Database Develop

(discussion) Rom development for Galaxy

Or rather lack of it.
I start of by saying, i am not a dev.
But i see that the way rom's is made for Galaxy lack's most of the things that makes custom rom's good, SGS's rom's seem more themes than proper custom rom's.
I have used Nexus and some of the great rom's to that device.
The SGS way to update FW seems to stop all real development?
What do you think?

samsung's drivers are encrypted and this makes developing roms pretty difficult. there can only be roms based on samsung releases. at least this is what i understood .
i am sure that the growing user base of this great phone will bring more attention from great developers ( hi paul ! , who will be able to overcome most of the problems and give us great roms.

The final non-beta firmware from Samsung hasn't even arrived yet! Give it some time!
Custom roms now would be obsolete within one week because of a newer official beta Firmware.

I was aware that a few days ago paul obrien was having a conversation to cyanogen about creating a vendor tree for the sgs which would enable us to use cyanogen mod. If someone can confirm this with paul this would be very good news for us sgs owners.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

Right now I'd settle for a vanilla Froyo (my last phone was the N1).
The SGS has potential, but the stock ROM is so infested with Samsung customisations (eg non- AOSP dialer, contacts, music, etc etc), why have they re-invented the wheel?? Before this phone I didn't think fragmentation existed, only "legacy". Now I know exactly what fragmentation is, and it's ugly, annoying.
The only reason I ditched the N1 is because Google have said there would be no N2 so I figured I find another phone.
Now I realise how bad fragmentation is, the iPhone really doesn't look so bad again ... (previous to the N1, I was on a iPhone 3G)
It's a pity vendors can't be mandated to supply optional vanilla ROMs - I know Samsung have released a bunch of source code, maybe that's a start.
I guess I'll give it six months. I'm an end-user who wants an easy life, but appreciates the potential and integration with google services that Android provides - moreso in its vanilla form.

Did anybody try compiling the sourcecode that was released by samsung to create a flashable working version of the manufacturer Android version that is currently running in our phones?
If that is possible, and we do have the source code from samsung, I don't see why it would be impossible to get at least a vanilla AOSP 2.1-update1 running on our galaxies.
The encrypted (or closed source drivers) can be linked as binaries to the new AOSP build running on top of Samsung's kernel (which we do have the source code to).
Side question, anybody knows how to flash the phone once you got all source code by samsung compiled ? I know we end up with a zImage, possibly a system.img.. can you create Odin files with these easily ? any thoughts?

miker71 said:
Right now I'd settle for a vanilla Froyo (my last phone was the N1).
The SGS has potential, but the stock ROM is so infested with Samsung customisations (eg non- AOSP dialer, contacts, music, etc etc), why have they re-invented the wheel?? Before this phone I didn't think fragmentation existed, only "legacy". Now I know exactly what fragmentation is, and it's ugly, annoying.
The only reason I ditched the N1 is because Google have said there would be no N2 so I figured I find another phone.
Now I realise how bad fragmentation is, the iPhone really doesn't look so bad again ... (previous to the N1, I was on a iPhone 3G)
It's a pity vendors can't be mandated to supply optional vanilla ROMs - I know Samsung have released a bunch of source code, maybe that's a start.
I guess I'll give it six months. I'm an end-user who wants an easy life, but appreciates the potential and integration with google services that Android provides - moreso in its vanilla form.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
same here. previous n1 user, got sgs just after google announced no n2 wil be available.
just took some actions to make things smoother for me :
1. launcher pro
2. dialer one
3. handcent sms
i used them all on n1 and now i do on sgs. its all good again . still, untill froyo hits us i think i will still miss n1's speed. also, i think after froyo hits us, we will get some more roms and goodies for our phones.

what exactly is a vendor tree? and how would it be able to get around the driver issue which is apparant to the SGS?

Some info on the .rfs files that samsung uses:
http://movitool.ntd.homelinux.org/trac/movitool/wiki/RFS

Merging into AOSP
It seems like good idea to have the scripts merged into AOSP tree that support building stock ROMS for samsung galaxy s, with binary-only files being downloaded directly from the device (if I'm not mistaken, this is how one can build froyo for N1 from source now).
From someone else experience: would the patches that add vendor-specific support for SGS be accepted into AOSP tree? Are there known blockers for this?

Hmm.. rom development is quite sluggish due to the firmwares that are being released!
But i really don't care! the original rom is fine with WJG5!
I just use Launcher Pro and widgets to make it better! Speed is ok!

bratfink said:
I was aware that a few days ago paul obrien was having a conversation to cyanogen about creating a vendor tree for the sgs which would enable us to use cyanogen mod. If someone can confirm this with paul this would be very good news for us sgs owners.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This still doesn't get around the fact that the drivers are locked down and are near impossible to implement into outside roms that aren't Samsung based. Talking isn't doing anything.

miker71 said:
Right now I'd settle for a vanilla Froyo (my last phone was the N1).
The SGS has potential, but the stock ROM is so infested with Samsung customisations (eg non- AOSP dialer, contacts, music, etc etc), why have they re-invented the wheel?? Before this phone I didn't think fragmentation existed, only "legacy". Now I know exactly what fragmentation is, and it's ugly, annoying.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This isn't fragmentation though, this is exactly what Google wanted Android to be - a base for phone manufacturers to lay their own tweaks on top of. HTC, Motorola, Samsung etc don't just want to be differentiated by how their handset looks, they want to put their own stuff on there too. Previously each had their own OS (Symbian, UIQ etc.) that took years of development time and was very slow moving. Google provided Android as a quick route to market for a phone, the manufacturers didn't really have to worry too much about the OS and then get lots of apps for free.
The thing is, the vanilla apps are a bit.. basic. The standard music player is fine, it works and does what it says on the tin. The standard contacts is fine again etc. Makers can ship a ROM based on vanilla Android and it would be good to go, but if they can improve upon the apps and brand it slightly more then all well and good.
But it's not fragmentation. Android is a base. A starting point. It's not meant to look exactly the same on every device, but it's meant to work exactly the same as much as possible. These manufacturers get a stable, standard, capable phone OS for free, which to them is awesome. It saves them so much time and is ultimately why eventually there will be nothing but Android on devices. It's the Mac vs PC all over again - cool but closed and restricted vs ubiquitous free-for-all.

psychoace said:
This still doesn't get around the fact that the drivers are locked down and are near impossible to implement into outside roms that aren't Samsung based. Talking isn't doing anything.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If the right people get onto it it's only a matter of time. The G1 camera drivers were reverse engineered for Eclair CM ROMs after HTC gave the community sod-all.

dirk1978 said:
If the right people get onto it it's only a matter of time. The G1 camera drivers were reverse engineered for Eclair CM ROMs after HTC gave the community sod-all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Didn't they have the source for 1.6's camera drivers? At least then they had a base to start from. That is not true with Samsungs drivers.

A little bit OT but due to the fact that in this thread are some EX-Nexus users: Would you recommend switching to the SGS ?

dirk1978 said:
it's meant to work exactly the same as much as possible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's when it doesn't work, it's very very annoying. How long do we have to wait for the Samsung music player to enable scrobbling? Sure I can use a different app from the Market - meaning Samsung wasted effort on their own Music app, why didn't they build on the AOSP version which does support scrobbling and iSyncr, etc because they use standard API or whatever so these other programs can read the state or whatever they need to do.
Same with dialer and contacts - on Launcher Pro, pressing the default Contacts icon - won't get you anything except maybe a FC :-(
The AOSP Desk Clock - where is that? If I install a clock from Market then I have two different Alarm daemons which is a waste of everyone's time when the default Clock in AOSP Eclair is fine and - more importantly - compatible with stuff and API calls.
Then all the other stuff that may or may not be Samsung stuff - the DRM, the Device Management, the Samsung Account - given the option I just don't want that stuff.
I'm intending to flash JG5 (from factory shipped JF3) which may increase performance but presume won't make these other problems go away.
I'm really happy with the hardware - but currently I am dissatisfied with the software and "Samsung knows best". For me, personally, Google knows best (and I bet they have data on me to prove it!), so I really want to see Froyo AOSP version for the Galaxy. That day may come, or it may not ...
I know I know, "can't please all of the people all of the time"

PAO1908 said:
A little bit OT but due to the fact that in this thread are some EX-Nexus users: Would you recommend switching to the SGS ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right now the question for me would be "do I recommend switching from Samsung OS from Froyo" - my answer would be no, unless:
1. better multitouch is important to you (better for gaming, no axis mess-up)
2. 4" screen is important (I do really like the Samsung screen)
3. Better built-in audio quality is important (the Galaxy is noticeably louder than the N1 and I think it may have a better A/D sampler too)
So fully recommend switching for hardware, UNLESS you can't live without Froyo.
I can live with the SGS shortcomings. Well, for a few months anyway ... and even if AOSP never comes there are alternatives in the Market but does mean you have to ignore the Samsung stock apps depending what you want to do (which means added complexity to your life, which I don't always have time to deal with!)

psychoace said:
This still doesn't get around the fact that the drivers are locked down and are near impossible to implement into outside roms that aren't Samsung based. Talking isn't doing anything.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have any proof that the drivers are actually locked down in any way?
I can see the source of all the modules provided by samsung, just 3 of them (pvrsrvkm, s3cbc and s3clcd) are just precompiled, and if you check the info they are GPL.
Am I missing something?

@miker71
Thanks a lot !

Development shouldn't factor in smartphone decision making, should it?

So trying to choose between the Moto X and the Nexus 5, I came across the biggest difference between these phones, their development. Moto X has little to none and Nexus 5 has more than any phone out there. This was an easy win for Nexus 5 I thought. Until I read Moto X users saying that flashing ROMs and kernels are normally to fix issues that the stock versions have and that they don't need Custom ROMs and kernels because what they get is stable, smooth, and lasts long enough (battery wise).
I thought back to why I flash ROMs on Note II and my previous phone SII, and fair enough, I used to do it because I wanted to fix issues that came with stock versions. Now, I hate flashing ROMs, I just want to use my phone. Anyways, looking at the development on the Nexus 5, it seems much of it is to fix the speakers, camera, battery life, etc.
Then I thought that Custom ROMs are important to stay up to date with Google's updates but then Motorola released their update faster than Google did with their Nexus 4. They are also updating their 1.5 year old phones (Not the Razr HD or the Razr HD Maxx probably because of their TI chipset). So it looks like Moto X users are in good hands as far as updates are concerned.
What do you guys think? Would you rather have a fully functional stable stock ROM on a phone that has no development otherwise or would you rather get a phone with tons of development to fix issues that the stock ROM has?
I am asking because there may be an angle to development that I haven't considered. Many customizable things included in ROMs on Nexus 5 are available via Xposed on Moto X.

Until I read Moto X users saying that flashing ROMs and kernels are normally to fix issues that the stock versions have and that they don't need Custom ROMs and kernels because what they get is stable, smooth, and lasts long enough (battery wise).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a very narrow perspective. There are lots of reasons one might want to flash a ROM or kernel; the "one size fits all" mentality of other vendors such as Apple and Microsoft need not apply here. Custom ROMs open the door to different features that the OEM might not have considered or wanted to spend time on, and allow the creativity of the general public to enhance the phone in ways that are unique to them or only fits a certain niche that wouldn't be profitable for a big company to try and cater to. It certainly isn't just about "fixing issues".
Though custom ROMs certainly aren't the only feature I would look for in a phone, I might hesitate before buying a phone that little support or, even worse, a locked bootloader with no current workaround or hack for the simple reason that even if there's nothing I'm interested in today, there might be something cool that I want to try out tomorrow.

MaxCarnage said:
there might be something cool that I want to try out tomorrow.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you had bought something like the Moto X one year ago, what feature made by the ROM developers on the Nexus 4 would you really want to try out?

I've been debating this myself. I have a Nexus 5 now that I'm testing with TMO prepaid for a month. So far, the phone is really nice and as you said, the level of development is astounding. BUT, I have to leave VZW in order to keep the phone. That's very hard to do when I get a hefty discount on the service and still have unlimited data. I can get LTE pretty much everywhere I go. With TMO, I'm lucky to get Edge data in some places or even a signal at all inside buildings.
I love the look and feel of the X. It's is a great piece of hardware and with the Dev edition, I could stay on VZW. I also like the fact that it runs basically stock Android along with additions that are actually useful and well done. The dev community is very limited though and will most likely stay that way. Moto was quick to get the 4.4 update out but it remains to be seen if that pace will continue. You would hope so but nothing is guaranteed. The X2 may be out next year putting the update schedule for the current model on the back burner.
I had the original Nexus One and the Galaxy Nexus. I've always been a diehard AOSP guy. Every phone I've owned in between has always been on a custom AOSP based ROM in order to get close to that Nexus experience. I'm attracted to custom ROMs not because they fix bugs, but because they allow me to always stay on a current version of Android (no waiting for carrier updates) and add some nice features to the basic AOSP design. Custom kernels can also improve overall performance and battery life even if you decide to stay stock otherwise. The Nexus line will always have the edge in this regard.
I wanted to be blown away with the N5 and content with TMO but I'm second guessing my decision each day.....
darkgoon3r96 said:
So trying to choose between the Moto X and the Nexus 5, I came across the biggest difference between these phones, their development. Moto X has little to none and Nexus 5 has more than any phone out there. This was an easy win for Nexus 5 I thought. Until I read Moto X users saying that flashing ROMs and kernels are normally to fix issues that the stock versions have and that they don't need Custom ROMs and kernels because what they get is stable, smooth, and lasts long enough (battery wise).
I thought back to why I flash ROMs on Note II and my previous phone SII, and fair enough, I used to do it because I wanted to fix issues that came with stock versions. Now, I hate flashing ROMs, I just want to use my phone. Anyways, looking at the development on the Nexus 5, it seems much of it is to fix the speakers, camera, battery life, etc.
Then I thought that Custom ROMs are important to stay up to date with Google's updates but then Motorola released their update faster than Google did with their Nexus 4. They are also updating their 1.5 year old phones (Not the Razr HD or the Razr HD Maxx probably because of their TI chipset). So it looks like Moto X users are in good hands as far as updates are concerned.
What do you guys think? Would you rather have a fully functional stable stock ROM on a phone that has no development otherwise or would you rather get a phone with tons of development to fix issues that the stock ROM has?
I am asking because there may be an angle to development that I haven't considered. Many customizable things included in ROMs on Nexus 5 are available via Xposed on Moto X.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

I am running the N5 stock and have no reason to root or flash a custom Rom. Never thought I would say that about my phone but I am actually content with the N5 the way it is. There are some cool features that devs add in but then you get sucked into this never ending flashing frenzy which I have been in for years.
It is good to actually enjoy the phone now and keep the software on it for more then a few days. lol
Anyway, the screen alone on the N5 is enough for what I consider a big step up from the Moto X. I have friends with Moto X's which I actually recommended to them since they are on Verizon and it was being offered for free on contract. I do think it is a great phone with some great features. Not enough there to sway my decision to get one over a N5 though.
I do applaud Motorola for their unbelievable quick update and I bet we start to see some other maunfacturers start stepping up their game as well. We have seen this recently with HTC also.
The question to ask yourself is what is important to you. Another good thing with the Moto X is it generally stocks with the stock Android feel so it almost resembles Nexus software.
Bottom line, when I turn on my N5 after playing with the Moto X, the Moto X does not in any way make me want to buy one for myself.
---------- Post added at 11:34 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:32 AM ----------
fallingd0wn said:
I've been debating this myself. I have a Nexus 5 now that I'm testing with TMO prepaid for a month. So far, the phone is really nice and as you said, the level of development is astounding. BUT, I have to leave VZW in order to keep the phone. That's very hard to do when I get a hefty discount on the service and still have unlimited data. I can get LTE pretty much everywhere I go. With TMO, I'm lucky to get Edge data in some places or even a signal at all inside buildings.
I love the look and feel of the X. It's is a great piece of hardware and with the Dev edition, I could stay on VZW. I also like the fact that it runs basically stock Android along with additions that are actually useful and well done. The dev community is very limited though and will most likely stay that way. Moto was quick to get the 4.4 update out but it remains to be seen if that pace will continue. You would hope so but nothing is guaranteed. The X2 may be out next year putting the update schedule for the current model on the back burner.
I had the original Nexus One and the Galaxy Nexus. I've always been a diehard AOSP guy. Every phone I've owned in between has always been on a custom AOSP based ROM in order to get close to that Nexus experience. I'm attracted to custom ROMs not because they fix bugs, but because they allow me to always stay on a current version of Android (no waiting for carrier updates) and add some nice features to the basic AOSP design. Custom kernels can also improve overall performance and battery life even if you decide to stay stock otherwise. The Nexus line will always have the edge in this regard.
I wanted to be blown away with the N5 and content with TMO but I'm second guessing my decision each day.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why not go to a MVNO that uses AT&T towers? Would still be much chepaer then Verizon and they offer much better coverage then T-Mo.

[email protected] said:
I am running the N5 stock and have no reason to root or flash a custom Rom. Never thought I would say that about my phone but I am actually content with the N5 the way it is. There are some cool features that devs add in but then you get sucked into this never ending flashing frenzy which I have been in for years.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't you want to improve the Audio and the battery life by trying out the kernels and the mods made here?
Anyway, the screen alone on the N5 is enough for what I consider a big step up from the Moto X.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I assume you mean resolution? I was under the impression that 1080p and 720p are not that different under daily usage?

It all comes down to your habits. I love flashing new ROM's, I sometimes try multiple ROM's per week. So for me, development means a lot. It's why I switched from the S4 to the N5. The S4 just received 4.3 and was locked down by Knox. Plus, with the N5 being an unlocked phone, you can flash any ROM on any carrier, so you won't ever have to drool over another carrier's ROM.

mjs2011 said:
It all comes down to your habits. I love flashing new ROM's, I sometimes try multiple ROM's per week. So for me, development means a lot. It's why I switched from the S4 to the N5. The S4 just received 4.3 and was locked down by Knox. Plus, with the N5 being an unlocked phone, you can flash any ROM on any carrier, so you won't ever have to drool over another carrier's ROM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also flash a ton of ROMs every week and also used to enjoy it, but I am getting tired of it now... I want to live life more than flash ROMs (if that makes sense)

darkgoon3r96 said:
If you had bought something like the Moto X one year ago, what feature made by the ROM developers on the Nexus 4 would you really want to try out?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anything and everything. The top reason I don't even consider not getting a Nexus device anymore is the development scene. Look, you're viewing the huge development community on the Nexus line as people who are "fixing" a "broken" stock image. That's not really true. The stock image is perfectly fine. The developers are merely making things that they deem better than how stock handled it. For instance, a developer might think that the on-screen buttons are too large on stock, taking up way too much screen real-estate. They would then develop a way to remove it, but still be able to navigate. They might make something like PIE controls. Now, I may agree that the buttons really are too large, but I like the nav bar. So I might just resize it, instead of working around it.
I guess the point I'm making is, all of those modifications you see to "improve" the stock image are there to "improve" it, but what counts as an "improvement" is completely subjective. There are different people in the world with vastly differentiating opinions about things, so they will make something to improve something else as they see fit. The development sections here on XDA are merely huge repositories of any modification that anyone who was willing to make, made. Looking at them all as collectively-required flashable improvements isn't how it should be viewed. That's the beauty of having a large development community. You can pick and choose, depending on your personal opinions, which modifications are improvements and flash them. Another way to think of it is cookie-cutter vs modular. Do you want a phone that appeals the masses,;a one-size fits all, or a phone that is completely customizable?

darkgoon3r96 said:
Don't you want to improve the Audio and the battery life by trying out the kernels and the mods made here?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Battery life has been great on stock for me. Absolutley no complaints here. I have ran so many custom kernels on prior phones and never saw a large boost in battery from them. Lots of times it would actually be worse.
The speaker volume can definitley use a boost and the camera needs some fixing. I know there is some dev work for both of these issues but I am going to hang a little and see if Google fixes it. If not, I might think about rooting solely for those 2 things. If Google fixes it, absolutley no reason for me to root this time around.
Anyway, as a prior flashoholic there is no better phone then a Nexus for people who like to flash Roms and like every feature on the sun. No other phones custom Roms work as good as they do on a Nexus.

Development is like the first determining factor for me when buying phones.

darkgoon3r96 said:
I assume you mean resolution? I was under the impression that 1080p and 720p are not that different under daily usage?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Screen size. A 5" screen starts the sweet spot for a device that uses on-screen buttons. I always felt shorted on prior 4.7" screens with on screen buttons. Like there wasn't enough viewing real estate. Sure you can remove the on-screen buttons but then you would need something that always to longer to activate then the actual buttons being present.
I also think the quality and colors of the N5 screen are just gorgous.

darkgoon3r96 said:
So trying to choose between the Moto X and the Nexus 5, I came across the biggest difference between these phones, their development. Moto X has little to none and Nexus 5 has more than any phone out there. This was an easy win for Nexus 5 I thought. Until I read Moto X users saying that flashing ROMs and kernels are normally to fix issues that the stock versions have and that they don't need Custom ROMs and kernels because what they get is stable, smooth, and lasts long enough (battery wise).
I thought back to why I flash ROMs on Note II and my previous phone SII, and fair enough, I used to do it because I wanted to fix issues that came with stock versions. Now, I hate flashing ROMs, I just want to use my phone. Anyways, looking at the development on the Nexus 5, it seems much of it is to fix the speakers, camera, battery life, etc.
Then I thought that Custom ROMs are important to stay up to date with Google's updates but then Motorola released their update faster than Google did with their Nexus 4. They are also updating their 1.5 year old phones (Not the Razr HD or the Razr HD Maxx probably because of their TI chipset). So it looks like Moto X users are in good hands as far as updates are concerned.
What do you guys think? Would you rather have a fully functional stable stock ROM on a phone that has no development otherwise or would you rather get a phone with tons of development to fix issues that the stock ROM has?
I am asking because there may be an angle to development that I haven't considered. Many customizable things included in ROMs on Nexus 5 are available via Xposed on Moto X.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just got rid of my moto x for the N5 for this very reason. The moto x is a great device and probably the best carrier controlled device to date.
That being said, it drove me nuts to be locked down with a locked bootloader and no development. Knowing the n5 is open and has all the Dev support means I have control over MY phone, not AT&T and not Motorola.
After dealing with the locked down s4, I promised myself I would never get another device without an unlockable bootloader. I caved when the moto x came out and as I said it's one amazing device but at the end of the day, I'll be sticking with nexus devices from here on out.
To me it's not worth giving up that freedom but for you it may not matter.
Sent from my Nexus 5

Development totally cones into it for me. One of the biggest considerations.
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brooksyx said:
Development is like the first determining factor for me when buying phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
rootSU said:
Development totally cones into it for me. One of the biggest considerations.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please elaborate. I want to know which features exactly do Custom ROMs provide that you won't be able to get from the xposed mod that you would want that much.
capathy21 said:
That being said, it drove me nuts to be locked down with a locked bootloader and no development. Knowing the n5 is open and has all the Dev support means I have control over MY phone, not AT&T and not Motorola.
Sent from my Nexus 5
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If I do get the Moto X, then I will get the Developer Unlocked model.

brooksyx said:
Development is like the first determining factor for me when buying phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here, after my first Nexus phone, I could never go back to a phone that didn't have a strong dev. community behind it. For me; tablets and phones are as much about the journey of playing with ROM/kernel/mods as they are a communication device.

darkgoon3r96 said:
Please elaborate. I want to know which features exactly do Custom ROMs provide that you won't be able to get from the xposed mod that you would want that much.
If I do get the Moto X, then I will get the Developer Unlocked model.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No stock rom mod can touch the stability and features of cyanogenmod. It is the only way to do anroid. In fact I prefer iOS over stock android. But CM is awesome.

brooksyx said:
No stock rom mod can touch the stability and features of cyanogenmod. It is the only way to do anroid. In fact I prefer iOS over stock android. But CM is awesome.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To be honest, CM's future plans SERIOUSLY excite me.. Like that recent conversation feature

CyanogenMod, AOKP, AOSPA support, along with great kernel devs. The Nexus 5 is essentially guaranteed support for these things, and these are things I like.

darkgoon3r96 said:
Please elaborate. I want to know which features exactly do Custom ROMs provide that you won't be able to get from the xposed mod that you would want that much.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Who said anything about roms or features? Its all about kernels.
But if you look at ROMS like PAC, you'll see what features true roms can offer over xposed
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AOSP ROM necessities

Ok. First I would like to say I personally do not own a Samsung galaxy s6/edge. However, I have played around with one at length at the T-Mobile store, and I can definitely say touchwiz still isn't for me. While I was there at T-Mobile I saw a nexus 6 on display and decided to take a look at it. I absolutely fell in love with it for 2 reasons. One, for the size. Two, stock android. The first one is not a deal breaker when it comes to the s6. However, I find stock android MUCH better than touchwiz. Now I understand that making an AOSP ROM for the s6 is hard because of the exynos processor and all, but I really love the physical design, camera, fingerprint sensor, and heart rate monitor. All of this being said WHEN an AOSP ROM starts to be made please contact me so I can put my input in the development for features and stuff.
Stuff that would be ABSOLUTELY necessary.
1. Fingerprint capabilities. (on lockscreen, google play account, and to open certain apps maybe??)
2. Basically stock touchwiz camera. (with double press Home button to get camera feature)
3. Integration of the heart rate sensor. (Just allow apps to use it)
4. Super Stock animations (like on the nexus)
5. A close all button for the multitasking window
Stuff that is optional
1. Certain features not present in AOSP (like keep awake while you are looking at the phone P.S. I forgot what Samsung called it)
2. Xposed Framework module "swipeback" integration (I love that feature in ios)
3. Rest is open to community suggestions. Go wild! just remember this is AOSP based and hopefully won't be too crazy. Performance
and "butter smoothness" are of the utmost importance.
Will get the s6/edge in either March or April (2015)

reyjkl said:
Ok. First I would like to say I personally do not own a Samsung galaxy s6/edge. However, I have played around with one at length at the T-Mobile store, and I can definitely say touchwiz still isn't for me. While I was there at T-Mobile I saw a nexus 6 on display and decided to take a look at it. I absolutely fell in love with it for 2 reasons. One, for the size. Two, stock android. The first one is not a deal breaker when it comes to the s6. However, I find stock android MUCH better than touchwiz. Now I understand that making an AOSP ROM for the s6 is hard because of the exynos processor and all, but I really love the physical design, camera, fingerprint sensor, and heart rate monitor. All of this being said WHEN an AOSP ROM starts to be made please contact me so I can put my input in the development for features and stuff.
Stuff that would be ABSOLUTELY necessary.
1. Fingerprint capabilities. (on lockscreen, google play account, and to open certain apps maybe??) - Not going to happen. Stock Android does not support biometric security yet and this is a secured element of the device.
2. Basically stock touchwiz camera. (with double press Home button to get camera feature) - Again, not going to happen. The TouchWiz camera is built heavily ontop of the Touchwiz framework and is almost impossible to port. An application for Xposed can enable any hardware key combo to access the cam.
3. Integration of the heart rate sensor. (Just allow apps to use it) - Unless Google Fit builds it in and the framework support is through there I dont expect this to happen.
4. Super Stock animations (like on the nexus) - ROM's can change this
5. A close all button for the multitasking window - CM and most AOSP built roms have this
Stuff that is optional
1. Certain features not present in AOSP (like keep awake while you are looking at the phone P.S. I forgot what Samsung called it) - There are apps that can enable this
2. Xposed Framework module "swipeback" integration (I love that feature in ios) - There are modules for this and apps that can help here
3. Rest is open to community suggestions. Go wild! just remember this is AOSP based and hopefully won't be too crazy. Performance and "butter smoothness" are of the utmost importance. - With the Exynos processor this may take some time since a lot of it is closed source
Will get the s6/edge in either March or April (2015)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont want to burst your bubble since you are new, but that really isnt the way to go about asking for features in ROM's and no one is going to "contact you" when something is in development.
That being said I replied to your stuff in bold in the quote. That being said I highly doubt you will be satisfied with this device based on your demands and recommend looking for a device like the One Plus One or a Nexus that has a lot of what you want.

altimax98 said:
I dont want to burst your bubble since you are new, but that really isnt the way to go about asking for features in ROM's and no one is going to "contact you" when something is in development.
That being said I replied to your stuff in bold in the quote. That being said I highly doubt you will be satisfied with this device based on your demands and recommend looking for a device like the One Plus One or a Nexus that has a lot of what you want.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
you'll have a LONG wait if you think a developer is going to contact you for input on a list of things that cant readily be included in a rom anyways..
plus, what makes you think a developer would want your input??????

The fingerprint scanner, heartrate monitor, etc.,. (samsung specific features/capabilities) can't be supported with AOSP ROMs.
Sorry.

altimax98 said:
I dont want to burst your bubble since you are new, but that really isnt the way to go about asking for features in ROM's and no one is going to "contact you" when something is in development.
That being said I replied to your stuff in bold in the quote. That being said I highly doubt you will be satisfied with this device based on your demands and recommend looking for a device like the One Plus One or a Nexus that has a lot of what you want.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. I do realize a lot of this stuff is not possible and might take a LONG time to develop.
2. You don't have to burst my bubble, I know it's unlikely. However, I was just feeling creative and wanted to put out my wishlist if all of this were possible
3. When I say AOSP, I really mean AOSP based. I thought incorporating the fingerprint sensor would be fairly easy? just create a few API's with Kernel??
4. I have no idea why I said "contact me" I must've been on something lol.
Thanks for the reply btw. Also too, I love the nexus 6 and I would take it over the one plus one any day. However, I will still give into the s6 cuz of da fingerprint and better processor.

Considering most of the things you are asking for will never happen, it is not matter of the "lenght'. i.e: the camera...this request been in demand since the gs3 (my first android device) I doubt it is going to change anytime soon.
Finger print for touchwiz is the same as camera for touchwiz...
Great way to provide inputs to by giving a "how" on how to do things for what you are requesting. Can always start a "how" in the development section for group projects when it become available for the s6.

reyjkl said:
just create a few API's with Kernel??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dude you gotta get these ideas out there... PM all the recognized devs on xda fast. This is way bigger than just the S6

incuvolta said:
Dude you gotta get these ideas out there... PM all the recognized devs on xda fast. This is way bigger than just the S6
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm guessing this is sarcasm but I usually can't get the sarcasm straight from context. Is it?

Yes Sheldon. It is sarcasm.

_

_

Finalbrez said:
I'm considering buying a Galaxy S6. I've barely even used android, but I hate touchwiz already. I hate it for one main reason, the notification tray. I cannot stand that at all. I've looked into a some options for removing touchwiz, such as running an AOSP based rom, but that apparently isn't going to be supported for a while. Is there anyway to get the notification tray to look like a nexus device where a double swipe will get you the toggles? I am currently using an iPhone that has been jailbroken, and have been playing with the SDK. I don't really have a problem building AOSP from source, as long as its relatively simple. If it is not really possible for an AOSP rom to be built on my own, what would an eta be on a AOSP rom for it be?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know of any way to change the notification tray unless you install an AOSP ROM. Which doesn't exist right now. Change home launcher? Of course. Notification tray. Nope lol

Building AOSP from source would be a big challenge as Samsung is known for not providing proper documentation for its Exynos processors. This was the case till the last one, i.e. Exynos 5433. Not sure how it is now. Touchwiz provides a lot of theming options which changes the notification tray.
Please play with one of the phones at a store before considering buying it. Buying it to run AOSP ROMS might be a futile exercise as of now.

_

Finalbrez said:
That's really going to be a deal breaker then. Sadly, it looks like I will be going for an older phone like the Note 4 or Nexus 6.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
while i love my S6...i sure do miss my Note 4. The lack of dev work (which i understand) is hurting my soul lol Not complaining...i cant make a ROM and i strictly rely on their work. I am grateful...but i am also an "addict" and need rom and mod options lol

The g3 broke my flashing addiction so thats no longer a issue for me but I still want to tweak the ui without heavy modding, Samsung us going to give us that option. They have a theming program that will support the s6 this summer. Maybe hold out until that is released and see what it can and cannot do before you commit to a device.

v2.2v said:
while i love my S6...i sure do miss my Note 4. The lack of dev work (which i understand) is hurting my soul lol Not complaining...i cant make a ROM and i strictly rely on their work. I am grateful...but i am also an "addict" and need rom and mod options lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As much as I love my S6 I do miss my Note as well. I got rid of it just as CM went official...
Sent from my SM-G920W8 using XDA Free mobile app

Being a Google pure phone, why dont pixel phones get love anymore?

This post is not demand a build for our phone, this post is not to get anybody upset it is just a question that I've had for many years.
I've owned every single Nexus device up until the Nexus 6P, and have owned every single pixel device... I remember that with each Nexus phone the support scene was so robust that you look forward to a new phone to come out and see development on it...
For some reason pixel phones are one of the only phones that don't get love from any custom ROM development out there.. you see that lineage OS does not support our phone and has not supported our phone since the Pixel 1 officially. Paranoid Android has not supported our phone at all since the Pixel 1 , And the last official update from them was in 2017.. why is it that our phone being one of the latest phones does not get love?
The main thing that I've heard is that our phone is too expensive to build for, but I have seen the OnePlus 7 pro have vast support in the community and it is almost up there as far as pricing goes as the pixel.
I have always been one to contribute to donations or to work that's worth donating to, dirty unicorns has been a great ROM, but if you think about it our selection of ROMs can be counted with one hand .
Make Google phones great again!

I also believe the pixels don't attract the custom rom enthusiasts like us they are made & sold & marketed to people to be a iPhone competitor also I feel a lot of developers are getting older & many devs just support a few phones that's it & there are not as many devs on the scene like there were years ago unfortunately I remember have my OG Droid from Verizon the support was crazy unfortunately I feel we have to look at it this way its a end of a era for google phones sad to say

Those custom roms are made to make our experience feel like Pixel. They take here and there from pixel feature. Since we are using pixel software, so what the point of having the custom rom? Kernel is more important. Thanks god we have artemis and kiri. Soon we will have Proton or maybe Sultan.
Btw we dont have TWRP support while there is for OP7Pro. Install a custom rom or make one is pain in the ass.

Because they consistently don't live up to expectations. Everybody keeps waiting for them to live up to hype and at least attempt to challenge others with hardware or respond to feedback and they continue to ignore that feedback. it's still in all right device, I like it it's overpriced as hell and I'm glad I waited a few months to get it, still tempted by the OnePlus 8 pro after leaving my 7 pro for this.

kickenwing13 said:
Because they consistently don't live up to expectations. Everybody keeps waiting for them to live up to hype and at least attempt to challenge others with hardware or respond to feedback and they continue to ignore that feedback. it's still in all right device, I like it it's overpriced as hell and I'm glad I waited a few months to get it, still tempted by the OnePlus 8 pro after leaving my 7 pro for this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Better off going back to the 7 pro.It jus got Dual boot twrp. I'm running Oos and lineage as of this writing tomorrow might be different :laugh: . I got a 3xl and it lost twrp after Android 9 you can fastboot boot it with half the functions not working the 7t the same way an id imagine 8 pro be the same. Only way to have fun with Magisk on the 3xl Android 10 is to be running a user-debug build. Without the debug build magisk will let you overlay the system an look at your data but that's bout it. The way things look nowadays looking alot more locked down then they used to wait til Android 11 hits even more so is the case. Now Google going to build their own chipset like Samsung with help from Samsung Which will bring us one more step closer to Google Fuschia instead of Android

ROMs in general have gone down hill.
The need for them isn't really there. Early on, Android phones had tons of issues, shortcoming and limitations... ROMs were a way around that, to get the phones to work the way we wanted and the way they should have come out of the box.
Now? Most phones are really good, and there's not much to improve. ROM's don't really have much to offer any more, other than to a shrinking pool of users who want to tweak their phones more than they actually USE their phones...

Adding upon all comments above one of the reason is people are stuck with IOS. They don't know the actual power of Android. Who ever tries the Android are forced to go back to ios again because lack of facetime and other apps that are only available only ios

alwynjoshy said:
Adding upon all comments above one of the reason is people are stuck with IOS. They don't know the actual power of Android. Who ever tries the Android are forced to go back to ios again because lack of facetime and other apps that are only available only ios
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Realistically, what's the power of android these days? Yes, you can tweak icons and the status bar and stuff, which 99.99% of phone owners don't care about...
The differences between the platforms isn't as great as it once was... I am on an iPhone 11 Pro at the moment and its a great phone... I want to come back to Android at some point but the watch situation on Android is a joke. And for the Pixels... they just never live up to the hype. I love Samsung, but updates still suck. There is OnePlus but some of the features like Wifi calling don't work on ATT half the time...
I prefer Android overall, but if you want the complete package with a good watch, Apple has the better package.
I had high hopes for Essential but we saw where that went...
I wish that Google would put out a pixel without giant bezels, that didn't have a last generation processor, etc... They will put out a phone in November that's using the same specs as phones that came out last month...

SquireSCA said:
Realistically, what's the power of android these days? Yes, you can tweak icons and the status bar and stuff, which 99.99% of phone owners don't care about...
The differences between the platforms isn't as great as it once was... I am on an iPhone 11 Pro at the moment and its a great phone... I want to come back to Android at some point but the watch situation on Android is a joke. And for the Pixels... they just never live up to the hype. I love Samsung, but updates still suck. There is OnePlus but some of the features like Wifi calling don't work on ATT half the time...
I prefer Android overall, but if you want the complete package with a good watch, Apple has the better package.
I had high hopes for Essential but we saw where that went...
I wish that Google would put out a pixel without giant bezels, that didn't have a last generation processor, etc... They will put out a phone in November that's using the same specs as phones that came out last month...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are few functions which apple cant replace using of Clone applications, Root functions apps, custom fonts and many

alwynjoshy said:
There are few functions which apple cant replace using of Clone applications, Root functions apps, custom fonts and many
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Realistically, today, what does the average person need root access on their phone for? I haven't rooted or ROM'd in several years... The tinkerer in me wants to, but I never find any compelling reason to...
I just don't care enough about what font my Instagram icon uses...

SquireSCA said:
Realistically, today, what does the average person need root access on their phone for? I haven't rooted or ROM'd in several years... The tinkerer in me wants to, but I never find any compelling reason to...
I just don't care enough about what font my Instagram icon uses...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
my root need are viperfx, swift theme installer, fingerface , Sd maid ( save 2GB in every week when cleanup), etc

I have a Galaxy Note 10+. One of the heavy flagship phones from last year. There's about 3 ROMS and the communication in the threads is just about non-existent.
It's kinda sad because I remember my Note 4 having a ****load of AOSP ROM options and this phone has 1 that hasn't been updated in months. I would love to root/flash a ROM on my phone but I think the main thing is a lack of developers. Most have probably moved on and don't see a point in developing custom ROMs when most phones nowadays are capable of doing almost anything. The main reason I rooted/flashed ROMs was for the ability to customize my phone to my liking.

PieceofSlice said:
I have a Galaxy Note 10+. One of the heavy flagship phones from last year. There's about 3 ROMS and the communication in the threads is just about non-existent.
It's kinda sad because I remember my Note 4 having a ****load of AOSP ROM options and this phone has 1 that hasn't been updated in months. I would love to root/flash a ROM on my phone but I think the main thing is a lack of developers. Most have probably moved on and don't see a point in developing custom ROMs when most phones nowadays are capable of doing almost anything. The main reason I rooted/flashed ROMs was for the ability to customize my phone to my liking.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly, and today, so many stock phones allow most of the customization that ROMs used to have to provide... And if not, install a different launcher and there are your themes...

i42o said:
This post is not demand a build for our phone, this post is not to get anybody upset it is just a question that I've had for many years.
I've owned every single Nexus device up until the Nexus 6P, and have owned every single pixel device... I remember that with each Nexus phone the support scene was so robust that you look forward to a new phone to come out and see development on it...
For some reason pixel phones are one of the only phones that don't get love from any custom ROM development out there.. you see that lineage OS does not support our phone and has not supported our phone since the Pixel 1 officially. Paranoid Android has not supported our phone at all since the Pixel 1 , And the last official update from them was in 2017.. why is it that our phone being one of the latest phones does not get love?
The main thing that I've heard is that our phone is too expensive to build for, but I have seen the OnePlus 7 pro have vast support in the community and it is almost up there as far as pricing goes as the pixel.
I have always been one to contribute to donations or to work that's worth donating to, dirty unicorns has been a great ROM, but if you think about it our selection of ROMs can be counted with one hand .
Make Google phones great again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IMO Pixels don’t have the fan base of the type of enthusiast that install custom ROMs and such. Higher spec phones like OnePlus and stuff like they are more heavily modded i feel like because those types of people are attracted to the specs. Pixels don’t have specs that are anything to write home about. Where as a OnePlus with 12GB of RAM is pretty impressive.

TechOut said:
IMO Pixels don’t have the fan base of the type of enthusiast that install custom ROMs and such. Higher spec phones like OnePlus and stuff like they are more heavily modded i feel like because those types of people are attracted to the specs. Pixels don’t have specs that are anything to write home about. Where as a OnePlus with 12GB of RAM is pretty impressive.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's probably it right there. The latest and greatest Pixel, uses specs that are already obsolete... Every year, they bring half year old specs and release their new phones with comparable specs to everyone else's specs that are already on the way out.

My thoughts below are mine, and mine only..
The reason you don't see as many custom roms here on xda imho is because it's no longer a hub that's a viable place for most roms to gain any value. the passion for development hasn't died. There are many great new features, and things users would love. Sure, the pixels are great out of the box, but you can say that for any flagship that has come out recently.
Don't get me wrong, xda is great, I'm just saying you shouldn't think devs and users have lost interest because their content isn't on xda.

I mean you're right,. It's different than the days of installing a ROM on a Droid x or something and actually seeing a notable difference between Moto blur and not. Or my note two with some of the different runs I could get on it. I don't know, I think I would like the freedom to make different apps different notifications so that I could customize notifications by app or by person a little easier for text messages. Little things like that that I feel like I used to get in some of those older arms but maybe not maybe I'm just misremembering or something.

Surge1223 said:
My thoughts below are mine, and mine only..
The reason you don't see as many custom roms here on xda imho is because it's no longer a hub that's a viable place for most roms to gain any value. the passion for development hasn't died. There are many great new features, and things users would love. Sure, the pixels are great out of the box, but you can say that for any flagship that has come out recently.
Don't get me wrong, xda is great, I'm just saying you shouldn't think devs and users have lost interest because their content isn't on xda.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Where should one go to get ROM's for this device?

jmartin72 said:
Where should one go to get ROM's for this device?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After hours of research I think I have found some in the ROM section of this forum

Mackay53 said:
After hours of research I think I have found some in the ROM section of this forum
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why not try reading before you post, and make yourself look foolish.