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[Q] Should I consider a custom ROM yet?

So I'm looking over the current options and right now it's not really looking like it's promising. I have my Galaxy S3 rooted and with the help of tools like TitantiumBackup I've managed to clean up the stock ROM pretty well. Another thing of note is I actually get some surprisingly good sound quality out of my SGS3. I realize the US models aren't supposed to have the Wolfson DAC, but somehow mine sounds absolutely incredible with no noise that I can hear or anything (it's enough that I've been wondering if Samsung might have slipped the Wolfson into this one and perhaps there is variance in the DACs actually being used.) It even drives my headphones (modified HD555s -- basically you can consider them to be like the HD595s since of course I did the foam mod, but with the soundstage mod and a custom cable they're actually a bit better possibly) extremely well. It's worth noting that I have frozen the built in equalizer or whatever it was that I thought seemed like it was meant to mess with the sound (I like my devices to produce a relatively neutral sound.) Despite some complaints out there, I actually like the sound out from my US model SGS3 better than things like my Cowon D2 (which, btw, has a Wolfson DAC) and don't even use my CMoy (which has an AD8620 OPAMP that makes it sound far better than a typical OPA2132 CMoy IMO at only the cost of a bit of battery life) which I love the sound of because to me it sounds amazing on its own.
I only mention all of this because while I'm not a true audiophile per se, quality is of extreme importance to me all the same and I'm reading of issues with sound in the current custom ROMs which is not something I'm ok with. I want it to continue to sound this amazing. The idea of losing sound quality with a custom ROM bothers me. I like the idea of a few of the updates like Project Butter (though it's worth noting that mine does run fairly smoothly since I keep the number of programs running all the time as minimal as I can) and I really like the idea of having a custom ROM where I could maybe tweak more things (perhaps including better battery life options like maybe a better CPU governor built in? It drives me crazy how much my phone can run down over just a few hours while the screen is off even with SetCPU set to set the CPU to 384MHz and switch to the powersave governer with WiFi and mobile data both disabled and me not receiving any calls or texts.) For that matter, even while on it's not helping as much as it seems like it should, but I can't help but to notice that there are some more advanced CPU governors that I don't seem to have as an option and I wonder if perhaps a custom ROM could even help there as well. Plus I just plain like being able to tweak more things to my exact preferences instead and again a custom ROM helps. But, if I have to give up that sound quality that's a big problem. I think also it might be a problem to lose the camera. I don't use it a lot, but every now and then I really do kind of want to have it. Especially it would absolutely suck to lose the ability to scan QR codes or to have to do so via the front camera, but every now and then I do take some actual photos to share.
So my question is, have any of the custom ROM options out there reached that level of stability and quality to actually be worth updating and without losing those two things? The SGS3 has been out a fair while now, so it's hard for me to believe that there hasn't been a bit more progress along these lines, but I realize that it's no simple process to create a custom ROM all the same. (In fact, I only think more progress would have been made than what I've read thus far because the SGS3 is just so very popular. If it had been a less popular phone I wouldn't necessarily expect that much, but between its features, hardware, and etc, it's a pretty popular phone.) I want all the benefits of a custom ROM, but what I've read so far of them says to me that it's just not worth the trouble. Once I find one that really works I kind of want to stick to it as much as I can as I have a lot of apps installed and configured just so for my preferences. It sounds like I'm going to have to wait a good while yet though. Or have any of the custom ROMs finally "gotten there yet"?

ive been using CM10 roms for daily use and tehy do everything i need them to do without any limitations.
i suggest you make a nandroid of all your current setup and play with some custom roms. you can always revert back if you dont liek it or cant configure them match your usage. it made my S3 experience much better, btu everyone is dfferent.
---------- Post added at 08:08 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:07 PM ----------
there are also sound mods and stuff that are accessible with ROMs. ive never tried them but some people swear by them

You don't have any sound issues of any kind? Does the rear camera work perfectly?
BTW, I don't want any sound mod that actually changes the sound. I want it to basically leave the sound alone and produce it as well as it can without modification. None of that Beats or whatever like some do (I think that was what HTC was pushing?)

beats is a sound thing, yeah. it hink its just an equalizer though. i have used audio through headphone jack and over bluetooth to my headphones and the quality is fine for me. im not an audiophile though. it all kinda sounds the same to me lol
the only sound issues i have with my ROM are after flash some sounds do not function until you slide the volume slider from 100 to 0 then to 100 again. Its these types of quirks that come with custom rom sometimes.
my camera is working perfectly. its not as good as the touchwiz one however.
edit: heres a sound mod that might/might not interest you
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1883262
long as you do a nandroid you can always revvert back to your preferred current setup. you should also backup your IMEI

There are roms that are optimized stock. Maybe CleanRom. Don't think he adds sound mods but may be wrong. You may have used app to underclock CPU and it shows UC but probably not actually working on stock kernel as clocking must be enabled on kernel. Know this is true with overclocking.

I actually prefer to avoid all sound modifications whatsoever. Even equalizer. I like the results of a relatively neutral sound being fed to these headphones, it comes out just perfect for me. That's part of what I was worried about as some of the custom ROMs sometimes try to have stuff like that built in (and I guess that equalizer or whatever it was was Samsung or Verizon kind of doing that in the stock ROM even.)
About the camera, I actually have a commercial camera app anyway. If the only problem people have been having was the built-in app, that's a non-issue.
What's this about sounds not working until you go to zero and back though? Does this interfere with anything such as receiving phone calls (eg does it sometimes not ring because the sound isn't playing?)
BTW, where do I actually find the "official" CM10 for this phone?

no the sound works all the time after the adjustment. it takes 2 secodns to do. open volume, slide them all to 100, then all to 0, then all to 100 again.
http://get.cm/?device=d2vzw&type=snapshot
i think that these M builds are the monthyl most stable ones.

Personally I'm waiting for something built on the official VZW JB release. And yes I know I have months to wait... :-\
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda app-developers app

There is no DAC from Wolfson but yes it sounds kick ass! Qualcom is a beast! There S4 chip is there pride and joy so they didn't want to lag behind when it comes to quality audio! God does it sound so much better then my galaxy nexus. Qualcom is making the best arm chips right now. Can't wait to see how insane the 4 core S4 is!
I COMPLETELY AGREE WITH MY FELLOW MEMBERS WHEN IT COMES TO AVOIDING ALL THOSE STUPID AUDIO MODS LIKE BEATS AND SOME OTHERS OUT THERE. THEY SUCK AND DISTORT THE AUDIO!
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium

ddurandSGS3 said:
no the sound works all the time after the adjustment. it takes 2 secodns to do. open volume, slide them all to 100, then all to 0, then all to 100 again.
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Ah, have I misunderstood? Do you just mean it only needs this to be done after the initial flash of the custom firmware itself? That's definitely no big deal at all...
prdog1 said:
There are roms that are optimized stock. Maybe CleanRom. Don't think he adds sound mods but may be wrong. You may have used app to underclock CPU and it shows UC but probably not actually working on stock kernel as clocking must be enabled on kernel. Know this is true with overclocking.
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Well, I want to try to do this just once or at least no more than minor updates after this hopefully, so if I'm going to go ahead I want to go ahead and go straight to Jelly Bean.
I think SetCPU wouldn't be sold as only requiring root access to do its work if it required a custom kernel. It probably just works with the internal power management features that should be built in more or less by default.
mike216 said:
There is no DAC from Wolfson but yes it sounds kick ass! Qualcom is a beast! There S4 chip is there pride and joy so they didn't want to lag behind when it comes to quality audio! God does it sound so much better then my galaxy nexus.
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Interesting... I do definitely wonder why some people have complained about hearing noise and such then. Perhaps a bad setting and/or that MusicFX app (finally had time to dig through the list to find out what exactly it was called and that's the one that I just assumed was probably an equalizer/effects processing thing that would modify the sound, but honestly I never had any use for it even if it's not and never bothered to try it.) I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one who thinks that the US SGS3 actually sounds good. I was beginning to wonder if my ears were maybe just getting that bad somehow even though I'm still far pickier than everyone I personally know, lol.
Let me ask you this, is the so called "Voodoo Mod" any good at least? I was never clear on exactly what it was supposed to do for audio. I know things like Beats probably mostly rely on a bit of processing to increase bass and probably play with things like stereo separation or something, but I've never been clear on what that one was trying to do exactly other than that people claim it's actually an improvement for many devices.
Anyway, back on the topic at hand, I think I'm more or less convinced to at least go ahead and give CM10 a shot. I'll use that newer monthly build from earlier this month after clearing enough space to make a full backup. (Besides CWM's backup option I've already backed up my apps and settings using TitaniumBackup, so in a worst case scenario it shouldn't be too painful if things go wrong and I have to go all the way back to a stock image with a factory reset or something. Is that option in CWM the correct thing, or must I use something separate for a Nandroid backup?) Also, it may sound silly, but how exactly do I backup my IMEI? I was looking for that already upon digging through a large tutorial thread a while back and it seemed to require something I couldn't get to work (when I try the numbers mentioned in the dialer I don't get any hidden menus, just a dialtone. Other than that I could only find something about manually restoring it if it has been completely damaged or lost which wasn't a fun looking process.)

Nazo said:
I think SetCPU wouldn't be sold as only requiring root access to do its work if it required a custom kernel. It probably just works with the internal power management features that should be built in more or less by default.
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It is sold that way. Depends on the manufacturer of the device. On stock HTC kernel it will lock 2nd core at max speed, kill battery life and cause heating problems. That is why I said it may not work correctly and without another app to monitor CPU you don't know what it is doing. How it works with Samsung I wouldn't know as I run custom kernels when possible and don't worry about clocking on stock kernels as they are under performing already.

Don't restore system apps with titanium backup! Only data apps (apps from the market)
CM is great good choice. I love the theme engine CM10 has and all CM10 based roms.
I'll tell you a super easy way to backup your IMEI! Need Root!
Download (terminal emulator)
Enter these commands. su (hit enter)
reboot nvbackup (hit enter)
It will reboot and create the backup on a built in backup partition on your SD card. The only way you could delete the backup is if you formated your SD. Super easy I just hope it works lol....
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium

Two quick questions before I take the final plunge.
1. Is the CWM backup to external flash function sufficient, or do I need something further for a true backup? (It says "Nandroid" in one part, but otherwise I'm not sure if it's truly "Nandroid." It seems like it just backs up each individual file or something and I get the impression that Nandroid is more of an image of the firmware? If it isn't sufficient, what should I use?
EDIT: Found this tutorial. Basically that's what I've done except instead of bothering with Odin I used the EZ-Recovery app to flash CWM directly from the phone itself (along with EZ-Unlock 1.2 from here to unlock the bootloader) as per another tutorial. The other tutorial just didn't call it a "Nandroid" backup, so I wasn't sure.
2. If anything goes wrong, is there a stock ROM image I can use for the Verizon SCH-I535 with Odin? So far my searching has taken me to a site that practically has every stock ROM for the SGS3 but that one... (Or at least if it has that one I couldn't find it on there, which isn't saying much since every single region was listed separately...)

The best way to get recovery is to get the latest recovery from the man who's created them all from the very beginning.
Get rom manager and flash the latest straight from that app. You must make sure your bootloader is unlocked. If you took the latest OTA from Verizon it locked your bootloader.
As long as your unlocked and rooted you can go straight in rom manager and flash touch recovery especially for your Verizon galaxy s3.
I've been using the latest touch recovery on my D2tmo, nexus 7,galaxy nexus and Asus infinity and it's worked perfect.
Make a backup of your current rom for safety before flashing. You can create a backup and rename it to whatever you want straight from rom manager!
I personally wouldn't back up to the external. It might work fine but when it comes to backups I just go straight to the internal
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium
---------- Post added at 08:33 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:26 AM ----------
I soft bricked my phone because after taking the latest OTA it locked my bootloader! Recovered it fully from here
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1840030
I seen the take to your local Verizon store bla bla bla.
Got in download mode at 4am and recovered in 15 minutes.
I wish I had someone that knew what I now know and that's why I'm here to help my fellow members!
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium

Hehe, funny thing about that. It tried to automatically update without bothering to ask. I presume because I had the FWupdate app frozen (for I guess fairly obvious reasons) it utterly failed and then complained, then demanded that I update again after a while, giving me an option to defer it. (I never did figure out how to get it to stop pestering, but I guess that's a non-issue.) So I didn't ever get a locked bootloader simply because it failed to do what it was trying to do.
Anyway, I've installed CM10 and so far so good. Well, I gave myself a good scare by forgetting to do a factory reset (*sigh* I wish I didn't have to do that, but, after all, it's a significant change going from a highly modified VZW infested ICS to a cleaner custom Jelly Bean) and it sat there stuck on the boot logo until I reread the instructions and rebooted to fix it (at least CM doesn't wipe out the CWM recovery like the stock ROM does...) I still have a LOT to do to get everything all reinstalled and reconfigured. I'm not going to be able to finish it all tonight, so won't really be able to comment about the results of the switch until tomorrow I guess. It's not helping that it's taking absolutely forever to download the Google Play package and all (and then I get to redownload a lot of the apps, though hopefully TitaniumBackup can safely restore a lot of it.)
EDIT: BTW, is it just me or do they really REALLY need to provide basic info on how to do simple tasks like the actual installation process itself, installing Google Play, and etc? I'm no stranger to googling for info, but wow what a pain to figure this all out (especially it never occurred to me that the gapps zip would have to be installed using CWM. I thought it was for the firmwares themselves only, not them and apps...)
EDIT2: Oh wow. I had no idea how much work this was really going to be! I said before that a full ROM install is something I wanted to do once. Well, I definitely want to never do this again. I'm having to fight all sorts of things. Google didn't even want to recognize my phone at first despite successfully connecting my accounts and registered apps such as, oh, I don't know, Titanium Backup Pro just for instance weren't showing up as already purchased... -.- I think I finally got it all restored and they now properly show up as owned, but I've lost hours just fighting with all of these various things...
It also seems to have serious issues with my WiFi. I haven't figured out what is going on exactly, but it seems like I'm having to turn wifi off and on a bit to get it to properly connect again -- I've put in my password so many times I'm about to go absolutely insane (unfortunately, for various reasons I'm still stuck on WEP 128-bit, so I have to type in a large hexidecimal encryption key and I'm just about ready to go postal.) Hopefully once everything is finally all setup and configured all will be well, but at the moment I've lost a pretty good bit of sleep while fighting this and barely have it up and running. I probably should have waited for an off day to do this.

Nazo said:
Hehe, funny thing about that. It tried to automatically update without bothering to ask. I presume because I had the FWupdate app frozen (for I guess fairly obvious reasons) it utterly failed and then complained, then demanded that I update again after a while, giving me an option to defer it. (I never did figure out how to get it to stop pestering, but I guess that's a non-issue.) So I didn't ever get a locked bootloader simply because it failed to do what it was trying to do.
Anyway, I've installed CM10 and so far so good. Well, I gave myself a good scare by forgetting to do a factory reset (*sigh* I wish I didn't have to do that, but, after all, it's a significant change going from a highly modified VZW infested ICS to a cleaner custom Jelly Bean) and it sat there stuck on the boot logo until I reread the instructions and rebooted to fix it (at least CM doesn't wipe out the CWM recovery like the stock ROM does...) I still have a LOT to do to get everything all reinstalled and reconfigured. I'm not going to be able to finish it all tonight, so won't really be able to comment about the results of the switch until tomorrow I guess. It's not helping that it's taking absolutely forever to download the Google Play package and all (and then I get to redownload a lot of the apps, though hopefully TitaniumBackup can safely restore a lot of it.)
EDIT: BTW, is it just me or do they really REALLY need to provide basic info on how to do simple tasks like the actual installation process itself, installing Google Play, and etc? I'm no stranger to googling for info, but wow what a pain to figure this all out (especially it never occurred to me that the gapps zip would have to be installed using CWM. I thought it was for the firmwares themselves only, not them and apps...)
EDIT2: Oh wow. I had no idea how much work this was really going to be! I said before that a full ROM install is something I wanted to do once. Well, I definitely want to never do this again. I'm having to fight all sorts of things. Google didn't even want to recognize my phone at first despite successfully connecting my accounts and registered apps such as, oh, I don't know, Titanium Backup Pro just for instance weren't showing up as already purchased... -.- I think I finally got it all restored and they now properly show up as owned, but I've lost hours just fighting with all of these various things...
It also seems to have serious issues with my WiFi. I haven't figured out what is going on exactly, but it seems like I'm having to turn wifi off and on a bit to get it to properly connect again -- I've put in my password so many times I'm about to go absolutely insane (unfortunately, for various reasons I'm still stuck on WEP 128-bit, so I have to type in a large hexidecimal encryption key and I'm just about ready to go postal.) Hopefully once everything is finally all setup and configured all will be well, but at the moment I've lost a pretty good bit of sleep while fighting this and barely have it up and running. I probably should have waited for an off day to do this.
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Strange that you are having so many issues. First off, when I flash a new ROM I put the ROM and the latest GApps on the sdcard. Do a factory reset, clear dalvik cache, install the ROM then the GApps. As far as wifi, I didn't have a problem when I ran CM10, but maybe there is something messed up in the latest version. Are you running the nightlies or the M versions?

The M version from the link above (the 2012 10-11 one.) At first I thought the issue I was having was the one from before where it would decide that my network with the hidden SSID was out of range automatically the moment it lost connection (either me leaving the area or turning off WiFi) but I not only tried to use the hidden SSID enabler, but also even went so far as to just re-enable the SSID broadcast on the router, so it's no longer hidden. It seems like it's having troubles initializing the WiFi. Maybe I somehow managed to freeze/remove an app that did something or other along these lines (though I just can't see how given that it can work, it just has issues.) I'm having to turn it off and on once or twice to get it to finally reconnect. I guess it's not bad since I have the power widget in the notifications tray that makes this a bit easier, but that doesn't make this any more fun at all to deal with. EDIT: In fact, whereas the hidden SSID issue I ran into previously had it just show up as being out of range after it lost the connection until I "forgot" the network setting and reconfigured it again, it looks like nothing shows up at all until I turn it off and on -- but I don't have to redo the network setting, so this is definitely a completely different issue. I think actually it's like it's just not correctly enabling the wifi on startup if it was left on when I rebooted so I have to turn it off and back on to get it to truly turn it on in the first place.
And yeah, I cleared the cache and did a factory reset before installing. Well, bear in mind that it naturally was showing up as a different device and all. So some initial configuration was definitely going to be required to even get started, and I was switching from ICS to JB (and completely different sorts of ROMs besides) so some initial fight was inevitable even if CM10 were the most established and stable build ever made just going from the one to the other. Actually, one interesting feature of Titanium Backup Pro (once I finally got it to recognize that I had the Pro version in the first place) is apparently the ability to change the device ID to seem to be the same as far as installed programs and such go, so now Google Play among other things thinks this is the same exact device as before now as opposed to being a new device. It's actually weird because the "new" one doesn't even show up on Google Play's settings anymore (and Google still hasn't gotten around to fixing it such that we can remove devices, so I still have my old Archos 43 PDA listed in there for instance.) Between everything, Google now is letting me once again access my software without re-buying or relying on backups (which is especially good because a few things seem to just get stuck when I try to restore them -- it just sits there forever, not ever really installing.)
BTW, I lost all the Verizon-specific special numbers such as *86 for voicemail. Apparently CM10 doesn't bother to list them (but then as they are vendor specific I guess that's not a big surprise.) Is there any sort of list of the numbers Verizon uses out there -- maybe even including whatever special numbers that might be more specific to this phone itself (such as that hidden menu or whatever)?
EDIT: Ok, so far things are starting to come together slowly but surely. One oddity though, I noticed at the end of my work shift that, rather than the usual 10% or so of battery time lost, it seemed to have lost about 20%. I wouldn't go so far as to say it's double -- it might be more like 15% many times -- but it is very odd all the same. I thought I was seeing a bad trend along these lines last night, so went ahead and put SetCPU back on there with the profile to do powersaving and serious underclocking when the screen is off and in both cases I used the "conservative" CPU governor for the normal use with the maximum CPU speed at about 1GHz (conservative is supposed to be like ondemand with a better tendency towards power saving at the expense of taking longer to scale the CPU upwards when needed.) As this is CM10, there should be no room for doubt that the CPU is being scaled down -- in fact in the performance menu I often see the CPU at a mere 384MHz (which is my minimum setting) -- so I'm just not sure what to think just yet. The settings menu for the battery life shows mostly just basic system processes like the screen, idle, and etc being the main culprits for battery usage, so again odd since the screen is the main thing yet is off during my working hours (with the very short exception of my breaks.) I don't think the automatic brightness setting is any higher or anything either and, in fact, configured it to use generally lower settings until the maximum brightness.
Guess more tweaking and testing is needed to be sure, but it's odd all the same. If anything CM10 is running LESS all the time by way of hidden services and such (though as far as things that actually show up in the likes of Android Assistant I'm having to fight far more things including an "analog clock" that isn't even in the app list so I'm hoping is just the normal clock despite the fact that "analog clock" in normal firmwares is actually a separate extra thing.) Guess I'll still have to wait and see to some extent.
Edit2: Haha, I just read that you have to recalibrate the battery meter after flashing, so it'd probably just not being very accurate is all. I grabbed an app to help do that so hopefully this is all that was going on (and if I go by Android Assistant's voltage status I'd say that it definitely is off.)
Edit3: (Just kind of adding as I go along here.) Now that all the basics are in place and I had some time and the desire to drain the battery more quickly (as part of the recalibrate process you're supposed to drain it until it automatically shuts down) so I plugged in my headphones and started listening. So far so good. I was really hoping that one of the advantages of a custom ROM would be a more precise volume control (Google really dropped the ball on that one! Sometimes you're trying to get it just right and end up stuck between either a bit painfully too loud or annoyingly too quiet with no in-between) but other than some dissapointed wishful thinking, it seems sound-wise this release of the SGS3 CM10 is just fine. I don't really hear any bloat or distortion in the bass and in general the usual modifications that they do to the sound just aren't there (or at least if they are they are subtle enough to fool my, let's say "bronze" ears since I'm definitely at the bottom of the audiophile chain, lol.) In one thread where someone asked how the Qualcom compared to the Wolfson sound-wise someone said it was a bit tinny, but if it is it's far too subtle for me to notice (and this is bearing mind that these are headphones with a slight bass roll-off, so it does seem like I'd notice any significant loss in the lower ranges pretty quickly. In this respect I'm happy or at least satisfied that nothing has gone wrong.
Also, one way or the other the wifi issue seems to have gone away. I'm guessing it was an app I had frozen that I reenabled, but that's just a guess. It's so hard to be 100% sure with these things unless you apply a long painful scientific process every single step of the way...
I'm STILL trying to figure out a way to configure the haptic feedback level. It seems to be all on or all off with no ability to reduce strength of feedback that I've found so far.

Another word to the wise, backup your imei. Not sure if that was mentioned yet
Also, your ROM will work better after a charging cycle or two. It will initially scam for media and such I believe which maybe part if the reason you're seeing slightly higher usage at first. Also, in general you'll get slightly less battery life on aosp. I don't find much use in most battery stats though. They're easily manipulated.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda app-developers app

Well, I had a small accident. I was replacing some fonts and manually selecting which ones to replace with what when I threw in Arial Unicode and another font that was still slightly large. I'm assuming because the font files were so big, but it completely stopped booting. After fighting with it for hours upon hours (and I have since found what might be a font zip file for CWM now that it's far too late to do me any good -- though of course it would have had to replace those particular fonts and it seems like most of my attempts to replace them ended up replacing everything but them.) I just couldn't get a driver to install for the phone while CWM was running (I don't know if you can maybe get an adb shell or what, but without the driver you obviously can't.) In the end, I ended up having to reformat and reinstall CM10 from scratch. So far (knock on wood) none of the real problems I was having before have really repeated. (And this time around I just kept my font changes minor and no gigantic overkill fonts.) Sadly, TitaniumBackup can't restore all apps it seems (it just sort of freezes on some) but overall I've managed to restore most of it. I was waiting to make a backup in CWM until I had fully gotten everything configured and running the way I wanted it. Guess I should have done one sooner, but now I'm close to the original goal of having it basically right where I want it before making the backup (thank goodness TitaniumBackup at least was able to get the bulk of the work. And I love how it can even restore the device ID so that as far as everything is concerned this is the same phone I've always been using.)
It does still have a worse battery life compared to the stock ROM, but I guess it's not too bad. Still better than most phones no matter how you look at it. I'm not entirely sure it wasn't the battery being somewhat at fault though. I was using a third party battery by Anker. By the feel of it, it actually is surprisingly dense for a third party battery -- it weighs about the same amount as the stock battery -- so it might actually have a pretty good capacity, but at the same time I'm not 100% sure it truly is every bit as good. At first it certainly seemed to be, but maybe it's starting to wear down more quickly overall. For now I guess I'll switch back to stock (my original plan was to just store it at some 70% or so capacity so it should last and then punish these two third party batteries, but now I guess I'll consider them to be the backups instead. I don't like that the charge goes as high as 4.33V or so though. 4.2V is supposed to be considered pushing things pretty hard as it is, so I have a bad feeling about the overall lifetime of these batteries...) Again I have SetCPU hopefully helping out a bit (I like that CM10 has options for this that it can set on boot, but it doesn't have any other options than that and I like how I can have SetCPU actually lower things much further while the screen is off. I don't care if some processes take longer to, well, process while the screen is off after all, so there's no reason not to use a lower CPU setting IMO.) Actually, I was beginning to become quite concerned because the battery was actually going down just doing a few basic things like restoring backups while plugged into the charger despite having the governor on conservative, the maximum CPU frequency at 1066MHz, and the I/O set to SIO (which at least one person claims is better, though I wasn't 100% convinced from what little I could tell -- if anyone has any suggestions for the best balance between battery life and performance in this respect I'm curious. I try to keep it on something that kind of scales so that games and such still work fine without me having to change it specifically for each or something while it could still at least not kill the battery when it's not being pushed as hard.)
Interesting thing about the whole WiFi thing. I read on one thread where someone suggested changing the device name (in the developer options) to no longer have a dash in it to stop the intermittent WiFi dropouts. It's kind of ridiculous and should have absolutely no effect whatsoever on this, but so far it actually seems like it might have worked. Again, knock on wood... It's odd though because I never had that trouble with the stock firmware (then again, for all I know it didn't have a dash in its default device name and I doubt I ever changed it if it was even an option though I can't really remember one way or the other if I could have.) I won't know for sure for a while as it was kind of random before, but so far it's looking promising at least. And I haven't had any trouble with it picking up my network yet either.
BTW, I forgot to do the IMEI backup before somehow. Is it too late to for it to be any good now? I know, I know, but I was a bit excited about the prospect of going to CyanogenMod 10 in the first place and just forgot along the way I guess. I went ahead and ran it ("reboot nvbackup" from the terminal anyway -- it sure would be nice if it actually properly shut down first instead of doing a cold reboot -- but other than some tiny blue text in the corner that might or might not have said something to the effect of that it was making a backup it just flashed by and booted up normally. I was expecting a recovery menu or something.) But I don't know if it's going to do any good to have run it now. Is there anything other than the IMEI itself contained in that data that I should be concerned about? I think the IMEI is correct still (I checked the numbers in the settings at least and they seem to correspond to what I wrote down from under the battery) but I'm not sure about anything beyond the numbers themselves.

Nazo said:
Well, I had a small accident. I was replacing some fonts and manually selecting which ones to replace with what when I threw in Arial Unicode and another font that was still slightly large. I'm assuming because the font files were so big, but it completely stopped booting. After fighting with it for hours upon hours (and I have since found what might be a font zip file for CWM now that it's far too late to do me any good -- though of course it would have had to replace those particular fonts and it seems like most of my attempts to replace them ended up replacing everything but them.) I just couldn't get a driver to install for the phone while CWM was running (I don't know if you can maybe get an adb shell or what, but without the driver you obviously can't.) In the end, I ended up having to reformat and reinstall CM10 from scratch. So far (knock on wood) none of the real problems I was having before have really repeated. (And this time around I just kept my font changes minor and no gigantic overkill fonts.) Sadly, TitaniumBackup can't restore all apps it seems (it just sort of freezes on some) but overall I've managed to restore most of it. I was waiting to make a backup in CWM until I had fully gotten everything configured and running the way I wanted it. Guess I should have done one sooner, but now I'm close to the original goal of having it basically right where I want it before making the backup (thank goodness TitaniumBackup at least was able to get the bulk of the work. And I love how it can even restore the device ID so that as far as everything is concerned this is the same phone I've always been using.)
It does still have a worse battery life compared to the stock ROM, but I guess it's not too bad. Still better than most phones no matter how you look at it. I'm not entirely sure it wasn't the battery being somewhat at fault though. I was using a third party battery by Anker. By the feel of it, it actually is surprisingly dense for a third party battery -- it weighs about the same amount as the stock battery -- so it might actually have a pretty good capacity, but at the same time I'm not 100% sure it truly is every bit as good. At first it certainly seemed to be, but maybe it's starting to wear down more quickly overall. For now I guess I'll switch back to stock (my original plan was to just store it at some 70% or so capacity so it should last and then punish these two third party batteries, but now I guess I'll consider them to be the backups instead. I don't like that the charge goes as high as 4.33V or so though. 4.2V is supposed to be considered pushing things pretty hard as it is, so I have a bad feeling about the overall lifetime of these batteries...) Again I have SetCPU hopefully helping out a bit (I like that CM10 has options for this that it can set on boot, but it doesn't have any other options than that and I like how I can have SetCPU actually lower things much further while the screen is off. I don't care if some processes take longer to, well, process while the screen is off after all, so there's no reason not to use a lower CPU setting IMO.)
Interesting thing about the whole WiFi thing. I read on one thread where someone suggested changing the device name (in the developer options) to no longer have a dash in it to stop the intermittent WiFi dropouts. It's kind of ridiculous and should have absolutely no effect whatsoever on this, but so far it actually seems like it might have worked. Again, knock on wood... It's odd though because I never had that trouble with the stock firmware (then again, for all I know it didn't have a dash in its default device name and I doubt I ever changed it if it was even an option though I can't really remember one way or the other if I could have.) I won't know for sure for a while as it was kind of random before, but so far it's looking promising at least. And I haven't had any trouble with it picking up my network yet either.
BTW, I forgot to do the IMEI backup before somehow. Is it too late to for it to be any good now? I know, I know, but I was a bit excited about the prospect of going to CyanogenMod 10 in the first place and just forgot along the way I guess.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No your OK you can get your IMEI underneath where your battery is. There's a tutorial on YouTube
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium

No.1 X2i / vPhone X3 Workshop (SuperSU root + Xposed framework Lollipop 5.1)

1. INTRODUCTION
This phone doesn't really have any developers at the moment and I struggled and spent a lot of time to hack it like I wanted. Here's what I have so far.
1.1 Root
You can choose to use either KingUser or SuperSU, but you must initially root using iRoot therefore KingUser will be installed.
1.2 Custom Recovery
Haven't succeeded in building a custom recovery that works yet
1.3 Xposed Framework
Because I have miserably failed at building a custom recovery, I could not install Xposed framework, however I found a way to do this without custom recovery!! by using an app called Flashfire, from the developer Chainfire (maker of SuperSU).
2. FULL TUTORIAL
2.1 Before you begin
PLEASE READ THIS, TO HELP ME IMPROVE THIS PROJECT!!
I am not sure whether this phone has a notification light or not, there is an LED (called breathing light by the manufacturer), that lights up when charging. There are also settings to activate/deactivate the LED for missed calls, SMS and emails. However I'm not sure it works for every app. I DID see the LED flashing when I got some LINE messages maybe 5% of the time, but I have no idea why I sometimes see it, sometimes don't. It's possible that either:
1- The phone uses the LED only for SMS, missed calls and emails
2- The phone has a notification LED but one of the many root applications/Xposed modules is confusing it.
3- The phone doesn't have a notification LED and one of the many root applications/modules is trying to make it work, but isn't always successful.
So if you read this, could you please make some notification tests before doing anything else and post back your observations here? This way if the LED lights up for Facebook, LINE, WhatsApp, etc, we can try to figure out what app is blocking/enabling the LED for the benefit of all.
And then of course, there's the blablabla that I'm not responsible if your phone explodes after following this guide, but I don't see how you could possibly mess it up with such a simple tutorial.
2.2 Root the phone
Download iRoot from the downloads section and install it on your Windows PC
Turn on USB debugging in the settings->developer options, if you don't see developer options:
Go in Settings->About phone
Tap Build number 5 times until a message tells you that you are now a developer
Turn on unknown sources in settings->security
Plug your phone in your computer and make sure you allow access to your computer when the popup opens on your phone and tick the always box
Run iRoot and click on the ROOT button, wait for the app do finish everything (phone will reboot multiple times, and it might fail the first time, so you would have to repeat this process multiple times until a success message shows up)
2.3 Replace Kingroot by SuperSU (optional, but needed to flash Xposed)
In the the download section, get Supersume.apk and install on your phone
Launch Supersume, allow root access and tap the big blue button.
Wait for the application to finish everything, then clean up any bloatware application iRoot might have installed. You can also remove Supersume, won't be needed ever again.
Finally, you will probably have to open SuperSU and update the binaries with the "normal" mode (as we don't have a custom recovery yet anyways).
2.4 Install the Xposed Framework (SuperSU required for this, KingUser will not work)
I suspect that there are 2 different versions of this phone (hence the title of the thread), so it's possible that you might have to install the 32bits version of Xposed or the 64bits, depending on which version you have. Check section 3 below for more information.
Install the latest version of FlashFire
Install the Xposed installer on your phone
Save the latest Xposed framework on your sdcard:
This one if your phone is 32bits (The one I used for Vphone)
This one if your phone is 64bits
Open FlashFire and allow root access
Tap the red (+) button at the bottom
Tap Flash ZIP or OTA
Select the file you just downloaded
Make sure that Auto-mount is unchecked then tap the check-mark at the top right
Tap the EverRoot and make sure nothing is selected there, then click the check-mark again
Tap the lightning button at the bottom. You will get a black screen then it will start flashing, so don't panic
3. PHONE INFORMATION AND SIDENOTES
3.1 Introduction
This phone seems to have 2 variations
The NO.1 X2i that comes in black or yellow
The Vphone X3 that comes in black or Orange.
I ordered directly from NO.1 by emailing their representative, asked for the yellow one but they sent me the orange Vphone instead it seems. This is when I learned about the existence of the Vphone variation I'm not sure if they tried to rip me off because the Vphone is not as good as the NO.1, or whatever reason they sent me the wrong phone. Other than the color, I could see from Google Image search that they look exactly the same, except for the logo on the back that either says NO.1 or Vphone (see in the what I mean in the screenshots section, sorry can't put them here, link expires after a few minutes).
3.2 Thoughts/Opinions about the phone
I switched to that phone from the Doogee DG700 because I wanted an IP68 solid waterproof phone with Android 5.1 that eliminates most of the 5.0 bugs Google introduced. However I have to say I was a bit disappointed by both Lollipop 5.1 and the company that sold me the phone (whether it was their fault or just bad luck.. I don't know).
3.2.1 What I like about the phone:
So far, "seems" to be waterproof, but I'm a bit afraid to try to submerge it completely for a long period of time, after my incident with the Doogee DG700
I like the "rubbery" surface underneath and on the sides, so it's doesn't slip if you put it on the side or stays in place if you leave it on the dashboard of your car (to some extent).
So far, it seems quite responsive and fast
Some people might disagree, but I like how the back-cover is solidly fixed with screws, not with flimsy snaps like most phones
Because of the rubbery case, the camera lens, screen and the rest of the phone are not getting scratched or visually worn off like other phones because whatever position it's put on a surface, it will always be the rubbery surface that will be in contact., not the screen, camera lens, sides.
The rubber covers for the headphone and USB plugs makes you feel like even radiations won't get inside. It's nice to see this, compared to the crappy plastic protectors on the DG700 that would always fall off and felt sluggish when you opened it to plug your headphones.
3.2.2 What I don't like about the phone:
The headphone jack hole is narrow, so only the headphones provided fit in the hole. I thought I had to buy an adapter but luckily after carving the sides of my headphone plug with a knife, it could fit in the phone.
It is big, very big. I measured 5.5 inches before buying it but was still surprised by its size. Some people call it a phablet on internet (phone + tablet). I am tall and have large hands so it's not so bad, but a friend of mine bought the same one and her friends are always laughing at her because it's huge in her hands hahaha!
It seems like the phone doesn't support fast charge (to be confirmed). I know that slow charge is better for the battery, but it was nice to have my DG700 charge 50% in 30 minutes when I was in a hurry.
No backlight on the hardware buttons. I don't even understand how come Mediatek still makes chips that don't include this basic functionality. It is so extremely annoying in the dark and it really pisses me off. El Cheapo
The notification LED (breathing light) Seems to be malfunctioning 95% of the time (to be confirmed with other testers). See section 2.1 Before you begin for more info and please report your results if you have this phone.
It might be Android 5.1's fault, but the battery does drain quickly. 10%-15% overnight with the screen off. It's still new so I'm trying to figure out which wakelock is causing this to try and stop it, but so far no love. I tried Xposed module Smart Network but it keeps turning on the wifi automatically for no reason. DS Battery Saver is outdated and all other apps that restrict the radio when the screen is off don't turn on the radio periodically to check for new messages. On my previous phones, I would lose 0% or 1% overnight while the screen was off with smaller batteries. This is the phone with the largest battery I ever had and it drains the quickest. My friend reported the same, he battery doesn't last long (unrooted phone). Who's fault is it? Fake 4500mAh battery? Android 5.1's power management? A specific app? I'm still working on it.
The area for the screen on the phone and the actual AMOLED screen are misaligned.. sign of bad manufacturing. So this means that if you look perfectly perpendicularly at your phone, you see a black bar at the bottom, and a little bit of the top is missing, hidden under the plastic. So you must tilt it backwards a little bit. This is not so bad and is possibly only bad luck with my phone, but is worth noting and highly unprofessional.
3.3 X2i vs X3 Waterproofing differences
The NO.1 .1 X2i claims to be IP68 on its website while the Vphone X3 claims to be IP67 on its website. Yet the Vphone X3 still has the IP68 markings on the back cover... Sorry if I offend Chinese readers, but this is typical Chinese misinformation, crappy websites and attention to details that frustrate us. There is no way to verify this and the representative I talked to was not aware of that and could not answer my questions, which to ns I'm afraid of testing to submerge my phone in water.
3.4 X2i vs X3 Processor differences
The NO.1 .1 X2i claims to have a 64bits 1.3GHz processor on its website while the Vphone X3 claims to have a 32bits 1GHz processor on its website. Once again, I have no idea if that's a mistake or the 2 versions have different processors.
I have verified on the Vphone X3 specs with 3 different apps: AnTuTu Benchmark, CPU-Z and CPU X and they all give out 1GHz as the clock speed, however CPU-Z says the architecture is MT6735 while AnTuTu Benchmark/CPU X both specify MT6735P and finally the scatter file from Vphone's official website says: "platform: MT6735M" :silly: AnTuTu Benchmark also informs that the processor is 64bits, but that Android 32bits is installed... (more mindfuck) and to add to this, I had to install the arm32 Xposed framework on a supposedly arm64 processor.
So now, we might have 3 different architectures: MT6735, MT6735P, MT6735M of 32bits OR 64bits respectively on Android 32bits OR 64bits. Info about these processors is scarce, vague and non-uniform so I can't really tell the difference. I wrote to Mediatek, hopefully they will answer. According to one website, MT6735P is better because it has integrated graphics... true? not true?
Anyways, here's more potentially true/false info on the MT6735M and MT6735P that say 1GHz clock and don't specify 64bits (so usually means 32bits), plus the specifications of the MT6735 on the official MediaTek website.
By the way, this website even advertises the phone as being a 1.3GHz Octa Core!!!
So anyways, I included screenshots of my tests in the screenshots section of the project. It would be nice if anyone with the NO.1 X2i could test as well and send me the screenshots or let me know so we can see the difference.
3.5 Stock Firmware
The NO.1 website doesn't have the stock firmware to download as I'm writing this, but the Vphone has the stock firmware (although it is not the latest build that it came shipped with). The firmware from the Vphone website is called "NO1", so I'm inclined to think it would work with both phones. I have tried flashing this firmware on my phone, but nothing happened.. this could be due however to the fact that the MTK drivers don't work properly on Windows 10. Anyhow, you can find in the downloads section a care package that contains the original archive from Vphone that contains the firmware, SP Flash Tool 5.1352.01, the drivers + the latest build I found on 4PDA + a folder containing custom recoveries I have tried to start with to make my own (all failed).
4. REFERENCES
4.1 Original post where I found the Supersume.apk instructions
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=67792321&postcount=9
4.2 Original post where I found the Xposed instructions
http://www.andromods.com/apps-mod/easy-install-lollipop-xposed-framework-without-twrp-cwm-recovery.html
4.3 Xposed thread
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=3034811
4.4 Flashfire thread
http://forum.xda-developers.com/general/paid-software/flashfire-t3075433
4.5 Original 4PDA thread where I found the latest original firmware
No idea where this guy took it, but it's the exact same build that my Vphone came with
http://4pda.ru/forum/index.php?showtopic=742407&view=findpost&p=50532543
XDA:DevDB Information
No.1 X2i / vPhone X3 Workshop (SuperSU root + Xposed framework Lollipop 5.1), Device Specific App for all devices (see above for details)
Contributors
NaturalBornCamper
Version Information
Status: Beta
Created 2016-09-02
Last Updated 2016-09-19

NaturalBornCamper said:
Well damn.... All the instructions I put here have disappeared GRRR!!
Will add these back when I'm not angry anymore, or if someone asks for them
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you repost the TUT please?!
I've been looking for an IP67/68 phone for some time now. The Blackview BV6000 was the contender, but alas, no Notification LED, just as the Doogee T5 dropped out of the lineup for the same hardware issue.
Doogee claims the T5 is an upgrade from the Titans2 DG700 that HAS a Notification LED,,,,,, stupid, really stupid miss on the hardware development (the DG700 I dropped due to your rant about the overall build quality and other claims regarding the same issues).
How can both manufacture's miss such a small, yet vital item as the Notification LED?, I'm not an under 25 that constantly walks about day and night with my phone in my hand, I'm a mature, home owner that has other interests than FB and Twit. I put my phone down to charge, or go on to my other hobbies or interests, I may look at it every 30 min or so to see if there has been a call/text/push. Both 5" phones have respectable hardware (CPU/GPU/RAM/ROM), but missed the LED on board? ... WTF!
So now I'm considering this phone, and would like to read the TUT if you repost it please.
Also, please tell me if this phone has the Notification LED, its visible on some of the stock pictures, and some not, its the final build I'm interested in.
AND ... have you located any parts for this item? On AliExpress a buyer had the item shipped to him with the SIM/SD back cover missing one of the 2 tabs to hold it in place. I really don't want to go through the BS of a full return for a small user replaceable item, or screen.
TY .... :highfive:

UnableToResetOldProfile said:
Can you repost the TUT please?!
I've been looking for an IP67/68 phone for some time now. The Blackview BV6000 was the contender, but alas, no Notification LED, just as the Doogee T5 dropped out of the lineup for the same hardware issue.
Doogee claims the T5 is an upgrade from the Titans2 DG700 that HAS a Notification LED,,,,,, stupid, really stupid miss on the hardware development (the DG700 I dropped due to your rant about the overall build quality and other claims regarding the same issues).
How can both manufacture's miss such a small, yet vital item as the Notification LED?, I'm not an under 25 that constantly walks about day and night with my phone in my hand, I'm a mature, home owner that has other interests than FB and Twit. I put my phone down to charge, or go on to my other hobbies or interests, I may look at it every 30 min or so to see if there has been a call/text/push. Both 5" phones have respectable hardware (CPU/GPU/RAM/ROM), but missed the LED on board? ... WTF!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hear you friend! I like to have a LED for the exact same reasons! And if you are waiting for a message while talking to a friend, it is so impolite to check your phone every minute instead of just saying "excuse me" when the LED finally pops up and you can check your important message!
Anyways, I can't answer for sure about the notification LED (they call it "breathing light" on the Vphone), as I already messed up my phone by trying to flash custom recoveries that failed, installing tons of root applications and Xposed modules so now it's misbehaving . Anyways I completely re-wrote the entire project post with TONS of new info for you to make your decision, be sure to check the section about the notification LED to understand what I mean by "not being able to answer your question properly". I also wrote down other info/concerns/things I like or don't. I will update as I get more info, an answer from Mediatek (if I get any), and feedback from other people who have the same phone as so far, it seems like I'm the only one that has it.
UnableToResetOldProfile said:
So now I'm considering this phone, and would like to read the TUT if you repost it please.
AND ... have you located any parts for this item? On AliExpress a buyer had the item shipped to him with the SIM/SD back cover missing one of the 2 tabs to hold it in place. I really don't want to go through the BS of a full return for a small user replaceable item, or screen.
TY .... :highfive:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's pretty funny hahaha! I hadn't seen that post before buying this phone but I wouldn't be too concerned as this is probably not specifically that brand's fault as it is EVERY SINGLE DAMN Chinese product. They say something that isn't true because they have bad English, because they aren't competent enough or just plainly lie... and the quality is never the same (You just have to trust your luck that your product isn't a bad one, that was made by a trainee intern after his wife cheated on him and divorced). That's the risk of buying "made in China", lower cost at the risk of getting one of "these" bad ones.
A professional ukulele maker once told me that every time you buy a ukulele "made in China", you might have an excellent one that sounds better than most, or have a crappy one that sounds like Celine Dion on PCP. So basically you buy 5 times the same ukulele and keep the best
Anyways, nope I haven't located any parts as I didn't check, didn't need any replacement with my phone yet. However when I got pissed off at the company for sending me the Vphone X3 instead of the NO.1 X2i, they proposed me to send it back and get a refund (which I didn't I'm done with the trouble). So I'm pretty sure that this guy can just ask the rep, or the seller to get a new one. Chinese often have ****ty English and bad product representation, but they usually know that the damage you can potentially do by posting bad reviews about their product will cost them more than sending a replacement

NaturalBornCamper said:
"sounds like Celine Dion on PCP"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Aaaaah Ha Ha Ha ..... Cat getting run over by a car, then backed over for good luck .....
Only a non 'Québécois' Canadian will really understand this ....
***EDIT***
> 3.4 X2i vs X3 Processor differences <
The actual proof my be in opening up the phone and looking at the processor for an identification.
They may have messed with the chips firmware and flashed incorrect information if they customized it, this may cause the different software to identify the chip differently, and the SOC to behave erratically due to poor programing.
This trickery happens with cheep mSD Cards all the time (I use h2testw for capacity verification) as they flash 32gb on a 8gb card.
I managed to grab the No1.X2i's ROM as a pre-purchase base as this phone is still a consideration.
The ROM is 'NO.1 X3 Firmware 3.21-1'....(V0.1 D160307_img)
What is the current version?....(V13 D160524_img)
Given enough time, I answer my own questions....:silly:
So, Devicespecifications lists the 2 phone as identical:
http://www.devicespecifications.com/en/comparison/d39a75047
***ADDITION TO POST***
So it appears that other people have the same wonky results as you, this person tested with CPUZ and AIDA64, it shows a MT6735/6735P respectively, but both results show that it is Revision r0p4, he posted a review on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/D2toE3o0C2M
Also, the it appears that only missed calls/sms and alarm/charging/low battery is supported. There should be no notification for Play Store app updates or app push notifications .... or eMails?!
What exactly is the Alarm Notification?, is this your wake up alarm clock alarm?

I'm not sure we can trust the devicespecifications.com website however, as I'm sure you already know
They seem to have differences which are probably due to missing information, like for the IP68 certifications differences and the missing Gorilla Glass from the X2i.. They also seem to say that the processor is 1.3GHz but not a single app marked the processor as 1.3GHz. By the way, MediaTek never answered as expected. And another sideline, I found another app that lists the chipset as MT6735M, so we now have apps that give all 3 versions of the chipset woot! No way to know which is real.
On a sidenote, it might be my fault with the constant messing up and flashing prior to successful rooting and Xpposed installation, but I have battery problems. At around 35-40%, the battery goes instantly to 15% then starts going down 1% per 15 seconds until it reaches 0% and shuts down. It happened 2 times now so I'm re-calibrating my battery (which makes sense with all the flashing and restoring previously saved system partitions) and will see if the problem persists, but it's possible I got a typical case of the Chinese-crappy manufacturing gamble. Shipped with a faulty battery, faulty battery connection, etc.
For the BreathLight, yes I had seen these settings.. however I DID get the flashing light for BOTH Facebook Messenger and LINE applications. So it is not only for SMS, emails, missed calls. I think it is for every notifications but I messed it up somehow with an root app or Xposed module as the LED really works randomly and hasn't worked yet for a missed call or SMS (but I had only 2 since I got the phone, nobody uses regular SMS or calls in Taiwan, everything is internet-based.
And I have no idea what is the "alarm" setting for the BeathLight.. It would make no sense if it was for the Alarm Clock since the screen turns on anyways.. So I'm wondering if it's for "Android Alarms", such as "wakelocks", which would mean toggling this on/off would activate the notifications for all other apps. This way, you could have the LED light up only for SMS and missed calls but not for other notifications (alarms). Does that make sense to you?

I'm thinking that the 'Alarm Notification' is just that, when you have an alarm set, be it a count down timer or alarm clock, the LED flash's?! Possibly a low battery alert as well?!
IDK.......(?)
***EDIT***
Did you notice that CPU-Z lists the Architecture as 3x Arm Cortex-A53, and AIDA64 lists the Architecture as 4x Arm Cortex-A53 ...(?)
I'm using AIDA64 from now on.....LOL!

UnableToResetOldProfile said:
I'm thinking that the 'Alarm Notification' is just that, when you have an alarm set, be it a count down timer or alarm clock, the LED flash's?! Possibly a low battery alert as well?!
IDK.......(?)
***EDIT***
Did you notice that CPU-Z lists the Architecture as 3x Arm Cortex-A53, and AIDA64 lists the Architecture as 4x Arm Cortex-A53 ...(?)
I'm using AIDA64 from now on.....LOL!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
An LED for an alarm would be pretty useless hahaha! If they did that, I really don't see the point.
Yeah, I noticed for CPU-Z... I uninstalled all the apps to figure out what's in my phone hehhee

NaturalBornCamper said:
An LED for an alarm would be pretty useless hahaha! If they did that, I really don't see the point.
Yeah, I noticed for CPU-Z... I uninstalled all the apps to figure out what's in my phone hehhee
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually I would like an alarm LED, it would indicate, with the screen off, that my alarm was set for the next morning. It would also be nice if they used a RGB LED, then you could allocate Blue, or any other color for different notifications.
Nobody else has chimed in regarding this phone, you must be the only person that's bought it?! You must feel special to be the only kid on the block with one........:laugh:
Whats the biggest mSD card that worked in the phone ... 64, 128 ... ?

NOT 4500mAH battery!
THIS DOES NOT HAVE A 4500mAh BATTERY
THIS HAS A 3200mAh BATTERY
Also, it does not have a compass!?
I found this thread at 4PDA: http://4pda.ru/forum/index.php?showtopic=742407&st=40
Post #49 & 51
This makes the KENXINDA W8 a much better choice, it has the same size battery, but it has the compass, back-lit keys, quad-core, 128gb expandable mSDHD-XC, better gpu, better RAM but alas, a crappy camera, just adequate.
Same price range.

This phone is garbage.....Don't waist your money.
I can verify that the battery is only 3200 mAh. No1/vPhone has come out and lied about the capacity.
This phone uses a 19mm headphone jack, not the standard 14mm.
This phone uses a 10mm mUSB jack, not the standard 6mm.
This phone is not waterproof without the plugs seated. The connections are not injection molded into the frame , the water has direct access to the inside without them in place. This makes the phone useless with headphones attached in a wet environment.
I can not use any of my headphones or USB charging/data cables.
The 19mm mUSB's are not available locally for me and not available from the manufacturer, or the reseller. I can't find the 19mm mUSB cables on eBay/AliExpress/Banggood or China Express (others as well).
The phone was shipped with 2 invalid IMEI numbers.
SIM 1: 356666666666666
SIM 2: 356666666666668
These generic numbers are used on phones that have their legitimate IMEI's taken for phones that are stolen, or, used on cheep counterfeit phones that do not have legitimate IMEI's registered to the database, or, are used on phones that are stolen.
These particular 'generic' numbers are BLACK LISTED as a 'LOST OR STOLEN PHONE' here in Canada.
This 'New' phone will not connect to any service provider here in Canada.
The last phone I sent back to China for a refund, the seller abandoned the item, he refused it and it sat undelivered, there was never a refund issued as the item was not delivered(AliExpress reseller).
To have it returned to me would cost me another 50 bucks....190+50+50=300 bucks (+/-).
I will get screwed out of my $190.00 ether way, if I keep it or send it back.
Sending it back will cost me another $50.00 on top of the $190 as well........
DO NOT BUY THIS BRAND OF PHONE (No1 is parent company).
The Kenzinda W8 or W9 appear to be a better item, but there is little or no support from the manufacturer for this item as well.

Great research and thanks for sharing NaturalBornCamper!!!
After doing some research myself, I also have cool stuff to add.
Here is TWRP 3.0.2 attached, downloaded from https://4pda.ru/forum/index.php?showtopic=742407&st=200
It wasn't easy to get through the 4pda.ru registration captcha, I had to learn some russian.
I installed it and flashed supersu.zip from it, so I was finally able to get rid of the noisy boot animation, adding debug.sf.nobootanimation=1 at the end of /system/build.prop
I just made a nandroid backup to a microsd card, and a "Phone tools" backup, so I can recover my imei if something bad happens in one of my flashing adventures.
Short howto: Install vcom drivers and download SP_Flash_Tool from https://spflashtool.com/
Uncompress TWRP-3.0.2-Vphone-X3.zip
Run flash tool.exe, and load the scatter file included in TWRP/MT6735M_Android_scatter.txt
This will load the partition schema, and autoselect the twrp recovery.img for download. Just click on Download icon on top, start your phone and when you see OK on the screen you are done.

Anyone using their Pixel stock ?

Just thought I'd toss this question out to all the Pixel owners, anyone just using their Pixel straightup stock ? I'm not sure if it's been bc I've been modding for 3+ years or this is my 3rd device which I can actually customize (other 2 were Nexus and still work), but the Pixel right now I've just loaded a custom kernel and rooted the stock image. I really use CF Lumen and it works best with root. I did try stock kernel, but it's not as good as Elemental X. Barring those 2, I feel like I'm at the point where the stock is ok.......either that or I've flashed too much haha :highfive:

I've been flashing since my Eris was OC to 750. Modded the heck out of my 5x with almost every rom and kernel.
I have not done anything to this device. I got the Verizon model in November and had the chance to depixel8. I decided to skip it and stay locked and I've not looked back. Not that I have much of a choice now anyway.
I take the OTA when it arrives reboot and done. The device is quick responsive, no random reboots, no mic problems, or shutdown issues. Perhaps I'm lucky but nonetheless I very rarely plug in during the day. Once I got down to 15% battery but only once. I get about 30 hours uptime according to stats. I don't bother with sot because I use the phone a lot and that is more draining for me.
I have my banking app, AP, pics, and some sensitive data that I feel safe with, relatively, with my locked bootloader. I still mess around with my 5x however. I flashed O build, relocked it, played around and unlocked again to flash back to stock. It keeps me from total withdrawal.
Sent from my Pixel using XDA-Developers Legacy app

yeah since im on the verizon model and i like android pay i havent tried any rooting or custom roms.

bobby janow said:
I've been flashing since my Eris was OC to 750. Modded the heck out of my 5x with almost every rom and kernel.
I have not done anything to this device. I got the Verizon model in November and had the chance to depixel8. I decided to skip it and stay locked and I've not looked back. Not that I have much of a choice now anyway.
I take the OTA when it arrives reboot and done. The device is quick responsive, no random reboots, no mic problems, or shutdown issues. Perhaps I'm lucky but nonetheless I very rarely plug in during the day. Once I got down to 15% battery but only once. I get about 30 hours uptime according to stats. I don't bother with sot because I use the phone a lot and that is more draining for me.
I have my banking app, AP, pics, and some sensitive data that I feel safe with, relatively, with my locked bootloader. I still mess around with my 5x however. I flashed O build, relocked it, played around and unlocked again to flash back to stock. It keeps me from total withdrawal.
Sent from my Pixel using XDA-Developers Legacy app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
n00bpwner said:
yeah since im on the verizon model and i like android pay i havent tried any rooting or custom roms.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Nexus 5x is a nice little device. I also got mine modded and I am probably only one of the few that likes the build. I personally like that plastic. Durable and lightweight. Plus if it saves costs that's good as well, but I like the plastic types. I used the 5x to still mod and every now and then I'll switch phones and use it as a regular, but the Pixel runs pretty smooth I'll give Google credit. I don't care for the look of the phone, but it operates very well with no lag and I guess b/c I know I can mod my 5x I don't have as much of a need to mod the Pixel. I wondered if I was the only one. LOL

idgaf about the look of the phone. i have a speck grip case and its stealth black all the way.

I used to flash a lot on all my previous devices, but now I use the Pixel stock and I am completely satisfied.

Dwayne01 said:
I used to flash a lot on all my previous devices, but now I use the Pixel stock and I am completely satisfied.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm with you there. Honestly. When I did root/kernel/rom my pixel. I felt the strong urge to return it to stock for ease of updates and to ensure stability. So I did. And I've not ever used a stock phone since the G1.... Just don't need to mod anymore, personally.

I went though rooting etc with most of my previous phones gong way back and even with my last phone the Nexus 5X but eventually returned it to stock after I found Adguard and no longer needed root for ad blocking.
When I got my Pixel I didn't even think about it, while it was the Verizon version I had the chance to root it but didn't bother.
Phone just plain works without any mods, OTA'S are simple and all banking, android pay work without having to screw with it.
Phone is secure, fast and just plain works
Quite content.

Dwayne01 said:
I used to flash a lot on all my previous devices, but now I use the Pixel stock and I am completely satisfied.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1

Ok decided to be submissive and restore back to stock and lock my bootloader. I've never used android pay in all 3 phones I've had lol. Feels weird.....
On the flip side at least my sh-t is working lol. The android auto was having issues connecting with my car on a custom rom. Standard ROM, no issues.

stock version is good enough and I didn't find any need to alter it.

I'm using mine stock but considering selling it or rooting it (Knowing me i'll cave and get a S8+ and sell it even though my gut is saying no). I am very picky but I really want to love my Pixel.
Anyway the issues that are annoying me are :
1. Mobile data doesn't always work on the play store, it just says I have no connection even though Chrome and Deezer and other apps use data fine, it is also intermittent and works on and off. If it stops working I have to reboot the phone.
2. I would like to be able to put the phone back to sleep with the finger print sensor as the power button is too high up for my tastes.
3. Texts and Emails do not come through during a call forcing me to miss important notifications, and they flood in once I put the phone down... not cool.
4. Apps constantly reload and refresh even though I have 1.3 to 1.7gb ram left over, even messages and phone etc.
(Of course this is the same in all android phones but thought Google might have this one sorted)
5. Google photos shows some grey tiles which look like blank photos but there aren't any there, and the app also freezes when deleting photos. If I reboot the grey tiles (ghost photos) disappear.
These things are driving me to distraction but I am loathe to root if custom roms don't fix them.
I have not factory reset as the phone is generally fast and I do not believe it will do anything but be a lesson in frustration.
P.S. I do love the Camera and the small form factor of the phone as well as the screen. I am also loving cardboard camera and all the VR side of things, just to put a more positive spin on things.

biffwitch said:
I'm using mine stock but considering selling it or rooting it (Knowing me i'll cave and get a S8+ and sell it even though my gut is saying no). I am very picky but I really want to love my Pixel.
Anyway the issues that are annoying me are :
1. Mobile data doesn't always work on the play store, it just says I have no connection even though Chrome and Deezer and other apps use data fine, it is also intermittent and works on and off. If it stops working I have to reboot the phone.
2. I would like to be able to put the phone back to sleep with the finger print sensor as the power button is too high up for my tastes.
3. Texts and Emails do not come through during a call forcing me to miss important notifications, and they flood in once I put the phone down... not cool.
4. Apps constantly reload and refresh even though I have 1.3 to 1.7gb ram left over, even messages and phone etc.
(Of course this is the same in all android phones but thought Google might have this one sorted)
5. Google photos shows some grey tiles which look like blank photos but there aren't any there, and the app also freezes when deleting photos. If I reboot the grey tiles (ghost photos) disappear.
These things are driving me to distraction but I am loathe to root if custom roms don't fix them.
I have not factory reset as the phone is generally fast and I do not believe it will do anything but be a lesson in frustration.
P.S. I do love the Camera and the small form factor of the phone as well as the screen. I am also loving cardboard camera and all the VR side of things, just to put a more positive spin on things.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I find the phone runs really smooth. The system does not lag like the Nexuses before this is a huge thing for me. I'm surprised you have had some stuttering. The S8 what I don't like is everything keeps getting larger. For women who use purses I find this to be less of an issue, but jamming a 5.5"+ phone in the pocket I got tired of doing that. I purposely got the 5x and pixel for the smaller size....and customization. I hope the jumbo phones eventually cap off or there are smaller alternatives available. If I need large screen size I'll get on a computer, but pocketing a 6" phone is cumbersome.
I know someone with the S7 and the camera on that is really good. From all the mfgs, I really only think Samsung can effectively bring to the table something to compete with Apple. LG, HTC and even the Pixel are fringe phones, but I'm even realistic that the Pixel isn't an "iphone killer" although I do love it a lot myself.

krelvinaz said:
I went though rooting etc with most of my previous phones gong way back and even with my last phone the Nexus 5X but eventually returned it to stock after I found Adguard and no longer needed root for ad blocking.
When I got my Pixel I didn't even think about it, while it was the Verizon version I had the chance to root it but didn't bother.
Phone just plain works without any mods, OTA'S are simple and all banking, android pay work without having to screw with it.
Phone is secure, fast and just plain works
Quite content.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have a subscription for Adguard ? Is it the VPN blocking type of thing ?

So far everything is working well. The only thing I miss a lot with root is CF lumen. The non-root CF lumen overlay looks horrible. I just use nightlight which is OK. Also adblocking. I tried one program earlier but it did not work as well as adaway. Still looking for a non root ad blocker.

Been rooting my phone since G1 and I have yet to find a real reason to root this device. I'm actually satisfied with stock, besides not having a true ad blocker I can't complain.

mikeprius said:
Do you have a subscription for Adguard ? Is it the VPN blocking type of thing ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes and it works good for me.

krelvinaz said:
Yes and it works good for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using adguard and I noticed the ads in chrome are being blocked, but the ads in youtube are showing ? I have the HTTPS cert installed.
Also what's your experience been with battery life having the VPN constantly on ?

Me. I did contemplate rooting because hate ads, but I love Android Pay. And I'm getting very lazy to constantly keep up to date with all the different custom ROMs and mods. These days, I just let OTAs do the job.

mikeprius said:
I'm using adguard and I noticed the ads in chrome are being blocked, but the ads in youtube are showing ? I have the HTTPS cert installed.
Also what's your experience been with battery life having the VPN constantly on ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't see ads on YouTube since I have YouTube Red (via Google Music family plan I have). I still see the stupid info banners but that is from the same data feed that the videos come from.
Its not perfect, but certainly cuts out most of the stupidity that shows up not only in the browser but also in most of the apps which still provide advertising even if you have a paid version.
A few apps are white listed as they don't work with it. I can either turn it off for a moment to access that app or just add them to the white list.
Examples: Alexa, Kasa and WeMo.
As for battery life, I get great battery life. I have WiFi turned on most of the time when I am at home and work, but don't use it normally when out and about.

Ram management

What to enable or disable to make it less aggressive?

Bump

Hi,
I have the same problem and it is f*** annoying! I have the 8GB version of the OP7pro and I don't know why the phone always closes my apps after a certain amount of time. I have disabled all (as far as I know) battery optimization features and also disabled the RAM booster.
In parallel I still run a Galaxy Note 3 with a really old custom rom, which has started to act a bit buggy now, but this phone does not overwrite MY settings and kills apps I want to keep open.
Does anyone know how to get rid of this behavior? Or is the only way to flash a custom rom again? I don't know if it is related to Oxygen OS or Android 9.
Thanks
GP

This is the problem with Chinese oems. Aggressive ram management, notification problems, not quite there cameras. Having the hardware is one thing. Software r & d is something else.

Can't remember exactly where I read it but...OnePlus is supposedly working on an update to "fix" the problem with aggressive killing of background apps as a result of all the complaints they receive concerning this issue. Something that can possibly help along with shutting off all battery/ram management is to lock your open apps to keep them open. While scrolling through your open apps you will see a three dot menu in the top right corner and one of the options is to "lock" the app which is supposed to lock it in memory/RAM. YMMV

jaseman said:
Can't remember exactly where I read it but...OnePlus is supposedly working on an update to "fix" the problem with aggressive killing of background apps as a result of all the complaints they receive concerning this issue. Something that can possibly help along with shutting off all battery/ram management is to lock your open apps to keep them open. While scrolling through your open apps you will see a three dot menu in the top right corner and one of the options is to "lock" the app which is supposed to lock it in memory/RAM. YMMV
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are we sure this isn't a Pie issue? I just came from a pixel 3xl and had the same issues in the beginning. Everyone blamed the 4gb RAM as the culprit. Google eventually updated a Fix but it wasn't 100% fixed. It was better but apps still closed to early. So maybe we're looking at an Android problem. Who knows
Sent from my GM1915 using Tapatalk

tropical cactus said:
This is the problem with Chinese oems. Aggressive ram management, notification problems, not quite there cameras. Having the hardware is one thing. Software r & d is something else.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is totally crap, I switched from my Note 3, which I still like very much (but only with AOSP based custom ROM) to OP because I don't like the way Samsung and Huawei gone to. I'm not rooted right now, so I can not tell what can be done with Magisk Modules or Xposed Modules (or other mods) on a Oxygen based ROM.
Can someone tell if this behavior can be stopped with mods or is the only way to switch to an AOSP based ROM again?
I wanted to give Oxygen OS a try but right now I'm not fully convinced with the current situation, even if OP is one of the fastest supplier for updates. I don't like it, when a manufacturer tells me what I can do with a device and what not. At least OP should give me the choice how strict the RAM management is and when I want to get apps closed.
Missing notifications is one other big point. Due to the fact that there is no notification LED and no AOD (STILL) I tried several third party apps to get a AOD, but the battery drain on this apps is heavy as f*** and they often do not work correctly, because the system prevents them to run correctly.
Does anyone know a good way to get a reliable way for notifications?
Thanks.
GP

General-Pain-666 said:
This is totally crap, I switched from my Note 3, which I still like very much (but only with AOSP based custom ROM) to OP because I don't like the way Samsung and Huawei gone to. I'm not rooted right now, so I can not tell what can be done with Magisk Modules or Xposed Modules (or other mods) on a Oxygen based ROM.
Can someone tell if this behavior can be stopped with mods or is the only way to switch to an AOSP based ROM again?
I wanted to give Oxygen OS a try but right now I'm not fully convinced with the current situation, even if OP is one of the fastest supplier for updates. I don't like it, when a manufacturer tells me what I can do with a device and what not. At least OP should give me the choice how strict the RAM management is and when I want to get apps closed.
Missing notifications is one other big point. Due to the fact that there is no notification LED and no AOD (STILL) I tried several third party apps to get a AOD, but the battery drain on this apps is heavy as f*** and they often do not work correctly, because the system prevents them to run correctly.
Does anyone know a good way to get a reliable way for notifications?
Thanks.
GP
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not only that. 3rd party apps like notification buddy work but Google Assistant stops working once you install it. I don't know what GA has to do with notification lighting. It's supposed to be a phone first and foremost. OnePlus seems to have forgotten what it is they're making. Something as basic as missed notifications seems not terribly important to them.

tropical cactus said:
Not only that. 3rd party apps like notification buddy work but Google Assistant stops working once you install it. I don't know what GA has to do with notification lighting. It's supposed to be a phone first and foremost. OnePlus seems to have forgotten what it is they're making. Something as basic as missed notifications seems not terribly important to them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. Samsung and Huawei show that AOD can work without heavy battery drain, so why can't OP get this to work or can they but don't want it?
I will root the device and have a look what I can optimize.
What I cannot change (unfortunately I had no chance to hands on the device before I bought it) is the size and the weight. It is to big and way to heavy. Not only while taking a phone call, even if you just hold it in one hand and do some stuff, it gets heavy within a very short time.
Maybe this OP was my first and last one - I will see. But it seems that all devices get bigger and heavier with every iteration, which is totally insane.

smallsmx301 said:
Are we sure this isn't a Pie issue? I just came from a pixel 3xl and had the same issues in the beginning. Everyone blamed the 4gb RAM as the culprit. Google eventually updated a Fix but it wasn't 100% fixed. It was better but apps still closed to early. So maybe we're looking at an Android problem. Who knows
Sent from my GM1915 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's definitely a pie thing as Android 10 had much better ram management even on pixel 2xl with 4gb ram. I suspect it will resolve most of our problems.

General-Pain-666 said:
I agree. Samsung and Huawei show that AOD can work without heavy battery drain, so why can't OP get this to work or can they but don't want it?
I will root the device and have a look what I can optimize.
What I cannot change (unfortunately I had no chance to hands on the device before I bought it) is the size and the weight. It is to big and way to heavy. Not only while taking a phone call, even if you just hold it in one hand and do some stuff, it gets heavy within a very short time.
Maybe this OP was my first and last one - I will see. But it seems that all devices get bigger and heavier with every iteration, which is totally insane.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a problem with the weight as well, like my previous note 9. I got the s10+ after that, before being enticed by all the YouTube reviews of the 7pro at launch. I'm beginning to regret that decision. Dual speakers are no where near the s10+ and neither is video stabilisation. I'm on the beta 2 now, rooted and the experience is beginning to improve. Sure there are pros like the fast charging, display and the quick implementation of android 10. I can't justify the note 10 and all the year end releases with SD 865 round the corner so I guess I'll just have to put up with it.

tropical cactus said:
I have a problem with the weight as well, like my previous note 9. I got the s10+ after that, before being enticed by all the YouTube reviews of the 7pro at launch. I'm beginning to regret that decision. Dual speakers are no where near the s10+ and neither is video stabilisation. I'm on the beta 2 now, rooted and the experience is beginning to improve. Sure there are pros like the fast charging, display and the quick implementation of android 10. I can't justify the note 10 and all the year end releases with SD 865 round the corner so I guess I'll just have to put up with it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're on Beta software...what do you expect? I'm on stable and all is working fine. I'm on T-Mobile but using an unlocked 7 Pro purchased from OnePlus directly.

jaseman said:
You're on Beta software...what do you expect? I'm on stable and all is working fine. I'm on T-Mobile but using an unlocked 7 Pro purchased from OnePlus directly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you actually read what I wrote? The experience has improved on android 10.

i had the s10+ and i couldnt deal with the half bakes software. so oneplus was the natural choice for me.
sure the speakers arent the best but theyre plenty fine - its not like we use our speakers for hidef sound, wireless headphones or a jukebox can take care of the rest (i have these strategically placed around the house so its never an issue when i play music)
failing AOD, dt2w is just as good imo.

tropical cactus said:
I have a problem with the weight as well, like my previous note 9. I got the s10+ after that, before being enticed by all the YouTube reviews of the 7pro at launch. I'm beginning to regret that decision. Dual speakers are no where near the s10+ and neither is video stabilisation. I'm on the beta 2 now, rooted and the experience is beginning to improve. Sure there are pros like the fast charging, display and the quick implementation of android 10. I can't justify the note 10 and all the year end releases with SD 865 round the corner so I guess I'll just have to put up with it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
virtyx said:
i had the s10+ and i couldnt deal with the half bakes software. so oneplus was the natural choice for me.
sure the speakers arent the best but theyre plenty fine - its not like we use our speakers for hidef sound, wireless headphones or a jukebox can take care of the rest (i have these strategically placed around the house so its never an issue when i play music)
failing AOD, dt2w is just as good imo.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you use Magisk, make sure to flash Ainur Sauron. That's an absolute game-changer for audio quality. I can't say the audio will quite compare to the Note 9 (I own it), but it should be fairly comparable to the S10+ (Have two in the family). The Note 9 has the advantage of actual front-facing speakers since it has bezel.
If you want to use Viper or JamesDSP, you'll need to also flash AML in Magisk which allows for multiple audio mods to be integrated. If you want a simple flash and away w/o further customization, then just flash Ainur Sauron.

Thank you. Good recommendation

In us but allways got exnos version cause I require root but hated the lack of carrier aggravation. Now seems snapdragon is root able. Whitch to get

Just wanted to find some opinions on what to get basically it's been awhile since I was on her and my note ten is having the cold battery can't charge issue so Im looking what to replace it with and need root and loved the functionality of a fully unlocked bootloader but I missed the great speeds of a US phone since I'm in the US so wonder what I shoud do?

Too cold, won't charge?
You think it's a mobo failure on the 10+?
I've never seen that warning. Use something like DevChek to view all the sensor temperatures.
May just be a battery failure. They're good for about 2 years on a heavily used phone, my lasted 1.5 years and failed.
I'm looking at getting a second Note. My choices are another 10+ or a new 20U. It will likely be another 10+; it a solid, stable, fast phone with no glaring issues. If still running on Pie, that's a huge plus, Android 10 and especially 11 just suck. I don't have high hopes for 12.
So if it's the battery or C port PCB*, just replace and wait for the 2022 Note release.
From what I've read the Snapdragon has a better chipset architecture and instruction set.
They seem to be notoriously hard to root. Probably not a good choice for rooting.
I know you can optimize a stock 10+/Pie, not sure how well that will go with Android 10 and above. Some of the functionality isn't there for valuable 3rd party apps like Karma Firewall's logging feature. You can still use Package Disabler or ADB edits to kill the bloatware though.
On newer high dollar phones is many ways rooting is a liability especially with warranty/insurance and you lose Knox, Samsung Pass etc if you use that junk. There are those especially on this forum that swear by it but won't acknowledge their cost in time (which can be and typically is huge) and inconvenience.
Stock Androids/roms are easier to troubleshoot and more secure. If there are issues with a stock setup there will be thousands or more with the same issue making solutions more likely and easier to find. With a custom setup you are on your own which can quickly implode into a time sucking blackhole in more ways than there are stars.
If I was going to root it be an older Note... not a brand new one... risk/time vs reward.
*the C port PCB may have a temperature sensor, not sure. It can cause a lot of bizarre issues in seemingly unrelated systems like internet connection, I know that for a fact. Make sure if you do replace it you get the exact PN that on that PCB or it will not function properly! Both the battery and C port PCB are relatively easy to replace with the proper tools and skillset. Both are cheap, under $50. Make sure you replace the back cover OEM seal with the same or equivalent if you open it up. Do not use generic double sided adhesive tape!

And the award for Longest Post Title and Longest Run On Sentence In A XDA Post goes to...
*Nervously opens envelope*
@ressegger !!!
*Raucous applause*

ressegger said:
Just wanted to find some opinions on what to get basically it's been awhile since I was on her and my note ten is having the cold battery can't charge issue so Im looking what to replace it with and need root and loved the functionality of a fully unlocked bootloader but I missed the great speeds of a US phone since I'm in the US so wonder what I shoud do?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes ,
i had this same issue of yours ,
"to cold to charge" can't charge ,
notice/issue .....many years back .
Can't remember which device of mine it was , think it was a Samsung Tablet A 2016 .
Anyway ,
Took devices to Samsung Service Centre.
It was the USB charging port .
They did not charge me much for the repairs .
Got it fixed and device charging normally / working fine afterwards.
My point is whatever you do or decide do not "throw/give "device away .
It's a small fix.....!
good luck

I am running the US snapdragon spammy 20 - ultra rooted up with boot loader unlocked thanks to afane and his advanced bros, although due to the lock down on many features such as scoped (controlled) storage preventing apps from being installed outside of the control room (googel store), did I mention notification sound got locked down too?