Considering Cyanogen

Martonio

I am new to this whole android thing and some people have recommended cyanogen over jailbreaking. I am always a bit wary when it comes to messing around with things like this. Would people recommend cyanogen and if you install it on your phone does delete everything on it and is basically like factory restore?

Inquitus

Martonio wrote: »

I am new to this whole android thing and some people have recommended cyanogen over jailbreaking. I am always a bit wary when it comes to messing around with things like this. Would people recommend cyanogen and if you install it on your phone does delete everything on it and is basically like factory restore?

Depends on what your phone is and what its running at the moment. CM is good for providing up to date Android for aging phones, it is less useful if you have a current phone that receives regular updates.

Martonio

I have an S3 but I don't receive updates for firmware any more. I am currently running Android 4.1.2. I don't think that any more firmware updates will be coming out for the S3 considering they are on the S4 and the Note series.

hidinginthebush

What phone do you have at the moment?

I've always rooted my devices after a week or 2 on stock roms. I think the way phones are supplied there's too much bloatware.

Regarding wiping your device OP, factory resetting will indeed wipe any settings / preferences etc, however, it won't delete anything saved on your external SD card (so move your photos, videos etc, there before wiping). You can backup your device to your Google account, so if you do factory reset, then when you log back on to your device for the first time, it will import them all, it will also reinstall your apps. There are apps to back up your sms.

Make sure you do a backup before you go installing any new roms, I use Rom manager. That way if something goes wrong, you can fully reinstall your phone to how it was before you broke it.

Inquitus

The S3 is well supported by CM, I would defo put it on myself, it will ofc wipe your phone completely.

murphaph

I have CM10.1 (I prefer to stick to the stable releases personally) on a nexus 4. Some might see that as somewhat pointless as a nexus device gets stock android updates direct from Google but the CM team add some really useful stuff I feel. The coolest feature is the automatic profile switching based on connecting and disconnecting from set networks. To install CM will require unlocking of the boot loader and rooting of the phone as well as the installation of a custom recovery. This is the android equivalent of jailbreaking I suppose. I recently installed CM 7 on an ancient HTC Legend and that really gave that phone a new lease of life. CM is primarily for people that want a stock android look and feel with a few added useful features. It is ideal for folks who also want rid of manufacturer bloatware.

G1032

Martonio wrote: »

I have an S3 but I don't receive updates for firmware any more. I am currently running Android 4.1.2. I don't think that any more firmware updates will be coming out for the S3 considering they are on the S4 and the Note series.

There will be more updates for the S3. There is already a leaked version of 4.2.2 out for the S3 and an official release is expected in October.
CM10.1 and CM10.2 are both options for the S3 but are very battery heavy, especially with mobile data turned on.
There are also much newer versions than of stock 4.1.2 out than what your Irish provider would have rolled out

Martonio

G1032 wrote: »

There are also much newer versions than of stock 4.1.2 out than what your Irish provider would have rolled out

Whenever I go to update software button in settings. It states that all software is up to date. You sure that there is a newer version of the software for phones that are not jail broken or rooted?

waynegalway

G1032 wrote: »

CM10.1 and CM10.2 are both options for the S3 but are very battery heavy, especially with mobile data turned on.

+1 on the battery drain.

I had cm running on an S3 for a while, and I was disappointed with the battery drain. I tried all the usual tricks to save power, but the battery definitely lasted longer on stock.

Dermighty

I have a HTC One X and I find that Cyanogen added a lot of useful functionality that the regular software didn't have. The battery life on the HTC One X is ****e anyway so I can't say whether it improves performance.

G1032

Martonio wrote: »

Whenever I go to update software button in settings. It states that all software is up to date. You sure that there is a newer version of the software for phones that are not jail broken or rooted?

Ya. Search for XDA I9300 General in Google and it'll bring you to a forum with the stock firmwares. I'd avoid 4.2.2 if I were you though as it was/is very buggy. Make sure you do your reading though. The newest 4.1.2 FW changed the format of the efs folder and only two modems work with them FW's which may or may not cause problems for you

waynegalway

G1032 wrote: »

Ya. Search for XDA I9300 General in Google and it'll bring you to a forum with the stock firmwares. I'd avoid 4.2.2 if I were you though as it was/is very buggy. Make sure you do your reading though. The newest 4.1.2 FW changed the format of the efs folder and only two modems work with them FW's which may or may not cause problems for you

I was using the leaked version of 4.2.2 for a while (the samsung FW, not CM) and after a while it stopped connecting to the internet. It was giving me trouble by not accessing the Three APNs properly (wifi worked fine), so I ended up putting 4.1.2 back on it before I sold it on.

G1032

waynegalway wrote: »

I was using the leaked version of 4.2.2 for a while (the samsung FW, not CM) and after a while it stopped connecting to the internet. It was giving me trouble by not accessing the Three APNs properly (wifi worked fine), so I ended up putting 4.1.2 back on it before I sold it on.

It was rubbish alright. Used it for a weeksI'd say and then rolled back to 4.1.2

waynegalway

G1032 wrote: »

It was rubbish alright. Used it for a weeksI'd say and then rolled back to 4.1.2

I preferred the UI of it compared to 4.1.2, but I'm using a HTC One now and that has 4.2.2 on it, so happy days!

hidinginthebush

Hey OP, don't forget that cyanogen isn't your only option either. I'm running sentinelROM, it's 4.2.2, based on cyanogen, but with a few tweeks here and there. I've found it to be great, no bugs that I've come across, better battery life than stock and any other ROM I've ran on the S3.

petrolcan

Running CM10.2 (android 4.3) nightlies here on an S3. Battery life is great as is the support network on XDA.

TBH, the first thing I do when I get a new phone is root it and install a custom ROM, usually CM.

The only thing that currently worries me is the way CM might be heading but it's not causing me sleepless nights.

MarkR

Using the latest CM10.2 on my Galaxy S 4. Liking it a lot more than touchwiz.

homer911

waynegalway wrote: »

I was using the leaked version of 4.2.2 for a while (the samsung FW, not CM) and after a while it stopped connecting to the internet. It was giving me trouble by not accessing the Three APNs properly (wifi worked fine), so I ended up putting 4.1.2 back on it before I sold it on.

I used 4.2.2 for one night before being fed up with it, and moved to Cyanogen

Martonio

So would I be better off jailbreaking it?

MarkR

jailbreak is an apple term for iphones I think. You can root a phone, which gives you more options in regard to software to install.

You can root your phone, then back it up completely to the sd card. Install cyanogenmod, see if you like it. Back that up the same way. Then you can choose to load back the original software if you don't like it, without losing any data.

pedatron

Jailbreak is apple. Google Root SGS3 and you should get all you need to know!