What should I do first - AT&T, Rogers, Bell, Telus Samsung Galaxy S III

Getting my GS3 today, it along with its rock quicksand case are "out for delivery". We all know this feeling.
So my question to you guys is, what should I do first? I've done just about everything to my captivate and am well versed in the rom world but I wonder should I try it out stock first, jump into JB (which will happen inevitably), install some games (if so which?), etc. Let me know what you guys think and some of the awesome things you first did with your GS3.
EDIT: similar thread a couple down, mods can delete this one.

Root it and play with stock for a while..
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using xda premium

i have flashed back to stock more times than you can count stock is pretty good

Related

Why is anybody here on a stock rom?

Just asking because I see no advantage, maybe I am missing something. I feel like some don't flash because they are afraid of bricking there phone. While I guess technically you can brick your phone I assume we all have sprint. They will replace your phone for free or at most you pay 35 dollars. Do not be afraid greatness. Once you flash and theme your phone you will never look back. Touchwiz is a -5 on a scale of 1 to 10 compared to ics.
This phone stock is ugly and Samsung has horrible design taste. When you see this phone on display it looks retarded. Worst wallpapers ever people don't even know this phone is a good phone. I see people playing with a photon more. If were not for rooms and themes I would of sold this phone. Just look at the stock dialer its horrible.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk
So you are judging it by the wallpaper? You don't have to use touch wiz if you aren't rooted. There are plenty of launchers like go launcher, launcher pro, adw. Some ppl use the phone just for that reason they don't care about all the extra stuff. And some sprint reps who are smart and know that your device is rooted they won't touch it. There have been plenty of ppl here with they problem
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App
I ran stock for a while. Personally, it doesn't matter to me how the launcher looks. It just has to be very functional with everything I use often easy to get to. I can do that with touchwiz. I flashed Calkulins ROM because I could do that better.
On my Epic mobile phone.
I'm on stock because I've never rooted before and I'm waiting for ICS
Bacardi222 said:
I'm on stock because I've never rooted before and I'm waiting for ICS
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So when ics comes you will root or just upgrade the from Samsung. And to me rooting is the hardest part flashing rooms and themes is super easy.
I can understand why its confusing kinda. But once rooted everything else is just booting into recovery and installing a zip.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk
I was running the stock rom with root for a while. There really aren't that many advantages to a custom rom. Samsung did a great job with TouchWiz. I mean I prefer ADW, but TouchWiz adds a lot of functionality to stock Android. I really didn't have a reason to switch. Then I got bored and started flashing custom roms. If I wasn't a flash-addict, I would have stayed. TW isn't as bad as everyone says it is.
I went back to stock because after rooting and flashing Roms I found that I clocked out on the rest of the world reading xda all the time in anticipation for new updates. "woke up" 2 months later and didn't know where the time went lol
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Eric1985 said:
So you are judging it by the wallpaper? You don't have to use touch wiz if you aren't rooted. There are plenty of launchers like go launcher, launcher pro, adw. Some ppl use the phone just for that reason they don't care about all the extra stuff. And some sprint reps who are smart and know that your device is rooted they won't touch it. There have been plenty of ppl here with they problem
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Some reps are indeed smart enough to immediately recognize a rooted phone. However, they should still assist you with issues. I do all the time
Eric1985 said:
So you are judging it by the wallpaper? You don't have to use touch wiz if you aren't rooted. There are plenty of launchers like go launcher, launcher pro, adw. Some ppl use the phone just for that reason they don't care about all the extra stuff. And some sprint reps who are smart and know that your device is rooted they won't touch it. There have been plenty of ppl here with they problem
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No I'm not judging by wallpaper I'm saying stock and on display it doesn't look appealing. Part of it is the wallpaper Samsung has on there stock. I can see why somebody who knows nothing about phones will overlook this.
I don't understand how you can't swap out your phone for the same phone. You are a customer and the phone is not even a year old. Sprint will replace your phone if you don't take no for answer. Your paying sprint x amount of dollars a month. Sometimes I replace a phone just because I drop it and it has a tiny scratch. At the most they make me pay 35 dollars which you can have refunded if you call account services. If your in Miami and you can't replace a phone please pm me I will help you for free.
Sprint works for you and unless they like losing customers I don't think a little phone replacement will come between them.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk
Yeah, people play with the Photon more in the store because Moto Blur is so beautiful, lol.
Many people dont get in to root cuz they dont want to read how to. Someone told me the hardest step is read, not click start in odin.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
Stocl Rom here...no need to flash and have issues with roms not working properly...yes...80% of all users who are rooted and have flashed are posting questions or problems with these custom roms...I would rather not deal with that crap just for a pretty launcher, icons etc...Ill wail for ICS.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk
My phone has yet to be rooted. I'm looking and waiting for that break out rom that's either a ICS or the official ICS update. I've root many phone but right now I don't see any real reason to root. The last phone I had was the e3d and I rooted that because it had so many roms. Every Tom on the GS2 pretty much look all the same IMO which is a stock looking rom. I need variety.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Flash your phone and find out lol to be honest because stock sucks (and not talking about tw) im saying hiccups and firmware for sure. And if samsung is going to release the new versions to the devs and not to sprint customers then the only way to take advantage is to root and do ourselves
I'm on stock..
I'm in a rooted and debloated stock ROM. Why? Because it's perfect. It's not like the EVO 4G days where you had to flash a custom ROM to get the most out of your phone, the stock ROM on this thing just screams!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App
Stock and rooted. I would never put a custom rom. I used to always try them out on my og epic and they always had some sort of bug. EK02 has been good to me and I actually like Touchwiz. And if I get bored of it I can just switch to the stock Android launcher or download a new one from the market.... To each his own if you like custom roms good for you however don't try to knock us that like stock rom.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App
I ran a stock Rom for a while with root for a while with mine. I just recently (3 days) put a Rom on my phone, mainly did it so i can tether, and a few other things. I mainly play with kernels personally.
But like metalhead stated, this phone is awesome out of the box. And Im in complete agreement about the evo statement, though it was a great phone you had to change everything to really make it perform.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
I test my own modifications on my phone, and sometimes leave them.. but I despise themeing and I always use touchwiz...
any modifications done to my phone are purely functional..
Yeah, I "played" around with the photon for a few minutes and the only thing that really stood out to me was...Holy S&%$ this thing is laggy ,laughed at the EVO3D,looked at the IP4S..couldn't find the screen So the GS2 was a no brainer. Touchwiz isn't bad...but that's my opinion. Everyone has different tastes. The phone is fast the screen is big the camera is good so I'm still holding off on rooting for now as I really don't see any need to..for me anyways.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App

Finally Got This Phone

I used my upgrade from my Nexus S 4g and decided to come over the the S2 on Sprint. I intend to play with this phone till my wife upgrade is in August which she will take the S2 in hopes that I will get the S3 by then.
Been reading up on these posts on here and I think I got it but wanted to make sure.
1. I need to Odin to get root with el29?
2. Never flash, wipe, reset data in ICS CWM?
3. Is it me or are there no Kernels like AirKernel for this phone?
4. I plan to go with CNA as I had on my Nexus. Love that rom anything you would like to share about this rom?
Any advice on the questions would be great and to be honest I really only post here and there but I'm always on here. Been here since the release of the Evo 4G.
Thanks.
Thanks and it awesome to be a part of the S2 community. WOW.
Really feels welcome here......
You're sure to get help now, getting all pissy that someone didn't help you at 5:30 on a Sunday morning. Good luck
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2 Beta-5
Wow, congrats to the E4GT community. You just enrolled another winner to the team.
How come no one rolled out the red carpet within the first few hours of this thread?
Glad I moved onto another phone, you guys really suck here
OP, you should get a GN. After my first post there, I was sent a 4 course meal from my favorite restaurant.
xda same as always...
Stoked to be here though.
Sort of asking for help, those are things that I've read up on. Just kind of a ice breaker more then anything.
Welcome to the party and congrats on the new phone.
The only question I can answer is #1, which is yes, to get an easy start just Odin sfhub's one-click EL29 for root, then read, read, read in the development section for all the goodies available.
Happy flashing and remember, if you brick your phone it's all on you.
1. I rooted just fine without Odin.
2. Yes it's also recommended you do that with most roms overall to avoid technical difficulties later on.
3. Idk what airkernel is, but there seems to be a limited choice if kernels for ginger.
4. CNA? Don't think I've seen a ROM called that around here but what do I know? I'm just a newbie...
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk
I left my photon to be here .. I hope not to be let down... Cause the hospitality over there was great! I love everybody there!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
dcowboys2184 said:
I left my photon to be here .. I hope not to be let down... Cause the hospitality over there was great! I love everybody there!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You just have to have thicker skin over here, people may seem a little harsh at times (me included) but at the core of their comments you typically find the truth you needed. If you read around enough you'll see there are a lot of good people in this community. I'd suggest you start with the thread below to see what I mean.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1572184
Most important of all, just follow the #1 rule of thumb for the internet, don't take things personally and you'll be just fine.
Oh, also, don't expect anyone here to a)kiss your butt (well maybe iSaint j/k lol), b)hold your hand or c)pat you on your wee little noggin when you f*ck up because you didn't read and ended up bricking your phone. That is all.
Everybody moved to the Evo One. This place is a ghost town now.
TPizzle said:
1. I rooted just fine without Odin.
2. Yes it's also recommended you do that with most roms overall to avoid technical difficulties later on.
3. Idk what airkernel is, but there seems to be a limited choice if kernels for ginger.
4. CNA? Don't think I've seen a ROM called that around here but what do I know? I'm just a newbie...
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
CNA is the Codename ROM.
**Enjoy the phone jcarlm
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2 Beta-5
dcowboys2184 said:
I left my photon to be here .. I hope not to be let down... Cause the hospitality over there was great! I love everybody there!
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Normally I'm nice, but being pissy while asking for help rubs me the wrong way.... Not like when iSaint rubs me
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2 Beta-5
Coming from a Evo then a Nexus S 4G I can't believe the trouble ones has to go through flashing roms that are ICS.
Odin is easy so that is nice but still. Seems like a lot of effort.
This phone is sweet. I just got to wait till I actually have time from work, kids and family so I can sit down and root this think and flash away.
Excited.
I can honestly say if it weren't for Odin and sfhub's one-click goodies I would probably still just be an observer on this forum. But he made it easy and then I learned to flash recovery and in doing so was able to start flashing Calkulin's custom ROMs. Although that's as far as I've gotten for now it's a long way from where I began and I'm excited for what's around the corner.
jcarlm said:
Coming from a Evo then a Nexus S 4G I can't believe the trouble ones has to go through flashing roms that are ICS.
Odin is easy so that is nice but still. Seems like a lot of effort.
This phone is sweet. I just got to wait till I actually have time from work, kids and family so I can sit down and root this think and flash away.
Excited.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once the source is released and official ota's are out im sure all the kinks will be ironed out. Development for ICS is still early for this phone. Using Odin isnt that bad, you can still flash a rom in about five minutes.
jcarlm said:
Coming from a Evo then a Nexus S 4G I can't believe the trouble ones has to go through flashing roms that are ICS.
Odin is easy so that is nice but still. Seems like a lot of effort.
This phone is sweet. I just got to wait till I actually have time from work, kids and family so I can sit down and root this think and flash away.
Excited.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It may seem a bit overwhelming at first but it really is incredibly easy. Just make sure your CWM is stock (just flash CM7 or GB Miui), and then you should have no issues flashing ICS.
mobile Odin is your friend guys. as quick as a reboot.
Sent from my Iconia A500 using Tapatalk
And no there aren't any kernels like Air, Matrix, Trinity on this phone but you will BD happy with stock or the repack
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using xda premium

please help me....

I am looking for a completely barebones version of ics for this phone. No touch, no sense, no rainbows, no flying unicorns, etc etc. I just want a base version with no bloat and no modifications. I would also like very specific instructions as to how to get it on to my phone because i am not technically savvy and my phone is my lifeline so bricking is the worst thing that can happen to me. If someone can point me to what i need then please delete this thread. i will answer any questions anyone has for me. thanks in advance.
Google play store.
Nexus $399.00
Sent from my SGH-T989 using XDA
Had too.
Its not here yet.
All the roms work well.
Before you and I get flamed more,lets leave it at that.
Another edit...
You can pm me,and ill try to help you out deciding.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using XDA
Running secret sammich.
sunlaw2 said:
Had to.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
grrrrrrrrrrrr.......hahaha
(WARNING! The following is my opinion only!)
If your phone is your lifeline, and you HAVE to have it be as solid as possible with no glitches whatsoever, you have no choice but to run either 100% unrooted stock, or something like Mr X's stock rooted ROM.
All other ICS builds are hacks (some very good ones, but hacks nonetheless).
ICS official will be released in the next couple of weeks for our phone and I would suggest be patient.
Or you can root and remove the bloat /carrier iq yourself.
which for me has been the most functional/stable.
Theres alot of very good roms here.
Not everyone has the same issues,so you just have to flash and see.
Going back to stock is a cinch.
The best I flashed was digital warfare.
I WISH raverx3x selfkang ICS is good to go,but alas...
T989 secret sammich
Lol just checked...
Aosp ics is on the board in development.
Pure?No,but try it,it might be pretty good.
T989 secret sammich

[Q] Root my 2.3.6 or wait for ICS upgrade?

Hi all,
I'm still on the fence about rooting my t989 and so I'm looking for advice. I got the 2.3.6 update and I really want ICS but I'm willing to wait for it though. Also, I'm pretty conservative when it comes to risks such as rooting due to warranties, bricking, and losing functionality. However, I'll be traveling for a while and tethering could be handy and titanium backup has always been attractive to me. But what happens if ICS comes out? I think I loose root if I update OTA, but I should be able to get root again. I'm not a big fan of real 3rd party software because I don't want to work with bugs so if I got a new ROM, it may only be CM9 or similar as reliability is important to me. And then I don't want a new ROM if it doesn't use the Linux Kernel since Ubuntu is developing that OS to share that Kernel. Do I even need a new ROM? I think touchwiz is fine. Pages of apps are better than scrolling through them IMO.
So any suggestions on what I should do? Thanks!
Root it unless you plan on running stock ics. Chances are the ota will be releases here before it hits your phone we have a couple really nice ics roms right now. Don't know what your waiting for lol
Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2
If you want to root, root. More than likely you will be able to download the stock ICS rom from here before you get it on your phone. As soon as one person gets it, our awesome devs will be on it like flys on ****, and we will see a stock rooted rom almost immediately.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
Root
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
Towle said:
If you want to root, root. More than likely you will be able to download the stock ICS rom from here before you get it on your phone. As soon as one person gets it, our awesome devs will be on it like flys on ****, and we will see a stock rooted rom almost immediately.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
I was rooted however I dropped my phone last week and had to get a replacement now I am just gonna wait for ICS to drop...
It's all good with me, at least I have my wifi calling and no delay or echo while taking my minibath.
Rooted mine several weeks ago. Tired of waiting for official ICS from T-Mobile and Samsung. Once the official version is released, the devs will have a rooted version available for flashing so you won't have to un-root.
Sent from my HTC Flyer using xda premium
Just root, you won't be disappointed. Plus you can always go back if you want.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
This isn't iOS. Don't think about and root it
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Just root it you will be happier plus its just as easy to unroot as it is to root
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
Was on 2.3.6 rooted for months waiting on ICS update. We finally got a rom yesterday that doesn't have any call echo problems, or really any problems. Flashed darkside's newest 4.0.4 rom this morning and have had smooth sailing all day.
Sent from the Darkside of the Sandwich
iLeopard said:
This isn't iOS. Don't think about and root it
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1. Its easy to unroot and return to stock if need be. Till then we have fully functional daily driver ics roms already so what are you waiting for? Take control of your device. That's why you went with android over iOS and wp7 in the first place anyway isnt it?
Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2
Thanks for your suggestions. I'll go ahead and root. I really want titanium backup. Is this the best thread for a HOW TO root?: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1514434
bripod said:
Thanks for your suggestions. I'll go ahead and root. I really want titanium backup. Is this the best thread for a HOW TO root?: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1514434
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is the thread i followed to root. Very simple instructions. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1311194 but yeah same method one has pics one dont.
Edit: Unrooting the phone is the same process as rooting except you flash a different file to the phone.
My suggestion is to root. But don't sweat CM9 it is pretty buggy right now because its still beta and isn't officially supported on our phones. But there are plenty of stable ICS roms now and even if u don't care for the few bugs that some may have, there are also some amazing GB rooms out there too.
Just my 2 cents.
Sent from my iced out to perfection GalaxyS2
But I don't NEED a new ROM do I? Doesn't it just change the GUI? Basically I just want tethering and freeze bloat apps and ads, but a battery life boost would be great. How much does it change under the hood to expand capability? From what I can tell, root apps are the only thing that expands features.
Root and install a rom... If you think your phone is good, with a rom you'll see your phone is just great
Sorry for all my questions but is the kernel held within the ROM? And whatever ROM I choose, I can just flash to different just like that huh? Like it's an easy process?
My brother has Juggernaut, it didn't look any different than touchwiz except for flashy little things like the screen turn off and stuff. I just need function, not flash.
Some roms com with their own kernels, like TDJ's ones... You can flash a rom and then change it for another, but you have to wipe your data for a clean install (there's always the option to backup your info)
Questions go in the Q&A section

Stock vs. Custom ROM - Need Opinions

ii've had a few phones before that i've installed custom roms on. and all these roms had bugs and made my phone behave slow and weird. i want to try a custom rom on the s3. but i dont want the same issues on it. i got some questions:
1. is stock better than custom rom for the s3?
2. are the custom roms SPECIFICALLY for the s3 bug free?
3. can you suggest which roms are the best for the s3 for battery life?
The rooms out there are great. If you want a stable Rom stick to the roms biased on ICS. I am waiting on official JB until I do a JB Rom
sent from my apple smashing s3
I haven't felt the need to flash a custom ROM, the stock ROM is just fine. One thing I did do is flash the latest Jelly Bean leak, pretty much everything works fine with it.
Often times we convince ourselves we are missing out on something, so we flash this or that rom, or hack, to try to get what we thought we might be missing, but don't see a big difference.
Your question alone shows hesitancy in doing something like flashing a custom rom. If you are worried about losing any features, or introducing some new bug, then stick with a stock rom.
But I highly recommend rooting, removing all the bloat, and at the minimum cleaning up your stock rom.
redhooka said:
I haven't felt the need to flash a custom ROM, the stock ROM is just fine. One thing I did do is flash the latest Jelly Bean leak, pretty much everything works fine with it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
do u think JB looks better than ICS?
bradleyw801 said:
Often times we convince ourselves we are missing out on something, so we flash this or that rom, or hack, to try to get what we thought we might be missing, but don't see a big difference.
Your question alone shows hesitancy in doing something like flashing a custom rom. If you are worried about losing any features, or introducing some new bug, then stick with a stock rom.
But I highly recommend rooting, removing all the bloat, and at the minimum cleaning up your stock rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i'm heistant cuz i want to be careful.. i highly agree with you.. as a matter of fact, i was thinking of getting my s3 rooted when i get it this week. do you mind posting a link on how to root the s3 for tmobile?
Just look in the stickies in the development section.
Here's the link, though:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1771687
The cm10 nightlies are daily drivers. I'm running them on work phones and install them on customers phones on a daily basis
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda premium
Okay been lurking this forum ever since the tmo s3 came out and finally made an account. I've been holding back on rooting but just yesterday I saw the link in your reply about not tripping the warranty counter. Is it really recommended to root my phone? I do want to remove the bloatware but I'm not sure of the cons of rooting. Also this is my first smart phone but I have friends tell me it's perfectly safe as long as I follow directions.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda app-developers app
baghdadassup said:
Okay been lurking this forum ever since the tmo s3 came out and finally made an account. I've been holding back on rooting but just yesterday I saw the link in your reply about not tripping the warranty counter. Is it really recommended to root my phone? I do want to remove the bloatware but I'm not sure of the cons of rooting. Also this is my first smart phone but I have friends tell me it's perfectly safe as long as I follow directions.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I recommend to root just for the ad blocking alone. Everything else is just a bonus.
But, the stock roms provide excellent battery life for what they are. The only reason I've rooted is so that I can flash ICS-like themes. Stock TWiz is atrocious-looking.
erikikaz said:
I recommend to root just for the ad blocking alone. Everything else is just a bonus.
But, the stock roms provide excellent battery life for what they are. The only reason I've rooted is so that I can flash ICS-like themes. Stock TWiz is atrocious-looking.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ohh, cool. I'm downloading the image atm and was wondering, What's ODIN? Is that provided with the phone or do I have to dl that from somewhere?
Odin is the other part of Samsung phones that gives you full control.
I believe zedomax's video gives the link, but I will double check. There is a mobile Odin as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJss1_dZZeY&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda premium
obla1 said:
ii've had a few phones before that i've installed custom roms on. and all these roms had bugs and made my phone behave slow and weird. i want to try a custom rom on the s3. but i dont want the same issues on it. i got some questions:
1. is stock better than custom rom for the s3?
2. are the custom roms SPECIFICALLY for the s3 bug free?
3. can you suggest which roms are the best for the s3 for battery life?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Define better.
2. Stock isn't bug free. But, there are ROMs with less bugs and ROMs with more. The devs will let you know in the first post.
3. AOSP and AOKP have the best battery. But, remember that the kernel you install plays a role.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda premium
Being an admitted flash addict when I switched from my vibrant to the s3 I was only going to root to get rid of bloat and install custom kernel as usual I spend way to much time flashing refreshing and tweaking what is already a great phone out of the box. So it is truly up to the individual. I will say there is great dev support and a lot of familiar faces from my previous device. Good luck in what ever you decide just make sure you do plenty of reading.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda premium

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