Q: notifications (non-LED)

[padu]

Nexus 5 user here, who has been ignorant of hot stuff in mobile hardware for the last few years. Now, about to buying a new phone, I'm unsure what kind of notifications Ubuntu Touch offers.

• LED notification (which is currently non-working on Focal devices, AFAIK).

• I do recall that (some) phones once introduced a mode of displaying permanent information (such as notifications) on the screen without the usual screen-on-battery-drain. Yet, I don't seem to be able to even google that feature. So, does Ubuntu Touch support this obscure feature of on-display visual feedback about missed calls, SMS etc. that you can notice without having to touch the phone? And what devices do? I'm only interested in knowing that some notification is waiting to be handled. Less in permanent display of (part of) the actual notification message.

Sorry for being so vague about a feature I cannot name or describe. I mean, I cannot believe, people are happy permanently touching buttons to check for notifications, huh? Does this question make any sense?

[Moem]

@padu said in Q: notifications (non-LED):

does Ubuntu Touch support this obscure feature of on-display visual feedback about missed calls, SMS etc. that you can notice without having to touch the phone?

I don't know how that exists at all. How can you show something on the screen without the screen being on?

I mean, I cannot believe, people are happy permanently touching buttons to check for notifications, huh?

That's what my smart watches are for. To let me know about notifications, and even let me read them, without me having to touch my phone.

[padu]

@Moem said in Q: notifications (non-LED):

@padu said in Q: notifications (non-LED):

does Ubuntu Touch support this obscure feature of on-display visual feedback about missed calls, SMS etc. that you can notice without having to touch the phone?

I don't know how that exists at all. How can you show something on the screen without the screen being on?

Advances in low-power screen technology, which gives hardware manufacturers the option to spare that LED. But as I said, I've never really followed such news and am now a bit lost about the actual notification situation.

I mean, I cannot believe, people are happy permanently touching buttons to check for notifications, huh?

That's what my smart watches are for. To let me know about notifications, and even let me read them, without me having to touch my phone.

Adding yet another piece of hardware to the stack gives an opportunity for funny blame games. If I missed a notification, was it the watch's fault or the phone's? Certainly not a peace of mind enabler.

[Moem]

@padu said in Q: notifications (non-LED):

Adding yet another piece of hardware to the stack gives an opportunity for funny blame games. If I missed a notification, was it the watch's fault or the phone's?

All I can say to that is that in my highly personal experience, I miss a great deal fewer notifications when I do wear a smart watch than when I don't.

[padu]

@Moem said in Q: notifications (non-LED):

All I can say to that is that in my highly personal experience, I miss a great deal fewer notifications when I do wear a smart watch than when I don't.

Do you have – for the brave ones – any pointers to learn about compatibility of smart watches and UT phones?

[Moem]

@padu For sure!
As of pretty recently, the situation is much improved. We now have two watch apps; one is Rockwork, which supports the Pebble watches and works quite well. It's under active development by @TheVancedGamer.
The other is Amazfish, which has been ported to Ubuntu Touch by Jozef Mlich and it supports a nice lineup of watches. I found this information by the author of the app:

There are 3 tiers of supported devices:
Gold

These are devices I have, have tested and will try not to break any functionality for an include:

• Amazfit Bip
• Amazfit GTS
• Pinetime Infinitme
• Bangle.js

Silver

These are devices which are properly implemented in the application, but I do not have and are tested by the commuity, and include:

• Amazfit BipS
• Amazfit Bip Lite
  I do not promise not to break functionality in these, but will fix where I can

Bronze

These are devices which use a protocol that is close to another suppored device, and so is treated like that device. Your mileage may vary with these devices.

• MiBand 2/3/4
• AMzfit Cor
• Amazfit GTR

In other words: if you want a decent experience, get a
Amazfit Bip
Amazfit GTS
Pinetime Infinitme
Bangle.js
... or a Pebble.

I have and use both a Pebble (let's be honest, I have several) and a Pinetime. If you want to buy new, the Pinetime is a simple and cheap, but very usable option.

[kugiigi]

I don't know if there are devices with notifnotification LED that supports focal but they should be working I think unless there's a known issue? It worked well on xenial on my previous phones (bq E5 and Nexus 5).
As for always on display, I don't think there's also a device with UT support that's capable of it. And if ever there's such devic3, UT currently don't support it, well mainly because as mentioned there's no device to support
But yeah, I really wish phones nowadays still has notification LEDs.

[padu]

@Moem said in Q: notifications (non-LED):

For sure!

Thank you!

If you want to buy new, the Pinetime is a simple and cheap, but very usable option.

Do you know what that „Disclaimer: sealed device“ refer to? Water-proof? Tamper-proof?

[Moem]

@padu said in Q: notifications (non-LED):

Water-proof?

Yes, and less suitable for tinkering, but more suitable for daily use. They also sell an unsealed version for those who wish to hack.

[padu]

@Moem Thanks again!