The magic of the Android operating system is its flexibility. Short of being able to order it around the house for chores, you can literally make it look and perform however you want. You’ll be able to put in custom fonts, themes, and icons, as well as modify its kernel, recovery, bootloader, clock speed, system files, and even the ROM through rooting. Don’t understand any of these terms? Let this be your guide to unleashing your Android’s full potential.
Rooting allows you to access files and commands not available to regular, out-of-the-box Android users. From removing bloatware,
making processors run faster or slower, optimizing battery and RAM use, to modifying essential files, rooting your smartphone allows you to push the limits of its hardware and software.
What’s the catch?
Though the power of a rooted phone seems awesome, it doesn’t come without consequences. Keep in mind that you’re going to play with the system files so one wrong move might make your phone act wonky, or worse, render it useless. A brick, an expensive slab, and a glorified paperweight—just some of the lingo you can use if you unfortunately kill your phone. If you think you can use your warranty card to bring your phone back to life free of charge, then think again. Rooting means you’re deliberately tampering with the manufacturer’s product, so service centers may void your warranty and turn you away. It’s best to know what you’re doing and follow directions step by step to lessen the chance of any screw-ups.
I understand the risks. Let’s get it on!
Sadly, there is no all-encompassing guide to rooting as each smartphone has its own way of getting around manufacturer constraints. To find out what method will work for you, you can Google how to root your phone’s model, with the most trustworthy sources being the AndroidCentral forums and my personal favorite, the XDA developers. However, there is a general pattern you can follow towards the path of being a power user.
First, backup everything in your phone! That includes your contacts, e-mails, text messages, pictures, music, and other files you deem important. There are a number of free apps in the Play store that will let you do just that. You wouldn’t want to lose the three-year-long collection of messages from your crush, would you?
Second, unlock your bootloader, which is the the lowest level computing software running the necessary codes to make your device function. It’s locked by the manufacturer to make sure that your phone only runs their version of Android and nothing else.
Third is the rooting proper wherein you’ll get Superuser (SU) privileges. You can do this either through a PC—using apps such as Framaroot and Kingo Android Root—or through your phone’s recovery mode. Recovery Mode allows you to wipe your device, restore it to factory settings, and install a limited number of files straight from your phone’s storage into the “untouchable” system partition.
You can also search online for apps like TowelRoot, IORoot, and StumpRoot which allows your phone to root itself with just a simple click of a button.
No matter the method though, your phone should end up having the SU binary as well as well as the Superuser app—sure signs that your phone is rooted. Hooray!
It worked! Now what?
Does it seem like nothing spectacular happened to your now-rooted phone? You’re probably right. That state of non-awesomeness won’t last too long though.
You should replace your stock recovery with another one like Clockworks Mod (CWM) or Team Win Recovery Project (TWRP). These give you added options that will make your life easier down the rooted road.
Next, you should flash a custom ROM, or in simpler terms, install a new operating system on your mobile. If you’ve ever played with a Google Nexus device and fell in love with the no frills, no gimmicks feel of stock Android, then your rooted phone can give you just that. Cyanogenmod, Paranoid Android, and MIUI are some favorites of mine.
What else? You can optimize hardware performance with a new kernel; tweak your phone’s processor speed via simple apps from
the Play store; use a portion of your microSD card as added RAM; manage app permissions; map gesture controls; and install various root-only apps such as Greenify, Titanium Backup, and Nandroid Manager.
Of course, you’re not limited to what I’ve listed above. Like I’ve said, a rooted mobile will do what you want it to do within its hardware limits. Just remember that with great superuser powers come great responsibility. Have fun with your improved smartphone!