Related
First, an explanation of my situation:
I bought a Galaxy Note at the beginning of the summer. All-in-all, I was pretty happy with it. It was a much improved experience over my Atrix, which was in poor condition by the time I switched over.
I wasn't able to root at first as I only had access to a Mac, and there were innumerable issues in doing so - Odin was PC only, WINE ports of it failed to recognize the phone, the Mac equivalent of Odin (I am spacing on its name right now) didn't work with the Note, etc.
When ICS was officially released, I tried to update to it via Kies. Kies on Mac is a ****storm. It's incredibly buggy, toolbars and menus don't display correctly, it has trouble recognizing the device, etc. I was unable to get it to make a backup, but I eventually managed to load the ROM onto it...
... and that's when the real problems started.
My battery life has turned to crap. Everything runs incredibly slow. Everything's super buggy. Apps force-close all the time. My MicroSD card ended up getting corrupted - half of my music disappeared, of what was left only 1/3rd actually worked. I just reformatted my MicroSD, backing everything important up, etc.
I've been dealing with this for around a month now, as whenever I come to the forum I have no idea where to even start to fix this. I'm up for wiping everything and starting over, and I do have access to a Windows XP machine now so that may be easier... but I don't even know where to go from there.
---------------------------------------------------
That's why I'm here - I need advice. I need advice as to how to clean up the current mess my phone has turned into and start over. I need advice as to what ROM to try and how to go about loading it. I need advice as to whether to root and how to do so. I need advice as to whether to install a CWM, which one to use and how to go about doing so.
Here is what I am looking for, ordered from most important to least:
Battery life is important to me. I loved how long the battery lasted before my attempted upgrade to ICS... now it lasts maybe 1/3 of the time.
I want something that will work - I want stability. No more constant force-quits of every freaking app.
A smooth, fast UI would be preferable.
Feature packed. I like the thought of cutting edge features of newer (or custom) versions of Android being incorporated - but this is far less important to me than battery life and stability.
My preferred method of installation would be using my Mac - but as I said, Windows XP is a very easy option for me as well. I could also install a newer version of Windows if need be, but would prefer not to go through that...
Thanks in advance for any help, advice and recommendations! ^_^
Get Odin and root your phone...
Download and flash TWRP... http://teamw.in/project/twrp
download a ROM of your choice
boot into the recovery ..wipe--->>cache/dalvik cache/ wipe ROM/factory reset..>then go to the install and flash your ROM...
These are very rudimentary instructions I hope they helped a bit...good luck
Do you have an idea for what ROM you like or want? Couple of great ROMs..for stockish check out flappjaxxx's for jellybean check out manelscout4life..stable and fast
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using xda app-developers app
Techno is onto the correct answer, unless of course you are truly wanting the stock version back.
Kies and OTA updates are often flawed, and give the end user exactly the type of problems you are stating.
However, if you want a return to stock, the information can be found in the "note super everything thread" located as a sticky at the top of the general note section.
But I do agree with techno, that a root and flash of a quality custom rom is the way to go......g
Thanks a lot, both of you!
As to what ROM I want, honestly that's one of the reasons I have been procrastinating so much -- I have no idea whatsoever. There's such an overwhelming number of options out there, of basic flavors (ICS, JB, GB, CM7, etc.) and tens of derivatives of each one made by different people. I have no idea where to even start making such a decision.
I can tell you this much. On my Atrix, I started with the stock Motoblur-Froyo, flashed GingerBlur, disliked it's bugginess but dealt with it for almost a year, then flashed the CM7-based Neutrino. I wasn't very happy with how skimpy the ROM was but stuck with it until I got my Note. I was pretty satiated with the stock ROM, but decided to upgrade to ICS due to the promise of a better UI, increased functionality and especially a faster camera. While my experience with ICS was terrible, I could see myself enjoying a functional, non-buggy version...
Basically, I have no idea what ROM or even what base OS version I am looking for. That said, I do know the criteria that matter to me, as stated prior:
Battery Life
Stability
Smooth UI
Cutting-Edge Feature Packed
I can't really think of any features I am specifically looking for, other than under-the-radar tethering and top-notch camera speed & functionality .
As I have no attachment to any specific OS version, suppose that would mean that if battery life, stability and smoothness issues are equal amongst ROM variants, I would be looking for a Jellybean ROM - as it would be most packed with new features... right?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1664980
That is the best stockish ICS experience you can get and keeps all the functionality of your phone including the spen. He also offers a jellybean ROM but honestly to find the best JB rom for you just read through the threads read and REREAD THE OP of those ROMs..jellybean is fun and cool but not 101% stable yet..people still getting random reboots and some are losing there APN settings..so maybe just flashing ics and playing with those ROMs is best for you for now..FYI the above rom is smooth as silk and great battery life
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using xda app-developers app
Again , I agree with Techno, and the rom he posted is the one I'm using to type this.
Flappjaxxx is a fine developer, and he has packed this UCLF6 build with full functionality , and much more.
He is , and will continue to be my top pick for quality builds and performance ...g
This is all really wonderful advice - thanks again!
I guess I have a few last questions:
What is the best way to root at this point? If I recall, there are multiple ways to root via Odin... is there a specific one you would recommend for my current situation (read: current buggy ICS firmware)? A link would be very much appreciated, as the roadmap thread is a bit... overwhelming with all of the options.
Are there any MODs you recommend I install after I have my new flappjaxxx ROM in place? Will tethering work off the bat? Will all of the Gapps (Gmail, Navigation, etc.) be there for me to use? Will I need to install anything else, or is there any recommendations that you have?
Thanks again a ton - you've both been enormously helpful!
Also, I just noticed that the recovery you linked me to (http://teamw.in/project/twrp) has no option for the Galaxy Note...
EDIT: It turns out you linked me to the wrong page - to TWPR 1. Here's the link to TWRP 2.2, for anyone else who comes across this thread: http://teamw.in/project/twrp2
Just my 2 cents. After you get straightened out, you may want to take a look here.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=29376779
Another stable rom with great battery life, and a super Dev a well. I have been running it since testing and find it to be the perfect rom and team for me.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using Tapatalk 2
Okay ....
Please verify your carrier ....model ...and current software version ....then we can point you to the correct bits and pieces of the super thread.
I just want to make sure we are all on the same page ....g
Edit :
I'm away for a few hours ...
But I'm sure a few other helpful folks will chime in with the links ...g
phnord said:
Thanks a lot, both of you!
As to what ROM I want, honestly that's one of the reasons I have been procrastinating so much -- I have no idea whatsoever. There's such an overwhelming number of options out there, of basic flavors (ICS, JB, GB, CM7, etc.) and tens of derivatives of each one made by different people. I have no idea where to even start making such a decision.
I can tell you this much. On my Atrix, I started with the stock Motoblur-Froyo, flashed GingerBlur, disliked it's bugginess but dealt with it for almost a year, then flashed the CM7-based Neutrino. I wasn't very happy with how skimpy the ROM was but stuck with it until I got my Note. I was pretty satiated with the stock ROM, but decided to upgrade to ICS due to the promise of a better UI, increased functionality and especially a faster camera. While my experience with ICS was terrible, I could see myself enjoying a functional, non-buggy version...
Basically, I have no idea what ROM or even what base OS version I am looking for. That said, I do know the criteria that matter to me, as stated prior:
Battery Life
Stability
Smooth UI
Cutting-Edge Feature Packed
I can't really think of any features I am specifically looking for, other than under-the-radar tethering and top-notch camera speed & functionality .
As I have no attachment to any specific OS version, suppose that would mean that if battery life, stability and smoothness issues are equal amongst ROM variants, I would be looking for a Jellybean ROM - as it would be most packed with new features... right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im using black star v flawless in my eyes..
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using xda premium
Hey forum,
I got my old Vibrant replaced with refurb and wanted to try something new so I went back to stock and then installed ICS by passion. However, this has been nothing but a headache because the phone is very laggy.
Since the phone is for my wife and she doesn't give a rip what's on it, I figured I'd go back to froyo but remember the GPS still causing me issues and she relies on it pretty heavily for her business.
I read a few threads that Nero by team whiskey was good but all the links i've found are dead and so TW's main domain.
What is the most stable and easy version I can put back on her phone that actually has a working GPS? Also, I'm a straight up noob at most of this even though I have over 15 years of corporate level IT experience. I feel like I'm just starting over trying to learn all the stuff one can do with Android phones. so please, if you have links that work, feel free to post.
Thanks!
Jeremy
djolam said:
Hey forum,
I got my old Vibrant replaced with refurb and wanted to try something new so I went back to stock and then installed ICS by passion. However, this has been nothing but a headache because the phone is very laggy.
Since the phone is for my wife and she doesn't give a rip what's on it, I figured I'd go back to froyo but remember the GPS still causing me issues and she relies on it pretty heavily for her business.
I read a few threads that Nero by team whiskey was good but all the links i've found are dead and so TW's main domain.
What is the most stable and easy version I can put back on her phone that actually has a working GPS? Also, I'm a straight up noob at most of this even though I have over 15 years of corporate level IT experience. I feel like I'm just starting over trying to learn all the stuff one can do with Android phones. so please, if you have links that work, feel free to post.
Thanks!
Jeremy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try Helly Bean along with the V6 Supercharger.
There's only one place I get lag and that is when intializing Google Now the new feature in JB.
Android is the only OS the Vibrant run right now that I know of, but I wouldn't mind trying out other linux OS on it.
To answer your question, I use SlimRom on all my devices I have and had. I found CyanogenMod 7 and SlimICS gets better GPS signal. SlimBean can get signal, but tend to be slower but I expect it to improve over time. With my Vibrant, without doing the "hardware GPS fix" its impossible to get any GPS signal.
eksasol said:
Android is the only OS the Vibrant run right now that I know of, but I wouldn't mind trying out other linux OS on it.
To answer your question, I use SlimRom on all my devices I have and had. I found CyanogenMod 7 and SlimICS gets better GPS signal. SlimBean can get signal, but tend to be slower but I expect it to improve over time. With my Vibrant, without doing the "hardware GPS fix" its impossible to get any GPS signal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you! I guess my question should have been stated, which Android version runs best on the Vibrant.
I'm trying to keep her phone as stock as possible. So far I went back to stock and then updated to FROYO 2.2 and rooted it just for a few apps. I have noticed that my system/xbin is full which caused me issues installing busybox. It finally installed but I'm still showing 0 space in that folder. Is this normal or did I forget something when going to back to stock?
djolam said:
Thank you! I guess my question should have been stated, which Android version runs best on the Vibrant.
I'm trying to keep her phone as stock as possible. So far I went back to stock and then updated to FROYO 2.2 and rooted it just for a few apps. I have noticed that my system/xbin is full which caused me issues installing busybox. It finally installed but I'm still showing 0 space in that folder. Is this normal or did I forget something when going to back to stock?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't stay on Froyo long enough to tell what the partitioning looked like but on CM10/JB it was changed. I use JB as my daily driver. Like others my GPS is for the most part none functional. This is not the fault of the ROM but hardware design. When I get industrious I will fix it. More likely I will upgrade by then.
djolam said:
Thank you! I guess my question should have been stated, which Android version runs best on the Vibrant.
I'm trying to keep her phone as stock as possible. So far I went back to stock and then updated to FROYO 2.2 and rooted it just for a few apps. I have noticed that my system/xbin is full which caused me issues installing busybox. It finally installed but I'm still showing 0 space in that folder. Is this normal or did I forget something when going to back to stock?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure why this happens but I also saw this on froyo.
sent from the depths of helly bean
I have read a lot of threads similar to my problem, but not quite exact. I own a Samsung Galaxy S Fascinate SGH-T959D for 2+ years now. The problem only occured about a week ago.
Problems:
-Battery sometimes only charges up to around 85%
-When fully charged and unplugged, it instantly jumps anywhere between 80%-97% RARELY charging to 100%
-Battery drains to around 65% under an hour of usage.
-Battery dies somewhere between 40-65% without warning shutting it off. When I try to turn it back on, it only goes up to the logo screen and shuts back off. When I charge it, it charges starting around 50% or where percentage it died at.
-Battery only lasts 3 hours max with display on.
Things I tried:
-Restore to factory default
-uninstalled weather apps
-re calibrated
-Installed GSAM app to find out that no particular app is eating my battery life.
Cell Settings:
-Screen is at it's dimmest setting (no auto adjust)
-Not much background running apps.
-Wifi, and bluetooth off.
The battery doesn't drain quickly when it is sleeping (display off) when not in use.
Have you tried different roms to see if it could be an issue there? It sounds like it could simply be a bad battery, which honestly isn't the end of the world considering how cheap replacements are: http://www.amazon.com/Batteries-Captivate-EB575152VA-Anker-Multi-purpose/dp/B005HBGXR6/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1359657962&sr=8-3&keywords=anker+samsung+fascinate+battery
Sorry, I don't know much or anything about roms. I am rooted, but that's all.
I have tried restoring mine to factory default, but when it started up again I was still rooted. Is there a way to Really restore my cell to factory default like it came out of the box without having to unroot the phone manually and then restoring to factory default?
It's not like my battery was slowly getting worse and worse battery life. The problem just occurred all of a sudden.
Just follow this guide here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1238070
It has all the info you need to go back to stock, however I suggest going with one of the good 4.1 or 4.2 Jelly Bean roms that are available as they are much better than stock. I personally suggest either AOKP Milestone 1 or CM10 (latest nightly) which are based on 4.1 Jelly Bean, only because I feel all of the 4.2 roms aren't quite ready for prime time yet (although CM10.1 is supposedly really stable, but I haven't personally tried it yet).
Thanks for the help so far. What are the advantages of flashing roms? Does it by anyway increase battery life or make my phone function any faster?
I read a bit about it, but I am having trouble understanding some things. Could I flash any rom on to my cell, or only certain roms are compatible with my cell?
Well with the exception of CM (Cyanogen Mod) you can find the roms that will work with the Fascinate in the Developers forum here. Certain roms have different features that you may or may not want so it's not my place to tell you which one will be best, but it's very easy to flash different roms so you're best off downloading the most popular and giving them all a try. Also in answer to your question, you can't flash roms that are not meant for the Fascinate, like for example a rom meant for the Vibrant will NOT work on the Fascinate and will cause you major problems. Roms are labeled for what phones they work on though, so unless you're really not paying attention you shouldn't have a problem with that.
Flashing roms is the only way for you to get the latest versions of Android, as Verizon stopped supporting the Fascinate with the release of Gingerbread. Many people, including myself, consider Jelly Bean (latest Android) far superior to past versions of Android and would never go back. You have to realize though that all custom roms come with some risk, meaning that you may encounter bugs or have things not work 100% of the time. Usually this isn't a problem though, and overall the most popular roms are close to fully functional. If you are using your phone for a purpose that requires rock solid stability with almost no chance of errors, then you're still better off going with a good custom Gingerbread rom (I recommend this one: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1278838). If you're a normal user though, the latest Jelly Bean roms are probably going to be better for you overall. If you want to try a good Jelly Bean rom go with this one: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1847225 but just make sure to use the 4.1.2 google apps, NOT the 4.2.1 ones
Ok, so I am planning on flashing the Jelly Bean rom. What is a good way to flash a rom? Also, if I don't like the rom, is there a list of roms that are compatible with my device?
Yeah just follow section 4 of droidstyle's guide that I linked you and you'll be fine. Like I said, all of the available roms are found in the Developers forum with the exception of CM which can be found through a google search or going to rootzwiki.
Crawshayi said:
Yeah just follow section 4 of droidstyle's guide that I linked you and you'll be fine. Like I said, all of the available roms are found in the Developers forum with the exception of CM which can be found through a google search or going to rootzwiki.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In that guide it said "Here is a guide I have put together for the Samsung SCH-I500 Fascinate." Will this also work for my model SGH T959D?
Nope,,, look here though
http://forum.xda-developers.com/sho... FASCINATE] One Stop Shop (updated Sept 2012)
What do you guys think of the cyanogen rom as opposed to the jelly bean one?
Also is this a good way to install roms: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKy2AvKgB3c?
Disregarding stock ROM(s), the developer that has made the greatest contribution to enabling all of the current ROMs available for the fascinate is jt1134.
We are blessed that he still likes, develops for, and uses his fascinate... The CM10.1 nightlies are where his most recent efforts are made available to us - and he's fixed a major battery-draining bug within the last couple of weeks.
Why use anything else on this phone (other than JT's latest or something derived from it)?
I dispute the assertion made earlier on this thread that the current android v4.2 ROMs aren't ready for daily use. In over two years of keeping this old phone up to date, or on the bleeding edge if you look at it that way, I've never been more satisfied with performance or battery life.
Sent from my SCH-I500 using xda premium
---------- Post added at 08:59 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:45 AM ----------
drakemiller40 said:
What do you guys think of the cyanogen rom as opposed to the jelly bean one?
Also is this a good way to install roms: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKy2AvKgB3c?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cyanogen v10.1 is built from the latest version of "Jelly bean" (Android v4.2.1). They add good things to the stock features of AOSP (Android Open Source Project).
Read the fascinate Dev forum over on rootzwiki. There are active threads on the cm10.1 ROM, including a fairly recent aosp ROM.
Sent from my SCH-I500 using xda premium
hhp_211 said:
Nope,,, look here though
http://forum.xda-developers.com/sho... FASCINATE] One Stop Shop (updated Sept 2012)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
bmeek said:
Disregarding stock ROM(s), the developer that has made the greatest contribution to enabling all of the current ROMs available for the fascinate is jt1134.
We are blessed that he still likes, develops for, and uses his fascinate... The CM10.1 nightlies are where his most recent efforts are made available to us - and he's fixed a major battery-draining bug within the last couple of weeks.
Why use anything else on this phone (other than JT's latest or something derived from it)?
I dispute the assertion made earlier on this thread that the current android v4.2 ROMs aren't ready for daily use. In over two years of keeping this old phone up to date, or on the bleeding edge if you look at it that way, I've never been more satisfied with performance or battery life.
Sent from my SCH-I500 using xda premium
---------- Post added at 08:59 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:45 AM ----------
Cyanogen v10.1 is built from the latest version of "Jelly bean" (Android v4.2.1). They add good things to the stock features of AOSP (Android Open Source Project).
Read the fascinate Dev forum over on rootzwiki. There are active threads on the cm10.1 ROM, including a fairly recent aosp ROM.
Sent from my SCH-I500 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wholeheartedly agree with what you are saying about jt1134... but remember the OP's phone is a SGH-T959D and not our sch-i500
so in the thread i linked above read it all, then re-read and pay close attention to::
10. Installing ICS / JB - Depending on what OS you want to go to, you're going to need to grab an appropriate kernel to do so. The best option seems to be Semaphore's i9000 kernels. If you're going to flash an ICS rom, grab the 1.3.0s .tar file. If you're going to JB, grab the 2.1.0s .tar file.
11. Download your ROM of choice. i9000 versions of SlimICS/SlimBean/CM9/CM10 work on the T959D. You will also need grab the .zip version of the Semaphore kernel (ICS / JB) you're using and a Modem of your choosing. KG3 works best for me, your mileage may vary.
and this :::
... recommend either SLIM, TirmaSLIM, DarkyROM 11 or Andy Thomson's MIUI ROM at this point - all are pretty great ROMs and don't need the carrier hack.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1398223
A complete list of ICS ROMs for the I9000 can be found here (as well as kernels). Please note the update dates as that will indicate how much active support there is for the ROM.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1586084
:::: then here is their thread about jb and other ROMs
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1837223
.
Please read forum rules before posting
Questions go in Q&A
Thread moved
Thank you for your cooperation
Friendly Neighborhood Moderator
I recommend hellybelly 4.2.1 its ready for daily use YES its my daily driver for over 2 months and I haven't had one fc or error everything works ect.and I done checked its available for your device
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk 2
i am new to the Fascinate but i was just wondering-is there a battery low/charging notification light on this model? that orange green led that also flashes if you get an email or text message?
thanks in advance
tekweezle said:
i am new to the Fascinate but i was just wondering-is there a battery low/charging notification light on this model? that orange green led that also flashes if you get an email or text message?
thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The fascinate doesn't have a led notifiyer system instead custom ROMs flashes the soft key lights where you get a new message ect.
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk 2
thanks for the reply, seems like a quirky hardware omission by Samsung but if you all have no complaints about it, then I won;t worry too much about it. just thought it would be good to have some visual indication if your battery was charged or not after being connected to a wall socket without having to physically hit the power button. i can see that the bottom row of icons did light up for me when I got a message but I hope that doesn;t use too much more battery than a single LED.
As for 3500 mah batteries, I have a couple on order that hopefully will arrive soon for testing. under 10$ each in eBay.
tekweezle said:
thanks for the reply, seems like a quirky hardware omission by Samsung but if you all have no complaints about it, then I won;t worry too much about it. just thought it would be good to have some visual indication if your battery was charged or not after being connected to a wall socket without having to physically hit the power button. i can see that the bottom row of icons did light up for me when I got a message but I hope that doesn;t use too much more battery than a single LED.
As for 3500 mah batteries, I have a couple on order that hopefully will arrive soon for testing. under 10$ each in eBay.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Then soft keys probably use 10x less power than then LEDs lol yea honestly nobody have any complaints because we stay on our fassys so much we always know what the battery is lol
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk 2
I'm considering putting a ROM on a friend's device that is not familiar with any sort of troubleshooting but is a reasonable upgrade over stock. If that's not possible I'm fine with that. No bugs preferred. Features aren't that important but the phone lags a lot stock so a speed boost would be nice.
Thanks!
Action B said:
I'm considering putting a ROM on a friend's device that is not familiar with any sort of troubleshooting but is a reasonable upgrade over stock. If that's not possible I'm fine with that. No bugs preferred. Features aren't that important but the phone lags a lot stock so a speed boost would be nice.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I typically refrain from "advertising" (even in my own thread - hah) since there are many many fine works to choose from out here crafted by a lot of very dedicated and amazing developers, but in this case I think I'll break my rule and see if my ROM would fit your needs:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2088224
My ROM is pretty basic, it tries to mimick the AOSP/Galaxy Nexus as best as possible for the Fascinate, with only a few customizations. I can't say it's 100% bug free, that would be silly (lol), but the latest version (GeeWiz 4.4 + 2 patches) is very solid/stable in my opinion. I think it's a good fit here since it can be applied as a direct stock replacement using ODIN and doesn't change anything that would cause problems going back to stock again if it's not what your friend was expecting.
I'm not sure the "speed" will impress, but it does pretty well considering it's Jelly Bean 4.2 running on a device that came with Eclair :silly: There are some built-in optimizations you can enable like overclocking the CPU to 1.2GHz that help smooth it out, and I've done a lot of work on the kernel to ensure as little wasted CPU % as possible. Battery life will also be less impressive than your friend is used to on stock, but again I think it's pretty darn good given that we are well beyond what the Fascinate was designed for at this point!
If you want a mildly enhanced Gingerbread experience, you can also try my GeeWiz v2.9.2 here at XDA. It's retired and I no longer actively work on it, but it still gets THOUSANDS of downloads every month (admittedly mostly from China and parts of Africa, I've chosen to not try to understand why - lol).
I don't want to drone on, but I want to add something else ... ANY of the ROMs out here should blow your friend's mind! I only recommend my own because it sounds like a good fit for your needs and could be an easier sell for you since it strives for a stock-like experience. Every dev out here is friendly and will help you if you run into problems, so perhaps the best way to go is peruse the selection in the development thread and see what you think! There are really no "bad" choices to be made here.
I'm impressed how helpful you are. How much difference in battery life are we talking here? I put a jellybean rom on my galaxy tab 7 and it lasts for a month easy on standby, so I know it can vary greatly with custom ROMs.
djp952 said:
I typically refrain from "advertising" (even in my own thread - hah) since there are many many fine works to choose from out here crafted by a lot of very dedicated and amazing developers, but in this case I think I'll break my rule and see if my ROM would fit your needs:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2088224
My ROM is pretty basic, it tries to mimick the AOSP/Galaxy Nexus as best as possible for the Fascinate, with only a few customizations. I can't say it's 100% bug free, that would be silly (lol), but the latest version (GeeWiz 4.4 + 2 patches) is very solid/stable in my opinion. I think it's a good fit here since it can be applied as a direct stock replacement using ODIN and doesn't change anything that would cause problems going back to stock again if it's not what your friend was expecting.
I'm not sure the "speed" will impress, but it does pretty well considering it's Jelly Bean 4.2 running on a device that came with Eclair :silly: There are some built-in optimizations you can enable like overclocking the CPU to 1.2GHz that help smooth it out, and I've done a lot of work on the kernel to ensure as little wasted CPU % as possible. Battery life will also be less impressive than your friend is used to on stock, but again I think it's pretty darn good given that we are well beyond what the Fascinate was designed for at this point!
If you want a mildly enhanced Gingerbread experience, you can also try my GeeWiz v2.9.2 here at XDA. It's retired and I no longer actively work on it, but it still gets THOUSANDS of downloads every month (admittedly mostly from China and parts of Africa, I've chosen to not try to understand why - lol).
I don't want to drone on, but I want to add something else ... ANY of the ROMs out here should blow your friend's mind! I only recommend my own because it sounds like a good fit for your needs and could be an easier sell for you since it strives for a stock-like experience. Every dev out here is friendly and will help you if you run into problems, so perhaps the best way to go is peruse the selection in the development thread and see what you think! There are really no "bad" choices to be made here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Action B said:
I'm impressed how helpful you are. How much difference in battery life are we talking here? I put a jellybean rom on my galaxy tab 7 and it lasts for a month easy on standby, so I know it can vary greatly with custom ROMs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ugh, that's always a tough one to answer Maybe 10%-15%? It's really hard to say since it depends on how the device is used. Some stuff like active Bluetooth definitely takes more juice, whereas Wifi takes less. The screen takes more since JB requires the kernel to maintain a VSYNC (Vertical Sync) signal and it will enable the accelerometer device whenever the screen is on for auto-rotation support (if you turn off auto-rotate it's smart enough to disable the accelerometer). Pretty much anything you actively do with the device will require more battery than it did, there's lots more code in JB, fancier graphics to animate, etc.
There is also one application, Google Play Music, that I have listed as a "Known Issue" when it comes to battery life. For some reason/bug in it's album art downloader, it can get itself stuck in a loop and trash the battery in a matter of hours. I tracked it down to the mentioned album art service when an external SD card is installed, and told Google, but that's all I could do for that. I recommend disabling Google Play Music and replacing it with a better music player!
I wish I had a more concrete answer for this one, but "it depends" is about as good as I can do. If your friend is getting well more than a day out of the phone now, he should probably be OK if charging every night is acceptable. If he's already battery-challenged, I think it may be a frustrating experience for him.
For what it's worth, here are the most two recent battery life screenshots I have. Note: These are with a brand new battery ($14 - amazon) and really only show standby with Wifi ON times, which is what I was testing. Basically indicative of the absolute maximum battery life possible, not real world usage.
Hope this was enough to help with your decision!
Geewiz is probably the most stable by far great battery life and as you can see great developer
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk 2
There are so many recommended ROMs now, it almost seems like too many choices. (It's a good "problem". I'm not complaining.) I tend to find one based on reviews and recommendations and stick with it, rather than flashing through a bunch. I've been using MIUI from GB to JB, but sadly development seems to have ceased.
I had been eyeing Stephen.k.spear's AOKP PUB as a replacement, but development seems to have ceased there as well. Looks like the torch was picked up by bbrad's AOKP, but browsing that thread opened the floodgates to other ROMs such as Liquidsmooth, Carbonrom, SuperNexus, etc, etc, etc, as well as Geewiz mentioned here. Can anyone provide an overview comparison (stability, features, other pros/cons...) between some of these ROMs? (What exactly is the difference in stability of "by far"?)
Also, at some point around ICS, there was a change in file system and/or structure that allowed MIUI to hold a lot more apps than previously. (I think it had to do with MTD, but not 100% sure.) Can I assume most ROM's have this expanded capability now? Does Geewiz have it? I noticed it uses a different file system. Thank you.
I am one of those people who really likes a stable rom and I would really recommend you try Helly Bean. It's been by far the most stable and feature packed rom I've ever used. I'm not trashing any of the other roms we have, but I've tried almost all of them and I always come back to Helly Bean.
Crawshayi said:
I am one of those people who really likes a stable rom and I would really recommend you try Helly Bean. It's been by far the most stable and feature packed rom I've ever used. I'm not trashing any of the other roms we have, but I've tried almost all of them and I always come back to Helly Bean.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately I can't ask in the ROM thread, so I'll ask here... Which version of gapps do I flash for Helly Bean? The thread points to 20121130, but there seems to be a more recent version 20130301 at goo.im. Also, droidstyle's guide mentions inverted gapps. Does that work with Helly Bean? If so, are they flashed after the regular gapps, or instead of them? Thanks so much.
donkeyhaughty said:
Unfortunately I can't ask in the ROM thread, so I'll ask here... Which version of gapps do I flash for Helly Bean? The thread points to 20121130, but there seems to be a more recent version 20130301 at goo.im. Also, droidstyle's guide mentions inverted gapps. Does that work with Helly Bean? If so, are they flashed after the regular gapps, or instead of them? Thanks so much.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Flash the ones from goo.im and as for the inverted you just flash them like regular gapps
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk 2
Hello,
After a year or so after buying a SGS III, I started experiencing slowdowns. Six months later I installed Android 4.3 as it was available with OTA. I run official ROM, nothing fancy. Now, I experience serious performance slowdowns during new screens loading, switching applications, any action in fact can be slow; when I listen to music (standard player) sometimes I get 10 cuts in a song.
I have like 60 apps installed. My average RAM load is 750 MB / 831 MB.
I have never reset to Factory defaults. I just tried deleting all my text msgs to improve loading, it dit not change anything.
I imagine the current services load is too heavy for a pretty old phone. Is this the reason for huge performance slowdowns (sometimes 5 secs delays)?
I also fear the development of the Samsung layer is pretty bad. When you take into account, the poor dev capabilities Samsung demonstrated with Kies, or with PC interface (I struggle uploading files to the device, it gets deconnected all the time). I think Samsung is good at electronics, but bad at software; this would be a personal "feeling". I aslo experienced huge performance drops with SGS1.
What do you think of the reasons for performance issues with SGSIII ?
You are on unmodified stock, that is the reason.
boomboomer said:
You are on unmodified stock, that is the reason.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No troll please, it s too easy
one more thing
There is one more think I wanted to add: I wonder if Samsung does not use "programmed obsolescence" (don't know if it is the correct term)...
No, I wasn't trolling. Unmodified stock has over sixty processes and services running all the time while most users only need four or five.
Over time and use the system will slow even further as firmware updates and third party apps interfere.
The phone hardware is well up to running 4.3, just not sixty things at once.
Your first step is to backup your personal data then factory reset and format the internal storage. This will improve things immediately but until you switch to a custom firmware, even one with a stock base, you will not solve the problem.
Even on stock firmware you can disable 80% of the junk Samsung installed.
Very honest opinion.. Just flash your phone with Cyanogen or another custom ROM.. This should be the best bet for you!
You should get KitKat 4.4.4 as of now.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using XDA Free mobile app
boomboomer said:
No, I wasn't trolling. Unmodified stock has over sixty processes and services running all the time while most users only need four or five.
Over time and use the system will slow even further as firmware updates and third party apps interfere.
The phone hardware is well up to running 4.3, just not sixty things at once.
Your first step is to backup your personal data then factory reset and format the internal storage. This will improve things immediately but until you switch to a custom firmware, even one with a stock base, you will not solve the problem.
Even on stock firmware you can disable 80% of the junk Samsung installed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your explanations, they are helpful.
I experienced huge performance drops one year or so after installing Darky ROM on my SGS1; I had to switch back to stock ROM. That's why I'm not eager to try the "custom ROM experience" again; it takes too much time.
I still have two questions to you, you seem to know well this Android subject:
1. Does the factory reset changes the ROM installed, or just wipes the user data?
2. How do I disable some stock services? Is there a good app? (I could not find anything useful by forum search)
AOSP Custom rom is for the enthusiast only, as they all come with drawbacks like shorter battery life or hardware issues. Custom rom based on stock is suitable for daily use, as they are just debloated.
Factory reset only wipes user data.
App manager, click on the service or app then disable button. Caution that some are essential to things you might need, search and read here on xda for guides on what is pure bloat.
Bro! I'm using the same phone. Had loads of problems with Samsung's TouchWiz. Your phone is absolutely fine. Use Cyanogen CM11 it is way better. I have been using Cyanogen for almost 6-7 months and honestly I have had problems but XDA is always full of solutions.
Go to "get.cm" and use the automatic installer to install cyanogen into your phone without you having to do anything such as rooting and flashing.. Cyanogen Installer does it automatically for you. If you are not satisfied you can always manually install cm
" https://www.google.co.in/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&ei=AiF_VOnCFNO3uQSw1YEY&url=http://m.ibtimes.co.in/how-install-cyanogenmod-android-4-4-4-kitkat-cm11-m9-custom-rom-samsung-galaxy-s3-i9300-tutorial-606129&ved=0CBoQFjAA&usg=AFQjCNHiKLLDngZKWM8lvfSa15QTXRRzdA&sig2=VZslZMxWssAwAyjfm0F8WQ"
Which is of course free of cost!! You just need 4 things
1. Samsung GS3 i9300
2. USB
3. A PC
4. INTERNET
Check out my Setup
https://plus.google.com/102584932386482931948/posts/VuXyAnPJMtM
Sent from my GT-I9300 using XDA Free mobile app
Thanks for the hints. I found this thread witch can be helpful: http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s2/themes-apps/applications-safe-to-remove-t1069924
I think I will use Titanium Back Up App to remove unused services. Crap, I'll have to root the phone! I ll wait till I get a new phone, I'm looking for a good LTE-A no QHD (just FullHD) candidate.
Returning to the thread point, does all brands have this kind of performance problems or are there some more stock optimized phones? I'm hesitating getting away from Samsung, even if the OLED screen are really great (excepted the color saturated ones like the Alpha's). I was told HTC was more optimizing its layer, but I don't know if it is really true...
ROOTING your phone will unlock endless possibilities!
Regarding HTC, their flagship devices are very good.. Always first with updates right after google launches for their nexus devices very good sound and faster than other same priced smart phones.
Even Nexus devices are really a great deal giving you stock android with great performance and .01% lag.
Samsung is a more feature based smart phone with over used RAM and disabling the system apps causes the system to crash every now and then. I too love Samsung devices but prefer to use the stock android or even a custom ROM instead of TouchWiz.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using XDA Free mobile app
boomboomer said:
AOSP Custom rom is for the enthusiast only, as they all come with drawbacks like shorter battery life or hardware issues. Custom rom based on stock is suitable for daily use, as they are just debloated.
Factory reset only wipes user data.
App manager, click on the service or app then disable button. Caution that some are essential to things you might need, search and read here on xda for guides on what is pure bloat.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Eventually, I rooted my phone, as it has no more warranty anyway. I've unistalled some forced system apps, frozen some RAM resilient apps/services. Now I have an average of 200 MB free RAM and the screens loading in TouchWiz are fast as at the beginning
So, thanks to your help, I can answer my own question about performance loss: too many resilient services for a 1GB RAM phone; it's about time I get a new phone
I hesitated to root the phone because I will give it to my girlfriend and she is the type of user clicking on every OK button when she gets a dialog. How she said she will not take the phone because I tinkered with it! Ah women ...