What device and Firefox app?
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Hello,
I would like to move to UT, but I'm wondering what low-cost device I should switch for a start - just to test if UT is already enough for me :).... I've selected two of them with 100% compatibility: Google Pixel 3a and Xiaomi POCO X3.
What about support of 20.04 for them?
Secondly, what about POCO X3 rear cameras? This phone has few cameras (wide angle, macro, etc.) - all of them are working nice?On the top of that, I have two 'must-have' options that I require from phone:
- Few android apps e.q. Spotify, Google Maps navigation and local bank application. If this solution to use such apps would be available via Waydroid -> Official Google Store ->App? (crucial for me - I need bank application to authorize transactions (so there is a need for push notifications to be working))
- Firefox browser - is it easy to install it and it simply works? (I would like to use Firefox due to sync options (tabs, passwords, etc.). Maybe someone could send me a link to some video with this feature?
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@ktatar156 said in What device and Firefox app?:
What about support of 20.04 for them?
20.04 support is in good way for pixel 3a, and if i refer from what i read here, it's even quite daily usable on focal.
Can't answer for poco 20.04 or waydroid apps.
BTW waydroid does not support "user friendly" 20.04 for now (search forum for more infos).
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@ktatar156 based on your needs, UT is not yet a good fit for you.
Some bank applications seem to give trouble running under Waydroid.
Even besides that, if you absolutely must be running certain Android apps dependability, then running them on an experimental, not yet fully integrated solutions such as Waydroid, wil always be hit or missFirefox can be made to start up on some devices, but it runs without hardware acceleration and also without touch screen optimizations. So the experience would be very poor
Morph browser is the native UT browser, and while it does not (yet) support FF syncing, it is a capable browser. -
@arubislander
He could also choose a dual boot androi/ut capable device, Vollas one to name them, but the price is not in same scale. -
@keneda said in What device and Firefox app?:
@ktatar156 said in What device and Firefox app?:
What about support of 20.04 for them?
20.04 support is in good way for pixel 3a, and if i refer from what i read here, it's even quite daily usable on focal.
Can't answer for poco 20.04 or waydroid apps.
BTW waydroid does not support "user friendly" 20.04 for now (search forum for more infos).
So I'll buy Pixel 3a for now, thanks!
@arubislander said in What device and Firefox app?:
@ktatar156 based on your needs, UT is not yet a good fit for you.
Some bank applications seem to give trouble running under Waydroid.
Even besides that, if you absolutely must be running certain Android apps dependability, then running them on an experimental, not yet fully integrated solutions such as Waydroid, wil always be hit or missFirefox can be made to start up on some devices, but it runs without hardware acceleration and also without touch screen optimizations. So the experience would be very poor
Morph browser is the native UT browser, and while it does not (yet) support FF syncing, it is a capable browser.Thanks, but is there a possibility to install bank apps from Google Store (via Waydroid) as an official source of apps? You know, it's my cash so I would like to avoid installing bank apps from unofficial stores/websites....
I know that probably you run this discussion several times in the past... but, besides emotional part, do you really believe that Ubuntu Touch will be successful at any times? Probably, we'll need a miracle for that...
I had MX4 Meizu when they released it with UT and I participated a lot in this project then (mainly bug reporting and translations). After I broke my phone, I forget UT for several years... After that, I decided to go back here, and what can I see - Canonical abandoned the project, basis for UT is 7 years old distribution, lack of even most known open source apps like Firefox... When viewed objectively from the side, it doesn't look good. So my main question is - how can I help guys? In most efficient way?
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@ktatar156 said in What device and Firefox app?:
So my main question is - how can I help guys? In most efficient way?
The best help ubports project need is coders, hackers, devs...
If you have coding skills, be their guest ^^ -
@ktatar156 You can install Waydroid image with GAPPS built in (there is a choice to go with or without them). And when running with GAPPS you can install pretty much anything having Google Play store in your hands. However I've relied on https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.aurora.store/ in the past as well when I needed mobile carrier or banking apps and GAPPS were still not supported inside Waydroid.
The main limitation I experienced with Waydroid is that if a banking app wants you to take a video of you/something it will crash as video capturing seems to be broken - I haven't tested that for several months now though. Taking photos is fine. And also running Waydroid will prevent Ubuntu Touch from accessing GPS - stopping Waydoird is not enough. But you can reboot your phone and e.g. map navigation will start working again.
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@ktatar156 Oh, and as for camera lenses. UT can currently only access one front and one back camera. But there is some work for that in the background done by skilled members: https://gitlab.com/ubports/development/core/qtubuntu-camera/-/merge_requests/23
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@ktatar156 Emotions have nothing to do with it. I was simply reacting to your stated requirements.
Of course you can install GApps on Waydroid and download your bank apps from the play store. I wasn't suggesting otherwise. The question is though, if they would run. Does your bank app run on Lineage, or on a rooted device? If that is the case it has a higher chance of also running on Waydroid.About your question if UT will ever be a succes: Define success. The project will continue as long as there are people willing and capable of continuing it. That is both the strength and the weakness of OpenSource. It doesn't have to become a commercial succes, it doesn't have to become popular overnight. All it needs is a dedicated team of developers and a passionate community that both supports the team and whose members can in time become part of the team.
I would venture to say that since Canonical handed over stewardship of the project to UBports it has given a boost to community involvement in the project. By this metric the project is a bigger success than it ever was under Canonical.Concerning the lack of flagship Open Source apps like Firefox. On the one hand I could say, bug the publishers of these apps and ask them to support Ubuntu Touch. Why should the burden of packaging and maintainance fall on this project alone? But publishers of Open Source are more likely to consider supporting UT if the software stack is more up to date. Well, there is great news on that front. The work to bring UT to 20.04 is in very advanced stage. And once it is released as stable sometime in the first half of this year, work will immediately continue with rebasing on 22.04, which should also be well advanced by the second half of this year. An up to date software stack opens up many possibilities for supporting additional packaging formats such flatpaks and/or snaps. This would not automagically make the software feel at home on UT (think confinement and application lifecycle) but it would be a start.
Are there any needs? Yes! There are knowledgeable developers who are balancing working on this project with their fulltime jobs and daily lives. Given enough donations and sponsors, the UBports foundation could employ all these developers fulltime and there would definitely be a boost in productivity. (Whether this would impact community involvent, if you wish to discuss this, slide into my dm's or let's start a new thread.)
As it is now, @Keneda already mentioned that coders are very welcome. Experience is a pre, but stick-to-itivness and eagerness to learn can make up for the lack of experience.
There is even a job posting for a developer by the company that makes the Volla phones (these are phones that come with the option of pre-installed UT). -
@arubislander Thanks all for the answers. Unfortunately, I don't know how-to-code
and for now, I don't have enough free time to learn these kind of skills...
I just bought Pixel 3A and noticed that plenty of expressions in the system are not translated to my native language. Where I should start to help translating them? -
@ktatar156 Have a start here:
https://docs.ubports.com/en/latest/contribute/translations.html -
@messayisto said in What device and Firefox app?:
@ktatar156 Have a start here:
https://docs.ubports.com/en/latest/contribute/translations.htmlThanks! I will look at it.
And last question.... I added my Google accounts in System Settings, but there is no option to sync Mail account (I have only Contact and Calendar to choose). As far as I remember, few years ago there was also Gmail sync/integration. How can I turn it on? It's one of the most crucial options for me - having mail notification. -
PS.Also importing Google Contacts doesn't work
Is simply shows empty contacts lists 
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@ktatar156 You need to allow insecure apps in the google account for contacts to sync iirc and gmail accounts will work in dekko2 but need setting up in the app this is for 16.04.
