A few days ago, a leaked RUU for the international HTC One X revealed just what HTC has up its sleeves for the next version of Sense, and here’s a hint: HTC is watching and listening to the developer community. Here are some of the biggest changes we’ve seen so far in Sense 4.1, and what we can most likely expect in future OTA updates for all current Sense 4.0 devices like the HTC EVO 4G LTE, the AT&T One X, and the One S.
First, multitasking issues seem to be largely resolved. This is one of the first gripes that HTC’s end users expressed, and developers have been trying to fix the issue in various custom ROMs ever since, with varying degrees of success. This is one improvement that is very much welcomed.
Second, the multitasking hardware button can be remapped to a menu button, if the user chooses. This change has already appeared in the most recent update for the AT&T One X, and it looks like it will be standard in Sense 4.1. Again, this is one of the first custom mods that the root community created, so kudos to HTC.
Third, Quick Settings have been added back to the notification bar. This was a feature of Sense 3.0 that everyone loved, and for some reason it was removed in Sense 4.0. This is another common feature in many custom ROMs, so I’m happy to see that HTC has brought it back in Sense 4.1.
And finally, HTC’s focus on speed and reduced bloat is made evident in Quadrant scores that are over 5900. Everyone says that Sense bogs down a phone, but those arguments are starting to become less and less relevant.
There are other changes that have been uncovered in Sense 4.1, as well, although they’re not nearly as big as the ones above. These include a fix for the live wallpaper lag and a dedicated button in the camera app to switch back and forth between the front and back cameras. Battery life is also supposedly improved, WiFi performs better, and all 3D effects have been removed from the home screen carousal, allowing for a completely lag-free launcher experience.
So, this all sounds fine and dandy, but the only question is: when can we expect this update on our devices? It’s my hope that HTC gets moving on this, works with all carriers involved, and pushes Sense 4.1 – along with Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) – to the entire One lineup, along with the EVO 4G LTE, as soon as possible.
Well I can’t wait for the update to reach the king of phones the EVO 4G LTE but looks like I will have to wait because knowing sprint we will get this update late October. And by then the One X will be on sense 4.3 and android 4.1.4 or something.
We’ll probably have it in a week in the root world
I’m not going to hold my breath, because I know it’s going to be a long long time before I see it on my Sprint EVO 4G LTE, if ever.
Sounds great! With the custom Roms that have already been very impressive (just flashed the new viper4g romWOW!)and developed in such a relatively small time from launch date,it seems this phone and development is going to just start becoming ridiculously good.
Is great to see HTC learning from the developers that push the evo line forward. Heck there are still new perfected roms being made for og4g still and I wonder if this was just part of the strategy.
@John/Paul. E
With the official HTC unlock method and all that jazz, the ease at which they have made rooting the new evo. Could the sole purpose of this to be actually just that? A way for them to learn faster about software tweaks and what consumers are truly wanting baked into the software? Seems brilliant on their end. Cant beat them join them ?… And everyone is a winner?
I never understood why they threw out the quick settings anyway. It was something I used often in Sense 3.0 – Sense 3.6 and most ROMs incorporated them.
I suppose it was in the name of “debloating” Sense, but quick settings was actually really useful, IMO. I’m glad that HTC is listening, especially on the Sense 4.0 multitasking issue.
Agreed. Quick settings drop down is a No Brain.. And should be customizable right outta the box.
I’m reading on other websites that the quick settings code is in Sense 4.1, but it’s not activated by HTC. I hope there’s an option to enable it.
That would be lame to have it in there, but not let people have access to it. Oh well.
I’ve been holding off on rooting my EVO LTE; my OG Evo had CM7, which I love, but I do actually quite like HTCs stock 4.0 setup. I have my gripes, and ALL of the above being addressed is awesome news. I’m most excited about the stupid lack of a menu being addressed. I’m tired of screen real estate being taken up by a black box on non-Android 4.0+ friendly apps.
Plus the card-style multitasking takes longer to use then is even practical. I never had a problem holding the home button and then tapping the app icon… quite efficient!
Paul – keep us in the loop on any news on this. Good stuff! Can’t wait.