In the link #440 reports that disabling "NuPlayer" fixed the issue. This setting is in Settings > Developer options under "Media".
I've also found that NuPlayer plays unpredictable havoc with an audio playing app I wrote that is currently on Google Play. Some users on Lollipop report audio glitches, silence or weird bluetooth issues. Disabling NuPlayer fixes these issues. I wish there was a way for me, as a developer, to force use of the old AwesomePlayer system for my app in particular, but have no idea if this is possible technically. I certainly haven't found a way to do it.
But what I find surprising is that NuPlayer is labelled "experimental" in Developer options but is enabled by default. Isn't that a bit weird?
Bizarrely, some apps seem to need NuPlayer as a workarounds (particularly for the new imgur gifv in Reddit if Fun, black screen problems in Words With Friends, etc).
I found NuPlayer was disabled on my Nexus 4 after upgrade from KitKat and I had to turn it on. Not sure about what it defaults to after a factory wipe.
The difference between android and iOS and windows phone is that android has an open bug tracker, making issues like this a lot more visible. Maybe this issue doesn't affect many people, or google determined that it only happens for phones on a certain carrier and can't disclose that publicly. Sure, the bug could have been closed with a friendlier message, but an open bug tracker seems like a good thing to me
That difference applies to individuals and SMBs. With both Apple and Microsoft, if you have an account team you have a channel to get things escalated, and if you are a strategic customer, you'll get rapid attention.
Google doesn't really offer that, or if they do, the threshold to get that attention is very high.
Agreed. JIRA is managed this way as well and it does lead to a lot of anger around 12 year old issues that really should be implemented. However, at least we can see what is going on.
More than the fact that tickets like this get closed, I find the way that they are closed infuriating. You would think that dozens of comments, many of them with lots of details, would merit a more extensive answer than a single
> contact customer support.
How about "Thanks for all your comments. Unfortunately, this is the wrong forum to report problems like this. Please contact the Nexus customer support and let them know about the issues you are having."
Google is "Nexus customer support", they just don't particularly care about doing that job. Google drops support for their own developer phones faster than Samsung and HTC do.
E: To address the initial downvoters: why don't you explain yourselves. How is Google not responsible for supporting nexus devices? They're sold directly by Google, they're produced for Google, and they're heavily marketed by Google. Google provides the software and hardware support directly after purchase and handles RMAs directly. Google depreciates Nexus device support in <18months. Nexus One, Nexus S and Galaxy Nexus were all dropped about a year after release, significant performance problems were never addressed. N7(2012) was dropped early last year from official maintenance and the absolute shit NAND quality was never addressed. Google has a history of not caring about proper support for their Nexus devices.
HTC has released lollipop upgrades for devices that are >2 years old. Samsung has also released lollipop upgrades for devices >2 years old.
The other reason closing tickets is not a good answer: if there's gonna be an answer or a solution, someone who had the problem in the past or just solved it now is going to post it there. Then people googling the problem and arriving at the ticket will not be met just with people who are complaining, but also possibly a working solution.
Of course there are multiple rationales for choosing a platform, but support is certainly one of them.
A while ago someone made a nice graph of how good Apple/Google are at maintaining OS support for their devices, it's pretty informative (although I'd like to see a new one). http://www.fidlee.com/android-support-vs-ios-support/
In this case the Nexus 4 is still officially supported by 5.0... but not being able to call on a phone seems like unsupported to me.
My wife has an N4 running 5.0.1 with no issues re calling, so if there is an issue for these users it's an isolated one and not a systemic problem with all N4s.
Most of the Android phones on the page you linked are not Google phones. Whether or not they get updated is up to the manufacturers and carriers, not Google. You'll note that the Nexus phones have more update support in general.
Whether providing major updates to a phone is a good thing is debatable. My wife hated getting the 5.0 update. She saw it as a major inconvience that changed how her phone worked for no good reason. She would prefer to have the phone work the same way for the entire time she owns it.
I really like Android and have no desire to switch to iOS.
However that being said: That graph really makes the entire ecosystem look dysfunctional. All smartphones should have full support for at least two years regardless of manufacturer and the fact most don't is a poor reflection of everyone involved.
Android needs a Linux style package system. They bundle too much stuff together into singular giant update packages, when in reality you should be able to update e.g. Dialer, Browser, and so on without touching the Linux kernel or Android services.
If you have time (and the inclination) then you could report this to the technical support department of the mobile telco you are using.
You won't get instant gratification that you would by using a bugtracker but technical reports back to the vendor (in this case Google) do eventually get sent upstream.
If enough people complain via Google's channels then the bug will be brought up at higher levels eventually.
The other option is to tweet at senior Android guys and see if you get a response.
You know, that is a valid option. When iPhone 4's telephone broke because of the "grip of death" antenna issue, Steve Jobs himself came out, apologized, offered a free bumper case to mitigate the issue. Compare that to this.
And the telco of Nexus is Google! Google just pointed to contact Google.
I wish Windows Phone was just like... 15% better in terms of app support. Existence as an Android user just seems more and more self-hating as time goes on, and it's clear that Google, the OEMs and the carriers are just not about to cooperate to make the user experience any better. (I know, I know, there's the iPhone, but I have a pathological hatred of iTunes for Windows, so that's not really an option.)
There is also the problem where companies like Google refuse to acknowledge platforms apart from theirs. The iOS apps are usually faulty, and Google DMCAs any third party apps that talk to their services on the windows platform.
I remember reading the google+ page of JBQ a while back where he openly lamented having to do customer support bullshit all day because Google is terribly organized without enough Android staff.
Also the stock lollipop Nexus4 image doesn't fix this, you still have to reboot every so often to get voice back. It will only happen at the most crucial times too given Murphy's law, like phoning a cab in the pouring rain with only 5% battery left, and when I called a girl I met back and ended up calling 4 times looking like a complete inept fool or harassing weirdo when the voice first disappeared.
I don't want to be a nitpick, but it's "its customers". Possessive its (for some reason, the words google, possessive and customers together like that make me feel uncomfortable). Not "Google treat it is customers".
Funny, I'd imagine a number of Googlers still have Nexus 4 corp phones. Just curious how that sort of thing is handled internally. You get a new phone issued?
Same model and I don't have this issue.
This might be a driver or hardware issue. Phone is manufactured by LG, so it is possible that Google can't really fix it.
One comment claims same problem happened in 4.2.2, 4.4.4 and 5.0 too, so it might be some changes in 5.0 just make it happen much more often (NuPlayer?)
It's funny, I actually upgraded to 5.0.1 stock from Cyanogen 11 (4.4.4) because the phone portion stopped working in 4.4.4. Haven't had any issues with calls since then. Now I'm worried that it'll suddenly go south again :(
Nexus 4 is clearly the red-headed stepchild in the Nexus family now. If there was a newer Nexus that wasn't the size of an iPad, I'd upgrade; but there isn't. Call me old-fashioned, but I don't like holding War and Peace against my ear to talk on a phone.
I feel like Android 5 is a step back, UI-wise. One of those "change for the sake of change" things. I don't see how a triangle, square, and circle are more user friendly than a back button, a home button, and a tab button.
Chrome is also crashing constantly on 5.03 and the new keyboard is very very bright at night.
Not a telephony issue, but I feel like 5.03 was a step back and I've actually contemplated downgrading back to 4.* Is that an option for phone users, or does the carrier push the updates?
Edit: It seems like every time I make a comment that might be slightly anti-Google these days, it receives downvotes. That's concerning.
> I feel like 5.03 was a step back and I've actually contemplated downgrading back to 4.* Is that an option for phone users, or does the carrier push the updates?
If we're still talking about a Nexus 4 or 5 here, it's Google who pushes the updates, not the carrier, as they are truly unlocked devices beholden only to Google. As such, you can download the previous versions of the OS all the way back to the initial release version[1]. The process to revert to an older version is not difficult (given the audience here) but if you've never done it before it can be a pain. The instructions are on the linked page.
For the Nexus 4, you can go all the way back to 4.2.2 (a nice, stable OS version if I may say so), and back to 4.4 for the Nexus 5.
If instead you are talking about another manufacturer like HTC or Motorola...good luck. Every manufacturer approaches downgrading/upgrading differently, not all manufacturers provide older ROM images, and some phones simply can't be downgraded once they've taken an OTA update.
I like Lollipop, and i don't like what you are saying, and i completely share your concern. Many of the comments ITT that make a negative assessment of Google are greyed out. The feel is bad, but i maintain my loyalty to Google, as there is no better option. I also get the feeling that they are building a Mothership and i would like to be on that craft when it leaves Terra.
exactly. not to mention, the UI is full of elements that overlay other elements ... like the loading circle on top of emails, compose button on top of email (in gmail app), lots of blank space ... its just horrible (for me).
Heh. I've just been hunting for clues to fix my "Nexus 6 randomly reboots" problem. Also quite common problem, and also radio silence from Google. Missed several phone calls due to phone having secretly rebooted.
Nice synchronicity.
Google is well know for their abysmal costumer support, but this is just the last straw; a telephone that cannot make calls, not even emergency 911/112. And such issue is marked as "Priority-small" and dismissed.
It was good while it lasted, but it's clear now that Google not only cannot be depended on for their software (see Google Reader), but also cannot be relied on for our hardware needs.
I'm on CM11 with 4.4.4 and I need to reboot daily to get around this issue. CM just posted an upgrade to CM12 nightly for Nexus 4 and I'm thinking of biting the bullet and taking on that upgrade
That bug tracker is for AOSP code issues, not issues related to any specific device, so contacting customer support is the best route for the problem no matter who sold you the device.
I'm going to cross the streams a bit here and bring up a major concern going forward. Right now, "Project Ara" is Google's project to create a modular phone that allows hot-swappable components in a totally customizable pocket device. That is, you could have 3 cameras and no wifi in your device if that's how you choose to put it together.
How in the hell do we expect the Android OS to actually make this anything but a bug-laden shit show? They're clearly having a hard enough time making Android work on their own narrow line of devices. The very idea of using this same OS for a completely open-ended device seems laughable, at best.
I was getting excited about the Spiral but this thread has decreased the wind pressure in my sails considerably. Theoretically speaking, is any big mobile device company capable of supporting a modular device that can compete with the top of the line devices?
They would definitely have to tweak and re-arrange android to work in a more modular system, where software can be built by the manufacturer/on the fly with pre-built components you can put in the software (depending on what module you have in the phone)
I had the same problem on android 4.4.4, but on moto G. The solution given on the Motorola customer support site was to wipe the cache partition. It worked.
What other response did you expect from Google employee? Google doesnt hire low level customer support people, google hires top of the line, few hours in front of white board interview coders, people with multiple phd's and industry veterans. I bet they dont even have dedicated support staff, just 200K a year programmers assigned to bugtracker having to divide their time between actual work and asking 'have you tried turning it off and on again'. Its BENEATH those people to interact with rabble.
And unlike hard- and software, such a broken system can last a very long time. There's an old French joke about "polytehcnician" (i.e graduate from Polytechnique, a top-level post graduate institution). What's the difference between a train and a polytechinician? When the train gets off the tracks it stops.
[+] [-] gabemart|11 years ago|reply
I've also found that NuPlayer plays unpredictable havoc with an audio playing app I wrote that is currently on Google Play. Some users on Lollipop report audio glitches, silence or weird bluetooth issues. Disabling NuPlayer fixes these issues. I wish there was a way for me, as a developer, to force use of the old AwesomePlayer system for my app in particular, but have no idea if this is possible technically. I certainly haven't found a way to do it.
But what I find surprising is that NuPlayer is labelled "experimental" in Developer options but is enabled by default. Isn't that a bit weird?
[+] [-] fluidcruft|11 years ago|reply
I found NuPlayer was disabled on my Nexus 4 after upgrade from KitKat and I had to turn it on. Not sure about what it defaults to after a factory wipe.
[+] [-] e40|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bla2|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Spooky23|11 years ago|reply
Google doesn't really offer that, or if they do, the threshold to get that attention is very high.
[+] [-] IE6|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] piquadrat|11 years ago|reply
> contact customer support.
How about "Thanks for all your comments. Unfortunately, this is the wrong forum to report problems like this. Please contact the Nexus customer support and let them know about the issues you are having."
[+] [-] aroch|11 years ago|reply
E: To address the initial downvoters: why don't you explain yourselves. How is Google not responsible for supporting nexus devices? They're sold directly by Google, they're produced for Google, and they're heavily marketed by Google. Google provides the software and hardware support directly after purchase and handles RMAs directly. Google depreciates Nexus device support in <18months. Nexus One, Nexus S and Galaxy Nexus were all dropped about a year after release, significant performance problems were never addressed. N7(2012) was dropped early last year from official maintenance and the absolute shit NAND quality was never addressed. Google has a history of not caring about proper support for their Nexus devices.
HTC has released lollipop upgrades for devices that are >2 years old. Samsung has also released lollipop upgrades for devices >2 years old.
[+] [-] pen2l|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] furyg3|11 years ago|reply
A while ago someone made a nice graph of how good Apple/Google are at maintaining OS support for their devices, it's pretty informative (although I'd like to see a new one). http://www.fidlee.com/android-support-vs-ios-support/
In this case the Nexus 4 is still officially supported by 5.0... but not being able to call on a phone seems like unsupported to me.
[+] [-] dice|11 years ago|reply
Most of the Android phones on the page you linked are not Google phones. Whether or not they get updated is up to the manufacturers and carriers, not Google. You'll note that the Nexus phones have more update support in general.
Whether providing major updates to a phone is a good thing is debatable. My wife hated getting the 5.0 update. She saw it as a major inconvience that changed how her phone worked for no good reason. She would prefer to have the phone work the same way for the entire time she owns it.
PS: 'Sup, fury?
[+] [-] Someone1234|11 years ago|reply
However that being said: That graph really makes the entire ecosystem look dysfunctional. All smartphones should have full support for at least two years regardless of manufacturer and the fact most don't is a poor reflection of everyone involved.
Android needs a Linux style package system. They bundle too much stuff together into singular giant update packages, when in reality you should be able to update e.g. Dialer, Browser, and so on without touching the Linux kernel or Android services.
[+] [-] EarthLaunch|11 years ago|reply
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6853222
[+] [-] showsover|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] zumtar|11 years ago|reply
You won't get instant gratification that you would by using a bugtracker but technical reports back to the vendor (in this case Google) do eventually get sent upstream.
If enough people complain via Google's channels then the bug will be brought up at higher levels eventually.
The other option is to tweet at senior Android guys and see if you get a response.
Good luck.
[+] [-] arihant|11 years ago|reply
And the telco of Nexus is Google! Google just pointed to contact Google.
[+] [-] cwyers|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] cordite|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pakled_engineer|11 years ago|reply
Also the stock lollipop Nexus4 image doesn't fix this, you still have to reboot every so often to get voice back. It will only happen at the most crucial times too given Murphy's law, like phoning a cab in the pouring rain with only 5% battery left, and when I called a girl I met back and ended up calling 4 times looking like a complete inept fool or harassing weirdo when the voice first disappeared.
[+] [-] Kenji|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] classicsnoot|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] fishnchips|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pibefision|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jbuzbee|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Elhana|11 years ago|reply
One comment claims same problem happened in 4.2.2, 4.4.4 and 5.0 too, so it might be some changes in 5.0 just make it happen much more often (NuPlayer?)
[+] [-] tmaly|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] baggachipz|11 years ago|reply
Nexus 4 is clearly the red-headed stepchild in the Nexus family now. If there was a newer Nexus that wasn't the size of an iPad, I'd upgrade; but there isn't. Call me old-fashioned, but I don't like holding War and Peace against my ear to talk on a phone.
[+] [-] debacle|11 years ago|reply
Chrome is also crashing constantly on 5.03 and the new keyboard is very very bright at night.
Not a telephony issue, but I feel like 5.03 was a step back and I've actually contemplated downgrading back to 4.* Is that an option for phone users, or does the carrier push the updates?
Edit: It seems like every time I make a comment that might be slightly anti-Google these days, it receives downvotes. That's concerning.
[+] [-] morganvachon|11 years ago|reply
If we're still talking about a Nexus 4 or 5 here, it's Google who pushes the updates, not the carrier, as they are truly unlocked devices beholden only to Google. As such, you can download the previous versions of the OS all the way back to the initial release version[1]. The process to revert to an older version is not difficult (given the audience here) but if you've never done it before it can be a pain. The instructions are on the linked page.
For the Nexus 4, you can go all the way back to 4.2.2 (a nice, stable OS version if I may say so), and back to 4.4 for the Nexus 5.
If instead you are talking about another manufacturer like HTC or Motorola...good luck. Every manufacturer approaches downgrading/upgrading differently, not all manufacturers provide older ROM images, and some phones simply can't be downgraded once they've taken an OTA update.
[1] https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images
[+] [-] classicsnoot|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] lukasm|11 years ago|reply
When I'm on tube and read Effective Go I need to scroll through all apps and tabs to go back to it.
[+] [-] skynetv2|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] sean_the_geek|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] sapientiae|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] thomaslutz|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] adlpz|11 years ago|reply
It was good while it lasted, but it's clear now that Google not only cannot be depended on for their software (see Google Reader), but also cannot be relied on for our hardware needs.
At least they have the search thing...
[+] [-] tempVariable|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] alsutton010203|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] baggachipz|11 years ago|reply
How in the hell do we expect the Android OS to actually make this anything but a bug-laden shit show? They're clearly having a hard enough time making Android work on their own narrow line of devices. The very idea of using this same OS for a completely open-ended device seems laughable, at best.
[+] [-] classicsnoot|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] xasos|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] mutex023|11 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rasz_pl|11 years ago|reply
and here we have a result of this broken system.
[+] [-] UhUhUhUh|11 years ago|reply