Samsung to only allow free themes to be used for 14 days starting January (Android Pi/Touchwiz Only)

[BAD]

After 14 days the phone theme will revert to stock from the third party free themes. You are only allowed to keep premium themes, which Samsung gets a cut of. Their excuse? Fund our designers only.
https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/15/18097179/samsung-free-themes-14-day-limit-galaxy-one-ui

Samsung is headed towards a controversial change that impacts customers who like customizing their Galaxy smartphones with third-party themes. The company has begun sending a notification to users that warns beginning with Android 9 Pie, which Samsung plans to launch in January, it will only permit free themes to be used for 14 days. After that, the phone will automatically revert back to Samsung's stock theme. The Verge has confirmed the notification firsthand, after Droid Life and SamMobile reported on it.

Users will receive two pop-up notifications before their free theme is removed; the first will be displayed 24 hours before the 14-day expiration. The second will hit 10 minutes prior to the cutoff. Samsung says it'll "provide suggested themes along with the notifications in order to help you easily change your theme." Presumably, those suggestions will be for premium, paid themes; Samsung gets a cut of those transactions from its Galaxy Store, whereas the company makes nothing from free themes.

Samsung's reasoning for the shift is pretty questionable, to say the least. "We ask for your understanding as we have changed the policy in order to help our designers continue to create high quality products and also to provide stable and satisfactory services for you."

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[Deleted member 873]

 

[Puroresu_kid]

Fuck you Samsung. That's BS

Now I assume this only applies to touchwiz and not launchers like nova?

 

[Aeana]

What does this have to do with Android? This is about themes for Touchwiz.

 

[BAD]

What does this have to do with Android?

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This is the leading brand of Android phones and is part of its rollout of Android Pie?

 

[TheBeardedOne]

What a joke

Touchwiz is garbage to begin with.

 

[linkboy]

This is dumb as fuck.

If you want to theme your Samsung phone, use Swift Installer. It's capable of giving you a full dark theme as well as themeing a bunch of third party apps.

What a joke

Touchwiz is garbage to begin with.

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That would be true if Samsung still used Touchwiz. The from their 8th generation is much better, plus it's usable.

 

[KingSnake]

That's not Android's fault in any way.

 

[YuYu]

But why tho?

 

[DJ_Lae]

I wish the Pixel 3 was a nicer phone, as this is just one more reason why companies smearing their shit on top of stock Android sucks.

 

[Deleted member 48897]

Is this the reason I use ActionLauncher? No, it's because TouchWiz doesn't support landscape orientation. But this is another good reason.

 

[alpha]

This is the leading brand of Android phones and is part of its rollout of Android Pie?

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Still isn't an Android issue though, it's a Samsung issue. Doesn't have any effect on me and my Pixel 2, for example.

EDIT: Also, the avatar edit from an Apple logo right after making this thread probably not a good look either.

 

[Deleted member 4783]

That's not Android's fault in any way.

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It's BAD. What did you expect? He has never touched an android device (he said so himself).

 

[KingSnake]

I wish the Pixel 3 was a nicer phone, as this is just one more reason why companies smearing their shit on top of stock Android sucks.

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There's also the Android One initiative, some decent phones are popping up there, hopefully more will follow.

The custom Android bloatware from the phone producers need to go to hell.

 

[Carolina Reaper]

It could be worse, you could be using a phone with a notch.

This is the leading brand of Android phones and is part of its rollout of Android Pie?

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Cool, now try answering the actual question.

 

[Deleted member 873]

I thought TouchWiz would already be supporting landscape orientation by now honestly

 

[SolidSnakeUS]

This is the leading brand of Android phones and is part of its rollout of Android Pie?

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It's just Samsung doing this, though. You're making a blanket opinion because one company, which manages their own specific version of Android, made a very stupid decision.

 

[linkboy]

Is this the reason I use ActionLauncher? No, it's because TouchWiz doesn't support landscape orientation. But this is another good reason.

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Samsung landscape orientation.

It was added to their launcher over the summer in an update.

 

[-Pyromaniac-]

This sounds completely necessary.

It could be worse, you could be using a phone with a notch.



Cool, now try answering the actual question.

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latest leaks say Samsung will have a cutout on the s10...

 

[NoblesseOblige]

This is the leading brand of Android phones and is part of its rollout of Android Pie?

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yes. but what's it have to do with android itself being a mess? or are you just being a tool (rhetorical, we all know the answer)

 

[Kthulhu]

Wow. That's nuts.

As others have said, this is on Samsung not the OS as a whole.

Nova Launcher devs about to see a whole lot of cash coming their way.

 

[BriGuy]

Sounds like an anti-competitive practice that will get backtracked on real fast if enough people balk at it.

 

[Deleted member 25600]

Samsung continues to be garbage. My resolve never to buy anything other than a stock android phone remains strong.

 

[GSG]

Themes was one advantage Samsung had over other Android OEMs, but getting rid of free themes effectively erases that one advantage.

 

[Continental 0p]

Man, Samsung just gets worse and worse with their software shit. The hardware is good, but I don't think the trade-off will be worth it for future phones.

 

[VeePs]

Samsung has some great phones so this is disappointing. I'm sure the community will have a workaround tho... but this shouldn't happen imo.

 

[captmcblack]

Don't use Samsung.
Root your devices if you can.

 

[signal]

BAD going in while TI92 is banned lol. Ruthless yet strategic.

 

[SapientWolf]

Shouldn't that read "Samsung to remain a mess"?

 

[Darknight]

What the hell is a point of a free theme then if they only last 14 days?

 

[Futureman]

wait... does this mean you can't use something like Nova Launcher?

 

[Transistor]

BAD going in while TI92 is banned lol. Ruthless yet strategic.

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Legit the first thing that came to my mind lolol

This has zero to do with Android and everything to do with Samsung

 

[Titik]

Don't buy Samsung. Fortunately you got tons of great options if you want to use Android.

 

[Koukalaka]

Didn't Samsung used to do versions of their phones loaded with stock (or near-stock) Android years ago?

 

[Deleted member 4783]

BAD going in while TI92 is banned lol. Ruthless yet strategic.

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Are you rooting for BAD? Lmao

 

[Puroresu_kid]

Didn't Samsung used to do versions of their phones loaded with stock (or near-stock) Android years ago?

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They did indeed

 

[linkboy]

wait... does this mean you can't use something like Nova Launcher?

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No, just themes from the Galaxy Store.

 

[Admiral Woofington]

As long as I can use either of my third party launchers they can do whatever they want, they aren't taking a cent from me with this horse shit lmao.

 

[leng jai]

Another thread of people raging at "TouchWiz" in 2018.

 

[Deleted member 12790]

What does this have to do with Android? This is about themes for Touchwiz.

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Fuck you Samsung. That's BS

Now I assume this only applies to touchwiz and not launchers like nova?

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Samsung abandoned Touchwiz like 2 years ago.

 

[quesalupa]

Hwat, that's like, a really weird move

 

[Darknight]

Don't buy Samsung. Fortunately you got tons of great options if you want to use Android.

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Can you tell me what phone option I have if I want no notch, minimal bezel, headphone jack, top tier level camera, expandable memory, and an extra button to map back and home to?

 

[signal]

Are you rooting for BAD? Lmao

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"rooting" for smartphone OS wars brigadier generals on this forum smh. Not rooting for anyone but would find it funny if he posted a ton of anti-Android threads for the next two weeks.

 

[Jonnax]

Don't use Samsung.
Root your devices if you can.

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Rooting fundamentally breaks the security model of the phone.

It's not good advice .

Also whilst this is a terrible policy it's always funny seeing how upset people are about touchwiz.
Because it's generally been better than stock android.

 

[Deleted member 4783]

"rooting" for smartphone OS wars brigadier generals on this forum smh. Not rooting for anyone but would find it funny if he posted a ton of anti-Android threads for the next two weeks.

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Yeah, it would be funny.

Did you know? BAD was juniored on GAF

 

[signal]

Yeah, it would be funny.
Did you know? BAD was juniored on GAF

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No. Stop trying to be vindictive just enjoy the smartphone wars!!

 

[CaviarMeths]

Lol at the framing here and non-Android users pretending to understand what any of this means.

 

[Deleted member 8861]

ugh this is fucking gross

 

[FaceHugger]

Uh, what? What the fuck business is it of theirs if I want to use a third party theme? Damn and I just bought a new Galaxy like two months ago.

 

[Deleted member 888]

This is like the most "thought up in a corporate boardroom" decision ever. Hilarious.

Thankfully the Android scene should tear them a new asshole over this unlike other companies who need defended at all costs.

Also thankfully the android dev scene will have this stopped instantly. Shame for Americans with the shitty locked bootloaders on Samsung devices.