Poll: Which abandoned Android phone features do you miss the most?
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For anything related to cleaning up the device. Who needs samsung internet? Who needs uninstallable garbage you never use. Perhaps I want to back up my wifi config so when I transfer to a new device I can do so in a manner that doesn't bring old problems with me. What do I need root for? Because I know how to do things that secure my device against the manufacturer.
I have to settle for package disabler pro. At least I can lock off that stupid intrusive AI shit.
I always just used custom ROMs without root
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It's the under-screen fingerprint sensor. It's kind of flaky, and it shines the sensor area of the screen at what's gotta be greater than normal max screen brightness. It's blinding at night.
It's also much less reliable than the back reader in my old pixel 2, though it's gotten better with software updates. It was barely functional when the 6 first came out.
at what’s gotta be greater than normal max screen brightness.
I love misplacing my finger and getting flash-banged by my phone!
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I really miss USB Mass Storage mode. Back then you could plug in your phone into your computer and it would just expose the internal storage and SD card as standard usb storage devices. Nowadays you have shitty MTP which works barely if ever, so you're forced to use either internet or ADB for syncing files. Old way was better.
IIRC you can still enable it if you compile your own kernel but I wish more ROMs shipped with this feature by default.
Idk what phone you're using but I can do it no problem on my older S21 Ultra and my new Fairphone 6 by just clicking on the notification
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IR transmitters
Miracast (in base open source Android, especially access to the ability to receive)
Scrolling notification text in the notification bar (seriously, that was sooooo much better than the obnoxious new default pop-up notifications)
A bunch of permissions that's been too locked down (stuff used by Tasker, networking tools, etc)
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T9 (the old number keyboard) was the best layout: compact yet VERY usable. And with physical keyboards you could text someone blindly.
I just installed Traditional T9 to replace whatever that MS keyboard was (the swipe feature was nice, but I'm not sure it can beat T9).
Not sure how you can want a layout that takes 3-4 button presses to type some characters but sure I guess.
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You know you can plug your PC into the TV right?
You ain't need swing out monitor
Oh I’m well aware! The TV actually has a dedicated PC connected to it that’s hidden behind the wall. I’m going to move that PC out of there to a desktop for my kid, but I digress.
I mentioned the family context because that’s what makes the swing-out monitor awesome. We can be watching a movie or even playing a game together on the TV, but in my field of view I have the monitor floating off to the side of the TV. It’s like playing on a phone, but it doesn’t occupy my hands, it has a 27 inch 144Hz screen, and it’s a proper open platform that’s running linux.
Plus having my monitor in addition to the TV means that there’s already a 2-player LAN ready to go at all times. If it’s something cross platform where my kid can use phone or tablet (like Roblox which seems to have great cross platform support) then it’s 3-4 players with their own screens.
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So why do companies keep racing to make the thinnest phones?
Because Steve Jobs' ghost still haunts and demands all designs to be as anti consumer as possible
Anti-consumer for the sake of the bottom line is to be expected, but they're burning millions of dollars on this.
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I thought I'd be okay without a headphone jack but I'm now learning that USB-C to headphone adapters will enter a power save mode after a few seconds of silence, and quiet moments in shows or music can cause that, then it takes a split second to power back up, so the end result is choppy sound if it isn't constant. Maybe it's better with a better adapter, but also how the heck do you search for such things on Amazon and the like? It's not exactly a specification they list...
Not a universal solution for Android, but maybe it could lead your thoughts toward something useful. I know that Kodi has a toggle in the settings to stop that from happening. It works by constantly playing an inaudible low-frequency noise. Kodi runs on pretty much any OS, including Android, but since it's HTPC software, the UX is not optimal on a small touchscreen in my experience, though there are some skins and/or skin settings to optimise the UI for touch-based navigation.
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I always just used custom ROMs without root
I've never ran a custom rom that didn't have root.
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HEADPHONE JACK - I scream into the void
Then buy phones with them. They exist.
wrote last edited by [email protected]The holy grail / unicorn of a phone would have:
- no notch / punch hole
- a headphone jack
- an sd card slot
- nfc
- a proximity sensor
This currently results in Sony phones and one Ulefone one with outdated Android and a lack of updates. Sony's phone branch is currently dying and it's very much possible there won't be any new phones next year. They released a single flagship this year which they recalled because of issues.
Next year phones might get a bit more interesting because of the new EU regulations coming into effect this June but almost no phones have been released just since then.I have no idea what I'll get but for now my current phone (Asus Zenfone 6, from 2019) just refuses to die.
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I really miss USB Mass Storage mode. Back then you could plug in your phone into your computer and it would just expose the internal storage and SD card as standard usb storage devices. Nowadays you have shitty MTP which works barely if ever, so you're forced to use either internet or ADB for syncing files. Old way was better.
IIRC you can still enable it if you compile your own kernel but I wish more ROMs shipped with this feature by default.
If you can't do that, that's a manufacturer restriction. I've never had a phone that couldn't do that and my current one is only last year's model. I plug it in, it gives me a few options: charge, usb storage, i think something else also, and it works like it always has. I assume the OS files and some app files are protected but everything else is drag and drop as if it was any other storage device like it has been since my first Android in 2010.
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Remember folks, What you know is protected. What you are is not.
Cops can force you to use the fingerprint scanner.
i use graphene os and have 2fa fingerprint and pin on stock android ifs bad
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Not a universal solution for Android, but maybe it could lead your thoughts toward something useful. I know that Kodi has a toggle in the settings to stop that from happening. It works by constantly playing an inaudible low-frequency noise. Kodi runs on pretty much any OS, including Android, but since it's HTPC software, the UX is not optimal on a small touchscreen in my experience, though there are some skins and/or skin settings to optimise the UI for touch-based navigation.
I don't know if that would work in this case. So one example that's relatively easy to replicate, y'know how in Doctor Who (this was specifically David Tenant era that I was watching) they'll sometimes have some soft choral mood music? It would cut out when the only sound was the softer notes of that choral music, or worse when characters are speaking with the choral music in the background it would cut out every time there was just enough time between a character speaking and the choral music hitting a louder note it would cut out, cut in for the note, cut out again then cut in after the other character responds
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I've never ran a custom rom that didn't have root.
In my experience it's very optional
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Going from my old pixel 5 rear-scanner to an in-screen scanner ahs been a nightmare. I have dry hands and i have gone from a <0.5s unlock to a 3-10s unlock depending how many times i need to scan or lick my finger, wipe it off then scan, or usually failing scans/giving up and typing in pincode.
"Oh my child is doing something funny or i quickly need to gake a photo of something...aaaaand its gone".
It is really fucking frustrating missing something, or even just trying to check a notification or timer quickly and having to stop and go through the whole dance of just unlocking the phone.
Seriously considering just going back to typing the fucking pincode 50 times a day.What phone do you have? I have literally never had any issues with the on screen fingerprint readers on any of my samsung phones. It literally still takes less than half a second if that to unlock
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And phones don't have something like that?
If they don't, you'll have to use something like an external RTL-SDR dongle and a USB OTG adapter...
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HEADPHONE JACK - I scream into the void
Then buy phones with them. They exist.
For people in the US (in 2025) the headphone jack is still in the newest releases of:
Motorola Moto G Power and Moto G Stylus
ASUS ROG Phone 9
ZTE Nubia Redmagic 10 Pro
TCL 60 XE Nxtpaper 5G
Various HMD smartphones, though they are pulling out of the US
https://www.androidauthority.com/hmd-global-leaves-us-market-3576404/
Not too many options -
For people in the US (in 2025) the headphone jack is still in the newest releases of:
Motorola Moto G Power and Moto G Stylus
ASUS ROG Phone 9
ZTE Nubia Redmagic 10 Pro
TCL 60 XE Nxtpaper 5G
Various HMD smartphones, though they are pulling out of the US
https://www.androidauthority.com/hmd-global-leaves-us-market-3576404/
Not too many optionsThe Samsung Xcover series only killed the headphone jack with release of the Xcover 7 Pro a mere 3 months ago. All this time a series of phones from one of the world's top brands were available even in the US.
You can get the 2024 model and receive Android updates until 2031 because of Samsung's 7 years of updates policy. Xcover phones also come with an SD slot and user replaceable battery, btw.
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The holy grail / unicorn of a phone would have:
- no notch / punch hole
- a headphone jack
- an sd card slot
- nfc
- a proximity sensor
This currently results in Sony phones and one Ulefone one with outdated Android and a lack of updates. Sony's phone branch is currently dying and it's very much possible there won't be any new phones next year. They released a single flagship this year which they recalled because of issues.
Next year phones might get a bit more interesting because of the new EU regulations coming into effect this June but almost no phones have been released just since then.I have no idea what I'll get but for now my current phone (Asus Zenfone 6, from 2019) just refuses to die.
https://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_xcover7-12784.php It has a notch but the other features are covered.
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Replaceable battery
AUX plug
Expandable storage by SD card
Did I say replaceable battery already?
Edit: oh and non-edged screens (the roundings on the side, don't know the official name... But it sucks and almost all flagship phones have them, or at least when I bought mine 3 years ago, don't know about now tbh)
Did I say replaceable battery already?
Fairphone, Samsung Xcover.
