• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

Droid Incredible LED flashlight!

Hey I noticed this forum seemed to slow down a bit. Any word on the app yet. I read somewhere that it would require root. I'm new to the community and I have no idea what that is and why that complicates things so much. Why is root inaccessible at this time and are any devs close to working it out?
 
Upvote 0
Hey I noticed this forum seemed to slow down a bit. Any word on the app yet. I read somewhere that it would require root. I'm new to the community and I have no idea what that is and why that complicates things so much. Why is root inaccessible at this time and are any devs close to working it out?

it might require root becuase the current OS does not give access to the LED directly (only through the camera)

getting root permissions is similar to jailbreaking an iphone. what it requires is hacking the software and changing it to allow you to do whatever you want.
there are devs working on this currently and they are making ground. we just have to wait for it to happen at this point.

rooting your phone is something not to be done lightly though. (and almost definitly not just for a flashlight app)
it is possible to damage your phone if you dont do it correctly and definitly voids your warrenty.
it also gives you abilities on your phone that could damage your phone after you have done a successful root.

that being said it is a great thing that the devs are working on this. there is loads of functionality that can be improved by doing this.
i for one dont have use for anything that my phone cant do right now but i always like seeing the possibilities and may at some point root my phone for play.

anyone have anything to add or edit in my post??? :thinking: :D
 
Upvote 0
Why would rooting your phone void your warranty? Wouldn't that just be a software change fixable with a factory reset?

Rooting, if done incorrectly, can sometimes brick the phone, making it unusable and a factory reset might not always work. This is most likely the reason why the warranty would be voided. Rooted phones can be dangerous if someone doesn't know what they're doing. Carriers and phone companies probably don't want to mess with issues and complaints if a user screws up the phone so they just void the warranty in those cases.
 
Upvote 0

BEST TECH IN 2023

We've been tracking upcoming products and ranking the best tech since 2007. Thanks for trusting our opinion: we get rewarded through affiliate links that earn us a commission and we invite you to learn more about us.

Smartphones