I'm new to the whole smartphone/android market. I just received a G2 and wanted to know how to fully take advantage of all the features. What do you guys recommend, what apps should I download, updates, etc.
Thanks
Take a look around, you'll find everything around here. One thing is don't feel pressured to root your phone. Especially with the ota update to gingerbread on it's way.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA App
Nospin said:
Take a look around, you'll find everything around here. One thing is don't feel pressured to root your phone. Especially with the ota update to gingerbread on it's way.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Will do what is the benefit of rooting a phone. Do you get apps for free similar to jailbreaking?
Alright so here we go!
For root you want This Guide with Gefree/Visionary Read it several times, get root.
Install Rom Manager, Flash Clockwork Mod with this.
Good launchers to try are: Launcher Pro, ADW.
Good Apps are: GPS Status, Quadrant Free, Set Cpu (paid), Juice Defender, Adgree, Juice Plotter, SeePu, Shootme (for screengrabs), Wifi Analyser (to see strength of various wifi networks), Barcode Scanner (for QR Codes among others), Speetest, and lastly AdFree. You also should consider getting the Busybox Installer and Titanium Backup so you can back your applications up when you inevitably....
...Install a custom rom. There are a ton of roms to choose from. All of them have various merits and downsides. Personally for the beginner I always suggest CM 6.1.1 to get familiar with the idea of custom roms as it is super stable and not a huge departure from stock Froyo. A good rule of thumb when flashing roms is to (after making a nandroid backup in clockwork mod, accessed by pwr+vol down) always do a full wipe of phone data and cache. So many rom installs are messed up by not fully wiping your phone prior. I always run two full wipes and two cache wipes.
Depending on how you like your interface, you can select a ton of different roms through Rom Manager or downloading them right out of our android dev section. As with all things, always do your research. Read the damn thread to find out any bugs. The devs here are not infallible and frankly, some of them do a darn shoddy job in throwing together whatever the hell it is they want to call a rom over the weekend while absolutely trashed on Milwaukee's Beast.
Prospective roms are:
Virtuous 2.1: A clean SenseUI rom that is very predictable in battery life and sense experience.
Virtuous G-Free: A stripped down Gingerbread rom built by the same gentleman as Virtuous.
Virtuous 3.0 Sense: A sense 3.0 port that hasn't been updated in a while. Who knows if it is any good.
Cyanogen Mod 6: A nice retooling of froyo 2.2.x, this rom is incredibly stable and has very good battery life with preshoots kernel.
Cyanogen Mod 7: This is a retooling of Gingerbread 2.3.x, not as stable in my experience, however I know this will get better. Okay battery life, 7.0.3 is not as **** as 7.0. Wait till the next major update of 7.1 drops before flashing this rom.
I cannot speak for any of the other roms out here. I only say that you should always do your research and make sure to do nandroid backups. If you brick your phone, that really sucks cause the g2 kicks all sorts of ass
Edit; ROOT ACCESS MEANS ADMIN ACCESS. ROOT DRIVE MEANS THE BASE DIRECTORY OF YOUR SD CARD. DON'T **** IT UP OKAY.
Pump Fake said:
Will do what is the benefit of rooting a phone. Do you get apps for free similar to jailbreaking?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One of the biggest features is overclocking. TAKE YOUR TIME reading though. My Desire Z is on the way but I've spent the past two weeks scoping out ROMs, learning how to root and use ADB just so I can do all of that as soon as I get the phone. I would definitely root though, and as soon as the official gingerbread ROM comes, someone on XDA will make a rooted version of it. So you will essentially have stock gingerbread with the ability to overclock.
slapshot30 said:
One of the biggest features is overclocking. TAKE YOUR TIME reading though. My Desire Z is on the way but I've spent the past two weeks scoping out ROMs, learning how to root and use ADB just so I can do all of that as soon as I get the phone. I would definitely root though, and as soon as the official gingerbread ROM comes, someone on XDA will make a rooted version of it. So you will essentially have stock gingerbread with the ability to overclock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are totally a good example for others
I believe you will be successfull in rooting your coming DZ
Grtz
slapshot30 said:
One of the biggest features is overclocking. TAKE YOUR TIME reading though. My Desire Z is on the way but I've spent the past two weeks scoping out ROMs, learning how to root and use ADB just so I can do all of that as soon as I get the phone. I would definitely root though, and as soon as the official gingerbread ROM comes, someone on XDA will make a rooted version of it. So you will essentially have stock gingerbread with the ability to overclock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Btw their already is a rooted version of the final gingerbread rom. Just thought i'd throw that out there.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA Premium App
IMO The best benefits to having a rooted device are
1) root-only apps like setcpu (but don't use this if the ROM/kernel has built-in cpu management), titanium backup (best backup app ever, hands down), themeing, etc
2) remove bloatware apps
3) custom ROM. think of it as a modified OS. they usually run faster, have little to no bloat, in most cases have better battery life, and have added functionality (cyanogenmod, especially)
without root, the best thing you can do is find great apps like home replacements aka launchers such as ADWLauncher (free version of the superior ADW Launcher EX), LauncherPro, etc
if you're new to Android you may not know that you can browse apps on your computer here https://market.android.com/ and whenever you click "install" it will automatically start downloading and installing on your phone!
a root method was mentioned previously, but I will have to recommend a different one considered to be the safest and most up to date by most.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/wik...sion#Rooting_the_Vision_.28G2.2FDZ.29_and_DHD
the whole wiki is a very good read. if you do root, read it thoroughly (multiple times if necessary) and learn how to join #g2root on IRC to get real-time chat support with other xda members
So rooting helps me have a device that has much better performance. Sounds great to me, I'll look into it.
Is there anyway to get free apps etc? Don't ever want to pay haha.
Also what other tips do you guys have to take advantage of a smartphone?
Word of advice: the xda forums heavily frown upon those who promote or even mention pirated apps. These forums are powered by developers who put in their time and effort for average-joe users like us to use, free of charge! Donations are encouraged when possible. If you spent hundreds of hours writing an app and working out the bugs, I don't think you'd like it if someone downloaded your paid app for free. I didn't mean for this to sound like a lecture but just think about it, and if you're still interested you'll have to look elsewhere, as distributing pirated apps is against the xda forum rules.
Also if you're new to smartphones, you probably realized with added functionality such as facebook, twitter, gmail, and syncing of EVERYTHING possible, your battery life not as good as before you had a smartphone. In general keep account syncing/internet usage below unnecessary levels to save on battery life, among other things
silverwind said:
You are totally a good example for others
I believe you will be successfull in rooting your coming DZ
Grtz
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks I regularly try to do that with new phones so I don't have to ask a bunch of dumb questions or brick my phone.
And to xsteven77x (my multi-quote isn't behaving at the moment), I was not aware that a final GB rooted ROM was out... I thought they were only test ones. Would you mind posting a link to that?
EDIT: Is this the ROM you're talking about? http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1074852
It was leaked so how are they sure it's the final one?
If your going to root your phone and put a rom on it, HTCCLAY super cm7 v1.9 is my favorite. its smooth, lots of customization, and already has the set cpu thing built into it and had a good adjustable lockscreen. not to mention u can just keep putting new themes form theme chooser on it when u get bored instead of flashing a whole new rom. one prob with it though. it has trouble connecting sd card to computer so if and when u want to remove it you are going to have to restore to a previous back up of another rom or stock and then reapply the new rom. best of luck.
ethanj93 said:
If your going to root your phone and put a rom on it, HTCCLAY super cm7 v1.9 is my favorite. its smooth, lots of customization, and already has the set cpu thing built into it and had a good adjustable lockscreen. not to mention u can just keep putting new themes form theme chooser on it when u get bored instead of flashing a whole new rom. one prob with it though. it has trouble connecting sd card to computer so if and when u want to remove it you are going to have to restore to a previous back up of another rom or stock and then reapply the new rom. best of luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Highly recommend meXdroid V4.1 rom. Fast, eye candy galore, and constant developer support and updating.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA App
astriaos said:
Edit; ROOT ACCESS MEANS ADMIN ACCESS. ROOT DRIVE MEANS THE BASE DIRECTORY OF YOUR SD CARD. DON'T **** IT UP OKAY.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This made me LMAO!
I like mexdroid rom, its combined with CM7 and it has a lot of customizations in it.
Sent from my HTC Vision using XDA App
I am recommending to watch Virtuous Unity if you want to have HTC Sense 3.0. It's still being updated and fixed up from all the bugs, but I think the rom will be really good after the devs work the kinks out.
Related
Hi everyone...
Im looking for suggestions on how to customize my stock vibrant and try all col things with this powerful phone... So far I have launcher pro and a beautiful widgets... And some games like need for speed shift demo... Anything else cool and exciting I can try or download on my phone w/o rooting it? Or screwing up ota uodates in the future?... Like changing tmob boot up screen or any suggestions at alll...
Thanx
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
In the settings you can change the "font style." (New fonts can be downloaded for a buck.) It can have a significant effect on how things appear. Some suggestions from the tips thread are Helvetica Nue, Soho Gothic, Frutiger and Felbridge. I'm digging Helvetica a lot.
Thanx for suggestion.. I forgot to mention I downloaded a few flip fonts I love how it changes the look of the phone.. Any other suggestions? Or performance boosters?
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
you can not change the boot logo (or shutdown) if you are not rooted. If you are rooted, you still get OTA, but once installed it will unroot the phone
No problem do this
Fancy Widgets
Pure Messenger/ Grid Calendar and an Agenda app... (can't remember the name)
I am running Agenda Widget and liking it ok so far. I am always looking for a better one.
Launcher Pro or ADW, Beautiful Widgets, change the font style.
Here is a link to a thread with a plethora of Flip Fonts to choose from. Just download the .apk. locate and install on your device. Go into settings and change the font, restart and there you go
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=748916
Don't mean to pick on the op but I'm curious why people don't want to root.
I did the day it was possible and haven't looked back. So many things you can do to customize all reversible if you have to. Just don't try doing really crazy stuff unless you know what your doing but most things in the stick under the root section are easy and awesome.
Anyway I'd love to understand why people don't just do it.
Battery usage with percentage would be really nice.
drhonk said:
Battery usage with percentage would be really nice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One more awesome thing to do with root. I don't get why you wouldn't.
joshthewaster said:
One more awesome thing to do with root. I don't get why you wouldn't.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't get why people who don't root their phones go on XDA. XDA is a place for rooting and ROM development. Not a user-friendly website for non-rooters. But yeah definitely root, you can customize a lot more. Customize the notifications bar, I don't really big the light gray and blue 3G icon
I've gone from a few different Nokias, to a Motorola Razor, to a Blackberry Pearl and now finally to a Samsung Vibrant. I'm pretty good with computers and software so I know I could get rooting/recovery/flashing down, but this is my first time with a mobile device I could hack.
Whenever I do research on the topic I find multiple threads with multiple ways to root. The whole directions/concept just isn't crystal clear with me yet, despite how much I've read. And, there's always posts at the end of each thread by users with unanswered issues/problems.
I guess, I'm just taking the slow cautious route, enjoying stock android eclair for a while. I do have the itch, but no apps or issues with my phone have pushed me beyond curiosity and into the experimental, so to speak.
What is the top main reason you have for rooting your vibrant?
Edit: to point out, I know I could've "hacked" my previous phones, but not the way you can with an Android phone, you know what I mean...
trunkstar1 said:
I've gone from a few different Nokias, to a Motorola Razor, to a Blackberry Pearl and now finally to a Samsung Vibrant. I'm pretty good with computers and software so I know I could get rooting/recovery/flashing down, but this is my first time with a mobile device I could hack.
Whenever I do research on the topic I find multiple threads with multiple ways to root. The whole directions/concept just isn't crystal clear with me yet, despite how much I've read. And, there's always posts at the end of each thread by users with unanswered issues/problems.
I guess, I'm just taking the slow cautious route, enjoying stock android eclair for a while. I do have the itch, but no apps or issues with my phone have pushed me beyond curiosity and into the experimental, so to speak.
What is the top main reason you have for rooting your vibrant?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
- Allows access to applications that require root access (e.g. Titanium Backup, SetCPU, AdFree (not suggested since it helps developers), metamorph, etc)
- When you root, you have the ability to flash a custom recovery that allows custom ROMs. This allows nandroid backups, restores, and more.
- Remove bloatware that comes with the phone (this one DEFINITELY)
- Screenshots
See, I get confused. All I've read about recovery was people talking about "booting into recovery. The only thing I thought you flashed were the custom ROMs. And, I thought you only needed the backups and restores so you could get back to an unrooted state in case you needed warrantee work, or messed up your phone somehow.
What are the major bloatware items on the stock t-mobile vibrant?
trunkstar1 said:
See, I get confused. All I've read about recovery was people talking about "booting into recovery. The only thing I thought you flashed were the custom ROMs. And, I thought you only needed the backups and restores so you could get back to an unrooted state in case you needed warrantee work, or messed up your phone somehow.
What are the major bloatware items on the stock t-mobile vibrant?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Account & Settings on the App Drawer
Gogo
Amazon Kindle
TeleNav
T-Mobile Voicemail
MobiTV
Memo
AudioPostcard
(and many more)
... oh yeah and with root (and installed clockwork recovery) you can apply the Captivate camera which its interface is easier to apply different scenes.
And no.. you can restore non-root with Odin and nandroid backup (JAC's thread has a unrooted backup online). But yeah you do backups before you apply hacks to your phone incase anything happens
drhonk said:
Battery usage with percentage would be really nice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Get the app called Battery Status Pro. That gives you what you want.
zephiK said:
Account & Settings on the App Drawer
Gogo
Amazon Kindle
TeleNav
T-Mobile Voicemail
MobiTV
Memo
AudioPostcard
(and many more)
... oh yeah and with root (and installed clockwork recovery) you can apply the Captivate camera which its interface is easier to apply different scenes.
And no.. you can restore non-root with Odin and nandroid backup (JAC's thread has a unrooted backup online). But yeah you do backups before you apply hacks to your phone incase anything happens
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Trying to figure out how to remove bloatware was THE reason I found xda and rooted. I had no idea what I was doing but it is ULTRA easy. Download update zip-boot to recovery-apply-enjoy. That got me discovering all the other awesome things I can do.
You will always see people who have problems with anything in the threads. This is why you make backups. Once you have those you can do a lot more with a lot more confidence knowing that if you make a mistake you can correct it - mostly. And you can unroot if you have to.
drhonk said:
Battery usage with percentage would be really nice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed. Love having it.
Come on guys lets talk about stuff you can do for non rooters please. I did root my phone but I took it to far and bricked it. I'm not doing it again and I know that xda forums lean more to rooting then not. I thought a thread that talked about non rooted phones was a great idea but its been taken over. So I'm bringing it back.
There are a lot of good lockscreen apps to look at for changing your lockscreen. I've used some of them just haven settled on one yet. So no need to root just have fun with it the way it is.
spacecasespiff said:
Come on guys lets talk about stuff you can do for non rooters please. I did root my phone but I took it to far and bricked it. I'm not doing it again and I know that xda forums lean more to rooting then not. I thought a thread that talked about non rooted phones was a great idea but its been taken over. So I'm bringing it back.
There are a lot of good lockscreen apps to look at for changing your lockscreen. I've used some of them just haven settled on one yet. So no need to root just have fun with it the way it is.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanx for staying on topic... no offense to others... where do i find different lock screens?
Before I start asking my questions I want to say that this is my first android phone and I'm essentially a noob when it comes to rooting/flashing/custom roms etc. so please bear with me. I have been researching pretty heavily, but I'm finding I need some hand holding because my first attempt at rooting/flashing didn't go so well and I'm very reluctant to repeat the process all over again.
I'm currently on the stock DK17 that I flashed through ODIN per instructions found on this page (when it was still DK17, now it's DK28) : http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=853209
I'm finding that I'm unhappy with this setup and I want to run a custom ROM.
What I want above all else is speed, stability, and better battery life. I don't care about any frills, I want something that's simple, runs smoothly, and most importantly, isn't glitchy. I want to find a ROM that runs great, and once I do, I prefer to stick to it because I don't find flashing very recreational.
Some questions:
Should I update to DK28 or are there a bunch of issues with the leak? Are custom ROMs based off DK17 more reliable/less glitchy?
I used SDX stock app remover to remove a bunch of sprint/stock apps. Will this cause any issues if I decide to flash DK28 (or any other rom)?
I'm planning on using appbrain to "back up" my apps using the 'sync with appbrain' feature. From my understanding I just re-download appbrain and use it to download all the apps I previously had?
So what are my best options taking into account the criteria I mentioned? I was looking at Nebula (custom ROM) and it looks like something promising. I know you guys are thinking "just flash different ROMs and see which one you like you noob" but I'm looking to narrow down my options.
Thanks for any help and sorry for the long post,
-Dennis
1greek4u said:
Before I start asking my questions I want to say that this is my first android phone and I'm essentially a noob when it comes to rooting/flashing/custom roms etc. so please bear with me. I have been researching pretty heavily, but I'm finding I need some hand holding because my first attempt at rooting/flashing didn't go so well and I'm very reluctant to repeat the process all over again.
I'm currently on the stock DK17 that I flashed through ODIN per instructions found on this page (when it was still DK17, now it's DK28) : http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=853209
I'm finding that I'm unhappy with this setup and I want to run a custom ROM.
What I want above all else is speed, stability, and better battery life. I don't care about any frills, I want something that's simple, runs smoothly, and most importantly, isn't glitchy. I want to find a ROM that runs great, and once I do, I prefer to stick to it because I don't find flashing very recreational.
Some questions:
Should I update to DK28 or are there a bunch of issues with the leak? Are custom ROMs based off DK17 more reliable/less glitchy?
I used SDX stock app remover to remove a bunch of sprint/stock apps. Will this cause any issues if I decide to flash DK28 (or any other rom)?
I'm planning on using appbrain to "back up" my apps using the 'sync with appbrain' feature. From my understanding I just re-download appbrain and use it to download all the apps I previously had?
So what are my best options taking into account the criteria I mentioned? I was looking at Nebula (custom ROM) and it looks like something promising. I know you guys are thinking "just flash different ROMs and see which one you like you noob" but I'm looking to narrow down my options.
Thanks for any help and sorry for the long post,
-Dennis
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hif you want super stable with great batery life go with the 2.1 EE rom with the pheonix 1.43 kernel. If you want to be on froyo then I highly recoend mammons rom which is based of of the dk28 release which is more stable than dk17.
Removin sprint apps have no afect on flashing custom rms, it only will affect getting OTA's from sprint
Not sure about apbrain since I don't use it myself
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
Much thanks to my only reply, haha
The most stable Froyo rom is Nebula or Bonsai. Cant go wrong with either.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
Nebula
imo
I am testing out the latest ViperROM right now. If you want a solid ROM with a little bit of eye candy, Viper is a good choice.
Nebula !!!
im diggin bonsi, smooth n nice
Sent from my otherhalf
I would go with mammons. So far its the must stable rom for me. Plus you get froyo!
Sent from my shoe, I mean....Epic shoe... I mean Samsung Epic! http://mobilehighway.blogspot.com/
For stability, right now, stick with 2.1. Go with either Syndicate ROM with Xtreme Kernel or Epic Experience with Phoenix Kernel.
Among the Froyo ROMs, I've had the best luck with Epic Experience and Nebula ROM. Viper and Quantum gave me some issues.
I'm going with Nebula as well. It runs great for me.
Dk28 has given me the best results with gps and data speeds. I've been using mammon's rom and its been awesome so far.
Sent from my old Nokia
Different strokes for different folks...
1greek4u said:
What I want above all else is speed, stability, and better battery life. I don't care about any frills, I want something that's simple, runs smoothly, and most importantly, isn't glitchy. I want to find a ROM that runs great, and once I do, I prefer to stick to it because I don't find flashing very recreational.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The reason everyone is giving you different recommendations is because everyone is a unique individual with different tastes and requirements in what they value in a custom rom. I am currently using Bonsai4all, but have tried most every other rom as well.
As far as not finding flashing recreational just keep doing it and as you become comfortable with the process you will start to like it a lot better. It's fun going to the Sprint store and jabbing away with the support/sales staff about the Epic and Evo while we are flashing new roms while we chat.
I've tried Syndicate, Viper, and Epic Experience (both the Eclair + Froyo versions), and I must say EE has been my favorite of the three.
I'm new, my evo is rooted tho but now I wanna install a rom. Isn't Cm6 probably the best? I want one that's not much different just smoother.. can someone give me some pros and cons and also a link to maybe a tutorial of how to download and install roms.
Does it delete anything to install a rom?
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
There are a lot of opinions about this subject. There are some real pro's to CM6. The tricky thing for most people to understand is that Cyanogenmod is built from the ground up. So when you say you want something that isn't too different, this is going to probably be more unique than you were expecting.
Some great things about CM6 are hidden all throughout the settings, menus, and functions. For example, CM6 is alot cleaner. There aren't any processes that run in the background that you never installed. Whenever you use a stock rom, HTC and Sprint have a number of pre-installed items running. The result is that it is faster.
One huge advantage for me is that CM6 fixes the bluetooth in the phone. Which means that you can connect a Wiimote. This isn't possible with anything that is a variation of the stock rom. Which means only CM6 or other AOSP roms will be capable of supporting the Wiimote on the Evo.
The Cyanogen team has put more focus into things like the way the audio is processed. They use DSP managers to fine tune your audio.
There are some unique settings you can use as well. For example, by holding the back button, you kill whatever app is in the foreground. This eliminates the need for task killers, and lets you truly close an app when you want to.
The biggest pro for most people is that it is substantially faster. This makes games, and other resource heavy apps run smoother. If you use something like PSX4DROID (a playstation emulator), I would recommend this rom because you can use the Wii Controller, and the games will run smoother.
Overall, it's an engineering marvel, because it's built completely by open source developers. These are guys that all have day jobs and do this as a hobby, and in many ways, they do a better job than Google and HTC who have armies of full time developers. That's why they get so much support. Is because it's truly astounding what they do with their resources.
So this might be the blind leading the blind, but I'm a noob as well when it comes to ROM flashing stuff.. From what little you have mentioned CM6 isn't what you want. CM6 is very good but it is not SenseUI, by default it does not have swype, it does not do 4g, hdmi is not there and I'm sure there are other things... That being said, from what I have read, CM is very good for what it is...
If you want to stay relatively stock but with some tweaks, you likely want to look at Fresh or Myn.. do a search in the XDA evo-->android dev forum (actually usually the main thread for those 2 are on page 1 or 2)..
I have settled on Fresh because it uses the latest Sprint rom as its basis so you get most of the new stuff out of the box ie. swype.
Myn has a beta out there using the new rom, but I don't know where it is to download and I am not a good beta tester so I will just wait..
From a process perspective, I downloaded Rom manager from the Marketplace, flashed the latest Clockwork recovery and used the rom manager to download fresh and let it install it for me.. Be sure to check mark the clean everything checkbox in rom manager when it asks..
Hope that helps...
jc8081 said:
I'm new, my evo is rooted tho but now I wanna install a rom. Isn't Cm6 probably the best? I want one that's not much different just smoother.. can someone give me some pros and cons and also a link to maybe a tutorial of how to download and install roms.
Does it delete anything to install a rom?
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think I'm gonna go with Cm6 just bc it seems like they have plenty of features. But what do u mean not hdmi? Like not even pictures and videos?
Also can someone give me a link to how to install them.. Thanks
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
bradleyw801 already did a good job of the Pros, so I'll list the Cons of CM6 (there aren't many):
1. It's the hardest of the ROMs to flash. Reads laughable but to someone who is really new to this whole thing, it's true. Most ROMs you can just flash and tryout. CM6 you need to flash twice: once for CM itself and once for the Google Apps (it's pretty useless without the gapps). ROM Manager makes this pretty painless with a simple checkbox, so follow above advice, but still be aware you need GAPPS.
2. No 4G Support. Yet. That's the keyword, as there are a few devs on this very forum who are runningCM with 4G .... it's just in alpha stages.
3. No HDMI Support. Yet. Again keyword ... but less so. HDMI out is one of those things you hear about every so often but nothing ever surfaces from it. It's like Duke Nukem Forever.
4. For all the Sense bashing that some will do, HTC had some very nice widgets that most people miss when they go to CM. Most notable is the big clock widget. Now there are market apps that emulate it, but the only ones that do a good job of it cost money (beautiful widgets and fancy widgets pro). Be ready to look for apps to replace what came shipped with your EVO if there are some things you like and would rather not be without.
Hope that helps.
Ok now Cm6 doesn't sound great. I actually use my hdmi, are there any roms easy to flash.. i just want one that makes my phone smoother and also so unneeded apps don't run in the background?
Bc mine now is getting slow like when I open my messeges and are going from person to person it takes forever. Thanks again
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
jc8081 said:
I'm new, my evo is rooted tho but now I wanna install a rom. Isn't Cm6 probably the best? I want one that's not much different just smoother.. can someone give me some pros and cons and also a link to maybe a tutorial of how to download and install roms.
Does it delete anything to install a rom?
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, now that you are rooted it would be a perfect time to get used to making backups and flashing.
You could try making a nand bacckup and flashing CM6(.1.2) and seeing how well it suits you. Like any (or most) ROMs there are themes and you can mess around with different things to make it more to your liking. CM6 is as stock Android as you can get. I don't necessarily dislike Sense, and some of the Sense widgets are really cool (and are for the most part replaceable) but in the end I like the feeling of just plain Android.
The lack of 4G and HDMI out is more of a personal user thing. I haven't missed my 4G and I've been using CM6 for my Evo for almost the whole damn time, since it was first released that is. HDMI never really interested me before, but full UI out is something else entirely. Before it was just hype to me.
CyanogenMod just feels right on the Evo. Best way to decide is to take the plunge and maybe set it up for a day. Restoring a backup is super simple. Take the necessary steps to flash successfully and check it out.
And as for things being deleted off the SD card; not sure if you mean everything or specific things. Things like SMS, call logs etc are not backed up but YOU can back them up in various manners. Some SMS backup apps or what have you which I've never tried. Call log I assume as well. Email and things like that, which are tied to your Google Account are backed up by "The Cloud" or whatever you want to say, and same goes for contacts if you've obviously synced them with your google account. Like, contacts under phone can be synced with google account that way the phone contacts aren't deleted, unless I have that last part wrong.
You can wipe the SD card completely, but that doesn't really happen when you wipe data, cache and dalvik. Just the important stuff so the ROM takes. Check it!
edit: didn't hit submit right away, late post as it seems your not really feeling it. you can remove bloat apps that you don't see fit in ROMs, things that someone might have not removed themselves (even then removed apps are usually available at your discretion) but not all apps can be removed. There are lists about that have "safe to remove apps" and the like.
try it for yourself, if it doesn't do what you need it to, flash another ROM. pretty much any AOSP based ROM has issues with wimax and HDMI but there are many strong ROM's to run, you will probably change it up from time to time and the hardest thing you will find is trying not to flash
You really should try out roms for yourself instead of listening to others. Some people like some things and others like others. I've run CM on 2 phones now (MyTouch Slide and G2) and it's been extremely stable, fast and just fantastic. If it had wimax and hdmi working i'd have it right now (I like watching hulu on my big screen while I eat ).
If you want something that has everything working, myn's warm twopointtwo rom works if you have the older Evo hardware (pre-0004). It's very nice and still runs sense or mikfroyo, which also has sense, but it supports the new evos.
If you want vanilla android and can wait for the wimax and hdmi, get CM, there's just no alternatives. If you can't wait, go to the dev section and look for the threads that start with [rom] and see if any of them suit you better.
Fwiw...I'm a total noob to the android scene. I'm fairly tech savvy, good in general with pc's, hacking tivo's, etc..nonetheless I was very hesitant to root and flash my evo. But, I took three plunge last night, first rooting, then performing a nand backup. I then uninstalled all the sprint apps successfully. I was fairly happy at this point.but I have been experiencing random reboots and sense crashes prior to rooting. So I took the plunge and flashed cm6.1 and gapps last night.
I have to say I wish I had to done this months ago, I love the look, feel,and performance of cm / stock android. I struggled with battery life before flashing, but there is a significant improvement in batt life since ive flashed. I also installed swype beta,as I had received an invite just prior to sprint including swype. Im bummed about the lack of 4g, but 4g is hit and miss in the south bay so I cant complain too much. Oh ya, wifi tether is an added bonus.
I say go for it. ;-)
Well the biggest con is that you can't use 4g or hdmi, which defeats the purpose of buying the evo and paying $10 fee for 4g. Not to mention the fact that stock android looks like a 3rd rate Linux distro from early 2000s.
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
so me running cm6 defeats the purpose of me owning my phone????
I dont live in a 4g area......4g is only really advantage when tethering to a laptop
Ok guys thanks for everything but i really need a link so i can figure out how to backup and flash and rom...
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
jc8081 said:
Ok guys thanks for everything but i really need a link so i can figure out how to backup and flash and rom...
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sure. First sticky at the top of the forum: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=881747
The stickies are pretty comprehensive for the EVO. Pretty much anything you'll want to know will be there.
As for CM6. It's super fast. I love it. I don't mind being without 4G (at least when I'm not testing ) and HDMI (I use Twonky Media Server to stream pics and vids to my Xbox over wifi).
Both of these features are coming soon so if you decide to go with another ROM, just keep following CM for updates on these features. When they are done I don't see why you wouldn't use CM.
As for alternative roms... I know Myns is very popular.
Also, I'll note, you can always flash CM6 and play with it for a bit and then wipe and flash any other rom.
tl;dr - Read the sticky, try myns and follow CM progress.
You might want to take a look at MIUI. It's well designed (unlike Sense), is pretty fast (faster than Sense), and has a ton of extra features (like Sense). While it doesn't have WiMax right now the CM guys are close to getting it working; and since both are based on AOSP, it will be relatively easy to port to MIUI. I prefer CM but if I didn't have a iPhone (since MIUI tends to feel like a copy of it) I'd probably use MIUI.
If you can live without 4g then go for it. The battery life is great. I flashed a sense rom today and with in an hour I was flashing back to cm6.
Sent from CM6 using XDA App
Ok thanks now one last question I think... when I do nandroid backup does it save my apps? Bc i was watching a video it said u have to nandroid backup and apps with titanium I think...
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
bottom line: try a few ROMs, each for a day, and stick with what you like. no substitute for trying it out yourself.
fine print: i'm a vintage user. I was running android on my Vogue before there was an android phone, when GPS would always place you in san fransisco (someone will know what that's all about - thanks dzo). anyways, having a rooted phone is about many things, but one of them is the ability to flash and try what you want.
if you've got a deal breaker, like 4g or HDMI out, sure that limits you now, but as posted before keep reading and trying new things as they come out. if you're lucky, you may yet become a flash-aholic.
i'm a sense guy; not for the launcher (off and on i'm running adw, lp, and sense home, depends on the month), but for the sense apps. I love the sense messaging app, that's the program I use most on my phone. I ran vanilla for a long time on my vogue, and I tried out CM6 for a day. it's just not me. and I never use 4G or HDMI. you won't know what fits you until you try, though.
to each their own. use what you like.
I use to be a die hard CM fan but now Im using MIUI. Both have a lot of nice features.
Titanium Backup will allow you to backup apps selectively and then reinstall them later. (you can do many other things as well) This is very useful, especially for apps that you can not easily obtain. (ie. not available in the app store) An example is any game from GameLoft or a beta that you may have. (like Swype before it was deployed) So after you switch to CM6 or whichever ROM you can then load these apps on to the new ROM.
I have been snooping around and finally feel comfortable enough to root this phone. She gets off work here in a few hours and were gonna run to the store and pick it up. She sees me messing with my fascinate all the time, flashing this and that and wants me to customize her phone as well. Mainly she wants a Pink theme. I was planning on flashing a custom rom then grabbing a theme, but the development on this phone is out of control lol, you guys have so many more options. I want to keep the phone as stock as possible, and want to retain the blur aspects. She isn't going to be able to troubleshoot the phone on her own if I'm not with her and she has problems, so something very stable, and again, stock-ish.
Would I be better doing a manual deodex on her stock rom and flashing a theme ontop of that? Or are your themes rom specific?
stayin100 said:
I have been snooping around and finally feel comfortable enough to root this phone. She gets off work here in a few hours and were gonna run to the store and pick it up. She sees me messing with my fascinate all the time, flashing this and that and wants me to customize her phone as well. Mainly she wants a Pink theme. I was planning on flashing a custom rom then grabbing a theme, but the development on this phone is out of control lol, you guys have so many more options. I want to keep the phone as stock as possible, and want to retain the blur aspects. She isn't going to be able to troubleshoot the phone on her own if I'm not with her and she has problems, so something very stable, and again, stock-ish.
Would I be better doing a manual deodex on her stock rom and flashing a theme ontop of that? Or are your themes rom specific?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If something goes wrong and she is not able to trouble shoot it, things can get ugly pretty quick with a custom ROM and what not. Not that it happens all the time, not that it happens other then small bugs and quirks but I would be pissed if my phone was not propertly working and no one was around to fix it.
Themes are ROM specific for the X unless you go with a theme for stock ROM, which could be found here. Staying as close to stock, this would be your best bet. There are other icons and animations you can add with Ninjamorph and by placing files here and there and all it takes it being rooted.
I think a rooted, bloat free Droid X is almost just as quick as a custom ROM. You can add little icons packs, stock themes to really customize it. It would be as if you are running a custom ROM.
Thanks, if I can find a theme girlish enough for her I might just go with that.
If I root will she be able to receive ota updates? Im pretty sure after flashing custom roms she will no long be able to access the ota updates, but what about just plain ole rooted stock phones?
stayin100 said:
Thanks, if I can find a theme girlish enough for her I might just go with that.
If I root will she be able to receive ota updates? Im pretty sure after flashing custom roms she will no long be able to access the ota updates, but what about just plain ole rooted stock phones?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A rooted phone with no default apps removed will still get OTA updates, just will lose root
Sent from my DROIDX using XDA App
After playing with this thing, I think a more aosp style rom would be more up our ally. I just cant seem to be able to understand this blur stuff... Would you say the majority of people go focused or blurry? Just seems vey heavy and bloated
Sent from my SCH-I500 using XDA App
Rubix 1.9.7 it is... I thought my fascinate was bloated, these things are pigs stock! Lol, thanks for the help, will be reading up more then hooking her up with a nice focused phone
Sent from my SCH-I500 using XDA App
stayin100 said:
Rubix 1.9.7 it is... I thought my fascinate was bloated, these things are pigs stock! Lol, thanks for the help, will be reading up more then hooking her up with a nice focused phone
Sent from my SCH-I500 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great rom! Built by drod2169. If your gf decides she likes some of the blur components he also built a "blurry" version with some blur in it.
Sent from my DROIDX using XDA App
Yes, Rubix is a great rom but you might also want to consider Liberty 1.5. It is also a blurless rom and so far has been running great on my phone. I have tried several roms including rubix and always come back to liberty. It is by far more customizable than any other rom out there. There are also a couple of girly themes that I believe were just ported over.
I would also suggest Liberty 1.5
Primarily so you GF could load this theme:
http://www.droidforums.net/forum/li...theme-rockin-rainbows-liberty-has-landed.html
I put this on my Wife's D2 and she loves it.
She doesn't like that theme, but it is a very nicely done complete theme... Still leaning towards rubix, will research liberty more though.
stayin100 said:
She doesn't like that theme, but it is a very nicely done complete theme... Still leaning towards rubix, will research liberty more though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If not liberty then look at cobalt as well. Well buily from google source. And check out the crystal X theme for rubix by Bignadad... Very extensive and looka great
Sent from my DROIDX using XDA App
I'm a big fan of liberty. Even if you don't like the stock theme, liberty has really the most intuitive theme system I've seen. Use liberty toolbox, go to themes, then literally look at the screenshot and tap install o. The one you want. No reboots, .zip files, anything. Super simple.
Sent from my DROIDX using XDA App
Hi there,
After managing to root my recent Legend (HBOOT 1.01 / OTA 2.2) using Blay0's manual I started trying...
Cyanogen 6.1: too "Gothic" for me (might be because it's my first Android phone and I kinda got hooked to sense / clean looks) Seems to be very tweakable though...
B 0.7: WiFi didn't work (sort of known issue which is mentioned there, but I didn't try the proposed solution, since I wanted to try other ROMs first
Modaco r4: ok, nothing special
YogenTouch: most beautiful and smooth one around, though 2 showstoppers for me: no choice of standard languages (especially chinese pinyin input) and G-sensor doesn't work [EDIT 2011-02-20: apparently a patch was released to make the G-sensor work]. Actually when I read about nu4a-yt1 I liked the feature set even more (get rid of facebook crap etc.), but without solving the showstoppers I'll first look on.
@moderators: could I please get permission to post to that thread (this one), it's kind of frustrating that I have real input here which could help making these ROMs better, but I have no way of providing my feedback (just because I don't have 10 posts yet). Thanks!
To be updated....
Cheers
UPDATE:
been using this one FroYo | Mdj Droid L2.1.110210 | with HTC Sense | Base 3.18.751.2 | App2SD+ for a bit more than a week now, without issues. It's quite similar to a stock HTC Sense Froyo ROM from a looks/functionality point of view.
When I find the time though, I plan to make an own ROM, mainly inspired by YogenTouch but without social apps (a bit like nYT) but with more languages.
Hey Penguin,
Nice of you to join us
But before you post such thread, think about the real contribution, not that it isn't appreciated, but you're mixing apples and oranges here, comparing Sense and nonSense ROMS, Eclair with Froyo...
It would be nice to clear what's what first ...
Oh and by the way B0.7 wifi works just fine for me...
Agree about the frustration not being able to contribute to the development forum. There's a few things I've learned along the way and there have been a couple of occasions where I reckon I could have helped a poster.
To add my 20c worth, I'm really happy with BlaYo's ROM, everything works the way it should and there's some cool stuff which brings it to another level - I'm especially liking the extra battery life I'm getting with his kernel and SetCPU.
Sent from my HTC Legend using XDA App
It should not be a biggie, right? You're just 7 posts away
Hey you're right, I should stay positive... 6 now...
Thanks for your welcome;-)
I guess what got me to try that YogenTouch was that it said "espresso 2.2" on the package, which suggested froyo. Anyway, it is mainly the graphics design which appeals to me. (speed might be higher, though I'm quite ok with FroYo too.)
I guess I'll have another go at B0.7, wait for 0.8 or bake my own (though too busy lately)
oh,btw, about the apples and oranges... that was actually intended, because it is actually the first thing anyone new to android and without having experienced the freedom of a rooted phone before would want to try. (which "style" is best for me, sense, stock, clean, tweaks, ...)
Sent from my HTC Legend using XDA App
nDAF 1.7.5
It's been a while...
Ok, I have gone to BlaY0 0.7 since, which I'm positive about.
Then I noticed Blay0's mention of nDAF in the B 0.7 thread, just what I was looking for. (I like anti-social android )
So I've been a happy nDAF 1.7.5 user for 3 weeks now, I can highly recommend it!
Just recently discovered 1 glitch: account sync doesn't seem to do anything! Pressing the button "sync all" has no effect whatsoever. Logcat doesn't seem to output anything related either. Going to my google account and pressing "sync now" also does nothing.
Any ideas?
The account sync problem went away by itself. (I had wiped cache and rebooted before without effect, but it seems the problem went away after my last reboot, though I didn't do anything special)
I guess I'll remain happy with nDAF until I find time to make my own ROM (or if B 0.8 will have very compelling reasons)
Sent from my HTC Legend using XDA App
b.0.7 seems great... u have to flash the patch for wifi issues....
right now i'm on cm7 rc4 and experiencing a new world on legend... but for daily use b.0.7 is a nice choice from my point of view...
and if u want a sense-free froyo rom superbler is the best choice
Long due update:
Thumbs up for BlaY0's 0.8.4!
Did a clean install (wiped all and got a new sd card while at it, with ext partition according to BlaY0's partitioning guide for a2sd) and restored with titanium backup).
I'm getting better battery life (1 long day and still around 30% left with normal use).
Had to use the wifi patch to make wireless work (and stock font patch for comfortable reading).
Highly recommended! Thanks to BlaY0 for the ROM and Ogo2 for his useful mods!
Cheers
Sent from my HTC Legend using XDA App