Ninjump - after City jump

What we do is the same, the character and icons are new. Also, the backdrop is different. The sprites, to collect, are different as well. The sounds are better.
It is a worthy sequel of City jump.

Watching movies on the galaxy 3

This is a very entertaining aspect of the phone. The galaxy 3 plays almost every avi/xvid/divx file that I can find. However, unlike many phones, I've been having trouble making it play HD videos downloaded from youtube. I get the message "Sorry, unable to play this file". Apologising was a good thing that my phone did.
Later, I realised that I'm making it do much more than it can do. Playing HD videos.... my brother's C7 does that. I shouldn't be cruel and expect the same from the beauty. No flv support was a bit of a shocker. However, the youtube app (as described in one of the earlier posts) fills the gap.
The built-in video player is enough for the phone. There is no need to go for any other player, unless you want a better interface. Let me see how I can make the phone play flvs as well. Will post in case I succeed. If you cant find such a post here later, it means I'm still trying ;)

Android 2.2 (Froyo) update 1

If the title made you think that the update for our 3 is out, I'm sorry. This is just one entry in a series on the road to Froyo.
I managed to get my hands on one of the phones which was launched with the Froyo OS. The LG P500 (Optimus one). The first difference that made a big impression was the file manager. Just like in common Linux distros, navigation through folders especially during moving files here and there was very quick.
Am working on a video showing the differences between the eclair and froyo.

Overall, the phone(optimus) made me more anxious for the Froyo update for the Galaxy 3(pardon my English there).

Looks like I am not alone (Erroneous contact in sms alert)

There have been many an occassion where I have received a message but the alert shows the wrong contact. When I open the message I get the actual one. Looks like I am not alone on this one.
This not happen very frequently, I think it will not cause much damage.
I also hope that the Froyo update will bring us many goodies.

Phone getting a bit slower

For a few days now, I have observed that the phone is responding slowly. For instance, the sms application takes almost 8 seconds to open.
I realised pretty late that the RAM might have been under huge burden cause so many apps are getting minimised and not closed when we touch the back button. If you are facing any similar issue, the task killer app can help. The first time i used the app after this "realisation" i found that i had only 11 MB free memory (thats a bad thing when we need to run a big app like a game). The task killer came to the rescue and in a couple of seconds, i had more 93MB free. (Thank you Advanced Task Killer)

Again, feel free to ask me anything or bring out any suggestions or more ideas etc (you get it)(not restricted to galaxy 3).
Mail me at: vamsi@vamspace.net or comment here.

New issues

There is this issue which was pointed out by one of the reader. It was regarding the music player. In the music list on the right, the index for F,L,R,X are missing. I wouldnt have observed that, if it were not pointed out. Thank you.
Have been looking for a solution for this, but in vain.

Another one is that there is a tiny gap between the transparent screen and the outer rim which, off late, has got a lot of dirt collected in it. Also, it is pretty tough to clean.

Sorry for the huge time gap from my last post. Was fiddling with the phone a lot and was not in the internet zone very often.

Please drop me an email or comment here in case you face any issues.

As for the problem with the music player, you'll find a post, in the very near future, on it.

City jump (game)

This a game i've recently downloaded from the market. Pretty nice game actually. There is a super hero who runs on the walls of a building vertically up. In case of any obstructions, he should jump to the opposite building. On the way up he gathers points by collecting some things whose identity I could not make out. In order to make the hero jump to the other wall, you need tap once on the screen.
One thing which may be its drawback is that there is no save game feature. So the longer u survive in one run, the more u score.

P.S. my best is 4096....

Another good news

My last two recharges of the the phone battery were pretty fruitful. The last one lasted for 88 hours before the phone got switched off due to low power. I used the phone just as I have been doing since I bought it. Looks like the battery has finally started to keep up with its reputation. But, for now, everytime I switch on the phone charger, I keep my fingers crossed.

Good news for Froyo enthusiasts

I recently searched the internet regarding the updates on Froyo and I got a promising news. In the twitter page for Samsung UK, there was a tweet that as soon as the update for the Galaxy S will be completed, they are going to launch one for the galaxy apollo. If this is how it goes, then we can assume that the Froyo update for our phones is right around the corner...

Can't wait to store my apps on my mem card.

Questions answered (with apologies)

First of all sorry for the late answers Namrita...... i was trying out things for that last problem encountered, but sadly could not find any similar problem with my kies installation. Will be working on that. Try uninstalling and then installing it. Usually many things go right by this simple thing. I hope it does solve the problem.

Secondly, it is not necessary to remove the card before a factory reset. But it is always considered a safe practice cause we never know when bad luck is looming around.

Thirdly, any piece of info regarding the contact that you can see in the contacts list will be backed up when you use the method discussed in the other post. So if the facebook stuff(i said stuff cause i am not very well versed with facebook) is part of your contacts, it will surely be backed up. :)

All the best resetting the phone...( and sorry for the late reply)

Improvement in battery performance of galaxy 3

I've been observing the battery discharging time for the past few days and I found that there has been a significant improvement in the performance of the battery. I haven't been charging the battery to a full 100% during this period of observation. I usually have been charging only a few minutes after 90%.
Well, the result of this has ben very delighting. The last recharge lasted more than 60hrs (OMG was my reaction) with 8 odd hrs of phone calls over a 2G network and over 50MB of data transfer(mostly browsing and android market + a movie). I personally wouldn't push it anymore( for now;) ).

I would like to thank Agraharapu Murali for the update over the battery charging to a 100%. I would definitely try it out. However I did recharge the phone for 7, highly impatient, hours before my first usage.

And I would like to quote again "Swype is probably the best thing that happened to a mobile after T9".

Backing up the phonebook to SD card

In order to back up the phone book, you can always try any of the following two ways:
1. Use the navigation below:
Contacts>Options(left touch key)>More>Import/Export>Export to SD card
It'll then ask you if you want to continue. Once u select to go on, the exporting should happen. A .vcf will be created to your SD card. You can now remove the card and reset your phone. Later, follow the same navigation and this time Select Import from SD card.

2. If you have access to a PC, you can use the Kies and perform the action.

I've tested the exporting part(option 1) and it worked just fine. I am sure the importing of the contacts will be successful as well.

In case of any doubts, you can always comment here or drop me an email.

Questions answered

This is actually an issue regarding the inability to access my-location and GPS routes on the phone.
In order for them to work, ple enable "Use wireless networks" and "Use GPS satellites" in the following path.

Applications>Settings>Location and Security

I hope this works. (And am sure Mumbai has a good coverage of both the services.)

3G on the galaxy 3

This has put me in a lot of confusion. I use Airtel network and when I checked the phone for 3G compatibility on their site, it showed that my phone uses WCDMA and not HSPA. When I checked the samsung website, they've given it as HSDPA. I guess, the only way for me to find out is to observe the speeds when I subscribe for the 3G network.

(My 6220c has a HSDPA and it won accolades on the Airtel site for that. And the phone is almost an year and a half old.)

an easy way to save on the internet data

i recently observed that when the internet is left on, there is almost always some data transfer going on. in order to curb this i tried something which worked pretty well. i created a dummy data packet account and whenever i didn't want the phone to connect to the internet (eg, in cases where some games or apps need u to be connected so that they can run an ad near the bottom of the app) i just simply select the dummy account. now there is no info to the phone about where to connect to in order to have any active data transfer.
here's how u can create a dummy account :
applications>settings>wireless and network>mobile network>access point names> new apn(by touching left options key)> edit name and any details it prompts with "nothing" (i used "nothing", u are free to to use any word u want), then save it in the end.
whenever u wish to disable the internet data transfer, u can always select this "nothing" account.
if you have any other idea to save on the data transfer, please do share. thanks.

have fun

Happy Diwali

@@@@@@@ I wish you all a very happy ,safe and prosperous DIWALI @@@@@@@

Thanks for the comment, Murali

Good to see your comment. Welcome to the galaxy 3 user family.
Yes, the back button in the front is a bit bothering. You'll need to touch the button fully for it to work(plus there must not be any moisture). This is not exactly how it is supposed to work but now that we own the beauty, we need to learn to accept some of its features(drawbacks, to be more precise);)
If you have any doubts regarding the phone, I am sure the user manual will clear them. However if you any things to know about which you can't find there, you can always comment here or drop me an email.

sound quality in the galaxy 3

the speaker on the galaxy 3 will definitely not win any awards. it is just loud enough to get the ringtone when u get a call. listening to songs via the loud speaker is not the speciality. the DNSiE effect can be heard when you plugin the headset to listen to music. i checked it out with "break your heart-remix, ludacris" and the effects blew me away. i never knew that so many beats were hidden in the background of the song, which could not be heard when i tried the loudspeaker.

running python on the galaxy 3(or any android phone)

hi,
i am a programmer and what more would i want than a ful-fledged interpreter on my phone. i did install python on my 6220c, but the screen is small and typing is a lot of work. however it has scripts support so that i can always run scripts made on my laptop and transfer them to the phone (or just use the hyperterminal to invoke the interpreter on the phone).
back to where i began... to install python you need to first install sl4a(scripting layer for android) which is available on the android website or in the market. after installation, start the app. then go to options(left button)> view> interpreters> add. now select the interpreter you want to install. u can install the bean shell 2.0b4, jruby-1.4,lua-5.1.4,php-5.3.3,python-2.6.2 or rhino- 1.7R2 on the galaxy 3 using this option. now let the app do its thing, which involves downloading and installing libraries, packages etc.
once the installation is complete, start the sl4a app. now u may see a list of python scripts. u can either execute any of them or run your own. now options>view>interpreters. select the python interpreter. you should now be good to go.

if you face any issues doing this, please mail me at vamsi(at)vamspace(dot)net

the strange battery

this time i charged the battery to only 90% and it lasted only a bit more than a day, though i downloaded a couple of apps from the market and i used almost an hour of gtalk. i'm not very satisfied with the battery performance. they gave a huge (1500mAH) battery which is supposed to last more than two days under medium to heavy usage. but i cant see any of the 1500's capacity here. i have sent the issues especially regarding the battery to the samsung customer support. am awaiting their reply. i hope they do reply soon, and with solutions.
with so many instances of strange behaviour of the battery, i may even have to start a blog just for it ;)

recharge to 100%

for the first time after many days i have been able to recharge the phone battery to 100%. i switched off the phone and then plugged it in in order to get the 100%. when recharged with power on condition, full recharge cannot be achieved until you let it be for a very long time(as per the user manual, we can remove the charge when the blue battery icon on the top stops movement, but this does not give a full charge).
on another note, the phone battery has not been performing very good. it has been less than 24hrs since i did the charge, and the battery is at 5%. didn't use the phone much today :(.

Questions answered (internal memory and application installation)

Q1: How much internal storage do we get, how much do we get to play with?
Ans: About 170 MB. Almost all of it is available for our usage. Some of it is used for the phone numbers and messages.(I've got about 136 MB left free)

Q2: Is the application installation source doing good?
Ans: Yes. Very well in-fact. The android market comes as a pre-installed application, using which we can install other applications. The phone has not yet shown any failed installation(partly because i was a bit careful with the applications, and read the comments of other users).
An alternate way to install apps is to download the .apk files from the source(application author) and copy them to your phone sd card. This is where the installation might fail with reasons like version mismatch or the hardware requirments not met. Just be careful while installing .apk files.

I would also like to thank one of the blog readers, manish, for providing answers to one of the an earlier questions post.

Questions answered

Q1: Can we change the FM channel using the handsfree button?
Ans: If the handsfree button is the button on the headset, then ..No. We cannot change the channel that way.(It is a really good idea though)

Q2: What is the capacity for storing sms(number)?
Ans: Theoritically unlimited. Practically, space you have in the storage.

the camera on galaxy 3

the camera on the galaxy 3 can be said to not be the best 3.15 MP camera in the market. my advice is, better not go for this phone if you're expecting a lot from the camera. the picture taking needs a lot of help from external light. in case the light is facing the camera lens, then dont expect much from the photo you've clicked. also, the moving objects are not captured well. (i also own a nokia 6220 classic and i definitely know how moving objects are captured).

but there is no reason you shouldn't go for this phone just because of an above average camera. i'm sure my earlier posts and the many more coming posts will help you understand better....

youtube app on galaxy 3

the youtube app which came bundled with the phone is really amazing. i use the airtel gprs connection(i am sure you know how slow these connections are). the streaming speed allowed me to watch many videos with no video halting in between to buffer itself. though the quality of the video is not the best there exists the rate at which it played was just as i was watching a pre-downloaded video. it could be because the youtube server might have detected the android and the speed and encoded the video such that the video plays just fine on the phone.

answers to a few questions

Q1: Can apps be installed onto the memory card?
Ans: No, as of now, but the 2.2 update might give us an opportunity to do so.
This brings us to the second question....
Q2: Will there be a 2.2 update?
Ans: For galaxy 3 users in India, there might not be a froyo on our phones:(

Also, did not experiment with Layar yet....but will do so in a couple of days. And the results will be posted here. For sure.

(The post prior to this one was made via an app called blogger-droid. And thus the small subscript below the post)

some tips on the battery

whenever you feel that the battery status is wrong, just switch off and start the phone. this does sound painful but trust me, you'll get satisfying results.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.3

sensors near the ear piece

there are two sensors near the ear piece of the phone; one is for the proximity and the other is supposedly for the brightness of the screen(pls correct me if i am worng here). had a bit of fun today with the proximity sensor. it switches the screen off when the sensor detects a proximity of 1cm~2cms. it works very well, but works only during a call(so spent a few bucks on calls to see how well it works).
and about the other sensor, i don't know what it is for. if it were the automatic light sensor then it sure ain't working properly.

getting used to the battery issue

i think i am getting a hang of how the battery meter works on the phone ;). it works "ERRATICALLY". i am charging my phone almost daily cause i am 24*7 connected to the internet, i dont believe the meter and i need to be online. please dont trust the meter. one post on a blog i read the other day stated that the battery issue will be solved with the update from samsung. but i couldn't find any updates when i connected the phone with kies on my laptop and checked(i was connected to the internet while doing so, mind you :P)

finger print magnet

recently i changed the screen guard of my galaxy 3 and discovered something very disturbing. the new guard covers only the screen and the rest of the mirror finish has been smeared with finger prints. if you live in a humid climate then lot more finger prints can be expected. currently am very careful with the back and options button and use them as less as possible. also wipe the phone with a soft cloth once or twice a day.

good stuff

the mirrored finish is a pretty good add-on. also have been online 24X7 through g-talk. i have never been so connected.
getting used to swype now, which is btw, the best thing that happened to a mobile after T9.

touch insensitivity

off late, the phone has been responding a bit slower than when i bought it.....and it has been only 5 days now! i guess it might be because i haven't yet removed the screen guard.

battery issue

the battery has been a bother since three days. am unable to find out how much of the charging is left. one moment it showed 50% and the next it showed 5%. when i switched it off and started it again, the charge was back to 60%!!!!! whats going on?
read in another forum that this problem would be solved after a firmware update. i hope it works.

my first post

hi. this is my first post. bought my galaxy 3 on 3rd oct. have created and will author this blog using my galaxy3. I hope I would've done well here.