It has been brought to my attention that a lot of people are unaware of the full potential that they have in their hands and pockets for most of the day. The Android smart phone that is in their possession is one of the most powerful things they own.

You are probably wondering, "Well if it's so powerful, why would I need to root it?"

Phone companies, while developing a phone, can either release the phone when they need to (if they think it will profit, or there is other competition being released), or they can work out all of the kinks and optimize it. Sadly enough, they rarely get optimized. That's where rooting come in.

Rooting is possible by a developer (thanks to the fact that Android is open source software). Think of the developer as the phone companies working overtime, and for no pay. They can tap into the full potential of your phone.

What rooting does:

Rooting your phone does a number of things. It lets you get Superuser access to your root directory (where you can customize things like appearance or performance). It also allows you to flash(flash is rooting terms for install) a different kernel, optimized for the ROM of your choosing.

ROMs. ROMs are what I referred to earlier as the developers overtime. They create their own version of Android, a new Operating System, that customizes your smart phone experience. It can change the color of your icons, change the app dock, whether or not you have an app menu, etc. It can do basically anything. With a ROM you can uncap the full potential of your phone.

After ROMs there is apps. There are a number of apps on the market that only work while rooted. Screenshot apps, overclocking apps, etc. Just by rooting you are able to do so much more in the Market.


Speed and performance. Kernels are the things that tell your processor what to do, and how to do it. By changing that, you can change your processor speed and voltages. Meaning you are able to do what you love to do, only faster.

Looks. If you have the latest and greatest Android smart phone, you can't deny wanting eye-candy. It's your desire, and the reason you enjoy Android so much. When you root, you can take any imperfections out. If you think it would look better with a blue theme instead of a green one, or you want your favorite color everywhere, you can do it. If you don't like the default layout of the phone, or the styling, you can change it too. You can even make it look like an iPhone. (Though I wouldn't know why you would.)

Customization. This ties into the looks and speed and performance sections. Being able to say that no one around has the same phone as you is nice (iPhone users reading this don't know what it's like). But the moment when you do see someone with your phone, and you can still say your phone is different, is priceless. It gives people warm fuzzies inside.

Now that you have read that and know that you want to root, what next? This is the part where you head over to XDA Developers, go to the top right, and type in your phone. From there, you can find guides on rooting, installing ROMs, and tips and tricks. The best ROMs are the ones that people try to port like MIUI, Cyanogen Mod, and others depending on your phone.

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So after personally typing out extensive responses to peoples' questions regarding why their USB storage isn't working, I decided to make an article addressing the very general issue.

First off, if for some reason your computer is "finding drivers" or trying to install new drivers and fails, do this:

1. Go to google, and type in your phone's name followed by "driver" and your version or Windows or "MAC" (for example, my phone is the LG G2x so I would type in "LG G2x driver Windows 7"

2. Find the most recent driver online and then download it to your computer.

3. Install onto your computer

4. Plug in your phone via USB

5. Check "Allow Mass Storage" from Settings -> USB -> Allow Mass Storage (should be exactly this for most Android phones.)

If the above method does not work, or your phone gets recognized as a different name, like Android ADB interface or ect., then:

1. Right click My Computer

2. Go to Properties

3. Select Device Manager

4. Find whatever your phone is named under (Android ADB interface is a common one)

5. Uninstall the driver

6. Reinstall your phone's latest driver

These are the two most common issues Android users have with their phones, and unknowingly enough, a very easy fix.

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I have just recently updated my Android Battery Optimization Guide to add Juice Defender and get rid off recommending Advanced Task Killer. The reason behind the switch is simple. I had no recollection that Juice Defender even existed, and through the Android Forums, I have learned that Advanced Task Killer is actually detrimental to your phone's ease of access, reliability, and approximated life.

The reason you do not want a task killer is simple. Your phones are designed to shut off apps when the app is done servicing you. If it is still doing something (roaming for network, syncing, playing in the background) and you shut it off, when you go to turn back on the app that you force closed, the app has to finish what it was doing, then restart all together.

If your apps are force closing often and you're using a task killer, the task killer is the issue. In the time where the app is resuming where it left off and trying to reset, if the developer didn't code it specifically for that instance, odds are it will have no idea what to do and crash. To prevent this, do not use it. It's that simple.

Now onto reason why you need Juice Defender. As I stated in Android Battery Optimization Guide, Juice Defender limits (but not destroys) the data usage allowed per app, depending on the settings you set. You can, however, permanently restrict the usage of network data. I do not recommend this, due to the need for network on your apps (Which is why they use it in the first place).

I just started using it, so I have not untapped the full potential as of right now, but in the past week I have been using it, my battery life has increased by about 10-15%. Just from the app. What I am basing this on is when I go to bed, I check my battery life (yes, my phone lasts the entire day, huzzah). Before Juice Defender, I had from 8-16%, now I have anywhere from 27-39%. Quite the improvement if I do say so myself, and it doesn't destroy, compromise, or mess with your phone.

As always, feel free to subscribe via email, I have a lot to talk about, a lot to tell people, and a lot of time to do so. Android Advantage.

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If you have just purchased your first Android smart phone, do not panic about what I am proceeding to tell you. We both know you will be on your phone for countless hours because it is such an upgrade that it is unbelievable. However, your battery will not last long. I know, tragic. Luckily, I can help you make the most of it without spending a dime.

First off, you need to limit what resources are being spent (resources being your battery).

Unknowingly, the #1 cause of short lived batteries is your brightness level.

This is when you go into Settings -> Display -> Brightness and turn off auto brightness on your phone. Then set it to a consistent setting to where you can see easily in a moderately lit room. This will undoubtedly increase your battery life tremendously. It might even benefit your eyes a little too.

Second step is to get into the habit of toggling your WiFi.

When you are out and about you do not need WiFi on. It will just spend precious resources trying to find what isn't there. Go to Settings -> Wireless & network settings and make sure it is off.

Step three is GPS. It is the same as WiFi, it's only useful while you're using it. So when you are about to use it, turn it on. And when you are done, turn it back off. Go to Settings -> Location & security settings and uncheck "Use GPS Satellite ".

WiFi and GPS can be easily maintained by the Power Control widget. To get to the widgets, long press on your background and select "Widgets". From there, locate "Power Control" and select/place it on your home screen. From left to right the toggle selections you have are: WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, Auto sync, and Brightness control. I prefer to have all of them off, except when I need to use WiFi, Bluetooth, or GPS to make sure my battery stays alive.

 The fourth step is to turn off Bluetooth, which you can do through Power Control, like I stated previously. You can also go to Settings -> Wireless & network settings and uncheck it there.

Next, download JuiceDefender off of the Android Market.

With Juice Defender, you have to power to control and limit what has access to data while your screen is off, you have the ability to restrict multiple apps from accessing the internet period, and you can customize your settings between 4 different level restrictions. Despite what I have said earlier, do not download Advanced Task Manager, as I have stated in my newest Android Advantage article update.

After that, look through your Applications and check out which ones you really need. Delete any that you don't ever use, and your battery life will also improve. (Settings -> Applications -> Manage Applications)

A major reason people's batteries die so much is Live Wallpapers. They look really cool, but since they are running 24/7, they drain your resources in a hurry. Long press your home screen and go to Wallpapers to change it.

Last but certainly not least, is rooting your phone. It is highly unrecommended by phone companies, as is voids the warranty, but it essentially modifies the Android Operating System, allowing people with significant tech know-how to customize and improve your smart phone. A rooted phone typically has no bloatware (apps that no one uses or are useless), which will improve the performance as well as battery life. They also can overclock your phone and improve the speeds of it as well.

Related articles:
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UPDATED: Android Battery Life Optimization Guide
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