Fire Tablets and Google Push Notifications

[GPz1100]

I can't say how long i've been using AM. I know it was on the axon7, so at least 3-4 years. No clue what it cost back then. Agreed on too many configuration options. Definitely not for the IOS user who just wants it to work with minimal config. I wish the options were better organized and/or a search (or maybe there is a search option now). I'm just glad backup/restore exists because it would be a royal pain in the @ss to redo all the settings from scratch... [email protected]#

Re app shortcuts, prepare to get your mind blown. It is possible on the tablet with a helper app called sesame shortcuts (https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...esame.app.edge). I'm not sure if it work with the stock launcher. My tablet has all the amazon stuff disabled (or as much as safely possible). I use it with gasbuddy, playstore, ebay, and some others I can't think of. Is it necessary.. Not really, but if it can save a few taps, why not.

On that note, nova launcher is much like AM, it allows you to customize countless elements of the launcher and has support for sesame shortcuts (that's how I learned about SS).

As I mentioned, on the axon 7 with android 9 (something called pixel dust or pixie dust rom) this behavior is by default, no need for SS. On the tablet however it's a bit of a castrated android experience. Fortunately there's apps to help.

Finally, the navigation bar has become really annoying. I'm so used to the RECENTS HOME BACK order. The other way around is too frustrating. Found a solution for that too - https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...=com.xda.nobar . It effectively allows you to replace the nav bar with a "pill" -elliptical shaped button. This button is then controlled by gestures. Taps, long taps, double taps and swipes (left, right, up, down, or combinations). To keep it simple,

tap = home
swipe left = back
swipe right = recents

It's positioned near the bottom right corner of the screen for easy reach with the thumb.

https://i.imgur.com/cNT7F0N.png

[whacker]

Isn't that nav bar order you like typically found on Samsung devices? That's kind of backwards to what I'm used to (Back, Home, Recents). My LG phones as well as the Fire tablets are that way.

I really like the new Moto G I have with Android 11 that has gestures as a default replacement for the nav bar (which can be switched back). That, I would like on the tablets, so your suggestion of the No-bar (?) or the elliptical button sounds like something to try.

Just took a look at the app and it says it's discontinued, and that it doesn't work with Android 11 and higher (no need). But if it will download and install I may give it a try this evening.

GPz1100, this may be going back a little way for you, but my first run-in with you on here was back in 2012 or 13, when a bunch of people were getting the Moto G first gen and it was discovered that the Boost version's bootloader could be unlocked and its firmware flashed over with the VZW version for the same phone, and thus be used on VZW MVNOs. I did one of those with your and one other HoFo member's (whose handle I can't remember) fantastic help, and it was the most advanced thing I'd ever done with Android (and remains so). I always appreciated that, and everybody had a good time with it. So you're still quite the fiddler!

[GPz1100]

You're right, but so used to the back button being on the right. I seem to use back more often than recents.

I haven't bought a moto phone in a while. Last one was the xt1607.. moto g play 4th gen. Still have one here someplace after upgrading a relative to a s7 edge.

App is disco'd but still work quite well. I'm still tweaking things here and there but much better than the nav buttons.

Re first gen moto g's. Iirc correctly, boot loader unlock was only needed if you wanted to root or enable tethering. Otherwise it was just a matter of flashing the vzw fw as all official fw was signed, boot loader didn't complain. I maybe wrong and am mixing this up with another phone. It has been what, 8 years.

Another relative is the fiddler (as in the stringed type). I'm more of a tinker.

I'd say im about 80% there as far as getting this thing configured.

I played around with tethering on my phone but speeds from this thing were abysmal. Clearly throttled. On a windows box I can adjust the TTL to the right value so no throttle takes place. Without root no such ability here. Pdanet works, but only for http(s) requests using a proxy. Things like email (port 993) won't work. I have a spare router here with asus merlin fw. I think that allows packet mangling, so will play around with that over the next few days.

I was reading that a comparable samsung is the A7 which starts at at ~$200. So for the money, this was a solid deal.

[whacker]

Been trying the gesture app. Pretty cool, although to eliminate the nav bar controls I'd have to go in with a PC and do a command with ADB. For what I see using the 'pill' for the regular nav buttons suffice. I like mainly being able to swipe in from the right to 'go back'. But just starting to explore more. Yes for the money these are hard to beat.

[GPz1100]

The side swipe works in most apps, but some apps like firefox it doesn't always respond. I think making the side bar wider helps. I set the right side to back and left to recents. So pill is primarily used for home and sleep (double tap).

I played around some more with tethering to the OP 7t. I can enable the tether function fine, but unless TTL on client device is at 65, it throttles to 128kbps. Pdanet works well only for http(s) access. This wasn't going to do. In my collection of spare parts was a netgear r7000 flashed with the xwrt firmware (asusmerlin fork). Sadly this fw offers no support for wifi wan (wan coming from a wifi source like my phone). Ddwrt and tomato (?) offer this. Flashed the latest ddwrt to it, adding the following to firewall scripts to run at start up

iptables -t mangle -I POSTROUTING -o $(get_wanface) -j TTL --ttl-set 66
iptables -t mangle -A PREROUTING -j TTL --ttl-set 66

and it's off to the races. Tablet achieved ~50-90 mbps vs .1 mbps. The other option was to connect phone to my vpn then use something called vpntether to bind the hotspot andvpn connections together. That worked too but results in more battery use on the phone/hotspot. Maybe in another decade hotspot will be fully available on all devices without restrictions.

Why 66 above? Because normally client devices need to be 65, but in essence there's a double nat going on; client - router, router to phone. And if you think about it. Most cll providers actually use something called cgnat (carrier grade nat). You can't receive inbound connections on a mobile public ip.

Edit: Finally ran the battery down to ~10%. ~14hrs screen on time.

[whacker]

My brain is starting to hurt!

Hey, where do you find an option for 'Sleep' as one of the assignable options for either the Pill or a side swipe?

[GPz1100]

https://i.imgur.com/DHONNKE.png

[GPz1100]

Does your "automatic smart suspend" work? It's under battery.

https://i.imgur.com/u1gIBr1.png

My understand is with this enabled, wifi turns off when screen is off? Turns back on when screen is back on (or unlocked). Not happening here. While it's great that email notifications work, I don't care for 2 of them. One from the phone, one from the tablet. One is enough.

For now I installed a widget that seems to accomplish this - https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...om.berm.widget. In fact, once enabled, deleting the widget doesn't affect behavior.

[whacker]

Oh, so you're a paying user now?

I don't have that device with me right now or I'd check.

I think I'd be inclined to want my Wi-Fi awake. I haven't noticed much of an effect with it on the battery, but maybe I haven't been paying attention.

[GPz1100]

It's not so much the battery life (which is great), but rather the duplicate alerts - phone and tablet. Annoying when they're both in the same room. Since gv notifications don't work either, might as well kill wifi entirely when not in use.

I played a bit more with the fire toolbox. Apparently the full debloat is not the same as the full debloat using the included debloat config file - ./bin/debloat lists/full-debloat.debloat. This disables a bunch more system services/amazon crap. So far no ill effects, nothing has crashed, no major slew for faults/errors in logcat. Might even improve battery life more so.

Once fully configured, the tablet will probably be used a handful times a day, so no major concern having wifi toggle on/off multiple times.

On another note, I used to use opera android as my default browser. No more. It touts itself as privacy centered but is anything but when it leaks private ip info. Just visit https://whatismyip.net. The 2nd line down, local ip should indicate can't resolve. This works great for tracking as now sites have your public and private ip pairs to associate activity with. Check out vivaldi browser. It's a cross between firefox and opera along with some good privacy features. I'll still continue to use FF on the phone but vivaldi seems the better one for the tablet.

[whacker]

After having my Fire HD 8 2016 model for six years, as well as an HD 10 for two, I purchased a Samsung A7 Lite 32GB model at Walmart (in store) last week at their Black Friday price ($109 + tax). I really like the size format from a portability standpoint (this model has an 8.7" display in a device that is a few tenths of an inch smaller than the Fire HD 8), with much better performance and resources; plus it updates to Android 12 and will receive more standard Android updates (like a phone) for the next few years. That, and I won't have to deal with Amazon user-interface clutter and workarounds, which for me centers around Google communications apps that don't notify or can't be used in their latest version.

I did, however, run into a deal a few days after this purchase at BestBuy.com for an Open Box Excellent offering of the 64GB, 4GB RAM version for roughly the same price (while the 32GB version at BB had dropped for this coming week to $99 from $109; same price at Amazon), which I decided to go for, and will return the one purchased at Walmart.

I do still like my 2019 Fire HD 10 (which I obtained through a promotion at no cost) and will continue to use it at home. Larger and good 1920x1080 screen resolution make it a winner despite the Amazon clutter.