Motorola Droid "IN-HOLSTER" Mode

[Shae]

Just switched from a Blackberry Curve 8330 to the Motorola Droid.

One thing I miss about the Blackberry is the 'in-holster' and 'out-of-holster' mode. This was a mode that would keep your phone's display from turning on, hence saving battery life.

With my new Motorola Droid, I have a magnetic case. However, there is no mode or options to place on the phone that will make it turn off the display while it's in the holster and then automatically come back on when I remove it from the case (or at least no options and/or modes that I know of). Does anyone have any suggestions or ideas for this concern? Possibly an app that will help?

It may very well be that the Droid has no mode and the battery just wastes away in my holster - but I figured I'd ask.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[LtKen]

A quick search reveals a few dead threads about people who want this same functionality as you. As for solutions, there seem to be none, but workarounds we got.

As long as the phone is locked, it's not going to chew through battery, so you should look into one of the many lock mods that exist out there, such as Screebl (I think this one keeps the phone ON), or MyLock, which bypasses the screen lock and only uses the button to lock/unlock the phone.

Good luck.

Also, if you have a magnetic holster, be sure to put the screen TOWARDS the magnet. If the back is towards the magnet, Car Mode will be enabled and the thing will never go into sleep.

 

[Shae]

A quick search reveals a few dead threads about people who want this same functionality as you. As for solutions, there seem to be none, but workarounds we got.

As long as the phone is locked, it's not going to chew through battery, so you should look into one of the many lock mods that exist out there, such as Screebl (I think this one keeps the phone ON), or MyLock, which bypasses the screen lock and only uses the button to lock/unlock the phone.

Good luck.

Thank you for the quick response.

My problem is that I hit the lock button on the top of the phone and I place it into my holster. While it is in the holster, the lock button must get pressed again and I can see that the display is on while the phone is IN THE HOLSTER. Therefore, the phone is on in my holster and the display seems to be eating through the battery.

.....

Thanks again

 

[R1Lover]

The display will time out, there is a setting for this "Time" as well... I hit the top button to put to sleep and put in my holster. Once that button is pressed it should shut off the display.

 

[R1Lover]

Also, why do you have a magnetic holster? this would most likely be the reason the screen comes back on as the droid changes modes by a magnet ie: car dock and deck dock.

loose the magnet holster and your problem will go away I bet.

 

[joeyspindler]

There is a app called Dock blocker. i have used it in the past but am not currently using it because i have a holster with velcro. hope this helps

 

[LtKen]

I edited my post as you were typing yours, so here's what's happening. The magnet in the holster is activating Car Mode, which would be great if you were using the car dock and driving somewhere, but you're not, so it isnt.

Two things you can try:

1) Use Dock Blocker, it's $1 on the app store and should prevent this from happening

2) Make sure you place the phone in the holster with the magnets towards the screen. Magnets on the back is how Car Mode happens, magnets on the front should do nothing.

Good Luck

 

[Shae]

Also, if you have a magnetic holster, be sure to put the screen TOWARDS the magnet. If the back is towards the magnet, Car Mode will be enabled and the thing will never go into sleep.

I missed this the first time, my apologies.

Thank you so much. Problem solved.

I was so accustomed to having my screen face my body and face away from the magnet that I didnt even try altering the Droid's position while in the holster.

Thanks again!

 

[Shae]

I edited my post as you were typing yours, so here's what's happening. The magnet in the holster is activating Car Mode, which would be great if you were using the car dock and driving somewhere, but you're not, so it isnt.

Two things you can try:

1) Use Dock Blocker, it's $1 on the app store and should prevent this from happening

2) Make sure you place the phone in the holster with the magnets towards the screen. Magnets on the back is how Car Mode happens, magnets on the front should do nothing.

Good Luck

Thank you very much!

Question about the Dock Blocker app....

If I buy this Dock Blocker....will that mean that I can put my Droid into the magnetic holster in any position? In other words, I can put the Droid in the holster with the screen facing away from the magnets and it will continue to stay off as long as Dock Blocker is enabled?

Thanks again everyone!

 

[LtKen]

Question about the Dock Blocker app....

If I buy this Dock Blocker....will that mean that I can put my Droid into the magnetic holster in any position? In other words, I can put the Droid in the holster with the screen facing away from the magnets and it will continue to stay off as long as Dock Blocker is enabled?

Thanks again everyone!

Should work that way. I've never used it, but I think it does exactly that.

The cool thing about the app store is that you can get a refund within 24 hours for any reason you want. Try it for a dollar, if you hate it, within 24 hours return it for a full refund. There's no way to lose.

 

[KRYTEN_dev]

My previous phone was a Blackberry as well, and I really miss the holster mode. I recently registered as an Android developer, and I think I might try my hand at a solution for this. The moto droid (as well as a few other android phones) has an optical proximity sensor as well as the magnetic sensors that are used for docking by default. I'm pretty sure I can hijack the magnetic sensors, but I think I'll also use the optical sensors as all the holsters they make for droid phones are non-magnetic (with the exception of the incredible, which does the magnetic holster thing out of the box).