I recently bought a Droid 2 Global and decided to get my feet wet with android development. To familiarize myself with the platform I wrote a simple utility for managing the bloat that came pre-installed on my phone. I thought there might be other people who would get some use out of this so I am posting it here. You will need to be rooted and have busybox installed to use this application. If you used z4root to root your phone then you should have everything you need.
The application is pretty simple. When you start it you are presented with a list of the Bloat that the application recognizes. Each item in the list has a checkbox that indicates whether it is enabled or not. To disable bloat you just uncheck the boxes next to what you don't want and then press the Apply button that appears at the bottom of the screen. You can save what you have disabled as a profile by pressing the options button and then choosing Save Profile. This is convenient because you are going to need to turn all of this bloat back on if you want to receive updates. If you have saved a profile and a new update becomes available you can launch Bloat Manager, press the options button, choose Enable All and then click Apply to get your phone ready for the update. After the update installs you can launch Bloat Manager, press the options button, choose Load Profile and then click Apply to turn the bloat back off.
The following applications can be toggled on or off using Bloat Manager:
Amazon MP3 /system/app/amazonmp3_1_8_14_signed_zipaligned_Signed_2010-09-09_15-23-51.apk
Blockbuster /system/app/Blockbuster.apk
City ID /system/app/CityID.apk
Friend Feed /system/app/FriendFeed.apk
Kindle /system/app/Kindle-1_0_2-OEM-SingleSign_Signed_2010-09-20_17-31-57.apk
My Net /system/app/Mynet.apk
My Verizon /system/app/MyVerizon.apk
News Widget /system/app/NewsWidget.apk
Performance Manager /system/app/PerformanceManager.apk
Skype /system/app/Skype_mobile.live.apk
Social Messaging /system/app/SocialMessaging.apk
Social Share /system/app/SocialShare.apk
VZNavigator /system/app/vnav_6.1.0.160_Droid2Global_rel_PROD_signed.apk
Visual Voice Mail /system/app/Vvm.apk
Weather Widget /system/app/WeatherWidget.apk
World Clock Widget /system/app/WorldClockWidget.apk
When you disable an application using Bloat Manager it simply renames it to .bak. When you re-enable an application it is renamed back to .apk.
Bloat Manager remounts your /system partition as writable in order to make changes to applications. I came up with this list based on what other people have had success with removing, but I have not personally turned off everything on the list. Changing things in your system partition is always dangerous so please be careful.
So this only renames the app filenames? Is the app still affecting the phone in any way (ie. sucking battery life) once it is renamed, or is it completely "disconnected" from the phone until you rename it back to .apk for updates/etc.?
Thanks I will try this out soon.
Correct, this simply renames the apps so that they are no longer recognized as launchable applications. The applications will not be able to run anymore after they are renamed so they will not affect your battery life directly. I have heard that the operating system will continually try and restart some apps if they get renamed, but based on what people are saying in the bloatware removal script thread on droidforums where I got this list of applications none of these should have that problem.
Let me know how it goes.
The application works, any chance you might add more programs to the list?
Sent from my DROID2 GLOBAL using XDA App
Are there any specific applications you would like to see added? I designed it so that the list can be extended but I haven't implemented an easy way to add things yet. If you know your way around a SQLite database you can add new items to the Bloat table to put them in the list. I plan on adding an import feature that lets you add a group of applications from a file in the near future.
Well some programs I can do without are files, car dock, backup assistant, the social networking widget, and news and weather, if you can find a way to ad the .bak extention to them without it hurting the system, it would be greatly appreciated
Sent from my DROID2 GLOBAL using XDA App
wtb one for sprint phones, i.e. the Epic 4G
Great solution, how about a "Bloat Manager for Samsung Galaxy S" next ?
How about a general android bloat manager?
General Android bloatware app would be a major win!
The way you implement (renaming to .bak) is brilliant in it's simplicity, well done. I'm curious how it compares to the 'freeze' function of Titanium backup. Anyone?
^^^That's what I want to know too.
i am just wondering but would this work on other phones like the HTC Droid ERIS or any other devices???
Any chance you can port this to the Droid X? Also, do you need to be rooted to use it, or does it work on stock devices?
same quest
rusty815 said:
...any chance you might add more programs to the list?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
...are these Bloats removeable too?
-Stocks
-Amazon
-Soundhound
-Setup
-facebook
-htc hub, likes etc.
-latitude
-anything from google (maps locations, navigation etc., etc.)
-peep, twitter etc. any social network sh..
-speech saerch
-talk
-connected media
Any chance for a G1 or G2 version?
I plan on making the next version a lot more flexible in terms of which phones it will be useful for. If you guys can get me a list of which apps can safely be removed from your phones I can add them to the next version.
Technically this version should run on other phones so long as they are rooted and have busybox installed in /system/bin. If your phone has some of the same bloat that comes on a Droid 2 Global you may be able to use this to remove it. Any applications that the program cannot find when it starts will have a ! on the front of their names in the list. Bloat Manager won't be able to turn those off.
I installed this and chose disable all, and clicked apply. The applications can still be opened. Skype still shows that it is running even after I force stop it.
LOL...installed on my G1....all apps had the !
Uninstalled. Thanks!
MrFrankfromCM said:
LOL...installed on my G1....all apps had the !
Uninstalled. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol, its meant for the bloat on the d2g and d2, I'm pretty sure the g1 doesn't have any of the apps that are on the list
Sent from my DROID2 GLOBAL using XDA App
MrFrankfromCM said:
Any chance for a G1 or G2 version?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If your looking for away to remove bloatware on the G2 go to this thread http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=809231
super easy did it myself.
REMEMBER THIS IS NOT MY WORK
-all credits to Android_United
-original thread here
Most of you might be very much familiar with the rooting procedure. Its the process of giving yourself superuser permissions (ex - administrator in windows xp ).
If you are using a custom rom, then there is no need to specifically root your phone. But if you are using stock roms, then there is a guide to root in the forums.
Once rooted, you can now take your own decisions for your device which include improving system performance or flashing custom roms using cwm recovery or using any of these below listed apps. Use it wisely, as playing with your device performance can have damaging effects.
I AM NOT AT ALL RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE DONE TO YOUR DEVICE BY YOU.
Moving on, many of the rooted-on-stock and custom rom users might already know most of these apps and their uses, so this thread is for the begginers who have just rooted their devices.
Further, most of these apps are available in the playstore (mostly paid, but if you want the cracked versions, you can find them in the internet.
So here are some of the apps that might be usefull for you. I will also update this apps list as soon as, I find more usefull apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OOPPS! if you want this apps search it PLAYSTORE i can't post links cause 30000 characters are allowed per post ..spend some time to search
ADBWIRELESS
adbWireless does exactly what its name implies, all without the need for a USB cable. There really isn’t much to say as the app is, quite literally, a big red button that you can push to enable/disable wireless ADB connection. There’s also a widget for those times when you’re too lazy to fire up the full application. Its available on the playstore for free.
ADFREE
Blocks data access to a list of sites that store ads. Speeds up browsing experience as the ads aren’t downloaded along with the site and even blocks many ads from displaying in many of the ad supported apps.
AUTOKILLER MEMORY OPTIMIZER
Hate using scripts like V6 supercharger ?
Then is THE app for you.
It tweaks your xperia just like the V6, to run smoothly. It kills all the idle process running in the background and saves a lot of battery. You can choose various OOM values for all the apps like foreground, visible, empty etc. Donators are also able to choose alternate presets, enter Chuck Norris mode, and enjoy an ad-free experience. Its available in the playstore for free, worth a try.
AVAST! MOBILE SECURITY
an app that every rooted user should have installed. I know what you’re thinking – an antivirus app? Really? Yes, really. This app is different than the rest of the anti-virus applications in the Market, because it is also the best anti-theft solution of any app. (The other features of the app are top-notch, as well, but the anti-theft functionality is its only root function). Why is its anti-theft so good? Because
it used to be Theft Aware , an app that is listed above. TA was bought out buy avast! and incorporated into its Mobile Security app. The best part is that the root function of the app wasn’t altered in any way – avast’s anti-theft setup is identical to Theft Aware in every way but with a wonderfull UI – it’s simple and intuitive, and when it’s finished, you can rest assured that if your device is ever lost or stolen it’s as protected as it can be.
avast! Mobile Security is free and if you only choose to install one app from this roundup, I suggest that this is the one.
BUTTON SAVIOR
This is an similar to virtual buttons bar app, but with a slightly different and better UI. Button Savior might be worth a look.
CACHEMATE
CacheMate is cache cleaner app like no other cache cleaning app does it. Two, CacheMate can clear certain data from the device. This was/is extremely tedious to accomplish and linux does not handle this. Three, CacheMate clears cache from the SD card. While you can go and do this yourself, CacheMate does it all for you just by a simple tap on screen.
CALL BLOCKER
If you have specific numbers that you want to be blocked each time they call, then there’s a good chance you’ve turned to apps that automate this process. There is one problems with that, though:
Most apps still let your phone ring at least once. That’s where Root Call Blocker rises above the rest. Root Call Blocker detects incoming calls at the system level, so it can block them much more efficiently. In fact, it’s so efficient that it blocks the call before your phone even rings, so you’re completely unaware that the offending caller has tried to contact you in the first place. The app offers
many other features as well, such as call logs, multiple rejection methods, multiple profiles, caller grouping, SMS auto-replies, and much more. This app is not free, but there is also a trial version so you can give it a try before dropping any money.
CALL MASTER
It’s probably the best call and text firewall in the playstore. It can control dozens of variables in countless situations – everything from blocking certain numbers during certain times of day, sending specific numbers to voicemail, to auto-hang ups etc.
CHAINFIRE 3D
With this app you can play all the HD games on your mini. It comes with various visual gameplay options. Its a paid app and is available in the playstore. Do give it a try.
DROIDWALL ANDROID FIREWALL
It will make sure apps on your phone don’t unnecessarily waste your limited data plan without your knowledge. The app’s main feature is turning off EDGE or 3G or WiFi access for any application, thus allowing you to restrict which apps can access the network. In addition to saving bandwidth, DroidWall can be used for security – just lock down a suspicious app to make sure it doesn’t try to unnecessarily encroach your privacy. As an added bonus, a log of what goes on is included.
DUAL MOUNT SD WIDGET
The inability to mount your SD card to both your phone and PC at the same
time can be quite annoying, as you can’t access any of the information or apps that reside on your SD card when your device is mounted to your computer. Dual Mount SD Card is a simple and practical solution to this problem, as it allows you to access your SD card from phone and PC alike while it’s mounted. In order for this app to function properly, you must first disable Android’s auto-mount option, using the widget instead. This available on the playstore.
ES FILE EXPLORER
This an application for exploring your phone’s directories.
For developers, its usefulness is self-explanatory. For the average user, it certainly is a solid file explorer with a better interface especially, ES file exp. One more unique feature of these file explorers is the ability to modify permissions settings on files or folders. It comes packed with some solid features apart from the conventional file viewing. Its completely free and is available in the market.
GAME ON
It not only allows users to backup and restore game data, but download and share game progress over the Game On network. Yeah, you read right – share. Game. Data. Maybe you’re stuck on a particular part of a game. Perhaps you just don’t feel like playing through all the boring crap (Gta 3) and want to jump straight into the good stuff. It doesn’t matter the reason you want to progress in a game – Game On is the solution. Game On costs a buck in the playstore. So give it a try and happy gaming !
HEXAMOB RECOVERY PRO
If you’ve ever accidentally deleted any data from your mini, then Hexamob Recovery Pro is here to save the day. Hexamob Recovery Pro is a data recovery tool designed to grab deleted files from either the SD card or internal storage of your Android phone. It supports the FAT file system, and offers the ability to scan the media for specific files types, including audio, video, images etc.
JUICE DEFENDER: ULTIMATE JUICE DEFENDER
Juice Defender is a battery conservation app. It uses various triggers, rules, and timers to control how often your device utilizes 3G/EDGE APN’s and wifi. These data connections are the number one drainers of battery life when your phone is idle, so Juice Defender allows you to decide when, where, and how often you want them to be active. Ultimate Juice ( paid version of Juice Defender) must be installed over an existing copy of Juice Defender, which unlocks a few additional capabilities for users with root permissions. It also provides some extra goodies for root users including the ability to adjust CPU clock speeds on the run to conserve battery, which requires root permissions.
KEYBOARD MANAGER
When it comes to landscape keyboards, it’d be hard to top what HTC has going with Sense UI. If it’s portrait input you’re after, however, Swype is the cream of the crop. So how can you decide ? Should you manually change your input method each and every time you switch orientations, or type exclusively in one
position? As it turns out, you won’t have to partake in either of those practices; downloading Keyboard Manager will suffice. The app is simple:
Allow users to use one keyboard in portrait mode and another when they turn their phone on its side.
LBE PRIVACY GUARD
This is probably one of the best privacy guards that are ever seen apart from the pdroid patch by Yagya. Its functionality is akin to that of a software firewall, with some elements of Windows UAC thrown in. LBE sits in the background and “listens” to your apps as they request various permissions and then provides you a notice with options to either grant or deny access.
LCD DENSITY
It changes the font of your mini, virtually everything. This is not a resolution changer (lol) , as I have seen many comments in playstore. It simply changes the depth and space of your mini. Using the app is very easy – simply adjust the slider or click on one of the big rectangular buttons to alter the density, then click ‘Apply’ to restart your device and see the changes in effect. Of course, the smaller the font, the harder it is to press onscreen objects; the larger the font, the more screen space goes to waste.
LIVE DMESG BOOT AND LIVE LOGCAT BOOT
You won't have any words, to being shown the real dmesg (kernel debug) or logcat (Android debug) log every time your mini boots up ? So this is an app for all those dev's out there who are crazy about logs.
MARKET AUTOUPDATE BULK TOGGLE
Another simple yet incredibly useful root-only app:
Market Autoupdate Bulk Toggle. This is an app that takes the Market’s auto-update feature to a whole new level:
Pressing "Autoupdate On" does exactly what you’d expect: it turns on auto-update for all of your installed apps. That’s it – you’ll never have to confront that pesky "Allow automatic updating" option in the Market again. The only caveat is that the program only enables automatic updates for apps that are already installed and won’t apply to those installed in the future – for those, you’ll have to rerun Market Autoupdate Bulk Toggle and press "Autoupdate On" again. Unsurprisingly, you’ll still have to push the "Update" button yourself when an app receives a manual update (which only happens when its permissions change – not a frequent occurrence). Although this feature is present in the playstore, all those who like using the old market this surely comes in handy. It’s free and available on the playstore.
MARKET ENABLER
One of the most frequent excuses for piracy has to be "The app isn’t available in my country" or "Google doesn’t allow paid apps where I live." No longer!
MarketEnabler makes your Android phone believe it’s on another carrier – perhaps even one in another country. For example, a Swede could use this app to access Google Books, which is, by official terms, available exclusively in the US, right ? So use it and let the downloading begin !
MOVE2SD ENABLER / INSTALL MANAGER
Move2SD Enabler or Install manager, allow users to move any app to the SD card. Like adbWireless, it’s as simple as pressing a button. It’s free and both the the apps are available in the playstore. Although scripts like s2e and link2sd etc are there its sometimes convinient to use apps like these.
MYBACKUP
Pretty much like titanium backup but, if you love backing up your phone’s
data but wish you back all of it up at once, all for free. MyBackup might just
be the perfect app. With it, you can not only back up your apps data before changing ROMs; you can also schedule backups, back up to your SD card, and back up things you never even thought possible, such as contact info, home screens, and SMS/MMS conversations.
This app offers two versions, a free version with nearly all of the functionality, and a paid version for $4.99. The main difference is that the free edition only allows you to save your backups on your SD card, while the premium allows placing them on Rerware’s servers, although I wouldn’t recommend anybody who
values their data to use a random online service.
REBOOT CONTROL
Reboot Control does 4 things, and 4 things only:
It allows you to reboot, recovery boot, wipe handset or bootloader boot with a single tap. The real usefulness of QuickBoot is in the ability to make home screen widgets for these functions, so they’re always at your fingertips. Since, almost all the custom roms these days use this as a built-in function so this app can be usefull for the stock users.
ROM MANAGER
ROM Manager allows you to flash almost any ZIP to your phone, whether it be a kernel, ROM, app package, or radio image or even initiate a nandroid backup.
Although it is strongly recommended to use the clockworkmod recovery or rz recovery for cfw and odin for stock, as many mini users reported it was bricking their phone.
ROOT EXPLORER
Similar to any other file explorer app in the market. But its specialty is that, it can crawl deep into the deepest corners of android and modify them like the elusive dalvik cache to sd. Its a paid app available in the market.
SAMBA FILESHARING
Samba file sharing is the bomb. It turns your phone into an smb server and puts your sd card on your desktop when you’re on a wifi network. It allows you to share files between your mini and pc over WiFi as a Windows shared folder. With this free app, you can wirelessly copy files to/from your Android device via the same drag-and-drop interface you use when your handset is plugged into your computer with a standard USB cable. Even the security freaks have a reason to celebrate –
Samba offers customizable username and password options in addition to letting users choose a Windows workgroup name and a device network (NETBIOS) name.
SCREENCAST VIDEO RECORDER
Taking a lot of screenshots and "videos" of apps and games is a habit to you ? Then Screencast is your go-to app, especially for the latter. If you ever find yourself in need of a way to record what’s happening on-screen, look no further than Screencast. The app costs $4, but there is a demo available so you can give it a shot before you buy.
SD MAID
SD Maid frees up space on your phone’s SD card by cleansing it of "corpses in the basement," or unnecessary data left behind by apps no longer installed on your mini. It works with all roms currently on the forums. Use it and know the difference.
SET CPU/ NO FRILLS
These apps let you control the speed of operation of your mini. They come with all the latest governers and I/O schedulers, though some roms governers are rom specific. Also, an Overclock kernel is required to use this app.
SHARK FOR ROOT
It’s essentially a stripped down version of WireShark. It’s a particularly geeky app to have, but for developers or those of us obsessed with monitoring where our traffic is going its a great app. Shark monitors all network activity on your device (presumably from all interfaces) and outputs a .pcap file by consrving quite an amount of battery when compared to other apps in the playstore. So use it and know the difference yourself.
SHOOTME
This app is for all those dev's out their, who want show the world what they have achieved.
ShootMe is a screenshot capture app that allows you to take a screenshot of your mini with a simple shake of your device.
SIXAXIS CONTROLLER
Sixaxis Controller allows you to connect a PS3 controller to your mini, giving you the ability to have a full gaming experience on your handset. You grab Sixaxis Controller form the Market for $1.62.
THEFT AWARE
Theft Aware, while considerably more complex than the other items on the list, is an Android security app unlike any other. With it, you can remotely track your phone if it gets lost or stolen, wipe it, call it and spy on the thief, and much more. Its free and available on the playstore.
TITANIUM BACKUP
Losing all the apps on your device accidentally or while flashing custom rom is a bad feeling. Re-downloading every app is a painstaking work so fortunately for root users, Titanium Backup provides the solution. Titanium Backup is a powerful backup utility which stores your apps, app data, and system data on your SD card for safekeeping. Titanium Backup can also painlessly remove, freeze-unfreeze any app, including system apps. This app can be configured to run its tasks on a schedule, and the $3.99 donate version allows you to set up multiple schedules for the various combinations of backups it is capable of performing.
UNDELETE
This one is sure to save many people a lot of heartache. We’ve all mistakenly
deleted files before, potentially losing them forever. The next time that happens, though, Undelete is here to save the day by scanning your device’s SD Card, finding all the deleted files, and, in most cases, restoring these files. The app is free in the playstore, so there’s no excuse to ever lose another file.
TOTAL COMMANDER
Total Commander is a feature packed dual-pane file manager for Android, based off of the popular Windows file manager of the same name. It really is the only file manager that you’ll ever need. Most of the CM7 roms come cooked with it, in case you are using stock this will come in real handy.
VIRTUAL BUTTON BAR
If your mini's buttons are about to fall off or something has happened and your buttons no longer work, then this app can save you a lot of time and trouble. Its entire purpose is to provide on-screen emulation of the dedicated hardware
buttons on most Android devices. The app offers various customizable features, such as user-definable buttons and positions, lockscreen animations, the ability to change various hardware button actions (volume, camera, etc) and a few
aesthetic variations such as transparency and button size. Virtual Button Bar is $1.63, but there is fully-functional trial available, as well in the playstore.
WIFI PROTECTOR
WiFi Protector is a security app that protects your device from Wi-Fi sniffing attacks. It’ll detect and prevent ARP (Address Resolution Protocol) attacks, like DoS (Denial of Service) and MitM (Man in the Middle). Unlike most of the other apps in the roundup, this one actually offers a little bit of functionality for non-rooted users too. It can even defend your mini against WiFiKill, an app that can eject basically any user off of a Wi-Fi network with the tap of a button. Its a paid app available on the playstore.
WIRELESS TETHER
Wireless Tether remains the best way to utilize your mini as a WiFi or Bluetooth (PAN) hotspot. Its free and its open source. Available in playstore. But, it is certainly a battery killer so use it while charging the device.*
ZMOOTH ROOT
Another on-screen app. You must be wondering, whats wrong with this guy. Well, the only reason is my phone. My buttons are almost gonna fall off. So I pretty much like the apps which have various customizations. So bare with me .
Moving on, this app is on the same bandwidth as Button Savior etc. zMooth relies on webOS-like gestures rather than clunky virtual buttons. To access zMooth, users can start by simply pulling up a blue (default) bar from the bottom of the screen. To go back, they can swipe left; swiping right is pressing the Menu button; and drawing an "up-arrow" will return to homescreen. The $1.19 pro version adds the ability to change the gesture area’s width and colors as well as a "lightning strike" gesture for powering the device on/off.
05-04-2012 - NEW APPS ADDED
BATTERY CALLIBRATION
If you have a regular habit of changing roms ? Then this is the right app for you.
Its a battery calibration app. It wipes all the battery stats/data from your phone and will make your phone ready to produce some fresh new stats. In this way your battery will last longer as it is always recommended to calibrate the battery after flashing a new rom. Its a free app and is available in the playstore.
BUSYBOX INSTALLER
Did you ever feel, where can I get a old version of busybox ? This is a common query while using the V6 Supercharger, since it recommends a busybox 1.18.2 or higher version. So ever come across an app that requires an older version of busybox ? Then this is right app to turn for. Its a free app and many versions are available in the playstore so, choose wisely
EASY TETHER
Too lazy to go into settings>wireless and networks>tethering>usb tether ??
Then this is your go to app. Its a one-click tethering app for your mini so that you can use it to browse on your laptop or desktop. Its a free app available in the playstore.
ROOT UNINSTALLER
Annoyed by the fact that you can't remove those useless system apps ? No more ! This is that app, that removes all the useless apps from your mini. It can also freeze user apps, backup them, delete them, unfreeze them, move them sd card etc. Its a powerful to have and sometimes may come in handy some times. Its a free app available in the playstore.
SCREENSHOT ER
Another screenshot app. Its a completely free app in the playstore unlike any other in the playstore. As it is free, there has to be some way to chop our legs. . So that drawback is a 6-sec delay after taking every screenshot. Though if u buy it, you can reduce that delay to 1-sec. Some of its features are, screenshot preview ( various views for previews ) , shake SS, on-screen button, notification capture etc. Use it and the know the difference yourself.
SCREEN SHOT UX
A screenshot app that has all the cool features like shake to capture your screen. Its fully functional trial is available in the playstore. Use it and feel the app before investing in it
SCRIPT MANAGER
"THE" app for applying "ANY" script for your phone. It can help create terminal widgets for apps that aren't available for that app, by simple taps of the screen. SM widgets is another add-on for this app so you can use its full power.
It can also help tweak your phones performance by applying scripts like V6, kickass, 3G booster etc. A must have app for any dev or tweaker. It can serve as a decent root explorer for an average user. Its available in the playstore for free.
SD BOOSTER
The dev of this app claims it to increase the external memories speed upto 40 times than before. You can set this app to work from boot. If you don't believe me or the dev, just use any of the benchmark tools and see the proof your self. Its a tiny-free app available on the playstore. Do try it
SD SPEED INCREASE
Originally developed by our xda member '"brainmaster". Its a similar app to SD Booster. The app has similar results to that of its competitor in terms of write/read speeds in any benchmark apps. Its also a tiny-free app available in the playstore.
SYSTEM TUNER PRO
The most complete android system utility app/tool. It does all activities like backing-up your apps, task killer, logcat reader, terminal emulator, memory controls, freeze/unfreeze apps, activity recorder, system tweaker etc. Use it and you'll know the difference yourself. You can also setup widgets and notification indicators to any of these function and monitor your phone with real ease. Its a free app available in the playstore.
TASKER
If you have a habit of forgetting things ? Then this is the BEST app available in the whole playstore. Then only drawback of this app is, YOU. lol, yeah coz if you forget to set the tasker to do its task, then you are actually limiting its function. So moving on, Tasker is powerful app that has triggers which can make you remember the mildest things through its alarm and etc functions, 200+ built-in actions , task completion, scene/icon/design your own task according to yourself. So what are you waiting for ? OH wait, have you forgotten what you were doing ? Then first download this app.
Its a paid app available in the playstore.
Z SCREEN RECORER
Probably the only app to give some competition to screencast app. Its a similar app compared to the screencast video recorder. It simply has two big buttons, when the app is opened. It simply records whatever is happening on the screen and saves the video to your sd directly. It has fully functional demo in the playstore. Try it before buying it.
05-05-2012 NEW APPS ADDED
ADWAY
Its an app similar to ad-free. It uses leeches to prevent ads from being downloaded while browsing on your mini. Once you install this app and update the host files, you are ready to go for a ad-free experience on any app or browser. It even removes the ads from app that come with those annoying ads, this ultimately improves the performance of the game.
ANTUTU CPU MASTER
AnTuTu CPU Master is a tool for changing CPU/GPU speed. Its similar to SetCpu or no-frills. It slightly has better UI. You can overclock your device for faster performance or slow down by reducing the clock frequency. Its a tiny-free app available in the playstore.
BUILD PROP EDITOR
As the name says, it an app to change and modify the build.prop for tweaking your phone. This is a good app to have for devs who like playing with OOM values. If you don't know what is build.prop file, then you should possibly leave this app let alone download. It also has recommended values, keyboard layout and comes with a proper explanation. Before playing with the file, the app creates a backu-up of your current build.prop file in case you forget. So even if you are not satisfied with your tweak or an error has occured, you can simply replace the back-up easily. . This tiny app is available for free in the playstore.
DROID TWEAKER ROOT
A small All-in-one app for your rooted mini. It also can mount the system partition as read-write for development purposes and also can clear dalvik cache directly by the tap of a button. Its presently in beta stage but its working fine for me. This tiny app is free and its available in the playstore.
Faster Fix Speed up your fix of your current location using your mini's GPS. Here is the link to the trick/hack used in addition to this app : Enjoy
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...239713&page=18
FONY CHANGER ROOT
Requires FULL ROOT and of-course a working-full busy boz. CWM and a backup(just for safety ) is recommended as a boot-loop MIGHT occur, according to dev. Moving on, this allows you to change fonts. You might be asking, Why root for a puny font changer app ? The answer is, it changes fonts. Yes it changes fonts of virtually anything, even the keyboard you are using right now . According to the dev, it creates a buck-up of your default font in-case something happens. While removing this app, make sure that you restore setting of your default font. In case you forgot, just restore your nandroid back-up .
It has the following features -
*font preview and changer.
*screen density changer.
*Quick reboot (after changing the font, a really QuickBoot occurs, thanks to this app.)
* localization of languages (English,Russian, Spanish etc. )
Its a free app in the playstore and a donate version is also available in case you like the app.
OTA ROOT KEEPER
Want to " TEMPORARILY UN-ROOT " your device so that you can test some new app or tweak or get access to some stupid website ?? Then this is the right app for you. This app is created by the devs of Voodoo Sound specifically for galaxy s,s2 etc. It creates a back-up of your su-binary before temporarily un-rooting the device. It needs an ext-2, 3 or 4 partition for working. This tiny app is available in the playstore for free.
ROOT CHECKER
This tiny-free app DOES NOT REQUIRE ROOT. Then why on the list ? As the name implies, it simply checks your su-binary and verifies that your phone is properly rooted or not. So this app is helpful for beginners who rooted their stock recently and lets you check whether you have followed the procedure correctly or not. Its available in the playstore for free.
SPARE PARTS
This is a very handy app to have. It currently works only on custom roms and CM7. It a tool to control all your hidden interface changes in your custom rom. Going through setting for even changing even the screenlock can be painful, So this app save that time and energy easily. It also allows you to change the screen transition type and its speeds, wifi sleep policy, useage statistics etc. Its a free app and is available in the playstore.
SUPERSU
Another great app from a great master, none other than our ChanFire himself. After giving us some great apps like CF3D, live demsg and logcat etc, its time to include this great app to the list. Its a replaceable counterpart app for the superuser app by Chainsdd i.e our default superuser permissions granter by applying the standard procedure. So installing this app simply replaces you current/default permissions granter. Try it and as always perform a back-up of your apps and data. Its a free app and is available in the playstore.
SWAPPER
It lets you create, add and manage swap memory file without a swap partition on SD card. Reconfigure the app if you changed your swap size. This tiny app is free and its available in the playstore.
WEBKEY
Using this app you can now control your phone from any browser. Yeah, you heard me right ! With this app you can send screenshots, control another phone, download-upload files, get gps location, read-write sms, export-import contacts-sms-call logs, terminal emulator etc.. So what are you waiting for ? Go ahead and try this app as its a free app available in the playstore.
RESERVED
i use CPU master pro 2.5 from antutu, is also for root users, its a f*cking fine cpu master
Pandemic said:
i use CPU master pro 2.5 from antutu, is also for root users, its a f*cking fine cpu master
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm continue updating this thread for new root users.
Hope it will help them a lot
bluestricker_21 said:
I'm continue updating this thread for new root users.
Hope it will help them a lot
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah i saw it good job man,
go ahead with this
Pandemic said:
yeah i saw it good job man,
go ahead with this
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks..hope a recognized contributor like you will be one of the first who will
Thank me..
A simple thanks makes developers,contributors etc. Continue there works
bluestricker_21 said:
Thanks..hope a recognized contributor like you will be one of the first who will
Thank me..
A simple thanks makes developers,contributors etc. Continue there works
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i thanked you, for real good job!
i add your thread in the roll up of poyensa and me
now i wait on poyensa when he added the line in the thread.
and yes you are right, we deliver good work for a simple thanks
Pandemic said:
i thanked you, for real good job!
i add your thread in the roll up of poyensa and me
now i wait on poyensa when he added the line in the thread.
and yes you are right, we deliver good work for a simple thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you very much..
Very good list, thanks!
bluestricker_21 said:
Thank you very much..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you`re welcome mate
i added you in the roll up, check it in my sig
Link me towards my profile and the original thread.
---------- Post added at 11:28 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:17 PM ----------
Also can I get the full spec's of this device. ? Any disadvantages. ?
Only one suggestion, change 'mini' to ' Xperia' in the post.!! ;-)
Sent from my MT11i
vinodgajaria said:
Only one suggestion, change 'mini' to ' Xperia' in the post.!! ;-)
Sent from my MT11i
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks i will change that
One suggestion or request...plz give links also to the play store under corresponding apps...thanks.
Sent from my MT11i using XDA
unisol107 said:
One suggestion or request...plz give links also to the play store under corresponding apps...thanks.
Sent from my MT11i using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks..i am planning to add links..maybe next time if i have some time
bluestricker_21 said:
Thanks..i am planning to add links..maybe next time if i have some time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hav an update with more apps + screenshots of EVERY SINGLE APP... coming soon
and I will post links soon too but most of them are warez so I am afraid I can't...atleast some I shall post..
freakyfriday said:
I hav an update with more apps + screenshots of EVERY SINGLE APP... coming soon
and I will post links soon too but most of them are warez so I am afraid I can't...atleast some I shall post..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sir..i'm planning to add links but i think one post can't add to much character so instead
I put link to play store..
I also arrange apps in order..thank you sir
Script manager you forgot mate and Cpu master pro
but that is for your next update
Pandemic said:
Script manager you forgot mate and Cpu master pro
but that is for your next update
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's already added in first update.. Cpu will be added in next update
Disclaimer: I don't have a lot of time at the moment and I'm french speaking... Sorry for the rushed "how-to", I'll clean it and add details up when I'll have more time. Feel free to add your 2 cents!
1. You need a device running Android 4.2 (no root needed).
2. Create a new user as usual (follow the Android tutorial).
2.5. Verify everything is ok for this user.
3. Once done, go into this new user settings (don't switch back to your main/admin account).
4. Add a new account, this time use the Google account on which you paid for your apps.
5. During the add account tutorial, make sure you unselect ALL syncing stuff. Very important!
6. Go to settings / applications and deactivate all the apps you don't want the new user to access (ex: gmail, calendar, etc...).
7. Launch the Google Play Store and select your main account, make sure you protect application purchase by a PIN.
8. Installed a paid apps under this account.
9. Enjoy!
WARNING 1: I had an issue with Google+ when I deactivated it, it removed the updated version (so when I switched back to my main account, I needed to update the app through Play Store). May happen to other apps.
WARNING 2: I don't know if it's related or not, but in the process, I needed to reboot my Nexus 7, it was slow and unresponsive (a process or app was sucking a lot of CPU cycle). But, it did not happened again.
TIP: Use email app instead of gmail to sync the other user mails.
CAVEAT: Experienced users or clever children may find how to reactivate the apps you locked, so you may want tu use an app locker instead of the "deactivate method".
It's not perfect but it works, it's enough for me. My daughters will enjoy their games and I know they will not mess the system. Tested on my Nexus 7 but I'm pretty sure it will work on all Android 4.2 devices.
Profile Help
Ok so how do you use the same app on all users without installing it on every user, because would that just take up some memory?
Thx
SalsaForte said:
Disclaimer: I don't have a lot of time at the moment and I'm french speaking... Sorry for the rushed "how-to", I'll clean it and add details up when I'll have more time. Feel free to add your 2 cents!
1. You need a device running Android 4.2 (no root needed).
2. Create a new user as usual (follow the Android tutorial).
2.5. Verify everything is ok for this account.
3. Once done, go into this new user settings (don't switch to your main/admin account).
4. Add a new account, this time use the Google account on which you paid for your apps.
5. During the add account tutorial, make sure you unselect ALL syncing stuff. <=== VERY IMPORTANT!
6. Once done go into settings -> applications and deactivate all the apps you don't want the new user to access (ex: gmail, g+, calendar, etc...).
7. Launch the Google Play Store and select your main account, make sure you protect application purchase by a PIN.
8. Installed a paid apps under this account.
9. Enjoy!
WARNING 1: I had an issue with Google+ when I deactivated it, it removed the updated version (so when I switched back to my main account, I needed to update the app through Play Store). May happen to other apps.
WARNING 2: I don't know if it's related or not, but in the process, I needed to reboot my Nexus 7, it was slow and unresponsive (a process or app was sucking a lot of CPU cycle). But, it did not happened again.
TIP: Use email app instead of gmail to sync the other user mails.
CAVEAT: Experienced users or clever children may find how to reactivate the apps you locked, so you may want tu use an app locker instead of the "deactivate method".
It's not perfect and it works, it's enough for me. My daughters will enjoy their games and I know they do not mess with the system. Tested on my Nexus 7 but I'm pretty sure it will work on all Android 4.2 devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
mr.acarlton said:
Ok so how do you use the same app on all users without installing it on every user, because would that just take up some memory?
Thx
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can't for now, every user have it's own copy of the app.
SalsaForte said:
You can't for now, every user have it's own copy of the app.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you set up the new user like you described, then every time the new user installs an app from the Play store, that was already installed by another user, it won't download again, it will only create an icon for it. Data that is created by the app (like save data, etc...) on the other hand will allocate new space, specific to that user.
Br.
d3m0n
I am wondering if there is a way to modify the Facebook APK to get contact sync working without modifying ContactProvider.apk as I am using a non rooted phone and don't want to root just for this. In the past I have used HaxSync but with the latest Facebook APIs that no longer works.
Is it simply a case of adding the WRITE_CONTACTS permission to the Facebook APK and if so is that (easily) possible?
Thanks for any help, if there is a better subforum for this type of thing please let me know also, thanks.
I don't believe it is app specific, it's through their servers, if I understand the problem correctly. The only thing I have seen from the apps that used to work is they say the contact has to grant permission to let them sync the info before it will work. This seems like just modding the app will not be enough to help accomplish what you are trying to do.
es0tericcha0s said:
I don't believe it is app specific, it's through their servers, if I understand the problem correctly. The only thing I have seen from the apps that used to work is they say the contact has to grant permission to let them sync the info before it will work. This seems like just modding the app will not be enough to help accomplish what you are trying to do.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For third party apps, (e.g. HaxSync, UberSync etc.) what you're saying is true. These apps no longer function due to server side changes by Facebook in the form of updated APIs (as I mentioned in the OP).
However I am talking about the official Facebook app. With this app, the contact sync still works perfectly, on ROMs where ContactsProvider.apk is modified to explicitly grant permission to the Facebook app (com.facebook.katana) to write contacts, without the app itself requiring the permission that every other app needs. OEMs such as Samsung modify ContactsProvider.apk in this way so as to allow Facebook to sync (by basically adding an exception to the permission check). There are also flashable mods for custom ROMs, as well as an Xposed module which performs this task. Obviously these require unlocked bootloader & custom recovery, or root & Xposed respectively.
However, I believe that if the app itself is modified to require this permission (i.e. android.permission.WRITE_CONTACTS, it should also work, without requiring an exception in ContactsProvider.apk.
The reason modifying ContactsProvider is "preferred" by most is that doing it that way allows the app to be installed from the Play store and thus maintain auto-updates, whereas if you modify the APK you no longer get auto-updates, and would have to manually update. But that's worth it to me to get contact syncing working.
EDIT: On closer inspection, it may be more complicated than I thought. The Facebook app already has this permission, there must be something else preventing it from functioning. I still believe it is possible to get it working simply by modifying the APK, but it is likely beyond my capabilities.
SifJar said:
I am wondering if there is a way to modify the Facebook APK to get contact sync working without modifying ContactProvider.apk as I am using a non rooted phone and don't want to root just for this. In the past I have used HaxSync but with the latest Facebook APIs that no longer works.
Is it simply a case of adding the WRITE_CONTACTS permission to the Facebook APK and if so is that (easily) possible?
Thanks for any help, if there is a better subforum for this type of thing please let me know also, thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually this fiasco started a couple of years ago. When Facebook & Google had a spat over data sharing. Facebook app has the support to sync contacts. But it is not natively supported. It is just a matter of 0 & 1. But OEM like Samsung, HTC have made contract with Facebook individually, so it is supported on those phones.
For syncing, if you are rooted you can use an Xposed module here in XDA. It's something like Xfbmod. And for the apps, Sync.me still works like a charm. I used it just a while ago.
Dexter_S said:
Actually this fiasco started a couple of years ago. When Facebook & Google had a spat over data sharing. Facebook app has the support to sync contacts. But it is not natively supported. It is just a matter of 0 & 1. But OEM like Samsung, HTC have made contract with Facebook individually, so it is supported on those phones.
For syncing, if you are rooted you can use an Xposed module here in XDA. It's something like Xfbmod. And for the apps, Sync.me still works like a charm. I used it just a while ago.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've seen a few forum posts referencing things along these lines, but I have found absolutely zero concrete evidence of such a "spat". There is nothing in Android to specifically disallow FB syncing, the OEMs that support it have modified the framework to explicitly grant the app permission. For a reference on this, check the CM gerrit issue about this. To quote Steve Klondik (founder of CM) on this:
Yeah, screw Facebook. We should not be hacking up the framework because they won't fix their app.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The OEMs have decided to make a workaround, for their users benefit. Not because they have some contract, of which I have seen no evidence. The issue is with Facebook's app and their refusal to fix the issue.
As I mentioned in the OP if you bothered to read it, I am not rooted and do not want to be, and am also fully aware of the Xposed module.
As for Sync.ME, I installed it the other day and it asked straight away to upload all my contact data to their servers. It's not my place to put the details of my friends and family in the hands of some company I'm not particularly familiar with.
Tip: Installing Facebook APK version 28 or lower will give you the ability to sync contacts again. Updating to the latest version will still allow you to sync for a limited amount of time until it re-downloads updated configuration files (I think?). So I think the problem is just some config or database file disabling the feature.
ArmsAsuncion said:
Tip: Installing Facebook APK version 28 or lower will give you the ability to sync contacts again. Updating to the latest version will still allow you to sync for a limited amount of time until it re-downloads updated configuration files (I think?). So I think the problem is just some config or database file disabling the feature.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I installed version 28 and got no option to sync. Are you on AOSP or some OEM/custom ROM? Version 28 was released long after sync stopped working on the official FB app for myself and many other people.
SifJar said:
I installed version 28 and got no option to sync. Are you on AOSP or some OEM/custom ROM? Version 28 was released long after sync stopped working on the official FB app for myself and many other people.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using Samsung Note 4 official rom. Try older ones? Mine doesn't have sync if I use versions above 28. It stopped working for me around October 1st week (Version 49). So when I want to sync, I have a titanuim backup of my version 24 data and just restore it (without restoring app itself). That way I can sync for a few minutes until the menu disappears again.
Edit: read the whole thread and I see that the problem was on other roms only. But nevertheless, Facebook disabled contacts syncing for all phones now since around version 40+. Only way to make it work is to downgrade or the steps I used above.