Feel UX [Sharp Android 4.0 UI]

**martindesu** · 07-03-2012, 08:29 AM

Feel UX by Frog for Sharp's new smartphones such as the SH-09D, will take some getting used to, for those coming from other flavours of Android or iOS.

Gone is the home screen or the very notion of it, and in its place is something between the latest Windows Mobile and Android.

For those coming from Keitai directly, Feel UX will not feel strange (puntastic).

Coming from standard Android, or even Docomo's bastardised version of Android, the experience is different.

Without the Home screen, I felt a little... lost. I wanted to press "Home" as on and iPhone or any Android to date... but there isn't one. This leads me to believe that the Feel UX won't be coming to Sharp Androids with hard buttons (SH-01D et al.).

I only played with the SH-09D Zeta for just under an hour in the store today, and though the hardware is pretty nice, I think I fall in the "power user" camp and will have to sit this one out. I like to tweak. I like to customise. I like to make the phone my own.

Though Feel UX is a snazzy and very responsive UI (no doubt helped with fast CPU and lots of RAM), I believe it just isn't for me, and thus I may be taking a sidestep from Sharp Android phones in the near future.

I'd be interested to hear any thoughts or comments on Feel UX and the direction taken with Sharp's smartphones. Does this pave the way for them attempting to break into the Western markets?

**cheeseus** · 07-03-2012, 09:05 AM

Originally Posted by martindesu

...
Without the Home screen, I felt a little... lost. I wanted to press "Home" as on and iPhone or any Android to date... but there isn't one. This leads me to believe that the Feel UX won't be coming to Sharp Androids with hard buttons (SH-01D et al.).

Although this logic is pretty solid, I hope you're not right. I want this on my SH-01D!

Maybe some Japanese keitai hacker will manage to extract the installation files of this wonder making it available for us, if Sharp don't officially let us have it...

EDIT: On some of the animations on the SH-09D special site, the black stripe at the bootom containing the most used shortcuts, features a HOME image "button" but on closer examination it seems like there's only two sets of icons - the first set is what's on your photo, and the second set, featuring Back, Home, Menu and Running Apps buttons, only appears when using Docomo's Palette UI.

**yamanote** · 07-03-2012, 09:45 AM

Can't you still download an alternative home launcher? If you're a power user I doubt you'd be using Palette or whatever the stock UI in these Android keitais is these days.

I like the design of that phone though. Simple design, very slim bezel and a slick little clear part on the bottom a la Xperia S. Does it actually serve any function? (notification LED?)

EDIT: answered my own question.

Very slick. Threadjack over, back to the OP.

**snob** · 07-03-2012, 02:15 PM

it's pretty slick, aesthetically it's very "american." reminds me of meego on the nokia n9. it's a bit too modern for my tastes. but i don't think it'll be that hard to transition to, since it's basically a permanently opened app drawer.

**djbuan** · 07-03-2012, 02:35 PM

Hi,

When you tested SH-09D, were you able to compare it with Galaxy S3's(japanese brand) screen? I think Zeta is using a new type of screen right? Is it on par with SuperAmoled HD? Anyone?

Thanks!

**NeuroticallyYou** · 07-03-2012, 03:48 PM

so what happened with TapFlow UI?? is that already discarded ?? that's what i would love to do UI's for phones!! im trying hard, really hard to come up with an android home replacement but this whole task might take me a couple of years , many hours of work and probably 850.000 cups of coffee; Below are the samples i came up with.

they are not functional at all, when compiled on the emulator the first one crash instantly and the second is not even on the works....

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my own attempt to fix the ******* version of Docomo palette UI

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**cheeseus** · 07-04-2012, 02:58 AM

Originally Posted by NeuroticallyYou

so what happened with TapFlow UI?? is that already discarded ?? that's what i would love to do UI's for phones!! im trying hard, really hard to come up with an android home replacement but this whole task might take me a couple of years , many hours of work and probably 850.000 cups of coffee; Below are the samples i came up with.

they are not functional at all, when compiled on the emulator the first one crash instantly and the second is not even on the works....

my own attempt to fix the ******* version of Docomo palette UI

Hey, this looks promising! Keep up the good work!

**in2sky** · 08-11-2012, 03:59 AM

what's the phone in the top image? it's not the SH-09D right?

>>> sorry found it. unfortunately it's not ntt docomo but softbank... 106SH

**patrixl** · 08-31-2012, 11:02 AM

My opinion: I've had a go at the Feel UX UI on a AU Sharp Phone just a few hours ago, and stopped even trying after a few minutes. Slow, laggy, jagged (non-smooth) interface that isn't quite intuitive... Buttons that duplicate functions (how redundant), meaning it's hard to decide which button to press... Lots of scrolling involved. Very disorganized. It probably looks good in pictures, but next to the HTC J, it was a mess.