[syncd]

Is Web 3.0 here? We don't know, but Kore 3.0 certainly is! Shiny, decentralized and software-base it's ready to take over your old, centralized, atom-based remote.

As a major release there are lots of changes, too many in fact to list here, but the main ones are:

Migration to Google's Material 3 UI guidelines, which includes:

• Complete review of themes and colors, adding support for light and dark modes based on the device's settings and for dynamic colors, which change the UI colors depending on the current wallpaper (only available on Android 12 and up);
  
• Update of buttons, text boxes, icons, images, etc. to the latest UI standards;
  
• Review of transitions between sections and within sections;
  

Redesign most of Kore's screens, namely:

• The Remote screen, adding the current playback state and better media controls allowing for direct control of what's playing;
  
• The Now Playing panel, adding the current playback state and media control buttons;
  
• The Movies, TV Shows, Music and Addons screens, which went through a redesign, particularly on the actions section. All the previously available actions are still there, they just got moved around (well, except for the IMDb link, which was often broken, and therefore was replaced with a generic Google search). Note that the "Play locally" function is now called "Stream", which is more appropriate and concise;
  
• The Artist details screen, to show the artist albums beneath its general information instead of on a separate tab;
  
• The connection status indication (connecting, not connected or connected) has been improved and made explicit on the various screens;
  
• The top app bar is collapsible where appropriate and the remote section allows the background image to use up all the screen;
  

Redesign the notifications

• Integrating them with Android's media notifications, which allows for better control of what's playing when Kore is not in the foreground. Note that, if the media notification disappears after a few minutes even though something is playing on Kodi, that's caused by aggressive battery optimization settings which forcefully stop the notification. This happens with some manufacturers that don't follow Android's guidelines, in a futile and artificial attempt to extend the battery life, and the solution is to check the device's battery settings applied to Kore (the way to do it depends on the specific device, more info can be obtained at https://dontkillmyapp.com/);
  

and lots and lots of code cleaning and generic bug fixing (like for instance, fixing the access to media storage in the local files section).

Kore is still in Beta, which is available through Google Play. To subscribe to the beta testing program, follow this link and you should receive the newer version soon. 

If you find a bug, please let us know here, including as much information as possible, so we can make Kore a better remote.

[gsg2000]

Kore on phone Android 8 1
Libreelec Kodi 20 latest nightly update on raspberry pi
Old Kore version worked perfectly
New Kore 3.0b has issues sending youtube vids to Kodi.
You have to first kill the kore app for YouTube send to Kodi to work. Bit annoying.
First vid sent works, but send another will not send to Kodi, unless U kill the kore app.
Hope this makes sense.
Otherwise the app seems great 😃
Thanks

[syncd]

Thank you for the report. Somehow that doesn't happen on Android 12+, on which i tested, so i didn't catch it.

Anyway, i believed it has been fixed, and should be available on the next beta or the final release version.

[madmax2]

Here's my feedback on the remote 

Just tested Kore 3.0.0 beta 1 and the UI has improve a bit,
but it  

• still looks very boring/basic/plain looking compare to IOS official remote (consider making the UI look like a real remote control or similar UI to official Kodi IOS remote (which has actual buttons UI look on it rather than just white icons)
  
• ​​​​still has no custom commands.
  
• menu button still missing menu items in comparison to the IOS remote
  
• buttons are still small on a phone and still requires pressing the small white icons instead of buttons (ie rectangle shape button with white icon on it)
  which means the button is bigger and easier to press (due to bigger touch area) and therefore requires less accuracy than a small white icon, 
  the only exception is the arrow keys, though it is still small compared the IOS remote.
  
• lots of buttons trying to cram all into that box on top while leaving lots of empty space in the middle. Why leave all that empty space? What for? 
  When holding phone one handed, it harder to touch buttons in that box at the top 
  Most people thumbs (holding phone in one hand) would not be able to reach the top box easily. Most people thumbs probably can reach two thirds of the screen when they hold the phone from the bottom.
  So empty space in the middle where that two thirds touchable area section is wasted space.
  
• There's lots empty space in the middle etc that could have the buttons e.g. volume slider and other buttons rather than trying to cram it all into that box at the top
  
• volume slider is small and cramp trying to fit in that box at the top and so hard to use, and there is no fine tuning volume/up down buttons on either side of the volume slider, you can only use that slider to fine tune the volume which is very hard  to do and in that small space, even more difficult.
  
• large "B" character in green box to represent the first letter of the movie or filename, is useless, pointless and takes up a lot of valuable space in that box on top that is already cramp with buttons and for what purpose? 
  
• left swipe page is pointless, essentially it's same thing as middle page but is even more basic design (has no arrow keys, no volume sliders and a lot of other button are not there etc.)
  Most people are staying on the middle page with the ARROW keys anyway.
  

Please design it so that there is actual rectangle buttons with icons in them (like real remote controls) so that there is large touch area instead of an icon only
This would also make the remote look less boring/basic looking.
Right now you need to press small white icons, rather than a larger rectangle buttons which requires less touch accuracy and easier to press (like a real life remote).

Please add/allow custom commands, similar to how it works on official IOS remote so we can added any commands we want.

Why ARROW keys still can't scrub the movie timeline?
e.g. LEFT, RIGHT arrow goes back or forward 10 seconds, UP/DOWN goes back or forward 10 minutes (depending on you kodi settings)

[gerakinis]

Hi,

Thanks for the app. Longtime user. I just got the new release yesterday:

Pixel 6, Android 13 - dark themed, Kodi 19.4, I only use Kodi as a headless music server (Think Sonos, Bose app)

- Selecting Music -> Artists: the new icon sizing is huge. I get about 60% of the number of artists on-screen compared to before. With thousands of artists this is a pain.
- In the same view, the artist's name element is not vertically aligned correctly.
- I frequently have the app fail to re-draw the screen moving from list -> detail in artists. So I see the list view, but the active UI elements are for the detail view.
- Artist detail view: the icon is double with one being about 15% smaller than the other and directly stacked. The rounded corner transparency on the smaller icon is drawn over the larger, leaving it looking broken. (I have no artist images, so this is whatever placeholder icon you use by default.)

And, the only reason I am really here! I really dislike the quick settings media player. I have it disabled everywhere I can. I blocked notifications from Kore app. I also have the system settings for "sound and vibration -> pin media player' disabled. I still get the media center player in the pull-down quick settings drawer of the OS when Kodi is playing something.

Aside from not being able to get rid of this like I want to, all of the integrated OS functionality around volume control and casting (local) audio to a remote doesn't make sense, or work. (For instance, the volume control changes the phones volume, which does nothing.)

That's it. Thanks a bunch.

[syncd]

Regarding the first 4 items on your feedback, i'm having some trouble understanding them, as i can't replicate them. On my Pixel 6a, the icon sizing is the same as it was previously (code didn't change), the artist's name is aligned, and the transition between list and details works and displays the UI elements correctly (tested on some other phones too). Can you post some screenshots to better illustrate the issues.

Regarding the media player, we integrated Kore with Android's media player, as it should. I would say that blocking notifications from Kore should prevent it from appearing on Android's notification media player, but that is controlled by Android. The same regarding the setting you describe, though that sounds it only takes effect when nothing is playing.

The volume control with the hardware keys works but is picky, and it depends on the specific Android version and even implementation. First it needs to be enabled on Kore's settings, and even then, in my experience on Android 13, it doesn't always show, but this is something that Android controls internally. I would advice to disable the setting if you don't want to use the buttons.

[madmax2]

Regarding the first 4 items on your feedback, i'm having some trouble understanding them, as i can't replicate them. On my Pixel 6a, the icon sizing is the same as it was previously (code didn't change), the artist's name is aligned, and the transition between list and details works and displays the UI elements correctly (tested on some other phones too). Can you post some screenshots to better illustrate the issues.

Regarding the media player, we integrated Kore with Android's media player, as it should. I would say that blocking notifications from Kore should prevent it from appearing on Android's notification media player, but that is controlled by Android. The same regarding the setting you describe, though that sounds it only takes effect when nothing is playing.

The volume control with the hardware keys works but is picky, and it depends on the specific Android version and even implementation. First it needs to be enabled on Kore's settings, and even then, in my experience on Android 13, it doesn't always show, but this is something that Android controls internally. I would advice to disable the setting if you don't want to use the buttons.

Can you respond to my feedback issues?

The biggest issue for me along with the other issues mention is..
why Kore is cramming alot of buttons in that box at the top and leaving alot of empty space in the middle?
it makes it cramp to use the buttons, including the volume slider (which has no fine adjustment buttons on either side.)
It also has a big Letter B (to represent the first character of the movie/video/file) further taking up space in that already cramp box

Most people (who hold their phones one handed) also can easily move their thumbs around 2/3 of the screen (from the bottom)
which makes putting a lot of the buttons at the top box bad ergonomics (for one handed use).

Comparison of use of space on Kore and IOS remote
Kore

• Icons is used instead of large buttons, which means a smaller touch area.
  
• A lot of the small buttons icons  are crammed in the top box (bad ergnomics)
  
• Volume slider is small and harder to adjust and there is no way to do fine adjustment (since there is no VOL Up/Down buttons to do so)
  
• Big "B" character takes up space in the already cramp box (and is not necessarily/important to have it) and no need to display current filename/movie name etc. since people can just look at the TV to see what is currently playing.
  There is no need to constantly show on the remote control what is current filename/movie is playing (pointless and waste space on the remote control UI in a box that is already cramped)
  

IOS remote
Note:

• 2/3 of the screen from the bottom has big buttons and the buttons are not cram into a small box at the top and is place in the 2/3 area for easier touching..
  So it is much more easier to use and better ergonomics (one handed use)
  
• Buttons also are not cramp and makes use of space on the screen/phone much more better.
  
• Any empty space is at the top rather than in the middle (so the thumb can easily touch the buttons in the middle of the screen.)
  
• Volume slider is big (easier to use) and has fine adjustment VOL Up/Down buttons  
  

[Klojum]

Can you respond to my feedback issues?

In my experience, syncd is not a day-to-day forum visitor, but uses his moments a bit more sparse.
So please be patient, grasshopper!

[madmax2]

Can you respond to my feedback issues?

In my experience, syncd is not a day-to-day forum visitor, but uses his moments a bit more sparse.
So please be patient, grasshopper!

Actually I noticed syncd respond to gerakinis even though I posted before this commenter, so was wondering why there was no response to my feedback.

Is syncd the main coder of Kore?

[Klojum]

Is syncd the main coder of Kore?

AFAIK, he is the sole coder for the Android Kore app.

[syncd]

Regarding your feedback, i have the following comments:
- Kore follows Android's guidelines with respect to UI guidelines, including but not limited to button sizes. All buttons on Kore respect the minimum button size Android recommends;
- Android has a great variety of screen sizes and densities, making it a challenge to optimize on all. The best bet to make sure it looks good is to follow Android's UI guidelines;
- The big B is supposed to be the movie/tv show/music art, which makes the screen look much better. In the absence of that, a placeholder is used;
- The volume slider is indeed small. I would recommend that you go into the settings and select the option "Use hardware volume keys" and use those to control the volume.

[gerakinis]

Hi, Thanks for taking the time to respond!

In no particular order:

- UI latency: I noticed this 2-3x when I first got the update. It was specifically going back from Artist detail view -> Artist list view. I had to close the app twice and relaunch. It has not occurred again and I suspect it was CPU fighting related to first launch. I also performed a full library sync manually after the first time it occurred and it's possible that is what resolved it. Anyway, not on-going and probably not worth diving into. If there are library caches that are generated this would be my guess as I have a very large music library.

- Artist list view text alignment: The text is left aligned, vertically centered (it looks like.) I'm expecting the vertical centering to use the center-line of the text box and the center-line of the containing element. It is instead using the center-line of the containing element and the bottom-line of the text box (it looks like.) This means that the artist name is always on top of the center-line of the containing element (row.) Definitely not a big deal, and possibly intended...



- Artist icon sizing: I can't get a screenshot of the old interface anymore. My impression is still that there is more unused space since the release - maybe that isn't true. Take this one as feedback rather than a bug report. The sizing matches the album list view screen, and in this view there are always multiple lines of text so it makes more sense.

- Quick settings integration: I think I'm just not the target audience and you shouldn't worry about my feedback here. I don't like the quick settings OS integration for apps that are playing media _on_ the actual device. I understand its appeal even less for an app that is a remote for another device entirely. The OS is definitely confused about this scenario and some of the functionality it is trying to expose doesn't make sense (offering volume controls for the phone for a remote that operates a remote system, for instance.)

Anyway, I hope any of the feedback is useful and thanks again for the time and effort of this whole project!

[syncd]

Ok, i see what you refer to about the text alignment. The thing is, it was designed to show 2 lines of text: the artist's name and the genre (to fill up the space otherwise it looks too empty). You don't have your library updated with all the information, so it doesn't appear, which looks odd indeed.

For reference, this is what it looks like with a filled music library:



Regarding the quick settings integration, your opinion is registered. In the near future we might take another look at it and consider whether it should be optional.

[egrueda]

Hi! Have detected some problems with the layout in movies area.
Large titles and/or slogans overlap each other, also happens with "votes" and "generes" area.
Please see attached screenshots

[esefix]

Thanks for this update, I do not have bugs but I have two little comments

First, with a clear theme, readability is not easy in the list of films or series because everything is on the same white background, it would be good to put the text next to the poster in a separate box from the background.

Secondly, there is no longer an option to hide the buttons in the description of a movie or an episode "Downloads" and "Streaming" and to have "start playing" instead.

Apart from these two small points, very good work and thank you for this wonderful little application which does exactly what it should do.

My phone is a Nokia 5.3 running Android 11.