[rupam95]

1) Did the android player version get updated from OS 2.0 to 2.1?

2) Why didn't RIM remove the bottom bar when running an android app? It is useless and waste of space, and very annoying.

Last question, out of 10 what would you rate the the release of OS 2.1?

ME: 6/10. Would have been 8 but 7+ months for sms bridge is too long. Remember that RIM already had portrait calendar and e-mail, and separate android windows since the first release of OS 2.1 BETA.

[anon(2757538)]

You can hide the bottom bar?

[rupam95]

You can hide the bottom bar?

Yes, you can but it will come back every time you swipe down. The black bar differentiates android apps from native apps...and is very annoying.

[BBPandy]

Yes, you can but it will come back every time you swipe down. The black bar differentiates android apps from native apps...and is very annoying.

I don't mind it, infact I've used it a few times...plus it lets me know that I've just installed a possibly crappy Android App vs a Native one

[qwang]

can't agree more, I hate the little bar.And in the latest BB10,the it's still there...

[BerryClever]

I don't mind it, infact I've used it a few times...plus it lets me know that I've just installed a possibly crappy Android App vs a Native one

You can also normally tell it is a Android app by its (lack of) quality. Man do I ever wish they would just either separate them into its own category or place a warning on it.

I especially hate the ones that claims to be for the PlayBook in its description but it turns out to be made for Android or tries to charge you for an App not even made for the PlayBook.

[ugbadboy]

Well I think its pretty useful when you can't get the back gesture right, you just push the button.
An added plus it that it nolonger shows your recent android apps, that would have been a waste of code!

[KermEd]

I use the bar all the time on android apps. Bar looks much nicer in bb10 on my dev alpha.

Its because we need an obvious back-button that any user can see on-screen in android as the pb has no back button.



Sent from my BlackBerry 9360 using Tapatalk

[Michel Souris]

I use the bar all the time, as well.

"Crappy" Android apps? Nonsense - they provide the functionality that the native apps do not.

[ryder4587]

Yes, you can but it will come back every time you swipe down. The black bar differentiates android apps from native apps...and is very annoying.

The bar is like an android trademark. It is on all android phones and tablets although not as poorly designed as it is on the blackberry

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

[Sonic-NKT]

i also dont like the bar..
it looks bad and with the gestures its just not needed.
i can understand that its usefull for new playbook user. i had to google the controls too but its not there by default you have to activate it too...

i think they should either git rid of it finally or make it a default with better design and looks, its often even above other things.

the way it is now just sucks and it fails to integrate the android player into the ui.

i would also love to see the gestures for back or forward in native apps like browser

[rupam95]

Well I think its pretty useful when you can't get the back gesture right, you just push the button.
An added plus it that it nolonger shows your recent android apps, that would have been a waste of code!

True, but you have this long bar on the bottom with only one function. Why not put it on the top. Just swipe down and click the back button.

I know RIM is trying to make android apps look like the native ones, but the bottom bar easily differentiates that.


All RIM had to do is remove the code...

[djenkins6]

Flipboard runs over 90% of the time without the bar showing, it only appears when adding feeds or sometimes when sharing.

[therealjoeblow]

You can also normally tell it is a Android app by its (lack of) quality.

I guess that's a matter of personal preference; I have yet to find any native BB app (other than games) that does a better job than my preferred Android app in any category:

News Reader: Flipboard, Pulse
PDF Reader: Repligo
Podcast: Beyond Pod
Music Tagger: Shazam
eBook Reader: Moon+
Maps: Google Maps w/Voice Turn-by-Turn
Movie Info: IMDb
Twitter: Plume
Read-it-Later: Pocket, Instapaper
Calculator: Realcalc
Unit Converter: Convertpad; Wolpersoft Unit Converter
Shopping/Todo List: Out of Milk
File Manager: Ghost Commander, ES File Explorer
Clock/Alarm: doubleTwist Alarm Clock

IMO, every one of these Android Apps work very well and absolutely kick the crap out of the best native BB app in their respective category in functionality, quality and user interface. Also IMO, many of the native BB apps in these categories look very amateur in terms of UI and functionality and have a lot of quality issues, including simple things like spelling mistakes...

Cheers,
The REAL Joe

[BerryClever]

I guess that's a matter of personal preference; I have yet to find any native BB app (other than games) that does a better job than my preferred Android app in any category:

News Reader: Flipboard, Pulse
PDF Reader: Repligo
Podcast: Beyond Pod
Music Tagger: Shazam
eBook Reader: Moon+
Maps: Google Maps w/Voice Turn-by-Turn
Movie Info: IMDb
Twitter: Plume
Read-it-Later: Pocket, Instapaper
Calculator: Realcalc
Unit Converter: Convertpad; Wolpersoft Unit Converter
Shopping/Todo List: Out of Milk
File Manager: Ghost Commander, ES File Explorer
Clock/Alarm: doubleTwist Alarm Clock

IMO, every one of these Android Apps work very well and absolutely kick the crap out of the best native BB app in their respective category in functionality, quality and user interface. Also IMO, many of the native BB apps in these categories look very amateur in terms of UI and functionality and have a lot of quality issues, including simple things like spelling mistakes...

Cheers,
The REAL Joe

It is preference, agree with that. I tried most of those either on my Android phone or on my PlayBook, and liked a native PlayBook app 10,000x better. Some I haven't used because I don't need to (ie a music tagger).

I will say that I will look to download Repligo, as the native PDF app is beyond horrible and it is embarrassingly bad and 1/2 a**ed (I think so, at least). I hope after BB10, RIM takes the reins and just make it for Adobe. If Repligo is free, I will definitely try it, thanks!

Edit: Repligo is a side-loaded app, huh? Couldn't find it on AppWorld. I will give it a shot later.

[therealjoeblow]

It is preference, agree with that. I tried most of those either on my Android phone or on my PlayBook, and liked a native PlayBook app 10,000x better. Some I haven't used because I don't need to (ie a music tagger).

I will say that I will look to download Repligo, as the native PDF app is beyond horrible and it is embarrassingly bad and 1/2 a**ed (I think so, at least). I hope after BB10, RIM takes the reins and just make it for Adobe. If Repligo is free, I will definitely try it, thanks!

Edit: Repligo is a side-loaded app, huh? Couldn't find it on AppWorld. I will give it a shot later.

All of the Android apps I'm using are sideloaded. I've corresponded with several Android dev's in the last couple of weeks and every one that I spoke to could care less about RIM and BlackBerry, and have no interest whatsoever in officially porting their apps over to distribute through appworld.


TRJB

[BerryClever]

All of the Android apps I'm using are sideloaded. I've corresponded with several Android dev's in the last couple of weeks and every one that I spoke to could care less about RIM and BlackBerry, and have no interest whatsoever in officially porting their apps over to distribute through appworld.


TRJB

I figure Google Maps App will be an exclusive on Android devices now. The larger apps such as IMDb and Shazam probably will end up going to BB10 eventually (RIM signed on some big companies, so there should be enough big time apps for IMDb and Shazam to consider also jumping into the pool). The others I guess will take a while to be convinced to design for BlackBerry. It is all about popularity for developers (understandably), but if they just ported an Android app over, they will probably not be nearly as successful on BB as they could be. This is especially true if they want to charge money for it. What I am afraid of is that developers will make a quick Android port, see it doing fairly badly and decide there is no market (although an opinion, there are quite a few people who do not like Android ports, and some ratings are even based on it being a port in AppWorld). Or they are somewhat successful with ports and we see few native apps.

If BB10 makes a good show then I think the smaller developers will either make native versions or someone else will fill in the gap. If a few developers are betting against RIM, so be it... Someone else will get into the game (especially with RIM's guarantee of a developer making at least $10,000).

For me, going from Android to OS2.0 (I didn't buy it at launch) is like going from Windows 95 to Windows 7... and then running a (albeit useful) Windows 95 program on it. But soon it will get it's native apps

[Guyzer]

All of the Android apps I'm using are sideloaded. I've corresponded with several Android dev's in the last couple of weeks and every one that I spoke to could care less about RIM and BlackBerry, and have no interest whatsoever in officially porting their apps over to distribute through appworld.


TRJB

that makes me feel better since the only option for to use their app is to pirate it. you forgot rdp "remote rdp enterprise" is da bbooombbbb diggggittttyyy...

the bar on the bottom of android apps is important if you connect your pb to your big screen and sit back on the couch using remote bridge. the only way to go back in an android app is if you can see the bar. though i do agree it would be nice if I said hide, it would never show again for those users who find it annoying.

[therealjoeblow]

that makes me feel better since the only option for to use their app is to pirate it. you forgot rdp "remote rdp enterprise" is da bbooombbbb diggggittttyyy...

Give me a break, and get your facts straight. There's so much misinformation about Android apps from people like you who clearly know nothing about it. Most of these apps are free. The paid ones can be purchased if you have an android device (my wife has a GSII, and I wish I did too...) and the .apk can be downloaded using a tool from XDA-developers. No piracy required, just a bit of learning...

TRJB

[SifJar]

plus it lets me know that I've just installed a possibly crappy Android App vs a Native one

If that's the only way you can tell, clearly they aren't any worse than PB apps.

[KermEd]

Why not put it on the top. Just swipe down and click the back button.

It already does that - but it does it on the bottom as the top space is reserved by Android for in-app menus.

On BB10 you will see it change again so that the bar is brought up with diagnal swipes. The problem here though is it unfortunqtely needs to be in-the-users-face because most users are not navigation and gesture savvy. In BB10 most apps are adding the BBui/Cascades/Files+Folders style menus and the new android player matches it nicely.

Sent from my BlackBerry Runtime for Android Apps using Tapatalk 2

[SifJar]

It already does that - but it does it on the bottom as the top space is reserved by Android for in-app menus.

But on actual Android devices, those in-app menus are at the bottom of the screen For the PB, RIM switched it to the top, which I always assumed was so it wasn't in the way to the navigation bar. But if we assume the navigation bar is at the bottom so it's not in the way of the in-app menus, we reach some nice circular logic Although I guess having the in-app menus at the top is more consistent with the rest of the PB UI, so I guess you're right about the nav bar being at the bottom so it's not in the way of them.

I'd still like an option to completely disable it (obviously it would be enabled by default for the benefit of those less gesture savvy), as I just find it gets in the way.