Help Home/desk dock and 2.2

[rmingee]

So, anyone else that has the Froyo update tried using the desk dock to see if the audio port works? Mine does not, but I actually don't have the dock app installed (never reinstalled after an insurance replacement due to my first phone going through the wash - NOT a good way to clean the phone for future reference ). Furthermore, I can't find the dock app on the market now, but maybe that's because it hasn't been updated for 2.2 yet.

I wish I'd just returned the thing as soon as I saw the port wouldn't work until 2.2. But I thought that would be much sooner than now at the time, of course. The thing has been a paperweight on my desk since I bought it on launch day, and I bought a spiderpodium to use in the interim, that I would love to move to my car if I can get the stupid desk dock to work while I listen to Pandora.

I'm liking 2.2 from what I have seen to far, at least. Kudos to all the good folks here that posted instructions about manually using the update.zip method - worked like a champ!

-- robert

 

[catpowrd]

Maybe, I hope, the dock will work with a new updated app in a few days.

 

[digitool]

supposedly the dock audio out is only going to work with external speakers and not for headphones... personally I don't see how it would really know the difference, but I read that somewhere a while back.

 

[pm_phone]

I can't get the audio out on the dock to work.

I have the samsung desk home app, but that's just a launching pad for the music player and other apps. There is no control for the audio in it.

When I put the phone in the dock, it knows it's in a dock, and asks which app i want to use for that default action. Strangely, it does not include the samsung dock app, i'm only offered 2 bedside clock apps that i have installed.

But when I'm on the dock, there is no way to turn off the phone's speakers and redirect the audio to the external output.

 

[rmingee]

Now that the update rollout has been halted, I'm guessing Samsung won't be in a big hurry to update the desk home app. Honestly, the fact that the app update for 2.2 wasn't sitting on the market ready to go before the release of the OS, given the long delays, is inexcusable. Guess I have a while longer with my paperweight...

-- robert

 

[pm_phone]

There's an update to the Desk home app in the marketplace today.

I don't have my dock so I cant tell how it works.

The only difference I see is a mute button on the screen. Maybe that works with the external jack.

If I recall, the packaging for the dock showed a screen with weather information on it. I don't see any way to set up weather, or change the app (except for the digital or analog clock that was in the old app)

 

[rmingee]

There's an update to the Desk home app in the marketplace today.

I don't have my dock so I cant tell how it works.

The only difference I see is a mute button on the screen. Maybe that works with the external jack.

If I recall, the packaging for the dock showed a screen with weather information on it. I don't see any way to set up weather, or change the app (except for the digital or analog clock that was in the old app)

Well, so the good news is the audio port does finally work, barely. It only works when the app is running, which makes sense, but that means if you want to listen to something like Pandora you have to start it before putting the phone into the dock. And the vast majority of the time it will end up turning the volume all the way down (even though I can see it's NOT hitting the button, it looks like a bug to me). The sound quality is also not nearly as good as it is with the headphones plugged directly into the jack (the couple of times I could get it to play without turning things all the way down).

Bottom line, I *really* wish I'd just returned this turkey as soon as I figured out the audio port didn't work out of the box. The only saving grace is I got a good discount on it, so the money I wasted on it was minimized.

I suppose it's possible all this will be cleared up in a subsequent update, but I'm not going to hold my breath. I'm going to go post the rant above as a 1-star review for this app.

-- robert

 

[rmingee]

Well, so I stand corrected on the volume button - it really was the button physically being pushed, apparently because the depression in the case is not deep enough. A little shaving with the Dremel took care of that. I never saw it before, but this is a replacement phone that I had never tried, so apparently that problem only happens with some phone-dock combos.

That still leaves the following issues:

1) sound is extremely tinny with headphones - no bass AT ALL
2) zero configurability of the app, so I have to start music playing then dock (or start the app manually in the dock after exiting)
3) No way to control the volume from the app, which is just ridiculous - you put an audio output port on the thing, and yet you don't expect people to want to adjust the volume?

All in all a huge letdown after the ridiculously long wait for froyo since launch day, when I bought the phone and dock.

-- robert

 

[catpowrd]

I put a small strip of felt on the ledge to shim in phone a little. I used the soft half of self stick hook and loop tape, keeps volume button from hitting.

 

[rmingee]

Slowly working through the limitations of this thing. Luckily, I had a portable amp that I had been using at one point for an FM transmitter in the car that wasn't seeing active use anymore, and that gives the proper sound boost to make it sound better, as well as having an integrated volume control on the unit. I get a little extra noise out of the amp, but it's better than the tinny sound.

I also realized I could use the notification bar to get to the Pandora controls from the desk home app, since it blocks out the launcher while it's running. At this point, it finally is doing what I want, but I've invested a lot more of my time (and extra equipment that luckily I didn't have to buy since I had it lying around) in the thing than should have been necessary if it had simply worked out of the box, which considering the cost of the thing doesn't seem unreasonable to expect.

One thing at least that it appears they learned from is to add a screen saver with a floating digital clock, since many of the reviews complained of screen burn-in with the old version (something I didn't think this type of screen would be subject to, but obviously I was mistaken).

-- robert

 

[rmorit01]

Has anyone else gotten the EPIC to play through the dock using Pandora?

I tried last night and the audio just played out of the speaker in the phone even though the dock was hooked up to a set of logitech powered speakers.

Thanks -

 

[drorez]

I'm doing it right now.

Try this...

1. turn pandora on.
2. Dock the phone
3. Hit the mute button on the "dock app"
4. This mutes the phone and kicks the sound out of the line out jack...
5. Buy me a beer.

 

[krhodes90]

i just downloaded "Dock Sound Redirector" and it works fine. though i do experience that tinny sound that was spoken of, it seems to be working fine.

 

[junk runner jr]

Bringing this back up one more time. I have been fighting with this for some time now. Just found this thread tonight. Yes I am getting audio out when the system is muted in the dock and I did install the dock sound redirector but its not completly muting the built in speaker. Its just redirecting a small portion of the audio. Is this the same thing every one else is experiencing? It sure would be nice if the built in speaker was totaly muted and the system was configurable to send a constant line out signal to the out put jack so you would have full volume control from amplified desk top computer speakers.

 

[junk runner jr]

Well never mind. I have two docs one at home and one at work. I was playing at with the one at home with a set of head phones and was having issues. Here at work I have it hooked up to a set of amplified computer speakers and it works perfectly!

Thanks all

 

[rmingee]

Well never mind. I have two docs one at home and one at work. I was playing at with the one at home with a set of head phones and was having issues. Here at work I have it hooked up to a set of amplified computer speakers and it works perfectly!

Thanks all

So you use the doc sound redirector? I've thought about using that instead of the desk home app, because I'm annoyed at how that makes it hard to do other things on the phone, but I really like the floating clock screensaver, so I haven't made the switch. I use an FiiO E5 headphone amp and headphones with mine (I work in a cube farm, so speakers not an option), and it works well.

-- robert