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With the launch of the One series HTC also introduced its brand new and much refreshed Sense 4 user interface. Google has pushed manufacturers to stick more closely to their design guidelines and HTC has followed orders.
Lockscreen
The Sense 4 lockscreen remains much the same compared to previous Sense versions but the quick launch app shortcuts are now linked to the homescreen – rather than being independent. You can remove these completely as well if you don’t like them.
We found that launching these applications were hit or miss. Sometimes upon launching an application or accessing a notification from the lockscreen it would just resort back to the lockscreen. Unlocking the screen for the second time will reveal that the application had launched behind the lockscreen.
The main area of the lockscreen can be modified to a bunch of different HTC presets, including photo album, weather, friend stream, clock and stocks. These all give you quick access to related information.
By default however, the lockscreen will happily display music, a new text message and missed call information. Aside – if you’re a hip hop fan, you really have to check out Krizz Kaliko’s new album.
Security wise, Android 4.0 adds the ability to unlock your phone using facial recognition. We did play around with it for a bit but it is largely a gimmick, and can be fooled by pictures. The other usual security options such as a pattern or PIN are present as always.
Homescreens
After unlocking your friend’s phone with a picture with them, your first encounter with the homescreens will likely remind one of a slightly modified Ice Cream Sandwich launcher.
For the first time ever in the Sense interface the landscape orientation is present. However, to get it working under normal scenarios you will have to use a third party application. Using the Media Link HD or a MHL cable will activate landscape homescreens the way HTC designed it.
Above is my slow evolution of my main homescreen over time. Sense 4 also marks the death of the horrid apps/phone/personalise bar at the bottom of the homescreen, instead replaced by four applications or folders interrupted by a link to the application drawer.
A long press on an empty area on the homescreens will bring up the option to quickly add widgets, apps or shortcuts to the homescreens. If you wish to change your wallpapers you’ll have to go through the Personalize app where other Sense options are also found.
Folders can now be created with the more traditional and simpler iOS method (lawsuit coming in three, two, one…) by sliding one application on top of another.
This Personalize application is where you will find yourself changing scenes – you might want a specific and different homescreen layouts for home and work. The skin determines the overall colour scheme of the Sense interface.
This is where you will be able to change the wallpaper, lockscreen style and a toggle to have the four applications shortcuts on the lockscreen. From here the option to modify default ringtones is also present.
As with any other Android smartphone there is the usual pull-down notification area which has room for all your latest Gmail and other notifications. You can clear single notifications by swiping them to the sides or you can just clear them all at once. There is also a link to the settings menu in here as well. The notification area is now accessible from the lockscreen.
Application Drawer
The application drawer in Sense 4 remains much the same as Sense 3.5, the only real additions being a few buttons that replace the retired Android keys (search and menu) and a link to the Google Play Store.
The ability to sort applications by something other than alphabetical order is present, you can also view them by most frequent use and most recently downloaded. You can also remove the most frequent use and recently downloaded tabs, but the all applications tab must remain present at all times for rather obvious reasons.
Long tapping an application here will give you the option to place it in one of the homescreens or uninstall it. If you wish to ‘uninstall’ an system application you can into the settings and freeze it – very useful for carrier bloatware.
Multitasking
Multitasking on the One X is rather different compared to other versions of Android. On older HTC phones on Android 2.3 multitasking was accessed by a long press of the home key that displays a small menu overlay. This was not ideal, and neither is the multitasking solution on the One X.
Thanks to some aggressive RAM management settings by HTC most recent applications are frozen (like iOS) rather than being kept live in the background. On resuming to the app you can visually see the application restart and attempt to get back to where you left it.
Other than that you can flick the tiles upwards in the multitasking menu to clear them completely. Personally we prefer the multitasking experience offered by stock Android 4.0. This includes a transparent menu overlaying the display and isn’t nearly as aggressive with RAM management as Sense is.
