Root Why Should I Root my Droid X?

[BabyDoc]

I LOVE my Droid X. It is my first smart phone and I am absolutely thrilled with it in every possible way. I get great battery life with my extended battery and Juice Defender; I get great speed with my WIFI connection.
I have tons of apps for my phone and still have a ton of space left on my SD card and internal memory. I don't need to use my phone as a hot spot or get rid of the bloat ware.

Many of my friends with older slower and more battery hungry smart phones have rooted their phones. This has allowed them to extend the useful life of their older technology phones until their contracts expire and when they will replace them with next latest and greatest phone.

So MY question for all of you is WHY ROOT my Droid x right now, when the DroidX is acknowledged as one of the best out of the box smart phones, by many reviewers.? While I understand it won't be topping the lists for long, and rooting the phone may eventually be needed to keep it abreast with adancing technology, why should I root my phone right now ? What am I missing now if I don't?

 

[bigbadwulff]

If you are happy with the phone be content there. If you decide to root and do custom ROMS................BACK UP EVERYTHING even with multiple sources.
Lessen learned on my part. Thought App Brain would sync my apps back to my phone but no. Lost pretty much everything I downloaded and even some system apps.
Lost my phone contacts but got them back via Back Up Assisstant but don't rely on it soley.

Read, read, read before pulling the trigger. I thought I had and I guess I was wrong although I now have a functional phone after thinking it was totally screwed. I had enough backed up to get things back to functional. It's not the way I want it but maybe I can get there again.

Don't let me scare you from it but scare you into doing it correctly.

don't be afraid to ask questions and for help. The people here are so generous with their time and help. This is truly a wonder place!!

I used to be a member of a VW diesel engine website but it became a haven for the "search police" types(people that say "you could find your answer if you searched the site for it") instead of helping you out. I don't frequent that site any longer. This site is NOTHING like that.

Oh and EYEDOC here .

 

[BabyDoc]

BigBadWolf, no you aren't scaring me, but apparently there is some risk of screwing up a great phone if you don't root it right. While I know I will take that risk when my phone is no longer performing well and approaching obsolescence (I won't then have much to lose), why would anyone recommend taking that risk now? Is the gain you get by rooting an already great phone, worth the risk?

 

[thegummyjar]

Because MotoBlur is buggy, slow, and hold's back the potential of your phone.
Your device will never really LIVE without being root/rom'd

 

[BabyDoc]

Since I am such a newby that I don't even know what MotoBlur is, let alone that it is buggy or slow, should I even be considering rooting my phone? You have to understand that this is my first smart phone. I really think I am living now compared to my old Samsung a950.
What is MotoBlur, anyway?

The only thing I find annoyingly slow on my phone is when I want to use Voice command dialing. The phone says "please, wait" and then I wait about 15 seconds before I can give a voice command to call John Doe. Will this be any faster, if I root my phone?

 

[thegummyjar]

Since I am such a newby that I don't even know what MotoBlur is, let alone that it is buggy or slow, should I even be considering rooting my phone?

What is MotoBlur, anyway?

The only thing I find annoyingly slow on my phone is when I want to use Voice command dialing. The phone says "please, wait" and then I wait about 15 seconds before I can give a voice command to call John Doe. Will this be any faster, if I root my phone?

I will suggest that you keep reading to learn more, a rooted Rom'd device is a whole different, better, more exciting world.
If you are fine with your phone then leave it, because rooting can be a headache but is very addictive.

 

[bigbadwulff]

If you don't know what Motoblur is I'd shy away from attempting rooting at this time. But frequent this site and read.

Motoblur is basically the ROM of the stock phone(without getting too technical). It is a little buggy and laggy but not bad at all.

If you want to 'Liberate'(pun intended) your phone some, start with messing with Launchers first and go from there. It's kinda like doing a ROM in a sense. Try one (or more, it's OK to do so) of the following Launchers:

-Launcher Pro
-ADW
-Go Launcher

That would be where I would start for now. Those are basic apps you can load SAFELY from the Market without worry. You do not have to be rooted to do them. If you already have one or more of them, my bad.

 

[BabyDoc]

I will suggest that you keep reading to learn more, a rooted Rom'd device is a whole different, better, more exciting world.
If you are fine with your phone then leave it, because rooting can be a headache but is very addictive.

Yes, I hear that rooting the phone can create a better, more exciting world, but could you be more specific what is so different about it? (Getting a headache alone can't be that addictive.)

So what do YOU find so exciting and addictive about it? (Other than getting rid of bloatware, being able to back up your phone easier, and using your phone as a free "hot spot", I don't find people being that specific about what's so great about rooting. Even with the different ROM's out there, most people claim favorites but don't enumerate what the differences are with them. )

 

[HalfFrozen]

There is no way possible to completely brick the DX.

With that being said...

Just root it man!

Also, rooting allows you to freely give off WiFi, may drain your battery if left on constantly when not being used, but still. Rather then paying $20 extra.

 

[BabyDoc]

There is no way possible to completely brick the DX.

With that being said...

Just root it man!

Also, rooting allows you to freely give off WiFi, may drain your battery if left on constantly when not being used, but still. Rather then paying $20 extra.

Thanks for the encouragement to root my phone. I understand that there isn't any way to completely brick the DX, but there is risk of losing stuff if you haven't backed up everything exactly right.

Reading BigBadWolf's horror story of rooting his phone, trying to get a new ROM, then losing all of his contacts, and then being happy to get his phone back to a barely fuctional state with the original 2.2 Froyo on it makes me wonder what makes anyone want to root their DX. Sure, that doesn't have to happen if you are careful, but...

I sound like a broken record, I know. BUT NOBODY has given a good reason for taking any risk at all. ( Being a free hotspot for WIFI is nice, only if you need it. Since I don't even have a lap top, certainly I don't need to root my phone for that.)

 

[CriticalMass]

I LOVE my Droid X. It is my first smart phone and I am absolutely thrilled with it in every possible way. I get great battery life with my extended battery and Juice Defender; I get great speed with my WIFI connection.
I have tons of apps for my phone and still have a ton of space left on my SD card and internal memory. I don't need to use my phone as a hot spot or get rid of the bloat ware.

Many of my friends with older slower and more battery hungry smart phones have rooted their phones. This has allowed them to extend the useful life of their older technology phones until their contracts expire and when they will replace them with next latest and greatest phone.

So MY question for all of you is WHY ROOT my Droid x right now, when the DroidX is acknowledged as one of the best out of the box smart phones, by many reviewers.? While I understand it won't be topping the lists for long, and rooting the phone may eventually be needed to keep it abreast with adancing technology, why should I root my phone right now ? What am I missing now if I don't?

So you can use SETCPU to drop cpu usage down to 300mhz when the screen is off and save a TON of battery life.

You can also use an overclocking app to undervolt the CPU and overclock it as well.

And never run out of battery in the middle of the day again.


I went back to stock a couple months ago. I don't have issues with Blur. But these are two great reasons to root.

 

[HalfFrozen]

Thanks for the encouragement to root my phone. I understand that there isn't any way to completely brick the DX, but there is risk of losing stuff if you haven't backed up everything exactly right.

Reading BigBadWolf's horror story of rooting his phone, trying to get a new ROM, then losing all of his contacts, and then being happy to get his phone back to a barely fuctional state with the original 2.2 Froyo on it makes me wonder what makes anyone want to root their DX. Sure, that doesn't have to happen if you are careful, but...

I sound like a broken record, I know. BUT NOBODY has given a good reason for taking any risk at all. ( Being a free hotspot for WIFI is nice, only if you need it. Since I don't even have a lap top, certainly I don't need to root my phone for that.)

Yeah, I use Titanium Backup. It works wonders for backing up any and all APKs.

No offense to bigbadwolf, but some people don't know basics of Google Android. Anyways, if you let Google back up your contacts, they will forever be with you, so long as you use the same Gmail.

Its all on the operator of the phone who controls how good and how bad they can make it.

I have my moments when manually Installing ROMs, but all for all, I think I am kind of knowledgeable of Rooting and installing ROMs/Themes.

If you ever don't want to be rooted, you can just flash an SBF, its that simple.

I am not going to waste time trying to talk you into doing something you most likely wont do, but I will just say its easy, For ANYONE!

 

[BabyDoc]

So you can use SETCPU to drop cpu usage down to 300mhz when the screen is off and save a TON of battery life.

You can also use an overclocking app to undervolt the CPU and overclock it as well.

And never run out of battery in the middle of the day again.


I went back to stock a couple months ago. I don't have issues with Blur. But these are two great reasons to root.

I get nearly 2 days of battery usage from my Droid X using an extended OEM battery and Juice Defender/Ultimate Juice. So running out of battery in the middle of the day just hasn't happened unless I am endlessly playing games or watching movies.

I don't have any speed issues with my stock DX, either.


I am curious why you went back to a stock DX after having rooted it?
Were there not enough advantages?
Were there drawbacks to having a rooted phone?

 

[Metfanant]

if you don't see the need to root there are a couple suggestions i would give you to try out and see what you think...

- Try a new launcher: Either Launcher Pro, ADW, or Go Launcher...I highly recommend Launcher Pro, but i've tried Go Launcher and liked it as well...you might be shocked at how much snappier you your phone can be just from that and the customization options you can get from it...

after trying a new launcher you may just wet your appetite for more speed and customization...

if that happens...then you can come back and start talking about rooting and overclocking and custom ROMS....

i would really really really suggest a new launcher though

 

[AmneonX]

I rooted mine soley for the use of the wireless tether for my Samsung Galaxy Tab. However, I a thinking about trying some other features, like SetCPU. I am rather new to the whole rooting scene, so I am taking baby steps, and looking online for information before I do anything.

 

[cultldr]

There is no way possible to completely brick the DX.

With that being said...

Just root it man!

Also, rooting allows you to freely give off WiFi, may drain your battery if left on constantly when not being used, but still. Rather then paying $20 extra.

Root then you can change the system font and really make it sexy.

But if you root get the Droid X Recovery Bootstrap in the market.

If you don't want to tinker there really is no reason to root. It's fine to leave it the way you have it (this is to the OP). BUT I warn you, if you root and start to play, you will get hooked on what you can do and show it off. It happened to me and it's spread to a few I know.

But yeah, just root that b1tch lol j/k

 

[cultldr]

I rooted mine soley for the use of the wireless tether for my Samsung Galaxy Tab. However, I a thinking about trying some other features, like SetCPU. I am rather new to the whole rooting scene, so I am taking baby steps, and looking online for information before I do anything.

Love the new wireless tether for the X that allows Infrastructure. I was very close to modding the tab to get adhoc to work but they fixed it up nice.

 

[maniacman54]

Yeah, I use Titanium Backup. It works wonders for backing up any and all APKs.

No offense to bigbadwolf, but some people don't know basics of Google Android. Anyways, if you let Google back up your contacts, they will forever be with you, so long as you use the same Gmail.

Its all on the operator of the phone who controls how good and how bad they can make it.

I have my moments when manually Installing ROMs, but all for all, I think I am kind of knowledgeable of Rooting and installing ROMs/Themes.

If you ever don't want to be rooted, you can just flash an SBF, its that simple.

I am not going to waste time trying to talk you into doing something you most likely wont do, but I will just say its easy, For ANYONE!

I need to agree 1010%. I took about 30 minutes out of my schedule to input all my contacts to google. I had about 2 phones, reinstalled Roms, and at no point did I care about losing my contacts because it always came back.

P.S. i just got into the whole rooting game. It's pretty fun if you love customizing everyday