4.2.2/Sense 5 Initial Reactions

[hilmar2k]

So far so good with 4.2.2 and Sense 5. Phone seems stable so far, and I like the new look.

Pros:
-Stock calendar is updated and improved
-Quick access to settings with two-finger pull-down is nice
-The new app tray options are pretty cool. You can easily sort by alphabetical or most recent, and you can get into the Play Store directly from there. You can also easily hide apps from the tray. Pretty slick.
-Lock screen shortcuts are easier to deal with. You just pull them straight up, not into the circle. Not a huge improvement, but better nonetheless.

Cons:
-Home screens no longer rotate all the way around. Once you get to the end, you need to go the other direction. So if you have 5 screens, and 3 is your main screen, if you go to the right to 5, you have to go back all the way to the left to get back to 1. Much easier when you could just keep going around and around.
-I was hoping for more improvement to the stock email client. I'll continue using Cloud Magic
-Stock keyboard still sucks, thankfully SwiftKey doesn't.
-Some of the notification sounds have been eliminated, so I had to choose new ones. Annoying....

Intheory there's also a long list of other bug fixes, including better wifi, bluetooth and navigation performance. We'll see if those make any difference.

I'll update as I use it more, but so far it is a worthy, solid update.

 

[red arrow]

So far so good with 4.2.2 and Sense 5. Phone seems stable so far, and I like the new look.

Pros:
-Stock calendar is updated and improved
-Quick access to settings with two-finger pull-down is nice
-The new app tray options are pretty cool. You can easily sort by alphabetical or most recent, and you can get into the Play Store directly from there. You can also easily hide apps from the tray. Pretty slick.
-Lock screen shortcuts are easier to deal with. You just pull them straight up, not into the circle. Not a huge improvement, but better nonetheless.

Cons:
-Home screens no longer rotate all the way around. Once you get to the end, you need to go the other direction. So if you have 5 screens, and 3 is your main screen, if you go to the right to 5, you have to go back all the way to the left to get back to 1. Much easier when you could just keep going around and around.
-I was hoping for more improvement to the stock email client. I'll continue using Cloud Magic
-Stock keyboard still sucks, thankfully SwiftKey doesn't.

Intheory there's also a long list of other bug fixes, including better wifi, bluetooth and navigation performance. We'll see if those make any difference.

I'll update as I use it more, but so far it is a worthy, solid update.

Is Blinkfeed there?

 

[mwl1119]

Where is BlinkFeed?

 

[hilmar2k]

Is Blinkfeed there?

Where is BlinkFeed?

Settings -> Personalize -> Home screen style

I don't use it, so I cannot offer any opinion.

 

[Slickyy]

Settings -> Personalize -> Home screen style

I don't use it, so I cannot offer any opinion.

I'm the same way about Blink Feed. However since my phone will now have it, I'll definitely give it a try.

 

[oceanedge]

Where is BlinkFeed?

It's on the notification bar. Pull down it says HTC BlinkFeed. Tap it.

Ciao

 

[TrooperThorn]

I actually don't like the lock screen as much. 9 times out of 10 I am swiping to unlock, and only rarely do I use the shortcuts. The ring system in Sense 4 was better for this, because you didn't need to be precise to unlock, but you had to be precise to open one of your lockscreen shortcuts.

I'm finding with Sense 5 I'm accidentally swiping up on my shortcuts all the time, instead of just unlocking the screen. A small complaint, for sure, but I definitely preferred the older method.

 

[Dragbike Racer]

Anyone using the "Google Experience Launcher/Google Now"? I don't know if it's there or not because I'm a dolt and can't find it.

 

[TrooperThorn]

Anyone using the "Google Experience Launcher/Google Now"? I don't know if it's there or not because I'm a dolt and can't find it.

I'm not using the GEL, but Google Now is there. Long press the home button, and you'll get the Google search box pop up. From there you should see a "Get Google Now" link at the bottom, which you can tap to turn on Google Now and configure it to your liking.

 

[drowe]

I actually don't like the lock screen as much. 9 times out of 10 I am swiping to unlock, and only rarely do I use the shortcuts. The ring system in Sense 4 was better for this, because you didn't need to be precise to unlock, but you had to be precise to open one of your lockscreen shortcuts.

I'm finding with Sense 5 I'm accidentally swiping up on my shortcuts all the time, instead of just unlocking the screen. A small complaint, for sure, but I definitely preferred the older method.

On a sense 5 ROM I was using, rather than trying to get the little lock, I found all I had to do was swipe the weather up and that unlocked it.

 

[AntimonyER]

I am downloading now. For some reason my phone wasn't prompting for upgrades, I was two behind.

 

[welbinator]

my initial reaction is why did 4.2 brick my phone?

 

[Websurfer53]

So far so good with 4.2.2 and Sense 5. Phone seems stable so far, and I like the new look.

Pros:
-Stock calendar is updated and improved
-Quick access to settings with two-finger pull-down is nice
-The new app tray options are pretty cool. You can easily sort by alphabetical or most recent, and you can get into the Play Store directly from there. You can also easily hide apps from the tray. Pretty slick.
-Lock screen shortcuts are easier to deal with. You just pull them straight up, not into the circle. Not a huge improvement, but better nonetheless.

Cons:
-Home screens no longer rotate all the way around. Once you get to the end, you need to go the other direction. So if you have 5 screens, and 3 is your main screen, if you go to the right to 5, you have to go back all the way to the left to get back to 1. Much easier when you could just keep going around and around.
-I was hoping for more improvement to the stock email client. I'll continue using Cloud Magic
-Stock keyboard still sucks, thankfully SwiftKey doesn't.
-Some of the notification sounds have been eliminated, so I had to choose new ones. Annoying....

Intheory there's also a long list of other bug fixes, including better wifi, bluetooth and navigation performance. We'll see if those make any difference.

I'll update as I use it more, but so far it is a worthy, solid update.

There are many things to like about the update.

Things I don't like:
The Home button no longer can be used to view all 7 screens while on home screen. You can view all 7 screens if you press the top bar but it is problematic as it is difficult to get it to work sometimes and it takes more key presses.

Don't like that you cannot continually scroll through screens. Also the angled swipe in and out semi-transparent border graphic is gone when swiping to a different screen. Don't know what they were thinking.

Don't like that the applications window scrolls vertically as opposed to horizontally as before. It should scroll the same direction as the 7 screens.

Don't like that my text messages are no longer in a bubble as before. Makes it difficult to use the background I did before.

As hilmar2k mentioned, they changed the notification sounds, annoying.

 

[red arrow]

I actually don't like the lock screen as much. 9 times out of 10 I am swiping to unlock, and only rarely do I use the shortcuts. The ring system in Sense 4 was better for this, because you didn't need to be precise to unlock, but you had to be precise to open one of your lockscreen shortcuts.

I'm finding with Sense 5 I'm accidentally swiping up on my shortcuts all the time, instead of just unlocking the screen. A small complaint, for sure, but I definitely preferred the older method.

You can swipe up any where on the screen.

 

[red arrow]

So far so good. Using Nova launcher still so not much change for me. I've noticed some changes in appearance and icons, lock screen is different, camera app is different, native browser different in appearance, the messaging customization is different and I don't really care for it but oh well. It seems my phone is hotter holding it in my hand, I can't really say if it has to do with this update or not, I haven't set it down since updating.

Update - So after using the phone for a while after the update I think the battery is draining faster, much faster. Oh and recent apps screen and closing is different.

 

[hilmar2k]

Update - So after using the phone for a while after the update I think the battery is draining faster, much faster. Oh and recent apps screen and closing is different.

I am not seeing the battery drain issue, though I do think there is an issue with the icon in the notification area. Mine still shows the battery completely full, even though I'm down to 82%.

What do you mean closing is different?

 

[red arrow]

Closing apps from the recent apps screen. It use to be side scrolling and swiping up to close, now recent apps are like cards in a grid form still swipe up to close. Maybe I'm just being OCD about this but I use this quite frequently. Another thing I found is you can now have battery % on your notifications next to your battery. I think this is new as I never noticed it before.

 

[Slickyy]

I am not seeing the battery drain issue, though I do think there is an issue with the icon in the notification area. Mine still shows the battery completely full, even though I'm down to 82%.

He's just using his phone a lot more because the new font of HTC Sense 5 makes it feel like a whole new phone That's why his battery seems to be draining faster.

 

[ispamforfood]

I don't mind the new build, but I feel like blinkfeed is going to kill my battery even faster than I kill it now (add BF to my Asphalt 8 addiction and I can imagine my battery going dead in less than 2 hours lol)

 

[equest]

After the update, the phone feels like new again since it's smoother & less laggy. However, I don't like the overall design as compare to sense 4+ like the text messages and the weather clock 4x1 widget. I also took away the Blinkfeed since I don't need it. And home screens no longer rotate all the way around.

 

[hilmar2k]

Another thing I found is you can now have battery % on your notifications next to your battery. I think this is new as I never noticed it before.

Yeah that's new, and I don't like it. I obsess enough as it is over the battery.

 

[dachillefx]

Missing the x I in the battery usage part where you can x out the used app therefore force closing it. Now you have to guess which apps need to be closed. I just really miss that x. Sense 5 seems a bit generic without the icons being labeled like settings etc. I just hope the battery won't suffer as I have had great battery life. This DNA is now updated HTCone ness ave I don't think battery was that good asset last standby wise. I am however happy to see app association gone. That's whatz up....btw what is daydream and auto sleep? Anyone check these out?

 

[mwl1119]

Anyone using the "Google Experience Launcher/Google Now"? I don't know if it's there or not because I'm a dolt and can't find it.

The GEL launcher runs perfect now but you have to sideload the APK

I'm running it without a hitch. No need to install anything other than the launcher.

 

[TrooperThorn]

I found a bug with the Bluetooth. I use the HTC StereoClip, which handles Bluetooth media (music) only--no call stuff. Yesterday, after the OTA, I received a call while I was streaming music in my car to the StereoClip. It paused the music, like it normally does, and I answered the call and put it on speakerphone.

Things were going fine at first, but then the phone tried to move the call over to the bluetooth, which essentially just muted the call since the StereoClip does not handle phonecalls. I had to re-select speakerphone from the call screen to resume my call.

Once the call was complete, my music started playing again but I could not hear it. I had to actually toggle the bluetooth off and back on again, which never happened before the OTA.

Anybody else experiencing funky Bluetooth stuff after this OTA?

 

[WuBoy]

I found a bug with the Bluetooth. I use the HTC StereoClip, which handles Bluetooth media (music) only--no call stuff. Yesterday, after the OTA, I received a call while I was streaming music in my car to the StereoClip. It paused the music, like it normally does, and I answered the call and put it on speakerphone.

Things were going fine at first, but then the phone tried to move the call over to the bluetooth, which essentially just muted the call since the StereoClip does not handle phonecalls. I had to re-select speakerphone from the call screen to resume my call.

Once the call was complete, my music started playing again but I could not hear it. I had to actually toggle the bluetooth off and back on again, which never happened before the OTA.

Anybody else experiencing funky Bluetooth stuff after this OTA?

Mine has worked fine with my bluetooth clock radio, headphones, and car radio. But all of those things are capable of playing both music and phone, so maybe they wouldn't trip the same problem you're seeing.