the phone vibrates. Then nothing until I press a button and swipe the screen to unlock it. Only then does the tone sound. This happened all the time with Handcent running. Since removing it and installing Chomp, the problem has disappeared. I don't believe in coincidences

walkinhotdog - I'll post about Chomp when I've had it a bit longer. There are a lot of people posting how good Handcent is, but from playing with Chomp most of yesterday, it's just as good in many ways. The lack of bugs so far is good enough for me.

Cheers,
Jim

 

[elektrobix]

As jim says i like the idea of handcent but in practice i find it far too buggy. I love being able to customise it but none of that is any use if it's not sending and receiving messages reliably. I'm now using Chomp which in general i prefer because it feels faster but i'm having problems with that where sometimes it says a message failed to send but the person i sent it to tells me they got it. Also (like Handcent) it often fails to send picture messages.

I've had the same problems with both on Hero and Milestone.

So i think they both suffer from the same problems. I now use the default sms app to send picture texts and will probably switch back to the standard sms if updates don't fix these glitches.

 

[rre_za]

jim_h - yes there is a delay between vibration and alert... ( my old nokia was like this and had the delay , its not a big deal for me! )

first phone begins to vibrate then alert will start while phone still vibrating...

i think u should change the setting for the alert , go here Application Setting >Enable Notifications > then go to Notification setting > Select Ringtone > Maybe u selected Silent here! , choose ur Ringtone and press ok after that select test notification to make sure every thing is as u want it to be...

 

[jim_h]

i think u should change the setting for the alert , go here Application Setting >Enable Notifications > then go to Notification setting > Select Ringtone > Maybe u selected Silent here! , choose ur Ringtone and press ok after that select test notification to make sure every thing is as u want it to be...

Nope.

I know I didn't select silent because the tone does work, but only when I unlock the screen as I said earlier. I've even tried different tones, but it made no difference.

This is a real problem with Handcent rather than just my not configuring the app properly. Problem solved with Chomp installed, which proves it beyond doubt.

Now do you believe me?

 

[rre_za]

donno :-?? maybe u are right dude...

but i dont have any problem with it ( YET ) i have both CHomp and Handcent installed...

 

[PaulC]

I know I didn't select silent because the tone does work, but only when I unlock the screen as I said earlier. I've even tried different tones, but it made no difference.

I get this intermittantly with handcent too. No notification sound until I unlock the phone.

 

[rre_za]

i think ur configuration is set on privacy mode... ( im sure i saw something like that in setting )

 

[PaulC]

i think ur configuration is set on privacy mode... ( im sure i saw something like that in setting )

Nope. The fact that it's intermittant with no settings changes shows it's a bug.
For instance earlier today I received a message, the phone vibrated and I didn't bother checking it, then over an hour later I unlocked the phone to do something else and it played the notification sound. Yet just now I received a message and it played the sound at the same time as vibration... (which reminds me, I should check what that message was).

However, I do still prefer handcent over chomp. Chomp just seemed too "rigid", or maybe I didn't stick with it for long enough to get used to it. Might give it another shot at some point.

 

[jim_h]

For instance earlier today I received a message, the phone vibrated and I didn't bother checking it, then over an hour later I unlocked the phone to do something else and it played the notification sound. Yet just now I received a message and it played the sound at the same time as vibration... (which reminds me, I should check what that message was).

Which is exactly what was happening to me all the time and why I sacked Handcent in favour of Chomp. I still haven't had this happen again since installing Chomp.

I still like Chomp, but it seems just as hard to get an mms (picture attachment) to send as it did with Handcent. Granted, I've only tried it once so far, but my first attempt failed without any logical reason. The message just sat there trying to send for over 20 minutes. It didn't show as a failure, just the spinning icon indicating it was attempting to send.

In the end, I deleted the message and created a new one, identical. It went immediately! I was still in the same place (a cafe) and so it can't have been a change in the signal strength, so I'm none the wiser.

I'll persevere with Chomp for a week or two and give it a proper chance to show me the quirks or bugs, assuming there are some. I'll keep posting here with comments, in case it helps anyone else make a decision about which, if any, to use.

 

[ticho]

I still don't get what the fuss is all about with Chomp or Handcent. I find the stock messaging app good and fast enough for daily use.
What is the advantage in using one of the two apps? I tried both, but apart from the color theme customization, I didn't find any useful feature. In fact, both are way slower than the default app, and their interface is clumsier. And yes, I too had problems sending MMS, while on the default app it works flawlessly.

 

[EricB]

After reading this I had to post, for those who want to use Chomp but don't like the bubble text display, go into settings on Chomp, then "Customize look", then "Conversation", then "Outgoing bubble color", switch transparency all the way to the right, then do the same to "Incoming bubble color". The bubbles are now transparent, and for all intents and purposes gone. I changed the message colors to different colors for incoming and outgoing messages to keep them separate, but at least it works until the developer gives us the option to get rid of the bubbles completely.

The reason why I went to Chomp over Handcent is the "failed message" reports even though they were going through.

Another thing I noticed, Chomp recognizes my old Handcent fonts, so if you're attached to a particular font in Handcent, it will work in Chomp, but you have to have Chomp search for it on your phone.

And one more thing, I've had no problems receiving picture texts with Chomp. Don't know about video texts, no one's sent me any porn since I got my Eris updated to 2.1 last week.. LOL!

 

[BiGMERF]

Gave chomp a try, its ok.but back to handcent I go.

 

[DLM]

how do you disable the default SMS program to use handcent? I now get two notifications