How do I rock my Droid X's socks off?
November 18, 2010 7:08 PM   Subscribe

HackedAndroidFilter:What custom ROM should I load onto my (already rooted) Droid X? Similarly, can you install Droid apps manually via the file manager on such a modded Droid? What about Google Voice? And so on...

So, I've already followed the instructions here for rooting and backing up my Droid X.

Currently that really does diddly to improve my experience with the phone. I want to reap the benefits of less blur, undervolting for increased battery life, root apps (not so much on tethering, however), potentially overclocking, and just more control of my phone in general.

Bearing this in mind there seems to be quite a few popular roms out for the Droid X. I can't choose between them. Keeping in mind that the above considerations which one should I choose? Will the ROM handle these things in-and-of itself?

I also feel the more popular the better in some ways since that makes me less likely to be left standing alone when/if something goes wrong. If it matters I'm currently on Froyo 2.2 OTA firmware.

PS - Is there a way/guide to install apps manually instead of going through the app store? It seems like you should be able to simply place certain files in the right place on the phone's file structure and you're good to go. I can't seem to find any information on this however so maybe I'm off base here.

PPS - Why does using Google Voice TXT messages count as billable for my message plan's (or lack thereof) credits?
posted by RolandOfEld to Computers & Internet (5 answers total) 5 users marked this as a favorite
 
Not sure on the Droid X ROMs; I'm using the OG Droid but I can comment on your PS.

You can install apps manually if you can get a copy of the .apk file. In the Applications settings menu you can select "Unknown sources", this allows you to sideload applications. You simply put the file anywhere on the SD card and use a file manager app to install it. I use root explorer as my file manager, it comes in handy.

No Google Voice TXT messages don't count against your plans txt messages but I believe they contribute to your data usage. They're small so unless you're sending a ton of messages you won't notice the difference.
posted by lairc at 7:50 PM on November 18, 2010


http://www.droidforums.net/forum/droid-x-roms/ might has three different droid x roms, all of which seem to have the potential to give you what you want.

Sadly, I don't believe my favorite rom for the original Motorola Droid (Ultimate Droid) has a DX version yet.

other then that, I'd backup your apps with titanium backup or mybackuppro in case you need to clear data, and join xda-developers to get SetCPU for free from the developers forum thread.

On your PS, I'd note that there are some apps when you root, mostly those which are system apps that google has released market updates, that you may have to install to your system directory manually.
posted by gryftir at 11:54 PM on November 18, 2010


Response by poster: Hey both good comments, and thanks.

@lairc: good to hear about the manual app installs, might have to look around and see what i can find. Regarding the Google Voice TXT messages, I thought the exact same thing and was using them like mad (sending/replying via Google voice app and having friends TXT to my Google voice number) and my bill charged me for the messages. I got out of it but would love to avoid the $5 / month I'm now paying for text to avoid the charges in the future.

@gryftir: Yea, just didn't know if I might get lucky and get some mefi experienced user to comment. By the way I am backing up using titanium backup. Good call on the forum membership.
posted by RolandOfEld at 5:57 AM on November 19, 2010


To piggyback: I was under the impression that the eFuse firmware-lock "feature" on the Droid X represented a major stumbling block to customization. Can someone lay out the current state of "what works" vs. "what doesn't work" on the X? I've been avoiding it and waiting for the next big (hopefully hackable) thing, but if eFuse is history, that might change my mind.
posted by Alterscape at 7:44 AM on November 19, 2010


Response by poster: eFuse has been circumvented and full SBF has been posted to restore pretty much any bricked device. The fact that ROMs are available speaks volumes as to how 'cracked' the Droid X really is. The hacker community really rocked this one (at least from my newbie viewpoint).
posted by RolandOfEld at 8:29 AM on November 19, 2010


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