Concept: battery widget
 

Since Maemo 5 supports desktop widgets I thought that one that would have a big battery icon would be really useful. For example you can quickly check how much battery life you have visually. I made a few mock-ups how it would look:

http://i28.tinypic.com/2colyev.jpg

Here are examples of various states:

http://i28.tinypic.com/154vyh0.jpg
http://i26.tinypic.com/204fm8.jpg
http://i32.tinypic.com/lgufq.jpg
http://i30.tinypic.com/efqbn9.jpg

I don't have much programming exprerience but I can make the graphics if someone decides to work more on this idea on the coding part.

Re: Concept: battery widget
 

Not saying this isn't a good idea because you can never have too many widgets, but there is a battery indicator in the status area already in the top left hand side of the screen. Also just so the graphic makes immediate sense you might want to add the little nipple at the end of the battery.

Re: Concept: battery widget
 

Yeah, but a larger battery meter would be very useful if you just take a quick glance on your phone, you can see the battery status much easier in my opinion.

Re: Concept: battery widget
 

An alternative would be to show the estimated number of hours one has left visually. This would enable you to follow this information without looking at the tooltip of the battery indicator. Of course, these could also be combined :)

Re: Concept: battery widget
 

Wouldn't this require some kind of programming to keep track of and calculate the remaining time based on average uptime?

Re: Concept: battery widget
 

Even if it does duplicate functionality, if it looks pretty and scratches someone's itch, all power to 'em.

Suggest the graphics look like something from: http://vector.tutsplus.com/illustrat...-battery-icon/ - indeed, since Maemo 5 supports semi-transparent widgets, you should be able to see some of your background through this style of icon.

Re: Concept: battery widget
 

Well, then how about this:
http://i28.tinypic.com/2vn19jq.jpg
I really want to kinda stick to the Maemo 5/Nokia style and not just copy Apple.

Re: Concept: battery widget
 

Will the widget have 'remaining time' display, maybe based the current power draw (if that information is available to the system) or preset database of power drain of the features in use (screen brightness, cellular, wifi, bt, gps).

Re: Concept: battery widget
 

joppu, that looks nice, and I like the idea of a large battery indicator - I'm sure that will be useful for some folks. I think it needs to be clear that it's a battery, so your second picture is better than the first, although I worry that the outline might be indistinct against a dark background.

Re: Concept: battery widget
 

Forgive my ignorance...

Is there support for python/ruby/perl scripting for widgets? A plugin 'wrapper' or something. If not, it would be GREAT to be able to rapidly prototype and roll out widgets.

(Yes, I know, perl is ugly, but it's light, easy to script, and %#*ing fast)

}8^)~