Good phone for rooting/ROM experiments? Nexus 4 user

[mset]

Hi guys

After 6 years with a Blackberry followed by 3 with an iPhone, I just got a Nexus 4 the other day, and I'm loving it. I was having a few issues and became aware that there's a community of guys who are rooting Android phones and installing custom ROMs etc. Please go easy on me, I'm not a programmer : )

I want to try to play around with this stuff, but I don't want to use my new N4 as I have no land line anymore and need my phone working 24/7 for business.

My N4 runs 4.2. Can you guys suggest a good phone for me to buy to play around with rooting/custom ROMs? Are there different amounts of work that get done for each manufacturer's phone or are custom ROMs for ICS the same whether you have a Samsung, HTC, or Google device?

I just want to grab a (hopefully cheaper) phone that I can play with and not worry about in case I irreparably brick it. However, I would like to be able to apply the knowledge to the N4 eventually. Some of the stuff I read about performance/functionality improvements that can come from rooting/custom ROMs sounds pretty cool.

After looking over some threads at the forum.xda-developers.com (many of which contain lots of code) I'm not sure if I can get very far, but I'd like to try.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

 

[Lanhoj]

Nothing better than a Nexus for rooting/experimenting.
So...either another Nexus 4 or an HSPA+ GNex if you can get one on the cheap would be my suggestions.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Android Central Forums

 

[mset]

Nothing better than a Nexus for rooting/experimenting.
So...either another Nexus 4 or an HSPA+ GNex if you can get one on the cheap would be my suggestions.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Android Central Forums

Okay Lanhoj, thanks. So I'm such a noob that I have to clarify - GNex means a Samsung Galaxy Nexus I-9250 right? Or is it a different one, the Samsung Google Nexus I-9020A. Those are different phones right?

I have an ad up at my local buy/sell site for an N4 with a chipped screen or other cosmetic defect. Hope I can find one. If worse comes to worse I'll grab another N4 but wouldn't mind spending like $150. I'm off to HoFo to see what a used GNex is going for.

Thanks again.

 

[Lanhoj]

...
to clarify - GNex means a Samsung Galaxy Nexus, which was a Samsung phone made for Google right?
...

It's the Samsung-made Galaxy Nexus.
Before that was the Samsung-made Nexus S.
Before that was the original HTC-made Nexus One.

Google doesn't "make" the devices, they just provide stock/pure/vanilla Android to the OEM they select to produce that year's Nexus device(s) & usually handle all the software updates.

 

[mset]

It's the Samsung-made Galaxy Nexus.

Google... provide(s) stock/pure/vanilla Android to the OEM they select to produce that year's Nexus device(s) & usually handle all the software updates.

Yeah, I figured as much. Okay, that explains the two phones I linked to above. Thanks. I couldn't figure out why both Samsung and Google kept releasing devices with the name Nexus. So the name obviously belongs to Google.

EDIT: Looks like a GNex is up my alley. Can get one slightly cheaper, like this one . than the newer N4

 

[Paul627g]

I agree the Nexus line is your best bet simply because unlocking them and gaining root access is very simple. Then Google supplies all the goods to restore your device back to bone stock via flashable factory images. Then once your more advanced into toying around Google's AOSP support to build and modify the Android OS is provided with full support and instruction online at the Google development sites. All you need is a computer with some reasonable processing power (Dual core+ preferred) and some nice RAM (8 gb or more preferred) and some nice hard drive space, get Ubuntu installed on your computer and your ready to dive into a whole new world.

 

[mset]

I agree the Nexus line is your best bet simply because unlocking them and gaining root access is very simple. Then Google supplies all the goods to restore your device back to bone stock via flashable factory images.

Okay, got it. Yes, I found the WugFresh site while I was looking for solutions for my issue, and I watched a Youtube video on the process. I badly wanted to try it and it looked like I might be able to do it, but again, I need to do this on a phone that isn't my daily driver.

Can't wait, actually. Might take me a while to get up to speed but should be interesting. I'd love to find a GNex for $200 here in Canada.

 

[Lanhoj]

...
I'd love to find a GNex for $200 here in Canada.

That Red Flag link looks pretty good, you should pull the trigger on it.
I'd sell you mine but I'm keeping it for Ubuntu, sorry...and with shipping from the US would likely be around 250$ anyways.

 

[mset]

That Red Flag link looks pretty good, you should pull the trigger on it.
I'd sell you mine but I'm keeping it for Ubuntu, sorry...and with shipping from the US would likely be around 250$ anyways.

Right, and it's OBO, and I have good feedback so he might cut me a few bucks off. Plus, he'll apparently trade and I have an iPhone 4 sitting here which I am never going to have any use for again. Ever. : )