max widgets?

[dwhite1977]

Mayb a dumb question...but how many widgets can u have on ure home screens running at once without severely slowing it down?

 

[Gilgamesh11]

since widgets can be as small as a regular icon then I suppose 4x4=16... 16 widgets.

 

[dwhite1977]

since widgets can be as small as a regular icon then I suppose 4x4=16... 16 widgets.

Sorry.. was late when I wrote this...I should have been more specific. I'm not worried about how many I can fit on a screen, but how many I can use without bogging down the phone. I've gotten an error message saying the widgets I'm using require too much memory and could not be created. I have a bunch running on various screens (power widget, weather bug, 2 picture frames, 2 of the gde home apps "application drawer" things, 2 different quote of the day type widgets, a text display widget, yahoo news, google search bar, and a "beautiful widgets" clock). Some of em I wouldn't think would use too much memory unless they update, but that is once every several hours.

 

[iPhone2Droid]

My own experience is that your choice of home replacement app can make or break your setup. Most started giving me grief when I introduced more than a few widgets. Long story short, I now have a setup which does NOT lag AND remains smooth/stable, despite my heavy dependence on widgets. This will be long, but it's the nature of the beast and I want to be sure to respond to your basic question: what the heck works without grief? (All paid apps mentioned appear as red boldface.)

I now use dxtop instead of other home replacement apps. Continued overall speediness & stability, plus 3 features, keep me loyal: a customizable 5-icon app dock present on all screens; ability to change any icon, including folders, without Better Cut or other app; and, an intelligent task killer. (Long press on the menu yields a popup screen showing all running tasks-- red = active, yellow = background running, and white = recently closed. Long-pressing an app lets me kill it outright, with no ill effects. That feature allowed me to dump my previous automated task killer.)

I rush to add-- your preferred home replacement app may be fine. You just have to play around with your own setup to figure out what combo will, in fact, work withOUT grief. Ultimately, I literally wiped everything, then added widgets over a period of time, so I could closely monitor what was and was not working. The end result was dumping two other home replacement apps and settling on dxtop. Actual setup appears in next post.

 

[iPhone2Droid]

My widget combo, per screen:
(reminder: red = paid apps)
-- Trending Topics; Power control; 2 instances of AnyRSS {center top}
............. AnyRSS permits manual refresh, as well as setting auto-refresh intervals per widget
-- Beautiful Widgets; 2 instances of More Icons (4x1 per); AnyRSS {center home}
-- Executive Assistant+ and Pure Messenger {center bottom}
............... EA includes missed call info, PM does not
............... PM gives me one-tap access to full body of SMS, Facebook, GMail; EA does not
-- MyCoupons (annual subscription), Mini Info, Data Counter; Toggle: Google Voice, Car Locator, Alarmoid, GV Dialer {left}
-- Aurora search bar; Audio Manager; 2 instances of S2 calendar (present & next month; each 2x1); Agenda (4x1) {right}

plus Background Running:
-- Missed Call (services: SMS, Calls, Applications)
......... Luv the way incoming SMS now appears full body within notification pull-down area
-- Screebl Pro (essentially, keeps screen on when in use)
-- Twitroid Pro (until Touiteur Pro quits FCing in the background)
......... set to notify DMs & Mentions
-- Alarmoid (scheduled quiet time, with VIPs allowed thru (per designated google contacts group)
-- Weather Channel (temp in status bar)
-- Google Voice

You also must pay attention to other installed apps, as lagginess can be introduced from a wide variety of sources. I dumped Dolphin browser, replacing it with xScope. Using Executive Asst's lock-screen futzed stability and introduced lag, so I now just use its widget. Asurion's AddressBook is sure 'nuff pretty, but it caused system-wide flakiness, so it too has been banished.

I've had this fuss-free setup since Thanksgiving, when I finally stumbled onto the magical combo that keeps things peaceful in my particular Droid hood.
========== end apps/widgets discussion

While I'm here, one last point. Once you decide to live in widget land, battery issues materialize. I didn't want to be a slave to electrical outlets. So, I invested about $50 in a portable battery charger: (now $60)
Amazon.com: External Battery for Iphone, Iphone 3g, Iphone 3gs, T-mobile G1, Ipod, Sidekick, Blackberry, Nokia, I-UP 5400 Mah: Electronics
I purchased it for my iPhone 3GS, but it comes with multiple tips, one of which works beautifully with my Droid. I get a few charges following one outlet-juiceup, which gets me through the better part of a week. Good buy!

Let us know how you make out. Will likely help someone else!