[Xiaomi Mi Max Guides, News, & Discussion] E90 Commie:
Time to get this sorted out. Let's establish a few facts first:

1. The AOSP apps are old and outdated so they are going to be replaced.

2. We are talking about preinstalled "stock" apps in the ROM, i.e. which Calendar, Contacts and Email client that are to be preinstalled.

3. Shipping a ROM without any of them preinstalled is not an option.

4. The question asked here is which of those "preinstalled" apps the ROM should contain - i.e. we are NOT talking about what G-Apps package there should be but what "default" apps there should be for Calendar, Contacts et al.

5. AOSP apps or pico/nano G-Apps is not a valid answer since the first ones are outdated, the second one would leave the ROM without certain base apps installed - so again, not relevant here.

The alternatives under consideration are:

1. G-Apps

The Google Calendar, Contacts et al instead of the AOSP apps.

2. BlackBerry apps

This would mean BB Calendar, Contacts and Hub etc. Perhaps even Productivity Tab. Those apps are well designed, high quality with decent functionality and follow the Material Design guidelines. They are easy to evaluate here:

https://cobalt232.github.io/blackberrymanager/

Just download BB Manager and install them.

They are excellent replacements for AOSP apps.

3. Sony apps

This is another option, i.e. AOSP apps replaced by different Sony apps. Those are also well designed and fit the Material Design language. The most important ones to consider here are Album and Music - they are the best apps of Sony with great UI design and feature set, especially image and video editing and so on.

Different Sony apps can be evaluated here:

https://xdaforums.com/crossdevice-dev/sony-themes-apps/mod-port-pexomod-xperia-features-apps-t3315781

PexoMod is really great and also provide Play Store updates (I have been using this on both my Max and Xperia Z Ultra).

Modded APKs are available here:

https://xdaforums.com/crossdevice-dev/sony-themes-apps/app-xperia-app-stock-rom-t3263403

The general XDA section for Sony apps:

https://xdaforums.com/crossdevice-dev/sony-themes-apps

Why those choices?

Most important reason: They run well on the ROM.

Those apps can run without the need of framework modification, unlike some other OEM apps. This is also the reason why the selection has been narrowed down to those packages, beside their overall quality and usability.

Why not include [insert whatever app from Play Store]?

Because those apps are replacements for the AOSP apps and it is just undoable to accommodate different requests (can't compile 100 different ROMs for each user). It is also a benefit if the apps are available through XDA rather than requiring APK extraction from Play Store or APK Mirror for bundling.

I don't use X so don't include it!

Again, 100 different ROMs for 100 different users are simply undoable. It sounds harsh but it is a fact. It is also time to end this sense of entitlement, i.e. that everything can be adjusted to the I, Me and Mine and that what *I* want is "more important" than anything else (the problem arise when there are more than one *I* in the equation).

Prerequisites for app proposals

If there are proposals to include other apps, kindly observe the following prerequisites then:

I. The app should be available on XDA (i.e. Play Store won't do).

II. The app should follow some kind of theme (i.e. calendar and contacts from the same source, i.e. not one app from one place with one UI and another from another place with a different UI). Coherent design, please.

III. Provide some kind of explanation more than "because I use it" (people use different apps...).

Good luck and let's see where this leads us.

Happy voting!