Hi all,
I'm new here. I've done a little bit of research, but possibly not enough. My question isn't just about how cool or how complicated it would be to root an S3.
I'm interested in getting this phone, although it's expensive; I've always liked the idea of Android, but not the actual devices, but this one actually looks and feels great, not to mention the technical specs.
Here's the dilemma I'm facing: get one from T-Mobile (I'm under contract and am generally happy with the service) and root it, or get an international version on Amazon.
The main reason I'd want to get the T-Mobile version is that it will support their 4G network. The main reasons I'd want to root it are that the stock firmware doesn't have a Cyrillic keyboard, and they have a 90-day waiting period for unlocking, and I may go abroad in less than 90 days and would like to use it. There limitations are pretty annoying.
I wonder if there is a firmware version out there that would still work with their network and not have these limitations, and that would also be stable and reasonably simple to install, and would let me restore the system if necessary?
I'm actually a SW engineer but I don't really have the time or desire right now to become a phone hacker. I did put alternative firmware on another Android gadget, namely a Sony PRS-T1 e-reader, to support a few more formats. It basically works and the device is more useful to me now, but it's pretty clunky and most apps and consequently a couple of formats that worked fine before won't work any more.
It's fine for the e-reader, but I don't really want the phone to have issues like this.
My other choice is to get an international version, which on T-Mobile would give me Edge (384 kbps) data speeds right now, and 3G (1 Mbps) on the 1900 MHz band in early 2013, according to a guy from T-Mobile tech support. About rooting their device (obviously something his company does not approve of) he said to make sure the firmware supports their devices and the protocol and both the 1700 & 2100 MHz bands.
So it's kind of a trade-off between waiting for downloads and putting up with bad video chat on one side and spending time on research and rooting (if it will even work) on the other. The 1900 MHz 3G/1Mbps will probably be fine, but that's only coming next year, if at all.
Sorry, this has turned out to be a pretty long message. So, if you have read this far, any advice?
Thank you very much,
Sergei
I'm new here. I've done a little bit of research, but possibly not enough. My question isn't just about how cool or how complicated it would be to root an S3.
I'm interested in getting this phone, although it's expensive; I've always liked the idea of Android, but not the actual devices, but this one actually looks and feels great, not to mention the technical specs.
Here's the dilemma I'm facing: get one from T-Mobile (I'm under contract and am generally happy with the service) and root it, or get an international version on Amazon.
The main reason I'd want to get the T-Mobile version is that it will support their 4G network. The main reasons I'd want to root it are that the stock firmware doesn't have a Cyrillic keyboard, and they have a 90-day waiting period for unlocking, and I may go abroad in less than 90 days and would like to use it. There limitations are pretty annoying.
I wonder if there is a firmware version out there that would still work with their network and not have these limitations, and that would also be stable and reasonably simple to install, and would let me restore the system if necessary?
I'm actually a SW engineer but I don't really have the time or desire right now to become a phone hacker. I did put alternative firmware on another Android gadget, namely a Sony PRS-T1 e-reader, to support a few more formats. It basically works and the device is more useful to me now, but it's pretty clunky and most apps and consequently a couple of formats that worked fine before won't work any more.
It's fine for the e-reader, but I don't really want the phone to have issues like this.
My other choice is to get an international version, which on T-Mobile would give me Edge (384 kbps) data speeds right now, and 3G (1 Mbps) on the 1900 MHz band in early 2013, according to a guy from T-Mobile tech support. About rooting their device (obviously something his company does not approve of) he said to make sure the firmware supports their devices and the protocol and both the 1700 & 2100 MHz bands.
So it's kind of a trade-off between waiting for downloads and putting up with bad video chat on one side and spending time on research and rooting (if it will even work) on the other. The 1900 MHz 3G/1Mbps will probably be fine, but that's only coming next year, if at all.
Sorry, this has turned out to be a pretty long message. So, if you have read this far, any advice?
Thank you very much,
Sergei
