Android Back Button Preference

Can someone give me some insight into the usability of these "on screen" back buttons you see on most android phones?

I'm a Galaxy Note user and I'm constantly hammering on my back button. I'm thinking about buying a Pixel or another android device but these on-screen buttons worry me because I won't have my back button when I'm in full screen apps.

Do you miss it? I find myself pushing it to skip ads within apps all the time.

I'd imagine it's available when you're web browsing, but is it hidden within other apps?

Maybe I'm retarded and it's present all the time, but then is it not eating up screen space as well?

I just don't see the advantage to having it on screen vs. on the bezel.

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repo.xposed.info/module/de.robv.android.xposed.installer
twitter.com/NSFWRedditVideo

In most full screen apps you can swype from the axis that the buttons are on and they appear without interfering with the app

Can that be done while an ad is playing? Or does the phone let the ad takeover the phone for 30s.

Soft buttons are fucking garbage and waste screen space, need xposed mods just to make them a realistic size.
I won't ever buy another phone without hard / capacitive keys.

>Can that be done while an ad is playing? Or does the phone let the ad takeover the phone for 30s.

Yes, in any application. It's not within its ability for it to controll. Also, side note, use AdBlock.

So you don't like hardware or software buttons?

>I just don't see the advantage to having it on screen vs. on the bezel.
Purely visuals.

I installed an adblocker last night and ads still spew out of all my apps. They must be ON my device and playing offline.

Have yet to see the benefit of it.

Which one? Are you rooted? If so get MinMin Guard

Rooted.

Used AdAway.

Install Xposed framework and MinMin Guard
repo.xposed.info/module/de.robv.android.xposed.installer

I use a nexus 5X and galaxy s4 daily, it really doesn't matter, they both work just as well, and I switch between their use seamlessly.

I prefer the top one, like on my S3. Too bad most programs have abandoned the context/menu button on the left though.

In the West left is traditionally back in these circumstances.

We write from left to right. We read from left to right. We turn pages from left to right. Sidescrollers platformers usually start from left to right.

Samsung just changed the button to differentiate their phones from everyone else's.

Totally missed the entire point of the thread, but thanks for contributing.

I have a Nexus 5 and my navigation bar isn't hidden unless I full screen videos or stuff like that. Most of my apps don't hide it. The advantage of on screen buttons is that you can customize them. They don't "eat up precious screen space" as much as people say. The on screen nav bar is totally fine. Also, I absolutely hate the physical buttons now. Having everything on the touch screen and integrated into the OS provides a much more fluid user experience.

It wouldn't hurt to use both. MinMinGuard only blocks in-app adds. AdAway or uBlock will block website ads as well.

You can also use XPrivacy and deny internet access to anything that uses the internet only for ads.

I actually prefer it on the left and on screen, because I used to miss press it all the time on on galaxy s5.

Wrong.
Soft buttons = customizable
Hard buttons = partially customizable

It's like when an app hides the notification bar. You can still pull down from the outside to make the bar appear. You can pull up from the bottom of the phone to get the nav bar to appear. Still, I much prefer capacitive to on-screen buttons. My usual device is a OnePlus 2, but I played a bit with on screen buttons since getting an Amazon Fire HD8.

The oneplus phones allow you to have both
By default the oneplus has it off screen but you can simply go to the settings have them on screen

>Too bad most programs have abandoned the context/menu button on the left though.
uwotm8
that shit was awful, my phone has that button and i changed it to work as the multitask one instead.
who the fuck had the godawful idea of keeping that shit instead of a dedicated multitask button on a 2GB RAM phone from 2012 was a fucking retard

Left. Samsung can go fuck themselves for trying to be unique by swapping them.

I agree. It feels unintuitive on the right

Hardware keys are still soft keys, you underaged shit.

>I find myself pushing it to skip ads within apps all the time.

that's why adaway exists

Left always made the most sense to me.

Lol, you're a fucking idiot. Capacitive buttons are the exact same thing.

Using it, still get ads.
Is it because the apps have been installed PRIOR to adaway being there?

Been using Samsung most of my life, and I can confirm that having the back button on the right is the most comfy especially in one handed use. That's why I'm still using a Samsung device even though TouchWiz is utter garbage.

Also off-screen buttons>>>>>>>>>>>>on-screen buttons

They aren't part of the display and don't take up valuable screen space, you fucking spastics.

>implying you need a Samshit to have a back button on the right

This is why on-screen buttons are infinitely better, because you can actually customize them.

Makes more sense to have outside buttons, cretin

Try making an actual argument, retard.

As the OP, I guess it's everything I've said?
No one has really sold me on them other than saying, "they're customizable".

They still eat up space on the screen, and when not, need to be swiped to be accessed.

To me that's kind of the deal breaker right there.

>not using a phone that lets you pick between them
shaking my head

Okay I'll bite

I've used both outside and inside buttons, when using outside buttons I don't have to look for the button on trying to press especially in the dark. Outside buttons do not take any screen space while inside buttons do. This is why the Google pixel should have included outside buttons to make the chin useful.

When I was using on screen buttons I always had to look for the buttons I was trying to press and even when I did I ended up pushing it too many times or i pushed something else. It's inconvenient.

It's really not much of a dealbreaker at all unless you're completely autistic. Aesthetically they look way better than capacitive buttons, and they can be hidden when not in use anyway.

what fucking retard thought making them display elements and allowing them to be hidden are good ideas? this is idiocy of the level of removing the audio jack

What, do your eyes not work or something? Just look down, man.

I could, or i could just push the button without looking. It's easier my way.

>
>they can be hidden when not in use anyway.
gee whiz, fucking mission critical right there

how the fuck do people reason like that?

do you want your laptops keyboard to slide away when you stop typing too?

> Aesthetically they look way better than capacitive buttons

I'll disagree here because the blank space on the front of the phone is still there whether the buttons are there or not.

Plus always having them under my app drawer/5 main apps is ugly.

> and they can be hidden when not in use anyway.

I don't ever want them hidden, that's why I consider them to be taking up screen space.


There's a difference between having a preference and having a mental disorder. You're not really reading what we're saying and you're just calling people names.

This shit is unforgivable.
>huge chin
>FP scanner
>On-screen buttons only

Capacitive buttons look like cheap $50 pajeet shit to me. They look terrible when they're unlit and not in use. Hardware buttons are fine though.

I hate on screen, I really do. It's a deal breaker for me. I don't know why I just don't like it, at all.

Fingerprint scanners are easily one of the worst memes in recent memory. Least they could have done was put it on the side and out of the way.

Backside scanner is best placement.

This is just cringey to me.

That lower half inch of the screen is just permanently wasted in my eyes.

The free space for them directly below is STILL there, why not use it for them?

>tfw perfect face buttons

My last two phones have had on-screen buttons and truthfully I wish I had hardware buttons. I like a nice satisfying click home button and back/menu buttons on the bezel instead of taking up display space.

how?
it's possibly my favorite feature on my s7.

This is looking like my best option, OR going from my current Note 3 up to a 4 or 5.

I just don't think they're ENOUGH of an upgrade to justify. So might have to do some exploring.

Mi 5 is same. FP integrated in home button and non specific customizable touch buttons either side of it.

>t. someone who has never used a phone with a good fingerprint scanner

Unlocking the screen just by picking up the phone with a finger on it is extremely convenient.

Yes you still have it on full screen. you swipe down from the top of the screen and the buttons pop for a few seconds.

I thought the same but it actually is convenient. You barely touch it and the phone is unlocked ready. No pattern/code bullshit. Well at least not if you at least input that once after restart.

>comfy as fuck
mein african descendant mate

>Can someone give me some insight into the usability of these "on screen" back buttons you see on most android phones?
Ergonomically much easier to use them, no accidentall press when holding, changing the hold of the phone
Cheaper to manufacture as you always need a screen, but not additional buttons
Less prone to malfunction, capacitive buttons are much more stury than mechanical, but you always need your screen anyway
Back button is pressed pretty often, much easier to press with right hand when it's on the left

>I'm a Galaxy Note user and I'm constantly hammering on my back button. I'm thinking about buying a Pixel or another android device but these on-screen buttons worry me because I won't have my back button when I'm in full screen apps.
I've come from nexus 5x to galaxy s7, and everytime I think about on screen navigation buttons, I cry a little.
Shit samsung buttons on the bezel is the main reason I hate my s7

>Do you miss it? I find myself pushing it to skip ads within apps all the time.
You can still always press it, when you're in full screen landscape, you can swipe from the bottom, or tap the screen to get nav bar back.

>I'd imagine it's available when you're web browsing, but is it hidden within other apps?
It's always there, except on lock screen, and immersive full screen mode in some apps

>Maybe I'm retarded and it's present all the time, but then is it not eating up screen space as well?
when you really need screen space (youtube fullscreen 16:9), it hides. It's called immersive mode.

...

It's pretty shit imo. I mean you often have that huge bezel, so why not put the buttons on it?

My multitasking on the phone consist of listening to music while doing other stuff, so I much more prefer the menu button. The home button also does the same as the multitask one if you hold it in.

Agreed. I hate on screen keys of any type. That's why I have a keyboard on my phone I use. Way better than touch keyboards!

>ads within apps
>mfw phoniggers think they're using personal computers

Physical 4 lyfe bro

physical buttons are absolutely mandatory
also arrow on left

Phone reviewer here. Wow Sup Forums you really dropped the ball on this one.

Virtual buttons are a godsend for larger phones especially for those that don't have any hardware buttons at all. You see if the screen is large enough, that means the phone's footprint can somehow become too big for a user to hold with one hand. Despite what you may otherwise think, phone manufacturers actually think about this shit.

So in the beginning, there wasn't really a need for on-screen buttons, mainly because a user can easily reach all of the hardware buttons whether they are left- or right-handed. But with the advent of bigger screens, that means the overall size of the phones have suddenly increased as well. The solution they found to put the navigation buttons in a place where they "used to be" is by adding them onto the screens themselves. Not to mention, this helps reduce the size phones by not having to cram any actual physical buttons at the bottom, below the display.

Now the differentiation with the layout has a simple reason behind it. Before phablets became the norm, and the "perfect screen size" was just around 5 inches, the Back button could be placed and reached comfortably on the right side, such that the layout goes

>Menu/Recent - Home - Back

However, with even bigger phone screens, it became harder to have to push the Back button here. So they moved it to the left side and the layout became:

>Back - Home - Menu/Recent

Somewhere along the way a lot of inconsiderate OEMs started making their own versions of Android and things became the fucked up mess that it is today.

>"physical" buttons for menu and back
>you choose which one do what
>you can even choose to disable them, and use on-screen

Why is this not the norm ?

What site do you review for? because I need to permanently block it.


You can't in your right mind sit here and try to tell me that placing the back button on the bottom left of a phone is somehow easier to access than having it on the bottom right.

That's simply wrong.

And this is why the manufacturers get shit so wrong. They listen to idiots like you instead of the bulk of their customers. We are all eagerly awaiting your review of aids.

I apologize.

* for a right-handed user.

...

Are you dense or what? The Back button is easier to reach on the left _if a phone is is bigger_ than the now usual 5 to 5.5 inches. In the past they needed more room and so phones had bigger bezels, but now they can fit more screen into smaller cases, so my argument for why a Back button needs to be on the left becomes moot. But on the whole, bigger phones really do benefit from having a Back button on the left if it's using onscreen keys.

Anyway, I doubt you've tried using many different phones as long as I have to counter my claim. As of the moment, my absolute favorite type of menu navigation solution for Android is for a single key that does everything. My current phone has a Home button with a built-in fingerprint scanner. It reads my fingerprint as soon as I place my finger on it, without even having to press. And then it also functions as the Back button with a soft press, the Recent button with a double press, and the Google Now button with a long press. I don't need or use on-screen buttons anymore.

>huge

Really? The Moto g4's chin is anything but huge.

Hold your phone in your right hand.

Pretend you're pressing a hardware back button.

You're telling me that curling your secondary knuckle SLIGHTLY and pushing it, is harder than reaching all the way across it with your entire thumb joint?

We must be describing different use-cases because that simply isn't true.

literally think about what you just said

my preferred method

>my thumb is extended by default
>put my thumb down to press the button

your preferred method

>your thumb is extended by default
>have to curl your knuckle
>push it down slightly
>put your thumb down to press the button

Now do you want to argue that your method is easier?

I like the tactile buttons on the S5 active

Why are on screen buttons better?

They don't get worn out

They can be customisable in colour, size, shape and other behaviours

They don't require manufacturers to have to make an extra button(s)

They can be changed according to design language updates

They allow for extra buttons like the lg notification drawer button and further root tweaks

They can leave space for front facing speakers (yes I know the axon 7 exists)

They are in my subjective opinion, more cleaner and look better (minimalism, more axi of symmetry)

They can provide more comfortable navigation by being able to rotate anywhere on the screen (see tablets)

What's your excuse iPhone button wannabe chinkphone users?

I miss the menu button.

You must just hold your phone differently than I do.

There's no way I could use a phone if back was bottom left, it's too much of a stretch.

I can't believe people like off screen buttons. It's so retarded.

You have access to the menu with on screen buttons.

left back button for my note 4 is great

don't have to extend my thumb a mile across

Then you got a shitty adblocker

Hardware buttons, with the back key on the right.
Gives me more space on the screen and I won't have to "activate" the keys (a swipe up) when in full screen.