Database Users

I'm new to this rooting business, couple of questions.

First and foremost, I don't really need my Hero to do anything it doesn't already do. It's just, I'm very picky about aesthetics and I'm not a fan of the way the icons look on the stock ROM.
By the way I'm in the US with Sprint.
1. Do I have to root my Hero to change the theme/icons?
2. If I root my Hero can my phone become vulnerable to hackers? (Read this somewhere ... Had to do with SSH or something)
3. Will I be able to get rid of all the bundled apps like Nascar and NFL without rooting my Hero?
Thanks in advance.

Before you get all excited about rooting your phone, keep in mind, HTC should be releasing the Android 2.x early next year (as per online rumors ). If you really must have root access, tethering, or the removal of stock apps, then rooting is the way to go. The first and most important thing you must do is to install a recovery image (like RA-heroc-v1.5.2) and back up your current ROM via Nand.
1. there are some apps (at home) in the marketplace that'll allow you to change the theme and icons without rooting your phone.
2. Unless your phone is constantly connected to something like telnet (highly unlikely), you shouldn't get hacked. If you're worried, just turn off your 3G and leave your phone offline when not in use.
3. To get rid of Sprint apps, your phone will have to be rooted.
Btw, I have a GSM Hero, so there are numerous differences on what you'll get/not get on your CDMA Hero.
Go to the CDMA section and read, read, read. Don't take shortcuts, you need to be 100% sure of what you're about to do. Remember, there is a possibility that you can brick your expensive phone.
Also, read the What Can I Do With Root - INFO.

Didn't really get the telnet reference. I just want to know ... Does rooting the Hero make it easier for people to maliciously obtain personal info from the device?
If so ... Is there a step in the rooting process that prevents this? If i recall correctly, jailbroken iPhones became vulnerable to said exploits. Why would it be any different with the Hero?

i dont think so.. if you dont pay attention to the apps you download then you might get fooled.. you know.. you download a game and it asks to be allowed to view your contacts..

akin_t said:
If so ... Is there a step in the rooting process that prevents this? If i recall correctly, jailbroken iPhones became vulnerable to said exploits. Why would it be any different with the Hero?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
why would it be different? these security mechanisms were not implemented just for fun...
nevertheless you can also execute malicious apps without root. in fact i'd think that there are more approaches out there that don't need root, as they have the broader "audience".
but honestly: if you don't know what you are doing don't do it. it seems to me that you don't have a clue what rooting means, so IMHO you should read up on that topic a little more. this is not meant to sound condescending or anything, this is just a warning that you most likely will crash a few times if you dive into it head first.

Very, very true.
Don't risk making that phone of yours an expensive piece of paper-weight.
There's already loads of threads that explain the rooting process and benefits throughout this forum.

kendong2 said:
why would it be different? these security mechanisms were not implemented just for fun...
nevertheless you can also execute malicious apps without root. in fact i'd think that there are more approaches out there that don't need root, as they have the broader "audience".
but honestly: if you don't know what you are doing don't do it. it seems to me that you don't have a clue what rooting means, so IMHO you should read up on that topic a little more. this is not meant to sound condescending or anything, this is just a warning that you most likely will crash a few times if you dive into it head first.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh I know what it means now, matter of fact I rooted it the other night. Read up on it and still don't understand why HTC/Sprint would deny users access to the root folder but yeah, not a problem for me anymore.

To root or not to root?

I know most people are gonna tell me I should root my phone, but just hear me out really quickly...
I just got my Samsung Vibrant and I truly love the phone. It's a huge upgrade from my G1 in pretty much every way I can think of. I had my G1 rooted since like the second week I had it. I started off with JesusFreke's ROMs and then made my way to Cyanogen's ROMs with a few others that I tried here and there. I tried a bunch of different themes and I used quite a few root apps. I know my way around the rooted Android scene (or at least the rooted G1 scene) pretty well, but I'm not entirely sure if I want to root my Vibrant and here's why:
I'm afraid of voiding my warranty.
There's not really anything that I want to do with the phone that it can't already do (for example, it has plenty of space for apps without the need for A2SD).
I don't want to risk losing things like my text messages over and over again from switching to different ROMs (this happened to me quite a bit with my G1).
My G1's battery and overall performance were much much worse than my friends' G1s which were not rooted. I don't want this happening with my Vibrant.
Some people will think that these reasons are either unimportant or nonexistent, but I disagree. Again, before people start saying "these are the risks of rooting, deal with it or leave," I want to stress that I'm not a newbie at this.
Anyway, the main reason that I DO want to root the phone, regardless of the fact that I told myself I wouldn't, is because of all this junkware that T-Mobile preinstalled the phone. I didn't know the phone came with this crap (like GoGo, TeleNav GPS, Slacker, etc.). We all know that you can't remove this stuff without rooting...I've counted 11 apps that I want to remove from the phone because they're effectively advertisements and I don't want them. So before I make a decision, I'd like to ask some questions...
Would you root the phone if you were ME?
Is it possible to root the Vibrant, remove the apps, and then unroot it, thus leaving the apps gone?
If not ^^, then is it possible to root the Vibrant and keep the stock ROM? I really don't want any custom ROMs...I just want to remove the junkware.
I'm sorry if similar questions have been asked before, but I feel like my specific needs and concerns probably aren't shared by most of the XDA community so I created my own post...
Thanks,
Gerard

actually I think what most are going to say is search the forum... There are several threads on the topic.
You don't have to add any roms if you're rooted. Yes you can remove the bloatware with root. Yes its easy to take your phone out of root, but with the bloatware missing its not hard to see that you have had root at one point.

I actually did root my phone just to remove the junkware....and then used titanium backup to remove what I didn't want....it took me 3 mins to root compared to the 15 mins it took for my nexus....i say its worth it....you can't even tell its rooted so I'm pretty sure the warehouse will never catch it if a exchange is ever needed.....you ll personally make up ur mind as soon as u see the cyanogen 2.2 rom come out hopefully that will be soon....I SAY GO FOR IT
Sent from my Samsung™ Vibrant using XDA App

I'm not bothering to root while I can still return the phone (1st 30 days) and not all the HW issues are know. Once a decent custom ROM is available I'll start looking into rooting, customer recovery, etc. The only thing I'm missing a bit from not being rooted is my Wifi tethering...

Thanks for the replies, guys (and/or girl(s) it looks like lol). I'm glad I wasn't destroyed by people telling me to search the forums...
I'll probably end up doing root sooner or later with very few modifications (if any). I'll wait it out a bit, though. My questions have been answered.
Thanks again!
Gerard

[Q] Why should I root my Atrix? Request feedback from people with a rooted Atrix

As my question implies, can anyone break it down for me as to why it is a good move to root my phone? I'm on AT&T right now, with ADW EX home launcher. I'm happy with the overall speed. Can you list out some advantages of rooting? I'm not looking for the general reasons to root, I want reasons SPECIFIC to the Atrix on AT&T. Sideloading and Amazon app store are the only two reasons I have so far. What is the advantage in terms of battery life, speed, stability, overheating etc? What about compatibility with future motorola updates? Thanks!

sideloading and amazon app pretty much sums it up for now, and the ability to install psuedo roms like gingerblur and Gladiatrix
Oh. that brings me to the second point, rooting lets you remove bloat apps and install apps that need root, like this new app I'm trying called LBE Security Service.
Later on, when custom roms and kernels are made, you'll have to have Superuser access (root) before you can access those parts of the data.
Advantages in terms of battery life, speed, stability etc? It depends on the rom you load. Some roms may boast extended battery life/speed and if you install those, you would have those extra features. For now, since we have nothing of that sort, you will remain stock with root, but you'll be ready if/when something comes out.
Last word, I say root it. It lets you customize your android experience. You can install new fonts, remove that ATT bloatware, and you can sideload (try out betas, etc)
(Oops, real last word)
Compatibility with future updates? You'll probably have to flash with SBF to update from now on instead of OTA, but thats a preference anyway. In the end, you will be able to update fine, so don't worry about it. Though if you are lazy to do research and actually invest time into your phone, I say don't root it because theres no point. If you want to experience android in its fullest and customize as much as you can, ROOT is the only way.
Hope I hoped.

Rooting Advantages:
-Sideloading
-P-ROMS (basically an enhanced theme)
-Custom Themes
-Custom Apps such as Applanet(best app you'll ever come across)
-Battery life is extended a bit, nothing drastic though
-Speed seems be a bit better, nothing greatly drastic
-The heat production is pretty much the same
-Memory does free up a bit more (mostly in the P-ROMS)
-Bloatware removed (lots of useless ****)
Disadvantage
-issues with P-ROMS, sometimes when installing they work properly and sometimes they don't.
-Root access sometimes lost if unused for a long period of time.
I'd say wait until the bootloader either gets hacked or bypassed because you'll save yourself tons of heartache.

Mafisometal said:
-Root access sometimes lost if unused for a long period of time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I never heard that!
Well About root, you can make your phone really yours adding new features or customizing everything you want: You can add support for Cisco VPNs, enable hotspot and sideloading, change the clock speed of your phone processor, and so on!

chaitu45 said:
As my question implies, can anyone break it down for me as to why it is a good move to root my phone? I'm on AT&T right now, with ADW EX home launcher. I'm happy with the overall speed. Can you list out some advantages of rooting? I'm not looking for the general reasons to root, I want reasons SPECIFIC to the Atrix on AT&T. Sideloading and Amazon app store are the only two reasons I have so far. What is the advantage in terms of battery life, speed, stability, overheating etc? What about compatibility with future motorola updates? Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dont. No reason for you to root.

If you haft to ask a question like this than dont

Mafisometal said:
Rooting Advantages:
-P-ROMS (basically an enhanced theme)
-Custom Apps such as Applanet(best app you'll ever come across)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
*P-roms are not just enhanced themes. They include tweaks and mods in them.
*Applanet promotes piracy and hurts the developers communities. Promoting it in XDA is prohibited by the way.

Mafisometal said:
Rooting Advantages:
-Sideloading
-P-ROMS (basically an enhanced theme)
-Custom Themes
-Custom Apps such as Applanet(best app you'll ever come across)
-Battery life is extended a bit, nothing drastic though
-Speed seems be a bit better, nothing greatly drastic
-The heat production is pretty much the same
-Memory does free up a bit more (mostly in the P-ROMS)
-Bloatware removed (lots of useless ****)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Reported for promoting theft (Applanet)
Sent from WinBorg 4G via XDA premium app

CaelanT said:
Reported for promoting theft (Applanet)
Sent from WinBorg 4G via XDA premium app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Childish.
While I don't agree with people using App Planet and ripping of developers, he never said "download app planet and get all those awesome apps for free" or "you can steal em!"
He answered the guys question based on his beliefs and not ours. You can not fault him for telling the truth as he sees it.

DarrellRaines said:
Childish.
While I don't agree with people using App Planet and ripping of developers, he never said "download app planet and get all those awesome apps for free" or "you can steal em!"
He answered the guys question based on his beliefs and not ours. You can not fault him for telling the truth as he sees it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"(best app you'll ever come across)" is more than just a recommendation.
Why you think he told the OP applanet is the best he will ever come across? What is it applanet has to be that? think about it and be logical.

CyberPunk7t9 said:
"(best app you'll ever come across)" is more than just a recommendation.
Why you think he told the OP applanet is the best he will ever come across? What is it applanet has to be that? think about it and be logical.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have thought about it. The OP asked a question and to the person who answered, he answered honestly and told him what he thought.
Remember, our right is sometimes someone elses wrong, and vice versa. It all depends on perspective.
He may have said applanet, but he never said download it. All I am saying is it was childish for him to be reported for mentioning the app and that he uses it. It would be much the same as someone admitting the downloaded mp3s from a torrent site. Just because someone mentions one, it does not mean he is telling people to go to that site and download music he has not paid for and has no legal right to do it.
Besides are we not on a website that has software dedicated to screwing over our carriers and voiding our agreements with the carriers? You can not call foul on one person and not the others.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

DarrellRaines said:
I have thought about it. The OP asked a question and to the person who answered, he answered honestly and told him what he thought.
Remember, our right is sometimes someone elses wrong, and vice versa. It all depends on perspective.
He may have said applanet, but he never said download it. All I am saying is it was childish for him to be reported for mentioning the app and that he uses it. It would be much the same as someone admitting the downloaded mp3s from a torrent site. Just because someone mentions one, it does not mean he is telling people to go to that site and download music he has not paid for and has no legal right to do it.
Besides are we not on a website that has software dedicated to screwing over our carriers and voiding our agreements with the carriers? You can not call foul on one person and not the others.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with what you're saying on the general level and not just specifically our topic here.
All what we're saying plain and simple.. XDA does not allow warez/applanet topics.
You can find many closed topics like this one:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1022363
This could have been avoided. OP's questions were about rooting. Applanet does not even require it.

CyberPunk7t9 said:
I agree with what you're saying on the general level and not just specifically our topic here.
All what we're saying plain and simple.. XDA does not allow warez/applanet topics.
You can find many closed topics like this one:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1022363
This could have been avoided. OP's questions were about rooting. Applanet does not even require it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh I know it's against the rules and I have a huge problem with people not paying for their apps.
I am just not a big fan of the pot calling the kettle black. Technically using pdanet or any of the free tethers to bypass our carriers system is the same as screwing a good developer out of money.
The fact that we will report someone for mentioning applanet while many still do other methods to screw someone over, well it seems childish. Maybe I should just shut up and move on, but then I would feel wrong for not saying something.
However on topic, if you don't know why you should root, then you shouldn't consider it. Rooting will not make your experience with your phone any better or worse. It just allows you to install a few apps such as the amazon store and those found here on XDA on your phone. Technically you can do more with it, but the pros do not often out weigh the cons. Unless you have a need, don't bother with rooting.

xredjokerx said:
sideloading and amazon app pretty much sums it up for now, and the ability to install psuedo roms like gingerblur and Gladiatrix
Oh. that brings me to the second point, rooting lets you remove bloat apps and install apps that need root, like this new app I'm trying called LBE Security Service.
Later on, when custom roms and kernels are made, you'll have to have Superuser access (root) before you can access those parts of the data.
Advantages in terms of battery life, speed, stability etc? It depends on the rom you load. Some roms may boast extended battery life/speed and if you install those, you would have those extra features. For now, since we have nothing of that sort, you will remain stock with root, but you'll be ready if/when something comes out.
Last word, I say root it. It lets you customize your android experience. You can install new fonts, remove that ATT bloatware, and you can sideload (try out betas, etc)
(Oops, real last word)
Compatibility with future updates? You'll probably have to flash with SBF to update from now on instead of OTA, but thats a preference anyway. In the end, you will be able to update fine, so don't worry about it. Though if you are lazy to do research and actually invest time into your phone, I say don't root it because theres no point. If you want to experience android in its fullest and customize as much as you can, ROOT is the only way.
Hope I hoped.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for the informative and thorough response. I'm an avid Android user since 1.5 and have rooted older Android phones many times. My intention with asking this question was to understand if the Atrix truly benefits from rooting or are users rooting it for bragging rights. The troubles I've faced with custom ROMs for previous android devices were many, ranging from innumerable patches and add-ons to multiple FCs regularly. Since the Atrix is my primary phone I would prefer stability in a custom ROM as opposed to features which I won't end up using often like HDMI mirroring (this is a personal opinion, i'm sure other users have other requirements).

chaitu45 said:
Thank you for the informative and thorough response. I'm an avid Android user since 1.5 and have rooted older Android phones many times. My intention with asking this question was to understand if the Atrix truly benefits from rooting or are users rooting it for bragging rights. The troubles I've faced with custom ROMs for previous android devices were many, ranging from innumerable patches and add-ons to multiple FCs regularly. Since the Atrix is my primary phone I would prefer stability in a custom ROM as opposed to features which I won't end up using often like HDMI mirroring (this is a personal opinion, i'm sure other users have other requirements).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IMO a custom ROM is not necessary. Stock Atrix + root + one of the launchers is more than enough. My phone is rooted so that I can enable sideloading/Amazon app store and also for Titanium backup to backup everything. The other 'fun' stuff like hdmi mirroring, hulu, etc are ok but not must haves.
edit: root also so I can put my ringtones in /system/media/audio/ringtones and not lose ringtone assignments every time the phone sdcard and sdcard-ext unmounts/mounts.

You do not need to have root permissions to remove ATT bloatware. With latest OTA, they removed root requirement to uninstall their software, but they haven't done anything to allow us side-loading. I hope that this will be addressed in the next OTA.

I am a new android user (Atrix first Android phone) and I have enjoyed the rooting experience. Root explorer is worth the price of admission imho and the other day I had a problem that I couldn't fix without a rooted phone. (now using autostarts to prevent music on my device playing automatically when the phone connects to my truck via bt). And I like the control I have over my phone since it is rooted (freezing apps, etc).
In regards to updates how hard it is depends on how you mod your phone. If you do the webtop hack you will have to put the oem files back prior to updating. If you have apps frozen I believe you need to thaw them. Other than that it is just a matter of preserving root (which means about 5 minutes using adb to hide root and then after you update restoring it; no big deal)

chaitu45 said:
As my question implies, can anyone break it down for me as to why it is a good move to root my phone? I'm on AT&T right now, with ADW EX home launcher. I'm happy with the overall speed. Can you list out some advantages of rooting? I'm not looking for the general reasons to root, I want reasons SPECIFIC to the Atrix on AT&T. Sideloading and Amazon app store are the only two reasons I have so far. What is the advantage in terms of battery life, speed, stability, overheating etc? What about compatibility with future motorola updates? Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Control. You do not have it ATM. Rooting is exactly that, the most possible control you can gain over the phone, software wise.

#1 reason I rooted my atrix is simply to add a custom rom onto it. I don't like the look of the stock motoblur so I got rid of it asap.
i'm sure there are tons of reasons to root the phone but if you're afraid to do it because you might brick your phone or something there's a lot of tutorials that will guide you step-by-step on how to do it. I actually made a tutorial myself.
that's for the actual rooting process and if you need to downgrade your phone here's the other part of it. doing a fresh SBF Flash.

ok i'm not sure why my youtube links came out like that and i'm not sure how to fix it either any help from anybody?

[Q] Pro's/Con's of ROM/Root < Newbie!

Hi Guys.
I have recentally swapped from my iPhone 4 to the Nexus 4. After Jail Breaking my iPhone and it messing it up bigtime, I always said I would not make any chnages to phone since.
Now I have my Nexus 4 I am ever so tempted to Root and ROM this phone due to increasing the battery life.
I am juts worried this will cause the same effect as Jail breaking e.g. Random turning off, and in General just a novelty and for bragging rights with no real purpose.
Questions -
1. Rom/Roots void warrenty are you able to undo this so if my phone breaks I would be able to get a replacment under warrenty?
2. As I only use my phone for normal use e.g. Internet, Facebook would their be any advantages getting it appart from battery (as it is currently poor)
3. I was tyhinking of getting ParanoidAndraid, how would this make my phone experiance better?
Cheers!

hellohappy22 said:
Hi Guys.
I have recentally swapped from my iPhone 4 to the Nexus 4. After Jail Breaking my iPhone and it messing it up bigtime, I always said I would not make any chnages to phone since.
Now I have my Nexus 4 I am ever so tempted to Root and ROM this phone due to increasing the battery life.
I am juts worried this will cause the same effect as Jail breaking e.g. Random turning off, and in General just a novelty and for bragging rights with no real purpose.
Questions -
1. Rom/Roots void warrenty are you able to undo this so if my phone breaks I would be able to get a replacment under warrenty?
2. As I only use my phone for normal use e.g. Internet, Facebook would their be any advantages getting it appart from battery (as it is currently poor)
3. I was tyhinking of getting ParanoidAndraid, how would this make my phone experiance better?
Cheers!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
first of all you posted it in the wrong thread. hehe.
1. you can undo this by removing root and relocking your bootloader. (I thing flashing a unmodified/original stock ROM will do the trick.)
2. Facebook app is a battery eater. Its better to use the web version. keep your brightness at the lowest if possible. turn off your data connection if you're not using it. other than that... that's the only thing I can suggest. download Juice Defender maybe?
3. There's a lot of customization that only ParanoidAndroid offers which the Stock ROM doesn't.

Android is already jailbroken, you can sideload apps simply by enabling a setting. Be aware, by doing this you open yourself up to Malware and all sorts of other potential nasties, unless you TOTALLY trust the source of the file you are installing. This is of course no different to iphone, where Cydia also has malicious content hosted on it (the press of course never talk about that problem).
Firstly, to do anything, you will need to unlock the bootloader, this will wipe the device, so it's best to do this before you load stuff on. From that point on, you can root the device, or load custom ROMS
I wouldn't personally bother with custom roms. None of them will ever be as stable as the official releases, and because it's a Nexus, none of them really offer any real advantages (most claim all sorts of unsubstantiated claims however, but ask the question - if it's so good, why aren't Google already doing these things....)

ijustzeke said:
first of all you posted it in the wrong thread. hehe.
1. you can undo this by removing root and relocking your bootloader. (I thing flashing a unmodified/original stock ROM will do the trick.)
2. Facebook app is a battery eater. Its better to use the web version. keep your brightness at the lowest if possible. turn off your data connection if you're not using it. other than that... that's the only thing I can suggest. download Juice Defender maybe?
3. There's a lot of customization that only ParanoidAndroid offers which the Stock ROM doesn't.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow! Cheers! I only have 250mb on my contract so have to be so careful, dose it really use more on the app rather than online? Also is it the same with twitter?

CrazyPeter said:
Android is already jailbroken, you can sideload apps simply by enabling a setting. Be aware, by doing this you open yourself up to Malware and all sorts of other potential nasties, unless you TOTALLY trust the source of the file you are installing. This is of course no different to iphone, where Cydia also has malicious content hosted on it (the press of course never talk about that problem).
Firstly, to do anything, you will need to unlock the bootloader, this will wipe the device, so it's best to do this before you load stuff on. From that point on, you can root the device, or load custom ROMS
I wouldn't personally bother with custom roms. None of them will ever be as stable as the official releases, and because it's a Nexus, none of them really offer any real advantages (most claim all sorts of unsubstantiated claims however, but ask the question - if it's so good, why aren't Google already doing these things....)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay, if its not worth loading ROM's sound I unlock the bootloader though? or if you dont load ROMs is there no point?
Just waiting for my Case to come now so I am able to take it outside!

Is rooting the S5 recommended this early on?

Samsung is a new device. Running 4.4.2 KikKat and having the best mobile processor in the market meaning that most (if not all) of you will exploit this bad boy in many different ways. The most popular way is obviously gonna be rooting.
Now, im fairly new to rooting. (Having only rooted my v2.1 Galaxy S Vibrant) Meaning I have no idea (or experience for that matter) in rooting new phones.
Most of you know that Sammy implanted new Knox security, and rooting an S5 early on will void it's warranty.
My question is: Is it recommended to root an S5? Aside from the cancelation of the warranty will the phone suffer any other consequences? And lastly, are there any actual mods that will make rooting an S5 beneficial? Or are all the mods just aesthetical?

Difficult question to answer imho. I'm no leet phone user or maybe not the best person to ask, but I rooted because of droidwall, xposed network and xprivacy (basically because I want a access to iptables and decide which items can use which data, etc. I also like to customise and freeze unwanted stuff in titanium backup. But if the positive side supersedes the negative side I don't know. Must be up to you to decide. If you are into to protect your own privacy policy root is must. Cheers
Sent from my SM-G900F using xda app-developers app

Im also not leet phone user or anything but to answer your question about if there is any useful mods...
well firstly if you're rooted you can remove all of the bloatware... this will typically extends your phone battery by 15 - 40% depending on how you use it... but for sure its 15% better (samsung is known for putting a lot of bloatware and some of them runs in the background and you cant turn them off -> the only way is to freeze or delete them)... secondly is that if you have some specific things you want on your phone, rooting and flashing mods/roms will help you achieve them, for example: I like to have my "sound+vibration/vibration" options on the notification but stockrom has "sound/vibration/mute", and so far that I've noticed the "sound" option doesn't force vibration so if you just restarted the phone and put on the "sound" option it won't vibrate until you go to settings and set it to do so... so without rooting I won't ever be able to mod the notification toggles to do what I want.... there will also be mods that makes your phone more responsive (faster)... the lists of things you can do with root is just too much to be listed lol...
now to answer your main question "Is rooting the S5 recommended this early on?", now this is all my opinion so take it with a bit of salt... I would say no...
there isn't much of roms around (not much of choices atm, you can check like s2/s3/s4 to get an idea of how much of choices you can expect once the device has been out for 6 months+), so if you root right now, you pretty much have to do all of the modding by yourself and etc... so why root and lose warranty? just play it cool and wait for a better time XD the decision that you wait 1 - 6 months before root might saves your phone ass, if something happens... and I seriously doubt you gona gain that much if you root now... unless you're uber modder/rom cooker
Don't get me wrong though, I personally recommend every android user to root lol... Android without root is like iPhone... what is the point of the ability to pretty much modify everything but you dont use it? (dont get mad now iphone fans... Im on android just coz of the customization, not of brand or specs)