Kernel upgrade?

[DrDubzz]

I didn't see anything about kernels for the Captivate when I searched, so I was curious. I flashed Perception 10.1 the other night and it has been wonderful. Fast, no lag, everything works better, except the battery is dead in 8-9 hours of minimal use after a full charge.

I've read that many of the upgraded/custom kernels offer better battery life. Is this true? Is that only part of the story? Is changing the kernel difficult (it doesn't seem like it would be)? - EDIT: Yes they do, in general. No, it's not hard to swap them via SGS Kernel Flash or CWM.

I saw in the "how to flash a ROM" video series (massively helpful btw) about the Glitterballs *snicker*kernal working well etc.

Any advice or wisdom from the gurus out there?

Thanks


Edit:
Thanks to connexion2005 for the following!
YouTube - Samsung Galaxy S (Kernel Installing How-To Backup/Flash Kernels)

Now that you have hopefully watched the above video, here are some good options for swapping your kernel. I have used most of these at some point and they are all great and dependable. The ones I have not used review well with others. I would recommend browsing the threads to see which one might suit you the best. If I have missed any, please let me know and I will add to the list.
I am not responsible if you try to swap a kernel and brick your phone. Proceed at your own risk.

Firebird by DesignGears
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=912684

SpeedMod by Hardcore
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=893880

I9000 Reoriented by xcaliburinhand
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=808286

v.4 by Glitterballs
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=887315

Steam Kernel by Glitterballs
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=903238

SetiroN i9000 SuperOptimized v1.5.6 by SetiroN
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=828052

SuckerPunch-SmR - by Existz
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=930679

Unhelpful Kernel by Unhelpful
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=762171

 

[DroidXcon]

I didn't see anything about kernels for the Captivate when I searched, so I was curious. I flashed Perception 10.1 the other night and it has been wonderful. Fast, no lag, everything works better, except the battery is dead in 8-9 hours of minimal use after a full charge.

I've read that many of the upgraded/custom kernels offer better battery life. Is this true? Is that only part of the story? Is changing the kernel difficult (it doesn't seem like it would be)?

I saw in the "how to flash a ROM" video series (massively helpful btw) about the Glitterballs *snicker*kernal working well etc.

Any advice or wisdom from the gurus out there?

Thanks

I have a fascinate and have not looked into captivate kernels, but yes some offer bettery battery life..... kernels are flashed the same way as a rom is so its not difficult at all.

 

[ragnarokx]

If you want better batter life, look for an undervolted kernel.

 

[DrDubzz]

If you want better batter life, look for an undervolted kernel.

thanks, I'm actually looking at the speedmod kernel to try, everyone seems to be raving about the battery life and a far as I can tell it's compatible with perception

 

[mark62nc]

Check this out:

[KERNEL] Firebird 2 [2.2 Armani Source | Voodoo | 342MB | BLN2.3] - xda-developers

Looks like DG is getting ready to post the Firebird kernel.......

 

[DrDubzz]

Just flashed the latest speedmod kernel

it was literally the easiest thing I've done with this phone so far.

I'll let you know how it goes. My battery life has been TERRIBLE so hopefully this helps

edit: it has dropped my Quadrant score from the 1500-1600's to the 1300's. That said, it doesn't seem any slower and apps still load very quickly. Hopefully battery life is improved

 

[DrDubzz]

So far so good with the battery. Normally around this time I'd be in the 40-50% range. Right now, with light usage I'm at 74%. Maybe not great, but much improved for sure

 

[DrDubzz]

Just flashed to Glitterballs 1-6-11 build (reoriented_balls #3), hit 1807 on quadrant, used Voltage Control to undervolt a little bit.

SpeedMod was great on battery life today, normally by 5pm my battery is long dead, was still at 34% with moderate usage.

Gonna check this one out for now. The SGS kernel flasher is what I used and it was very easy.

 

[DrDubzz]

glitterballs produced great quadrant scores (high 16s to 18xxs) but wasn't doing my battery right, so I'm back to speedmod for now.

 

[mark62nc]

glitterballs produced great quadrant scores (high 16s to 18xxs) but wasn't doing my battery right, so I'm back to speedmod for now.

I'm using Speedmod K12M and while the GPS is awesome, my battery life is not great (compared to the stock kernel & Cognition b8). Could this because I flashed using the SGS Kernel Flasher instead of CWM and enabling tweaks?

 

[DrDubzz]

I'm using Speedmod K12M and while the GPS is awesome, my battery life is not great (compared to the stock kernel & Cognition b8). Could this because I flashed using the SGS Kernel Flasher instead of CWM and enabling tweaks?

The tweaks are a must, just boot into recovery and enable them.

I'm on verson "N" now, every version I've had has been great in both performance and battery life

flashing with SGS or CWM is simple and straight forward. Hardcore, the chef for SpeedMod kernel, has both available on his website which are here [KERNEL] SpeedMod for Captivate [K12N BRIGHT-FIX2 Voodoo-Snd MIC-FIX EXT4-SYS STABLE] - xda-developers

there are new versions of the speedmod kernel posted every couples days it seems. I'm using "k12o" right now and love it. Great battery life

 

[DrDubzz]

Done

 

[leo5111]

looking for custom kernal for froyo 2.3 b8

i want a kernal at the very least as fast as the stock one im usieing with cognitition froyo 2.3 b8 but with somewhat better battery life

 

[ragnarokx]

See the posts above yours for some good suggestions.

 

[DrDubzz]

i want a kernal at the very least as fast as the stock one im usieing with cognitition froyo 2.3 b8 but with somewhat better battery life

OP has been updated, read, watch, browse, flash.

SpeedMod has given me good battery life. But definitely try some different ones out and see what works best for you and the ROM you're running.

 

[earendil1979]

I had speedmod flashed and it was giving me decent battery life but i was getting odd shutdown/lock where the only way to get out of it was to pop battery and restart... not cool when i'm on call every night. I flashed glitterballs last night and so far haven't had a shutdown/lock but since 8:00AM with almost no usage my battery is down to 60%

anyone have any ideas on what the solution might be? i'm thinking speedmod was doing good for my battery but maybe was too undervolted thus causing the freezing?

 

[DrDubzz]

I would love to help with this, but I imagine your best bet is to head over to the XDA thread for the speedmod kernel and ask there.

 

[jasonc624]

Do i need to be on 2.2 to flash these kernels?

 

[InnocuousScreenname]

Do i need to be on 2.2 to flash these kernels?

Yes, most custom kernels listed in this thread require Froyo (2.2 or 2.2.1), and most are based on I9000 kernels. Make sure to read the threads as some kernels are compatible with both 2.2 and 2.2.1, but some are just compatible with 2.2.1 or untested with 2.2.

I'm currently using Suckerpunch Kernel Build 34, which is based on SpeedMod (which has great battery life), and also has overclocking / undervolting capabilities.

Also, since these are based on I9000 kernels, make sure you use a compatible modem.

As for why Speedmod has lower quadrant scores, from my understanding, it's the mounting options. Speedmod uses safer (slower) mounting options for its ext4 partitions, while Glitterballs uses the faster (less safe) mounting option.

Even though I have used Glitterballs' kernel, and had no problem with it, I switched over to Suckerpunch because of the great battery life offered by the Speedmod kernel.

To enable faster mount in Speedmod, boot into clockworkmod, go to Advanced Speedmod ULK features, Lagfix options, Ext4 mount options, and enable "Use Faster mount options".

This will get you those faster quadrant scores you're looking for with Speedmod's kernel, or any other kernel which uses Speedmod as a base.

 

[DrDubzz]

I've been using the suckerpunch kernel for about a day now and the battery life is GREAT. It's like everything good about SpeedMod but with better battery life.