Related
I'm going to get my Captivate in the mail tomorrow and was doing some research on the Android OS and the way AT&T locks some of the features of the phone.
Should I wait for Android 2.2 to come out or should I get a ROM on my phone? Also, is it possible to delete the AT&T apps (bloatware) without rooting? I have a 32gb class 4 microSD card if that helps with anything. Thanks.
Can anyone recommend something?
I would say keep up with the SRE thread. Its really great as far as mods go and @designgears is on top of his game. Other than that, I'd say wait on 2.2
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
beazie0885 said:
I would say keep up with the SRE thread. Its really great as far as mods go and @designgears is on top of his game. Other than that, I'd say wait on 2.2
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I 2nd that. Get ready for SRE 2.0!!!! Its gonna be worth it all.
To answer your other question you can not remove bloatwear without rooting. Rooting is easy as there is a one click root/unroot process which is stickied in the dev section. Right now the best ROM is Eugene's Vibrant Hybrid because its an actual ROM. What designgears puts out is more removal of bloatwear with some added features that ATT did not included in the captivate as well as including overclock and a lag fix which you install. To me that is not a ROM but it is a very good product which as of late has gone under many changes. Research, research, research before you do anything. Read all 300 pages of any thread because it is not all just banter, lots of good info in those threads.
flashman2002 said:
To answer your other question you can not remove bloatwear without rooting. Rooting is easy as there is a one click root/unroot process which is stickied in the dev section. Right now the best ROM is Eugene's Vibrant Hybrid because its an actual ROM. What designgears puts out is more removal of bloatwear with some added features that ATT did not included in the captivate as well as including overclock and a lag fix which you install. To me that is not a ROM but it is a very good product which as of late has gone under many changes. Research, research, research before you do anything. Read all 300 pages of any thread because it is not all just banter, lots of good info in those threads.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, I guess I'm going to turn myself into an Android expert now by reading these threads. The reason why I was hesitant on installing a ROM was that there were some problems people described, such as tethering being disabled or the phone having problems loading some apps or software, etc. Thanks a lot for the info.
flashman2002 said:
What designgears puts out is more removal of bloatwear with some added features that ATT did not included in the captivate as well as including overclock and a lag fix which you install. To me that is not a ROM but it is a very good product which as of late has gone under many changes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i think they are referring to the announcement that DG made that SRE 2.0 is going to be a complete ROM.....hes playing around with alpha right now
Does this guy do this for a living?
No. No one in xda does this for a living they just accept donations. 5 bucks from 50 people though sure does add up to pay the bills
Sent from my fonez so excuze the speling erors
Pirateghost said:
i think they are referring to the announcement that DG made that SRE 2.0 is going to be a complete ROM.....hes playing around with alpha right now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, unfortunately we don't really know what DG is up to haha.
One more question:
Will rooting affect my AT&T data and/or voice plan in any way? Thanks.
Where can I download eugenes hybrid rom?
bartek4443 said:
One more question:
Will rooting affect my AT&T data and/or voice plan in any way? Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope. but anyway: My opinion on trying other roms: I tried 2 roms. the leaked 2.2. was good for a little while, played around with flash, kinda laggy still, but its a leaked version, so whatever. Then i changed to "Tayutama's JPM Froyo w/Xcaliburinhand's Re-oriented Kernel" Next day, back to stock. Too many problems, custom roms are being updated constantly, more buggy than official releases. well at least the ones i always get, so back to stock Rooted. Sideloading enabled. And LOVING IT! I'm just gonna wait til the official froyo release, flash is great, but i never really used it as much as i thought i would. as long as you have root, sideloading, bloatware removal, and lagfix, i think you got yourself a damn good phone.
TheRomero09 said:
Nope. but anyway: My opinion on trying other roms: I tried 2 roms. the leaked 2.2. was good for a little while, played around with flash, kinda laggy still, but its a leaked version, so whatever. Then i changed to "Tayutama's JPM Froyo w/Xcaliburinhand's Re-oriented Kernel" Next day, back to stock. Too many problems, custom roms are being updated constantly, more buggy than official releases. well at least the ones i always get, so back to stock Rooted. Sideloading enabled. And LOVING IT! I'm just gonna wait til the official froyo release, flash is great, but i never really used it as much as i thought i would. as long as you have root, sideloading, bloatware removal, and lagfix, i think you got yourself a damn good phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you tried 2 roms and decided they were too buggy??
go try cognition. you will wonder why the phone didnt come from the factory like that.
honestly the 2 you tried were not the best to get any idea of anything from....the leaked is leaked with no tweaks and is a tad buggy. then you tried one that was an i9000 rom that people are working on making stable....
give cognition a try
Pirateghost said:
you tried 2 roms and decided they were too buggy??
go try cognition. you will wonder why the phone didn't come from the factory like that.
honestly the 2 you tried were not the best to get any idea of anything from....the leaked is leaked with no tweaks and is a tad buggy. then you tried one that was an i9000 rom that people are working on making stable....
give cognition a try
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i know that does sound stupid. haha. i meant on my captivate, i have tried way too many roms on my past phones. i have been thinking about trying cognition 2.2, just waiting for it to get out of beta. should be worth the wait.
TheRomero09 said:
i know that does sound stupid. haha. i meant on my captivate, i have tried way too many roms on my past phones. i have been thinking about trying cognition 2.2, just waiting for it to get out of beta. should be worth the wait.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would recommend running his beta 2.2. It makes the phone run a LOT better. Fixed a ton of issues that I was experiencing.
But.. it is pretty hit or miss on his builds... Usually I wait until after the whole number release (i.e. 9.1 vs. 9) so the initial bugs are figured out and fixed.
Froyo on this phone with the tweaks DG has been doing are phenomenal. But then.. I'm impatient and don't mind flashing the crap out of this thing.
And to answer the OP. Rooting does not affect your AT&T voice/data plan. It does affect your warranty. Anything that can be used to circumvent the "lockdown" that AT&T and Samsung has on the phone will do that.
So... Rooting, removing "bloatware", flashing ROMS are all a big no-no if you still want to be within the EULA and Warranties with both AT&T and Samsung.
avgjoegeek said:
I would recommend running his beta 2.2. It makes the phone run a LOT better. Fixed a ton of issues that I was experiencing.
But.. it is pretty hit or miss on his builds... Usually I wait until after the whole number release (i.e. 9.1 vs. 9) so the initial bugs are figured out and fixed.
Froyo on this phone with the tweaks DG has been doing are phenomenal. But then.. I'm impatient and don't mind flashing the crap out of this thing.
And to answer the OP. Rooting does not affect your AT&T voice/data plan. It does affect your warranty. Anything that can be used to circumvent the "lockdown" that AT&T and Samsung has on the phone will do that.
So... Rooting, removing "bloatware", flashing ROMS are all a big no-no if you still want to be within the EULA and Warranties with both AT&T and Samsung.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That does sound like good advice, but that would still be too much loading roms for me. It went from the 1st beta to beta 9 all in less than 1 month. It's great because the work is getting better and better faster but i'm not the type that likes flashing new roms every week, once it gets out of beta i think i can deal with it. I'm working with stock 2.1, root, sideloading, lagfix, GPS working fine (don't really use it that much to begin with) and I can't complain, its a great phone.
What is SRE? A previous post mentioned to keep up with the SRE thread and then mentions @designgears. Is that the designgears' "[ROM]Cognition v2.2 BETA9.1.1 (Voodoo - CogKernel - Bootanimation)" thread they are referring to? I used the "Search Forum" tool and that was the first thing that came up.
Many times when people refer to newbies (like myself) to "look up this/that" or "try this/that", they use acronyms and its difficult to find what exactly they are referring to.
Cognition 2.2 Beta 9.1.1
Grab this and never look back.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
^^^^This^^^^^ I've never had an Android phone and just got a Captivate a couple of days ago. I thought it was pretty cool an all but decided to install Cognition 2.2 Beta 9.1.1 and am in love with this phone now. Unbelievable the difference it makes.
Hey guys. Just got a captivate a few days ago and I love it except for the gps. I was just wondering if the leaked build of froyo improves the gps at all and if its worth updating before they release the official one. If so, where can I find the latest version of the leaked build? Thank you for any help.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
The leaked Froyo does not necessarily improve on GPS because many people don't have issues where many people do. Give it a shot and search different methods of changing your LBStestmode settings to see what works. Second, for me it was worth installing as 2.2 offers stuff you cant have on 2.1 such as the newer Gmail, flash 10.1 and other goodies. It is faster as well. Search the threads in the Dev section for different ROM's and how to flash. Ask questions about flashing after doing exhaustive searching because you will be able to find most answers in those threads.
flashman2002 said:
The leaked Froyo does not necessarily improve on GPS because many people don't have issues where many people do. Give it a shot and search different methods of changing your LBStestmode settings to see what works. Second, for me it was worth installing as 2.2 offers stuff you cant have on 2.1 such as the newer Gmail, flash 10.1 and other goodies. It is faster as well. Search the threads in the Dev section for different ROM's and how to flash. Ask questions about flashing after doing exhaustive searching because you will be able to find most answers in those threads.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
x2...makes the phone 100x better.
Cognition 2.2 Beta 9.1.1
Grab this and never look back.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
I'm kinda on the fence about this as well. I should be getting my Captivate tomorrow and I have been doing a crap ton of research in the past few days. Everything I have read points to either the "Official Leaked Froyo 2.2" or the newest "Cognition v2.2 BETA9.1.1". My only concern is the known issues that are listed on the Cognition website...
MMS won't work if you have "(" or ")" in your phone numbers
Contact groups sometimes opens the wrong group, you can fix this by replacing it with an I9K contacts.apk, but then you lose AT&T contact syncing
No Voodoo voices, supercurio is working on this (first boot will take awhile, be patient!)
Everyone has the same device_id
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is this true with both builds listed or just with the Cognition v2.2 BETA9.1.1? I'm also completely new to Android being that I am a fomer iPhone junkie. So any help, how-to's, or info would be appreciated. In all honesty I was going to start here, youtube.com/watch?v=S9YnSVvfHpQ and if that wasn't successful go ahead and try Cognition. I'm just the type of person that likes to have things working properly and fast, like everyone else.
And for those wondering why I have been a member for over two and a half years and this is my first post, I have usually been able to find what I need and not had to ask questions.
I would point out that DesignGears has a perfectly rockin' cognition for eclair too. My first flash was 2.1.4 and it was amazing compared to stock eclair.
nothing really helps the gps, you either got it good, or not. (much research into that opinion btw.)
Cog 8.1+ is the shiz atm.
There's a couple of other froyo flavors also. I wouldn't go back to eclair at this point.
If nothin' else, it's a crap ton of fun flashin' and figuring stuff out. I'd do it just for that.
Not sure on MMS. I had no problems with it, but my numbers were already formatted without the parenthesis.
The ability to do these type of things is what lead me to the Android platform over the iPhone OS, it's just too locked down even with it being jailbroken IMHO. I'm just basically looking for a point of refferance I suppose. Basically the things to do and not to do to the phone you know. For me it's more of a challenge because I'm learning something new. I don't know if it's because I'm not looking in the right places or what but it seems like step by step guides are hard to come by regarding this stuff.
unless you use the i9000 ROM with captivate kernel, all Captivate Froyo builds are based off the captivate beta of Froyo.
It had a enough bugs that i rolled back to 2.1. Don't get me wrong, it is stable - but I figure i will wait for a more bug free beta to be the basis of my Froyo jump.
mindbuRn said:
The ability to do these type of things is what lead me to the Android platform over the iPhone OS, it's just too locked down even with it being jailbroken IMHO. I'm just basically looking for a point of refferance I suppose. Basically the things to do and not to do to the phone you know. For me it's more of a challenge because I'm learning something new. I don't know if it's because I'm not looking in the right places or what but it seems like step by step guides are hard to come by regarding this stuff.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not so much. You just gotta be patient and diligent. There's a couple of gems laying around but they are usually in the middle of a thread. The cognition thread for example. It's a beast to keep up with but given time you can digest most of what you need there. And there are plenty of links throughout that will clarify or intimidate as your experience and skill allow. Trouble is there's a TON of junk because people get impatient, or lazy I guess. Same questions, over and over.
I came to the captivate from a blackberry. Not much customization goin' on there. So as a stone noob, I read the cognition thread from post 1. All of it. I am a pretty confident android operator now. And I can't read nor write a line of code. In any language!
And you can too. Get busy, Grasshopper.
If you live on campus or rely on some sort of enterprise WIFI then go to froyo. Using eclair I could NEVER connect to the wifi at my school. It would say that I was connected of course but no data would transfer.
I switched to Froyo and haven't had problems since.
Also, my GPS is rockin!
alphadog, what "bugs" did you have when using Froyo? And what you mentioned is a lot of where my confusion comes into play, "kernals and ROMs" are like greek to me and I have no idea what they are or what the difference is between the two.
Sulphur, thanks so much for the advice. I'm gonna go check out the Cognition thread now and see what I can dig up. That's really what I needed, just a starting point. I'm thinking as of now I will go with the latest Cognition build for a bit and see how that goes.
DirtyRasa, no campus here but I do rely on wi-fi pretty heavily. I use it at home all the time to cut down on charges to my bill for data usage, so that's good to know. Just curious though, are you using the leaked Froyo or the Cognition build? And if you have had both which one do you prefer?
cybercowboy, wasn't trying to jack your thread or anything but I was in search of the same info as well.
mindbuRn said:
And for those wondering why I have been a member for over two and a half years and this is my first post, I have usually been able to find what I need and not had to ask questions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
More power to you. I see tons of people on here less than a month with hundreds of posts more than me.
-->Back on topic. YES go with Froyo! There are many options available, but for noobs, i'd reccomend the either a DG ROM or the leaked and tweaked.
Thats no problem mindburn. The more information the better. I actually flashed to the leaked froyo last night and so far so good. Gps is still horrible. I think im gonna try the cognition build tonight and see what I like better. Ill let you know.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
cybercowboy372 said:
Thats no problem mindburn. The more information the better. I actually flashed to the leaked froyo last night and so far so good. Gps is still horrible. I think im gonna try the cognition build tonight and see what I like better. Ill let you know.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks man, almost sounds as though you are one step ahead of me actually. I get my phone tomorrow and I was going to actually try the leaked first and then cognition. Let me know how things turn out for you and I will in return do the same.
So I got the phone yesterday and let me say, when I got it out of the box I knew I was going to like it. This damn thing looks sexy as hell! Anyway, 10 minutes after I got it I had successfully upgraded to the leaked Froyo and rooted the phone. Everything is going fine and I haven't had any problems thus far. It is at times a little buggy but I have learned that if I kill some of the tasks, the speed seems to improve. I thought about try Cognition today but when I load it up, I've only got the odin.exe, PDA.tar, & PIT.pit. Do I have to have CSC & ETC file mentioned in the program as well? Also, what exactly are these things, I didn't have to do anything like this on the stock Froyo.
U should of done DG's AOSP beta 3! That's what I'm rocking and have had it for almost a month and its amazing! I wanted to use cognition but I read on ppl saying they had bugs or it just wasn't stable for them. But to each their own! Unfortunately when I last checked DG closed the thread on that ROM. Glad to know u got froyo going! I made the switch from an iPhone jailbroken to the captivate and it's amazing! I'm still new to android but u just gotta read everything and their r so many ppl who are willing to help!
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
With the announcement of the official froyo coming out in about two weeks, i think i'll just stay where I'm at for right now. I don't wanna try and win the triathlon with only a week training.
mindbuRn said:
So I got the phone yesterday and let me say, when I got it out of the box I knew I was going to like it. This damn thing looks sexy as hell! Anyway, 10 minutes after I got it I had successfully upgraded to the leaked Froyo and rooted the phone. Everything is going fine and I haven't had any problems thus far. It is at times a little buggy but I have learned that if I kill some of the tasks, the speed seems to improve. I thought about try Cognition today but when I load it up, I've only got the odin.exe, PDA.tar, & PIT.pit. Do I have to have CSC & ETC file mentioned in the program as well? Also, what exactly are these things, I didn't have to do anything like this on the stock Froyo.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The pda and pit file are all you need. he just put everything in those two files. Flashes just fine that way.
Just a quick update for everyone, I am now running the latest Cognition 2.2 BETA 9.1.3. And I *MOD EDIT* love it! This thing is super fast now, pretty amazing really. I also somewhat have my homescreens the way that I want them as well. Only questions to everyone now is what do you all run? What are your must have and go to applications? Like the best of the best kind of thing.
BTW Sulphur, thanks!
mindbuRn said:
Just a quick update for everyone, I am now running the latest Cognition 2.2 BETA 9.1.3. And I *MOD EDIT* love it! This thing is super fast now, pretty amazing really. I also somewhat have my homescreens the way that I want them as well. Only questions to everyone now is what do you all run? What are your must have and go to applications? Like the best of the best kind of thing.
BTW Sulphur, thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad to hear it and no problem. My must have's are Launcher Pro, Root Explorer, xda app, and silly as it sound, beautiful widgets. I dunno. Taste has no template.
I found one on Craig's List and my girlfriend desperately needs a new phone. I plan on sticking to stock OS and not rooting or customizing it because it's for her and I don't want to risk bricking her.
I just want to know, how reliable is this phone?
Personally, this is my last Samsung phone. So... I wouldn't recommend it.
Essenar said:
I found one on Craig's List and my girlfriend desperately needs a new phone. I plan on sticking to stock OS and not rooting or customizing it because it's for her and I don't want to risk bricking her.
I just want to know, how reliable is this phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got a Captivate for my gf and she loves it, but the stock OS pissed her off due to lagging and bloatware.
We installed Cognition 2.3b8 which was very easy and now she really loves it as her daily driver. All you do is put an update.zip for Clockwork on the root of SD. Reboot into oem recovery, reinstall packages twice to get to Clockwork, then wipe data and flash Cognition. Couldn't be easier.
Honestly, if you can find a Nexus One for AT&T (if you have AT&T the T-mobile version will be Edge only!! You need an AT&T Nexus One) I think that's your best bet, but with a little bit of modding and care the Captivate is a great phone. My gf LOVES the giant screen and beautiful display.
That said, the more I learn about it the more pissed off I am with Samsung. Different revisions, ODIN, Kies, Download Mode, etc. Rooting this thing is way more complicated than it needs to be. I'm running a MT4G and SOOOO glad I didn't buy the Vibrant. Shudder...
The only problem I've ever had with my cappy is the GPS, which, after reading the GPS fixes thread has been absolutely perfect.
To me this is the perfect phone. Fast, reliable, pretty. I don't even want anything faster anymore. If phones peaked in speed right now and started focusing strictly on battery life (I get about 1.5-2 days right now, I'd like to get 3-5), I'd be perfectly happy with that.
Craig's List? Buyer beware!
Here is where I am at:
This phone is probably not the best choice if you are planning on giving it to your wife without a custom ROM. If you plan on giving it to you wife with a ROM it is a good choice regardless of what ROM you choose however it is better if you use one that is as close to stock as possible: cognition, perception, or Andromeda (1.00).
cappysw10 said:
Craig's List? Buyer beware!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've got several great phones off CL. Do your due diligence as a buyer and you'll be just fine.
If you can get it for a decent price, then go for it.
Here's a simple pro & con list:
Pros
-Super AMOLED screen makes pictures and videos gorgeous
-1 GHz Processor that can be overclocked to 1.28GHz (stable) and undervolted to improve battery performance
-The xda devs are constantly providing the Captivate support that Samsung has failed to give us.
-Did i mention the Super AMOLED screen? Yes, yes I did.
-Swype makes texting a lot more fun to type on the phone once you get past the 1-minute learning curve
Cons
-Developed by Samsung and so the customer support for the phone is terrible
(see: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=913045)
-The stock AT&T Rom is filled with bloatware that takes up space and attempts to get you to spend more money on AT&T services.
-AT&T has disabled the ability to sideload apps (install apps from outside of the market) on the stock ROM, and so you won't be able to install third-party apps if/when you come across them.
-No official 2.2 froyo release from Samsung, despite promises from them as well as AT&T to have it released by the end of 2010 (this is when the store rep told me to expect the update when i bought my phone. derp).
-Some GPS Issues
Conclusion based on my personal opinion.
Overall, I love this phone and I'm glad I chose it over the iPhone 4 due to the ridiculous customization available. However, if not for the xda devs creating amazing custom ROMs, I would have probably returned it for the original Jesus phone.
My advice? Get the phone, pick out a launcher from the market (LauncherPro, ADW Launcher, or for the minimalist: Zeam) and grab handcent while you're at it. Then give her the phone and she should be happy with it.
More advice? Sure. Root the phone, flash Cog 3.02 onto it with the firebird 2/Glitterball kernel and JK4 modem.
Sorry if this post seems a bit jumbled and scattered. I'm currently doing about 4 different things at once and posting from my Computer Class at the local community college haha
Dont' buy it. GPS problems, shutdown issues, and, based on the general lack of reliability so far, probably more issues to come as the phone ages. If it weren't for the beautiful display and the custom ROMs here on xda I'd have little good to say about my phone. Since you don't plan on modifications the screen is really all you'd get. Does that screen outweigh the hardware problems I've noted?
Phateless said:
Rooting this thing is way more complicated than it needs to be.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SuperOneClick -- The program is called "SuperOneClick". That is literally all it takes to gain root on a SGS phone. So, personally, I think rooting is not nearly as complicated as it could be!
yourname146 said:
SuperOneClick -- The program is called "SuperOneClick". That is literally all it takes to gain root on a SGS phone. So, personally, I think rooting is not nearly as complicated as it could be!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let me rephrase that. Custom ROMs are more complicated than they need to be. I've used SOC on my MT3G, works well. It's ODIN, Kies and manually flashing modems and kernels that annoys me. I've flashed radios and roms on my mt3g and I'm comfortable with fastboot and adb so I'm not a total noob. HTC just seems simpler to me, but maybe that's because I'm used to it.
The only beef I have had with this phone is the GPS issue. otherwise it's a great phone. Beautiful screen, sleek design and fast with a good ROM such as Cognition.
I've decided I'm either going to get her a Nokia N900 or an iPhone (some variation). I can't put a phone in her hands with such a gamble on the GPS (There's no guarantee the fix works and no way to identify which Captivates will work and won't work). Especially since this phone is purchased used and won't have a warranty on it.
I wish her sister would make up her mind about AT&T. If she decided to stay with AT&T I could just buy her something new. If she decided to leave AT&T, I could buy her a new Android device with another carrier.
Essenar said:
I've decided I'm either going to get her a Nokia N900 or an iPhone (some variation). I can't put a phone in her hands with such a gamble on the GPS (There's no guarantee the fix works and no way to identify which Captivates will work and won't work). Especially since this phone is purchased used and won't have a warranty on it.
I wish her sister would make up her mind about AT&T. If she decided to stay with AT&T I could just buy her something new. If she decided to leave AT&T, I could buy her a new Android device with another carrier.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can tell you from experience, **** AT&T! T-mobile has buy one get one free for MT4G right now, I have no clue why on earth you would want to stay with AT&T.
Seriously, I have been with T-mobile for 5 years and I'm in love with their service. Every time I call I get an AMERICAN rep on the phone in 5 mins tops.
pizz0wn3d said:
If you can get it for a decent price, then go for it.
Here's a simple pro & con list:
Pros
-Super AMOLED screen makes pictures and videos gorgeous
-1 GHz Processor that can be overclocked to 1.28GHz (stable) and undervolted to improve battery performance
-The xda devs are constantly providing the Captivate support that Samsung has failed to give us.
-Did i mention the Super AMOLED screen? Yes, yes I did.
-Swype makes texting a lot more fun to type on the phone once you get past the 1-minute learning curve
Cons
-Developed by Samsung and so the customer support for the phone is terrible
(see: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=913045)
-The stock AT&T Rom is filled with bloatware that takes up space and attempts to get you to spend more money on AT&T services.
-AT&T has disabled the ability to sideload apps (install apps from outside of the market) on the stock ROM, and so you won't be able to install third-party apps if/when you come across them.
-No official 2.2 froyo release from Samsung, despite promises from them as well as AT&T to have it released by the end of 2010 (this is when the store rep told me to expect the update when i bought my phone. derp).
-Some GPS Issues
Conclusion based on my personal opinion.
Overall, I love this phone and I'm glad I chose it over the iPhone 4 due to the ridiculous customization available. However, if not for the xda devs creating amazing custom ROMs, I would have probably returned it for the original Jesus phone.
My advice? Get the phone, pick out a launcher from the market (LauncherPro, ADW Launcher, or for the minimalist: Zeam) and grab handcent while you're at it. Then give her the phone and she should be happy with it.
More advice? Sure. Root the phone, flash Cog 3.02 onto it with the firebird 2/Glitterball kernel and JK4 modem.
Sorry if this post seems a bit jumbled and scattered. I'm currently doing about 4 different things at once and posting from my Computer Class at the local community college haha
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is a very fair and accurate assessment.
Absolutely get this phone if you're comfortable rooting the phone and installing custom ROMs, launchers, etc. The phone will run markedly better than stock and will be a dream to use.
If you're not technically inclined, and need rely on $am$ung and AT$T for your firmware updates, get a different android phone. Updates are either never coming or will be over half a year behind and quite possibly bugged and broken even if you do get them.
kingtz said:
This is a very fair and accurate assessment.
Absolutely get this phone if you're comfortable rooting the phone and installing custom ROMs, launchers, etc. The phone will run markedly better than stock and will be a dream to use.
If you're not technically inclined, and need rely on $am$ung and AT$T for your firmware updates, get a different android phone. Updates are either never coming or will be over half a year behind and quite possibly bugged and broken even if you do get them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks
I feel like I should mention that I'm now using Exists Suckerpunch kernel and it's... Well... Amazing. OC/UV support with speedmod's battery battery tweaks is pretty much the best thing ever. And exists (pretty cool guy, eh made my favorite kernel ever and doesn't afraid of anything) updates so often I barely have time to find and complain about any bugs that happen to slip past.
This phone is quite captivating indeed.
Herp derp Captivate XDA App
Phateless said:
I've got several great phones off CL. Do your due diligence as a buyer and you'll be just fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Me too. That said out of the box the Captivate is a very frustrating phone to use. The GPS is spotty and You won't have full access to it's super fast Gee Bees unless you install a custom ROM.
I ended up getting her an iPhone. I know guys, I know.
To be honest, I didn't feel comfortable giving her a phone with spotty GPS as this will be her primary GPS unit.
Reading the custom rod and GPS thread gave me no assurance that doing the fix and rooting with a custom rom would fix the issue.
I have enough problems dealing with my MyTouch 4g that you may see me on a Bionic or iPhone with Verizon anyway.
But thanks for the advice. I may root and mod her sisters Captivate to score points because I heard she has had for warranty replacements lol.
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App
gunnyman said:
Me too. That said out of the box the Captivate is a very frustrating phone to use. The GPS is spotty and You won't have full access to it's super fast Gee Bees unless you install a custom ROM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Totally agree.
Essenar said:
I ended up getting her an iPhone. I know guys, I know.
To be honest, I didn't feel comfortable giving her a phone with spotty GPS as this will be her primary GPS unit.
Reading the custom rod and GPS thread gave me no assurance that doing the fix and rooting with a custom rom would fix the issue.
I have enough problems dealing with my MyTouch 4g that you may see me on a Bionic or iPhone with Verizon anyway.
But thanks for the advice. I may root and mod her sisters Captivate to score points because I heard she has had for warranty replacements lol.
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been keeping my eyes open for an iPhone4 for my gf as well for the same reasons you mentioned. There's also an AT&T iteration of the Evo coming soon. That might be a good device for her.
Phateless said:
I got a Captivate for my gf and she loves it, but the stock OS pissed her off due to lagging and bloatware.
We installed Cognition 2.3b8 which was very easy and now she really loves it as her daily driver. All you do is put an update.zip for Clockwork on the root of SD. Reboot into oem recovery, reinstall packages twice to get to Clockwork, then wipe data and flash Cognition. Couldn't be easier.
Honestly, if you can find a Nexus One for AT&T (if you have AT&T the T-mobile version will be Edge only!! You need an AT&T Nexus One) I think that's your best bet, but with a little bit of modding and care the Captivate is a great phone. My gf LOVES the giant screen and beautiful display.
That said, the more I learn about it the more pissed off I am with Samsung. Different revisions, ODIN, Kies, Download Mode, etc. Rooting this thing is way more complicated than it needs to be. I'm running a MT4G and SOOOO glad I didn't buy the Vibrant. Shudder...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really??? Rooting this is as easy as switching off your phone and rebooting. With all the easy stuff available right here in this forum and tons on the net... it is a breeze to root and flash a custom ROM.
I have an AT&T Samsung Captivate and I'm really getting frustrated with a few things about the current 2.1 OS. I have no idea but my native email app keeps crashing, more than half the time I can connect to a WiFi network but data will not transmit and then there are random lockups and freezes. I have wiped and re-installed a couple of times but no joy.
So my question is... if I want to upgrade this phone to the latest OS that it can run where can I find the step-by-step instructions to do so? I don't care if I'm running an "official" release, I just want to try something newer than what I have currently even if it's pre-release and I have to mod my phone to get it installed.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=884364
welcome to XDA
+1 flash to a custom 2.2 or 2.2.1 ROM, it is not that hard, just spend some time to read, you will be satisfied ...
Wow! I had no idea there were so many choices of ROMs. Has anyone put together a matrix that compares features and/or compatibility of various things across a handful of the more popular ROMs?
As long as I can send/receive calls, SMS, use WiFi for internet and other data needs, push email via and Exchange server, camera (still & video) and have access to the Market to download and run a handful of apps I'll be good to go.
105437 said:
Wow! I had no idea there were so many choices of ROMs. Has anyone put together a matrix that compares features and/or compatibility of various things across a handful of the more popular ROMs?
As long as I can send/receive calls, SMS, use WiFi for internet and other data needs, push email via and Exchange server, camera (still & video) and have access to the Market to download and run a handful of apps I'll be good to go.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you have to try it yourself to figure out which one/combination is best for you.
I'm convinced that even if ATT releases the 2.2 update it won't be worth updating...so rooting and flashing is definitely the way to go with this Captivate. However, after reading and reading, and watching the videos, I still don't trusty myself to root and flash a custom ROM. Does anyone know of a service that provides one on one help to accomplish this..of course on a paid basis?
So is it fairly easy to flash to different ROMs and then flash back to 2.1 if I don't like the ROM? I'm technically inclined. How much risk is involved with bricking the phone, I'm not worried about losing apps or personal data.
fldude99 said:
I'm convinced that even if ATT releases the 2.2 update it won't be worth updating...so rooting and flashing is definitely the way to go with this Captivate. However, after reading and reading, and watching the videos, I still don't trusty myself to root and flash a custom ROM. Does anyone know of a service that provides one on one help to accomplish this..of course on a paid basis?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I felt the same way as you did. Finally something in me decided to give it a go. I watched a few videos at theunlockr and read up a bunch here first. I made sure to just take my time and couldn't be happier that I did it.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
105437 said:
So is it fairly easy to flash to different ROMs and then flash back to 2.1 if I don't like the ROM? I'm technically inclined. How much risk is involved with bricking the phone, I'm not worried about losing apps or personal data.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if you have the ATT captivate it is one click to restore to stock. ( "Odin one-click" not to beconfused with odin3 1.7 flashing util)
risk? hmm not much, if you do it right, and depending on your build #. but there are ways to unbrick, usb jigs, premade on ebay or a simple 3100K resistor and a steady hand to cross pin 4 & 5 on the USB.
advice: read, learn, for days first, then do it and be amazed!
Confidence is building!
Just got to find out which ROM is best for my needs. Lots of reading to do!!
105437 said:
Just got to find out which ROM is best for my needs. Lots of reading to do!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
sooner or later, you will be a master of flashing ...
Flashing Addiction
Compulsive Avoidance of Immediate Pain
I tried Andromeda and loved it, but I couldn't get my company email natively on it (and Touchdown is kinda ghetto). So, earlier this evening I tried Serendipity - and sure enough, Exchange support is awesome.
Try either of those roms, you won't be disappointed!
Honestly take your time, try them all
bpk59 said:
I tried Andromeda and loved it, but I couldn't get my company email natively on it (and Touchdown is kinda ghetto).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exchange support is a must for me. Native would be my preference, what's the story with Touchdown?
105437 said:
Exchange support is a must for me. Native would be my preference, what's the story with Touchdown?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
exchange support is in Andromeda....if you need 2010 support we have an APK you can drop into your /system/app/
touchdown is a great app. my company provides it for its employees.
ONE WARNING.....Once you get the hang of flashing ROMs, you'll become an addict and find yourself never satisfied (Which is not a bad thing necessarily!)
I've gone through about every ROM possible AND multiple versions and have found one I think I can stick with for awhile.
Like others have said, it's just matter of taste and capability with your phone and network. You'll have fun experimenting!
Check out How To video series
I just completed my first flash to cognition 3.04. It's very stable. No problems after a few days. It was easy with video support from Connexion2005. See this link:http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=877652
Pirateghost, my corporate email is on an Exchange 2007 server, and with Andromeda 1.x I got the following error message: "This server requires security features your phone does not have."
I'm a linux dev by profession and have messed with the Android SDK a bit so I'm not in uncharted waters here - I apktool'd the Andromeda email app, and tried to subvert the whole security stuff, rebuilt the apk, pushed it back, and that didn't help either. I'd definitely be interested in the Exchange supported Andromeda apk you guys have to test it out.
105437 said:
Exchange support is a must for me. Native would be my preference, what's the story with Touchdown?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Touchdown works great, except the interface just feels dated. It feels like it kinda lives in its own sandbox on the phone; this isn't a bad thing necessarily, I just prefer the integrated approach.
Oh yeah, there's also the whole fact that Touchdown costs $20USD. I'm a cheapo so I'd rather just use native support
What's the recommendation for a solid, basic rom I can install on my friend's Captivate? He is most definitely not a power user. He just wants his phone to operate faster and be able to enable wifi tethering. He is currently running on android 2.1, so I figure going up to 2.2 at least will help and I have already rooted it. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks
Probably the most stock-like ROM you could flash would be Cognition. Great ROM, has all the features you could want.
Alternately, you could run Serendipity if you want the Gingerbread look.. Or a CM7 build if you want actual Gingerbread (though buggier than the other ROMs)
Firstly, right here on the front page is a Q&A section of this forum. That's where a question like this should go.
Regarding the answer -- IMHO its so subjective that it'd be hard to recommend anything other than a stable rom that has mass appeal, usually noted by the amount of replies to a roms thread. In short, cognition would be a good starting point. I used that for a while and had very few problems. I upgraded to cyanogen a few days ago and there are certainly some bits (namely network related) but I consider myself a power user so the added features more than makes it worth it.
Well, first off, I would move this to the Q&A thread.
But I would recommend Precision or Serendipity to flash. Use the theme when flashing Precision if you want something all Black/White. If you'd rather have that stock feel, I'd go with Cognition. It's really all just trying out different ROMs and seeing what you like. All three of those are fast and will enable tethering, but yesterday, AT&T announced they will start charging rooted users tethering fees if they catch you doing it. Theoretically, they won't be able to detect the tethering if you stay under 2GB of data, though.
Hope that helped!
It depends on personal preference, wrong section to post in. Just saying and not trying to be rude
dgrooman said:
What's the recommendation for a solid, basic rom I can install on my friend's Captivate? He is most definitely not a power user. He just wants his phone to operate faster and be able to enable wifi tethering. He is currently running on android 2.1, so I figure going up to 2.2 at least will help and I have already rooted it. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Although the Romitchen.org is closed for some time, their captivate section has the most compatible stuff. I have used three different roms from there and all give me full functionality - GPS (for me this works real great with Navigon), Bluetooth, Wifi, Email, Text etc. without any hassle whatsoever.
I currently have a ROm that i built from there that works great....Can post it up if you want it?
Cheers !
Its 2.2.1
Thanks for the replies and my apologies for posting in the wrong forum. Looks like cognition will be the best one to start him out on. Thanks again
dgrooman said:
What's the recommendation for a solid, basic rom I can install on my friend's Captivate? He is most definitely not a power user. He just wants his phone to operate faster and be able to enable wifi tethering. He is currently running on android 2.1, so I figure going up to 2.2 at least will help and I have already rooted it. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd recommend either Phoenix or FireFly. Both are rock solid, for the beginners FireFly might be better. They are both very good ROMS, and have great suport
kangi26 said:
I'd recommend either Phoenix or FireFly. Both are rock solid, for the beginners FireFly might be better. They are both very good ROMS, and have great suport
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I totally agree with Phoenix or FireFly. Totally stable, fast, and the UI's are great. I also think it's absolutely retarded to repeat the issue with this being in the wrong thread. I swear... some of you have a real issue with power tripping. I'm pretty sure after he read the first post about it he understood pretty well. this is XDA!!! Good job on just throwing out an answer Kangi26! That's what we're all here for. HELP!!!
Designgears makes good roms for those starting off, and good roms, just in general. Back in August when I got my cappy my first rom was I believe his first rom release, [srv] 1.0 or something. It was kinda my gateway drug. But his roms are good for beginners because the process for flashing is very simple, and most of all they're pretty stable. So for people unwilling to do deal with bugs, or are prone to complaining about things they don't want to really understand as yet, designgears offers a variety of solutions.
PS....
just as everyone else has mentioned, make sure to post in the correct section to avoid cluttering the forums.
Sent from my SGH-I897 using Tapatalk
Does Firefly unlock/enable tethering or will I still need an app like Wireless Tether? (I did read the first few pages of the official firefly thread but did not see the answer there...)
dgrooman said:
Does Firefly unlock/enable tethering or will I still need an app like Wireless Tether? (I did read the first few pages of the official firefly thread but did not see the answer there...)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm almost 100%, it does. I'm running Phoenix (kind of the big brother to Fire Fly, and it is supported)
Sent from a autonomous device
Wahoo a best rom thread, Have not seen one of these in awhile.
Ok Well there is no "Best Rom" Just a "Best for you rom". I have my favs like everyone else but your best bet is to try them out as you see one that catches your eye. No one can tell you what rom you would deem best it.