Bob Williams
02-27-2008, 04:59 AM
Okay, I love that my S3 shows a clock. However, I have three issues and subsequent suggestions for it. First, the issues:
1) The clock is always dim except when you press the info button, at which point it pops up to your desired brightness.
2) The clock is rather small, especially for viewing from more than 7 or 8 feet away.
3) The clock can only be displayed in 12-hour format.
Now my suggestions:
1) Well, if I'm going to press the info button, I can just read the on-screen clock. I want full brightness (according to my setting) all the time. It's already hard to read from a distance, and making it dim just makes it that much worse. I understand the issues involved with bright displays in a theater environment, but that's why it's completely defeatable. (That said, a backdoor code would be nice, since it would mean it could be toggled by a programmed remote.) This one doesn't have something to do with the OLED technology used by the display, does it? Say, short lifespan or burn-in tendency or something?
2) Simple, it's just too small; make it bigger. Hopefully, the display can accommodate a bigger clock. If not, at least things will still be a lot better with (1).
3) I hate 12-hour time. I try to only use 24-hour myself, and I'm trying my best to teach my kids to do the same - but it's tough on both counts with so many clocks around that only show 12-hour time! I know folks like me are in the minority, but being a professional programmer, I also know that making 24-hour format an option should be about as trivial an addition as there is, assuming an even half-decent code structure. I'd even be happy with a backdoor code, so long as it stuck across reboots (ah, the catch).
1) The clock is always dim except when you press the info button, at which point it pops up to your desired brightness.
2) The clock is rather small, especially for viewing from more than 7 or 8 feet away.
3) The clock can only be displayed in 12-hour format.
Now my suggestions:
1) Well, if I'm going to press the info button, I can just read the on-screen clock. I want full brightness (according to my setting) all the time. It's already hard to read from a distance, and making it dim just makes it that much worse. I understand the issues involved with bright displays in a theater environment, but that's why it's completely defeatable. (That said, a backdoor code would be nice, since it would mean it could be toggled by a programmed remote.) This one doesn't have something to do with the OLED technology used by the display, does it? Say, short lifespan or burn-in tendency or something?
2) Simple, it's just too small; make it bigger. Hopefully, the display can accommodate a bigger clock. If not, at least things will still be a lot better with (1).
3) I hate 12-hour time. I try to only use 24-hour myself, and I'm trying my best to teach my kids to do the same - but it's tough on both counts with so many clocks around that only show 12-hour time! I know folks like me are in the minority, but being a professional programmer, I also know that making 24-hour format an option should be about as trivial an addition as there is, assuming an even half-decent code structure. I'd even be happy with a backdoor code, so long as it stuck across reboots (ah, the catch).