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Google activated battery saving mode on multiple phones, then rolled it back

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Re: Google activated battery saving mode on multiple phones, then rolled it back

#101

Post by sandebert »

saagarjha wrote: post #88
sandebert wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wouldn't be surprised if both Google and Apple could do whatever they want with our phones remotely. It's just that they usually don't, so we never see it.

On iOS, at least, software updates require the user to enter their passcode, to prevent a San Bernardino-type backdoor. Though, I believe there are some assets that can be updated without a full system update.

I don't mean to be a tin foil hat, but I have to ask: How do you know? Do you work at Apple, with this exact thing?

From my perspective there shouldn't be a problem for Apple to have the regular updates work as you describe. And also for them to have an alternative method they can use without any user intervention at all. (Which probably very seldom is used.)

Re: Google activated battery saving mode on multiple phones, then rolled it back

#102

Post by SmellyGeekBoy »

sandov wrote: post #42
some_account wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I guess it depends on how you view your phone. Is it your phone or is it Googles phone that they can update with whatever software and settings they want to. The same debate is around Windows 10. Some people are fine with Microsoft getting a stream of privacy data from them. Others feel it's their device, not Microsofts.

It's your phone, and you voluntarily allowed Google to control it. I didn't want Google to control my phone, so I installed LineageOS.

I'm also a happy LineageOS user, but it's not like they don't have a track record of this kind of thing either: https://www.androidpolice.com/2018/04/05/dont-freak-lineageo...

Re: Google activated battery saving mode on multiple phones, then rolled it back

#103

Post by ticoombs »

hardwaresofton wrote: post #79
Tharkun wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We've had several FOSS based phones. The problem is that no one buys them, their finances dry up and the whole thing goes down the drain.

I'm a broken record at this point, but I'll say it again until I'm convinced I'm wrong -- FirefoxOS did great but was tragically mishandled. I'm 100% a FFOS stan ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fan_(person)#%22Stan%22_fans ) but it absolutely could have (and did) work -- they just fumbled the execution and 0 executives took responsibility (as per usual). While I appreciate Mozilla's recent exploits like the IoT Gatew…

I installed FFOS on my Nexus 4, and everything I needed from a phone, TOTP/SMS/Calling/Internet just worked.

I even added SSH, nginx, and ran a webserver off it.

I'm hoping for KDE Connect to come through. I want seemless integration from a mobile device to a desktop.

A girl can dream

Re: Google activated battery saving mode on multiple phones, then rolled it back

#104

Post by SmellyGeekBoy »

tempestn wrote: post #46

Clicked on this expecting it to be something about making sure people's phones didn't die while they were evacuated due to hurricanes or gas explosions. Now I'm curious how the response would have differed had that had been the case.

See also: Tesla extending the range of vehicles in natural disaster areas: https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/10/16283330/tesla-hurricane-...

Re: Google activated battery saving mode on multiple phones, then rolled it back

#106

Post by cbluth »

craftyguy wrote: post #35
gcb0 wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

the irony that a product which top feature is literally "Does not run Google Android" serves their javascript from google cdn :) ...also the fact that they have boot up sound means that they are not focusing on user experience and needs, but on copying any and all features from the current phones :(

> they have boot up sound Where did you learn that? I 1) didn't think they did and 2) even if they did the bootloader should be user replaceable. I could be wrong though..

He just didn't like the tune

Re: Google activated battery saving mode on multiple phones, then rolled it back

#107

Post by yoshamano »

jayd16 wrote: post #84
omgtehlion wrote: post #40

That's why I still use windowsphone: dead platform == no updates ))

Also no security updates.

My Lumia 950 XL just pulled down a security update about 5 hours ago.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4459082/september11...

The GP's comment still stands though, it's a dead platform. Mainstream support ends on December 10, 2019, but lots of little things will die as we get closer to that date. Recently the Podcast app stopped letting me add new podcasts with some vague error about being unable to contact Bing. When Microsoft shut down their music service they killed Cortana's ability to identify music playing in the background. Notifications can be hit or miss depending on the app in question.

I went through the same cycle with webOS. What finally did it in the end for me was the browser crashing on about every 6th website I would visit.

Re: Google activated battery saving mode on multiple phones, then rolled it back

#108

Post by jaclaz »

Set aside for a moment this specific issue (which all in all did not create particular damages), I wonder what is the actual authorization/implementation procedure in a firm like Google to actually push these "potentially destructive" updates (or tests or whatever you call them).

I mean, I imagine that there is a control room where people receive an order by the president, together with a launch code, then an officer in command retrieves the other half of the launch code from a safe he opens with a key he keeps at all times on a chain around his neck, and then two other officers, each one with at least 5 years of service and the grade of captain enter the code and press simultaneously two buttons on two consoles rather far apart.

But I fear that the procedure is much simpler and - theoretically - at the reach of a disgruntled or "gone mad" employee, hired only a couple months before...

Re: Google activated battery saving mode on multiple phones, then rolled it back

#109

Post by rhn_mk1 »

pjmlp wrote: post #91
rapnie wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn't that a bit of a marketing issue as well? I am tracking development of Fairphone, puri.sm Librem5 and e.foundation (just released beta version, based on LineageOS). Do you have pointers to the FOSS OS'es you refer to?

- Maemo (2005) - OpenMoko (2006) - Symbian (2009) - MeeGo (2010) - Mer (2011) - Jolla (2011) - Tizen (2012) - Ubuntu Touch (2013) - Firefox OS (2013) - Web OS (2013) So it is a bit more than just lack of marketing.

Most of those are not truly Free, or at least not much freer than Android.

- Maemo: open middleware, closed many applications and some drivers

- OpenMoko: closed drivers

- Symbian: was it ever libre?

- Meego: same as Maemo

- Mer: this is actually open AFAIK, but no native devices I know of

- Jolla: Android kernel (closed drivers), closed applications

- Tizen: ?

- Ubuntu Touch: Android kernel

- Firefox OS: Android kernel

- Web OS: ?

Only a couple of the above really matter in this light.

Re: Google activated battery saving mode on multiple phones, then rolled it back

#110

Post by hardwaresofton »

pjmlp wrote: post #95
hardwaresofton wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm a broken record at this point, but I'll say it again until I'm convinced I'm wrong -- FirefoxOS did great but was tragically mishandled. I'm 100% a FFOS stan ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fan_(person)#%22Stan%22_fans ) but it absolutely could have (and did) work -- they just fumbled the execution and 0 executives took responsibility (as per usual). While I appreciate Mozilla's recent exploits like the IoT Gatew…

The fact that Google has brought Android to ChromeOS and not the other way around, that Fuchsia is based on Flutter and not ChromeOS UI, and all the corpses of Web based OSes all the way back to Web Widgets Runtime on Symbian is quite telling about the performance of web UIs on phone hardware.

As far as Flutter vs ChromeOS UI, I think it makes sense because of how Flutter works and how much success it's seen being used on android/iOS which reflects how much work they put into it. Flutter literally draws every pixel on the screen, and they put their army of engineers to work on rebuilding native interfaces in android[0]/iOS[1] to replicate their interfaces. The amount of control that flutter gives them is probably can't be matched by any existing widget framework, I don't think anyone's actually done something that crazy yet. Fuchsia is their thing, it makes sense for them to re-use the projects that they find offer the best abstraction for them I don't think this is so much a condemnation of web UIs on phone hardware, they also chose not every other widget/display library in existence.

Also I want to point out that rendering and performance of web UIs could be good on phone hardware, the native implementations just have to want that to be the case. I honestly haven't thought about it deeply, but I also haven't seen a compelling case for why android/iOS's specific markup languages naturally render faster than something that was HTML based -- android/iOS just have subsets of the power HTML offers and that's where the savings is.

[EDIT] - I got what you mean about bringing Android-to-ChromeOS, so removed the section asking for clarification

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