Ubuntu 13 10 for Galaxy Nexus first look

I have to say I was very excited to install freshly released Ubuntu 13.10 for Nexus devices. I couldnt resist so I took my old Galaxy Nexus (maguro) and I started the installation procedure. Its very simple to do it all manually. Screenshots below!

I didnt have much time to play with this OS on my device, but so far I have mixed feelings. I am aware its the first public release and it MUST have bugs. Of course all fundamental features are working fine (GPS, modem, camera, Bluetooth, touch panel etc.) and on the project site its clearly stated that:

"It is an experimental development snapshot that can potentially brick your device. It does not provide all of the features and services of a retail phone and cannot replace your current handset. This preview is the first release of a very new and unfinished version of Ubuntu and it will evolve quickly."

So far I had few issues like not responding touch screen, system hangs from time to time or it slows down, so that you cant basically do anything except from reboot. However, in most cases its very snappy. Navigating through the system is completely different than on Android. There are no back or home keys, you need to swipe left/right/down/up and swiping effect is different if you swipe from the centre of the screen or from the edge.

I have a feeling that the whole UI is sort of "too large". Massive icons are taking a lot of space and working with this interface is far from being intuitive. I think that this OS would be much more suitable for tablets instead, where the average screen size is 10".

In current stage this OS is surely not suitable for daily use, but the developers are working very hard to fix all submitted issues and to preview all commits. Here are the screenshots:

Home Screen with 3 additional desktops: Music, Applications and Videos

Lock-screen (swipe left to unlock)

System Settings, About the phone and Battery

Phone, Messages and Contacts

Calendar and Album

Sort of "Quick Settings" available from the notification menu

Installed applications screen and a "must have" app ;)

Weather, Gmail and Notes

Navigation panel (available on every screen, even lock-screen), File Manager and Camera

That would be all for now. I think the first preview of the Ubuntu OS for phones looks very promising, however its officially available only for 3 devices for now and it cant be used as a daily driver just yet.

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5 Practical tips to save battery on Nexus 5

We know the new Nexus 5 and all the benefits it can offer. One of these features smarphone with so many running processes comes great demand for energy and also, as we already saw, the battery life of the Nexus 5 is far from being as good as you would expect from a phone of this type .

But through specific practices or tricks we can achieve energy savings and thus cause the battery on Nexus 5 is more durable. So, here are 5 tips that will help you save battery.

5 tips to save battery on Nexus 5

GPS

Many applications such as Google Maps, Facebook or Twitter are turning to GPS for our location. This means that the function is always enabled so you know our location at any time, assuming constant power consumption . Before, the only way to save energy spent to disable this feature, but now with Android 4.4 KitKat allows us the option to make an energy-saving mode.

This requires access to Settings> Location> Mode and select the option "Battery Saver" .

Notifications

Applications of our Nexus 5 and its associated services are a great battery consumption. These applications bring a permanent notification service "alertness" and therefore should configure each of these applications individually. However there are options that can help in this regard. For example, disable PUSH option for our mail. Therewith the new mail notifications do not occur when we, but the system update at certain intervals of time to see whats new, thus saving on device resources and turn into energy.

"Ok Google"

This new functionality included in Nexus 5 allows us to activate the phone when at rest by the phrase "Ok Google". This assumes that the device has activated all the time function that lets you hear this phrase. This logically implies an extra energy expenditure. If you think you can live without this feature can be disabled by accessing the  Google Now> Settings> Voice and unchecking the option "Ok Google . "

NFC

This technology is an unknown to most users, although not new and today lead many integrated devices market. It was conceived as a data transmission technology short-range and function led to the identification and validation of equipment or people. In Spain its use is practically zero, so for now we can do without this technology and thus save some battery . To disable it, you have to access Settings> Wireless & networks> Other Networks and disable "option NFC . "

Synchronization

Another way to save battery on  Nexus 5  is turn off synchronization . This option is not entirely appropriate, since in this way we will not date all our accounts and can be a hassle to enter each of them to see if there is anything new. Anyway this is subjective, and perhaps for others this is not a priority. If you are indifferent maintain synchronization of your applications can disable this option by accessing Settings> Accounts and unchecking those accounts that do not want to sync.

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