Android Phones - Defend Your Purchase - The Something Awful Forums

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > Android Phones - Defend Your Purchase

Rusty!: Aug 25, 2005; Play Up Pompey
Pompey Play Up

Benjamin Black posted:

This is not only going to be my first Android, but my first smartphone. So I gotta know - should I root this phone? Is it even possible yet? And if I did somehow brick it, would I be able to warranty it (even if it's supposed to void the warranty, I'm not above lying about it).

Even if you don't root it right away, if you think that you will in the future, the first thing you should do is unlock the bootloader (fastboot oem unlock) because doing so wipes the phone.

Chances of actually bricking it are very slim though, unless you do something gormless like flash a ROM meant for another phone and end up overwriting something important.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 10:31

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Jun 11, 2024 04:49

ClassActionFursuit: Mar 15, 2006

Benjamin Black posted:

This is not only going to be my first Android, but my first smartphone. So I gotta know - should I root this phone? Is it even possible yet? And if I did somehow brick it, would I be able to warranty it (even if it's supposed to void the warranty, I'm not above lying about it).

Rooting does not violate the warranty and you can't brick a Nexus if you can get to the bootloader. Rusty! is right though, you should unlock the bootloader first thing even if you think you might want to do something with it later. Unlocking it wipes it, but once that's done you can leave it stock until the day comes that you want to try a different ROM or something breaks that you can't fix without root.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 10:38

The Man From Melmac: Sep 8, 2008

LastInLine posted:

Rooting does not violate the warranty and you can't brick a Nexus if you can get to the bootloader. Rusty! is right though, you should unlock the bootloader first thing even if you think you might want to do something with it later. Unlocking it wipes it, but once that's done you can leave it stock until the day comes that you want to try a different ROM or something breaks that you can't fix without root.

It says it voids the warranty right here though?

http://www.redmondpie.com/unlock-bootloader-and-root-nexus-5-on-android-4.4-kitkat-how-to-tutorial/

Wow, I just got a shipping notification on my Nexus 5, that was fast. What screen protector should I get? I don't want to scratch it.

The Man From Melmac fucked around with this message at 10:47 on Nov 14, 2013

# ? Nov 14, 2013 10:44

ClassActionFursuit: Mar 15, 2006

Benjamin Black posted:

It says it voids the warranty right here though?

http://www.redmondpie.com/unlock-bootloader-and-root-nexus-5-on-android-4.4-kitkat-how-to-tutorial/

Wow, I just got a shipping notification on my Nexus 5, that was fast. What screen protector should I get? I don't want to scratch it.

It doesn't--it MAY void your warranty. If you unlock it then gently caress something up to the point where you can't relock it then your warranty is void but you can relock the bootloader at will so you just do that before sending it in. These phones are designed to be a developer platform, unlocking them does not void the warranty.

You don't need a screen protector, it takes a lot to scratch glass. You might want a case though.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 11:22

Tunga: May 7, 2004; Grimey Drawer

Benjamin Black posted:

So I gotta know - should I root this phone? Is it even possible yet? And if I did somehow brick it, would I be able to warranty it (even if it's supposed to void the warranty, I'm not above lying about it).

Rooting a Nexus device is trivial compared to rooting almost any other device, but for a first-time user it will require you to read up on some things. It does not invalidate your warranty in regards to hardware defects, and Google's RMA system involves them cross-shipping you a new device anyway.

What you may want to do is unlock the bootloader when you get it, such that you can root later if you want to. Unlocking the bootloader is a pre-requisite to rooting and the unlock process wipes your entire device so if you decide to do it later it's a bunch of hassle having to back up and restore everything, especially considering that backing stuff up without root is much harder than it is with root.

Unlocking your bootloader:
Install the Android SDK.
Reboot your phone in bootloader (or "fastboot") mode (Volume Down + Power)
Open a terminal / command line in the <sdk-root>/platform-tools/ folder.
"fastboot devices"
Make sure you get a listed device. If not, gently caress around with USB drivers (post if you need more help with this).
"fastboot oem unlock"
Follow the on-screen prompts.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 11:27

The Man From Melmac: Sep 8, 2008

LastInLine posted:

It doesn't--it MAY void your warranty. If you unlock it then gently caress something up to the point where you can't relock it then your warranty is void but you can relock the bootloader at will so you just do that before sending it in. These phones are designed to be a developer platform, unlocking them does not void the warranty.

You don't need a screen protector, it takes a lot to scratch glass. You might want a case though.

I've been reading up about this though and supposedly there's something that 'trips' that can tell you've unlocked it before. Has there been any cases of someone successfully warrantying a rooted Nexus 4?

quote:

You don't need a screen protector, it takes a lot to scratch glass. You might want a case though.

I dunno, even hairline scratches drive me nuts. I ordered a full body matte skin for it so I don't have to feel guilty about putting it in my pocket.

The Man From Melmac fucked around with this message at 12:10 on Nov 14, 2013

# ? Nov 14, 2013 11:58

Sereri: Sep 30, 2008; awwwrigami

The Dark One posted:

Welp, it happened. My Nexsus S has survived falling bouncing off metal stairs and landing onto concrete, but slipping out of my pocket and belly-flopping onto my chair's caster was enough to do this to the screen. The digitizer still works, but is that likely to continue?

I guess ymmv but usually, yes. Put a screen protector on it so you don't cut yourself and there is no movement. You should still expect it to die some time in the foreseeable future.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 12:23

ClassActionFursuit: Mar 15, 2006

Benjamin Black posted:

I've been reading up about this though and supposedly there's something that 'trips' that can tell you've unlocked it before. Has there been any cases of someone successfully warrantying a rooted Nexus 4?

No, that's Samsung devices. Trust me, I've had all five Nexuses and I've warrantied one. Unlocking your bootloader does not in and of itself void the warranty.

Benjamin Black posted:

I dunno, even hairline scratches drive me nuts. I ordered a full body matte skin for it so I don't have to feel guilty about putting it in my pocket.

Do what you have to do but it's the functional equivalent of one of those rubber keyboard covers for your computer or driving a car with snot all over the gearshift and steering wheel. You can do it but it's unpleasant and there's no reason to put up with it unless you just need reasons to make your life more miserable.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 12:26

Rusty!: Aug 25, 2005; Play Up Pompey
Pompey Play Up

LastInLine posted:

it takes a lot to scratch glass.

It really doesn't. A tiny bit of sand or grit can easily scratch it, unfortunately.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 12:31

Tunga: May 7, 2004; Grimey Drawer

Oh good, the screen protector argument, we haven't done that one for a while.

"I keep my <phone/tablet/phablet> in my <pocket/bag/mouth> in a <case/pouch/sock/actual sock/nothing> and I have <always/sometimes/never> had my screen get scratched by <sand/keys/cats>. Therefore you should <absolutely/maybe/possibly/not> get a screen protector."

Did I miss anything?

# ? Nov 14, 2013 12:36

Long Francesco: Jun 3, 2005

You forgot "it's not actually the glass but the coating that gets scratched"

# ? Nov 14, 2013 12:52

AppleCobbler: Feb 8, 2003; remember that time I was just chilling out and definitely not having a massive meltdown? right guys? guys???

Eej posted:

Got my Nexus 5 last night, 7:30PM delivery from UPS, sheesh. So much faster and nicer than my Galaxy Nexus.

This is yet another battery chart but mostly for CLAM DOWN, fellow GNex user awaiting his Nexus 5.

Basically had a normal work day with a lunch break sitting in the middle of food court that had poo poo all for reception. Didn't charge the phone overnight so I started at 77% battery, got home with 28% battery. This is without having set up Lux to give me reasonable brightness settings either. Considering my GNex would regularly go from full charge to like 5-10% during a typical 8 hour workday, that's not bad!

Kinda sad that Puzzle and Dragon doesn't work on ART though.

Just so you know, that looks like really piss poor battery life for a current generation phone, considering it appears you screen was only actually on for barely an hour over that 20 hour period. And that red zone plummet isn't very encouraging either.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 13:13

ClassActionFursuit: Mar 15, 2006

Rusty! posted:

It really doesn't. A tiny bit of sand or grit can easily scratch it, unfortunately.

I guess it depends on what you do. I'm an office jockey so I've never scratched a screen or even the oleophobic coating but if I did real work that'd be different.

Long Francesco posted:

You forgot "it's not actually the glass but the coating that gets scratched"

This I did forget. The coating can and does get scratched.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 13:13

A Pinball Wizard: Mar 23, 2005; I know every trick, no freak's gonna beat my hands; College Slice

I was ddicking around with installing roms on my Sprint evo shift last night. I installed evervolv, which was buggy as hell and wouldn't connect to 3g, although it let me emake phone calls. Today I restored my working CM7 nandroid, and now I can't connect to wifi and I have no phone signal. I can make calls, but only by roaming. How hosed am I? Would wiping and reinstalling CM help?

# ? Nov 14, 2013 14:30

numbs: Jul 20, 2013; by XyloJW

My phone isn't charging all the way. It only charges to about 47% or so overnight. I'll plug it up, wake up in the morning, and it's around 47%. Been happening for a few days consistently, and it's a huge inconvenience. Does anyone have a clue what's going on?

# ? Nov 14, 2013 14:35

hooah: Feb 6, 2006; WTF?

A Pinball Wizard posted:

I was ddicking around with installing roms on my Sprint evo shift last night. I installed evervolv, which was buggy as hell and wouldn't connect to 3g, although it let me emake phone calls. Today I restored my working CM7 nandroid, and now I can't connect to wifi and I have no phone signal. I can make calls, but only by roaming. How hosed am I? Would wiping and reinstalling CM help?

This would be better in the rooted thread, but you could try finding the radio blobs for your phone and flashing those, that might help.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 14:50

Sereri: Sep 30, 2008; awwwrigami

numbs posted:

My phone isn't charging all the way. It only charges to about 47% or so overnight. I'll plug it up, wake up in the morning, and it's around 47%. Been happening for a few days consistently, and it's a huge inconvenience. Does anyone have a clue what's going on?

Information I have taken from this:

- You own a phone
- You own a charger
- The charger doesn't fully charge the phone over night

This isn't much to go from. There are a lot of things that can cause this including the charger being broken, the phone being broken, the cable being broken or the charger being too weak for the phone.

What phone is it? Is it the original charger? How about a battery graph?

# ? Nov 14, 2013 14:53

Cozmosis: Feb 16, 2003; 2006... YEAR OF THE BURNITZ, BITCHES

Spekkio posted:

Yeah, it's gone from there. Any other ideas?

Turn off iMessage on your iPad, then contact apple they can manually unregister your number from iMessage.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 15:31

friendly gentleman: Jul 8, 2007; UH, THIS ISNT YOUR DOG IS IT

Binge posted:

I just got a G2 (on Verizon)as well, and rooted and installed a bunch of ROM's.

Every AOSP ROM breaks something. Usually it was the camera. One ROM I couldn't for the life of me get any notifications to work. Another gave me FC's left and right. I settled on Medallus ROM, as it's a "stock" ROM, so all the normal stuff works. Except the clock app, which FC's anytime I try to run it (which is bad since my phone is my alarm clock).

Basically what everyone else has said is true, Verizon and their poo poo really hurt the development of the ROM community unfortunately. Hopefully some 4.4 ROM's will come out soon and they'll get better.

Bummer. I just got mine yesterday - it's an insane upgrade from the VZW GNex.

Stock isn't HORRIBLE, but there's a lot of unnecessary fluff that I'm trying to dial down piecemeal (so cutsey and Korean-markety). I'm trying to avoid rooting and flashing anything so I can finally use corporate email on my phone (Good for Enterprise doesn't allow access if it detects superuser.apk). Just about the only thing left is the awful non-transparent background of the navigation buttons.. without an AMOLED screen like the GNex the black background is pretty evident.

But drat, dis battery. Cost me 50 bux after rebate and I got it at the 20 month mark. I'm happy.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 16:14

bull3964: Nov 18, 2000; DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.

One thing really stuck out to me last night after installing Kit Kat on my Nexus 7 and Nexus 10. Google went through all this effort to eradicate the blue icons but left the blue toggle switches in.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 16:20

unprofessional: Apr 26, 2007; All business.

Just ordered my new Moto X from Republic. Pumped to finally have a decent phone. :cool:

# ? Nov 14, 2013 16:33

Rosalind: Apr 30, 2013; When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change.

My new Nexus 5 notified me this morning that my "auto video" was ready and sure enough it had made a video of my cat complete with cheesy music. While hilarious, I'm also a bit creeped out that my phone is making videos autonomously now. What feature is this and how do I change the settings? I don't want to turn it off necessarily but I just want to make sure that it's not going to start like automatically putting these videos on my twitter or something.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 16:35

ClassActionFursuit: Mar 15, 2006

bull3964 posted:

One thing really stuck out to me last night after installing Kit Kat on my Nexus 7 and Nexus 10. Google went through all this effort to eradicate the blue icons but left the blue toggle switches in.

Made all the stranger since they went to the trouble to change the interim state on the QSP to a weird brown color so you'd think they'd have done the same for toggles.

I find the black and white way too overwhelming personally, I feel it needs some accent color even if it isn't the Tron blue.

Rosalind posted:

My new Nexus 5 notified me this morning that my "auto video" was ready and sure enough it had made a video of my cat complete with cheesy music. While hilarious, I'm also a bit creeped out that my phone is making videos autonomously now. What feature is this and how do I change the settings? I don't want to turn it off necessarily but I just want to make sure that it's not going to start like automatically putting these videos on my twitter or something.

It won't, it just Auto-Awesomes videos that are uploaded and the process isn't permanent. There's no reason to worry about it.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 16:36

b0nes: Sep 11, 2001

Thanatosian posted:

T-Mobile Prepaid:

$45/month (assuming taxes/fees are similar)
2.5GB of data
Unlimited texting
100 minutes (might be an occasional overage, but meh)
Handset Premium Protection (not a service plan)

Honestly, the biggest downside of the T-Mobile prepaid plan is probably losing the Sprint insurance/service plan. I know people poo poo on Sprint, but being able to schedule an appointment to take your phone into a store to have it repaired for free same-day is pretty loving great. I am also pretty hard on phones, so it's really nice to have it there to take advantage of. And there's something to be said for unlimited data and enough minutes that I'm never, ever going to run through them. Also, once I give up my SERO plan, there's no going back; it's gone forever. The additional monthly fee is somewhat mitigated by subsidizing my phone, as well.

On the flip side, Sprint's network isn't the greatest. I'm a big fan of T-Mobile's contract-free business model (it's something I'd like to support), and the long-term monetary savings would be significant. Further, T-Mobile is a local company (headquartered right across the lake). Higher data and minute limits don't really help me if I'm not using them.

So, what am I missing? Is there some angle I'm not seeing that should push me one direction or the other?

I have the same plan as you but with 5GB and 100 minutes.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 16:38

butt dickus: Jul 7, 2007; top ten juiced up coaches
and the top ten juiced up players

unprofessional posted:

Just ordered my new Moto X from Republic. Pumped to finally have a decent phone.

And the leftover scraps from Sprint's already lovely network!

# ? Nov 14, 2013 16:41

bull3964: Nov 18, 2000; DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.

FYI, Moto Maker X for Verizon is only $49 on contract right now. That's a steal.

I would have been temped to do that instead of the MAXX if that would have been available when I upgraded. While I love the giant battery and insane life, the draw to customize the phone would have been too big (as well as saving $250).

# ? Nov 14, 2013 16:47

butt dickus: Jul 7, 2007; top ten juiced up coaches
and the top ten juiced up players

bull3964 posted:

FYI, Moto Maker X for Verizon is only $49 on contract right now. That's a steal.

I would have been temped to do that instead of the MAXX if that would have been available when I upgraded. While I love the giant battery and insane life, the draw to customize the phone would have been too big (as well as saving $250).

I ran through the checkout process to try it out and it looks like you also get a $10 Google Play credit.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 16:50

bull3964: Nov 18, 2000; DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.

Doctor rear end in a top hat posted:

I ran through the checkout process to try it out and it looks like you also get a $10 Google Play credit.

You will also get the 50gb of google drive space for 2 years. The phone is essentially free on contract.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 16:53

Telex: Feb 11, 2003

how does the moto x compare to the htc one?

Mostly camera is what I'm considering, I have come to decide that I don't play any games more complex than match-3 stuff any more since I have a nexus 10 and an ipad4 lying around.

I know the specs say moto x is dual core and htc one is quad, but is that one of those where the quads are slower than the duals so it evens out?

# ? Nov 14, 2013 17:06

bull3964: Nov 18, 2000; DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.

The X camera is nowhere near the One's capability. It may get better with software releases, but it's never going to match what HTC has done. So, if that's a priority, then the X likely won't be for you.

I wouldn't worry about performance stuff. Nothing is multithreaded enough to take advantage of more than 2 cores in real world use and Motorola is really tweaking their devices for performance to an insane degree (that new Moto G outperforms the SGS4 despite being lower class hardware.)

# ? Nov 14, 2013 17:13

butt dickus: Jul 7, 2007; top ten juiced up coaches
and the top ten juiced up players

Here's the numbers on the X. Most charts also show the One.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/7235/moto-x-review

Performance in all categories is similar, but the X will be faster in real-world use due to the lower resolution.

bull3964 posted:

The X camera is nowhere near the One's capability. It may get better with software releases, but it's never going to match what HTC has done. So, if that's a priority, then the X likely won't be for you.

I thought the X camera was already pretty good and got way better with the last update?

# ? Nov 14, 2013 17:16

bull3964: Nov 18, 2000; DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.

Doctor rear end in a top hat posted:

I thought the X camera was already pretty good and got way better with the last update?

It did get way better and I would say it's above average, but it's still not on One or SGS4 levels.

What is nice is Motorola moved their camera app to the Play store so they can push camera updates outside of the carrier release cycle.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 17:18

CancerStick: Jun 3, 2011

Has anybody gone from a note 2 to the Moto X. I see quite a bit about how it's a fine camera but doesn't stack up to the new high end phones but I'm curious how it stacks up to an "older" note 2. Might jump on a 50 dollar Moto X. The Note 2 is perfectly fine for me. As long as it's not worse then I'm probably good to go.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 17:20

Eej: Jun 17, 2007; HEAVYARMS

AppleCobbler posted:

Just so you know, that looks like really piss poor battery life for a current generation phone, considering it appears you screen was only actually on for barely an hour over that 20 hour period. And that red zone plummet isn't very encouraging either.

I guess this is just my post-GNex syndrome showing then cause my phone lasting the whole day is the most amazing thing in the world.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 17:48

kensei: Dec 27, 2007; He has come home, where he belongs. The Ancient Mariner returns to lead his first team to glory, forever and ever. Amen!

bull3964 posted:

It did get way better and I would say it's above average, but it's still not on One or SGS4 levels.

What is nice is Motorola moved their camera app to the Play store so they can push camera updates outside of the carrier release cycle.

Is that camera app available for the MAXX? I installed Cymera and it's pretty nice.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 17:53

AlexDeGruven: Jun 29, 2007; Watch me pull my dongle out of this tiny box

bull3964 posted:

FYI, Moto Maker X for Verizon is only $49 on contract right now. That's a steal.

I would have been temped to do that instead of the MAXX if that would have been available when I upgraded. While I love the giant battery and insane life, the draw to customize the phone would have been too big (as well as saving $250).

I went ahead and bought one. My S3's touch screen issues are just getting too annoying. Besides, I can probably unload it easily for the $129.99 (32GB - $50 + $30 activation) I paid for the X.

And since I'm a born and bred Michigan fan, had to go with the Navy/Yellow.

My 6 year old State fan will be rather dismayed.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 17:59

kitten smoothie: Dec 29, 2001

kensei posted:

Is that camera app available for the MAXX? I installed Cymera and it's pretty nice.

If you have taken the recent OTA that went out in the last week or two, the app will work for the Droid Maxx too. Just go search for Motorola Camera in the store.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 18:00

unprofessional: Apr 26, 2007; All business.

Doctor rear end in a top hat posted:

And the leftover scraps from Sprint's already lovely network!

98% of the time, I use it at work or home, so I went with the $10/month plan, which was only $9 for me, since I was in the beta. lovely sprint network or not, hard not to be pleased with that.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 18:02

bull3964: Nov 18, 2000; DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.

kitten smoothie posted:

If you have taken the recent OTA that went out in the last week or two, the app will work for the Droid Maxx too. Just go search for Motorola Camera in the store.

I didn't even have to search. As soon as I rebooted after the OTA, the play store automatically installed the update.

# ? Nov 14, 2013 18:09

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Jun 11, 2024 04:49

Don Lapre: Mar 28, 2001; If you're having problems you're either holding the phone wrong or you have tiny girl hands.

So google+ new auto awesome videos, loving crazy.

Made this video for me without me prompting or having anything to do with it other than naming it after it showed me the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhJ7T9B_Z8k

# ? Nov 14, 2013 18:45

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > Android Phones - Defend Your Purchase

«‹›589 »