iPhone to Evo - help me like it?

[beeperdoo]

hello friends! i recently picked up an evo on the sprint 30 day trial (while keeping my at&t plan intact) to see if i'd like the evo better... it's such a sexy little monster.. the voice commands, the sense interface, keyboard, screen, kickstand, crazy customizable apps -- i'm really digging the phone... aside from ONE THING. NOTIFICATIONS.

i've pasted an IM convo for convenience's sake to illustrate my issue with the phone. anyone have suggestions for me to make notifications better?
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[3:27:43 PM]: so i used to think i hated the iphone notification system of pop-ups and how only the latest notification would pop-up for txt and facebook and twitter.. but i'm beginning to like it better than android's!

[3:27:48 PM]: in short, android notifications tell me nothing

[3:28:05 PM]: it's like, i hear the sound i assigned to say, a twitter direct message to me

[3:28:39 PM]: i turn on phone, unlock phone, either pull down menu bar to see it ONLY say "new twitter direct message" -- NO WAY, REALLY?!?!?

[3:28:49 PM]: then click that and it opens the tweetdeck app and THEN i see the message

[3:29:01 PM]: or i can just open the app first off and not see what went on in the app to notify me....

[3:29:34 PM]: i like the way android notifies for email

[3:29:58 PM]: ....it does it the same way iphone does except i also get a mail icon in top menu bar for new messages

[3:30:08 PM]: so i can see from any app that i have new mail

[3:30:59 PM]: but the way it handles facebook and tweetdeck really sucks.. i know tweetdeck is beta, but still.

[3:31:27 PM]: txt messages are great. i see them when i pull down the menu bar... like the beginning of their content.... and they also scroll across the menu bar when i receive them.... instead of a pop-up

[3:31:35 PM]: which is nice and unobtrusive if i'm doing something and someone is rapid firing me with txts

[3:32:00 PM]: but i really dont like the facebook and twitter notifications. telling me in menu bar notification screen that I GOT A NEW FACEBOOK MESSAGE is like wtf?????? ya think??

[3:32:04 PM]: who sent it? what did they say???

[3:32:21 PM]: also the notifications aren't instant.

[3:32:45 PM]: i have it polling twitter every 15 mins and facebook every 15 just to check out the battery life now that i tweaked battery for everything else

[3:32:50 PM]: but on iphone it's very fast

[3:32:56 PM]: esp now that facebook has push

[3:33:28 PM]: i really like this phone, it's amazing and does crazy shit.... but i feel frustrated by the way notifications are implemented.

[3:33:36 PM]: but it's only the 2nd day so maybe i'll figure stuff out.

[3:33:52 PM]: i do feel like the iphone works better out of the box though.. straight up and with no jailbreak

[3:35:48 PM]: as of... right now.... i think i'm getting an iphone 4. we'll see if i change my mind in the next 28 days though.

[3:36:03 PM]: evo isn't doing what i want it to do.

[3:36:17 PM]: it does A LOT more than iphone... it's not even a comparison with what it CAN do.. i mean it's crazy!!!

[3:36:43 PM]: but if it doesn't do the basic things i WANT it to do.. like simple easy notifications... that iphone does with no tweaks necessary.. then what good is it to me

[3:37:19 PM]: main thing i like doing is glancing at my phone when i hear facebook, twitter, or IM message and seeing what someone said to me without having to physically touch the phone

[3:37:39 PM]: i do that all the time when i'm studying or online or whatever.

[3:37:51 PM]: now i think i'm gonna take this transcript and paste it to android forums to see what people suggest hahahaahahaa

e [3:37:57 PM]: they'll prob tell me to gtfo or kill myself

 

[t1jordan]

hello friends! i recently picked up an evo on the sprint 30 day trial (while keeping my at&t plan intact) to see if i'd like the evo better... it's such a sexy little monster.. the voice commands, the sense interface, keyboard, screen, kickstand, crazy customizable apps -- i'm really digging the phone... aside from ONE THING. NOTIFICATIONS.

i've pasted an IM convo for convenience's sake to illustrate my issue with the phone. anyone have suggestions for me to make notifications better?
-----------------------------------------------------------------

[3:27:43 PM]: so i used to think i hated the iphone notification system of pop-ups and how only the latest notification would pop-up for txt and facebook and twitter.. but i'm beginning to like it better than android's!

[3:27:48 PM]: in short, android notifications tell me nothing

[3:28:05 PM]: it's like, i hear the sound i assigned to say, a twitter direct message to me

[3:28:39 PM]: i turn on phone, unlock phone, either pull down menu bar to see it ONLY say "new twitter direct message" -- NO WAY, REALLY?!?!?

[3:28:49 PM]: then click that and it opens the tweetdeck app and THEN i see the message

[3:29:01 PM]: or i can just open the app first off and not see what went on in the app to notify me....

[3:29:34 PM]: i like the way android notifies for email

[3:29:58 PM]: ....it does it the same way iphone does except i also get a mail icon in top menu bar for new messages

[3:30:08 PM]: so i can see from any app that i have new mail

[3:30:59 PM]: but the way it handles facebook and tweetdeck really sucks.. i know tweetdeck is beta, but still.

[3:31:27 PM]: txt messages are great. i see them when i pull down the menu bar... like the beginning of their content.... and they also scroll across the menu bar when i receive them.... instead of a pop-up

[3:31:35 PM]: which is nice and unobtrusive if i'm doing something and someone is rapid firing me with txts

[3:32:00 PM]: but i really dont like the facebook and twitter notifications. telling me in menu bar notification screen that I GOT A NEW FACEBOOK MESSAGE is like wtf?????? ya think??

[3:32:04 PM]: who sent it? what did they say???

[3:32:21 PM]: also the notifications aren't instant.

[3:32:45 PM]: i have it polling twitter every 15 mins and facebook every 15 just to check out the battery life now that i tweaked battery for everything else

[3:32:50 PM]: but on iphone it's very fast

[3:32:56 PM]: esp now that facebook has push

[3:33:28 PM]: i really like this phone, it's amazing and does crazy shit.... but i feel frustrated by the way notifications are implemented.

[3:33:36 PM]: but it's only the 2nd day so maybe i'll figure stuff out.

[3:33:52 PM]: i do feel like the iphone works better out of the box though.. straight up and with no jailbreak

[3:35:48 PM]: as of... right now.... i think i'm getting an iphone 4. we'll see if i change my mind in the next 28 days though.

[3:36:03 PM]: evo isn't doing what i want it to do.

[3:36:17 PM]: it does A LOT more than iphone... it's not even a comparison with what it CAN do.. i mean it's crazy!!!

[3:36:43 PM]: but if it doesn't do the basic things i WANT it to do.. like simple easy notifications... that iphone does with no tweaks necessary.. then what good is it to me

[3:37:19 PM]: main thing i like doing is glancing at my phone when i hear facebook, twitter, or IM message and seeing what someone said to me without having to physically touch the phone

[3:37:39 PM]: i do that all the time when i'm studying or online or whatever.

[3:37:51 PM]: now i think i'm gonna take this transcript and paste it to android forums to see what people suggest hahahaahahaa

e [3:37:57 PM]: they'll prob tell me to gtfo or kill myself

I can understand where your coming from. I think FB sucks for Android period. But don't judge the whole entire OS over FB and a Beta app. I don't even use Tweetdeck. it will only notify you if you have the app open. Its worthless rite now.

 

[SirSlayer]

All I can say is Handcent. Its free on the market and has pop ups like the iphone. Its also the most customizable sms app out there.

I don't use Facebook or any of that so I don't know.

 

[kmoon89]

Most apps have notification settings that you can adjust to your liking. I tend to turn off notifications for FB and Twitter because it eats up a lot of juice just sitting there retrieving information.

Also, I agree with the person above. Handcent is your best friend. Stock messaging has some new features, but they're things that Handcent has had from the beginning, plus its notification settings are better.

 

[EarlyMon]

beeperdoo, welcome to the forums - you'll find many of us willing to help.

That post offending you reported as a violation of http://androidforums.com/htc-evo-4g/98274-zero-tolerance-policy-all-members-read.html

You've come to the right place, beeperdoo.

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

I, too, switched from the iPhone recently. I know what you mean about missing the little pop-up window that iOS uses when something happens, but I'm starting to live the Android/EVO method better. I do agree that it would be nice if, when you got an SMS, Facebook/Twitter notification, etc., more of the message showed up on the lock screen.

 

[novox77]

Also, I agree with the person above. Handcent is your best friend. Stock messaging has some new features, but they're things that Handcent has had from the beginning, plus its notification settings are better.

Agreed. You'll find through more use of the Evo that if there's anything you don't like about the stock functionality, you can replace it with an equivalent app, which most of the time does things much better. This is an advantage of the android community that's hugely absent in iOS because Apple wants total control over how you use your device.

A common replacement for people is the keyboard. There are several excellent keyboards that blow away the stock keyboard.

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

Agreed. You'll find through more use of the Evo that if there's anything you don't like about the stock functionality, you can replace it with an equivalent app, which most of the time does things much better.

Since I'm also newish to Android, can you explain how a new messaging program like Handcent works to replace the stock app? Am I going to be getting duplicates (and duplicate notifications) of every SMS/MMS?

 

[EarlyMon]

No worries - that's like the #1 Handcent question in these parts - here's the deal:

Handcent FAQ

PS - Not novox77, not a race, I was just in the neighborhood - and hoping to keep novox free to handle the tough rooting questions today (go novox!).

 

[BenChase7]

OP..

Wait till you get your monthly bill and its only 80 bucks. that ought to convince you!

 

[Brian360]

You want Swype for your EVO? Let me know, it's a great keyboard and it will install straight from your GMAIL account. Plus, all the customization, you'll forget about the Iphone in no time.

 

[Brian360]

Can you make your Iphone screen look like this? No? Didn't think so.

Widgets too? Evo will take care of that too

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

Can you make your Iphone screen look like this? No? Didn't think so.

Is that your lock screen or just a home screen without any widgets/apps?

If it's just a home screen, you can pretty much do the same thing with a jailbroken iPhone.

 

[Mr. Ed]

Is that your lock screen or just a home screen without any widgets/apps?

If it's just a home screen, you can pretty much do the same thing with a jailbroken iPhone.

ahhhh yes...but evo can do it on the lockscreen ....or home screens...all without jailbreak/root....

The most frustrating thing I have seen with iphone to android converts is customization overload....

there are sooooooo many options that they are not used to

 

[EarlyMon]

Trillian's in beta but maybe worth a shot -

Trillian Astra - Feature Tour

 

[beeperdoo]

thanks for the responses everyone. i set up some cool customizations and i'm digging the phone now.

the main problem i'm having with the phone now is battery life. i found out that i don't get sprint service at my house (no idea why, i live in a very metro area), so the phone has to roam on verizon. my "time without a signal" is like 85%... and the phone goes dead after about 6 hours of just sitting there asleep.

any advice? if i don't figure something out, the evo will have to go back. at least with the iphone, i got full bar service at my house and "good" battery life.. i have to be able to receive calls at home, so please don't tell me to turn off roaming. i don't have a landline and it's absolutely imperative that people can reliably reach me at all times.

 

[Bnice]

thanks for the responses everyone. i set up some cool customizations and i'm digging the phone now.

the main problem i'm having with the phone now is battery life. i found out that i don't get sprint service at my house (no idea why, i live in a very metro area), so the phone has to roam on verizon. my "time without a signal" is like 85%... and the phone goes dead after about 6 hours of just sitting there asleep.

any advice? if i don't figure something out, the evo will have to go back. at least with the iphone, i got full bar service at my house and "good" battery life.. i have to be able to receive calls at home, so please don't tell me to turn off roaming. i don't have a landline and it's absolutely imperative that people can reliably reach me at all times.

Take the EVO back and stick with your iphone
.

 

[beeperdoo]

Take the EVO back and stick with your iphone
.

yeah, i was afraid that'd be my only option

it sucks because i love this phone now. gah, why is sprint service so crappy! and i thought at&t was bad...

 

[beeperdoo]

ok so i got the MSL of the evo and then updated the PLR to one i downloaded off forums using cdma workshop. now i've got full bars and no battery issues. yay!

 

[Brian360]

I just put a Sprint Airave in my home. 100% signal strength, 100% of the time.

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

I just put a Sprint Airave in my home. 100% signal strength, 100% of the time.

$100 to buy it plus an extra $5 a month just to make your phone work? They should offer it for free if they want to keep their customers. I had problems with AT&T service at home, which is one of two main reasons why I left the iPhone for the EVO in the first place.

 

[PUREADDICT]

OP,

I couldn't agree with you more about notifications. You're coming from an iPhone and you think it's bad? I'm coming from a Blackberry (BB loyal for the past 3 years) which is as "instant" as any phone could get with it's notifications, push email, ability to type "instantly" on a qwerty keyboard, etc....but I've learned to cope and compromise with the Android OS a lot better the past 6 days I've had my EVO. Android is truly nuts; such a rich OS with the almost infinite possibilities, but it does need to be a bit more refined overall (time and updates will take care of this).

As for your reception issue, try calling Sprint to find out about future cell towers in your area (I live in Sacramento and 4G is coming here just around the corner in Oct!!), or if they can knock off some $$$ for having almost no reception at your own home.

 

[Biddy]

get a captivate on at&t

 

[beeperdoo]

OP,

I couldn't agree with you more about notifications. You're coming from an iPhone and you think it's bad? I'm coming from a Blackberry (BB loyal for the past 3 years) which is as "instant" as any phone could get with it's notifications, push email, ability to type "instantly" on a qwerty keyboard, etc....but I've learned to cope and compromise with the Android OS a lot better the past 6 days I've had my EVO. Android is truly nuts; such a rich OS with the almost infinite possibilities, but it does need to be a bit more refined overall (time and updates will take care of this).

As for your reception issue, try calling Sprint to find out about future cell towers in your area (I live in Sacramento and 4G is coming here just around the corner in Oct!!), or if they can knock off some $$$ for having almost no reception at your own home.

\

i ended up trying out handcent to fix the notification issue with txt messages. it's pretty fantastic, and now i get a pop-up that wakes up the screen and displays the actual txt message. very handy, just what i wanted.

as for the signal issue, i changed the preferred roaming list settings so now my phone just stays on verizon 100% of the time and doesn't bother looking for a sprint signal. lol. it roams for free on verizon, so why not....

 

[beeperdoo]

get a captivate on at&t

well, the reason i'm trying out the evo in the first place is b/c at&t's service is so expensive. if i were to stay with at&t, i'd stay with what i know and like, the iphone. the only way i'm bothering with a new phone is if i get cheaper monthly bills!