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[Verizon] Why Root?

S

Starbuckpga

Member
Can someone sum up in a nutshell why I would or should root my Nexus? Tons of threads on all the ROM's that are available and etc, but I'm just more curious as to why I'd want to go through the hassle of rooting my phone.
 
Your going to get a lot of different answers. Here is mine.

Personally i like to use various apps that require SuperUser access. Titanium Backup Pro..Root Explorer and in the past on other phones i had to be rooted to get rid of Bloat and to take screenshots.

Now that i'm on the G Nex one of the biggest things i'm excited about doing is flashing different Kernels. There are some really great Kernel Devs out there that do some great work.
 
Needsdecaf said:
Biggest reason: running a custom kernel and, to a lesser extent, a custom ROM, generally greatly aids battery life.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. A good ROM makes a HUGE impact on battery life. 6 hours into the day, and still 82% battery remaining. It was NOT like that on the stock ROM. :D

Edit: BTW, currently running AOKP build 13 with imoseyon 1.2.1 kernel, undervolted a bit using SetCPU.
 
For me is the ability to run custom kernels which can drastically increase battery life on the phone. Secondly, is to customize my UI experience to my liking by flashing custom ROM's with features I want and features I don't want on the phone. Lastly I'd say apps that require root, I use several of them. You could always try it and if you feel it doesn't do anything for you unroot and go back to stock. I think that is the best way to see for yourself what it might have to offer.
 
There's a lot to be said for the custom ROMs and kernels, no doubt. But even running stock rooted carries advantages as listed in the first response - the big ones just what trophynuts said, Titanium Backup and Root Explorer.

TiBu lets you back up all your apps so should you ever have to reset, or get a new phone, etc, you can restore them. It's also proven useful for me in the past when I've uninstalled an app, but then wanted it back later and it's no longer in the Market for some reason. I've just restored my previous one from TiBu.

Root Explorer is just a proper file manager, much better than anything stock. It lets you change permissions on files from read only to read/write and back again.

I'm a big fan of the custom kernels and ROMs and +1 to the increased battery life but even without those, I think rooting would be worth it.
 
TITANIUM BACKUP!!!!!!!!!!

For me the basics are the selling point, everything else is gravy. Give me Ti, Shake Screenshot, bloatware removal, Root Explorer, few other simple things, and I'm good to go. Then its gravy.
 
Even though the gnex is bloat-free (some may consider the vzw apps non-bloat and actually useful)... another reason I prefer rooted is for the ability to use Adfree, which blocks many ads used in apps, and even on websites in the browser. devs get my money thru donate, so i don't want the clutter, not to mention the lag in loading that crap.

i had gotten so used to being adfree on my droid. when i got the gnex, i wanted to stay stock for a while. that didn't last more than 4 days. precisely because i wanted to be adfree.

one thing that also hasn't been mentioned is that the awesome dev community will get you the updates faster than you expect... the moment it drops, they are working to get it into their ROMs before verizon/google will get it to you. 4.0.3 has been out for a couple weeks, and it didn't take but a day or two for it to be ready to flash on your phone. vzw/google still haven't pushed it OTA.

take your time, watch the videos, read the tutorials and guides, and ask away. you've got a great community here waiting to help you :)
 
The biggest reason I root is roms and themes. There are so many features packed into many roms that are not available stock. One of the biggest for me is the pulldown notification power widget. I can use Widgetsoid on stock but having it built into the OS works so much better IMO. Add to that the ability to theme stock png files, I don't think you can change your softkeys or battery icon stock but it is easy once rooted.
 
Without root you are limited to how it was shipped. If you are happy with that no prob.

With me there were things I had to have that required root to get, as in my signature.

So just tool along the way you are and if an app or need comes along that is a must have and rooting is the only way to get it................:cool:
 
gapi said:
Without root you are limited to how it was shipped. If you are happy with that no prob.
Click to expand...

^^ If your phone does everything you want it to, then there is no reason.

I became addicted to theming on the OG Droid (although I am actually content with the look of stock ICS.. for now)

I also like to be on the bleeding edge when it comes to updates/upgrades. I don't care to wait the ~6 months it takes for VZW or whomever to decide to release it.

#1 reason I do it is to avoid the VZW extortion for services that are built in to android, but that's all I'll say about that.
 
I will agree with what has been posted. Running software that will only run if you're rooted (Titanium Backup and Clockwork Recovery two of the biggest ones), custom kernels and roms for customization. But the biggest reason for me, on the Nexus, is to improve battery life, which requires custom kernels, roms, and software that will allow you to undervolt your Nexus.
 
As the title of my post suggests, it's all about freedom baby! I rooted my LG Ally (my Wife's as well, after some discussion) back in the day and haven't looked back. Now five phones later I rock a Nexus that, while stock and guaranteed to get the latest and greatest, is the best phone to go wild and crazy with development! See, Android is about choice. Yes, you can jailbreak an iPhone (not an Apple hater btw) but Apple doesn't necessarily want that. Their product is built around a set experience. Android is built around YOUR DESIRED experience (except Motorola...because they take all of the fun out of Android! LOL!). You can make it whatever you want it to be. So if rooting, flashing, etc is what you want to experience then go for it. If you enjoy your phone for what it is then Google/OEMs will have still succeeded.

I unlock the bootloader and root to: flash kernels to gain speed and/or battery life; flash ROMs which are usually ahead of the curve and contain awesome customization; flash custom boot animations that allow for that much more personalization; because sometimes it is a challenge and it is fun to learn new things; because it is an option!...so why not explore said available option?

m2¢,

jmar
 
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