Why the wasted margin space on ICS/JB? Miss GB...

[soccerballtux]

Why is there so much wasted space? What are these margins on the side of the screen for? This isn't a tablet. On a skinny-screened phone like the Droid you lose a good bit of screen realestate in gmail and the settings screens.
I get a large screen so I can see more text, not so the space can be wasted...

 

[KLin]

so go back to gingerbread

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

so go back to gingerbread

wtf is wrong with this board? why can't we just provide constructive feedback.

OP, can you show me what you mean? I do see more of a margin for the homescreen. But honestly, going back to GB doesn't solve anything.

 

[KLin]

wtf is wrong with this board? why can't we just provide constructive feedback.

OP, can you show me what you mean? I do see more of a margin for the homescreen. But honestly, going back to GB doesn't solve anything.

His post is a bunch of whining. He didn't even ask for help or advice.

 

[Red Storm]

It would help if you tell us which phone you have, what you're running, etc.

 

[soccerballtux]

wtf is wrong with this board? why can't we just provide constructive feedback.

OP, can you show me what you mean? I do see more of a margin for the homescreen. But honestly, going back to GB doesn't solve anything.

I kinda feel like it does. I have mostly resigned myself to not installing the ICS update when they deploy it to my phone. I'm pretty happy with the way things are now.
Here's a pic of what I mean. I would have highlighted the margins on the side but I figured showing people a photo they would say "what's the big deal? get over it" :/
Also, much prefer the old box-style composition not the auto-expanding thing that they have now. Looks like they spent 3 seconds on it.

His post is a bunch of whining. He didn't even ask for help or advice.

that's true. I basically see google making one stupid decision after another.
-botched what could have replaced facebook in one fell swoop by failing to provide a "log in to your facebook account and we'll add and invite your friends for you!"
-failing to actively push NFC into every latest phone. Make use of their billions to install NFC readers at every Kroger, Publix, Target, Gas Station, charge a 1% merchant fee on all purchases instead of Visa/MC's 2-3%, the stores love them for this and beg for NFC payment to be implemented->they replace Mastercard/Visa/Amex as the leading payment system among the younger generation
-continual failure at UI design in all areas, this being the latest example
basically they can do no right in my book, if I were in charge there they would be fighting with Mastercard, would have killed Facebook already, and would have a phone OS with an OS-wide consistent copy/paste functionality. They could also be pushing docking stations like the Motorola Lapdock for phones more now that we have dual core phones with 2GB of RAM and plenty of computing power for web browsing and well on their way to replacing Windows in the home-PC market
So yeah, I think they're complete idiots.

It would help if you tell us which phone you have, what you're running, etc.

I have an Atrix4G, but I installed the ICS on my OGDroid, tons of wasted space for the page border:

looks ok there, but matters when there's a description. Some of those comments take up 5 lines!!! what a joke! looks squished.

also especially silly in the browser:

this is not a tablet, this is a phone with a small screen, stop wasting screen space...we're going to 4.5-4.8" displays so that you can waste space with margins????? Seem to be encouraging app makers to do the same thing, here's pocket/formerly Read-It-Now with it's margins:

I mean doing this, what's the point of the large screen? I'd rather just have a device which fits in my pocket and doesn't have superfluous margins.

So yeah think I'll be staying with GB. Phone bezel is enough of a margin for me, no need to have 2 margins one on bezel one on screen.../rageoff...for now

 

[zerocool84]

I guess you've never designed anything before. Margins make things look nicer and more organized. Why have margins on paper? Just put the text all the way to the edge of the paper.

 

[RockinZ28]

You're doing it wrong:

 

[trmiv]

Can't say I've had this issue on my galaxy nexus. Then again it was designed for ics. The screen on the droid is tiny.

 

[Bateluer]

I guess you've never designed anything before. Margins make things look nicer and more organized. Why have margins on paper? Just put the text all the way to the edge of the paper.

^ This.


I don't see anything bad looking with the linked screen prints. They all look clean, modern, and intuitive.

 

[AFurryReptile]

^ This.


I don't see anything bad looking with the linked screen prints. They all look clean, modern, and intuitive.

Not to mention bigger buttons and larger margins are easier to click with my fat thumbs...

I quite like the directions Android's style is going it. If you don't like it, there are ways to change the LCD density (with root) that will put more font in a smaller space.

 

[Zaap]

Nothing looks that way on my SGS3 with ICS. Pocket on my device doesn't have unusually large margins either- they're all mostly like what RockinZ28's screen shot looks like.

Why bother with the stock browser or email anyway?

Even though that doesn't look all that bad to me, possibly you have some weird font settings with a custom ROM or something, or it's some device-specific ppi issue?

 

[Skel]

I kinda feel like it does. I have mostly resigned myself to not installing the ICS update when they deploy it to my phone. I'm pretty happy with the way things are now.
Here's a pic of what I mean. I would have highlighted the margins on the side but I figured showing people a photo they would say "what's the big deal? get over it" :/
Also, much prefer the old box-style composition not the auto-expanding thing that they have now. Looks like they spent 3 seconds on it.



that's true. I basically see google making one stupid decision after another.
-botched what could have replaced facebook in one fell swoop by failing to provide a "log in to your facebook account and we'll add and invite your friends for you!"
-failing to actively push NFC into every latest phone. Make use of their billions to install NFC readers at every Kroger, Publix, Target, Gas Station, charge a 1% merchant fee on all purchases instead of Visa/MC's 2-3%, the stores love them for this and beg for NFC payment to be implemented->they replace Mastercard/Visa/Amex as the leading payment system among the younger generation
-continual failure at UI design in all areas, this being the latest example
basically they can do no right in my book, if I were in charge there they would be fighting with Mastercard, would have killed Facebook already, and would have a phone OS with an OS-wide consistent copy/paste functionality. They could also be pushing docking stations like the Motorola Lapdock for phones more now that we have dual core phones with 2GB of RAM and plenty of computing power for web browsing and well on their way to replacing Windows in the home-PC market
So yeah, I think they're complete idiots.

--sniped by Skel--

Sorry to snip your post, this was the only part I found interesting in the whole thing.. This is just awesome, in the chuckle out loud kind of way.. thanks for the laugh.

 

[xSauronx]

I guess you've never designed anything before. Margins make things look nicer and more organized. Why have margins on paper? Just put the text all the way to the edge of the paper.

seconded. these design basics are covered in high school to some degree, and college if you take public speaking/presentation courses or any writing course that requires a presentation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_space_(visual_arts)

 

[notposting]

seconded. these design basics are covered in high school to some degree, and college if you take public speaking/presentation courses or any writing course that requires a presentation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_space_(visual_arts))

Fixed your link.

And I hate that the mouth breathers who don't understand it got MS to change the WP start screen BY FILLING IT TO THE MAXXXX!!111!

Of course, judging from most of their new Metro-that-won't-be-called-Metro efforts, they have fired anyone who did design work on Media Center, Zune, and WP7...

The new stuff looks like garbage. Especially outlook.com etc.

Anyways...so how well does ICS or JB run on the OG Droid?

 

[richaron]

Why is there so much wasted space?

Because you are looking at it from the wrong side of a shitty port.

It was made for current/future HD screens, if your screen has less size & pixels then your manufacturer should tweak it. No fault of ICS.

 

[WelshBloke]

looks ok there, but matters when there's a description. Some of those comments take up 5 lines!!! what a joke! looks squished.

 

[soccerballtux]

^ This.


I don't see anything bad looking with the linked screen prints. They all look clean, modern, and intuitive.

it's hard to capture in a photo. All the photos look fine because this was designed on paper. When you actually hold the device it's "why are there two margins"?
It's a waste of display space.

Nothing looks that way on my SGS3 with ICS. Pocket on my device doesn't have unusually large margins either- they're all mostly like what RockinZ28's screen shot looks like.

Why bother with the stock browser or email anyway?

Even though that doesn't look all that bad to me, possibly you have some weird font settings with a custom ROM or something, or it's some device-specific ppi issue?

I played with my friend's SGS2, it's not nearly as noticeable because the screen is larger and much wider than mine. However, I'm still not a fan of how google shows up. That's not a stock-browser thing it's a Google's HTML thing.

yes, that looks great on paper and in screenshot, but it's still wasted space for no reason. This whole notion of "hey, lets make the screen bigger, so that we can use less of it" is killing me.

 

[WelshBloke]

...yes, that looks great on paper and in screenshot, but it's still wasted space for no reason. This whole notion of "hey, lets make the screen bigger, so that we can use less of it" is killing me.

I'm not sure what you are complaining about now. Is it the fact theres a small margin at the edges of that screenshot and then the bezel of the phone?

 

[Nothinman]

I guess you've never designed anything before. Margins make things look nicer and more organized. Why have margins on paper? Just put the text all the way to the edge of the paper.

This. It looks great to me as well.

 

[Zaap]

However, I'm still not a fan of how google shows up. That's not a stock-browser thing it's a Google's HTML thing.

I don't get how else you'd rather they do it.

In your example, Google always indents the site links below the main site. It just indicates that they are subheadings of a site, not separate site links. It's the same thing on desktop browsers as well and is a no-brainer design. Meanwhile, main site links in Google do not have margins any greater than anything else- in a screenshot, or on screen on the device.

 

[stormkroe]

So..... This?

:\

 

[jiffylube1024]

I kinda feel like it does. I have mostly resigned myself to not installing the ICS update when they deploy it to my phone.

So you're willing to give up smoother scrolling (much more so in JB 4.1), vastly improved app switcher, better app/widget sorting in tray, resizeable widgets, improved email client (Nexus phones/Pure ICS), Camera from unlock screen, improved text, WAY improved voice recognition, data monitoring & limits, improved photo gallery, brower syncing, VASTLY improved brower render speed, improved stability (IMO), VASTLY improved calendar, improved notifications... for slightly narrower margins??? That seems a reasonable sacrifice for you?

I have an Atrix4G, but I installed the ICS on my OGDroid, tons of wasted space for the page border:

looks ok there, but matters when there's a description. Some of those comments take up 5 lines!!! what a joke! looks squished.

also especially silly in the browser:

Posting a Google search for the browser is a bit of a cherrypick, since Google indents for searches for clarity. Here's how it looks on my Galaxy Nexus:

And for good measure, here's how regular browsing looks and the settings screen:

It does seem like ICS/JB is much better suited on a 720p screen than an 800x480 screen. Still, I found ICS 4.0.x to be worlds better on my Galaxy S 2 than 2.3.x .

 

[Jinny]

you must be on stock 240dpi on 800x480 screen. trying lowering it, 240 is way too huge for that resolution imo. i have a galaxy s2 running on paranoid rom and dont have this issue. you can set the dpi on each app independently on paranoid android rom.

 

[ilkhan]

So..... This?

:\

I think that is what he means, yeah.
Ugly as sin.