• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

New to Captivate/Android...can I change the theme?

HX_Guy

Member
Jul 27, 2010
60
1
I just picked up the phone yesterday and love many things about it however I do not like the look of the UI at all, it looks very amateurish and "cheap". I know there are many themes available out there but do they work on this phone? Does it require a custom ROM? I assume it needs to be rooted to get a custom theme, right?

I want something that will change the look of every screen...dial pad, text messages, menus, settings. Imam really not liking the white text on black background.
 
I already got the LauncherPro and that helped a lot with the home screen but the stock icons are pretty bad and the spacing between them makes it look cheap.

About the white on black text...are satiny that even with a whole new theme, it doesn't change that?

I don't understand the inconsistency. For example, the mail inbox is white on black but the messages are black on white (in my opinion the way it should be). The you have text messages where the window background is black but each message is on a different color "popup". Do these not change with different themes and/or ROMs?
 
Upvote 0
I'm coming from iOS so the adjustment is a bit odd. I gotta say I definitely like iOS better in that regard because I'm not big on the whole customize thing, I like something nice and clean out of the box. I do like other aspects of it like the widgets and then phone itself works much better as a phone...I've so missed longpress of the dial pad to speed dial...haven't had that in over 3 years. Same for searching the contacts by spelling with the number pad. The signal/reception is also much better, not one dropped call yet and no proximity sensor issues at all.

I do need to find a theme I like though that will change the look of the complete UI for this to stick though.
 
Upvote 0
I saw these on another forum and it really gives me hope. I love how it looks, especially the status bar icons (including battery %)' the dialer number pad, and the text message window! It's not a black background!

Is something like this available on the Captivate?

snap20100725_093652.png


snap20100725_094011.png


snap20100725_093703.png


snap20100725_093801.png


snap20100725_093744.png


snap20100725_094001.png


snap20100725_094128.png


snap20100725_093825.png
 
Upvote 0
Try K-9 mail for an email app. It lets you choose white on black or black on white for your email, and is a very nice email app in a lot of other respects as well. Just look for it in the Market.

Also, using Launcher Pro, you can select how many rows and columns of icons you want, so that will change the spacing between them.

Finally, to truly appreciate your Captivate, do some study on XDA and install a different ROM. I'm currently using Cognition 2.2, and will be updating to the latest version of that this weekend. It will give you a whole new outlook on your Captivate. You do have to do some customization, since Android phones come out of the box with someone else's idea of how they should work installed. And ATT doesn't care how they should work, they only care about how much $$$$ they can rake in. Put on a good ROM, set the Captivate free, and make it your own!
 
Upvote 0
Finally, to truly appreciate your Captivate, do some study on XDA and install a different ROM. I'm currently using Cognition 2.2, and will be updating to the latest version of that this weekend.

New users shouldn't be pushed to install hacked ROMs. This is an advanced topic only suitable for people who have spent a ton of time learning about what it means, how to do it and the risks involved. Cognition is based upon unfinished leaked internal beta code that was never meant to be used by the end user in its current state. Bugs are constantly being found in Cognition and new updates seem to come out daily, fixing some bugs and introducing new ones.
 
  • Like
Reactions: calsax
Upvote 0
No pushing intended. And I did recommend studying XDA to learn about the subject. I stand by my comments, though, in that it is extremely simple to flash a hacked ROM onto a Captivate, and discover new and wonderful ways to use the phone. I agree that a beta ROM is going to have bugs, and new bugs, and better bugs.... But it takes me about 10 minutes to download and flash a new version of Cognition. Not a huge investment. This is my first android phone, and I want it all, now! And, it sounds like the OP also wants a lot. Unfortuneatly, ATT doesn't want to give users the freedom promised by the Android platform. I am merely suggesting that there are ways to find that freedom, and use it.
 
Upvote 0

BEST TECH IN 2023

We've been tracking upcoming products and ranking the best tech since 2007. Thanks for trusting our opinion: we get rewarded through affiliate links that earn us a commission and we invite you to learn more about us.

Smartphones