Widgets vs shortcuts - question from a non-techie

[lauriep]

Hi, all - I am coming from a Voyageur, but doing fine with my phone, enormously happy with it. But I do not understand a) what a widget is and b) what is the difference between a widget and a shortcut.

Also, what is the very best weather app? That seems to be a popular app with lots of choices.

 

[mchoffa]

A widget is an app running on your screen... such as displaying the time and weather without having to click on anything

A shortcut is simply a link to open whatever app/contact/bookmark/etc you want a quick link to

 

[bamfsig45]

A widget is an app running on your screen... such as displaying the time and weather without having to click on anything

A shortcut is simply a link to open whatever app/contact/bookmark/etc you want a quick link to

Exactly. The more widgets you put on your screen the more battery drain you'll get too. They are running apps.

 

[lauriep]

Thanks! Now I get it. Posting this from my DROID!

 

[andjarnic]

Widgets are great if you look at your phone a lot thruought the day.. but if you are out and about a lot and not able to charge so often, I would not run that many. An app like the FB widget which gets an update every 1/2 hour probably wont drain too much.. it's mostly sitting around waiting for that 1/2 hour, then gets updates. But any widget that can run continuously, or get updates every minute or so, will drain your battery faster. How much is really dependend on the app. A widget app that has lots of threads running and uses a lot of cpu might drain faster than an app that doesn't do much at all (the duh factor. .

 

[lauriep]

That makes perfect sense, and I do not need to look at my phone every 5 minutes. But I have been since yesterday...