Must have apps. - Captivate General

I'm not sure if this post is allowed, but I'll try anyways.
I will give some slight background here, just to prove I'm not a complete moron.
So, I started with the Nokia 6131 unlocked in 2003 or 2004. Since then, I've owned countless Nokia phones. Always getting the next best thing from them. Never had issues until my n97 escapade. I'm sure everyone know how fun that was. So I went to the iPhone, but got real bored with the operating system. Took 3 months to jump ship from the iPhone. Now, this is my first android phone and I am excited as hell, but I have no clue what I need!
I've downloaded some novelty type apps (foxnews, espn, star map, etc.) but I'm not sure what utility apps I need.
I've already downloaded prolaunch beta and home switcher. What else is there? I know there are some battery saver apps, plus some task killer apps, but i'm not sure which are the best, or i'm not sure what else I need to make sure my phone runs top notch.
Please, help a first timer feel what it is like to have a completely amazing and open phone!

lol ofc its allowed. I'd post it in the "Captivate Themes and Apps" division instead of general chat next time lol. Im in the same boat as this guy. What can everyone recommend getting from the get go?

oh yea, there is a board for that huh?
Could this be moved, or deleted? I forgot about that.

i havnt seen any admins around for that yet. Might as well keep this posted here. When an admin drops by then can move this to the right place .

I'm going to place around with the stock phone for a little while, and then I'd heading into the marketplace and installing LauncherPro and QuckDesk.

I like the stock one, but the launcher pro just seems a bit cleaner to me. Also, it is less laggy (but that could be because i have far less widgets open now.)
I need something to help optimize battery life. What is a good android battery saver program?

Related

Terrible.

After a week with this phone my general consensus is that it works terribly.
First, let me say the hardware is great and the industrial design, the look, is top notch and the only reason I still have the phone.
HTC has really made this phone bad and AT&T hasn't helped by not letting us put our own rom on it to fix the major issues.
Firstly, Gmail push email only works when it wants to work. This is a 2007 issue that's been solved for half a decade.
When I leave my house and I try to use data, the phone shows as still being connected to my WiFi and therefore no data will work. So I have to manually turn wifi off.
Multitasking? Yea right. At first I was puzzled as to why after switching back to an app it would restart. Was the phone running out of RAM? Doesn't it have 1GB? Turns out it's a software thing. Again, multitasking was an issue solved in 2007.
These are the only major issues with this device, and they are major because it affects me multiple times a day.
If this phone didn't have great hardware and look awesome I would have returned it the same day.
The fact that these issues can all be solved by flashing another rom gives me hope that this will someday be a useable device.
Just needed to rant.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium
We didn't need that rant
Well. I feel better after I wrote it
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium
I have to admit: the multitasking thing really bothers me. I can't duplicate it on my Gnex and that alone makes me wonder about this phone. It seems to go against everything Android stands for. If I wanted a phone that saves states, I'd use my iPhone.
Love the camera on this phone and the screen is amazing. I love some of Sense's customizations such as the Facebook and Twitter integration in contacts, but they seem to have kind of ruined ICS. My GSM Gnex got just as good battery life with full blown multitasking.
greyhulk said:
I have to admit: the multitasking thing really bothers me. I can't duplicate it on my Gnex and that alone makes me wonder about this phone. It seems to go against everything Android stands for. If I wanted a phone that saves states, I'd use my iPhone.
Love the camera on this phone and the screen is amazing. I love some of Sense's customizations such as the Facebook and Twitter integration in contacts, but they seem to have kind of ruined ICS. My GSM Gnex got just as good battery life with full blown multitasking.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you know if we would use cm7 or any other custom rom that we would be able to multitask properly? That is bothering me as well. It keeps reloading everything. If the hardware wasnt so nice, it would have gone back already.
I would imagine so. I think Sense is prematurely killing apps to save memory.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium
seriously??
its obviously whatever they set as the default mem manager and how aggresive they set it, probably to do with the scheduler too
i can replicate that behaviour on my cappy by adjusting mem manager to aggresive....so..i wouldnt fault the phone. theyll either adjust it in an update due to feedback, or we can just control it ourselves once we are all on a custom rom.
you shoulda known this if youve ever run any sort of custom rom....one would think. but now you do....so fret no you must young padiwan, good things coming they are, wait you must.
ptesmoke said:
seriously??
its obviously whatever they set as the default mem manager and how aggresive they set it, probably to do with the scheduler too
i can replicate that behaviour on my cappy by adjusting mem manager to aggresive....so..i wouldnt fault the phone. theyll either adjust it in an update due to feedback, or we can just control it ourselves once we are all on a custom rom.
you shoulda known this if youve ever run any sort of custom rom....one would think. but now you do....so fret no you must young padiwan, good things coming they are, wait you must.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have no doubt that something like Cyanogenmod would resolve this, but I don't want to install a custom rom and shouldn't have to. The phone should work correctly without hacking it.
From the few responses I have seen from HTC reps that users have contacted, they don't seem to think this is a problem. They claim this is "how multitasking is intended to function". That tells me a fix will not be forthcoming.
Bigjim1488 said:
We didn't need that rant
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
we really didnt. Seeing that there is a shortage of the same rants on the forum right now.
greyhulk said:
I have no doubt that something like Cyanogenmod would resolve this, but I don't want to install a custom rom and shouldn't have to. The phone should work correctly without hacking it.
From the few responses I have seen from HTC reps that users have contacted, they don't seem to think this is a problem. They claim this is "how multitasking is intended to function". That tells me a fix will not be forthcoming.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not trying to troll, but how do so many people that want to run stock end up on xda lol? I love the hacking & experimenting aspect of Android. That being said, I don't really see any problems with the multi-tasking outside of the browser reloading so much (I've been using Firefox more anyway & it works fine). My galaxy nexus wasn't that much better either. Could htc have done a better job? Sure, probably. But the phone is pretty impressive, multi-tasking issues aside.
sdotkdot said:
I'm not trying to troll, but how do so many people that want to run stock end up on xda lol? I love the hacking & experimenting aspect of Android. That being said, I don't really see any problems with the multi-tasking outside of the browser reloading so much (I've been using Firefox more anyway & it works fine). My galaxy nexus wasn't that much better either. Could htc have done a better job? Sure, probably. But the phone is pretty impressive, multi-tasking issues aside.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You may have noticed (or not, depending on how observant you are) that not every post on here is about hacking, modding, and rooting. Some people actually come here to talk about the phones, report bugs, compare notes, ask questions, etc.
Multitasking is much worse than a browser refresh. Start up Pandora or Slacker and let them run in the background. They will die. Start a game and then open a few other apps and come back to the game and it will completely reload and lose all progress. This is not how Android multitasking is supposed to work.
And I'm sorry, but waiting for a custom rom to make this phone work correctly is like buying a Macbook Air, getting nonstop kernel panics and hoping that someone will release a version of Linux that you can install on it to make it run correctly.
greyhulk said:
You may have noticed (or not, depending on how observant you are) that not every post on here is about hacking, modding, and rooting. Some people actually come here to talk about the phones, report bugs, compare notes, ask questions, etc.
Multitasking is much worse than a browser refresh. Start up Pandora or Slacker and let them run in the background. They will die. Start a game and then open a few other apps and come back to the game and it will completely reload and lose all progress. This is not how Android multitasking is supposed to work.
And I'm sorry, but waiting for a custom rom to make this phone work correctly is like buying a Macbook Air, getting nonstop kernel panics and hoping that someone will release a version of Linux that you can install on it to make it run correctly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do understand that there are plenty of non-development threads given that this is in "general". Nobody is making you keep the phone and wait for a fix either. But you are right, it is a vital function of the phone and you would expect it to perform as it's supposed to. Every phone I've owned has had some kind of flaw or quirk and the developers here do an awesome job fixing them as well as making the phone better in almost every aspect fairly quickly.
*Edit - So after thinking about it, I realized that I haven't really used the multi-tasking feature all that much and decided to put it through some tests. Apparently it does suck lol so I apologize ...using home to exit current app then going back to a previously used app via the launcher does work a little better, but there is definitely some work to be done
Rants are good. Gets the word out on issues that hopefully get resolved.
At least be accurate with your rant. From a little googling the Tmobile G1 was release in 2008 and Gmail push was released in 2009, not 2007.
I have never really understand why htc...spend money make their own sense android... and they know people will try anything to get aosp back...
also those people who has galaxy nexus and tries to port sense...UI....god...they must have time....
I went to a store to try this device tonight. The hardware and screen are simply awesome. Sense even looks nice and the UI was lightning quick. It is really disappointing that basic things like WiFi-3G handoff and multitasking are not working right...things I've taken for granted for awhile on CyanogenMod. I agree with others, I was hoping to not have to mess with custom ROMs at all, by now it should just work great out of the box. Now I have to monitor the software situation here and compare to the SGSIII when it's released.
niceppl said:
I have never really understand why htc...spend money make their own sense android... and they know people will try anything to get aosp back...
also those people who has galaxy nexus and tries to port sense...UI....god...they must have time....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the grass is always greener...
---------- Post added at 10:16 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:13 PM ----------
Firstly, Gmail push email only works when it wants to work. This is a 2007 issue that's been solved for half a decade.
-> gmail works fine for me. i get notifications as soon as i get an email sent.
When I leave my house and I try to use data, the phone shows as still being connected to my WiFi and therefore no data will work. So I have to manually turn wifi off.
->have you tried using the newer version of stock, it has wifi fixes, ive had this issue one time, but not again.
Multitasking? Yea right. At first I was puzzled as to why after switching back to an app it would restart. Was the phone running out of RAM? Doesn't it have 1GB? Turns out it's a software thing. Again, multitasking was an issue solved in 2007.
-> never had any multitasking problem but people complain about it a lot.
on the other side....hehe
Multitasking is the only system/device problem that everyone has. I have zero wifi issues and zero push issues. Not everyone got stuck with a buggy One X. Just sayin.
Sent from my HTC One X using XDA

Skyrocket first time user coming from iPhone!

Hey guys, I've been using the iPhone since 2007 when they first came out and now I'm putting down my 4S and switching over to the Skyrocket and i'm very excited to do so. I've been on this forum reading up for a couple weeks now trying to familiarize myself with the modding etc. My phone should be coming in today so I have a couple quick questions.
First off, I really want to skip gingerbread and goto ICS but I have never learned an android phone and the workings but it shouldn't take me too long to get used to it. Should I keep GB a while and get used to it then make the switch?
Second, I was thinking about going straight to SKY ICS but it looks like it's not 100% worked out and I do want a fully functioning phone. Should I flash to SKY or pick another more stable build of ICS?
Any suggestions would be great!
I always come back to GB. All the Ics are pretty stable, but I like my bln, kernel tweaks, and 100% working.
There is also a small possibility that the Ics leaks are causing bricks. None that I know of for the skyrocket yet, though. They have been having problems with the note and various other models.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using Tapatalk 2
from just the pure OS's workings i think ICS would be easier to get used to. though samsungs stock ICS doesn't look all that different from gingerbread.
None of the ICS ROMS are 100% stable but a lot work really well and have mostly everything (aside from a few small bugs) working perfect.
I'd say read around for about a week or so on the exact procedure on how to root, install cwm, install roms, and ect. Then when you are more comfortable working with the software and your phone go ahead and flash.
As far as which rom, SKYICS is very fast and very stable, just about as good as you can get with the stock samsung ICS. and it has various speed tweaks as well as S Voice (Like Siri but not as good) from the Galaxy S3 and also the TouchwizUX Launcher.
Theres also CM9 (Which I use) Which, instead of being samsungs ICS, it looks exactly like Stock Google ICS (The one that comes with the Galaxy Nexus)
It is also very fast, and looks amazing, i think much better than samsungs ICS.
And you can also get TouchwizUX and S Voice on CM9 once you get settled in with android and learn how to move apks.
All in all. its up to you. Do some reading for a while, learn everything you can, and then Try as many roms as you like and see what works good for you.
Both are great replies thanks guys. I definitely need to play around with some of the tools and familiarize myself with everything. I need to find the best backup programs/music programs/ etc and get used to those. I have all my contacts from my iPhone synced with Google contacts so I should be able to sync it with my Skyrocket once it comes in. I really would like S-Voice so I'll most likely go straight to SKY ICS once I get better with the phone, I don't want to eff anything up. The iPhone was pie to jailbreak. It looks like there's a bit more things involved with the android phone in terms of rooting/permissions/flashing and so forth. Will have to dig deeper. I've read the noob guide but it doesn't make a ton of sense until I get the phone in my hand lol.
Kevinl86 said:
Both are great replies thanks guys. I definitely need to play around with some of the tools and familiarize myself with everything. I need to find the best backup programs/music programs/ etc and get used to those. I have all my contacts from my iPhone synced with Google contacts so I should be able to sync it with my Skyrocket once it comes in. I really would like S-Voice so I'll most likely go straight to SKY ICS once I get better with the phone, I don't want to eff anything up. The iPhone was pie to jailbreak. It looks like there's a bit more things involved with the android phone in terms of rooting/permissions/flashing and so forth. Will have to dig deeper. I've read the noob guide but it doesn't make a ton of sense until I get the phone in my hand lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Titanium backup, poweramp, root explorer.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using Tapatalk 2
Kevinl86 said:
Hey guys, I've been using the iPhone since 2007 when they first came out and now I'm putting down my 4S and switching over to the Skyrocket and i'm very excited to do so.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i too am quite happy with the galaxy s2! my wife still uses the iphone4, i call it her "fisher price first touch screen"... makes her so mad.
^ Haha good stuff! Me and my lady are both on 4S right now until my Skyrocket comes in. She is upset I'm getting a new phone already but she will be jealous I'm sure and want one after she plays around with it.
Kevinl86 said:
^ Haha good stuff! Me and my lady are both on 4S right now until my Skyrocket comes in. She is upset I'm getting a new phone already but she will be jealous I'm sure and want one after she plays around with it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dunno, a lot of girls can't give up their iCrap. They just love 'em to death
xcrazydx said:
I dunno, a lot of girls can't give up their iCrap. They just love 'em to death
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah and I used to be one of those fanboys, I got her into the iPhone. I just think it's time to graduate into something an adult should use and isn't so locked down. I'm getting tired of squinting at the damn 3.5" screen and having to follow apples rules.
Kevinl86 said:
Yeah and I used to be one of those fanboys, I got her into the iPhone. I just think it's time to graduate into something an adult should use and isn't so locked down. I'm getting tired of squinting at the damn 3.5" screen and having to follow apples rules.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Me too. Didn't know what I was missing. For the girls, it's more of a fashion statement, I think.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using Tapatalk 2
xcrazydx said:
Me too. Didn't know what I was missing. For the girls, it's more of a fashion statement, I think.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I'd have to agree with you there. She LOVES her white 4**** to death haha.
I used to have an iPhone and I do like the app ecosystem better, and it does look more polished. But the skyrocket beats it in everything else I can think of. But yeah. Being in high school the iPhone is more of a flashy accessory... everyone thinks iPhones the best. Until I show them what the skyrocket can do of course ;P
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium
wizdum69 said:
i too am quite happy with the galaxy s2! my wife still uses the iphone4, i call it her "fisher price first touch screen"... makes her so mad.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LoL that's a good one. I usually refer to it as a smartphone with training wheels.
My wife calls it her Ipaid. But welcome to Droid.
My fiance wanted to pick up the 4s, I showed her the Note and it is has been love since then. I do not think I could go to an OS that does not allow modding, that would be my only hang up with switching to an iOS device for my phone.
Kevinl86 said:
Hey guys, I've been using the iPhone since 2007 when they first came out and now I'm putting down my 4S and switching over to the Skyrocket and i'm very excited to do so. I've been on this forum reading up for a couple weeks now trying to familiarize myself with the modding etc. My phone should be coming in today so I have a couple quick questions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm glad you finally came to your senses...
Welcome to Android.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using XDA
Kevinl86 said:
I have a couple quick questions.
First off, I really want to skip gingerbread and goto ICS but I have never learned an android phone and the workings but it shouldn't take me too long to get used to it. Should I keep GB a while and get used to it then make the switch?
Second, I was thinking about going straight to SKY ICS but it looks like it's not 100% worked out and I do want a fully functioning phone. Should I flash to SKY or pick another more stable build of ICS?
Any suggestions would be great!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I came from the iPhone 4 about 6 weeks ago and immediately started digging around on the web for info on Android and landed here.
I stuck with 100% stock for about a week before taking the plunge into rooting. Did a lot of reading on here because I didn't understand the terminology (CWM, Flash, TiBU, ODIN, et. al). Once I felt comfortable, I went through the process and had no issues.
Ran like that for a couple of weeks, but the dev section drew me in. Before long I was researching ROMs, and gravitated to SkyICS UCLE4. Read about 20 pages into that thread before chickening out.
THEN I found the ICS 4.0.4 ODIN one-click thread. More reading.... Decided to go for it. Held my breath, re-read the instructions for the 50th time and clicked start.
Worked perfectly. No glitches in the process, no "wth did I just do?"
So I ran with that for another week, but that SkyICS thread was getting bigger, with people raving about battery life and smoothness... like a moth to a flame.
So I spent three days reading all 190+ pages in that thread (or whatever it's up to now).
Just last night, decided to go for it with base 3, update 7 of SkyICS.
I've almost memorized the instructions, BUT it paid off. My SR is running Seanz ROM and I couldn't be more happy with it. Nailed it on the first try - no glitches, no reflash, no problems other than setting the lockscreen wallpaper, which I couldn't give two rats' sh**s in the rain about - and its a known problem anyway. Who cares.
My first suggestion (and one that's repeated ad nauseum here) is read, read, read. Take it slow. Read the instructions for whatever you want to do repeatedly until you really get it.
My "n00b" advice: Get the phone, tinker with it, set it up how you like it, then research how to root it and back it up (your apps, your data, your entire ROM). Make multiple, off-phone backups in case you fudge something. Then learn how to restore. Then TEST restoring to your backups. That's your first hurdle!
Once you have that confidence in your backup & restore process, you'll feel a lot better about looking at the ROMs available and picking the one to suit your needs. Read the feed back, make mental notes, and decide whether the risk is worth it to you.
Personally, I owe seanscreamz a beer or three.
Good luck!
(sorry for the book, but hey, it's my first post here.)
taranis17 said:
I came from the iPhone 4 about 6 weeks ago and immediately started digging around on the web for info on Android and landed here.
I stuck with 100% stock for about a week before taking the plunge into rooting. Did a lot of reading on here because I didn't understand the terminology (CWM, Flash, TiBU, ODIN, et. al). Once I felt comfortable, I went through the process and had no issues.
Ran like that for a couple of weeks, but the dev section drew me in. Before long I was researching ROMs, and gravitated to SkyICS UCLE4. Read about 20 pages into that thread before chickening out.
THEN I found the ICS 4.0.4 ODIN one-click thread. More reading.... Decided to go for it. Held my breath, re-read the instructions for the 50th time and clicked start.
Worked perfectly. No glitches in the process, no "wth did I just do?"
So I ran with that for another week, but that SkyICS thread was getting bigger, with people raving about battery life and smoothness... like a moth to a flame.
So I spent three days reading all 190+ pages in that thread (or whatever it's up to now).
Just last night, decided to go for it with base 3, update 7 of SkyICS.
I've almost memorized the instructions, BUT it paid off. My SR is running Seanz ROM and I couldn't be more happy with it. Nailed it on the first try - no glitches, no reflash, no problems other than setting the lockscreen wallpaper, which I couldn't give two rats' sh**s in the rain about - and its a known problem anyway. Who cares.
My first suggestion (and one that's repeated ad nauseum here) is read, read, read. Take it slow. Read the instructions for whatever you want to do repeatedly until you really get it.
My "n00b" advice: Get the phone, tinker with it, set it up how you like it, then research how to root it and back it up (your apps, your data, your entire ROM). Make multiple, off-phone backups in case you fudge something. Then learn how to restore. Then TEST restoring to your backups. That's your first hurdle!
Once you have that confidence in your backup & restore process, you'll feel a lot better about looking at the ROMs available and picking the one to suit your needs. Read the feed back, make mental notes, and decide whether the risk is worth it to you.
Personally, I owe seanscreamz a beer or three.
Good luck!
(sorry for the book, but hey, it's my first post here.)[/QUOT
I think this story is true for most new android owners who want to do more with their phones. But, like it's only scary the first time. Not to worry it's easy and most of the time painless. Once you have taken the plunge you will be hooked. And like the millions of other flash junkies around the world.... We welcome you. Addiction may require professional treatment.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow thanks guys this is a ton of helpful info! Can't wait to get the phone today and start tinkering. Ive been reading a TON since Monday about everything android so I'm very excited.
Welcome to Android! Thank goodness you don't have to use that dreadful iTunes anymore. Remember, you can change your launcher if you don't like the UI, I use launcher pro, but if you go ICS, try apex launcher. I use the Dragon Go plugin that you can get through the Swype beta( beta.Swype.com) for my SIRI, but there are others. Learn how to install the URL]http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1367396 14 Toggle Status Bar. Buy an external battery charger that comes with a couple batteries from Amazon for like $15 bucks, and finally, learn about widgets, your best friend. Good luck!
Sent from my SGH-I727R using xda premium

[OPINIONS] Reasons to keep this S4

I was an Android early adopter and I've carried 6 or 7 different Android phones. After having stability and battery issues with every droid I touched, I jumped ship and have been happily on a jailbroken iPhone the last two years. I felt like tinkering and I haven't touched a droid since they went to multi-core CPU's, so I got an S4. Had some problems that could probably be fixed by flashing Cyanogenmod, but I was so disgusted with yet another Android phone that came to me broken out of the box that I just put it back and was planning to throw it back at AT&T. I've been thinking on it though, and I still really want to play with it, but at this point I'm just risking getting stuck with it if something goes wrong and I can't get it to flash back to stock.
So remind someone who's been away from Android since 2.3, what's out there that makes this better than my 2 year old iPhone 4S? Any other iOS converts care to share what I'm missing? From what I've seen, the battery life is worse, the stability is questionable, and the responsiveness and speed are about the same. As far as apps themselves go, seems like anything on one can be found on the other. Why bother switching from a stable phone?
I'd also be curious if anyone has successfully flashed from the Cyanogenmod Stable back to stock. I've spent enough hours of my life frantically researching flashing issues while my phone is a brick to not risk flashing this phone while I'm still on the fence about keeping it.
Thanks for any input, and please no one scream at me for liking something different than you. I like my iPhone because I can trust it, I don't begrudge anyone else for what they use.
All these questions can be answered with ofsearch at XDA. Please read and follow the rules. We have about a thousand of these already here at XDA. Not to be a jerk but these type of posts clutter XDA when simply sitting down with a cup of joe and reading the forums on a Sunday morning will make for much learning and interest... :good::laugh:

[Q] Will a new ROM be all I ever dreamed of....?

Hi all! I'm a noob to the site and a noob to smartphone modifications, so please forgive me for my questions and concerns. I've used forums for years on many topics and found the knowledge base to be incredible, so I hope you guys will help me out, too.
So, while my Skyrocket has generally worked very well for the past 2+ years, I have always felt it's not living up to its potential. I've read numerous threads on many forums to see what my fellow Rocketeers were doing. I think I've come to the conclusion that flashing a new ROM is the way to go, but I am a bit wary since I've never done this nor know anyone who has. My thinking goes along the same lines as my experience with computers... If you buy a Dell, HP, etc., you get the garbage that the manufacturer bundles in along with Windows. If you wipe the HD and install your own clean copy of Windows, you can usually get better performance without all that other stuff. Hence, the idea for a new ROM for the phone.
A few things have me wondering, though... There seem to be more ROMs available than flavors of Linux! I know choice will end up being a personal thing. My goal is really simple... I just want a clean OS that is stable, efficient, and runs the basic functions I am accustomed to. So, I am not looking to experiment or push the envelope. I want a phone that doesn't crash at the worst possible time, and one that can actually make phone calls! I assume that I will still be able to use the Google Play store to download apps (after installing the plugin thingy). My phone is from AT&T and is unlocked. Will it say unlocked after flashing a new ROM? Will Visual Voicemail still work? I occasionally use FoxFi to create a mobile hotspot. Will I still be able to use it? Or do other ROMs already have this feature unlocked (or bypassed)? I use apps on my phone mostly for email (Yahho/Gmail), calendar, FB, Instagram, YouTube, taking photos/video, viewing forums, and the like, besides making phone calls. In other words, what should I expect from a new ROM? How will things be different? I'm really trying to gauge if this is a worthwhile endeavor for me.
Sorry for the long post. I appreciate your opinions and experience.
It's always worthwhile.
The Skyrocket, to me, was always a case of OEM software that limited its potential. If you really sit down and tweak it, custom ROM, new governor, overclock, it's a beast of a phone that can still keep pace today. You'll have to balance performance with battery life--overclocking and switching to a more aggressive governor doesn't do you any favors there, and some ROMs are better about battery life than others. It's a great phone with a lot of life left, though, much more so than the vanilla S2 because the Rocket has LTE capability.
To hit your other questions, any app that is available on the Play Store will work. If a ROM needs a second gapps flash to get the Play Store (along with everything else Google ships) back, that will be made available and is a very easy install. I've never unlocked a phone, but I don't believe that a new ROM would lose that. Wait for someone else to reply, but I'd be shocked if it did. As far as what you want, there's a ROM to suit any desires. Most ROMs are pretty basic and look and feel like you'd expect a Skyrocket to. Some are designed to feel a little more like iOS, some are designed to be stripped-down (and faster as a result), and some are based on stock firmware and very closely replicate the original experience. It's up to you to read through the dev forum for the Rocket and pick the experience that's best for you.
As far as how difficult it is, spend a couple hours reading about flashing, how it works and why it works. Once you have that basic understanding of it and can follow a few simple instructions that are pretty universal across ROMs, you're set.
Well, I'm giving this a try tonight. Fingers crossed!
One piece of advice: when you pick a new rom from "Android development" read the WHOLE thread associated with that rom, with special attention the the first couple of pages. Make sure you understand the process and any potential pitfalls.
First rom I tried I spent probably six hours reading. It was worth it.
Success!!! I now have the latest CandyKat running! It ended up being not too bad at all. Now I need to figure out how things are different from the AT&T Jelly Bean this replaces.
Thanks for the advice and thanks to everyone who contributes to the site,
I have Kandykat. It seems to be a good solid rom. The Google Now launcher is buggy though. I changed to Nova launcher. Other than that it's been fine.
Thanks for the tips, Chris. I've been using Launcher3. What's the difference between these launchers? Everything seems to be running fine on my rocket now. Any tips on increasing battery life? Any tips on some nice customization?
Google Now launcher seems to have the annoying habit of forgetting the screen setup (app positioning) during reboot. Launcher 3 also exhibited the same problem. Launchers are a matter of taste, but Nova launcher seems solid and looks right to me. YMMV. It's easy to try a few.

Explain the best plan to a 5 year old

Hey guys!
I finally started using my 2 Shield Tablets again, one I was running Ubuntu and Blisspop and the other was just stock. I wanted to keep one of them stock but it seems with the lag that it's absolutely useless and the updates completely curbed my tablet, even though lollypop was kind of pushing it out too.
So the time has come to give a fresh set of OS to my babies. I have a few questions and I hope some of the more seasoned guys here can point me in the right direction.
I'm basically looking for speed and battery life. I don't play games on my tablets and I actually used Ubuntu as a decent laptop sometimes.
I'd like to know with the late-2016 development in the tablet, what route I should take for an almost bare bones (Internet/Chrome, YouTube, Playstore, Music Player, File reader) level of Android that's also quick. Back on my painfully slow S2 HD LTE, I used Slimkat with a black theme and that increased my battery by probably 30% and the phone was actually useful for once. I'm hoping to kind of go that same route, but also use a dual boot for one of them, this one doesn't have to be as quick on Android.
Thanks for reading! Sorry for asking but I feel it'd be easier for you guys to just pass on the knowledge rather than me shovelling through 80 different roms, all pretty in their own way.

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