ROM for S4 with Phablet type screen and Radio issue?

[ranjb]

Hi

I am coming from an S2 where I used a mixture of Resurrection and NeatROM 5.0 based on Kitkat 4.4.2.

I am looking for a similar ROM on my S4, one of the best features I liked was the App screens being smaller so much more Apps could fit on the screen, also the ability to fit more onto the screen, similar a Galaxy Note.

I am sorry I dont know what these actual features are called. I am assuming there are S4 ROMs which also have these features.

Can anyone recommend a good ROM or point in the right direction if someone has compared many ROMs with screenshots? That would be very handy.

Also I am on EE in the UK. My phone signal tends to be fairly weak in certain places. Could I upgrade to another radio which would improve the coverage? If so if anyone could point me in the right direction it would be most appreciated.

Thanks

 

[ironass]

Thank you for your post.

There are currently 28 different models of the Samsung Galaxy S4 and over 1,000 different stock Samsung firmware versions, worldwide, covering 3 different Android platforms. Not all issues will affect all models or firmware releases and your answers to the following questions will help in the forum's answers to your specific query.

#1 Could you post your Model number and Android version...

To locate these, go to...

Settings > More > About device > Model number and Android version

This will give you the model of Samsung Galaxy S4 that you have and which Android version you are on.


#2. Your current Firmware, (not just Baseband), version .

To locate your current firmware version, go to the stock, Samsung, dial pad and type in...

*#1234#

This will give you your, "Version", details in full, usually 3 lines of information, AP: CP: CSC:, which may all be relevant.

*** If code *#1234# has been disabled on your firmware, you can download and install, free from the Play Store, Phone Info and it will give you, under Firmware Info... PDA, Baseband, CSC, versions.


Thanks. The above helps us to help you and hopefully someone will be able to reply to you shortly.


For more information, see, 28 Galaxy S4 models - know yours?

(Tip: You can go to the green bar at the top of this forum and click on, "User CP", which will take you to your User Control Panel and then select, "Edit your details", under the heading, "Your profile", on the left hand side. Here you can fill in your model and firmware under, "Current devices", in, "Additional Information". This ensures that your device details are shown under your user name on the left, in every post you make. You can update this as often as you like and will help other users immediately identify your current phone and firmware details.)

 

[ranjb]

Hi not a problem, here are the details for my phone.

MODEL: GT-I9505
ANDROID VERSION: 4.4.2
BASEBAND: I9505XXUFNC4
KERNEL VERSION: 3.4.0-481100, DPI@SWDD5908 #1 , SAT MAR 8
BUILD NO: KOT49H.I9505XXUFNC4
SE FOR ANDROID STATUS: ENFORCING SEPF_GT_I9505_4.4.2_0013
SECURE BOOT STATUS: TYPE: SAMSUNG
SECURITY SOFTWARE VERSION: MDF V1.0 RELEASE 2

PRESSING *#1234# REVEALS:

AP: I9505XXUFNC4
CP: I9505XXUFNC4
CSC: I9505EVRFND1

 

[ironass]

AP: I9505XXUFNC4
CP: I9505XXUFNC4
CSC: I9505EVRFND1

Hi ranjb. Just checking as EE have 2 different models of the Galaxy S4 in the UK. The i9505 and the i9506.

You could, without rooting, install something like Nova Launcher from the Play Store which offers the option of changing not only the desktop grid but also the app drawer grid to accommodate more rows and columns.

For details of rooting the i9505, pop over to the (International) Galaxy S4 - All Things Root forum and take a look at the Rooting Galaxy S4 - Dummies Guide which offers some recommendations for custom ROMs in #3.1.

As regards flashing alternative modems, see Latest modems. The latest NE5 modem that I am on is proving very good signal wise.

 

[lotus49]

This is my second post in 5 minutes recommending Lightning Launcher Extreme but it is highly customisable and you can do pretty much anything you like with it. You don't need to be rooted and you don't need to install a new ROM.

Have a look at werksmannschaft.de | android stuff for some examples but you can have folders, sliding panels, 2D scrolling home screen etc. I highly recommend it although it can be quite complex to use just because of the level of functionality it brings.

 

[ranjb]

You could, without rooting, install something like Nova Launcher from the Play Store which offers the option of changing not only the desktop grid but also the app drawer grid to accommodate more rows and columns.

.

Ok so apart from NovaLauncher is there any ROM which actually has this feature natively within the settings? I think it was Nova Launcher I had on my last phone but would prefer to use the S5 launcher instead, if I choose Nova Launcher it means I cant have the best of both?

Or is there a way that I might not be aware of where I could use both launchers in some shape or form?

Thanks

 

[lotus49]

It's not at all clear why you keep asking about ROMs when what you seem to be interested in is a launcher. Replacing an entire ROM just to get a new launcher is a very odd way to go about it. It's like completely reinstalling your desktop OS just because it comes bundled with an application that you could have installed on its own.

Lightning Launcher can do all of this but to answer your direct question, no, you cannot use two launchers at the same time. If you like the default S5 launcher, stick with it. If you want features it doesn't have, you will have to install another launcher and use that.

I am highly sceptical whether the S5 launcher (presumably just part of TouchWiz) can do anything that one of the more advanced launchers cannot do.

 

[ranjb]

Ok may I have got myself confused, I thought some ROMs customised the aspect of the ROM with these features. What I think I understand now is depending on what ROM you have installed, it can come bundled with certain launchers and this is where I am seeing the differences but I am wrongly assuming that they are included in the ROM. Instead they are the different launchers included.

 

[lotus49]

Ok may I have got myself confused, I thought some ROMs customised the aspect of the ROM with these features. What I think I understand now is depending on what ROM you have installed, it can come bundled with certain launchers and this is where I am seeing the differences but I am wrongly assuming that they are included in the ROM. Instead they are the different launchers included.

That is basically correct. It is always possible to install any 3rd party launcher on any ROM. Even the stock ROMs don't restrict your ability to use a different launcher.

The good thing about trying a different launcher is that you can easily switch back to the previous launcher and keep the configuration for both (or even more than that - you can install as many different launchers as you like) so you can experiment with a new launcher but you aren't tied to it if you don't like it or are still tweaking your home screen.

As far as the overall look and feel of the phone, the launcher makes the single biggest difference to what the phone is like to use so try something different. If you don't like it, you've lost nothing (or at least just a few