Database Users

Confessions of a flasher...

I have Flashed my phone more times than calls made...

The good thing: You'd make a Good ALPHA tester....
The bad thing: Samsung will still not make you the first tester for Froyo

I have flashed more times than I get calls made AND received!

Got a good chuckle from this thread. Not gonna lie.
Sexy Vibrant featuring Sombionix 1.9.1, JAC's OC/UV, FFC installed

ELStiko said:
I have flashed more times than I get calls made AND received!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you live in your mother's basement?
Just kidding. ;-) so what's you favorite rom for the Vibrant, for; least bugs, most speed, no lag, and basic cool factor?
Sent from my SGH-T959 JI6 via XDA App

It's an addiction... Damn I'm addicted!
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

It seems like I flash or restore a new rom once or twice a week now. I thought I'd be able to drive Eugene's froyo rom for a while without flashing, but then he even came out with an update for it the next day with promises of more tweaks to come. Plus I really want to try that Bionix Fusion.

Yeah I'ma Have To Agree With This Thread...I Mostly Text People

12paq said:
Do you live in your mother's basement?
Just kidding. ;-) so what's you favorite rom for the Vibrant, for; least bugs, most speed, no lag, and basic cool factor?
Sent from my SGH-T959 JI6 via XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would be in a basement if i lived in a place with one.. .haha =P
My favorite ROMs are the Bionix ones. They are fast and very zippy.

I'm just glad there are not photos in here of the mental image the topic brought to mind.
Sent from my Samsung Vibrant using the XDA App and telekenisis.

kopykatkiller said:
I'm just glad there are not photos in here of the mental image the topic brought to mind.
Sent from my Samsung Vibrant using the XDA App and telekenisis.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're on a mobile phone developer forum, what other mental images could you possibly come up with?

Every time you flash a new rom, its like opening up a new present.
... of course you get the occasional coals...

I'm the self proclaimed soft brick king!

You experts seem to be the ones to ask. I want to do this. Bionix Fusion ROM. Just a few questions for clarity.
What backups should I do? I've done a clockwork backup, should I also do a titanium? Once I flash would I use titanium to restore things?
What am I going to lose? I thought I read somewhere that SIMS will disappear. If so, how do I deal with this?
Will my carrier unlock be undone? If it is, can I use the same unlock code I used when I unlocked the last time?
Any other gotchas I need to be aware of?

m509272 said:
You experts seem to be the ones to ask. I want to do this. Bionix Fusion ROM. Just a few questions for clarity.
What backups should I do? I've done a clockwork backup, should I also do a titanium? Once I flash would I use titanium to restore things?
What am I going to lose? I thought I read somewhere that SIMS will disappear. If so, how do I deal with this?
Will my carrier unlock be undone? If it is, can I use the same unlock code I used when I unlocked the last time?
Any other gotchas I need to be aware of?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Always do a back up with clockwork. This back up will put you back exactly where you were with apps and all.
When u flash a rom like this it will wipe all apps and settings, texts and calls and contacts. I use astro to back up the apps I want to keep. Settings are always better if u do them ur self. In my opinion new settings should be used for every rom flash. Contacts are an easy fix if you sync with Google. If not, there's a "back up contacts" option in the stock contacts app.
It does wipe Sims. You can use astro or myfiles to find the Sims data and apk and copy paste it to ur external sdcard and replace when u flash a new rom. I could be wrong here tho and u should do some research on the Sims subject.
Carrier unlock I have no idea about.
That's about it. Flashing roms have become clockwork(lol) to me.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using Tapatalk

m509272 said:
You experts seem to be the ones to ask. I want to do this. Bionix Fusion ROM. Just a few questions for clarity.
What backups should I do? I've done a clockwork backup, should I also do a titanium? Once I flash would I use titanium to restore things?
What am I going to lose? I thought I read somewhere that SIMS will disappear. If so, how do I deal with this?
Will my carrier unlock be undone? If it is, can I use the same unlock code I used when I unlocked the last time?
Any other gotchas I need to be aware of?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No it does not lock the phone, and the codes are always the same for the device, but you still can use the same system to get them codes.

Do we need to start a support group? RFA...Rom Flashers Anonymous.
Hi my name is Ed and I am a rom flasher. I have had the Vibrant for about a month, which happens to be my first smartphone, and I have flashed just about everything in the development section. I am hopelessly hooked. If they keep making them...well, I'll keep flashing them.
Flash on my friends.

I'm having post dramatic flash withdrawals. I find myself waking in the middle of the night phone in hand in recovery mode. I've tried smoking eating drinking upgrading my old g1 but nothing helps.
I am an addict and if flashing is wrong then I don't wanna be right.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

So it's Nov. and I still have no OTA update.

I got this phone in early Sept. Running it completely stock except using Launcher Pro Plus. Haven't rooted it because it's hardware locked. I read that all the customers will get the update by the end of October. Am I the only one that hasn't received their update officially over the air? Should I just wait a couple more days?
I just tried dialing *#*#8736364#*#* to start software update and just got connecting to DM something in notification bar. That went away after a couple mins. and tried start software update again. Got the same results.

I would wait a few days and if by Nov 1st you don't get the update then you can call your carrier and ask them to force it to your phone.
Or you could just do it manually, which honestly I suggest, because I just like many others , got a soft brick when I installed the update over the air.
You can use the software that Samsung put out, Mini Klies , to apply the update.
here's the link: http://ars.samsung.com/customer/usa...ID=2&PROD_SUB_ID=557&PROD_ID=560&AT_ID=341559

I encountered a strange issue updating through mini kies. All went well, and my phone was running sluggishly so I did a reset and my build number went back to'eclair' but my baseband stayed ji6. I odin'd back to stock and I might just wait for the ota
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

I guess I can wait a couple more days. I waited this long. I'm just afraid of anything negative happening. My vibrant is hardware locked, so I'm scared to do anything to it. If the official OTA update messes me up, can I do anything to fix it, or get a new phone or anything?

burntrat said:
I guess I can wait a couple more days. I waited this long. I'm just afraid of anything negative happening. My vibrant is hardware locked, so I'm scared to do anything to it. If the official OTA update messes me up, can I do anything to fix it, or get a new phone or anything?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Honestly, if you want to take an hour or two to read up on it, it's really easy to get rid of the hardware lock by flashing a fix through Odin. Yeah, it's daunting at first, but I took the plunge and now I'm a ROM-flashing whore. You probably don't need to read that much, but I did just because of my cautious nature. There's a thread in the Development forum with the fix and instructions.
My take is that it's far more likely the OTA will mess you up than using Odin (use v1.3!). Once you remove the lock, it's *almost* impossible to brick this bad boy.

connect with KIES braa

fudo jay said:
connect with KIES braa
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Where can I connected with the "bra"?

Kubernetes said:
Honestly, if you want to take an hour or two to read up on it, it's really easy to get rid of the hardware lock by flashing a fix through Odin. Yeah, it's daunting at first, but I took the plunge and now I'm a ROM-flashing whore. You probably don't need to read that much, but I did just because of my cautious nature. There's a thread in the Development forum with the fix and instructions.
My take is that it's far more likely the OTA will mess you up than using Odin (use v1.3!). Once you remove the lock, it's *almost* impossible to brick this bad boy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I should look into that. I really don't look around too much. I just click on a few random threads here and there. Are the instructions simple? I know nothing about programming and this is my first smart phone.
Is this the correct thread?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=804305

burntrat said:
I should look into that. I really don't look around too much. I just click on a few random threads here and there. Are the instructions simple? I know nothing about programming and this is my first smart phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Heh, I came from an ancient Blackberry, if that makes you feel better.
But yeah, using Odin is stupid easy (but you need to be on Windows AFAIK). Just to give you a quick overview of what you'll need to do, you need to download
1) the Samsung phone drivers,
2) Odin 1.3,
3) the hardware lock fix, and
4) the Android SDK (just for adb, which is like a terminal program that you use to boot your phone into download or recovery mode; since a hardware locked phone can't get into download or recovery with the buttons, you use adb to force it to reboot into download or recovery).
Use adb to boot your Vibrant into download mode, drop the right file into Odin and go. There are actually good Youtube videos on using Odin too (can you tell I researched the crap out of this before risking it?).

PaiPiePia said:
Where can I connected with the "bra"?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
haha its "brahh"? but no really get Kies and connect ur phone and u ll get the update. nothing special about update really. its gay anyway. get bionix fusion. its the ****

fudo jay said:
haha its "brahh"? but no really get Kies and connect ur phone and u ll get the update. nothing special about update really. its gay anyway. get bionix fusion. its the ****
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is there a link or something? I need instructions that are meant for a child. That is how little I know about this stuff.

Updates
Are there supposed to be updates available to US t-mob vibrant customers or is this only for European customers?

moncapitane said:
Are there supposed to be updates available to US t-mob vibrant customers or is this only for European customers?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, there is supposed to be a minor update for US tmo vibrant owners. It just feels like I'm the only one that hasn't gotten it yet.

you don't want to update....makes swipe word predictions super retarded....doesn't samsung test this before sending it out????? WTF

burntrat said:
Haven't rooted it because it's hardware locked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you can't root a phone that's hardware locked???

momoe65 said:
you don't want to update....makes swipe word predictions super retarded....doesn't samsung test this before sending it out????? WTF
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do not agree; my swype keyboard works good after update...the swype mic could be better but hey what u gonna do.

momoe65 said:
you don't want to update....makes swipe word predictions super retarded....doesn't samsung test this before sending it out????? WTF
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really? That sucks, I use swype frequently.
m4r10 said:
you can't root a phone that's hardware locked???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am under the assumption that you can root, but if something goes wrong, you can't do anything to fix it. I was going to get a replacement with tmo, but heard this update will fix the hardware lock issue. I also didn't want to risk getting a refurb for my replacement phone.

vamp6x6x6x said:
I do not agree; my swype keyboard works good after update...the swype mic could be better but hey what u gonna do.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wait, what is swype mic? You can talk and it'll swype it for you?

burntrat said:
Wait, what is swype mic? You can talk and it'll swype it for you?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The update added a microphone button to the swype keyboard so now you can talk to text.

Yeah, it's coming up on the end of the month and I haven't gotten the update either. I'm not closed to using the Mini Kies update, however the last time I updated something from Kies, (READ: JI6) it really ****ed things up, so much so that I'm still feeling the effects. Will the Mini Kies update prevent me future updates like Froyo, or will I me married to Kies and unofficial updates and flashes?
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

Voodoo Advice

Voodoo bricked my phone twice. Fortunately I was able to fix it with Odin both times.
The first time I flashed a ROM and forgot to disable Voodoo. I was able to fix it in 15 minutes. Then last nite I was applying RYANZA's Voodoo and it fried my phone. I thought for sure I killed my Vibrant and after many ODIN attempts trying different approaches (including Eugene's Froyo that doesnt brick--which didnt work for me) I was able to resuscitate. I have the larger NAND chip.
For the noobs out there be very careful with Voodoo. Only use it if you are comfortable with ODIN and know what you're doing.
Also be very careful with RYANZA's Voodoo.
This is the Screenshot of RYANZA VOODOO!! Yes he has Voodoo (EXT4)

It sounds like you bricked your device, not voodoo

Tempestrs4 said:
It sounds like you bricked your device, not voodoo
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 on all lag fix say disable it b4 u do any thing. U cant blame it when u the 1 that mess it up and they event have a warning say they not reponsible if u brick ur fone. They do it for free
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

Ryan has a voodoo?
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

quest4fire said:
Voodoo bricked my phone twice. Fortunately I was able to fix it with Odin both times. Also be very careful with RYANZA's Voodoo.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Voodoo is not made by RYANZA! There are other people capable of writing lagfixes you know! Voodoo is made by Supercurio. His website is here: http://project-voodoo.org/ in case you didn't know. He allows anyone to freely use his software until they make themselves into a liability. <---This means YOU!
quest4fire said:
For the noobs out there be very careful with Voodoo. Only use it if you are comfortable with ODIN and know what you're doing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wouldn't call others noobs when you clearly appear to be one yourself.

kangxi said:
Ryan has a voodoo?
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, its in his OCLF app. Download the latest version and you will see it. That's why I tried it because I love Ryan's work.

One should always take caution when messing with black magic.

this is what happens when you don't know what you are doing...
Flashed countless ROMS with Voodoo and NEVER once bricked.. Maybe I just follow the instructions very well =P

quest4fire said:
Yes, its in his OCLF app. Download the latest version and you will see it. That's why I tried it because I love Ryan's work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well... what you're using it's clearly not voodoo.
I recommend you to read what epakrat75 posted and go to his website.

quest4fire said:
Yes, its in his OCLF app. Download the latest version and you will see it. That's why I tried it because I love Ryan's work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes. This is what I was hinting at. If you cannot tell the difference between the LagFixes you are doing, you don't need to be doing them.
VooDoo concerts /data to EXT4 and needs to be removed before you flash any new rom.
Ryan's OCLF creates a virtual EXT2 partition and it is safe to be flashed over and even backup.

kangxi said:
Yes. This is what I was hinting at. If you cannot tell the difference between the LagFixes you are doing, you don't need to be doing them.
VooDoo concerts /data to EXT4 and needs to be removed before you flash any new rom.
Ryan's OCLF creates a virtual EXT2 partition and it is safe to be flashed over and even backup.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
RYANZA has a new Lagfix that is EXT4 and it is Voodoo. You need to download his latest app and you will see it.

quest4fire said:
RYANZA has a new Lagfix that is EXT4 and it is Voodoo. You need to download his latest app and you will see it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
[citation needed]
Only OCLF on the market is 2.0 which is a binding mount version of the old symlinnk version.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=784691
It works very well with the larger NAND, and I'm using it now since getting Voodoo Beta4 to work with a larger NAND requires a few hoops to jump through.

Theres nothing wrong with voodoo, its the users vault. From the beginning it was told to disable voodoo to flash anything, people dont listen so end up messing their phones. Some more then others. Like you sir
Sent from my SGH-T959 using Tapatalk

Vibrant is not hack friendly. Alot of problems come from user error but hardware locks is horrible. This was the first phone I have ever bricked before. I started with smartphones with the Tmobile htc mda. I have every smartphone since that hit the market and I have never been so afraid to touch anything until I started with the Vibrant. And I have done some stupid things with my previous phones.
I understand the OP but I wouldnt put blame on the developers of the hacks/tweak etc and not all the blame on the user. Since joining forums like XDA I have never seen the term bricked used so much.

StefanB86 said:
Well... what you're using it's clearly not voodoo.
I recommend you to read what epakrat75 posted and go to his website.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ryanza OCLF doesnt have Voodoo? See the Pic!!

intruda119 said:
Vibrant is not hack friendly. Alot of problems come from user error but hardware locks is horrible. This was the first phone I have ever bricked before. I started with smartphones with the Tmobile htc mda. I have every smartphone since that hit the market and I have never been so afraid to touch anything until I started with the Vibrant. And I have done some stupid things with my previous phones.
I understand the OP but I wouldnt put blame on the developers of the hacks/tweak etc and not all the blame on the user. Since joining forums like XDA I have never seen the term bricked used so much.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im not blaming the Devs, Im just saying be careful, especially if you have the larger NAND chip which I have.
Your are right about the brick term. Its funny how people have short memories. I remember when the JI6 OTA came out recently and tons of people said they bricked their phones and it was because they forgot to disable Voodoo before applying OTA.

I like the z4mod much netter than voodoo. You have to be careful with that one as well.
Friends don't let friends flash drunk...

if you think that is what brick means, just curious. What do you call it when your phone is permanently inoperable?

intruda119 said:
Vibrant is not hack friendly. Alot of problems come from user error but hardware locks is horrible. This was the first phone I have ever bricked before. I started with smartphones with the Tmobile htc mda. I have every smartphone since that hit the market and I have never been so afraid to touch anything until I started with the Vibrant. And I have done some stupid things with my previous phones.
I understand the OP but I wouldnt put blame on the developers of the hacks/tweak etc and not all the blame on the user. Since joining forums like XDA I have never seen the term bricked used so much.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the vibrant is totally hack friendly as long as you dont have a hardware locked phone, everyone seems to be able to get odin to recognize the phone eventually and get everything working normally...
how about the g1 days, forget already? super easy to brick them and just getting root required going through enough steps i'd rather get kicked in the balls as hard as i could.

turbosix said:
the vibrant is totally hack friendly as long as you dont have a hardware locked phone, everyone seems to be able to get odin to recognize the phone eventually and get everything working normally...
how about the g1 days, forget already? super easy to brick them and just getting root required going through enough steps i'd rather get kicked in the balls as hard as i could.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
The vibrant is totally hack friendly. Even for hardware locked phones (because that's fixable). As long as you have some remote idea of what you are doing, its pretty hard to screw up.

EB13 Froyo - is that it for now?

I am just wondering if a newer official ROM looks like it might be released in March to address some of peoples' issues, or if I should just continue my research and preparation to flash what I assume is still available OTW although not OTA. Only thing really holding me back is the prep and the desire to hopefully not do anything riskier than necessary if something else is around the corner (I would do a total Samsung tool flash, by the way to hopefully start clean).

I can't speak for others, but flashing, and Odin, and roms and kernels use to scare the hell out of me. With that said, I used Odin and flashed a clean froyo, did the camera lag kernel fix and my phone is EXCELLENT now. Not a single thing wrong with it. Its fast, the GPS works, and now, I feel comfortable with ODIN.
Before, I was terrified to even start up odin, scared to even put my phone in download mode. Now, I've flashed to Froyo, messed that up, flashed back to Eclair, then flashed to Froyo again, and not a single hiccup along the way. For me, Froyo is worlds better than Eclair.

Thanks for the vote of confidence. Unfortunately the relationship of my Epic to my computer is like a woman's freaking menstrual cycle. I don't even know how I managed to root months ago and clockworkmod never even ended up on there and I have no idea why. So I have to really read, read read this place and do things very methodically before taking the leap. I just saw that there is supposedly yet another Froyo build on Sprint's site today but waiting for another may be pointless right now or close to it.

my last phone was a g1. i thought it was easy to load a custom rom on there, but the process for the epic is downright fool-proof.
you probably didn't get permanent root back on di18, but now they have a pre-rooted eb13 rom you can load through recovery after updating and using the same one click 2.5.5 method. nothing to fear!

v3rk said:
my last phone was a g1. i thought it was easy to load a custom rom on there, but the process for the epic is downright fool-proof.
you probably didn't get permanent root back on di18, but now they have a pre-rooted eb13 rom you can load through recovery after updating and using the same one click 2.5.5 method. nothing to fear!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I rooted, and am very grateful for the many benefits of it. However this involves much more than rooting--it involves data backup and restore, flashing, etc. so even if it's easier on Android phones than say that old ugly Windows Mobile, it still requires some skill and smarts. XDA is a heck of a tech crew though!

It appears to me that those who wiped everything and started fresh don't have problems. Those that tried to preserve their things are having issues.

dmanwithnoname said:
It appears to me that those who wiped everything and started fresh don't have problems. Those that tried to preserve their things are having issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What we have been trying to say is that ODIN or Heimdall is the way to go for changing OS's around. You can always get your contact data back through the OS. Your call data and SMS data is easy to get back with Backup to Gmail. Your programs are easily restored with Titanium Backup ($ version) or MyBackup Pro (just don't restore any system data).

Top Nurse said:
What we have been trying to say is that ODIN or Heimdall is the way to go for changing OS's around. You can always get your contact data back through the OS. Your call data and SMS data is easy to get back with Backup to Gmail. Your programs are easily restored with Titanium Backup ($ version) or MyBackup Pro (just don't restore any system data).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you please precisely define "system data" and why it shouldn't be restored? I use MyBackup Root and they claim that everything it backs up can be restored pretty much trouble free, even across different ROMs. I'd also like to use CWM and Nandroid (so all eggs aren't in one basket) but have to manage to get the things working first.

DroidApprentice said:
Thanks for the vote of confidence. Unfortunately the relationship of my Epic to my computer is like a woman's freaking menstrual cycle. I don't even know how I managed to root months ago and clockworkmod never even ended up on there and I have no idea why. So I have to really read, read read this place and do things very methodically before taking the leap. I just saw that there is supposedly yet another Froyo build on Sprint's site today but waiting for another may be pointless right now or close to it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"amen to that BROTHA!" lol
ehh things can be tricky at timkes, but they always seem to work out. unless you have a problem like this.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvosH8UZrWw

a system app is anything that you didnt install yourself. its all the apps in /system/app folder. if you download something from the market it gets saved to /data/app. hope that helps. btw is eb13 considered our official froyo? did they finish pushing it ota?

So, maybe some of us are just tired of the burnout from waiting for the now-"discontinued" Froyo. But is there any word on a possible "ECxx"? I'm almost afraid to ask, heheh.

@dog316
I agree froyo is great but im just woundering if your browser dosnt get the checker box when your trying to pinch to zoom. That's the only problem I have with it, but I think it kinda a big problem
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA Premium App

castro08 said:
@dog316
I agree froyo is great but im just woundering if your browser dosnt get the checker box when your trying to pinch to zoom. That's the only problem I have with it, but I think it kinda a big problem
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I am glad that I am not the only one to run across that problem. I thought that was an 'upgrade'. I am looking at several different browsers right now as most of the time I can't read the tiny type.
George

Yeah that's the only/biggest problem I have
And well have you tried dolphin brower?
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA Premium App

Yes - that is the one I like the best right now
George
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App

What's the big deal with odin. I flashed two epics at ones to eb13 on my 4 year old sony vaio its my workhores laptop I flash everthing with my sony, subaru ecus, hondas, phones, any thing I'm moding with custom FW hacks.
The only time it did not work for me was a asus p4c800-e dx mobo's front usb ports
Sent from my ComBadge..

To root or not to root?

Figured I would finally start a thread.
I've had my EVO for awhile now, 6-9 months. I love it. Initially when I bought it, I had every intention of rooting it, but after having used the native fw I'm not even sure it's necessary. What am I missing that rooting my EVO has to offer?

rrasco said:
Figured I would finally start a thread.
I've had my EVO for awhile now, 6-9 months. I love it. Initially when I bought it, I had every intention of rooting it, but after having used the native fw I'm not even sure it's necessary. What am I missing that rooting my EVO has to offer?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wen you root your phone you can flash custom roms free wifi theder you can overclock the CPU also you Dan download titanium backup and backup all your apps and app data. I would recommended rooting
Sent from my PC36100 using xda premium

Root. It's not a question, its a must. The benefits are endless
Sent from my PC36100 using xda premium

there is nothing wrong with stock, in fact you won't need to deal with a lot of the bugs and hiccups of custom ROMS.
However, there are many benefits of rooting. There is tethering (or pay for it), over/under clocking, battery saving features, AOSP ROMS (which in my mind make it worth while), and different sense versions to try. Rooting also helps optimize your phone. the amount you will learn is priceless. Everytime you flash a new ROM it is almost like getting a brand new phone.
If you don't like be rooted, you can easily unroot.

I rooted my Evo soon after getting it but I remained stock quite a while.
There are plenty of reasons to root even if you want to remain totally stock.
For me the reasons were:
- Occasional use of tethering. Never needed it enough to pay for it and I never used that much data.
- to back up my apps and all data.
- to remove apps that I did not want to prevent them from running. (Amazon MP3, Sprint Navigation, etc).
- to be able to integrate updates (to Maps, Gmail, Facebook) into the ROM using Titanium Backup. Saved space in the Data partition for other apps.
- Modify the hosts file to block some ads.
- etc...
When I decided to flash something I started with the kernel (to try SBC and then just to use HAVS).

The 'brick' warnings always made me edgy about doing it. Any recommended ROMs worth giving a shot? Would be nice to get a better swype-like keyboard, can't really think of anything else I 'need'.
I wouldn't use tethering either, I barely use my laptop as is and if I did I would get a verizon 4g LTE mifi since Sprint's 4g is a joke.

rrasco said:
The 'brick' warnings always made me edgy about doing it. Any recommended ROMs worth giving a shot? Would be nice to get a better swype-like keyboard, can't really think of anything else I 'need'.
I wouldn't use tethering either, I barely use my laptop as is and if I did I would get a verizon 4g LTE mifi since Sprint's 4g is a joke.
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U can still get a better keyboard without rooting. And the bricking part if anything goes wrong people here will gladly help you if you ask. Also if your not that type person who mess around with your phone just leave it be. You can always bring your phone back to factory stock if you need it too.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

I always thought bricked was unfix-able. Good to know. I'm a developer, so completely open to modding my phone, so long as there is added benefit.
Is there an easy way to move your current apps over to the new fw, or is that one of the caveats to having stock fw? SD data is untouched, I'm assuming?

I did it to get rid of Nova. That app gave me nightmaress.

Yes you can alwayz do a nondroid backup and if you brick you phone you can bring it back to your last backup.. right now I'm using team noctunals xplod e4g rom based of Sony experia working very well
Sent from my PC36100 using xda premium

Truballa4real7 said:
Yes you can alwayz do a nondroid backup and if you brick you phone you can bring it back to your last backup.. right now I'm using team noctunals xplod e4g rom based of Sony experia working very well
Sent from my PC36100 using xda premium
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You will not be able to restore a nandroid if you brick your phone. When the phone is truly bricked you can not get into the bootloader or recovery. The good news is it is very difficult to brick your Evo unless you really screw up. Just about the only way is to pull the battery while flashing the radio. Flashing a ROM is pretty safe. Even if you screw it up you can always get into the bootloader or recovery and reflash.

I suggest you don't, and if you do, make sure it's not from cyanogenmod.

Good Luck!!