New to Android, is it worth rooting/installing custom room?

[steddora]

I recently picked up the epic 4g touch. Avid windows phone user and had a custom room of mango installed for a while on my last phone and it was a million times better than the original nodo ROM I started with. The abilities went through the roof. Now i'm on this Android phone and was wondering if its really worth rooting or installing a custom ROM for this phone. I mean, the phone is just as capable as my old windows phone was as is. What major advantages would I really gain and is it really worth it.

Just for the record, my phone is mainly used for Pandora and Web browsing somewhat like a tablet would be. Which is the main reason I switch was for all the apps. Would doing these things grant me a
Lot more battery life? More customization? I'm still pretty confused on the rooting and custom rooms for the Android phones. Sorry for being a noob here, but its better to ask then find out its not for me the hard way. Thanks ahead of time!

 

[anon(94115)]

I cannot speak for your phone in particular, but I think that you answered your own question. If the Stock ROM was perfect, there would be no need for custom ones right?

Rooting to me is kinda essential, if for no other reason than to get rid of carrier bloat that can affect the battery life. Also the ROMs that I have dealt with, get rid of some of the "extras" that manufacturers like to throw in that also eat batteries.

On the brighter side, you chose a Samsung Phone. They are some of the easiest to root and had to totally "brick". I did a quick look at how to do it, and it is pretty standard stuff, a few clicks and you are rooted. Check your firmware and use the sticky at the top of this thread to get the job done.

First and foremost, read, then read, ask questions, ask more...be sure you understand what you are doing before you start.

Good luck

 

[Sn1per 117]

Yes, rooting opens up endless possibilities. Although android is already very customizable to start with, rooting allows you to do so much more. Our phone is also very easy to root and has many great custom roms to choose from which can completely change the phones look and feel and extend battery life.

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk

 

[steddora]

Is there anyway you guys can link me to some screenshots and maybe more explanations on custom roms? I really like the idea of getting rid of a lot of those worthless apps from sprint. But if love to see more impressive battery life (ordering my extended battery tonight). I've always loved some custom looks to and wish I could change my screen a bit more them what this thing allows me now. I'd really like a lockscreen like I had on my windows phone.

And so far I have read a lot about rooting and i'm pretty sure that's coming to my phone really soon. But i'm really interested in these custom roms. Also something I read from a different site said that on some phones installing custom firmware can cause things like SMS and talk service from working with the carrier. Never had an issue on my at &t phone, and i'm pottery sure I'd be the same with this one. Thank you all!

 

[sfhub]

At the minimum I'd root so Titanium Backup can do its job and also install custom recovery to make nandroid image backups. I'd do that even if I was running stock. Before FoxFi, it was also popular to root to run Android WiFi Tether. Then there is the occasional bug or annoyance where you need root to address the issue.

That is all before you head into themes, custom ROMs, etc.

 

[eq0120]

i rooted for the first time about a month ago just to get rid of bloatware on my phone, installed my first rom last week, and now im hooked. My phone is faster, battery life is better, and i also have ICS on my phone...
Heres a link that might help you out from xda-developers
Epic 4G Touch Android Development - xda-developers

 

[TheMacs]

I waited all of about a couple days before rooting mine. Haven't looked back. Read read read, and watch lots of videos, then decide for yourself.

Agree with Titanium Backup, as well as WiFi Tether, and add in Ad Free for good measure.

Also, most here are very helpful, and some are amazingly helpful.

God luck!

 

[steddora]

Well I've been reading. I'm now at a pass... I'm going to root for sure and have a small dilemma. Root now, go with a good ROM out wait for official ICS then root and go from there. What do you guys think?

 

[dtm_stretch]

Well I've been reading. I'm now at a pass... I'm going to root for sure and have a small dilemma. Root now, go with a good ROM out wait for official ICS then root and go from there. What do you guys think?

Root before, you never know if rooting will be blocked after an update.

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2