Can you connect to the watch with ADB?

Can you connect to the watch with ADB? - Samsung Galaxy Watch 3

Thinking about the new Smartwatch 3 but I don't want things like Bixby or Newsfeed on there at all.
It looks like you can't remove these features/apps through the interface. Is there some other way like ADB? If not, can I at least disable these things completely?

Related

Very 1st Things to do After Activation?

Hi everyone, just got my N3 last night and I am pretty excited about it.
I am a long time Mac Rumors member and my past phones have been ...... JB 3g, JB 3gs, JB 4, JB 4s
I am very upset with the tiny screens on my iphones and I refuse to wait another year for the 6 to come out.
So now I am a 1st time Android user and what to really check out the Android scene.
What are the first things I should do with the phone, what should I install right away? (different keyboards, apps, etc)
Is there a thread around here with tutes instructing how to transfer my contacts etc?
I surely will appreciate all replies, so thanks in advance. I really wanna get the very MOST out of this device.
edit: does Google Play offer any rebates/coupons/freebies for newly purchased devices?

Hey I would use smart switch to get your things from iPhone to your new phone but that is after you have it activated
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using xda app-developers app

XiphoneUzer said:
Hi everyone, just got my N3 last night and I am pretty excited about it.
I am a long time Mac Rumors member and my past phones have been ...... JB 3g, JB 3gs, JB 4, JB 4s
I am very upset with the tiny screens on my iphones and I refuse to wait another year for the 6 to come out.
So now I am a 1st time Android user and what to really check out the Android scene.
My N3 arrived Wednesday evening, and it's STILL not activated, (and its killing me).
The reason being, I wanna know if there is anything I should do BEFORE I call ATT and activate it.
(I do NOT want to close any windows, so is there is anything you folks recommend I do before I activate it)?
Once activated, what are the first things I should do with the phone, what should I install right away?
Is there a thread around here with tutes instructing how to transfer my contacts etc?
I surely will appreciate all replies, so thanks in advance. I really wanna get the very MOST out of this device.
edit: does Google Play offer any rebates/coupons/freebies for newly purchased devices?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you mean by call ATT and activate it? All you have to do is put your SIM card in and it is ready to go with a few account setups. After that it is up to you except for rooting and modding. Cant be done right now without voiding your warranty.

First thing you do is scratch off the att emblem since they locked the bootloader
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

XiphoneUzer said:
Once activated, what are the first things I should do with the phone, what should I install right away?
Is there a thread around here with tutes instructing how to transfer my contacts etc?
I surely will appreciate all replies, so thanks in advance. I really wanna get the very MOST out of this device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello?
Looking for some help here. This keyboard is way different than iphone, is it something you get used to, or should I install something else?
Please tell me what are some of the things I should change/install right away, (there's got to be some "must haves" no?)

djdelusional said:
Skype: Perfect for if you are travelling over seas at all with your device.
Google Hangouts: A good replacement for the built in SMS app.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I prefer Hangouts to Skype because Hangouts features free video multi-chat.
But I use Google Voice for SMS because it provides free unlimited texting. Hangouts insists on using the phone's native number rather than your Google Voice number, so you have to pay extra for a text plan or for individual messages.

Doesn't anyone else have any advice for a first time Android user?

XiphoneUzer said:
Doesn't anyone else have any advice for a first time Android user?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If your new to android I'd stay away from root for a while.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I467 using Tapatalk 4

XiphoneUzer said:
Hello?
Looking for some help here. This keyboard is way different than iphone, is it something you get used to, or should I install something else?
Please tell me what are some of the things I should change/install right away, (there's got to be some "must haves" no?)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I feel like for every-day typical phone use cases, there aren't that many gaps that stand out as needing to be filled by a third party app. You'll probably need a new music player, the defaults are crapola - but I can't be much help here; I keep my music as folders full of MP3 files (like God intended!) and play with Music Folder Player, and shun the dirty S&M ("sync and manage") apps.
There's a big list of stuff that I did when I first got the phone to get it to where I'm happy with it, but all of this was root required stuff. There are apps that come pre-loaded on android devices and can't be removed or disabled without root. Also, customizing stuff that can't be customized without root. I couldn't abide by some of the not-changable-without-root defaults. Getting rid of the "screen turns on so you can unlock it when you hit the home key" behavior is probably the most glaring example for me; my ass* was unlocking it constantly - but coming from iPhone, you probably view that as the Right Thing for home button to do.
I think most people use a custom keyboard. Swiftkey and Swype are the most popular. The phone comes with Swype, but it's an ancient version with limited support for changing the dictionary, you want the newest one.
I use Hangouts for gchat, but not for SMS. I actually prefer default app for SMS..
Settings:
Pull down status bar, long press on wifi, WiFi -> menu -> advanced settings, uncheck auto connect to AT&T hotspots (unless they don't suck where you are. Around here, they often don't have internet behind them, and just break your connectivity for the 30 seconds or so it takes for the phone to connect to them, determine that the wifi is no good, and fall back to 4G. At least this phone does that; Original note would just sit there like a fool trying to use non-functional wifi... I've also yet to find a hotspot that performs better than the 4G does. But I live in a city, so the situation may be different elsewhere).
Pull down status bar, long press on GPS. Uncheck "Use wireless networks" - on newer versions of android, this drains battery while idle; the damned thing wakes the phone periodically to check the networks around it - if the phone is nearly idle, this can halve battery life (!!!)
Pull down status bar, swipe to the left along the options at the top (woah, did you know you could do that?), tap multiwindow to enable multiwindow (this was a headline feature for the note 3, but comes disabled by default). If I long-press back button, that makes the multiwindow tab hide or unhide (once it's enabled), but I don't remember if I had to do something to get this behavior.
General must-have things:
AppOps Starter (to kill permissions from apps that request permissions you don't want to give them)
Battery Monitor Widget (gives you a realtime readout of battery usage)
ES File Explorer
If you want to pretty-ize clock + weather widgets:
DigiClock
Eye in Sky
If you work in IT or have need of these (if you aren't sure what these mean, you don't need them ):
ConnectBot (telnet/ssh client)
AndFTP (ftp/sftp client, supports scp if you pay)
RDP Client (remote desktop and VNC client)
FEAT VPN (OpenVPN client)
Hacker's Keyboard (you'll tear your hair out trying to use swype/swiftkey for terminal sessions or RDP)
If you want to root the phone:
Root it, then immediately install titanium backup and "freeze" AT&T software update, so it won't update your phone (breaking root) while you're not looking
Titanium Backup - freeze all the useless bloatware that AT&T and Samsung included (there's a list of what apps you can freeze here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmzC8GFarItSdGpOZzBfWlR4MC03aDMyZ1BDUFNqU0E - not my work)
Root Explorer
Pen Window Manager for adding apps to the pen window feature
Xposed Framework
Wanam - general huge amount of customization, including selecting apps for multiwindow.
Keyboard Manager (almost a necessity if you use ConnectBot/RDP frequently - keyboards designed for messaging and such are garbage for doing administration of non-phone systems, while hacker's keyboard is garbage for messaging and everyday phone stuff)
Terminal Emulator (gives you a command prompt on phone. Doesn't require root, but there are very few use cases for terminal on android that don't also need root)
*Well, I keep it in my front pocket, so technically it wasn't my /ass/ unlocking the phone....

Tizen Root Access Implications

What do you think the implications of root access on tizen will be? do you think that we will see an application compatibility layer to run android apps on the tizen gg1? or a way for people to return to android? perhaps a custom recovery or whatever. those are the things im hoping to see. what are you hoping to see? and what do you expect? developer input would be great.

tooandrew said:
What do you think the implications of root access on tizen will be? do you think that we will see an application compatibility layer to run android apps on the tizen gg1? or a way for people to return to android? perhaps a custom recovery or whatever. those are the things im hoping to see. what are you hoping to see? and what do you expect? developer input would be great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right now the only thing I miss is the removal of the video recording limit and I know that some very talented people are already working on it.
The more I think of it, I wonder why Samsung would cripple this product so badly right out of the box? I mean, with limited storage, I understand the need for a recording limit....but 15 seconds???

crutzulee said:
The more I think of it, I wonder why Samsung would cripple this product so badly right out of the box? I mean, with limited storage, I understand the need for a recording limit....but 15 seconds???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you consider the primary use case scenario it makes sense when you consider the length of time it takes to synchronise the recorded video to your mobile device. 15s is a reasonable duration of video for the amount of time it takes to upload to the phone in terms of "take video, wait for it to sync, watch video on your phone / upload to facebook etc".

i have google now on my null gear, google translate conversation mode, all of that good ****. i like the android apps, even if i had to sideload to tizen i think the android apps are a must, so an app compatibility layer would be nice. i know it already exists.

Advice before I root

Hi All,
It's been quite a few years since I last rerooted a phone - I've found I just didn't really need to with Nexus devices, but since the next Nexuses don't have wireless charging, I've decided to pick up a Note 5.
It's a good phone, I really like it so far, but there are enough things niggling me about it, I think I will root this time. If anyone can provide advice on any of the following list I'd really appreciate it!
1. I see Dr Ketan's thread on the matter (http://forum.xda-developers.com/note5/general/how-to-root-note-5-t3205073) which seems doable, and as complex as I remember. Has anyone tried one-click rooting and can comment on reliability? I'm all for just getting easy root access... For reference I have the SM-N920I. I also see "tripping Knox" a lot, but I have no idea what the means. Last person I asked said "I can't say if that is a good or bad for your specific situation" which makes me think they didn't understand my question.
2. I don't like TouchWiz. It's OK, but I much prefer stock, or, what I'm doing at the moment: Action Launcher 3. I prefer the stock dialer, and the stock quick menu (when you pull-down notification bar). Can I flash a stock ROM onto the Note 5? I mean, not stock-like like the popular MODs (Cyanogen for example) but something that is practically stock? I may end up going with something like Cyanogen, but I'd just like to know what's out there along those lines.
3. Having said that I don't like TouchWiz, and might install a new ROM, there are many things I do like about this device's interface: The SPen's overlay/menu is handy. The fact it brings up a notepad-like app if you pop the SPen out when the screen is off, one-hand mode (note: I have found an XPosed Module for this), the fingerprint scanner, the camera app, the S Planner app, the Home button shortcuts (single click->home; double-click->camera; triple-click->one handed mode) ... all things I assume I'll lose if I flash away Touch Wiz. However, perhaps I can get some (or all) of these things back? If so ... how? e.g. It looks like one-handed mode could be acheived with an XPosed module, and the home-button shortcuts with a launcher (I think Action Launcher can over ride this...)
4. Always listening Google Now. At the moment I have fingerprint scanner lockscreen security, always listening S Voice, and Google Now "from any screen." It... kinda works. But I can't see any reason why Google Now shouldn't just be always listening, and using a Trusted Voice allow me to throw voice commands at my device at any time. At the moment only S Voice is always listening... and even if I have the screen on, trusted voice doesn't seem to be able to get through the fingerprint security anyway. Ironically if I ask S Voice to launch Google Voice Search... it ploughs through in that scenario. Ultimate goal: Have Google Now always listening, and use Trusted Voice to get past the lockscreen, which would typically be secured with a fingerprint scanner.
If you can answer, or provide feedback on any of these queries, it'd be much appreciated!

dakuth said:
Hi All,
It's been quite a few years since I last rerooted a phone - I've found I just didn't really need to with Nexus devices, but since the next Nexuses don't have wireless charging, I've decided to pick up a Note 5.
It's a good phone, I really like it so far, but there are enough things niggling me about it, I think I will root this time. If anyone can provide advice on any of the following list I'd really appreciate it!
1. I see Dr Ketan's thread on the matter (http://forum.xda-developers.com/note5/general/how-to-root-note-5-t3205073) which seems doable, and as complex as I remember. Has anyone tried one-click rooting and can comment on reliability? I'm all for just getting easy root access... For reference I have the SM-N920I. I also see "tripping Knox" a lot, but I have no idea what the means. Last person I asked said "I can't say if that is a good or bad for your specific situation" which makes me think they didn't understand my question.
2. I don't like TouchWiz. It's OK, but I much prefer stock, or, what I'm doing at the moment: Action Launcher 3. I prefer the stock dialer, and the stock quick menu (when you pull-down notification bar). Can I flash a stock ROM onto the Note 5? I mean, not stock-like like the popular MODs (Cyanogen for example) but something that is practically stock? I may end up going with something like Cyanogen, but I'd just like to know what's out there along those lines.
3. Having said that I don't like TouchWiz, and might install a new ROM, there are many things I do like about this device's interface: The SPen's overlay/menu is handy. The fact it brings up a notepad-like app if you pop the SPen out when the screen is off, one-hand mode (note: I have found an XPosed Module for this), the fingerprint scanner, the camera app, the S Planner app, the Home button shortcuts (single click->home; double-click->camera; triple-click->one handed mode) ... all things I assume I'll lose if I flash away Touch Wiz. However, perhaps I can get some (or all) of these things back? If so ... how? e.g. It looks like one-handed mode could be acheived with an XPosed module, and the home-button shortcuts with a launcher (I think Action Launcher can over ride this...)
4. Always listening Google Now. At the moment I have fingerprint scanner lockscreen security, always listening S Voice, and Google Now "from any screen." It... kinda works. But I can't see any reason why Google Now shouldn't just be always listening, and using a Trusted Voice allow me to throw voice commands at my device at any time. At the moment only S Voice is always listening... and even if I have the screen on, trusted voice doesn't seem to be able to get through the fingerprint security anyway. Ironically if I ask S Voice to launch Google Voice Search... it ploughs through in that scenario. Ultimate goal: Have Google Now always listening, and use Trusted Voice to get past the lockscreen, which would typically be secured with a fingerprint scanner.
If you can answer, or provide feedback on any of these queries, it'd be much appreciated!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Rooting is easy on the 920I. Just follow the instructions. As for tripping Knox, Knox is a security system which you may or may not use. Many don't but some people and enterprises do. Knox is also required for Samsung Pay which is currently rolling out. As soon as you root Knox will be disabled and a flag will be tripped which cannot be reset - thus once you root, that is that. Whoever said that they don't know whether you use Knox was absolutely right. The most obvious case is that if you want to use Samsung Pay, don't root.
Two things: when you root, make sure you backup your EFS. Also have a look around for which kernel you are going to install. I use arter 7.0 at the moment.
2 and 3. Experiment with other launchers and see what you like. I don't like touchwiz but I do like the spen integration. Same for ROMs - have a good look around before you root to see what you like. I prefer Dr ketan L3 but it's all personal choice.

Does anybody actually use Bixby?

I recently Upgraded from a iPhone 7 to a Galaxy Note 9 and I've been wondering.. How many people unironically use Bixby. I've noticed in my 4 month's of owning my phone I've never really used Bixby and she's seemed like more of a nuisance rather than any help. And I find the concept of talking to any kind of virtual assistant kinda cringe. Thoughts?
Also if anybody could recommend a good Non Root Bixby button remapper I would greatly appreciate it!

last1youlove said:
I recently Upgraded from a iPhone 7 to a Galaxy Note 9 and I've been wondering.. How many people unironically use Bixby. I've noticed in my 4 month's of owning my phone I've never really used Bixby and she's seemed like more of a nuisance rather than any help. And I find the concept of talking to any kind of virtual assistant kinda cringe. Thoughts?
Also if anybody could recommend a good Non Root Bixby button remapper I would greatly appreciate it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just realized I created this thread in the wrong place. Apologies!

You know you can actually remap the button now to command any app you want now?
Didn't use it before but now its my go to to check my camera at home.

Yep, mine is remapped to launching Pandora music app...

last1youlove said:
I recently Upgraded from a iPhone 7 to a Galaxy Note 9 and I've been wondering.. How many people unironically use Bixby. I've noticed in my 4 month's of owning my phone I've never really used Bixby and she's seemed like more of a nuisance rather than any help. And I find the concept of talking to any kind of virtual assistant kinda cringe. Thoughts?
Also if anybody could recommend a good Non Root Bixby button remapper I would greatly appreciate it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use Bixby everyday. In the morning I have a command where I simply say good morning and she runs preset tasks for me, including giving me weather alerts(rocky mountains) and read top headlines for the day. Also got one for when I arrive to work, and ones depending on what type of work I'll be doing that day.
Example, when I'm building print server queues, I like to keep my screen Timeout higher, bluetooth with some music, do not disturb on, and some other settings. Instead of me going through and doing all that, I just tell her "Print Queues," and she changes everything.
I do have the one button click remap to a command for Google Assistant but that's for searching for anything weirdly internet related.
I used to hate the idea of Bixby because I was so used to Google, but when I realized all the things I can use her for if I just took the time to learn it, I've been hooked ever since. ??
Sidebar: I even got one for my kid for Netflix whenever she wants to watch Little Einsteins!!! ?

Hi...
I'm using Bixby on daily basis and to be honest from the beginning I was almost hating that"button" but later I start using more and more... Home, in work places...

I don't since it shows me some panels for apps that I don't have them installed that I can't get rid of.

NO! I do not use it all, I have remapped it.

last1youlove said:
I recently Upgraded from a iPhone 7 to a Galaxy Note 9 and I've been wondering.. How many people unironically use Bixby. I've noticed in my 4 month's of owning my phone I've never really used Bixby and she's seemed like more of a nuisance rather than any help. And I find the concept of talking to any kind of virtual assistant kinda cringe. Thoughts?
Also if anybody could recommend a good Non Root Bixby button remapper I would greatly appreciate it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope, they even removed 2/3 of the features/commands with bixby 2.0 that were presented in bixby 1.0 and the funny part is that they are still listed in the manual. Useful things like "split screen" command/etc. All the phone control is removed and this was the only real useful part of bixby. Removing the deep integration is leaving the assistant with nothing over google one, just a 1/10 features copy that will fail to understand you 2/3rds of the time.

high_voltage said:
Nope, they even removed 2/3 of the features/commands with bixby 2.0 that were presented in bixby 1.0 and the funny part is that they are still listed in the manual. Useful things like "split screen" command/etc. All the phone control is removed and this was the only real useful part of bixby. Removing the deep integration is leaving the assistant with nothing over google one, just a 1/10 features copy that will fail to understand you 2/3rds of the time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's because of the changes to Android? I don't really see them bringing those features back though. I got mad when I first saw that they removed a lot of the device control features.
Conspiracy me thinks, they removed them from Bixby because of the permission changes to Android Pie, and they want people to keep buying their devices, they nuked Bixby as a whole instead of having the Pie folks having less stuff than Oreo? Don't know....conspiracy.?

Jammol said:
It's because of the changes to Android? I don't really see them bringing those features back though. I got mad when I first saw that they removed a lot of the device control features.
Conspiracy me thinks, they removed them from Bixby because of the permission changes to Android Pie, and they want people to keep buying their devices, they nuked Bixby as a whole instead of having the Pie folks having less stuff than Oreo? Don't know....conspiracy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dunno why, but the fact is that 2.0 can't do a lot that 1.0 can... instead of improving and integrate it even deeper into the system, they stripped it. Android is open source project... there are some restrictions, but I am pretty sure non effects bixby functionality or atleast samsung can be transparent on why. On some of them bixby says "I don't support that yet, but I am learning constantly new things", so there is that - it recognise the old commands, but refuse to execute them.

It was killing me that it couldn't recognize the spelling of my old lady's name and on my note 8 it had a bad habit of not immediately recognizing my voice but getting triggered by random audio from my TV.
Since then I moved away from bixby and I alternate between Samsung and something else so GA has always been my go to since it's not OEM specific.

Nope my alexa is my main ***** and google is my doorbell chime. Bixby is awful and needs dropping.

I use bixby to make phone calls.... I really don't know what to say to Bixby to take it usable.... the only thing I need is send WhatsApp messages but seems that doesn't work with it.

Bixby is alright. She's definitely smarter than siri, but waaaaay slower.

I don't use Bixby. Might start using it when I get my Bsc in how to use Bixby.
Sent from my SM-N960U1 using Tapatalk

I used it for a couple of weeks when I first got my Note 9. I was impressed with the complex phone tasks I could trigger with just a few words that I programed for them. Something GA cannot come near to doing. But for other areas where GA shines, that's where Bixby falls short.
After those short weeks I started using bxActions because I found that having extra abilities through remapping of the Bixby and volume buttons was more valuable than using Bixby for me.

bixi command can set an alarm past 24 hours. google assistant cant.. still not stopping me from using bxactions pro and reassigning to assistant and google now.

No issues with bixby here.

Question questions about customization

I'm considering getting an S21 5G or S21 Ultra. Is it normal that there isn't much in terms of modding/rooting/etc for Samsung phones? I don't normally go for things like this.
I like the Nexus 5 and have a V30+ right now. I want to be able to control the phone and modify a few things I don't like about the stock experience.
What kind of situation am I looking at here? Is there a safe and reliable root? Or are things extremely locked down like an iPhone?

sneak said:
I'm considering getting an S21 5G or S21 Ultra. Is it normal that there isn't much in terms of modding/rooting/etc for Samsung phones? I don't normally go for things like this.
I like the Nexus 5 and have a V30+ right now. I want to be able to control the phone and modify a few things I don't like about the stock experience.
What kind of situation am I looking at here? Is there a safe and reliable root? Or are things extremely locked down like an iPhone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your better get a Oneplus Phones for modding / rooting purpose.
For samsung phones, somebody have to find a solution for knox trip.

sneak said:
I'm considering getting an S21 5G or S21 Ultra. Is it normal that there isn't much in terms of modding/rooting/etc for Samsung phones? I don't normally go for things like this.
...
What kind of situation am I looking at here? Is there a safe and reliable root? Or are things extremely locked down like an iPhone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, as you already noticed the modding/rooting community for the S21 series is not that active (yet?), maybe indeed different to phones like the Oneplus 8 Pro etc...
But still there is a reliably working method for rooting the device, although depending from your location warranty may be void afterwards. And then there is Knox, so rooting will definitely disable some specific Samsung functions (Samsung pay & Safe Folder among them).
If you are interested, there are threads on rooting and TWRP - the forum is presently only one for all S21U topics so things move down the line pretty quickly :
I for myself as a long-time "rooter" decided to go with locked stock ROM and while missing some detailed tweakings things are running pretty nicely so far. One of the things I noticed is that 90% of the things you do with rooting are workarounds to cover the negative effects of rooting - like making Gpay work etc.

Yes, unless there's a solution for the Samsung Knox issues, rooting will void your warranty. FWIW, the stock software has so much customization options that even after 2 months of using it I still haven't got hold of all the customizations. Yes, you might do in OnePlus where the software is quite bland/ featureless but that's not the case with One UI

fairyshacker said:
Your better get a Oneplus Phones for modding / rooting purpose.
For samsung phones, somebody have to find a solution for knox trip.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't want anything from a Chinese company.
s3axel said:
Well, as you already noticed the modding/rooting community for the S21 series is not that active (yet?), maybe indeed different to phones like the Oneplus 8 Pro etc...
But still there is a reliably working method for rooting the device, although depending from your location warranty may be void afterwards. And then there is Knox, so rooting will definitely disable some specific Samsung functions (Samsung pay & Safe Folder among them).
If you are interested, there are threads on rooting and TWRP - the forum is presently only one for all S21U topics so things move down the line pretty quickly :
I for myself as a long-time "rooter" decided to go with locked stock ROM and while missing some detailed tweakings things are running pretty nicely so far. One of the things I noticed is that 90% of the things you do with rooting are workarounds to cover the negative effects of rooting - like making Gpay work etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not worried about warranties. I don't know if I'd ever need the samsung specific things like Samsung Pay. Not sure what Safe Folder is but I guess it's some kind of encryption based file storing? I generally don't use all these mainstream things people like.
I don't really spend time making Google Pay work because I have no use for it. I'll have an occasional issue with an app refusing to operate because of rooting and Magisk Hide doesn't work, but it isn't a big deal.
I like tweaking things like the battery logo (I like having a circle with percentage number inside and not having the extra/stock battery logo up there at the same time). I like to disable certain system icons from the top bar that aren't necessary to be there and just clog it up. I like adding the "clear all" type buttons in the running apps page. I like customizing the behavior of holding the power button so I can reboot, reboot to recovery, or shut the phone off easily.
For example, on my LG V30+ right now I am running the stock rom but rooted it and did things like I described above. Nothing major and don't need Google Pay. The LG app for air conditioners won't run because of my root. My bank app notifies me of root very occasionally but isn't a big deal. Yeah, I don't think my SafetyNet passes, but I don't care.
I am using Xposed, hostless AdAway, No Shutter Sound, Highway Radar and YouTube Vanced as well.
amirage said:
Yes, unless there's a solution for the Samsung Knox issues, rooting will void your warranty. FWIW, the stock software has so much customization options that even after 2 months of using it I still haven't got hold of all the customizations. Yes, you might do in OnePlus where the software is quite bland/ featureless but that's not the case with One UI
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tend to go through every single setting in a phone before I even start really dailying it . I don't mind it. I like customization. That's great to hear. I do like unrestricted or not very restricted phones as opposed to iPhone style lockdown stuff, though.
I used to consider the OnePlus phones but lately I have been more insistent on not buying things made in China or from Chinese companies as much as possible... for various reasons.
---
So assuming I don't care about things like warranty and Samsung Pay.. what other drawbacks are there? What would stop me from going this route? I intend on picking it up from Google because they have really good deals and I can even make 0% interest payments. I just have to stick with Fi for 3 months, then I can go back to ATT.
Another concern I have is the size of the phone. It makes me lean towards the S21 5G. I just like the Ultra for the other enhancements.
Thanks to all of you as well for the replies.

I wouldn't get that phone if my intent was to root it. One of the more easily rootable Samsung models probably be a better choice*. If you want a blackhole gravity well to get frozen in time with while you're troubleshooting the root then this is a good choice.
That said stock Samsung's are the most customizable phones there are. Hundreds of free icon packs/themes, the Good Lock family of apps and more. The SSC codec for the Buds+ that seamlessly connect to this model with the propiatory Samsung new 360° audio support.
You can lock it down with PD MDM package disabler and Karma Firewall.
*Also no SD card slot so no dual drive ie data drive; you lose a valuble key feature.
Personally I loathe it's rounded corners/display and it's larger frame to display ratio. It's ugly compared to the Note 10+ or N 20 U; I take either of these over the 21 series any day.
Yeah, I really don't like the 21 series... even at half price I would spurn them.

I just read up on Samsung Pay and it's actually pretty interesting. I may actually try and use that. I would love to not have to pull out my wallet all the time and swipe/insert my bank card. That alone is very enticing.
I don't watch TV and haven't had TV service in ages, but I found out with this phone I'll have access to TV stations without a subscription or any kind of fee. That's pretty cool as an added bonus and I may find some shows I like.
blackhawk said:
I wouldn't get that phone if my intent was to root it. One of the more easily rootable Samsung models probably be a better choice*. If you want a blackhole gravity well to get frozen in time with while you're troubleshooting the root then this is a good choice.
That said stock Samsung's are the most customizable phones there are. Hundreds of free icon packs/themes, the Good Lock family of apps and more. The SSC codec for the Buds+ that seamlessly connect to this model with the propiatory Samsung new 360° audio support.
You can lock it down with PD MDM package disabler and Karma Firewall.
*Also no SD card slot so no dual drive ie data drive; you lose a valuble key feature.
Personally I loathe it's rounded corners/display and it's larger frame to display ratio. It's ugly compared to the Note 10+ or N 20 U; I take either of these over the 21 series any day.
Yeah, I really don't like the 21 series... even at half price I would spurn them.
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Click to collapse
That package disabled is really nice to know about, thanks. That is also something I did on my current phone but I did it through ADB (well, I uninstalled things I didn't want and saved the APK of the app).
I'm pretty sure I can use AdAway and YouTube Vanced without root. I'm currently using an older version of Vanced because newer ones do not work. Mine is from Magisk. I figure it has to do with Vanced on this specific phone and I can probably use some other version on the S21/Ultra.
Not sure what you meant about gravity and about a "valuble key feature". I am aware it has no sd card support, but I've found that I have never had the need for this on my current phone which supports up to 2 TB sd cards.
There is one thing that I doubt I'll be able to do which I've done on my V30+... I have the stock phone app modified to have a built-in recording feature. One press and I record calls with no notification beeps or anything stupid like that. After the call ends it prompts me to listen now or later. It saves the recording automatically as a file, based on the settings I've already configured. I can turn this on and off whenever I want during the call and if I turn it on before the call is answered, the app automatically waits until the call is connected to enable call recording. It records both sides in clear quality whether or not it's using the speaker or regular mode.
Is there a shutter sound on the S21? If so, is there a way to disable it without root?

sneak said:
I'm considering getting an S21 5G or S21 Ultra. Is it normal that there isn't much in terms of modding/rooting/etc for Samsung phones? I don't normally go for things like this.
I like the Nexus 5 and have a V30+ right now. I want to be able to control the phone and modify a few things I don't like about the stock experience.
What kind of situation am I looking at here? Is there a safe and reliable root? Or are things extremely locked down like an iPhone?
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Click to collapse
I just come over to the S21 Ultra from Xiaomi. I loved how you could theme the Xiaomi. I tried a few themes from the Samsung store but nothing would change all the icons. A real miss match and it looked terrible. Maybe I never searched hard enough well anyway I downloaded Good Lock and some modules from the Samsung store. It has some good customisations and it changes all icons to the same style and hides icons from status bar. Not sure if this is what your after but I knew when I got this phone there would not be much development on it at the start. Actually not to fussed about rooting at the moment. Also aodNotify as I missed the notification light. Moved away from Chinese phones myself. Here's a couple of pics if this is the sort of thing that your after.
Hope this helps

Clarkie_955i said:
I just come over to the S21 Ultra from Xiaomi. I loved how you could theme the Xiaomi. I tried a few themes from the Samsung store but nothing would change all the icons. A real miss match and it looked terrible. Maybe I never searched hard enough well anyway I downloaded Good Lock and some modules from the Samsung store. It has some good customisations and it changes all icons to the same style and hides icons from status bar. Not sure if this is what your after but I knew when I got this phone there would not be much development on it at the start. Actually not to fussed about rooting at the moment. Also aodNotify as I missed the notification light. Moved away from Chinese phones myself. Here's a couple of pics if this is the sort of thing that your after.
Hope this helps
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Click to collapse
Congrats on leaving Chinese brands. I'm also making effort to buy things not made in China as much as possible as well. So Taiwan, Japan, USA, etc...
I don't usually do the whole custom icon set thing on phones, but I am aware that's a big thing so I understand why that would be frustrating when you can't find one you like. The most theming I've done is choose one I like (color wise) from some LG app I had on the phone which worked well.
Other small changes may count as theme changes in some ways, but it wasn't the intention.. it was mostly for functionality.
Thanks for the info.
Also I have researched a few things...
1. AdAway. It can now be used without root, which I didn't know. It can be run on S21 variants. BUT, you have to run an AdAway VPN to do it.. so might as well find another method for ad blocking. My friend showed me a screen on the S20 where there is a "private DNS" option. I could block ads that way.
2. Vanced doesn't need root. It actually is arguably better without root because you only have to set the app to open YT links and it doesn't replace the YT app. Right now I can't use auto app updates because it won't let me pick and choose which to not auto-update and one of the ones I would need to stop from auto updating is the stock YT app.
3. From research online and after asking Google about the variant they sell, you can disable shutter sound in the settings (which is actually better than what the LG V30+ supports.. a huge surprise).
4. Don't think I can use Xposed. There MAY be some bootleg way with partial functionality or something but I don't know for sure.
Can I (without root) remove the stock battery icon and replace it with a circle and percentage? Like this:
I also want to enable the seconds counter and add the date.. I want to do all that stuff, if possible.. that I did there.. including hcanging the size of fonts and capitalization of fonts in the top middle area.
Main thing I want is the seconds counter.
A friend showed me this from his s20:
So that's cool that he can change the icons displayed. I used Gravity Box or Xposed.

Not so much I cant find what I like it's just they don't change system wide like Xiaomi did. So I end up having half custom and half stock and looks crap with all the different colors in the folders. At least Good Lock manages to change them system wide which I don't quite understand why Samsung theme store will change maybe fifty percent. Anyway got it to how I like it.
With Good Lock you can remove status bar icons but no customisation with battery indicators. That pic is a pic of Good Lock the one you posted. I went with the Hong Kong version with Snapdragon which you can unlock bootloader in development options. Don't think you can on US Snapdragon versions. Here in OZ we only had the Exynos. Got the 16/512 Snapdragon for $1550 AUD. Same phone with Exynos just over $2200 here.
AdAway have not really missed it. Had it on my previous phone and maybe I'm not taking any notice of adds and just enjoying the phone. Never use Vanced. Cant see any setting in camera to turn off shutter sound but you can silence it in volume controls. Haven't looked into Xposed yet.
Don't know what model your going to get but there is root and TWRP available for ultra models. But soon as you flash a boot image you will trip Knox and lose some features of Samsung apps. Mainly Samsung pay I believe and warranty if you buy local. Still sussing this out myself. Have a old Tab S that I rooted and my first Android was a Samsung Galaxy Gio (GT-S5660)
Overall extremely happy with this phone.
Hoe this helps Sneak

A stock Note 10+, heavily customized.
Running fast and stable on Pie/OneUI.

sneak said:
I don't want anything from a Chinese company.
I'm not worried about warranties. I don't know if I'd ever need the samsung specific things like Samsung Pay. Not sure what Safe Folder is but I guess it's some kind of encryption based file storing? I generally don't use all these mainstream things people like.
I don't really spend time making Google Pay work because I have no use for it. I'll have an occasional issue with an app refusing to operate because of rooting and Magisk Hide doesn't work, but it isn't a big deal.
I like tweaking things like the battery logo (I like having a circle with percentage number inside and not having the extra/stock battery logo up there at the same time). I like to disable certain system icons from the top bar that aren't necessary to be there and just clog it up. I like adding the "clear all" type buttons in the running apps page. I like customizing the behavior of holding the power button so I can reboot, reboot to recovery, or shut the phone off easily.
For example, on my LG V30+ right now I am running the stock rom but rooted it and did things like I described above. Nothing major and don't need Google Pay. The LG app for air conditioners won't run because of my root. My bank app notifies me of root very occasionally but isn't a big deal. Yeah, I don't think my SafetyNet passes, but I don't care.
I am using Xposed, hostless AdAway, No Shutter Sound, Highway Radar and YouTube Vanced as well.
I tend to go through every single setting in a phone before I even start really dailying it . I don't mind it. I like customization. That's great to hear. I do like unrestricted or not very restricted phones as opposed to iPhone style lockdown stuff, though.
I used to consider the OnePlus phones but lately I have been more insistent on not buying things made in China or from Chinese companies as much as possible... for various reasons.
---
So assuming I don't care about things like warranty and Samsung Pay.. what other drawbacks are there? What would stop me from going this route? I intend on picking it up from Google because they have really good deals and I can even make 0% interest payments. I just have to stick with Fi for 3 months, then I can go back to ATT.
Another concern I have is the size of the phone. It makes me lean towards the S21 5G. I just like the Ultra for the other enhancements.
Thanks to all of you as well for the replies.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In 100% me..
You just write that's way am here on xda,
Am a fan to customise my phone as I want,
And if I pay so much money we should have the right, and possibility to choice and use ..
Sorry for my English.

Well, I bought one from Google. If there are serious issues I don't want to put up with I will return it.
As long as I can disable the stock battery icon I would think I could get an app which has a custom battery icon.
I hope it's possible as well to do vertical listing of apps in app screen instead of having the left/right pages.

sneak said:
Well, I bought one from Google. If there are serious issues I don't want to put up with I will return it.
As long as I can disable the stock battery icon I would think I could get an app which has a custom battery icon.
I hope it's possible as well to do vertical listing of apps in app screen instead of having the left/right pages.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Congrats
The scrolling from the right was a pain at first. But all good now. Hopefully Good Lock will bring something out in the future and change it.

sneak said:
I'm considering getting an S21 5G or S21 Ultra. Is it normal that there isn't much in terms of modding/rooting/etc for Samsung phones? I don't normally go for things like this.
I like the Nexus 5 and have a V30+ right now. I want to be able to control the phone and modify a few things I don't like about the stock experience.
What kind of situation am I looking at here? Is there a safe and reliable root? Or are things extremely locked down like an iPhone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yea rooting is possible and safe if right software is used but might affect warranty i guess

If anyone remembers the whole Carrier IQ thing, do you know if there's something like this on the S21 Ultra?
System UI Tuner doesn't seem to work as far as showing seconds in the status bar clock.
I would love to be able to customize the recently used apps section in the apps drawer. Either remove it completely or set static apps or somehow customize a blacklist or whitelist or some other variables to determine what goes there.
When I use jetaudio+ it puts a notification with details in the menu from the top. I can't swipe it away and it stays there even after I close the app and remove it from app list. I found out I have to drag down on it to expand it to be slightly larger and then an "x" appears. These "x" buttons would appear by default on apps like this on my old phone and they were a little larger relative to the rest of the UI as well. Would love to be able to tweak this functionality.
I want a feature I had on my LG V30+ where based on my GPS location I can enable or disable WiFi. Meaning, the same as hitting the wifi icon in the quick toggles based on entering a certain location or leaving that location. That way when I get home my phone will automatically globally turn on wifi and when I leave it twill automatically turn it off so it isn't hunting for networks.
Another feature in the same section was something which allowed me to have the phone remain unlocked when paired with a specific device. I want the phone to stay unlocked when paired with my car instead of having to unlock it all the time with fingerprint.
I would like to be able to scroll the apps list vertically, like normal.. instead of this left and right pages stuff.
I want a battery indicator setup where there is a percentage inside of a circle and the circle is representative of the percentage. Not finding an app option that has what I want. Does anyone know of a way to do this or an app?
I also want to make pressing the home button in the bottom center of the screen do a full open of the bar from the top.
On my current phone I've also found some way to keep the alarm clock icon from Alarm Clock Xtreme without having a persistent notification of the next alarm. Not sure how on this.

MacroDroid!
the answer to toggles based on location. A lot of features there to look into. Very nice.

MacroDroid seems fine for the WiFi toggle but it doesn't keep the phone from locking. At first it was keeping the screen on but then it just did nothing. I want the screen to still shut off if necessary but not require thumbprint or code or anything to unlock, while paired with phone.

sneak said:
MacroDroid seems fine for the WiFi toggle but it doesn't keep the phone from locking. At first it was keeping the screen on but then it just did nothing. I want the screen to still shut off if necessary but not require thumbprint or code or anything to unlock, while paired with phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't advise using it but stupid Bixby probably can ie Bixby Routines.

blackhawk said:
I don't advise using it but stupid Bixby probably can ie Bixby Routines.
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Click to collapse
That's the first thing I checked but I couldn't figure out how to do it. It's not very intuitive....

Database Develop

welcome