A little advice please

thetonyclifton

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Dec 27, 2013
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I am brand new to nexus and android. I have previously unlocked and tinkered with iphones but stopped that about 3-4 years ago.

I don't intend to do much which requires a rooted android except to improve performance (mainly battery life), maybe greenify and perhaps tinker with the look a bit eventually.

My question is, is it worth my while? I have read that the Franco kernal and greenify can improve battery life and performance quite a bit....however I would still like to retain the ability to quite simply update android OTA as the latest version was part of the reason I chose a nexus5.

I have done a bit of research and rooting seems relatively simple on a mac but I would appreciate some opinions (given my needs) and info on how I would go about using the Franco kernal and greenify if that is in fact the best way for me to go.

Apologies for the basic questions, I have done a lot of research and watching tutorials etc but I am a bit overwhelmed given that I am completely new to android and the terminology.

Thanks.

TC
 

krifor03

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Nov 6, 2009
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I am brand new to nexus and android. I have previously unlocked and tinkered with iphones but stopped that about 3-4 years ago.

I don't intend to do much which requires a rooted android except to improve performance (mainly battery life), maybe greenify and perhaps tinker with the look a bit eventually.

My question is, is it worth my while? I have read that the Franco kernal and greenify can improve battery life and performance quite a bit....however I would still like to retain the ability to quite simply update android OTA as the latest version was part of the reason I chose a nexus5.

I have done a bit of research and rooting seems relatively simple on a mac but I would appreciate some opinions (given my needs) and info on how I would go about using the Franco kernal and greenify if that is in fact the best way for me to go.

Apologies for the basic questions, I have done a lot of research and watching tutorials etc but I am a bit overwhelmed given that I am completely new to android and the terminology.

Thanks.

TC

If you install a different kernel OTA's won't be easy. You'll have to re-flash the stock system.img then take the OTA. Honestly if battery life is your only concern you don't need root. The battery on the phone isn't going to last like two days or anything but its not HORRIBLE either. Plus simple things that don't involve root can help extend your battery life, like not having the screen on blast, turning your Wi-fi off if your not in a area where you have Wi-fi, and just putting the darn thing down!

PS: I too use a mac and have franco. Rooting is stupid easy, using linix code for the first time if you've never seen or used it is scary ( only because your a newb, we all are at some point) but you get comfortable with it the more you do it
 

thetonyclifton

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Thanks for the reply. I am interested in performance and/vs battery life so once I was rooted I would no doubt start to fiddle and get a lot more interested in other stuff. I unlocked iphones purely to remove the sim lock but that quickly spirralled-I figure this will be the same.

How simple is the process of reflashing the stock kernal once an OTA update comes out? I mean how difficult and how long does it take?

Am I right in saying once I root, the Franco kernal can simple be flashed to the phone using an app from the play store?
 

krifor03

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really simple you have to unzip the factory image, and get the system.img file then its ".\fastboot-mac flash system sytem.img" and off you go. and yes, once you have you SU installed just download Franco Kernel from the play store
 

kd0h

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I don't tinker around with kernels or ROMs so I cannot comment on that, but I am on 4.4.2 rooted with ChainFire (keeps it as close to stock with root acces)

I use greenify on a bunch of apps and it it definitely helped the battery life.
I also then use tasker for some rooted access for things such as GPS or Slide Pattern security things. Really nice simple touches that help with battery and some personal touches.
 

p3ntyne

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Dec 15, 2013
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Thanks for the reply. I am interested in performance and/vs battery life so once I was rooted I would no doubt start to fiddle and get a lot more interested in other stuff. I unlocked iphones purely to remove the sim lock but that quickly spirralled-I figure this will be the same.

How simple is the process of reflashing the stock kernal once an OTA update comes out? I mean how difficult and how long does it take?

Am I right in saying once I root, the Franco kernal can simple be flashed to the phone using an app from the play store?

An easier way to do it is to make sure that you have a custom recovery on your phone such as TWRP. Then, you can find the link to the latest version of Franco kernel from the xda developers site, make sure the zip is on your phone, boot into recovery mode, install the zip and the reboot.

Also, one you have installed the kernel, download the FKU app from the play store, that let's you toy with the settings.

Posted via Android Central App
 

thetonyclifton

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Dec 27, 2013
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Thanks I rooted, flashed the franco kernal, installed the FKU app and greenify (with the experimental features) all in about 10 minutes with no issues at all. Thanks.

I have greenified some apps and the franco kernal seems to have extended the battery life, it is hard to say how much for several reasons, the first is that I think the battery was still breaking in as it seemed to be extending, but I got an extra hour of 'screen on time' the first day using the franco kernal. I have now switched off syncing for my emails (for practical reasons not battery-I am mostly at my desk so I am cutting down on multiple notifications) so this confuses my comparisons going forward, however that did not seem to have as strong an impact as flashing the franco kernel...anyway I am happily tinkering away learning more about my phone....

..thanks for the advice.

TC
 

srkmagnus

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I'm using Franco Kernel and it alone has made a big improvement in the performance and battery life of the device. Since it's a Nexus device it's worth a shot to root and install the Kernel and see how it goes for you. The easiest way to go about installing Franco is through the paid App: https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...s/details?id=com.franco.kernel&token=BkfFIj-e

The amount of work the developer puts into it and the improvements it provides makes it well worth the price. Also, when you install the App you'll you can create a backup of the stock Kernel before installing the latest Kernel Franco has available. This way you can easily restore if an OTA is available and you want to update. The App also provides an easy method to flash the latest Kernel by downloading and installing on it's own.

Just a quick note regarding OTA's. You can still receive an OTA if you have a modded device and Kernel installed. If the OTA has no changes to those parts of the device or Kernel you changed then it won't check the device to make sure everything is in place to accept the OTA for those parts. For example, the update was pushed to people using 4.4.1 with Franco Kernel since 4.4.2 did not include updates to the Kernel. Regardless, it's still good practice to keep backups of the stock components, when possible, to receive an OTA should you like to do so.
 

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