Disappointed with AgileBits handling of Android

nesl247

This is in reference to the tweets coming from

https://twitter.com/nesl247/status/684926800359743488.

AgileBits,

I think it's pretty obviously to most people here on the forums that the Android app, and even the Windows app, but we'll stick mostly to Android for these purposes, have been left in the dust.

Material Design came about in late 2014, yet you guys missed the boat. In April 2014, the S5 was released with a fingerprint reader, and yet you guys missed the boat (LastPass added support the same month). Nexus devices now have fingerprint readers, and yet again you guys missed the boat. In October 2015 you guys mentioned the move to finally replacing Agile Keychain with OPVault as the default, and yet you guys still have no support in the Android app. In May 2013, Google added beta testing to the Play store, and yet you guys are still the only app I use that doesn't use it, aka, you missed the boat once more.

It is abundantly clear that you guys haven't put forth the needed attention, if any at all, to the Android app. On top of the fact that the app is missing all of the above, you guys are absolutely horrendous when it comes to letting your customers know about what is going on with the app. People have been requesting these features since at least early 2015, if not 2014, and yet, most posts simply state it's coming, but no estimates, no explanations as to why it hasn't come yet, nothing. I completely understand not giving release dates, but you guys don't talk about the features, you don't state why they aren't here yet, we don't get screenshots, nothing.

For me, the saving grace is the Mac app, which by the way receives beta updates almost every other day. If it weren't for how wonderfully the Mac app worked, I'd have found a replacement a long time ago. I switched from LastPass to 1Password because it worked so much better, but that definitely only applies to the Mac app. Any other platform is extremely sub-par compared to it.

I think it's time for you guys to realize you have other platforms, and that your customers (at least some of us) are extremely unhappy with the lack of communication, updates, etc.

Hopefully 2016 is the year AgileBits turns around, and gets it's Android act together.

P.S. For a company named AgileBits, you guys are anything but when it comes to Android... I'm not try to be mean or anything, just found it kinda ironic.

nesl247

I'll also add in, look at the reviews (sorted by date, newest first) on the Android app. Every review says the same thing basically.

EnerJi

You can also add basic basic stuff like universal search on each screen to the list of features that have been promised for over a year...

Jeff Shiner

Hi @nesl247

Thank you for your post and your passion. You raise some very good points and I am going to try and address them in a fairly concrete way below.

You are correct that it has been a while since we've had a major update to 1Password for Android. 1Password 4.5 for Android introducing Wi-Fi sync and other features and improvements was back in July nearly half a year ago. You are also correct that Material Design and fingerprint support has been out there for quite a while. These are definitely features that we want to support as well.

So... what have we been working on?

We have been working quite hard for over a year on a significant update to 1Password for Android. This update will bring about the following major features. It will bring 1Password for Teams to Android, allowing you to add your team accounts and use any of your team or personal vaults right within 1Password for Android. It will feature an extensive Material Design overhaul of the UI including familiar elements such as the Navigation Drawer and Floating Action Button. It will also provide fingerprint unlock for devices supporting the Marshmallow fingerprint framework.

So... when will we release this?

We are very close to releasing this update in our beta channel. Let me be even more specific. We plan on releasing this update in our beta channel within the next 6 weeks. Frankly, I hope to release it in January but am giving myself a touch of leeway to be on the safe side.

So... how are we releasing this?

We are going to release this beta through the Google Play beta testing channel, removing our current dependence on HockeyApp.

I hope that helps :)

These features represent a tremendous amount of work, and in hindsight it may have been better to have split them up and released them in pieces, to be more "agile" if you will. Certainly after this release is out we expect to have faster, if smaller, release cycles to speed new features along.

I hope this gives you some of the answers you were looking for, and some reassurance that we are indeed spending significant time and focus on Android. It is certainly a very important platform for us.

Thanks again for your feedback,

-Jeff Shiner, CEO AgileBits

nesl247

Hi @Jeff Shiner ,

Thank you very much for the response. It definitely goes a long way to repairing the relations to your Android customers, at least it does for myself.

I definitely think you guys should have split up the features rather than releasing them all at once. We would have seen constant progress that way, and not have gotten to this point. Even if you guys wanted to release a production release with everything at once, this would have been the perfect use case for the beta channel.

In my opinion, your post was definitely something I would put on the blog, obviously with some changes to not make it a reply to me. This post will probably be seen by a lot less people than a blog post would.

Anyways, thank you for taking the time to reply. I'm really looking forward to seeing how things change, and the new app of course.

TWong1200

Thanks for the update. How does one join the Google Play beta testing channel? Is there a link that you could share, please?

I'm super excited for this release.

ntimo

@Jeff Shiner I freaking out at the moment because of this news. I can't wait for the testing to begin. I wanted to thank you for taking the time and writing this. I really appreciate it.

saad

@TWong1200 Thanks for your interest in joining the Android beta. We have not made the transition to Google Play for our betas yet, but we plan to starting with the next beta update. When we make the switch, we will send out a newsletter to our beta users with the opt-in link to gain access to beta updates through Google Play. This makes it particularly important to sign up for our Android beta newsletter. You can do so by following this link:

https://agilebits.com/beta_signups/androidnewsletter.html

Let us know if you have any questions. :)

TWong1200

@saad thanks...I've tried to sign up multiple times but am not getting any confirmation emails. This is what I get after signing up with my email address.

You're almost done!

You should receive a confirmation email in the next few minutes. Please click the link within it to complete your signup.
Joining Our Android Beta Family

Thank you for joining our beta family. Please ensure you confirm your newsletter signup so you receive your invitation :)

Stanzilla

Awesome news, Jeff! Really looking forward to it!

saad

@TWong1200 I'm looking into it to see if your email is already registered. I'll keep you posted when I find out!

TWong1200

Thanks, @saad!

Fuego3048

Thank you very much @Jeff Shiner for taking the time to provide an update. Safe to say we're all excited to see (and use) everything your team has been working on.

AGAlumB

I definitely think you guys should have split up the features rather than releasing them all at once. We would have seen constant progress that way, and not have gotten to this point. Even if you guys wanted to release a production release with everything at once, this would have been the perfect use case for the beta channel.

@nesl247: I really appreciate this perspective, since this is something I can relate to personally. I know the team is as anxious to get a new version (whoa, whoa, whoa — beta first!) of 1Password for Android out to everyone after so much hard work, but at the same time it can sometimes feel like "While we're at it, let's do that too!" There's so much that we want to do with 1Password, and that can make it difficult to hold back and not do all of the things that you (and we!) want so badly. After all, you guys want a big update and so do we!

Everyone: Thanks for your patience and continued support. We're almost there. :)

dmacx

Thank you so much @Jeff Shiner for the very detailed update. I waited so long and requested features so early at this forum, that I can't wait to see it on my smartphone. And thank you very much to for leaving HockeyApp to switch to Google Play. HockeyApp was always a bad start for a new beta, because of it's UX and UI. Please add this news to your blog!

ntimo

@saad @Jeff Shiner Hello, will this update include OPVault Support for dropbox sync? Can't wait to test it and see how fingerprint unlocking will make my life easier ;)

AGAlumB

@ntimo: I'm not sure that OPVault will make it into the initial release. We wouldn't want to have to hold it back even longer.

@dmacx: I suspect we'll have an announcement when the time comes. Can't wait! :)

ntimo

@brenty ok, no problem. Iam fine with getting OPVault later. Because I think the convinents of fingerprint unlocking is well more improtant than OPVault. But how will it work. Will we have to enter the masterpassword at the first boot and 1PW than some kind of stores it securley in the ram or so to access it when ever the fingerprint api says that the fingerprint is the one from the owner?

AGAlumB

@ntimo: Thanks for understanding! OPVault is coming too, but I suspect that fingerprint and design additions will help fill that gap if necessary. I can't offer more specific details on this yet, but rest assured we'll be more than happy to satisfy your curiosity when it ships. ;)

saad

@ntimo OPVault will not be available in the first beta. It is something we are looking to add for a later release though. ;)

saad

@TWong1200 It looks like you're already registered for our Android beta newsletter. I'll send you a private message when we send out a new newsletter in the next few weeks to confirm you receive it. Thanks.

ntimo

@saad I registered 3 of my mail adresses just to be on the save side :dizzy:

saad

Hehe! Thanks for your dedication, we really appreciate it. :)

choochoosole

Will you guys allow us to sync passwords using other cloud services like google drive or onedrive in the new update? I'm fine using dropbox but I would prefer to use google drive

AGAlumB

@choochoosole: It's something we're considering, but (as I'm sure you can appreciate) that wouldn't be in the short term, as we're focused on the next major version. Thanks for letting us know you'd like additional sync options though! :)

choochoosole

ok, thanks for the response brenty! You guys are doing an excellent job and 1Password has been a godsend for me as I have almost 100 passwords. I like that you guys are active with users and don't leave us in the dark.

AGAlumB

@choochoosole: Thank you for the encouragement. We've been hard at work, but I am still sorry that thusfar our awesome 1Password for Android customers haven't been able to enjoy the results. We're so close! :chuffed:

revanmj

@saad could you check me too? I also recently tried to sign up but didn't receive any confirmation (but I don't remember if I haven't already done that in the past).

AGAlumB

@revanmj: Sorry for the trouble! Just shoot us an email at support+androidbeta@agilebits.com and we'll get that sorted out for you. Cheers! :)

BXIA

@brenty Can you please add me to the list too? I tried but just can't receive the confirmation email.

peri

Thanks @BXIA. We'll take a look at your email and get back to you. :)