Monday, March 9, 2015

Android 5.1: Unwrapping a new Lollipop update

It seems that Android 5.1 is finally out! The Android team just posted on their blog that new update is ready and it brings quite a lot of changes, including stability fixes, performance improvements and offers a few new features like support for multiple SIM cards, Device Protection and high definition (HD) voice on compatible phones. 

"Whether you want to share your phone with a family member or better manage your mobile costs, Android Lollipop 5.1 now lets you use more than one SIM card on a device with multiple SIM slots."



"With Device Protection, your lost or stolen device will remain locked until you sign in with your Google account - even if someone resets your device to factory settings. This feature will be available on most Android phones and tablets shipped with Android 5.1 in addition to Nexus 6 and Nexus 9."

"High Definition voice calling is now on your mobile phone. Get crystal clear calling with HD Voice between compatible Android 5.1 devices like the Nexus 6 on T-Mobile or Verizon."
"Android 5.1 Lollipop also provides enhancements such as the ability to join Wi-Fi networks and control of your paired Bluetooth devices directly from Quick Settings."


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HTC Sense 7.0 - Priority Ringtones

Continuing observations regarding the new HTC Sense 7.0 features it's time to take a look at another very interesting aspect of the new HTC user interface - the Priority Ringtones. Priority Ringtones probably replaced the "DND" (Do Not Disturb) function as I can't find it any more in the Quick Settings menu. So how does it work?

To configure the Priority Ringtones you need use volume buttons. The volume slider UI is similar to the one known from the HTC Sense 6.0, however at the bottom of the box you can find 3 new buttons - "NONE", "PRIORITY" and "ALL". Volume settings menu after clicking the settings icon on the right part of the box looks exactly the same as in previous Sense version.


None

Using the first option - "NONE" simply means you will receive absolutely no sound notifications. Not even the alarms. In that mode your device is not allowed to give any sound. You can set this mode to be active for a particular time (15min, 30 min, 45 min, 1h, 2h, 3h, 4h, 8h) or indefinitely, meaning it will be active as long as you disable it.


Priority

In Priority mode you can basically choose what type of events, reminders, calls or messages (and from who) are allowed to interrupt you. You can choose to receive calls or messages from everyone, contacts only or favourite contacts only. You can also configure the days the priority mode is enabled by default (from Monday till Sunday) and hours - start hour and end hour.



All

The "ALL" mode simply means you will receive every kind of notification. In this mode everything gives a sound - alarm, phone call, message, notification, reminder etc. This mode is enabled by default.

If by any chance you haven't yet read my previous HTC Sense 7.0 related articles here's a short reminder:

Do you have any questions or comments? Feel free to share! Also, if you like this article, please use media sharing buttons (Twitter, G+, Facebook) below this post!


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HTC Sense 7.0 - Photo Editor


When you look at the HTC Sense 7.0 UI you might think it's not very different from the HTC Sense 6.0. In fact - apart from a few very obvious features like Sense Home with Smart Folders - most changes are either under the hood or are a part of extended functionality of a particular system component. One of such new extended functionality is HTC Photo Editor, which doesn't come as a separate, standalone app, but as a part of the HTC Gallery app (com.htc.album). And it has some really nice features!

HTC Photo Editor replaced bundled camera effects and you can enter it either from the app drawer (Photo Editor) or from inside the camera app or gallery app by clicking the "EDITOR" button.


After opening the HTC Photo Editor for the first time you can see a sliding images with a short descriptions, giving you a basic idea about the main features. These are:
  • Shapes - Add colourful shapes to a photo
  • Photo Shapes - Add a shape filled with a photo to another photo
  • Prismatic - Add a kaleidoscopic effect to a photo
  • Double Exposure - Blend two photos together
  • Elements - Add animated effects to a photo


On the top left side you'll find a sliding menu with a following options:
  • Home (Photo Editor main screen)
  • Recently Used (pictures from recently used albums)
  • Essentials (main effects such as Filters, Tools and Red Eye Removal)
  • Flair (Frames and Draw)
  • Effects (Shapes, Photo Shapes, Prismatic, Double Exposure, Elements and Face Fusion).


Essentials

As listed above, one of the Essentials feature are Filters. However, Filters were available in previous HTC Sense version too. You can choose between following filters: Muiro, Noirin, Jardinia, Satura, Windmere, Losdales, Minneland, Islandia, Swellington, Foreston, Rosala and Custom, where you can set your own values such as White Balance, Levels, Exposure, Contrast, Brightness, Saturation, Sharpness, Grain and Vingette.

With Essentials Tools you can rotate, crop, flip and set the straighten of the image. Red Eye Removal is a typical tool to remove the red eyes effect.


Flair

In Flair mode you can choose between various frames and make some drawings on the picture using pen, pencil, highlighter and more. You can also change the colour and thickness of each tool.



Effects

This section is quite extensive, offering you pretty interesting features, and not all were available in the previous HTC Sense version.

Shapes

Photo Shapes

Prismatic

Double Exposure

Elements

Face Fusion

Camera Menu UI

In the camera menu you can choose the content you use frequently. Defaults are "Selfie", "Camera" and "Panorama". You can also add "Photo Booth", "Zoe camera" and "Split Capture" - all already available in the previous HTC Sense 6.0.



If by any chance you haven't yet read my previous HTC Sense 7.0 related articles here's a short reminder:

Do you have any questions or comments? Feel free to share! Also, if you like this article, please use media sharing buttons (Twitter, G+, Facebook) below this post!


For latest news follow Android Revolution HD on popular social platforms:

Sunday, March 8, 2015

HTC Sense 7.0 - Sense Home with Smart Folders

HTC "Sense Home" system is one of the greatest HTC Sense 7.0 feature I found so far. It's basically a widget where you can place apps and games icons from your app drawer or even create a new typical folder. "Sense Home" widget is connected with locations service and it automatically detects the location of your device, changing in a real time the content of the widget to "Home", "Work" or "Out". Want to know more? Keep reading!

To activate "Sense Home" you need to either long press on the screen of the device and choose "Add apps and widgets" or navigate to Settings / Personalize / Add apps and widgets. Once done you will see the first widget on the list called "Sense Home". And this is what we are looking for.


Now just drag & drop it like with any other Android widget on the empty space of the screen. The minimum size of the widget is 4x2 but it can be resized to 4x3 or even 4x4. So basically you can fill your entire screen with the Sense Home widget if it's how you like to organize your apps and games on the screen.

Sense Home

The "Sense Home" widget has 3 main categories - "Out", "Home" and "Work". You can choose between them by pressing the corresponding icon on the top left side of the widget. In each location - Home, Work or Out you can place up to 16 icons or 16 folders (depending if you choose a 4x2, 4x3 or 4x4 widget size). Each folder can store up to 16 icons.


Precise location

Of course it wouldn't be very handy if you have to choose manually between these 3 work-spaces. To help you with that HTC paired the "Sense Home" widget with a location service. Once you set up the Home and Work locations, the content of the "Sense Home" widget will change automatically.



Smart Folders

In the "Sense Home" widget you can place 2 "Smart Folders" - Downloads and Suggestions. Downloads folder will contain all apps and games you downloaded from the Google Play and Suggestions folder will store suggestions for nearby restaurants, apps, websites, games, news and other kind of personalized stuff, based on your usage data. 


If you don't want to use Smart Folders you can easily disable them by pressing 3 dots menu in the top right corner of the "Sense Home" widget.


Additionally, you can also disable sharing precise location or personal usage data. That depends on how much you care about your privacy.


Pin & Unpin

Additionally there is a Pin and Unpin option and you can use it on ever icon inside the widget or a created folder. The process is very simple, just long press on the element and wait until it's pinned or unpinned.


Personally, I find this new "Sense Home" very interesting and unique. I am sure that HTC will extend its features in time, adding more categories or even lettings users create their own ones.

If by any chance you haven't yet read previous HTC Sense 7.0 related articles here's a short reminder:


Do you have any questions or comments? Feel free to share! Also, if you like this article, please use media sharing buttons (Twitter, G+, Facebook) below this post!


For latest news follow Android Revolution HD on popular social platforms:

HTC Sense 7.0 - Wallpapers

Earlier today you had a chance to read more details about HTC Sense 7.0 custom navigation bar. You are already familiar with the new HTC Sense Themes too, and now we want to show you brand new HTC wallpapers you can find in the newest Sense UI. Of course it's nothing really major, but I enjoy exploring new HTC Sense 7.0 features and sharing it with you!

At the end of this article you can find a download link with all presented wallpapers.










Do you have any questions or comments? Feel free to share! Also, if you like this article, please use media sharing buttons (Twitter, G+, Facebook) below this post!


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