just bought my GN2!

[bear_lx]

so i finally decided to sell my nexus 4 and nexus 10 to consolidate... so i bought a note 2. cant wait to get it, but have a few questions. not a big fan of touchwiz, and will probably install nova. that being said is it worth rooting nowadays? i mean there are custom launchers, and applications that basically give you the ability to do everything without root? the only thing i might miss is tethering, which i could do for free if i unlocked my phone. but now that i dont have a tablet not sure if its worth it. secondly are there any must have apps for a phone with this much real estate to play with? and lastly, who uses a case on this beast? not sure i want to make it any bigger than it has to be... ? thanks!

 

[jdub1981]

You can tether for free without root and without unlocking.

http://foxfi.com/

I use a case, the phone is both heavy and slippery and very easy to drop. The seidio surface or best buy platinum series case are both thin and have a nice texture. By the way both these cases are the same just the best buy one rebranded.
Drippler is a must have app. It will determine your phone type and then only deliver new relevant to your phone such as root stuff and new apps or other cool stuff.



Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk 2

 

[TheOtherBill]

I found the Seidio Active case gives excellent protection without making it much bigger, and the kickstand is a huge plus for it.
As far as rooting - I always planned to but never did. I never found a compelling reason to make me bother to do it; the phone is great as-is. I still have Nova installed but, again, never needed to take the time to set it up. I need to search to see if I can set up a swipe gesture to blank the screen, that might make it worthwhile.

 

[jdub1981]

Btw congrats on an excellent choice of phones. Welcome to the boards. The phone really is near perfect as is. Really the only reason I initially rooted was to get rid of bloat.

Oh, and the 2 cases I mentioned above also have kickstands. You never really know how much you need a kickstand till you dont have one. That makes it truly a great case.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk 2

 

[rankar7]

so i finally decided to sell my nexus 4 and nexus 10 to consolidate... so i bought a note 2. cant wait to get it, but have a few questions. not a big fan of touchwiz, and will probably install nova. that being said is it worth rooting nowadays? i mean there are custom launchers, and applications that basically give you the ability to do everything without root? the only thing i might miss is tethering, which i could do for free if i unlocked my phone. but now that i dont have a tablet not sure if its worth it. secondly are there any must have apps for a phone with this much real estate to play with? and lastly, who uses a case on this beast? not sure i want to make it any bigger than it has to be... ? thanks!

nice.

i had to get a case, the note2 was too slippery for me. check out boxwave slim case with built in kickstand. very low profile and i actually wound up using the kickstand more than i thought.

as for apps: swiftkey 4, nova launcher (to take advantage of all that screen real estate; but since i've gone minimalist/simplified, the stock touchwiz launcher is doing great for me), the matrix live wallpaper (absolutely essential for any Matrix fans, looks killer on our screen)

 

[bear_lx]

refuse to pay for a keyboard... i spent 400 on the phone, not buying a keyboard. technically it should have one that just works, like iphones, windows phone, nexus, or any other phone other than samsung for that matter, but hey...

went with a samsung flip cover specifically to keep that beautiful titanium back plate

 

[TheOtherBill]

The stock keyboard is actually pretty good. It has swype and does handwriting recognition.
It's like colors, everyone has a different preference - that's why there are so many popular ones.

 

[Lastnv]

Those kickstand cases have magnets which can ruin your screen in the long run if you keep that case on your phone.

I recommend the Samsung Bumper Cover Plus case for slim protection or the Urban Armor Gear case for a little more protection without sacrificing looks.

 

[rankar7]

Those kickstand cases have magnets which can ruin your screen in the long run if you keep that case on your phone.

I recommend the Samsung Bumper Cover Plus case for slim protection or the Urban Armor Gear case for a little more protection without sacrificing looks.

no magnets on the boxwave kickstand slim case.

 

[GMJeff]

I have had the Seidio surface case on my note 2 since I bought it, and have seen no ill effects from the kickstand magnet.

If it takes a long time as stated, I am sure I will be on the note 3 or 4 by the time it causes problems. In other words, not in my possession any more.

It's not wrong to fondle the s pen.

 

[jdub1981]

Those kickstand cases have magnets which can ruin your screen in the long run if you keep that case on your phone.

I recommend the Samsung Bumper Cover Plus case for slim protection or the Urban Armor Gear case for a little more protection without sacrificing looks.

I too have had my case on my note 2 for 6 months with zero issues. We are surrounded my magnetic waves in any device thats send current through a wire. Said current produces magnetic waves that radiate out. Most devices these days have mitigated these waves through a very thin shielding built into devices that can be affected.

Plus, the magnet in the stand is so weak its only purpose is to make sure it doesnt inadvertently open.



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[kashk5]

I rooted my Galaxy Note 2 literally within an hour of getting my hands on it. I really hate Touchwiz, so I tried out a variety of custom ROMs before finally settling on LiquidSmooth. The only thing I really sacrifice are the S Pen apps, but there are plenty of alternatives in the Play Store (Papyrus is a great alternative to S Note). After installing GMD S Pen Control, I got back all the missing functionality for my S Pen. Stock Android is so much faster and smoother than Touchwiz, not to mention looks a lot better (yes, I know you're going to install Nova, but Touchwiz is more than just a launcher).

To the poster who said that it was a heavy phone, I'd have to disagree. Then again, this thing is light as a feather compared to the Lumia 900 I used to have.

 

[bear_lx]

im happy so far with nova, i know touchwiz runs deep into the OS but there are some features in touchwiz i like! all of the spen functionality, apps arent the same. the notification blind toggles, motion actions, ect..

 

[TheOtherBill]

Those kickstand cases have magnets which can ruin your screen in the long run if you keep that case on your phone.

If you are one of the few people who do have a problem with the magnet, you'll see it right away. But either way long term use won't damage it. All the magnet does in the cases where there are problems is give a false reading of the S pen's location to the digitizer.