Develop Bugs

Which ROM is the best? Or Do we need ROM?

I ordered my Galaxy Nexus. It will arrive in a few days.
I am a former HTC Desire user. But it has been a year.
This is the question that should be asked I think.
Do we really need ROM?
If yes
Which one do you use and suggest?

When you actually get the device flash em all and YOU decide what is best.
good day.

chopper the dog said:
When you actually get the device flash em all and YOU decide what is best.
good day.
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Thats a unrealistic thing to ask a person to do.
Stock out of the box is a good experience. But if it becomes too boring. You'll want to flash custom ROMs.
Take a look at each roms thread and look at what they offer you. Pick the one with the most support and features that you'd like.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium

Most roms are currently stock based, not a real noticeable difference...i would flash one of your choice just for the sake of running a different kernel. Thats where the biggest difference will be right now. Look up the franco kernel....

zephiK said:
Thats a unrealistic thing to ask a person to do.
Stock out of the box is a good experience. But if it becomes too boring. You'll want to flash custom ROMs.
Take a look at each roms thread and look at what they offer you. Pick the one with the most support and features that you'd like.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
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Absolutely not! What I think is awesome might be crap for someone else. No one can tell you what the best ROM is as it's 100% subjective.
To the OP - read the ROM threads and if something takes your fancy give it a go. My personal preference at the moment is bigxie's ROM. I find it does everything I want and battery life is immense

Also, make sure you're either in the GSM section, or CDMA. But if you would like an opinion, the AOKP ROM by Roman is just absolutely incredible.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App

GSM version. Thanks for comment.
lonnyrs said:
Also, make sure you're either in the GSM section, or CDMA. But if you would like an opinion, the AOKP ROM by Roman is just absolutely incredible.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App
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I'm trying to find out which is fastest for GSM version. I have been using Franco's kernel which makes them all faster than stock and with good battery life. I think of the ones I have tried aokp and gummy are the fastest. I haven't tried eagle's blood in a while. It was pretty fast when I had it a couple weeks ago. Features and battery life are nice but speed is the most important for me.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium

@lonnyrs, in your opinion what makes the AOKP rom so incredible compared to the other roms? The developer says there's "many many more features" in the rom

EddyOS said:
Absolutely not! What I think is awesome might be crap for someone else. No one can tell you what the best ROM is as it's 100% subjective.
To the OP - read the ROM threads and if something takes your fancy give it a go. My personal preference at the moment is bigxie's ROM. I find it does everything I want and battery life is immense
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Some people don't have the time and effort (or even bandwidth since some users may be bandwidth capped. Each ROM is ~190MB, that is a lot of bandwidth being used for someone who may be on Comcast who only has a cap of whatever it is.
It's like saying, "what is the best phone?"... are you going to tell them to buy every phone and see which one they would like? No. Go through the list of features, screenshots, user reviews and determine which would fit you.
If you want 4.0.2 use Android Revolution (not sure why people would want 4.0.2, but LTE users may stay on 4.0.2 for battery purposes) but since OP has GSM. I'd recommend AOKP. Franco.Kernel is a necessity for any ROM on 4.0.3, it is simply amazing and has constant updates that is always improving and listening to user feedback.
AOKP is a ROM separating itself from others because the OP adds to the ROM so many customization tweaks that are easy and the user can set it the way they want their ROM to work. AOKP allows you to:
- ROM Control
Navigation Bar options & layouts (search bar layout, menu visibility options,etc) -- long press search button enabled
IME Switcher toggle (show/hide notification when you type)
Customize your carrier label
Override lockscreen timeout (ie, use Android's timeout when turning the phone off, so it won't lock itself)
LED pulse timing options
Statusbar toggle options
much much more in there
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.. and so many more (check the screenshots... make a nandroid backup and try the ROM for yourself)

I will try AOKP
zephiK said:
Some people don't have the time and effort (or even bandwidth since some users may be bandwidth capped. Each ROM is ~190MB, that is a lot of bandwidth being used for someone who may be on Comcast who only has a cap of whatever it is.
It's like saying, "what is the best phone?"... are you going to tell them to buy every phone and see which one they would like? No. Go through the list of features, screenshots, user reviews and determine which would fit you.
If you want 4.0.2 use Android Revolution (not sure why people would want 4.0.2, but LTE users may stay on 4.0.2 for battery purposes) but since OP has GSM. I'd recommend AOKP. Franco.Kernel is a necessity for any ROM on 4.0.3, it is simply amazing and has constant updates that is always improving and listening to user feedback.
AOKP is a ROM separating itself from others because the OP adds to the ROM so many customization tweaks that are easy and the user can set it the way they want their ROM to work. AOKP allows you to:
- ROM Control
.. and so many more (check the screenshots... make a nandroid backup and try the ROM for yourself)
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Click to collapse

AOKP
Hey, I would recommend AOKP Build 15 with the Apex kernel. Each to their own but I have tried everyone of the roms on here and I keep going back to AOKP! Good luck.

custom roms VS launchers

hi guys
i am a new android owner here, and i wish to ask for some assistance and maybe your opinion as well. i am currently a samsung galaxy S3 owner. and i am currently using the official firmware of this model. what is the main point of re-flashing your unit and installing a custom rom (oh and by the way which custom firmware is the best for samsung galaxy s3?). and if you are only looking for personalization, would it be installing launchers and some lock screen apps will do the job?
oh and lastly which is the best launcher available in the market place? Apex or nova?
thanks guys

bossrobo said:
hi guys
i am a new android owner here, and i wish to ask for some assistance and maybe your opinion as well. i am currently a samsung galaxy S3 owner. and i am currently using the official firmware of this model. what is the main point of re-flashing your unit and installing a custom rom (oh and by the way which custom firmware is the best for samsung galaxy s3?). and if you are only looking for personalization, would it be installing launchers and some lock screen apps will do the job?
oh and lastly which is the best launcher available in the market place? Apex or nova?
thanks guys
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If you are ONLY looking for customization, then I'd say launchers/lockscreen apps would do the trick.
The custom roms based off of stock are very similar to the stock rom. A lot of them make some improvements/tweaks/mods that make it more appealing/faster/efficient, etc. but if anyone tells you there is a HUGE difference between stock/custom I really believe that is not true. Especially on this phone. The roms NOT based off of stock (located in ORIGINAL development) are actually A LOT different. If you like the idea of natural Android you may want to check them out because it is close to the Nexus devices.
I personally like Nova, but I think Apex gets the job done too. Both have free versions so play around.
Widgetlocker is a good lock screen replacement app.
Also, if your new, and feel you do want to check out the custom offerings plenty of people will be here to help you out.

gpgorbosjr said:
If you are ONLY looking for customization, then I'd say launchers/lockscreen apps would do the trick.
The custom roms based off of stock are very similar to the stock rom. A lot of them make some improvements/tweaks/mods that make it more appealing/faster/efficient, etc. but if anyone tells you there is a HUGE difference between stock/custom I really believe that is not true. Especially on this phone. The roms NOT based off of stock (located in ORIGINAL development) are actually A LOT different. If you like the idea of natural Android you may want to check them out because it is close to the Nexus devices.
I personally like Nova, but I think Apex gets the job done too. Both have free versions so play around.
Widgetlocker is a good lock screen replacement app.
Also, if your new, and feel you do want to check out the custom offerings plenty of people will be here to help you out.
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hey thanks man, if you say efficient. does it mean it can improve the phones battery life?

bossrobo said:
hey thanks man, if you say efficient. does it mean it can improve the phones battery life?
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yes, and a lot of times they are a bit smoother and faster than the stock firmware.

bossrobo said:
hey thanks man, if you say efficient. does it mean it can improve the phones battery life?
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Yes...a lot of roms claim (and some) do improve battery life. Also, some are smoother/faster than stock roms.
HOWEVER, in my experience using many roms on many phones on many carriers I would point out:
1. You WILL run into unexpected bugs using custom roms.
2. A lot of the improvements are placebo. I don't care what people say, your phone does not magically become THAT much better. An S3 running a custom rom will not blow an S3 running stock out of the water. That said, when you have a good rom dev there will be improvements. Just watch out for people who take roms and really only theme the rom and not make improvements.
I've used the AT&T and Sprint versions of the S3 for about a week each on stock roms, and I did not notice a big difference in battery life or speed when switching to custom ones. Maybe a little smoother, maybe, but my battery life has been about the same.
EDIT: What I would say is expectations need to be reasonable. Your phone will get better with a (good) custom rom, but custom roms aren't going to make a S2 as powerful as an S3, or an S3 have the battery life of a RazrMaxx. The phones performance are still primarily based on the hardware and not the small tweaks made via the roms.

Is there a need for custom rom?

I've been looking at the pictures of some home screens which look spectacular, I just want your opinion. I've just sold my iPhone 5 for Galaxy S3 i9305 LTE and I'm already amazed at being able to do so much. One thing that annoyed me with iPhone was the need to jailbreak if you wanted to do anything, so android is perfect and I think my phone set up with Nova Launcher Prime looks terrific.
Do I really need to go any further as I'd hate having to go back in the jailbreak business.

You and try it out no one is stopping you and I suggest that there is better performance for the phone so it is good
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

Pie8er said:
I've been looking at the pictures of some home screens which look spectacular, I just want your opinion. I've just sold my iPhone 5 for Galaxy S3 i9305 LTE and I'm already amazed at being able to do so much. One thing that annoyed me with iPhone was the need to jailbreak if you wanted to do anything, so android is perfect and I think my phone set up with Nova Launcher Prime looks terrific.
Do I really need to go any further as I'd hate having to go back in the jailbreak business.
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You do what you want if you find you want xxx and it requires root then its your choice .
Point to note no root then no XDA Developers exists .
jje

I believe it is a matter of personal preference. This phone is one of the best, so no, there is no need for a custom Rom if it covers all of your needs as if. Just have in mind that some custom roms will give you a performance gain but will break some other stuff. I am not against custom, I've used them since I bought my Spica but this is the first one I do not see the need to go the custom Rom way
Enviado desde mi GT-I9300 usando Tapatalk 2

Personally, I rooted my previous phones (and my Galaxy Tab) to increase their performance. However, he S3's performance - and come on, dude, you have the LTE version - is worlds apart to that of my previous phones. I still don't see the need to customize it.
However, this is coming from someone who doesn't really mind the TouchWIZ interface that Samsung made. If you really want a stock Android experience, then root, and then install a custom rom.

To be totally honest, don't think a custom rom is needed. That said, some mods DO make it better by a fair bit. For a phone that boasts 1Gb of ram it falls really short on multitasking. It just seems to close any app that stays in the background for a while even if it's memory wasn't needed. Rarely though, it will work properly for some reason. Haven't tried better memory managment mods (will do at some point) but this is the only really important one i'd like stock to do better.
There's also another grey area. Not really a custom rom but the latest samsung leak for the international version make it worlds apart from stock ICS, performance and functions wise. You'd need to get it from unofficial channels since it's a leak and hasn't been officially released yet AND in some countries may never be or just be really delayed for some reason. To install it, of course, you'd have to dable into "jailbreaking" (man i hate this term) business since it isn't official.
Also, in this latest leak, i'm also looking forward to that mod that adds all apps to multiview (haven't installed it yet). Everything else i'd use to want from a custom rom (mainly on my SGS), samsung has just about delivered: configurable toggle buttons, long press toggle to quickly access settings, smart stay/rotate, really smooth UI with touchwiz (even if it redraws often albeit less in this latest ROM), LOADS of ways to ease up your how you interact with your phone (gestures, motions, etc), loads of convenient menus everywhere, etc. Even if something is not to your liking there's a very high chance you can customize it or just get a free app from the market to make it to your liking, most of the time not requiring a rooted phone.
TL: DR: Nop, don't think so. I'd change minor stuff though

Simply necessary to set 240 DPI...320 is for my grandma.

NO...period. ..
sent frm 3rd rock...

Interesting subject..
In reality no, there no need for a custom rom.. its simply an avenue to save time. Eg. If you find yourself installing a multitude of different mods/tweaks everytime you update your phone then a custom rom would suite you because they come installed by default.
If you like as close to the stock experience as possible then by all means no a custom rom is not needed.
In reality a custom rom is simply a collection of mods cooked together by the dev.. roms share very similar mods/tweaks with perhaps some cosmetic differences.
The phrase "jailbreak" originated because of the stock iOS experience being so restricted.. in the Android world the stock experience is the complete opposite, it allows you to do a large range of things although the only thing you may have to do to completely take advantage of your device is root it.
Perhaps this thread should of went into the Q/A area.. but nether the less good subject.

Pie8er said:
I've just sold my iPhone 5 for Galaxy S3 i9305 LTE
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We need more people like you in this world! Come join us in the Galaxy S3 general discussion thread!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1889453
Also, in my opinion, there is no need to root the S3. Samsung have done an amazing job with it! It has great features and you can do so much without having to root. If you like the flavour of custom ROMs, though, you'll need to root. Just check them out and see what suits your everyday needs!
Enjoy!

kaynpayn said:
To be totally honest, don't think a custom rom is needed. That said, some mods DO make it better by a fair bit. For a phone that boasts 1Gb of ram it falls really short on multitasking.
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If you see the OP he actually bought the I9305 which is 2GB ram.. So its good with multitasking. And to the OP you are in the wrong Forum there is a I9305 q/a forum now if you read the forum headings. And about the custom rom, Just go about your way and use your phone normally now if you come to a roadblock or hiccup or want to try tweak it in anyway thats when you start looking into customizing or getting another rom and see if it runs smoother

Best Vanilla combination?

I have had my Note II since launch and I have always had the stock ROM installed. I kind of miss vanilla Android OS from my Nexus so I'm looking into flashing a brand new vanilla stock rom, I have absolutely no time to look into finding the best combination of kernel/rom/radio.etc to get the best out of the note in vanilla.
What combination of ROM/Kernel/Radio..etc did you guys find best to run on the Note II and get its full potential with good stability/battery life? I use my phone heavily for productivity and I don't care much for games.

mmk92 said:
I have had my Note II since launch and I have always had the stock ROM installed. I kind of miss vanilla Android OS from my Nexus so I'm looking into flashing a brand new vanilla stock rom, I have absolutely no time to look into finding the best combination of kernel/rom/radio.etc to get the best out of the note in vanilla.
What combination of ROM/Kernel/Radio..etc did you guys find best to run on the Note II and get its full potential with good stability/battery life? I use my phone heavily for productivity and I don't care much for games.
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Use AOSP roms like Cyanogenmod , AOKP, Paranoid Android etc. Use a kernel that will save your battery. Make sure it is compatible with the rom. You can find it in development section
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda app-developers app

Ya I know, but which ROM out of all these coupled with a decent kernel(stock maybe) gives me the best overall experience? Has anyone tried using the Paranoid droid as their primary daily driver?

I'm sorry to say that they are all great but for different reasons. While I've toyed with AOKP and PA, it's CyanogenMod that fulfills my needs the best. My reasoning is that I am looking for a clean and simple experience in my AOSP roms. While the others may give more options, CyanogenMod make the greatest effort to stay within Google design guidelines for Android. Overall this gives the rom a feeling of being cleaner and less cluttered than the others.
Kernel wise I've found neak, perseus, and Red pill are all great. Currently using neak because the configuration app is (again) simpler than stweaks (which the other two use).
Sent from the mighty Note II

dr.m0x said:
I'm sorry to say that they are all great but for different reasons. While I've toyed with AOKP and PA, it's CyanogenMod that fulfills my needs the best. My reasoning is that I am looking for a clean and simple experience in my AOSP roms. While the others may give more options, CyanogenMod make the greatest effort to stay within Google design guidelines for Android. Overall this gives the rom a feeling of being cleaner and less cluttered than the others.
Kernel wise I've found neak, perseus, and Red pill are all great. Currently using neak because the configuration app is (again) simpler than stweaks (which the other two use).
Sent from the mighty Note II
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Do you get a decent batterylife?

poope said:
Do you get a decent batterylife?
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Battery life is still quite good compared to a lot of other phones out there but noticeably worse than the stock rom. I've encountered this on all the kernels and both AOKP and CyanogenMod. Haven't tested pa extensively but I can't see it being any better than the others.
Sent from the mighty Note II

[Q] Poll: Are you glad you updated to 4.4.2 or regret not stiaying with 4.3 longer?

Hey guys, the poll is intended for those who have already flashed the 4.4.2 bootloader already, but comments from anyone on the subject are welcome. Overall, are you glad that you upgraded, or do you wish that you held off until the custom ROMs were a bit more mature? What specific advantages / disadvantages are you seeing vs. 4.3 and what Kit Kat ROM are kernel are you running?
I really like my current combo of Tweaked 4.3, the last Saber kernel, topped off with Wally's Paperkut theme. However, I've been seeing an increasing amount of appealing 4.4.2 ROMs and have been thinking about crossing the point (bootloader) of no return. I've also been seeing a big drop in the amount of complaints about the update, so it appears that most kinks are being irroned out.
So what do you all think? I should note that I'm super-dependent on wifi calling, so I'm limited to the T-mobile base, unfortunately. Some emphasis on NB4 based ROMs would be cool, but feel free to share any T-mobile Note 3 update experience.

I haven't seen any difference ... I will have to google to see what "features" I gained. I didn't like the ability to not be able to write to the SD card, but that's been fixed. And yes, finding a custom ROM isn't the easiest task ever!

I waited until the easy upgrade, root, sd card fix was out, and then did it. I'm super happy I did. The phone overall runs smoother, and takes less resources thanks to the KK OS. The only real thing I noticed was the all white icons, and the rounded toast notifications. I'm happy with the stock ROM since I use a lot of Samsung/TW apps especially the Hub, TV remote, and WhatsOn app, so I'm not looking for an alternate ROM, and plus I also use Xposed to get any features I want/need that the stock ROM doesn't have, so yeah, it's been a great upgrade for me.

I guess upgrade is better than no upgrade. I just didn't like the fact that to root is to trigger the stupid Knox warranty with kkos. But I can not go a full day with an unrooted phone so I root Knox can kiss me bye.
Sent from my Nexus 10 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

Thanks for all of the feedback. I'm definitely glad I've held off on flashing 4.4.2. I just noticed that Jedi has been bumped up to 1.1, so I'm reading through the thread and might end up Odin-ing up to Kit Kat, or might continue to wait. I've never tried a Jedi ROM, but have found Saber kernel to run best on my device, so I'm kind of tempted to check it out for a while until Tweaked 4.4.2 is released.
Wish there was a way to import my Apex Pro homescreens across ROMs. I think that might be added to Nandroid Manager Pro, but isn't there yet... takes me forever to set up my screens, which is kind of a deterrent in itself from upgrading.
Anyways, any more experience with custom ROMs? Thanks again for the feedback so far.

Voted against, battery life took a dumpsky.

Forgot to mention, what a disappointment that the rounder toasts are the only visual difference. I actually use an Xposed module that backports the new toast style because I like it better. I think it's more congruent with my theme, Paperkut by Wally. I really dig his Kit Kat theme so I actually would have some visual differences but that's really lame as far as the stock update is concerned.

jazzmachine said:
Forgot to mention, what a disappointment that the rounder toasts are the only visual difference. I actually use an Xposed module that backports the new toast style because I like it better. I think it's more congruent with my theme, Paperkut by Wally. I really dig his Kit Kat theme so I actually would have some visual differences but that's really lame as far as the stock update is concerned.
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English would be nice

I regret it a lot!
My battery drains a lot faster than before.
Anyone else experiencing that kind of issue?

After spending two weeks of troubleshooting hell with 3 different note 3s from T-Mobile all due to kitkat crap, guess my answer?

I love it, battery life is insanely doubled.. Just need more tmobile roms to choose from.. Running International right now
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

Simple upgrade, no real problems so far.