Non-game Android Apps Recommendations Catch-All

Can anyone suggest some apps to get more iPhone type notifications on my s4? Texts and email previews on my lock screen, at least. I was shocked Android doesn't do that out of the box.

Thanks!

Google hit on ChompSMS that apparently has that feature, and is a free app.

Probably more, but that was the 2nd hit.

Oh and the first hit was Lock Screen Notifications. Also seems to have the same feature.

I almost posted a LMGTFY link instead. :p

Just got my S4 and I have mixed feelings.
The phone is great, screen is incredibly sharp.

After a week, I'm concerned with battery life and performance (I have the Qualcomm version, not Exynos).
I ended up turning every "bloatware" feature off (eye tracking, finger hovering) and now it's incredibly fast. and the battery is lasting the whole day, even with VERY heavy use and LTE always on.

Hobbes2099 wrote:

Just got my S4 and I have mixed feelings.
The phone is great, screen is incredibly sharp.

After a week, I'm concerned with battery life and performance (I have the Qualcomm version, not Exynos).
I ended up turning every "bloatware" feature off (eye tracking, finger hovering) and now it's incredibly fast. and the battery is lasting the whole day, even with VERY heavy use and LTE always on.

Oh yeah, I immediately installed a more Holo style launcher and cut off most of the gee whiz Samsung gimmicks. Battery's pretty decent with that, as long as I'm not stuck in a data hole all day where the radios ramp way up to stay connected.

Performance seems great to me, especially since the OTA update that seemed to get rid of some navigation hitches I was initially seeing.

Fedaykin98 wrote:

Can anyone suggest some apps to get more iPhone type notifications on my s4? Texts and email previews on my lock screen, at least. I was shocked Android doesn't do that out of the box.

Thanks!

How about Dash Clock? Coded by a Googler, and has plug ins for about anything you can think of. Not sure if you can actually get previews of the actual SMSs, but you could get something like GoSMS or Handcent, which I believe will include widgets that you can put on your lock screen. There are also pop up style notifications for SMS messages either built in to those or other apps.

Stele: I've Googled it, smartass! I've tried a few apps. I'm looking for recommendations for good ones from the Goodjer hive mind.

Mannish: I'll check that out. I'm using Handcent right now, too.

And it turns out much of my confusion was caused by an ignorance of Widgets. Didn't understand them, and had no idea about lock screen widgets.

I downloaded Nils the other day, so I'm trying that out.

I have the updated Play Store on my Note 2, and I can't find where the list of my purchased/installed/in need of an update apps live any more. Any ideas?

spider_j wrote:

I have the updated Play Store on my Note 2, and I can't find where the list of my purchased/installed/in need of an update apps live any more. Any ideas?

There's a down arrow to a line on the top menu bar. That's the icon you are looking for.

Press the menu button at the left lower corner of the Note 2, then select "My Apps."

Thanks guys. MannishBoy, the down arrow isn't there anymore (not on the Note 2, anyway), which is why I was lost. Since my prior Android experience comes from the N7, I always forget about that menu button! Cheers, LarryC.

spider_j wrote:

Thanks guys. MannishBoy, the down arrow isn't there anymore (not on the Note 2, anyway), which is why I was lost. Since my prior Android experience comes from the N7, I always forget about that menu button! Cheers, LarryC.

Weird. It's there on my s4.

So apparently you can't functionally use a lock screen widget and any kind of lock code/security on an s4 at the same time. How terrible.

Fedaykin98 wrote:

So apparently you can't functionally use a lock screen widget and any kind of lock code/security on an s4 at the same time. How terrible.

I haven't spent any time with this, but WidgetLocker allows you to do this.

LiquidMantis wrote:
Fedaykin98 wrote:

So apparently you can't functionally use a lock screen widget and any kind of lock code/security on an s4 at the same time. How terrible.

I haven't spent any time with this, but WidgetLocker allows you to do this.

I'd pay for that if Samsung doesn't want to fix it.

MannishBoy wrote:
spider_j wrote:

Thanks guys. MannishBoy, the down arrow isn't there anymore (not on the Note 2, anyway), which is why I was lost. Since my prior Android experience comes from the N7, I always forget about that menu button! Cheers, LarryC.

Weird. It's there on my s4.

The one on the app menu is still there for me, just not the one on the Play Store.

Man, every day is one step forward, one step back with the s4.

It won't play music over Bluetooth in my car, which my iPhone did. So I plugged it in to my car's USB port, and it wasn't recognized at all.

I'm going to try my brother's s4, and call my car's dealerships about firmware updates or whatever, but this is a true dealbreaker if I can't make it work.

Yeah, cars tend to be extremely hit or miss in terms of bluetooth and/or playback. It's one of the more frustrating things as the info on what car hooks up with what phone can be a struggle to find.

If the dealership can't get it to work I'd go to your local phone store and see if they have any tips as it may be a setting in the phone. Maybe.

Oh, and if your car has a usb port it probably also has an auxiliary input where you can hook it up from the headphone jack.

No, no input jack, sadly. That would be too useful.

I'm going to try my brother's s4 later, then call the dealer, and if nothing works, I'm going to check out either an HTC One or just run home to iPhone.

Btw neither Bluemont nor USB worked in my wife's car (same maker), either.

It is maddening. I was so chuffed when my new car had BT, and it worked like a charm with my iPhone 5. When I swapped to my Note 2, it is far more erratic. It usually plays music and podcasts OK, but about one in ten tries, it just won't connect properly. Quite often, the audio jumps back a few seconds, over and over again. That can be fixed by making a call via the car's Bluetooth, for some reason.

The USB port is of little use beyond charging, as it gets an error when it tries to read the phone, either as a mass storage device or whatever the other option is.

It's a Ford with the manufacturer supplied Sony stereo. The firmware was on Ford's site, so it is up to date.

I gather that the fault is with the way that 4.1.x handles Bluetooth. It was supposed to be fixed in 4.2 (which isn't on the Note 2 yet) but wasn't. I read some posts on XDA about it, and problems with a lot of other cars too. Manufacturers seem to focus on iPhone compatibility.

My brother fixed it! Apparently in an Infiniti you first have to pair your phone, then go into a separate menu and set it up as an audio device.

Works flawlessly right now, although audio from s4 (the same model I have) was skipping an unlistenable. Hopefully mine will stay clean.

An Infiniti? Take your high class issues elsewhere.

Google is integrating more native OS support for Bluetooth 4.0. When that will trickle down to get integrated into the S4, who knows.

I've had random success with rental cars over the last few months between my old EVO and my S4. Some models work great, some are broken.

garion333 wrote:

An Infiniti? Take your high class issues elsewhere. :P

My Infinit's stereo won't wirelessly play my smart phone's high def audio. #whitewhine

spider_j, I have the American version of your car with the base Sync system, not MyTouch. I really hope it's fixed soon, so frustrating. The GNex connects pretty reliably but the DInc is annoying as hell to try to connect.

My gf's car has Sync and we have to pull the fuse every month or so because the thing refuses to work properly.

I have BT in my new VW Tiguan. Astonishingly, you CANNOT change tracks or pause/resume using the steering wheel control buttons or the headunit, but you CAN do all that via voice commands ("music... next track" etc).

Other than that, BT is solid and doesn't have any connection stability issues. Works well with my HTC One X and wife's Sony Xperia U.

Can anyone suggest a good podcast app? I've been using Doggcatcher, but it is hideous.

I had Downcast on iPhone, and loved it.

Fedaykin98 wrote:

Can anyone suggest a good podcast app? I've been using Doggcatcher, but it is hideous.

I had Downcast on iPhone, and loved it.

Pocket Casts or Beyond Pod. I've gone back from Doggcatcher to Pocket Casts myself.

Thanks!

Also, anyone have any thoughts on the Google app store versus the Amazon store? It looks like some prices are lower on Amazon, but you don't get update notifications as seamlessly.

I noticed that SwiftKey is half price on Amazon.

Fedaykin98 wrote:

Thanks!

Also, anyone have any thoughts on the Google app store versus the Amazon store? It looks like some prices are lower on Amazon, but you don't get update notifications as seamlessly.

I noticed that SwiftKey is half price on Amazon.

I much prefer the Play store because of how clunky Amazon's update process is. But I still check out the free stuff and sale stuff.