Under the Hood: Improvements for the Transform?

sonarchist

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Going thru some of the threads in this forum, am finding very little in the form of do-it-yourself improvements for the Transform.........as the device veered towards its first yearly cycle since release last October, many owners moved on to other devices while others --frustrated with the sluggish response + performance of the Transform-- have now basically assumed there is no real hope for improvement and are merely waiting out the end of the carriers contract.

...........anyhow, am wondering if anyone out there is still genuinely interested in investing a little time and effort and making considerable improvements to the performance of this device?

Given the cpu (800 MHz, Samsung S3C6410, Qualcomm QSC6085) my opinion is that there are several considerable changes that can take place that can --pardon the pun-- transform the Transform into a very stable quick snappy smart-phone that is fun to use (imagine that?)

Listed here are a mere few things that could change the daily performance of your Transform:

1. Find and install a custom recovery for the device (this will allow you to make backups or full system recoveries in case things go wrong with your system....for this you will need to ROOT your device.)

2. Find and install custom ROM (this updates the features + apps running on your device)

3. See what version of android you're on (EB28 or EF09?).....should you update?

4. Consider flashing a new kernel (this will improve the speed of your device enormously)

5. Consider flashing a new modem (this will improve the speed of your device enormously, the most recent are EB28 + EF09 -yes we'd like a new update from the carrier, but who knows if this will happen)

6. Consider flashing a new theme on top of your new ROM (often, themes will include tweaks that improve speed and performance on your device further).

7. Consider making a copy of your Nandroid backup --of complete entire system-- to your PC using SyncToy, a free Windows synchronization tool (in case your microSD Card gets bonked........("Corrupted SD Card / Reformat?").......and you lose everything off your SD Card!)

8. Consider synchonization btwn Transform + CLOUD client: select specific content fr device......then sync device direct to Cloud, without a PC.

9. Consider replacing your year+ overworked stock 2GB microSD Card that came w/ your device.......copy entire contents of msd onto a file on your pc, copy files over to new 16GB class10 msd, pop this into your device (remember to remove battery first), boot up..........enjoy! (No $ ?....get an 8GB class4 for $12 .......yup, saw this the other day at the grocery store!)

10. Consider purchasing a new extra battery (word has it the Transform Ultra battery fits inside the panel of the M920........hum, better chk that out!)

11. Consider Virus-Protection for your android device (hint: avastMobileSecurity)

12. Consider downloading AdFree from the android market (think this one is self explanatory) ;)

13. Consider flashing CM7 on your Transform (this updates you to android 2.3.7 GB)

14. Cosider doing a little research about the subject of ROOTING on your Transform.......Here is a ONE-STOP, link courtesy of Mpgrimm2 (SDX-developers)
http://forum.sdx-developers.com/index.php?topic=16097.msg201129#msg201129 ..........be sure to let Mpgrimm2 know your gratitude by saying Thank You!

15. Consider downloading wifiTether3.1Beta7..............works great w/ the TRANSFORM!

16. Consider downloading SD Card TESTER from the Android Market (this will allow you to know the virility of your microSD Card :) )

17. Consider turning off + re-booting your Transform every single day, perhaps as part of your early morning ritual (brushing your teeth?).......it's simply something to do w/ the Android Operating System, this. ;)

18. Consider NOT turning your car ON, while your Transform is connected via the micro-CarJack to the cigarette lighter power source (hook it up AFTER the car is RUNNING.......less of an unnecessary power surge for the poor device!)

19. Consider using some sort of power surge protector when you plug your device from the micro-cable to the AC jack on your wall (again: unexpected power surges can't be good for the poor devices microSD Card or circuitry!)

Consider this: after you have invested the time and effort of pushing your device forward with one or more of these improvements, you will be running a device that will amaze you + astound you. For most or some of you, your phone will feel like a brand new device.

If anyone in this forum has found a fix here or there that they are willing to discuss, please feel free to share this with us on this thread. Any thoughts?
 
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Titus37

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Thanks for making this great post! My wife owns a Transform and has had nothing but trouble with it. It would lock up frequently and was always sluggish. Sprint did numerous factory resets and we even sent it back to Samsung once. Nothing helped.

A few weeks ago, she finally got so fed up with the sluggishness that she demanded I do something or get her a new phone. I'm don't want to pay the $10 a month smartphone upgrade fee, so I'm trying to get as much life out of our current phones as possible.

Based on your recommendations, I checked out the sdx-developers forums and installed the Transginger ROM and Gingerblurr theme. I had a lot of difficulty getting the USB drivers on my PC to recognize her phone, but eventually I got a USB connection that sporatically works. The problem was definitely with the phone and not the PC. There is a lot of great documentation over there but it was almost too much information and not enough step-by-step stuff in once place. After re-reading the forums over and over again, I eventually figured out what I needed to do.

Her phone seems to be running a lot better now. Thanks for saving us $120 a year. :)
 

sonarchist

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first of all, congrats on getting improvements of your wife's device, that's just awesome!........it's somewhat of a riddle getting the samsung SWUpdater to detect your pc, most of the time the issue is the micro USB cable that came w/ your phone.......though, often, the very same cable will work fine minutes later..........sometimes your download is corrupted, or else your virus protection is running tests in the background + preventing the port to allow data..........sounds like you did the trial/error jumping thru hoops (load drivers, reboot pc, reboot phone, change cable to different USB port, try other cable et cetera), BUT, finally got the process to work........just out of curiosity, what recovery were you able to flash (via SWUpdater) to gain root?
 

Titus37

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I used the Vampirefo recovery & kernel.

As for getting USB to work, I tried 2 different computers, 3 different USB cables, and just kept rebooting + unplugging + everything else you listed above over and over again. Even when I got it working, if I unplugged the phone and plugged it back in again it would not work the second time. I hate to say it, but I find the Transform to be a very crummy phone.

Actually I just remembered something else that helped get USB working. I found the post below about another Samsung phone, but it worked on the Transform and my wife's USB setting was incorrect.

-----------------------------
Sprint Community: Samsung Epic not recognized by computer

The other is that the phone may be setup for the diagnostic modem mode that store technicians use to triage the phone. You can access the menu to change this by typing ##8778# in the dialer. The top "UART" setting should be on MODEM, and the bottom "USB" setting should be on "PDA" for regular operation. As technicians we normally change this setting back, but there is always a chance someone forgot it when finishing up a phone.
 
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sonarchist

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wow........talk about going down the gopher hole (of SWUpdater)..........SW is very sensitive, obviously you weren't discouraged ;-) ........the good thing is, now that you're rooted, you can also enjoy the benefit of a very reliable system backup (+ foundation) to work with going forward, in case things should ever go erratic for any reason down the road.


*edit* thanks for the pda/modem link........lol, to think that a technician would forget to change the settings back!
 
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sonarchist

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Selvarage.........was thinking, USB device drivers are probably half of your problem............i have to admit, am unsure as to the nature of your entire issue w/ the information provided..........a thought: the microUSB cable is generally considered atrocious by most folks that have used it long enough: it wears down + eventually is capricious as to what kind of data it is willing to pass and how much data.......other times, it works like a champ...........please refer to Titus37's excellent post about how he was able to overcome this issue in a very comprehensive way.............hopefully this will help get you where you need to be w/ your device for now......Q: where does your link 'For additional Information" take us? Is it the Samsung device drivers downloads page? thought I'd ask before putting a 'click' there. Thanks!
 

sonarchist

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just a quick note...........largely a part#2 to the last post received, essentially to say that a recent update came up for the ROM that I have been running recently on my Transform..........TransGinger_v2.0 came up + a number of us decided to 'test' it as it was being released as an untested alpha............so for the simple purpose of getting a clean file, I choose to download it to my pc first.......this meant that I would have to then mount my device to the USB port of my pc inorder to place the updated file into the sdx/zip section of the microSD Card...........all to say, the pc recognized the device IMMEDIATELY, first attempt..............upon mounting to USB and I was able to go straight to drive d: to the mSD card ............as I was feeling blessed because of this USB good luck, I decided to synchronize my most recent Nandroid backup --using SyncToy-- and create a copy of this to my pc (an ER backup) ........why not, right?,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,after, unmounting USB on the pc from the microSD Card on the device, I proceeded to flash the update............(should add, had read in SDX, that the developer had not included a launcher in this install package)..............so after running this update from recovery, + after booting to system, i powered off the device.............I then went into recovery and: took a copy of the Nemus Launcher app from TransGinger_v1.5 + pasted it to system/app section of the Transginger_v2.0, and finally booted to system.........and awesomesauce: new quick + visually aesthetically pleasing TransGinger ROM on my Transform!.............running great, no hiccups whatsoever.

...................anyway, this just goes to show that mounting the USB port to your Samsung Transform IS NOT ALWAYS going to be such an ordeal............hopefully this will encourage some of you to consider this option in future (TransGinger ROM version 2.1 is in the works, it WILL include a launcher!)

*edit* TransGinger_v2.1 has been released.......it too was missing parts (it is a beta release, good for testing)...........the download went ok.......but, by popular demand a quick *revision* of 2.1 (COMPLETE with 100% files included) was assembled by one of the Moderators at SDX that was in direct response to dialog w/ testers (myself included) + newcomers alike.............all to say, if you are feeling BRAVE enough, TIME IS NIGH: this version is the closest that the Transform has gotten to perfection........the theme is aesthetically perfect + functionally sound x 10 compared to anything this scrappy device has ever seen...............if rooted users decide to flash, remember to make a complete backup in recovery of your current set-up, then wipe dalvik cache + then 'run zip from sd card' (not an update) ........this will wipe out your data so you must backup your data first.............if you get a bad download or a bad flash.......Just go to recovery + run a 'system + data' restore of that last backup, or else from recovery do a full-restore of that last backup in your microSD Card..........good luck!!

**edit.2** ok, after a day or so of 'testing' TransGinger_v2.1, have finally calibrated this new version into pretty darn good shape!...............update: fully functioning on all levels, including wifiTether, terminal, superuser, et cetera....................... several initially perceived 'missing parts' not really an issue whatsoever after all................after a day of playing TG2.1 is quick, snappy, full of web tweaks and assorted fixes that span across a pretty big leap from version 1.5 (to 2.0, which lots of you may wish to go no further as it is simply excellent) and, now, 2.1, the Transform's own daily driver finally!...........................Hat's off to the talented bright new developer FilthyPanda.........hopefully some of our members here at AndroidCentral will soon have the opportunity of sampling his awesome handiwork.
 
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sonarchist

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ok........so this is what Santa delivered here last night:

one 'Blackberry microSD Cable'

nothing less than *amazing*.......................all I can add: if you're gonna do anything 'under-the-hood' you MUST get one.

................as usual, the cable may NOT be the source of your inability to connect your pc to your device (discussed previously on this as well as 100's of other threads)..................but for some reason --ok, it's Christmas Day today-- I am getting 100% connection success w/ this cable.

I should add, have tried at least six other brands and make of these microSD cables w/ limited to narrow success (the best of these has been, oddly, the original samsung cable that came w/ the device).

So there, my Holiday message delivered....................................Transform goodness in the New Year to you'all.
 

sonarchist

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................and, at Year's End, a final surprise by FilthyPanda, junior developer SDX, a Christmas gift delivered around the 19th of December:

[ROM] [CyanogenMOD 6.1] Pandroid v1.0.0 BETA[Stable]

Yes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! a fully functioning port of the CyanogenMod for the Transform M920!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Had an awesome time installing this + am having an even more awesome time exploring the many features that Cyanogen offers our android devices, this being a true AOSP interface + build + experience. This project has been jump-started atop legendary developer JoesephMother's 'from-source' build CyanogenMod v1.3 of recent memory (JM birthed Cyanogen port for the Transform + got this project very close to Release Candidate but moved on to other devices, + FilthyPanda has delivered an awesome beta release for our enjoyment!)

For a first Beta, FilthyPanda sure got it right............................all systems GO from the gitGO w/ this one.

**note: flashed back to my prior ROM TransGinger 2.1 for a brief couple of days, then re-flashed Pandroid with a clean install: back to stock EF09 (and a factory reset to boot) from ClockworkMOD recovery.....................well worth it: no force closes, no re-boots, super excellent speed + functionality, and insanely long-lasting battery life the likes this Transform has ever experienced.

...........................never for the faint of heart, this business of tinkering w/ these fiddlly devices...........yet, light years advancement + small bits of joy for those lucky few that are willing to press forward and improve their device + by extension their telephonic lives + connectivity. :):):)

****NOTE = would be remiss not to mention this: ok, assuming that you have decided to go forward and explore a custom recovery + custom ROM,,,,,gr8!.......First things first, PLEASE do your homework + read all that you can about the process of rooting your device beforehand.........your device is of value to you + you do not want to be too hasty with the instructions and process and end up BRICKING your phone............the ultimate final decision YOURS, so please be responsible for the results from YOUR DECISION.........................if you have any questions along the way, PLEASE ASK, anyone on the forum will be happy to help you.......................................................good luck!
 
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sonarchist

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Just a quick note:

As of Today 03/09/2012: CM7 BETA__1 has released for the TRANSFORM!.........................this updates your device to Android_v2.3.7.............you're still running Modem_EF09.

That's awesome x 1,000,000!!!!!!!!!

*edit: qnhoang81 (SDX) has compiled this completely from source.........most recent update CM7beta1 (04/15/2012) is rockin' it pretty steady w/ data, sms, phone, root, bluetooth, audio, calls, software graphics enhancements + wifiHotspot............gapps must be flashed immediately after CM7; link is posted for all of your Google apps........very simple to install, requires CWM recovery..........pls give qnhoang81 a big Thank You show of gratitude for giving us CM7 on our Transform devices. :)

O: + there is now a bug list thread started, w/ plenty of clues + noob advice. =]
**edit2: qnhoang81 has been sending signals that he is about to release his port of CM9 Ice Cream Sandwich for the TRANSFORM!........a Pre-Alpha Release is now out! + Available to brave souls that wish to dip their toes into some bleeding-edge NEWNESS (your Transform on Android_v4.0.3_Ice Cream Sandwich!).........do I HEAR any Testers?!?
 
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sonarchist

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OK Guys!.....This is IT!!!!!!

.........many of us have been running the TRANSFORM now for a good twenty months. There has never been a better time to explore the other side, and I am going to make it very easy for you!

TATA! http://forums.androidcentral.com/sa...ot-install-cm7-unofficial-rom-bone-stock.html

A HOW TO INSTALL CM7 FROM BONE STOCK............before you trade in your die-hard devices forever.......one last chance to ROOT + run a custom ROM! HA HA!
 

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