Develop Bugs

[Q] Who provides a professional service to upgrade my Kaiser

Hey all,
I own an unlocked ATT Tilt 1 (Kaiser 8925). It is currently running windows mobile which is extremely slow. I have read all over the internet that you can put the Android 2.2 OS on this phone and have seen youtube videos on this topic also.
Ideally I need to be able to buy apps from the android marketplace.
Since I'm not a phone hacker I'd like to find a professional cel phone service company that can do this for me.
I searched extensively on Google and can't seem to find one. So who can do this and what is the normal charge for something like this.
Just trying make my old phone useful in wifi mode.
Any advice would be great.
Regards Henry

I don't think there is a company that provides such a service especially if we take in to account that kaiser/tilt is a 3 year old device and the android port is not official. There are plenty of topics in the forum describing how to replace winmo with Android. You don't have to be a hacker to run Android on your phone. Just read the stickies and you wil be able to flash ityourself in no time

There are phone dealers out there (in the USA anyway), that will do this for a fee on the Kaiser, but trust me, with what has gone into the development of this, almost anyone can do it. Save yourself the money and try it yourself. The worst I've heard about is a mis-flashed phone needing some master reset.

The question is who?
I live here in the Orlando area and have called a number of cel phone companies.
I was treated like King Gidorah Three Headed Space Monster. They didn't have a clue this could be done.

Henrykjr said:
I live here in the Orlando area and have called a number of cel phone companies.
I was treated like King Gidorah Three Headed Space Monster. They didn't have a clue this could be done.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Listen HenrykJR there are about dozens of android builds on this forum + many different versions of two kernels, not all of those will work correctly for you. You might experience different issues with one setup but the other will work correctly for you. So even if there was a company that could flash it for you, you might end up with an unstable device. Also how could a company gain knowledge on flashing android builds to a phone that was originally shipped with windows mobile??? You seem to be looking for Nessy....in woods.
Your best bet now is to find someone in the forums to help you flash your device....maybe even use skype to show you how to do it. It really isn't that hard.

Hehe, i don´t think you´ll find a Company that will do it for you. Maybe you find some guys that do it for Money (me to ). But if you spend a little time with reading through this forum you could do it yourself and save the money.
Preparing:
1.) You need a SD card (mandatory for android on Kaiser). And you need a Google Mail Account for syncing your contacts etc. and access the android market.
2.) You have to "unlock" your Phone (with HSPL/HardSPL). Only after that you are able to flash things (Cusom WinMo ROMs, Radio, Android) to your Kaiser. So read through this guide and follow step 1-4.
3.) Now you have an unlocked phone an you should be able to flash everything. And the first thing you flash should be the latest "radio". The "radio" for Kaiser is similar to the BIOS for your PC. Like the subsystem and responsible for GSM chipset etc... So look & read in this Radio-Thread, download the latest Radio (it is 1.71.09.01) an follow the guide "Flashing Radio from microSD"
4.) Now your Phone is up-to-date and ready for flashing Android (or WinMo custom roms). YOU NEVER HAVE TO DO THE STEPS 1-3 AGAIN! Your Phone is now completely prepared!
Flashing Android:
For Android on Kaiser you always need 2 Parts. The Kernel (this part initialize the hardware so its similar to "driver" on PC) and the Built (the Android OS itself). But Both should work together so you´ll may find in some kernel suggestions in Built-threads because not ever kernel work with every built. For your beginning i whould suggest you some things:
First the kernel:
DZO is the most popular (the father of android on Kaiser) Kernel-Developer for Kaiser. So go to his repository and download "voguimg-240x320-2.6.32-froyo-09-10-10_23.nbh". Because Vouge and kaiser have almost the same hardware we all could use this kernel. But everyone have to modify this kernel to make phone related optimizations. You can do thy by hand (not recommended for you) or with a tool called "Atools". This tool is writthen in "Python" so mac and linux user could use it too. But you need to install Python. But that is all described in the Atools thread. Read through it and follow the guide.
Modifing Kernel:
We will only modify the madatory things. Not more at the moment...
So run Atools, klick on the "folder" Button and load the "voguimg-240x320-2.6.32-froyo-09-10-10_23.nbh".
Device: "Kaiser" should be checked
Resolution: 240x320 should be checked (native resolution of Kaiser display). Everything else will give blurry optic.
Version: "Froyo" should be checked, because we will flash a Froyo built (thats android 2.2). If you want to flash an older built like a Donut one (1.6) you have to modify & flash your kernel again.
Panel Type: Try "auto" or "1" first. But if you have a fuzzy screen or artifacts you have to try out which paneltype fits best for your device. HTC has built in 3 different displays in the Kaiser and the only way to find out which one is builtin is trial & error.
Keymap: Depends on which hardware keyboard layout you have. Here in Germeny i have to use "qwertz".
We leave the other options as they are an klick on the "Disk" button to save our modificated kernel now. it save it as "KAISIMG.nbh".
Now we need the Built:
I suggest "Fat Free Froyo" at the moment. Fast, stable, an looks good. So go to this thread and download "ODEX DOWNLOAD RLS5 ALL LANG-ODEX" on the bottom of the post.
then unzip/unrar this file...
Flashing your first Android:
1.) You should have a fat32 formatted SD card
2.) put the Kernel (the modified KAISIMG.nbh) to the root of SD card
3.) Create a folder named "andboot" on SD card
4.) Put the unzipped file (androidinstall.tar or .tgz) in the folder "andboot"
5.) Remove SIMcard and any cables from phone and put the SD card in your phone. Battery should be 50% carged or more...
6.) go to bootloader-mode (press and hold camera button and powerbutton). the KAISIMG should be loaded and it will show you "press powerbutton to update" or something similar. Do that... Now a progressbar will appear. When it is at 100% wait a few seconds an then pull the battery. Wait 10 seconds an insert it again. Voila! You flashed your first android kernel!
7.) Now we have to install android itself. So Power on the phone. In the moment when you see small white text on black background you have to press and hold the d-pad button. This one in the middle. Now you get in the install menu.
8.) Leave the options "System on nand" and "DATA on nand" as it is. Navigate to "install system" an press dpad. It ask "format system" and "format data". Both "YES". after this procedure you enter the menu again. navigate to "quit".
9.) Yeah! The first Bootup of Android! The first bootup takes longer as the following ones because now the system prepares for bootup and do a lot of optimisations. Even if you enter the lockscreen you should give it 10 minutes time to finish this optimization process in backround.
10.) Finish! You have flashed your first android completely! Now you can play around and make your settings. Remember: You have to sign in to your google account befor you can access the market or syncronize your contacts etc.!
Sounds more complicated as it is. Try it!
And if you´ll dig in deeper in this stuff you have to read here! Especially the Stickies/Refs/Tutorials! We´ve all done that!
have fun!

Henrykjr said:
Hey all,
I own an unlocked ATT Tilt 1 (Kaiser 8925). It is currently running windows mobile which is extremely slow. I have read all over the internet that you can put the Android 2.2 OS on this phone and have seen youtube videos on this topic also.
Ideally I need to be able to buy apps from the android marketplace.
Since I'm not a phone hacker I'd like to find a professional cel phone service company that can do this for me.
I searched extensively on Google and can't seem to find one. So who can do this and what is the normal charge for something like this.
Just trying make my old phone useful in wifi mode.
Any advice would be great.
Regards Henry
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Brother, You can do it yourself, I can assure you. Regarding any ambiguity, you can contact me through PM. (I can guide you complete on voice over skype / msn). Its a TIDEOUS job but EASY to do since there is no MEANS OF BRICKING your kaiser (unless you flash something else than what u have do to install android).
I am here to help you in this community. And you can do this thing yourself.
Your device is At&t Tilt. The bad thing about installing android is getting a RIGHT kernel that suits your LCD type and enables wifi in the android build u install. (maybe in 1st try, maybe takes almost 10 tries like it happened for me)

[REF] TERMINOLOGY for the newbies.... (updated 11/13/12)

Decided to post this for anyone that is curious and wants to know the terminology used in these roms.
I take NO CREDIT for this, just wanted to share my findings. Source below. Let me know if I missed any.
http://wiki.cyanogenmod.com/index.php/Terminology
http://www.addictivetips.com/mobile/what-is-odex-and-deodex-in-android-complete-guide/
TERMINOLOGY -
*TRWP- Team Win Recovery Project/ It has a touch based recovey interface.. and its more consistent than cwm it seems
*CWR aka ClockworkMod Recovery-
A custom recovery for Android phones and tablets that allows you to perform several advanced recovery, restoration, installation and maintenance operations on your Android device that aren’t possible with the stock recovery.
*Superuser-
A progam which gives unlimited access privileges to perform any or all operations on the operating system.
*KIES mini-
Kies Mini is an official application from Samsung that is used to update the software on your phone. It should not be confused with the full Kies application, which has a lot more functionality and is not officially supported in the USA. Therefore, abbreviating "Kies Mini" as just "Kies" can cause confusion.
*ODIN-
Odin is the Samsung software used to update Samsung phones. It does not work with any other devices other than official Samsung phones.
*OTA or FOTA-
(F)OTA stands for (Firmware) Over The Air and is the process by which required updates and enhancements to your phone's basic operating system can be sent to you through the cellular network. The Galaxy S II software update will be sent via FOTA and is available through Samsung Kies mini.0
*ODEX-
In Android file system, applications come in packages with the extension .apk. These application packages, or APKs contain certain .odex files whose supposed function is to save space. These ‘odex’ files are actually collections of parts of an application that are optimized before booting. Doing so speeds up the boot process, as it preloads part of an application. On the other hand, it also makes hacking those applications difficult because a part of the coding has already been extracted to another location before execution.
*DEODEX-
Deodexing is basically repackaging of these APKs in a certain way, such that they are reassembled into classes.dex files. By doing that, all pieces of an application package are put together back in one place, thus eliminating the worry of a modified APK conflicting with some separate odexed parts.
In summary, Deodexed ROMs (or APKs) have all their application packages put back together in one place, allowing for easy modification such as theming. Since no pieces of code are coming from any external location, custom ROMs or APKs are always deodexed to ensure integrity.
*Busybox-
A set of Unix tools / commands that has been compiled for use on your phone. These are not usually full-featured versions of the Unix commands found on the larger platforms counterparts, but they are pretty close and useful nonetheless.
*3G/4G-
3G/4G is the term generally used to describe 3rd/4rth Generation mobile telecommunications, specifically allowing for greater throughput of data over cellular networks.
*Baseband/Modem-
Baseband refers to the original frequency range of a transmission signal before it is converted, or modulated, to a different frequency range.
*Bloatware-
Software or 'apps' that you don't need, but come preinstalled to a device's /system partition, meaning that you cannot remove them unless the device has been rooted. Usually, these are apps are sponsored by a company and included by a carrier for profit. For example, the Photobucket app included on the G2 by TMobile.
*CDMA-
Code division multiple access (CDMA) is a channel access method used by various radio communication technologies. It should not be confused with the mobile phone standards called cdmaOne and CDMA2000 (which are often referred to as simply CDMA), which use CDMA as an underlying channel access method.
*Firmware-
Programs stored in the ROM, EPROM, or flash memory that usually control various internal electronic devices (Hard Drives, Keyboards, Displays, etc). Firmware is typically 'fixed' software that is not updated in consumer devices, however it is often updated (or 'flashed') by advanced users to fix bugs or add features to the device. Flashing firmware designed for one device onto a different device, or not following a specific procedure while flashing will often render the device unusable.
*Flash-
Non-volatile computer storage that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed (similar to EPROM). No power is needed to maintain the information stored in the chip. This technology is primarily used in memory cards and USB flash drives for general storage and transfer of data between computers and other digital products. Because of its ease of use, speed, ability to be updated (see flashing), this technology is often used in mobile devices, PDAs, digital media players.
*Kernel-
The central or core software component of most operating systems. Its responsibilities include managing the system's resources (the communication between hardware and software components) and can provide the lowest-level abstraction layer for resources (especially memory, processors, and I/O devices).
*IMEI-
The International Mobile Equipment Identity is a number unique to every GSM, WCDMA, and iDEN mobile device, as well as some satellite devices. The IMEI number is used by the GSM network to identify valid devices and therefore can be used to stop a stolen device from accessing the network. For example, if a mobile device is stolen, the owner can call their network provider and instruct them to "ban" the device using its IMEI number. This renders the device useless, whether or not the device's SIM is changed. The IMEI can be displayed by dialing *#06#.
*IRC-
Internet Relay Chat. Basically a chatroom, or a cross between Instant Messaging and a forum.
*Open-source-
Open-source is software that anyone is allowed to see the 'source' code. In the context of Android, Open-source refers to the approach to the design, development, and distribution of software. This offers accessibility to a software's source code for modification, improvement, bug-fixing, and security-enhancement. CyanogenMod is based on this principle.
*AOSP-
Android Open Source Project
*Radio-
The cellular radio on the device which needs control software called firmware to control it.
*ROM-
Read Only Memory. In the context of an Android device, ROM is the internal flash memory where the core operating system resides. It can also refer to a specific version firmware that can be applied to a device through a process usually referred to as flashing. An improperly flashed ROM can often brick the device, rendering it unusable.
*SDK-
Software Development Kit. You can find the Android SDK at http://developer.android.com/sdk.
*Vanilla-
A clean, unmodified version of something. In the context of Android ROMs, vanilla refers to the stock ROM that came pre-installed on the device.
*Widget-
An application that lives (in other words, is always running) on the homescreen instead of being 'run' like a regular app. Common examples are calenders and weather widgets.
*Soft Brick-
Recoverable without professional repair via Odin
*Hard Brick-
Not recoverable, better hope you have a warranty/insurance. Usually happens when flashing wrong rom or modem, like from another device.
*Superwipe-
A tool that will get your device "Rom-flash-ready" by doing the necessary wiping
*Zipalign-
Reduces the amount of RAM consumed when running the application by allowing data to be mmap'd in; which causes all uncompressed data within the .apk, such as images or raw files, to be aligned on 4-byte boundaries.
*Sleep of death or S.O.D.-
Refers to the the device not being able to be awaken after a long time in "off mode" like while charging while you sleep. If you try to awaken your device, I will not come on. Usually requires a long press on the power button to reset the device or battery pull.
*Hot Reboot-
An option to reload all apps and framework files without rebooing the complete device
*FC-
Foreclose
*WIP-
Work in Progress
*Kanged-
To have one's developer code and work taken, manipulated, rebranded, and re-released by someone else with no credit
*Insecure-
A kernel that will give you root access, installing one of these will allow you to run apps that require root access, and allow you to make proper backups of your handset.
Android Specific Definitions
*ADB-
Android Development Bridge. Command line tool used to communicate with & control the device over a USB link from a computer. The ADB command is found in the Android SDK.
*Android-
Unveiled on 5 November 2007, Android is a mobile operating system running on the Linux kernel developed by Google.
*Apps2SD-
Move applications from the internal NAND memory on the device to a removable SD Card.
*CyanogenMod Updater-
An updater written by Cyanogen that allows you to receive OTA (Over-The-Air) updates to CyanogenMod.
*Dalvik-Cache-
The dalvik-cache directory holds all of the pre-compiled .dex files created from installed apps. These files are static and do not change unless the app is updated.
*Fastboot-
Fastboot is protocol used to directly update the flash filesystem in Android devices from a host over USB. It allows flashing of unsigned partition images. It is disabled almost all production devices since USB support is disabled in the bootloader.
*GApps-
See Google Apps.
*[CO

Nice job! Thanks for compiling that.
I was just saying on another thread that I wish when I had rooted last week that I knew more about WHAT and WHY I was doing something vs. just following the directions of the dev! Love to see someone maybe elaborate on the actual root process. Such as explaining why we have to use odin vs. say just drag and dropping files, what is and why do we have to have Superuser, explain CWM recovery, etc.

Nice post. I didn't know what odex vs deodex was but now I do!
Swyped from my iPhone eater
-BeastMOD
-Supercharged 1000HP

you deserve a thanks click and a sticky... sorry can only provide one

OP updated with Superuser, ODIN and CWR.

thanx bro..my noob level dropped lol

mightymike889 said:
thanx bro..my noob level dropped lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol. If I can help at least one person than my job has been done.
Powered by the SGSII....

Very nice list. But I have one question, what's ota? ;-)
——————————
Deebo took your bike too?

ThC23 said:
OP updated with Superuser, ODIN and CWR.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! Learning more and more!
Superuser...I thought I "installed" Superuser like an app or interface?

AOSP - Android Open Source Project.
I just looked this one up the other day after wondering for a loong time what it meant.
m.

escrowdog said:
Thanks! Learning more and more!
Superuser...I thought I "installed" Superuser like an app or interface?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol, my bad! It is, it was late last nite and I have no idea where that came from, lol. Superuser fixed. Thanks.
Busybox added.

ThC23 said:
Lol, my bad! It is, it was late last nite and I have no idea where that came from, lol. Superuser fixed. Thanks.
Busybox added.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should've added ota in the op too.
——————————
Deebo took your bike too?

Write what CWR actually stands for. ClockworkMod Recovery

The_Biz said:
You should've added ota in the op too.
——————————
Deebo took your bike too?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
darkamikaze said:
Write what CWR actually stands for. ClockworkMod Recovery
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OP updated, thanks.

Thanks OP! You know what I would really like - a listing for the 'just past n00bs' that includes items like:
Baseband version
Kernel version
Mod version
Build number
(Basically all the less than painfully obvious items on the "About Phone" page. )
As an example, Keis wanted to update the firmware to VKID2 last night, but I thought, screw it, I am loading CM7. However, I still see the old baseband version there. Whats the difference? Should I (can I) load the samsung update now that CM7 is loaded. Is there "firmware" and a "rom" or are they the same thing... etc.
anyway, thanks for the glossary. Its good!

I just bought my first Android a week ago. I've been reading a bunch and was confused by many terms. This was very helpful. Thanks!

unlocked ; can also referr to the bootloader too fyi
Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk

Thanks
Thank you so much for such an informative page. What is Android without Root privileges

Thank you. good Info.

dwayner79 said:
Thanks OP! You know what I would really like - a listing for the 'just past n00bs' that includes items like:
Baseband version
Kernel version
Mod version
Build number
(Basically all the less than painfully obvious items on the "About Phone" page. )
As an example, Keis wanted to update the firmware to VKID2 last night, but I thought, screw it, I am loading CM7. However, I still see the old baseband version there. Whats the difference? Should I (can I) load the samsung update now that CM7 is loaded. Is there "firmware" and a "rom" or are they the same thing... etc.
anyway, thanks for the glossary. Its good!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is what it should look like with the new update. This has the latest baseband and its 2.3.6.
Powered by the SGSII....

[ReF} ALL IN ONE NOOBS VIDEO* GUIDES TO ROOT | FLASH | & MORE

If you just switched from iPhone or BB or this is ur first android. Read this thoroughly and see ur questions get eliminated by this guide. if you find this helpful than show your appreciation and hit that thnx button.
Little in-depth information about Android. Must Read. Thank You Pirateghost.
Pirateghost said:
Android itself is OPEN. you can go and build your very own version of 4.0 ICS right now from source code. there are very few phones you can STABLY and RELIABLY run it on though.
The NEXUS line of phones exists for a reason. they are untouched by carriers (verizon teabagged the Galaxy Nexus a little), and do not have some stupid overlay on them. they are developer devices in that it is the first phone to get android updates straight from google (no manufacturer interference required).
every other phone is tainted with a manufacturer's UI. Touchwiz on Samsung phones (galaxy nexus is a samsung but they provided the hardware not the software), Sense on HTC, 'non-blur' on Motorola, whatever Sony calls theirs...lol, LG, etc
on top of that tainted Android interface is a carrier branding or lockdown (doesnt apply to the entire world, but im only referring to US here)
so google releases new version of Android
manufacturers build phone, and customize android to fit their model (this is where android almost stops being OPEN)
carriers get a hold of the manufacturers build of android and tweak and modify it themselves (more than likely they just tell the manufacturers what they want), as you know they love to include bloat and lock it down from the user
you receive your android phone after it has gone through all those steps....long process huh? we dont get updates to newer versions as quickly because of that long process...and they would rather us buy new phones instead of improving perfectly good hardware.
Android is open in the sense that manufacturers can use it however they wish, within reason. it is not necessarily meant to be 'open' to the average end user, and manufacturers dont want you messing with the phone they built. its the reason XDA is what it is today, albeit with roots deep in WinMo hacking.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ADB → Android Debug Bridge (adb) is a versatile command line tool that lets you communicate with an emulator instance or connected Android-powered device..
Android →Unveiled on 5 November 2007, Android is a mobile operating system running on the Linux kernel developed by Google.
AOSP → Android Open Source Project
Apps2SD → Move applications from the internal NAND memory on the device to a removable SD Card.
BLN → BackLight Notification
Bloatware → Software bloat is a process whereby successive versions of apps include an increasing proportion of unnecessary features that are not used by end users, or generally use more system resources than necessary, while offering little or no benefit to its users. Like all the crap that comes from At&t
Brick → When used in reference to consumer electronics, "brick" describes a device that cannot function in any capacity (such as a device with damaged firmware). This usage derives from the fact that some electronic devices (and their detachable power supplies) are vaguely brick-shaped, and so those which do not function are useful only as actual bricks. The term can also be used as a verb. For example, "I bricked my phone when I tried to modify its firmware."[
Hard Brick → When your phone does not turn on at all. When you can’t get in to CWR/CWM Or Stock recovery. You are basically screwed.
Soft Brick → When your phone bootloops. When you can get into CWR/CWM. When You can use jigtag to get into download mode.
Busybox → BusyBox provides several stripped-down Unix tools in a single executable. It runs in a variety of POSIX environments such as Linux, Android, FreeBSD and others, such as proprietary kernels, although many of the tools it provides are designed to work with interfaces provided by the Linux kernel. It was specifically created for embedded operating systems with very limited resources. Platforms counterparts, but they are pretty close and useful nonetheless.
CWR OR CWM ClockworkMod Recovery →A custom recovery for Android phones and tablets that allows you to perform several advanced recovery, restoration, installation and maintenance operations on your Android device that aren’t possible with the stock recovery.
DEODEX → Apk files have respective odexes that devs use to supposedly save space. Deodexing means you convert it back to a .dex file and put it back inside the apk. This allows you to easily replace file (not having to worry about odexes), but the main point was to deodex services.jar so that you can change all text to different colors (such as the clock color to white) and to deodex services.jar, you need to deodex everything.
Flashing → The process of applying a firmware image (or ROM) to a device. It generally entails a very specific order of steps. Failing to complete any one of these steps properly may result in bricking the device.
Firmware → is a term often used to denote the fixed, usually rather small, programs and/or data structures that internally control various electronic devices. Programs stored in the ROM, EPROM, or flash memory that usually control various internal electronic devices (Hard Drives, Keyboards, Displays, etc). Firmware is typically 'fixed' software that is not updated in consumer devices, however it is often updated (or 'flashed') by advanced users to fix bugs or add features to the device. Flashing firmware designed for one device onto a different device, or not following a specific procedure while flashing will often render the device unusable.
Kernel → is the main component of most computer operating systems; it is a bridge between applications and the actual data processing done at the hardware level. The kernel's responsibilities include managing the system's resources (the communication between hardware and software components
Radio → The cellular radio on the device which needs control software called firmware to control it.
ROM → Read Only Memory. In the context of an Android device, ROM is the internal flash memory where the core operating system resides. It can also refer to a specific version firmware that can be applied to a device through a process usually referred to as flashing. An improperly flashed ROM can often brick the device, rendering it unusable.
Superuser→ A program, which gives unlimited access privileges to perform any or all operations on the operating system.
ODIN → Odin is the Samsung software used to update Samsung phones. It does not work with any other devices other than official Samsung phones.
OTA or FOTA → (F)OTA stands for (Firmware) Over The Air and is the process by which required updates and enhancements to your phone's basic operating system can be sent to you through the cellular network. The Galaxy S II software update will be sent via FOTA and is available through Samsung Kies mini.0
ODEX → In Android file system, applications come in packages with the extension .apk. These application packages, or APKs contain certain .odex files whose supposed function is to save space. These ‘odex’ files are actually collections of parts of an application that are optimized before booting. Doing so speeds up the boot process, as it preloads part of an application. On the other hand, it also makes hacking those applications difficult because a part of the coding has already been extracted to another location before execution.
SDK → Software Development Kit.
Logcat → A debugging tool built into Android devices that displays system logs as they occur. See Logcat.
NANDroid → A set of tools that will enable anyone who has root on their Android device to make FULL system backups, in case something goes wrong or you want to try out that new experimental ROM/theme. NANDroid will backup (and restore) /system, /data, /cache, and /boot partitions.
Recovery Mode → A special environment that you can boot into for troubleshooting and upgrading purposes.
Kang → The process of creating a code based of someone else's code or reapplying code that someone else created into your own code (e.g. git cherry-pick)
Rooting → is a process that allows users of mobile phones and other devices running the Android operating system to attain privileged control (known as "root access") within Android's Linux subsystem with the goal of overcoming limitations that carriers and manufacturers put on some devices.

How to root ANY US VERSION ON MAC
How To root At&t Samsung Galaxy S III I747 No Tripping Flash Counter
How TO ROOT USING SNAPDRAGON TOOL KIT!
​

How To Install ClockWorkMod Recovery!
How To upgrade ClowckWorkMod Recovery!

HOW TO UNROOT & FACTORY RESET YOUR SGSIII
​

How TO Flash ROMS!
How TO Back up Rom on Samsung Galaxy III
​

How to flash themes

MOD FEEL FREE TO STICKY IT, AS IT WILL BE FILLED UP & THIS THREAD WILL BE NOOB HANG OUT PLACE!

Legit!

Thanks for this thread...this will be my first android phone
I'm switching from iphone 4 to the SGS3, although i'm still eagerly awaiting my phone to arrive at my local BB, i've been reading up on all this stuff as much as i can...
+1 to sticky

send2amrish said:
Thanks for this thread...this will be my first android phone
I'm switching from iphone 4 to the SGS3, although i'm still eagerly awaiting my phone to arrive at my local BB, i've been reading up on all this stuff as much as i can...
+1 to sticky
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here. Nice to have all of this info to read up one while I wait for my phone. Hopefully bb will come through soon. Thanks for the Thread!

heya AppDroid.
i lol every time i see my quote in your guides...

Appreciate the effort here....if only there was a way to make the noobs read all this before being allowed to post on the board

Sup Pirateghost!
Well Your Quote explains why we no get update like GNex! SO its great Explanation to NOOBS! lol
But hope you get this phone/already have it! Looking forward to flashing your stuff!
Pirateghost said:
heya AppDroid.
i lol every time i see my quote in your guides...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

appdroid said:
Sup Pirateghost!
Well Your Quote explains why we no get update like GNex! SO its great Explanation to NOOBS! lol
But hope you get this phone/already have it! Looking forward to flashing your stuff!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, I don't have it and don't plan on buying another device off contract until the next nexus.
Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

Noob here. I plan on switching from a 3gs iPhone (AT&T) I've had for about 2.5 years. Had a few questions.
What's the deal with the micro sim? Will I just need to cut my old one down to size (i've seen the tutorials) or will I need to transfer to the new one they provide?
I don't plan on doing any rooting but I did see a thread about removing unnecessary processes to free up RAM and would like to do this if it is simple. Any advice/recommendations on how to do this without getting too detailed?
Lastly, for those that may have already done the switch or anyone else who would know, what are some of the most important changes I will have to get used to coming from the iPhone? What is the coolest thing I didn't have before? What are some of the first things a noob should do to his phone to make it "better" without getting crazy. I'm not a developer or specialized in computers or code or anything. Just someone looking for a few ideas. Thanks!!
PS thanks for the noob forum

If you're referring to this thread, then you would need to root the device to accomplish what he's detailing there.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1726842

Not sure how I missed that. Guess I'll have to look into rooting.

Spoonman87 said:
Not sure how I missed that. Guess I'll have to look into rooting.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If that's your only reason for rooting, then it may interest you to know that in Android 4.0 they introduced the concept of disabling system apps. It'll still take up disk space (which is negligible compared to the 16 or 32 GB availalbe), but it won't be allowed to run (no RAM usage) and it will be removed from the app list. So, it will be as if it's uninstalled.
So that's probably a better option if this was your only reason for rooting.
There are plenty of other reasons to root though, but I'll leave you to discover those for yourself. Personally, I value my 1 year Verizon warranty. So I wait until my second year to root.

demarcmj said:
If that's your only reason for rooting, then it may interest you to know that in Android 4.0 they introduced the concept of disabling system apps. It'll still take up disk space (which is negligible compared to the 16 or 32 GB availalbe), but it won't be allowed to run (no RAM usage) and it will be removed from the app list. So, it will be as if it's uninstalled.
So that's probably a better option if this was your only reason for rooting.
There are plenty of other reasons to root though, but I'll leave you to discover those for yourself. Personally, I value my 1 year Verizon warranty. So I wait until my second year to root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good to know. Thanks!

Where is the ...
Okay, on a very serious note ...
Where is the post on what to do in case you run out of toilet paper? Well? Well? Come on, this is very important.
Peter

Jiayu G2S - "unofficial forum"

JIAYU G2S
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The Jiayu G2S was released on January 1, 2013. It was a significant upgrade to the G2 with a lot of hardware changes. For the price, it had an impressive list of specifications:
MTK MT6577T ARMv7 Cortex-A9 Dual-core 1.2GHz processor
GPU: PowerVR SGX531
4 inch QHD IPS screen, 960x540 pixel display, OGS (One Glass Screen)
Dual SIM cards supporting GSM 850/900/1800/1900mhz & WCDMA 3G 2100mhz network (only one 3G slot)
1GB RAM / 4GB ROM
Supports up to 32gb class 12 microSD card (TF card)
8MP rear camera, 2MP front camera
Supports WiFi a/b/g & WiFi hotspot, Bluetooth with EDR & A2DP, GPS & AGPS
Android 4.1 OS (Jelly Bean), multi-language
FM Radio
Gravity Sensor, Proximity Sensor, Light Sensor, Magnetic Sensor, Gyroscopic Sensor
2200mah battery
Size: 125 x 61x 9.9mm
Weight: 145g with battery
Overall, I really like the look and feel of the phone. Except for the ear speaker hole, the front is one solid piece of glass, wrapped around with a very solid metal frame. The metal frame is not just a thin piece of sheet metal, but is cast metal, provides for complete rigidity for the whole phone, and should do a good job of protecting that large piece of screen glass. This also means that the phone has a bit of weight, but that feels good in my hand. Additionally, I like the more rectangular design of the phone and the more square edge down the sides that the flat metal frame provides. It is very easy to hold onto.
Call quality is very good for me. Reception seems on par with other phones I've used. The wifi might be a bit weaker than my Huawei G300, but it is fine. The screen is very nice to look at and very sensitive, but you should read below about the "jump screen" problem. You should also read below about potential problems with GPS connection issues. I've now owned two of these phones. The first had the jump screen problem, and was replaced under warranty. The replacement has terrible GPS pickup, but no jump screen problem.
The large battery means that I have no problem getting through a day of use, and I probably could use it for two days without a charge most of the time. (But I do not use the phone for gaming.) The phone runs most of the time at 1001mhz or 250mhz when on, and will only jump to 1200mhz in extreme conditions. "Deep sleep" mode is for when the screen is off, but the phone will run at 1001mhz when charging no matter if it is on and being used or not. That is an issue for phones based on this MTK chipset and not exclusive to the JY G2S.
Jiayu includes a few apps targeting the Chinese market for this phone, but other than that, the OS is mostly "vanilla" Android Jelly Bean (AOSP). The phone comes already rooted, so freezing or deleting unwanted apps is a simple solution for what you don't want. There are a number of modified roms available already, including the Lewa rom (http://www.needrom.com/phone-roms/jiayu/g2s/). But you should note that later hardware versions of this phone have different components. You should make a note of what the rom version is that came installed on your phone so that you know what hardware version you are using.
"Jump Screen" Problem Solved?:
Many of the first batch of phones were plagued with screen problems. Commonly referred to as the "jump screen" problem, the result is that when scrolling through screens of data, the screen just "jumps" to a different location without any apparent reason. The screen also "quivers" when touching it, even if you aren't moving your finger. Jiayu promptly acknowledged the problem and tried to correct it with a quick ROM update released on January 9, 2013. (The build number of the ROM is: G2S 20130108-104044.) This ROM update did seem to work for some, but for others the problem persisted.
At this point, I personally don't know if the problem has been completely solved in the manufacturing of subsequent batches of the phone. My phone had the problem, and flashing the new ROM did not solve it. I returned the phone for replacement under warranty and did receive a replacement phone that does not have the problem. So whether or not there still is a manufacturing problem, Jiayu can replace the phone with one that works. However, see below for the GPS connection problem that I now have.
GPS Connection Problems:
There are also a number of users here who are reporting difficulty with weak GPS fix. My GPS fix on my first phone was excellent, but my replacement phone is not good at all. It has been suggested to install "Faster GPS" from the Play Store, which will let you set your location. Also, you can look at this post from later in this thread for more information: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=39975417&postcount=209. (Please post any solutions you discover in this thread.)
ROM Flashing:
One of my initial struggles was getting the official rom flashing tool to work. I finally got things going, and I hope I can help others who "just don't get it". So if you want some detailed instructions in English for how to flashing a new official ROM onto the Jiayu G2S, have a look at the second post. (If you are flashing a third-party rom, follow the rom builder's instructions.)
ClockworkMod Recovery:
"Thingbreaker" has provided us with a working CWM Recovery. Here's his post link: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=37521066&postcount=28
There are two ways to flash the CWM Recovery image: using the ROM flashing tool (harder) or using Mobileuncle Tools (easier).
To use Mobileuncle Tools, install it from the Play Store (free). Copy the CWM Recovery image file to the root of your SD card, making sure there are no spaces in the filename. Run Mobileuncle Tools and choose Recovery Update. Choose the recovery image file that Thingbreaker provided.
To use the ROM flashing tool, you first you need to understand how to flash a complete rom as explained in the second post of this thread directly below. After you know how to do that, then look at this post to learn what is different about only flashing the recovery image: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=37499848&postcount=23
Conclusion:
I do not recommend purchasing this phone. Period. Until Jiayu can do a better job of quality control, I don't recommend their products. There are other companies out there who's phones are only slightly more expensive, but who have a much better reputation for quality control.
Jiayu, if you are reading this, you need to do better! And you really need to improve your repair department as well. Sending me a replacement phone with a GPS problem causes me to wonder if you are using the "shuffle" method of passing around bad phones instead of repairing them. I'm NOT a satisfied customer.

“Unofficial” Guide to Flashing the Official Jiayu G2S ROM
Disclaimer: I’m just one guy who got this to work after a lot of trial and error. I’m only telling you how I did it. I don’t claim it will work for you. I don’t guarantee you won’t brick your phone by following these instructions. And you should understand that if you don’t bother to read carefully and do exactly what I say, you really can brick your phone. Also, it seems there has been an upgrade to some of the components in later versions of the phone released in March 2013, and you will want to verify which version of the phone you have before installing any roms. You should be able to check the rom build information for the date on your particular phone. This guide only describes how to flash the official rom from Jiayu for the G2S. If you intend to install some other third-party rom, please follow that rom builder's instructions.​
Pre-requisites:
You need a PC running Microsoft Windows 2000 or higher.
If you haven’t previously installed msxml 6.0 and .net Framework 4.0 or higher on you Windows PC, do so first. Get them directly from Microsoft. (I assume you know how to search.)
Download the following:
Latest Jiayu G2S ROM update; the rom I installed was the G2s_20130109-104044 stock rom: http://pan.baidu.com/share/link?shareid=157669&uk=839171988 (Note: the build number of the ROM after installation is: G2S 20130108-104044; don't be confused by the name of the file.) Use Google Translate if you need to see which button to push to start the download. Also note that there is a newer official rom for newer versions of the phone. The rom date is 20130306. I don't know what happens if you install the newer version on an older phone.
This zip file contains the Android USB driver, VCom drivers, SP Flash Tool, and a document of these instructions (ReadMe.doc): http://www.mediafire.com/?tc4q3wy5eabowhf
Unzip the files you downloaded and move/copy folders and files where they need to go:
Within the rom zip that you downloaded from the Baidu website, you can find the \G2s_20130109-104044 sub-folder. This folder contains the actual rom files (14 files). Move this entire folder onto your desktop. The reason for doing this is that there are folders within the zip file whose names contain characters that your version of Windows might not be able to read, even if you can see them in Windows Explorer (the filemanager). This will cause you trouble when you try to flash the rom.
After unzipping the driver and flash tool zip file, you will find the \USB-VCOM-Drivers folder with \INF and \SYS sub-folders. In the \INF folder there are three other sub-folders: \ 2K_XP_COM, \Vista, and \Win7.
Copy the \INF\cdc-acm.inf file into your C:\Windows\inf folder. (You may have to give permission to do this.)
Based on your version of Windows (2K-XP, Vista, Win7, 32-bit or 64-bit), locate the one correct usb2ser_????.inf file and copy it to your C:\Windows\inf folder. (You may have to give permission to do this.)
Copy both the \SYS\androidusb.sys and \SYS\usbser.sys into your C:\Windows\System32\driver folder. (You may have to give permission to do this.)
Install the drivers:
Plug your phone into your computer with a USB cable. If you had not previously installed the drivers, the system will start trying to install them.
If the system asks you to choose to install the drivers, click on “install the software automatically” and proceed.
If system is unsuccessful in locating and installing the drivers, you can try to go back and locate the drivers yourself by pointing to the individual files, but this should not happen if you properly copied the drivers over to your C:\Windows system folders.
BACKUP YOUR DATA NOW!
Proceeding beyond this point is going to mean that EVERYTHING on you phone is going to be deleted and a new system will replace it.
You have been warned!
Warning!
Attempting to install a rom that does not use the correct “scatter” file (see description below) will brick your phone. Don’t do it. If you aren’t sure a rom is made for your phone, don’t attempt to install it.
Install the updated ROM:
1. Turn off your phone, open the back, and remove the battery.
2. Plug your USB cable into your PC and phone. If your PC attempts to install drivers, let it finish.
3. Unplug your phone from the cable.
4. Start the SP Flash Tool program by clicking on the Flash_tool.exe file. If you get a security warning, allow it to run.
5. Click on the “Scatter-loading” button on the right side.
6. Browse to your \Desktop\G2s_20130109-104044 folder and choose the MT6577_Android_scatter_emmc.txt file. All other files will be chosen automatically.
7. Click on the “Firmware -> Upgrade” button.
8. Plug your USB cable firmly into the phone. The Flash Tool will automatically start flashing your new rom. Wait for it to finish and show you the green circle.
9. Unplug your phone from the cable.
Rebooting the phone:
1. Install your battery.
2. Very carefully, without touching the screen, push the power button.
3. Do not touch the phone as it boots!
4. After it has completed booting, you may again use your phone normally.

Following the advice that it might help if the phone is very cold when updating to the new rom, I tried putting it in the refrigerator. Unfortunately, that did not seem to help in my case. The phone still has the "jump screen" problem.
Of course, any other ideas would be appreciated as well.
Has anyone yet been successful in creating a Recovery mod (i.e. ClockworkMod Recovery)?

Tell Me Some Unofficial Way Of Hacking Based On Geograohical Location
Any Jealousy people Tell Me Some Unofficial Way Of Hacking Based On Geographical Location.

twrock: Make sure you do not have screen protector applied and you do not touch the screen during the first boot after flashing.

Thanks for the advice. But I'm not using a screen protector, and I am being very careful about not touching the phone. Nothing seems to help.
Sent from my G2S using xda app-developers app

Have you identified production date of your phone? Is there a sticker anywhere? We might come to a conclusion later on, of which date onward the factory has solved the problem... It might be a hardware problem after all.
Still waiting for mine to arrive...

hi there, for those who already have in their hands the g2s is it possible to give more reviews about its gps and the camera especially at night? thanks

Hi.
I have just created a ClockWorkMod recovery image for the Jiayu G2S.
I don't have the phone yet, it is still on its way, so I can't guarantee that it will work.
Download: http://db.tt/vFO4S6Mc
When flashing this recovery, use the same scatter file as for the stock rom.
If you don't have the scatter file here it is: http://db.tt/Z4TWPowQ
Please try it at your own risk, and give me feedback.

I received mine today. I am stunned. This thing is amazing. After all the HTC's I have this is a dream.
Mine doesn't seem to have the screen problem, but has the 20130108 firmware. I will wait a couple of days and see how it's running and the flash it.
CWM for this would be amazing and unabridged CyanogenMod would be even greater. Wonderful times!!!

fcsabika said:
Hi.
I have just created a ClockWorkMod recovery image for the Jiayu G2S.
I don't have the phone yet, it is still on its way, so I can't guarantee that it will work.
Download: http://db.tt/vFO4S6Mc
When flashing this recovery, use the same scatter file as for the stock rom.
If you don't have the scatter file here it is: http://db.tt/Z4TWPowQ
Please try it at your own risk, and give me feedback.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll give it a try.
What method did you use to create it? Did you use Koush's "builder"?
I also tried to make a CWM Recovery using the builder. The builder said it was successful, but the resulting CW recovery would not boot.
I'll let you know when I have the time to try it. Thanks.

Anyone know how to get rid of the Google search bar at the top of the standard Launcher? I'd guess that Google doesn't want us to be able to get rid of it.

sdssss said:
hi there, for those who already have in their hands the g2s is it possible to give more reviews about its gps and the camera especially at night? thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know if my experience is much help. I live in Taiwan, so I suspect my GPS satellite locks were about the same as they would be in China. So for what it's worth....
My first GPS use locked in less than two minutes. I was outside in a parking lot on a clear day when I started. I got into the car after about 30 seconds and put the phone on the dashboard. It was locked in before the screen shut off (which is set at 2 minutes). I did not have Wifi connected, so no help from that. Subsequent to that first use, locking in took less than 15 seconds.
I haven't taken any pictures at night, so I can't help you there.
I'll mention here that if I decided to order this phone today, I'd find a way to get it straight from Jiayu. I ordered mine from Etotalk.com (and wasted money on their "Etotalk mod rom"), and they aren't being very helpful with aftersales follow up. I finally gave up on them and am now talking straight to Jiayu support. But I have to wait until after Chinese New Year to send it back. They said that they would not be able to replace the phone until after Chinese New Year anyway, so sending it back now would only mean I would be without the phone longer.

hello, i'm G2S first batch too, what do you mean about shaking problem? is it shake hard ? i got the problem while charging the phone, but if it's unplug, it's seems to be normal.
i'll try the new firmware from this thread, thanks for the link :laugh:
by the way, i've ported the CWM recovery for G2S, i'll upload it if you need it

For those who already have the phone, is the signal strong even if you are inside buildings?
I'm asking this because many users report that jiayu g3's signal is very week when you get indoor, and i'd like to know if it was corrected in this version.

sempracurtir said:
For those who already have the phone, is the signal strong even if you are inside buildings?
I'm asking this because many users report that jiayu g3's signal is very week when you get indoor, and i'd like to know if it was corrected in this version.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
my phone is work normally even inside the buildings it depends on the network carrier, except you're in the basement
by the way, i've flashed the newest firmware from the page1, and the "jumpscreen" error while charging is now fixed. More stable touchscreen, thanks man :laugh:

Gps
fix ok, but not accurate.
The worst gps that I have had.
Solutions?
Hello
verbal

twrock said:
I'll give it a try.
What method did you use to create it? Did you use Koush's "builder"?
I also tried to make a CWM Recovery using the builder. The builder said it was successful, but the resulting CW recovery would not boot.
I'll let you know when I have the time to try it. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes I have used the builder.
So did anyone try my CWM recovery?

fcsabika said:
Yes I have used the builder.
So did anyone try my CWM recovery?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, how can I install it?
I read your post yesterday but I didn't understand.
Can you explain me better?
Thanks.

lelepanz said:
Sorry, how can I install it?
I read your post yesterday but I didn't understand.
Can you explain me better?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can install it the same way as the official rom.
See the second post by twrock.

Defy - A 2016 Experience

Since this Defy Forum is getting a bit old, I thought I'd give my recent experience with my defy. This is quite a lengthy thread but there is so much information on this forum that it becomes confusing so thought I'd share my experience so you can cut through a lot of the information. I've had my defy for over 5 years with the stock froyo 2.2.2 and its served me well until recently its beginning to bug me with how laggy it is. Also I wasn't sure if the battery was running out a faster than it used to.
The first thing I thought I'd do is do a factory reset which I successfully did however when I went to put back on some of the apps that I had before such as Runkeeper, Telstra 24/7 and RSA Security token, none of them were compatible with my old phone. I was able to find old versions of some of the apps but not Telstra 24/7 which I use to recharge. At this point I decided on installing a custom rom which I'd done before on other devices. If it didn't work out then phones with the same specs were selling for $29 at a local supermarket so no real damage if I get it wrong.
The first thing was to root the phone which I found something called Superoneclick. I had to turn off my antivirus on my PC use it as there are some files that appear corrupt but doing some searching gave me confidence it was just an overzealous AVG and appeared safe.
Once this was done it was a matter of picking a Rom which I went for CM11 Kit Kat it seemed ok but not heaps better. The thing was I'd now picked up a real battery problem. I tried various Calibration apps to no avail. My battery was experiencing quite large drops of 20% ie it would go from 89% to 50% and then later from about 35% to 20%. It would then stay on 1% for quite some time.
Thinking this was due to the ROM, I tried several ROMs but they all had the same problem. Eventually i found a thread on the battery problem and although I didn't change all the permissions as advised I did so some of the other stuff to no avail.
At this stage I thought my main issue was now the battery and thought I'd read someone that perhaps a stock based rom might sort it out. I installed MS4Ginger which was really smooth however was still a bit laggy at times. Also I noticed that it wasn't able to support various apps being Android 2.3. After a bit more reading, my minimum requirement was Jellybean 4.1 and I'd read that the more recent the ROM the more RAM intensive so I decided to try ROMs with my minimum requirement ie 4.1
I'm not a fan particularly the way the Cyanogen type rom look so was looking for something with a different look and feel. The main ones were:-
Miui based ones (Wiui, Jiui) which I quite liked however lag was still there and the occasional sudden reboot. Battery problem still there.
Xperia ROM which was also nice but also did a sudden reboot then stuck in a bootloop.
There was still lag which I couldn't really understand.
Last Rom I tried was Motor Gun Ice 4.1, it still had the Cyanogen look about it but seemed to run pretty smooth. One thing I had to do was change the Baseband to Telstra in the 'Advanced' section of settings. This made the phone and internet connection work faster.
At this point I ordered a new battery. While I was waiting for that to arrive I read that Facebook app is really bad at taking up RAM. In found another app called Facebook lite and uninstalled the standard Facebook app. All of a sudden Lag Fixed.
This got me searching other 'Lite' apps. Now for web browsing i use Opera Mini and the launcher I now use is Holo Launcher. I also tried to find a replacement for Messenger but no luck and its not been an issue.
So now my phone is running better than ever. Web searching is fast and apps are running well, not that I use my phone for much more than a phone.
A few days later my new battery arrived and comparing to the old one, it appeared that the old one had a slight bulge. I charged the new one right up, discharged and charged again and now no more battery drops.
One last tweak I wanted was to try change the status bar icons. I found Xposed Installer and was able to change the icon colours to white but not the icon pictures. Good enough for me.
So now I'm very happy with my 5 year old defy, took a bit of trial and error but got there in the end. So in a nutshell: -
- If your battery is dropping upon installation of a Rom, likely need a new battery.
- If you phone is lagging, look what is taking all the Ram and look for a lite option or uninstall. Facebook is bad for that.
Note that there are many old links to roms and other mods so finding things that work was at times a challenge but here's the process that I found worked for me and works if bricked as well, which I did a couple of times.
If Bricked or to get back to stock
Download RSD Lite
Install drivers for the phone
Download an SBF for your region, I used Telstra with 2.2.2
To install custom rom
Install and use Superoneclick to root (may need to turn off antivirus)
Install 2ndinit.apk then run it. May need to reboot phone first
Download the Rom and Gapps and put on SD card of phone
Get into custom recovery
Wipe Data and Cache
Install Rom and Gapps
Wipe Cache and Dalvik Cache (for all but one Rom, I forget which one, read instructions)
Reboot and enjoy.

the gun rom link is down, where you downloaded it?

That was one of the few that worked. I accessed from the defy wiki page then I think downloaded from the XDA thread.
Yep, there some links in the last post of the MG ROM thread. Post #222.

Good someone still use defy. I give up after digitizer gone mad. Time run over this device... Uuuh, just if it had 1 gb ram and dual core...

Good to hear that someone else still have this cute little thing. I have too, as my second device. The ROMs I tried on this device! Man, it's countless. I had dropped it on all the different terrains you can think of, yet it's still fully healthy (save the jack and usb covers - they are loose now) without a single crack. I didn't have any covers or screen guards. It stayed true to its name. I will never regret spending money to buy this, it is one of Moto's legendary devices. I think I'm drunk, but it feels good to say all this. I'll keep this device forever with me - a product from a time when smartphones weren't made in an oven, but carefully and delicately cooked up.

Digitizer gone mad me too, the upper line is not working, but it is a good phone, for kids.
Which seller you order the battery?
Can you suggest ROMs to watch videos on Kodi, or Youtube?
I liked this phone, this is the best size phone, what i ever had.
Why the companys not make phone like this size, one hand controlled, with 2GB/32GB, and quad cpu??
Now i have Samsung S4 mini, and it is big for me

Battery was off eBay, can't remember seller but was Australian selling genuine batteries.
Just try all the roms possible, that's part of the fun
Sent from my SM-T210 using Tapatalk

I've been wanting to play around w/ my old defy again. This thread may have got the ball rolling. What do you all use as your daily driver? I've got a xperia z3 compact, but want a new phone. unfortunately, I think my best bet is to just get another z3 compact cheap and save it as a backup?

Hi tronjojo, I was still using my Defy until recently I found an old 4 year old Samsung Galaxy SII of my wife's. The problem for her was that it was switching off all the time so she got an S5. I've now flashed various roms and fixed the random reboot issue. The only thing I wish it has is the notification LED.
Sent from my SM-T210 using Tapatalk

I bougnt a Defy + battery on my Defy Red Lens, made my own BL7 fixed SBF and nandroid with 720p patch which made it a Defy Plus, then I rooted it and repartitioned to install CM11 and has made it very usable in 2016.

Make that Defy in 2018
I'm still using a Defy, since 2011. The battery still lasts longer than that in my wife's new Sony Experia X Compact, about as long as in my daughter's Xiaomi Redmi 4X. I will probably have to move to another device somewhere in 2018 as one of the more important apps - the Swedish BankID app - will cease support for Android 4.4 but that is more or less the only reason. For the rest the thing still does what it did 7 years ago so were it not for this I'd keep on using it until it gave up from sheer old age or electron migration or whatnot.

Make that Defy in 2020
I've recently tried if my Defy+ could learn some new tricks and I thought I'd share my findings.
CM11 build
I tried to build CM11 from Quarx repository, but it seems that many of its dependencies no longer exist and whole project is no longer buildable.
3.0 kernel
This one builds fine, however I was unable to boot it - there's one frame or random pixels followed by a reboot. I checked many branches and put the output into most probable directories. I wish there were any instructions as to what actually do with a built kernel. TWRP zips found here didn't work either. Anyone?
SD card size
Defy supposedly shouldn't work with SD cards larger than 32GB. But did anyone try bigger cards? My Defy mounts 256GB cards without any problems.
Debian on chroot
I set up a Debian environment with debootstrap. Unfortunately outdated kernel puts a limit on a Debian version that could be run. For 2.6.32.9 it is Debian Jessie.
With XServer XSDL it is possible to run a full graphical environment.
2.6.32.9 kernel modules
I also succeeded with building kernel modules for the old kernel. These are mostly filesystem modules and cryptographic ciphers. Now I could use whole Debian Jessie repository (49GB) locally from a squashfs filesystem.
Another nice feature is encryption with dm-crypt/LUKS.
I uploaded modules that insmod loads without any error.
CA certificates
These should be updated with system updates, but we won't have new CM/Lineage/stock releases anymore, so I did it by hand. If you want to try it for yourself, remount /system as writable, remove contents of /system/etc/security/cacerts/ (they could be expired) and copy certificates from the archive. Certificates are same as Debian's ca-certificates version 20200601.
Mirror
I also uploaded tools and images - self contained with instructions to go back and forth between stock and CM11, because many links here are spread across many threads or simply dead. Kernel modules and certificates are for CM11. I didn't try them with anything else.
I can't post a link to these files, because this is my first post. Search for ybea in Motorola Defy section at AndroidFileHost.

Another 2020 Defy warrior
ybea said:
3.0 kernel
This one builds fine, however I was unable to boot it - there's one frame or random pixels followed by a reboot. I checked many branches and put the output into most probable directories. I wish there were any instructions as to what actually do with a built kernel. TWRP zips found here didn't work either. Anyone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello! Did you check on /bootstrap/bootstrap/binary and other folders? There seem to be a zImage (and the recovery one).
I tried to flash and boot the ROM at http://blechdose-live.de/download/kernel/3.0.x/:
Tried flashing from TWRP 2.8: failed.
Extracted the update-binary, copied it to /tmp and executed it from ADB shell (/tmp/update-binary 3 0 /sdcard/cm11-blah.zip) and flashed with some things, mostly partition related errors. After rebooting, it stays on black screen (turned on), ADB available but unauthorised (just look on Github how to enable ADB from recovery to solve that) and that's all; the ROM doesn't work. I'll try debugging this to check if I can do something.
ybea said:
CM11 build
I tried to build CM11 from Quarx repository, but it seems that many of its dependencies no longer exist and whole project is no longer buildable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What a sad thing, this year even quarx2k.ru became offline...

MaicoLinuX said:
Hello! Did you check on /bootstrap/bootstrap/binary and other folders?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Files extracted from 20131213 version did not work for me. I tried swapping /bootstrap/ (and /system/bootstrap/) zImages, binaries, edited cmdline, anything I could think of. Always with the same outcome - black screen.
Flashing in TWRP (v2.6.3.0) initially also failed. Fix_TWRP_and_boot_kernel3.0_v2.zip (on AndroidFileHost) makes it succeed. It is 3.0.8 kernel. It froze during the boot, restarted and finished eventually.

ybea said:
Files extracted from 20131213 version did not work for me. I tried swapping /bootstrap/ (and /system/bootstrap/) zImages, binaries, edited cmdline, anything I could think of. Always with the same outcome - black screen.
Yeah, it did the same for me. Did you read the logcat while device was in that screen? I saw something crashing there (can't remember), anyway that's not so useful if you need a whole new ROM just for the new kernel version. Maybe modules are causing problems?
Pretty offtopic, did you try the OTG function? I can't get it to work, most people say it should work out of the box but I wasn't able to use my USB mouse. Didn't check dmesg, though.
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Click to collapse

MaicoLinuX said:
ybea said:
Always with the same outcome - black screen.
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Click to collapse
Did you read the logcat while device was in that screen?
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Click to collapse
How could I? Android isn't running yet. It it Linux that either fails to load or silently panics. That is my understanding anyway.
The right thing to do would be to check how cm11 build compiles the kernel and the 2nd-init (or whatever it is), but I am not knowledgeable enough, nor keen enough to do that.
OTG is buggy, but usable. If it doesn't work, unplug and plug it again. It is quite normal for my defy to recognize a device on a second or third attempt. No problems with mice, keyboards, flash drives, usb hubs. On the picture in the previous post you can see it with a wireless keyboard+touchpad. If I remember correctly, the driver is set to output 200mAh max. Maybe you mouse draws more (rather unlikely for a mouse). It works for me with cm11-20161124. Also, I think the port outputs 5V even after a device is disconnected, so it unnecessary drains power, but I am not so sure about it.
dmesg should definitely log any new device. Even if android stays quiet. If there's silence, perhaps your cable may of wrong type. USB A to USB micro varies with resistancy across two pins. I don't remember the details. If it is OTG cable, then it should work.
Or simply you have dirty socket/plug pins.

ybea said:
How could I? Android isn't running yet. It it Linux that either fails to load or silently panics. That is my understanding anyway.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AFAIK 2ndInit keeps adbd running so you can take a logcat/dmesg from there, also faced the same issue while flashing CM10.2 OTG kernel on CM11 (what was I thinking?) and from there was able to see that something was crashing.
ybea said:
The right thing to do would be to check how cm11 build compiles the kernel and the 2nd-init (or whatever it is), but I am not knowledgeable enough, nor keen enough to do that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nah, I think just taking some time to understand the 2ndInit boot process is enough, anyway when I get some free time I'll check about this all.
About OTG things, now will install CM11 3.0 kernel and see how it works (I expect some unstability) but don't really need to use the Defy, it's just there for experiments
Anyway, my main goal now is to install Debian natively (on /data partition because of the size) and get X running. As you said, the 2.6.32 kernel puts the limit at Jessie, but that's not a problem as it's still mantained IIRC. I'm using a prebuilt rootfs but it keeps throwing Segmentation Fault whenever I try to chroot there, don't know what happens with this.
I'm doing the same on other 2 phones (Galaxy Y and Pocket Plus, ARMv6 and v7 respectively) but one doesn't boot my compiled kernels (?) and the other complains about the buggy framebuffer driver (thanks Samsung/Broadcom). I went pretty offtopic...
PD: tried to flash some JB Ice Gun Edition v2.02 from CWM and after reboot the phone just is stuck on boot splash, but WIUI runs fine. Maybe the JB IGE BootMenu is broken or something like that.

MaicoLinuX said:
About OTG things, now will install CM11 3.0 kernel and see how it works (I expect some unstability)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't have any luck with flashing zips with only the kernel. This 20131213 rom is the only way i know of. But frankly, there's more instability then stability in it. For example only home and power buttons work. OTG also non functional.
MaicoLinuX said:
As you said, the 2.6.32 kernel puts the limit at Jessie, but that's not a problem as it's still mantained IIRC. I'm using a prebuilt rootfs but it keeps throwing Segmentation Fault whenever I try to chroot there, don't know what happens with this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Jessie is no longer maintained. It stopped being oldstable about a month ago. AFAIK it changes little - apt continues to work; unless your applications have dependencies to newer libc, they should at least compile.
I build Debian root with debootstrap. On host machine:
Code:
debootstrap --arch armhf --foreign stable /debian http://http.debian.net/debian
Then mounting on Defy:
Code:
# Mount an sd card partition
mount -o remount,rw /
mkdir -p /debian
mount -o remount,ro /
mount -t ext3 -o noatime,suid,exec /dev/block/mmcblk0p2 /debian
mkdir -p /dev/shm
mount -t tmpfs -o rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec none /dev/shm
mount -t proc proc /debian/proc
mount -t sysfs sysfs /debian/sys
mount -o bind /dev /debian/dev
mount -o bind /dev/pts /debian/dev/pts
mount -o bind /dev/socket /debian/dev/socket
mount -o bind /dev/shm /debian/dev/shm
Then debootstrap second stage:
Code:
LD_PRELOAD= TMPDIR= PATH=/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin HOME=/root SHELL=/bin/bash /system/bin/chroot /debian /debootstrap/debootstrap --second-stage
Done. To login:
Code:
chroot /debian /bin/su -
Don't chroot into bash. It will leak Android's shell environment into Debian's.
Android has its own groups and users. To make Debian adapt:
Code:
dpkg -i android-permissions_0.2_all.deb
Edit /etc/group, so that it contains:
Code:
inet:x:3003:root,_apt
net_raw:x:3004:root
Edit /etc/passwd/:
Code:
-_apt:x:104:65534::/nonexistent:/bin/false
+_apt:x:0:65534::/nonexistent:/bin/false
Edit /etc/adduser.conf:
Code:
-LAST_SYSTEM_UID=999
+LAST_SYSTEM_UID=99900
-LAST_SYSTEM_GID=999
+LAST_SYSTEM_GID=99900
-FIRST_UID=5000
+FIRST_UID=500000
-LAST_UID=8999
+LAST_UID=899900
-FIRST_GID=5000
+FIRST_GID=500000
-LAST_GID=8999
+LAST_GID=899900
Then:
Code:
apt-get update
apt-get install dialog
apt-get install locales
dpkg-reconfigure locales
apt-get install less man
If apt can't resolve hostnames select a nameserver in /etc/resolv.conf.
This how I setup Debian on chroot. Some of these steps may be unnecessary - they got accumuated over the years and I don't fully remember reasoning behind them. Debian inside /data/ should work too. I can imagine there would be problems with permissions on fat32 /sdcard, but /data/ is ext3.