[Q] Should I flash a ROM? - Galaxy S II Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

what are the advantages of flashing ROMS? I've heard that Cyanogen mod 7 is very buggy, so I'll be leaning more towards Lighting ROM or Darky ROM if I do actually end up flashing one. I'm currently running Stock 2.3.5 if that makes any difference.
Thanks!

okmijnlp said:
what are the advantages of flashing ROMS? I've heard that Cyanogen mod 7 is very buggy, so I'll be leaning more towards Lighting ROM or Darky ROM if I do actually end up flashing one. I'm currently running Stock 2.3.5 if that makes any difference.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most custom ROMS, for example villainROM, are based on samsung firmware , so they bring a close to stock experience, with touchwiz interface, samsung camera, etc... For me the biggest benefit of these ROMs is that they most of the times get rid of samsung and carriers bloatware and go with the latest samsung firmware (that usually takes a lot time to get via official updates through kies). The latest firmware usually implies a lot f improvement in performance and battery life (yes, it is significant).
In the other hand you have AOSP ROMS (android open source project). This is the case of CM7 (cyangenMOD) and MIUI, and others like oxygen, insanity ii, etc... Here, the devs get rid of samsung firmware, and modify the open source gingerbread to run on a specific device (like samsung galaxy s2 in this case). This is the reason it may be buggy at first, because not everything is running as on samsung firmware.
ANyway, the latest CM7 nightly is working great for performance and battery life, much faster than samsung ROMs also. SOme problems anyway, like the camera which is worse than the samsung one, FM radio not working. There are a lot of things that are way better in CM7 and a lot of things that are worse. But with the latest nightlies the bugs are minor and you can use your device for daily use withouth problems.
I personally was using CM7 for some time and yesterday I switched to checkROM revolution (xda thread) which is samsung firmware XXKI4. I', constantly changing since I miss the camera app and polaris office alot (polaris office as a samsung app can't run on CM7).

Cyanogenmod is not buggy!

Just use checkROM like the rest of us...

I can suggest you to read here. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1288850. Great team working on that rom.

okmijnlp said:
what are the advantages of flashing ROMS? I've heard that Cyanogen mod 7 is very buggy, so I'll be leaning more towards Lighting ROM or Darky ROM if I do actually end up flashing one. I'm currently running Stock 2.3.5 if that makes any difference.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Flashing a custom ROM makes sense, if you want to optimize the performance of your phone => flash a custom ROM specialized for better performance.
And if you want more battery life, flash a custom ROM specialized for a longer battery life.
If you feel fine with the official firmware, stick to a stock ROM.
That's what I am doing in the moment.
For me, the latest stock ROM is a good compromise / balance between performance and battery life.
But it's up to you ... feel free to try other ROMs.

if you have to ask the question then no, you probably shouldnt

skimminstones said:
if you have to ask the question then no, you probably shouldnt
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't agree with you man.

tomascunill said:
I don't agree with you man.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well, thanks for letting me know

Related

[Q] Installing Vanilla Android on SGS2

Hi,
Is it possible to install Vanilla Android 2.3.X on Galaxy S2 ? i am not impressed by the bloat that is currently installed by Samsung (or lite'ning rom for that matter). I would like to start fresh with vanilla and start customizing (i am looking for something that a Nexus S customer would see on their phones...pure google experience or whatever they call it...)
I have looked at Development thread/googled but to no avail.
Can anyone please point me in the right direction ?
Thanks !!!
Hey, I wanted to know if there is any progress here, I'm looking for something quite the same, a minimal original android software.
Yes, from what I've searched because i love Aosp android myself. Basically you have two options, one is to flash Cyanogen mod 7, its based off stock android and has all the stock apps, has stock everything. The other option is another rom thats just stock android no CM and is built by a guy named adamG.
Cm7 http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1112916
Stock Aosp by adam G http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1183063
Thanks for the quick reply!
So, I think the CM7 is a better choice, only because it's better known than the other rom and has more support.
I heard that soon Samsung will release a 2.3.4 rom. Will it be stock android (vanilla)?
galmgnt said:
Thanks for the quick reply!
So, I think the CM7 is a better choice, only because it's better known than the other rom and has more support.
I heard that soon Samsung will release a 2.3.4 rom. Will it be stock android (vanilla)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope! Haha the chance of samsung releasing a stock android version is second to none. Touchwiz is their baby, they market the whole GS2 experience based off touchwiz, they will never ever release a stock android version. Your only option is either cm7 or other roms and yes, cm is quite nice i just flashed it today, first rom flash on this thing for me. I really like the no frills android experience.
Though!!! Keep in mind that since CM7 is still in the testing phase, expect some functionality from the stock samsung rom to be lost, id give the thread a good read before deciding to flash or not. One major example is that 1080P recording will not work on cm7.
just a word of warning, CM7 or the devNULL, both are still at their infancy with some limitations. If the limitations bother you, wait a few days, at least for the CM7 release version.
I see. Well, basically I'm looking for the minimalist rom (in order to save battery life).
If the CM7 it is, than it only make things easier.
If you are looking for "minimalist" indeed, check this one out too, based on CM:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1170249
I am dying to check this out, the only thing keeping me off is the effort t re-install and re-customize another rom within a few hours
Wow, it looks great! minimal look is the best.
But I see that all those rom are still in beta..
So, the only way to disable Touchwiz completely and get the "stock interface" is to install another rom?
galmgnt said:
Wow, it looks great! minimal look is the best.
But I see that all those rom are still in beta..
So, the only way to disable Touchwiz completely and get the "stock interface" is to install another rom?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you can install another launcher, i.e. launcher pro. but that is only a home screen/launcher replacement the touchwiz apps/menus will still be there.
But it will kill my battery.
OK, so those 3 roms are my best shot.. thanks!
galmgnt said:
But it will kill my battery.
OK, so those 3 roms are my best shot.. thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No a different launcher wont affect battery.

[Q] Which is the best Custom ROM?

I'm only a month old Androidian... and within a month I leant a lot frm XDA about installing custom rom/rooting and using new themes etc...
But I am really lost at one point ... which custom Rom is the best one and is flawless... i mean some times im really confused bet the top ROM maker's ... I knw that everybdy's workin hard to make a best out of it....
but I would really like 2 knw who's using which custom ROM tht's been used by maximum number of users and whch seen flawless (at least fast and 90% flawless)
Everyone has different tastes, so you should try a few roms to choose the one that you think it's better.
You must keep in mind that no rom is 100% perfect and there are always little flaws. When I install a custom rom, I always do a few tweaks here and there and add or remove that I like or dislike.
I've tried Exynos, Cognition, Villain, SkyRom and Lite'ning. To my taste, Villain and Lite'ning are the best, with Exynos in second place. FYI, Now I'm on Villain 2.1 with Ninphetamine 2.0 Kernel and KG2 modem, just to try something different to Lite'ning 3.1.
I'm eagerly waiting for MIUI and Cyanogen to become stable, but in the meantime I'm switching between the aforementioned roms.
I feel that Cyanogen is one of the most stable roms out there, even though they're nightlies. No sudden reboot, excellent batterylife, not to mention the huge amount of tweaks and settings built in..
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium App
For now I am staying (and thus voting) "original stock ROM".
This will very likely change once CM7 is finished for the SGS2
But its still early days of i9100 and every now n thn a new official stock rom is release or I must say "leaked" (thanks 2 samfirmware) .....
n it really sux whn after installing latest cf-root n custom rom , theme and backup restoration setting Home widgets your own way everthing ... which sometime takes many days to settle.
... and after doing all that @SamFirmware tweets that a new I9100 firmware is leaked... and then forgetting all the hardwrk we did to make i9100 stylish n fast, we start refreshing XDA forum to see whether smbdy has released a custom rom or not ?
n the Impatient ones takes backups via titanium and wipes everything and get back to Stock Rom to see the diff (deliberately ignoring the fact tht titanium restore will work only after rooting) ...
Its really a fact... tht happen with most of the ppl...
After trying various Roms in last few months... I stay with either Villain ROM OR Official ROM (CF Rooted ) .... hope that if some day it could be dual booted like my PC is.
I stick with the official ROM and customize it to my own needs.
I love MIUI as I love to heavily customise look and feel with ease.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
CM7 it runs really great for me with no issues. I am hoping to get my Dual boot working soon to boot then i will be set.
I love batista 70. For me the best.
I think Leomar v2.6 is the best because of the personalization you can do and it's very very very easy to do!!
Alexpiri said:
I think Leomar v2.6 is the best because of the personalization you can do and it's very very very easy to do!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i agree with you
Cyanogenmod definitely. I never was one to enjoy being tied down to OEM software which were uncompatible with each other.
If you want a custom custom rom check out Insanity II... quick, stripped down, bare bones, no non-sense. Since you only run essentials it ups your battery life by quite a bit.
On Sammy ROMs Cognition and Darky are very stable and have decent battery life.
CM7 is highly customizable but you miss certain features like A2DP, FM radio, better camera , hi def videos that are part of Samsung ROMs. Some of these features are being worked upon and would be available whenever the stable version comes out.
Some people have better battery life on CM7. strangely it is not the case with me.
MIUI is cute but a big battery drain.
overall there is no best ROM or anything . you try different ROMs and use the one that suits your needs.
I'm using leomar 2.6 with nimpho 2.1.3 and it goes very smooth.. Battery goes for 2days (ofc that depends..) and in general works for me. Plus you can customize it and make it as you like through his kitchen with mods,themes etc.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
My Vote is definitely for VillainRom 2.4.2 and kernel 2.0.5 woked best for me... smooth, minimalistic and no bugs... cheers
I am also on villainrom 3.0 but with ninph 2.1.3 .... my battery is draining very fast... any second best ppl can suggest?
CriskeloRom is the best
Sent from my GT-P1000 using XDA Premium App
netcitizen said:
On Sammy ROMs Cognition and Darky are very stable and have decent battery life.
CM7 is highly customizable but you miss certain features like A2DP, FM radio, better camera , hi def videos that are part of Samsung ROMs. Some of these features are being worked upon and would be available whenever the stable version comes out.
Some people have better battery life on CM7. strangely it is not the case with me.
MIUI is cute but a big battery drain.
overall there is no best ROM or anything . you try different ROMs and use the one that suits your needs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed. I used CM7 for about 2 days before i switched back to (the vampiric) stock. It had great battery life for me but i do use bluetotth and FM radio on a daily basis.

Most stable ROM for newbie?

Hey,
Just got this phone, and I rooted and unlocked it.
Now want to install the most stable rom there is, for example on Samsung Vibrant the stable ROM was Bionix......
Is there something like that for SGS2?
By stable, I mean everything work just like stock....
Thanks.
awaisuk said:
By stable, I mean everything work just like stock....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They all pretty much work like stock(except cm7/miui), they just differ by themes and kernels, try a couple of them because everyone is going to recommend different ones.
This is the first phone ive had that didnt need a custom rom. Big ups to Samsung for doing what others cant do. Theres only 2 custom roms CM and MIUI and the rest have tacky themes throughout them. Just like the poster above, grab a stock rom, root it, remove any apps you dont want.
Just stay away from experimental builds and betas, and you should be fine.
Sent from my HTC Sensation
Great advice. I am on 2.3.3 now KG2, whats the stable latest stock rom out there (preferable deoxed as i do not want useless apps)? As I heard some of the latest stock rom do not perform well.....?
For a newbie, I would advise to just stay with the stock rom. This phone is already a beast in its stock form and you don't really gain alot from all the custom ROMs and kernels, unlike the SGS1.
can I install Villianrom? is that stock rom with just useless stuff removed?
I don't think deodexed is gonna give any better performance. I'm thinking the other way around.
Anyway I recommend stock KI3 or above and root using cfroot from chainfire.
Then use titanium backup to freeze any bloatware. There are lists around. Just posted one myself. Too long to do again.
Use jkay mods for odexed roms from theme section. Great stuff.
3rd party (market) apps like Launchers, sms, dialers, contacts, etc etc etc can be themed to change look and feel.
Have fun.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
AFAIK, VillainROM is basically rooted stock + (standard) Ninphetamine 2.0.5 kernel + VRTweaks, which gives you the option to modify a number of things. I've been using it since version 3.0, and very happy with it.
Why not use the stock ROM then? You have one condition for your pick: you want the most stable ROM. Use the stock Samsung ROM. But then you add "by stable you mean everything works like stock" ... but not stock? What? What do you want?
Usually they want better battery life, and maybe some optimization and tweaks. Any more would fry a noobs brain.
Start talking about kernels and they'll wonder why you're introducing corn into the conversation.
Sent from my HTC Sensation
awaisuk said:
Hey,
Just got this phone, and I rooted and unlocked it.
Now want to install the most stable rom there is, for example on Samsung Vibrant the stable ROM was Bionix......
Is there something like that for SGS2?
By stable, I mean everything work just like stock....
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
try the hyperdroid
there are ONLY two things i like about custom roms
1. they removed the google voice thing
when double clicking the home button it starts an app
the thing is there is a home lag with that process
its removed in most custom roms (villain roms have something called VRtweaks) really nice stuff
2.increased sensitivity
no idea why samsung implemented this
custom roms that have this feature are snappier
currently running Ki8 with speedmod
i used Cognition 1.6 and have always used it before + black android (amazing)
only reason i switched is because he removed RTL support
using stock Ki8 with speedmod
nrvnqsrxk said:
Usually they want better battery life, and maybe some optimization and tweaks. Any more would fry a noobs brain.
Start talking about kernels and they'll wonder why you're introducing corn into the conversation.
Sent from my HTC Sensation
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL !
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk

[Q] What's the best rom?

Hi All,
My SGS3 is due for delivery this week, thought I'd have a look at what roms are on offer. But I'm finding the choices a bit confusing.
I've currently got a Moto Defy (hate it ) and on that I've had Miui, MS2, CM7 & CM9. I stuck with CM7.
My dilemma is, what SGS3 rom will give my phone the widest range of its features? Which rom has the least bugs? What are the differences between each rom and stock? (as not each rom has a list of features)
I know that this will be about personal preference, but I'd just like some info!
So I'm appealing to anyone running a custom SGS3 rom, to tell me what's good about the rom you have. Or if you've tried one and gone back to stock let me know.
Thanks
Lowyo
Lowyo said:
Hi All,
My SGS3 is due for delivery this week, thought I'd have a look at what roms are on offer. But I'm finding the choices a bit confusing.
I've currently got a Moto Defy (hate it ) and on that I've had Miui, MS2, CM7 & CM9. I stuck with CM7.
My dilemma is, what SGS3 rom will give my phone the widest range of its features? Which rom has the least bugs? What are the differences between each rom and stock? (as not each rom has a list of features)
I know that this will be about personal preference, but I'd just like some info!
So I'm appealing to anyone running a custom SGS3 rom, to tell me what's good about the rom you have. Or if you've tried one and gone back to stock let me know.
Thanks
Lowyo
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hi,
ive been running blackstar rom with siyah for 5-6 days now and can highly recommend it, its amazing and no issues for me. Never been a big fan so using a stripped back bloatware free aosp rom is my personal preference. the performance is streets ahead of stock rom, my battery life also greatly improved over stock.
Ive also tried omega rom and wanamlite, both good roms but blackstar easily the best for me. Fixes some issues over stock rom such as, auto brightness and inreasing ringtones. Plus as it rooted you get all the benefits of overclocking and undervolting. Try it you won't regret it
There is no best ROM.
Every ROM has it's pros and there cons.
Just review Change-Logs and check out which one you like more.
dazbutler1 said:
hi,
ive been running blackstar rom with siyah for 5-6 days now and can highly recommend it, its amazing and no issues for me. Never been a big fan so using a stripped back bloatware free aosp rom is my personal preference. the performance is streets ahead of stock rom, my battery life also greatly improved over stock.
Ive also tried omega rom and wanamlite, both good roms but blackstar easily the best for me. Fixes some issues over stock rom such as, auto brightness and inreasing ringtones. Plus as it rooted you get all the benefits of overclocking and undervolting. Try it you won't regret it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks Daz,
I'll give it a go. Battery life improvements are always welcome.
Close thread please
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium
Closed, there is no such thing as a "best rom", thus best rom threads are considered OT.
Also, post questions in the Q and A section.
Thank you.

Suggest a ROM for my dad...

My dad has GSII (I9100, the "original" S2) and it feels kinda sluggish compared to my One S C2(pretty much HTC Sensation) and it also lacks app space(I have moved all of them to SD card but still cant install new apps). Since I'm going to reinstall it I might aswell install some other ROM. It needs to be almost fully stable with all the features working and it would be nice if it had touchwiz(my dad isnt a power user and doesnt like to adopt to new things). I don't know how much faster non-touchwiz ROMs are so you can suggest some of those too. Also I don't really know yet how to install custom ROMs on GSII except for the stock one but I'm sure I'll find info on how to do that. Oh, performance and battery life should be balanced although my dad has 4 batteries
Thank you for your help!
EDIT: after some searching I have realized that 95% of roms are without touchwiz... So just suggest any ROM that is stable and smooth
Mixz1890 said:
My dad has GSII (I9100, the "original" S2) and it feels kinda sluggish compared to my One S C2(pretty much HTC Sensation) and it also lacks app space(I have moved all of them to SD card but still cant install new apps). Since I'm going to reinstall it I might aswell install some other ROM. It needs to be almost fully stable with all the features working and it would be nice if it had touchwiz(my dad isnt a power user and doesnt like to adopt to new things). I don't know how much faster non-touchwiz ROMs are so you can suggest some of those too. Also I don't really know yet how to install custom ROMs on GSII except for the stock one but I'm sure I'll find info on how to do that. Oh, performance and battery life should be balanced although my dad has 4 batteries
Thank you for your help!
EDIT: after some searching I have realized that 95% of roms are without touchwiz... So just suggest any ROM that is stable and smooth
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey!
To root your phone, head here: http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/galaxys2-i9100-root-android412-jellybean-install-clockworkmod-445008
1. Neat ROM: is perhaps based on Touchwiz. Also, it has had a huge support. So, it should fit your Dad's expectations.
2. SlimSaber 4.4.4: I guess pretty much the best non-touchwiz ROM for the S2. And stable as well!
3. Go ahead and try out Lollipop ROMs as well, although they are still under work and can have some bugs: CM12.1, Resurrection Remix , BlissPOP, SlimLP and many more.
Hope this helps.
Regards.
warrior1208 said:
Hey!
To root your phone, head here: http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/galaxys2-i9100-root-android412-jellybean-install-clockworkmod-445008
1. Neat ROM: is perhaps based on Touchwiz. Also, it has had a huge support. So, it should fit your Dad's expectations.
2. SlimSaber 4.4.4: I guess pretty much the best non-touchwiz ROM for the S2. And stable as well!
3. Go ahead and try out Lollipop ROMs as well, although they are still under work and can have some bugs: CM12.1, Resurrection Remix , BlissPOP, SlimLP and many more.
Hope this helps.
Regards.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Big thanks for your help man! I think I'll try both of the ROMs you suggested, but not going to try lollipop because my classmate has GSII with it and its just too buggy. Gonna report back on how it went.
Mixz1890 said:
My dad has GSII (I9100, the "original" S2) and it feels kinda sluggish compared to my One S C2(pretty much HTC Sensation) and it also lacks app space(I have moved all of them to SD card but still cant install new apps). Since I'm going to reinstall it I might aswell install some other ROM. It needs to be almost fully stable with all the features working and it would be nice if it had touchwiz(my dad isnt a power user and doesnt like to adopt to new things). I don't know how much faster non-touchwiz ROMs are so you can suggest some of those too. Also I don't really know yet how to install custom ROMs on GSII except for the stock one but I'm sure I'll find info on how to do that. Oh, performance and battery life should be balanced although my dad has 4 batteries
Thank you for your help!
EDIT: after some searching I have realized that 95% of roms are without touchwiz... So just suggest any ROM that is stable and smooth
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try http://www.cyanogenmod.org/, that's how i started with custom ROM's, they have "idiot friendly" way of installing their ROM, you just install app form google store and follow setup proces, really easy. Very stable ROM also. I still use Cyanogenmod, bus some unnoficial lolipop version. I recomend it!
Slimsaber 4.4.4 by fusionjack. Would recommend it to anyone on XDA and to friends and family.
gordak985 said:
Try http://www.cyanogenmod.org/, that's how i started with custom ROM's, they have "idiot friendly" way of installing their ROM, you just install app form google store and follow setup proces, really easy. Very stable ROM also. I still use Cyanogenmod, bus some unnoficial lolipop version. I recomend it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know but for some reason I don't like Cyanogenmod...Its not always the fastest anyway.
gsstudios said:
Slimsaber 4.4.4 by fusionjack. Would recommend it to anyone on XDA and to friends and family.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tried it but dad didnt like it so I installed him NeatRom and everything is working really well.

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