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June 10, 2010|Donn Felker

The Customized Android UI Problem

There’s a problem in the Android UI world and its really starting to bother a lot of people (from what I’m reading online and from conversations I’m having with other Android users). Every company that develops Android hardware believes they can make the UI “better” then the default UI. A few of the offenders include:

  • HTC
  • T-Mobile
  • Samsung
  • … and I’m sure a few others.

My Problem with the UI

The issue is that sometimes, as users, all we want is the vanilla install. The same goes for Android phones. A perfect example of this is on the new MyTouch 3G Slide phone. T-Mobile and HTC have created a bastardized “Expresso Sense UI” that has shipped on all the MyTouch 3G Slide Phones. I’ve tried to disable it through the application settings, but there is some override somewhere that wont allow me to disable the Sense UI stuff (or I’m missing something – I hope I am because this UI is a PITA). Expresso Sense UI? Nah, I call it Express Garbage UI. Sure, it works, but it doesnt feel like an Android Phone. It’s like someone thought,

“Lets take this cool piece of hardware and paint rainbows with gradient filters and glass icons all over it. Then lets add some more colors, move the menus and change the way things normally work. Yeah, that’d be awesome.”

Thats pretty much happened to the MyTouch 3G Slide.

A lot of reviews of the 3G Slide on the web say that the UI is “a bit odd” and “takes some getting used to” but I think they (HTC and T-Mobile) just over did it. They tried to add to much. Stick with KISS people, come on!

How do we fix it?

As a developer and user, I’m not sure I can. But I know that the phone developers can. So here’s what I’m proposing …

Give us the option of what UI we want. When I boot up my phone for the first time (or when I go into the phone settings) allow me to choose your fancy gradient ecstacy party UI or the standard Android UI. I think the mobile manufacturers would be surprised at how many people would PREFER the normal Android UI.

I know my wife, myself, and about 5 other friends would prefer the Android UI compared to the alternative.

Note: There are alternative launchers out there you can install, but sometimes all I want is the Android UI, nothing else, nothing more.