Poll: Which abandoned Android phone features do you miss the most?
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A keyboard.
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on the back of the phone.
On the side isn't good enough?
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Screens without holes in them.
I'm a Xperia weirdo because the one I have still rocks a 3.5mm jack, expandable storage and a camera outside the screen. Not only are some of those gone from this year's equivalent, but it is 1500 bucks now, which is absurd. I went to a phone search engine and looked up that exact feature set and it turns out there are exactly zero phones that include those now.
I genuinely don't understand why people think the way to compete with Samsung is doing a worse version of their exact product. It's so dumb. Or maybe it's true and it's the people who are dumb. Because everybody says these things, but people seem to buy candybars with puncholes and no physical headphne support or expandable storage or IR blasters.
I hate how the camera on my phone blocks part of the screen. Can't they just have the lens a bit higher up
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Curiously, why on the back?
I always found that a worse location than phones that had it on the side (usually paired with the power button), as you can't unlock your phone if it's lying flat on a table without picking it up.
(Also the way I typically hold my phone, the usually top centre sensor is absolutely nowhere near where any of my fingers naturally sit, and requires awkward bending to reach it)
I know a lot of people like it, but I've never been able to figure out what it was about it.
wrote last edited by [email protected]Im not OP, bit i loved my old phone with a rear fingerprint scanner. It was perfectly positioned to unlock with my index finger AS I was pulling it out of my pocket. And you could scroll up/down with it.
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Software festure, but I miss being able to turn on and off wifi and Bluetooth in the drop-down menu with one click. Latest android replaced it with another sub menu to select network or device, requiring another action to enable/disable.
LineageOS, CalyxOS and some other custom ROMs still support the old quick tiles if theyre available for your device
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The smaller size phones (I hate these Phablets,) 3.5mm jack and back finger print reader, (although my Pixel 4a5G has them, it will be the last,) replaceable batteries, and selfie camera that doesn't take up screen real estate.
no but genuinely this. My phone has the same screen size as my nintendo switch, and I'm unironically supposed to fit that in my pocket and have it be comfortable
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I loved it. I set up all these different colors to tell me what the priority was for checking. SMS was green, email was yellow or something, and FB (so cool back then) was blue. I really miss that, could just glance at it and know if it was worth risking pulling out your phone in school
Miss this too. And you could customize the number of flashes so 3 rapid green flashes was so-and-so's WhatsApp message.
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Everybody misses their IR blaster it seems. And why not? randomly turning off the neighbors TV is good wholesome fun.
Newer TVs don't have IR on them
It is all Bluetooth for the most part
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Restriction of Network access per app
You can still do it with third party firewalls
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This post did not contain any content.wrote last edited by [email protected]
Openness
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Everybody misses their IR blaster it seems. And why not? randomly turning off the neighbors TV is good wholesome fun.
I remember saving the day while setting up an event we had the TVs on stands but lost the remotes luckily the phone I had at the time had the ir and I was able to turn the TVs on and play the DVDs
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I do not like the power button fingerprint reader.
- Cases need a notch to expose the power button.
- Can't use the power button to lock the screen while fingerprint unlock is enabled, because it immediately unlocks itself with the fingerprint.
- Accidentally unlocks itself way often when putting it in my pocket than with the back reader.
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Open bootloaders, ir blaster, 3.5mm jack, sd card slot, replaceable batteries. The list goes on.
Motorola G series has 3.5mm + SD card slot
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Audio jack 3.5mm!!! I'm sick of buying USBC to audio jack adaptors! Just add a damn audio jack!
IR for remote control. -
I do not like the power button fingerprint reader.
- Cases need a notch to expose the power button.
- Can't use the power button to lock the screen while fingerprint unlock is enabled, because it immediately unlocks itself with the fingerprint.
- Accidentally unlocks itself way often when putting it in my pocket than with the back reader.
My eldest's phone has this. Your second point is valid and a pain in the ass.
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I hate how the camera on my phone blocks part of the screen. Can't they just have the lens a bit higher up
wrote last edited by [email protected]I have never understood this argument. The camera never blocked the screen. The screen moved up and around the camera. It's either that, or you get a forehead/chin.
What do you people want? Pick one.
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Newer TVs don't have IR on them
It is all Bluetooth for the most part
How do siblings argue over TV channels if you can't put your hand over the IR receiver to stop your sibling (who was quickest to get the remote) from changing the channel?
I guess they all have their own screens now.
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Software festure, but I miss being able to turn on and off wifi and Bluetooth in the drop-down menu with one click. Latest android replaced it with another sub menu to select network or device, requiring another action to enable/disable.
I actually prefer this method. I can switch wifi and cellular off/on and even select wifi networks from the single window that pops up. It's really handy. Stock rooted Pixel 9 Pro XL.
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I do not like the power button fingerprint reader.
- Cases need a notch to expose the power button.
- Can't use the power button to lock the screen while fingerprint unlock is enabled, because it immediately unlocks itself with the fingerprint.
- Accidentally unlocks itself way often when putting it in my pocket than with the back reader.
The 2nd and even 3rd point is not automatically true for every phone and setting. I have a combined fingerprint reader and power button on my Fairphone 5, and the 2nd thing has always worked just fine.
It also has the option to only enable the fingerprint reader if the display is on, which addresses your 3rd point completely. It means you can pick the phone up, including having a finger in the reader, and it won't turn on or unlock. You need to press down in the button to trigger the screen, then it can be unlocked. That also means that when locking it and turning off the screen actively by pressing the power button with the phone on, it never re-unlocks. To be honest this part wasn't a problem before the setting became available, as the locking would disable the fingerprint reader anyway, but letting your grip go slightly could trigger re-unlock.
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A keyboard.
I would love a modern phone with a slide out keyboard like the old Droids. Never got used to typing on screen, no feel to it.
