Windows Phone Lock Screen API
I'm not all that impressed with the current Lock Screen app, and I fear it encompasses all of the functionality that will be ultimately be available. But, I also hope that it I'm wrong.
Even given the features expressed, the app is pretty disappointing. It is laggy and lackluster. I tried it out for a few hours then switched back to my original app.
Some of the issues are; most of the themes seem like very minor variants of each other, one more or less just displays the data in yellow and one goes out of the way to display the date in the wordiest form possible. The only really cool one is the one with the radial clock that rotates slices of your lock screen image and shows the date in a more interesting visual format.
Others have complained about how notifications are shown and also a lack of responsiveness from the OS after unlocking the screen which I have experienced myself. Probably the worst/weirdest behavior however is that it seems like the app needs to invest time to load the screen and needs to do this every single time. So, there is maybe a half second delay when you hit the power button where your lock screen image is shown but without any text and the screen itself is totally non-functional during this stage.
One I haven't seen, but have heard is that in some cases the app is crashing. I think it goes without saying, but a lock screen shouldn't crash. Yes, this is a beta, and I'm definitely hoping these glitchy elements will be resolved.
But, as a developer and a fan of the platform I have additional concerns. As a far of the platform, seeing as how they are coming late to the party here with Android having a much richer lock screen customization history, it is important that they come with something superior to what their competitors deliver. It won't help the platform if they're always behind the trend on feature, but also deliver competing offerings that simply don't measure up.
From the development standpoint, I feel about the same. But I have more specific hopes.
The beta app lock screens all use the standard swipe-up to unlock mechanism. This is great because it simplifies things for Microsoft and ensures it plays well with their password protection mechanism. But Android has pattern lock screen and the ability to unlock with your face, and who knows what all else. Any solution Microsoft is bringing in late to the game would need to ultimately be able to deliver the same sort of functionality. Even if it means allowing devs to break your age old design decisions.
Getting this to work may require them to allow devs to disable certain pre-existing lock screen functionality that might get in the way (audio controls, password prompt, etc...) which they may not like. But, just because I bypass the built in password protection or audio controls doesn't mean a developer can't build in security or such controls into a custom lock screen. Have faith in the dev community. They will reward you with better apps.
The part that scares me is the crappy performance and crashes. If a Microsoft sanctioned app can't run properly then maybe we found the Achilles heel of the platform. Much like Android wasn't originally built for touch (and hence the reason it takes quad core processors to make the UI run smoothly) perhaps Microsoft has built a model around the lock screen which was simply not designed to handle these customizations. When they finally release a version of the SDK containing the API's we'll know more. But until then, I just have to hope that this is only the tip of the iceberg.
Even given the features expressed, the app is pretty disappointing. It is laggy and lackluster. I tried it out for a few hours then switched back to my original app.
Some of the issues are; most of the themes seem like very minor variants of each other, one more or less just displays the data in yellow and one goes out of the way to display the date in the wordiest form possible. The only really cool one is the one with the radial clock that rotates slices of your lock screen image and shows the date in a more interesting visual format.
Others have complained about how notifications are shown and also a lack of responsiveness from the OS after unlocking the screen which I have experienced myself. Probably the worst/weirdest behavior however is that it seems like the app needs to invest time to load the screen and needs to do this every single time. So, there is maybe a half second delay when you hit the power button where your lock screen image is shown but without any text and the screen itself is totally non-functional during this stage.
One I haven't seen, but have heard is that in some cases the app is crashing. I think it goes without saying, but a lock screen shouldn't crash. Yes, this is a beta, and I'm definitely hoping these glitchy elements will be resolved.
But, as a developer and a fan of the platform I have additional concerns. As a far of the platform, seeing as how they are coming late to the party here with Android having a much richer lock screen customization history, it is important that they come with something superior to what their competitors deliver. It won't help the platform if they're always behind the trend on feature, but also deliver competing offerings that simply don't measure up.
From the development standpoint, I feel about the same. But I have more specific hopes.
The beta app lock screens all use the standard swipe-up to unlock mechanism. This is great because it simplifies things for Microsoft and ensures it plays well with their password protection mechanism. But Android has pattern lock screen and the ability to unlock with your face, and who knows what all else. Any solution Microsoft is bringing in late to the game would need to ultimately be able to deliver the same sort of functionality. Even if it means allowing devs to break your age old design decisions.
Getting this to work may require them to allow devs to disable certain pre-existing lock screen functionality that might get in the way (audio controls, password prompt, etc...) which they may not like. But, just because I bypass the built in password protection or audio controls doesn't mean a developer can't build in security or such controls into a custom lock screen. Have faith in the dev community. They will reward you with better apps.
The part that scares me is the crappy performance and crashes. If a Microsoft sanctioned app can't run properly then maybe we found the Achilles heel of the platform. Much like Android wasn't originally built for touch (and hence the reason it takes quad core processors to make the UI run smoothly) perhaps Microsoft has built a model around the lock screen which was simply not designed to handle these customizations. When they finally release a version of the SDK containing the API's we'll know more. But until then, I just have to hope that this is only the tip of the iceberg.
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