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Clock with screen off?

dvhttn

Android Expert
Oct 17, 2010
1,511
295
Sunny Cornwall
I have a Desire HD that's just (yesterday) been upgraded to Gingerbread. What I'd like to do is to have the same setup as a friend has with his Nokia N8. That is, when the screen is locked/off (i.e. blank), I want to have a clock on it *. Sort of like this ... http://phonescuk.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/nokia-n8-clock-screensaver.jpg ... though he had a different clock but that's not the point here.

I may be going senile but can't find a way of doing it "normally", though that may still be a hangover from years of ploughing through Nokia menus and not being totally au fait with what Android can do yet. One of the ways that I could see it working was using WidgetLocker. If that's the only way I'm quite happy to buy the app. **

Thanks in advance.

Dave

* - yes I know it means the display will be "on"

** - was it Sense 3 (with the Sensation) where HTC were going to provide the ability to add widgets to the lock screen?
 
I did some googling, and this was the most relevant thread I could find

Screensavers for android phones? - xda-developers


Thanks for that. But mostly people saying it'll kill the battery. I have a Desire "HD" so that isn't an issue .... :D Guess something I just thought was simple but that I hadn't been able to find the right menu item to achieve isn't simple at all .....

Oh well. I can always look at my watch I suppose ....

Dave
 
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If the screen is off, it is off (black, not responsive to touch).

I don't think there is a way to have it partially on (show something, but not responsive to touch) - I could be wrong on that though.

Either way, display being on is a huge battery killer. I'd be suprised if you got more than 4-6 hours out of your phone if you have the screen on all the time.

What's so hard about turning the screen on to look at the clock? Or, wearing a watch?
 
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I see this came back from the dead .... :D


If the screen is off, it is off (black, not responsive to touch).
I don't think there is a way to have it partially on (show something, but not responsive to touch) - I could be wrong on that though.

Seems you're right here, or I haven't found anything to suggest you're not. However, the Nokia N8 my friend has is also a touch screen but when 'off' it has the clock and doesn't respond to touch so Nokia must switch of the touch response but not the actual display. I'm sure Android/HTC/Samsung/whoever could figure something like this out.

Dave
 
Upvote 0
If the screen is off, it is off (black, not responsive to touch).

I don't think there is a way to have it partially on (show something, but not responsive to touch) - I could be wrong on that though.

Either way, display being on is a huge battery killer. I'd be suprised if you got more than 4-6 hours out of your phone if you have the screen on all the time.

What's so hard about turning the screen on to look at the clock? Or, wearing a watch?

What about OLED screens? Since they aren't backlit, I assume (perhaps incorrectly?) that pixels that are pure black don't draw any power, and if that is indeed the case you could use a "screen saver" with a black background, so only the pixels making up the clock numbers - which would only be a small fraction of the total amount of pixels - drain any battery.

Personally though, I also don't consider it much of an inconvenience to hit the home or lock button if I need to check the time.
 
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Yeah it's a little wacky... I uninstalled it. If you don't push the right buttons in the right order it may or may not work.

Just uninstalled it myself. Keep my phone in my pocket and the screen kept activating. Needs some more work, but looked cool!

... Personally though, I also don't consider it much of an inconvenience to hit the home or lock button if I need to check the time.

Me neither, but a clock lockscreen looks cool!

Dave
 
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Hi! Half a year ago now, but I have the same problem.

I had the Nokia E71 and there it was possible to have a clock that was visible on the screen even when there was no light. Which is different from the N8 which has light.

You can see an example here.

Since the Chacha is completely black once you switch the screen off it might use a different version of display, so I guess it won't be possible like on the E71, will it?
 
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same problem for me.
After 12 months with an n8, I now have a latest top of the range android... and it's a shame nokia are in the shape they are in cos apart from lack of apps they know how to make top notch smart phones.
Why cant i look at my sleeping smartphone and see the time!!! it's ridiculous! Also on the n8 sleeping screen it will show if you have any text messages, missed calls etc. Consumes no power either. I need to start wearing a watch now iv moved on from the n8
 
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