Android Rooting...

[Kishu]

I am going to be the owner of a Samsung Galaxy S 2 soon, and I was wondering if it's worth it to root the phone.

Some questions and concerns that I have is the likeliness of bricking the device when rooting, and how I would root it. Also, is it worth rooting the phone? What extra features can you do when the phone is rooted?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Excellentnuke]

Think of rooting as the equivalent of jailbreaking an iOS device. It's 100% safe. Your phone won't brick or anything as long as you follow the instructions closely.

Rooting allows you to install custom ROMs on your phone and do things such as overclock. Custom ROMs can do anything from simply optimizing stock Android to adding new features to stock Android such as power controls in the notification bar to completely redesigning the UI like MIUI.

 

[VashTS]

i rooted my new android phone, its a samsung captivate, but haven't done anything fun with it yet. a couple apps need root access but nothing special. i might go to cyanogen, but its only in beta right now for my phone so i might hold off.

its not that difficult i say go for it. but i like to hack everything i get.

 

[Jugarina]

Best thing about rooting I feel is the ability to freeze bloatware and the crappy providers app's that you never use anyways and mostly suck and they drain your battery. Without rooting you can't shut them off or uninstall them. Another nice thing is you can run an app on root that shuts down all the stupid ad's that get in your way and piss you off. I feel your android really doesn't belong to you until you can do what you want with It, If your not rooted your just leasing your phone. There is barely any risk anymore and If your still worried just backup to your hearts content.

 

[Holified 2x]

I rooted two days ago so far loving it bout to flash a custom kernal for over clocking :>

 

[Kishu]

If I root the phone, will I be able to make it save batteries as well?

 

[Ringo619]

If I root the phone, will I be able to make it save batteries as well?

most custom roms are't about saving battery its mostly about adding new features, , stability and performance , so rooting won't give you anymore battery life , but it will make your device better in performance

 

[Holified 2x]

If I root the phone, will I be able to make it save batteries as well?

Custom kernels can probably save u battery

 

[shamiko_]

Rooting the device won't brick it, it's only if you don't follow instructions carefully and end up bricking the phone when you flash with odin.

You could use SetCPU to adjust power consumtion via a profile.

 

[Quietlyawesome94]

Things you get from rooting:

Free tethering (Not the best unless you have unlimited data)
Custom Kernels (overclocking for better performance, undervolting for better battery)
Chainfire 3d (Play games meant only for Nvidia Tegra 2 CPU's on non-Tegra Devices)
Freeze useless carrier apps
Use a ps3 dualshock 3 controller with emulators

AFAIK you have to be pretty mentally disabled to brick a android device. TIP: Just read the directions carefully before applying what ever you are doing and you should be good!

 

[Kishu]

What are some recommended custom roms? If I overclock the phone, would there be a chance for the phone to overheat?

 

[CarbonX13]

What are some recommended custom roms? If I overclock the phone, would there be a chance for the phone to overheat?

The most popular custom ROM out there is definitely CyanogenMod. As far as I know, there isn't an official release for the Galaxy S II, but some developers might be looking at porting it from another device.

As for overclocking via custom kernels, there is a possibility for your phone to overheat if you're not careful. If you use SetCPU, you should be able to find out the appropriate minimum and maximum clock speeds without risking damage to your device.

 

[ProtoKun7]

Free tethering (Not the best unless you have unlimited data)

G S II comes on Gingerbread, where tethering is natively supported anyway.

Anyway, I have a Galaxy S II as well and mine's rooted, with no trouble. It's worth it; on a day to day level the advantages include using AdFree to block ads in some apps I use, for example.

 

[Kishu]

What is tethering?

 

[Holified 2x]

sharing your mobile internet wit Pc or game console

 

[Terminator02]

Free tethering (Not the best unless you have unlimited data)

G S II comes on Gingerbread, where tethering is natively supported anyway.

Anyway, I have a Galaxy S II as well and mine's rooted, with no trouble. It's worth it; on a day to dtay level the advantages include using AdFree to block ads in some apps I use, for example.

Tethering has been natively supported in android since froyo, all carriers remove it and put in a tethering app from which they can tell you are using the phone for tethering (which they make you pay more for)

The only way you get the native tethering app is through a custom rom or an unlocked phone

 

[Fear Zoa]

Its worth noting that pretty much all roms, kernels, and exploits come from XDA

 

[Kishu]

I've read that you can edit themes, like editing their XML files or something like that.

What does editing the theme change?

 

[Terminator02]

I've read that you can edit themes, like editing their XML files or something like that.

What does editing the theme change?

Transitions, the notification bar and icons on it, the standard android pop up notifications and menu

 

[Kishu]

Are themes difficult to edit/make?

Thanks for answering my questions, I think this will be the last one!