Rooted essentials

Rooting implies getting root access on your Android device.Usually it stops on flashing a custom ROM.
But there is much more to rooting than just flashing Cyanogen or AOKP or any other ROM for that matter.With root access,you have a deeper control over the phones hardware.

Phones with locked bootloaders need to go a step further,unlocking it,to gain access to kernel.

Following is a list of apps which come in handy,once you've rooted your device.All of these can easily be found on the play store,and quick search on xda would give you an even more insight on the app.

1. Greenify

This app maintains a list of apps,which you want to be killed from its incessant background services/process or "greenified".Apps like Maps,Facebook are useful,but constant background services not only increase data usage,but also take a toll on the battery life.Worse,these consume valuable RAM.

Greenify runs a process,at a specified interval of time,after you lock your screen.Once run,it kills off all the apps in the list,freeing the device of valuable RAM,at the same time keeping a check on the battery life.

(The latest update makes Greenify run on non-rooted devices too!)

2. Xposed Framework

Most Android tweaks on the system packages require a tedious task of decompiling the apk,making the changes,and then recompiling the apk.Not only is it a tedious process,but it is device and ROM specific as well.Also,for multiple files,we usually flash a zip from recovery.

Xposed provides a framework for 'modules',make the necessary changes in the apks on the start-up itself.This makes the modules independent of the device,ROM,etc.

Point to be noted here is Xposed is just a framework.You need modules like GravityBox,for eg,which provides an AIO solution to visual and functional tweaks,usually found in most custom ROMs.
Even Greenify provides a host of experimental features,which can be activated via Xposed.

Only downside being this is not ART compatible.But that shouldn't matter much.

3.Solid Explorer

I used to swear by Root Explorer,when I first rooted,but this file manager came bundled in with one of the ROMs I was trying out,and,I haven't looked back since.

It has one of the most simplest and elegant UI there is to for an Android file manager,with a host of features like 2 panels side-by-side,FTP,bookmarking of favourites,quick access to media,etc.

4.Titanium Backup

This is the AIO rooted toolkit.

Backup up app,its data;Convert system app to user app and vice-versa;Automate the backup process;Freeze system apps,uninstall system apps;move apps to SD card(well you get the point!)

A true life saver!

5.Viper4Android

This is by far the most exhaustive sound mod for Android,I've come across,with loads of support for custom settings.

Cyanogen's custom music tuner,the DSP Manager is the most basic sound mods out there(In no way is it inferior though).V4A is DSP Manager on steroids.

If you know your sound,you are gonna absolutely love the Expert mode on this app.

6.CyanDelta(CM only)

Instead of downloading the whole ROM,what this app does is maintains a local copy of the current ROM zip,and downloads only the changes it finds against the latest ROM that is available.So,instead of downloading almost 200 MBs,you end up downloading only a tenth of that,to upgrade between ROMs.

You just need to hit the download button,it downloads,packs up a new zip and then you click on install.It boots to recovery,wipes the cache(if you've opted for it),flashes the zip and boots up,all by itself.

Another killer feature about this app is you can maintain a list of additional zips that can be flashed after it flashes the ROM itself.
Needless to say,it provides automatic checking of updates,which can be configured by time.

Thank you dev teams!

In this age of ever evolving technology,it makes absolutely no sense to buy a piece of defunct technology.Even the OEMs regard their latest one as obsolete within weeks of its launch and being work on the next one.Hell,the company manufacturers a new device/chip whilst you are buying the "latest" one.

And so,to a normal person,it makes you look like a fool when you tell them that you bought the 1st iteration of the series,when the world is expecting its 3rd.
But,little do people know about the Godly people know as 'Dev Teams',who pump new life into our so called "old" device.
While the world was on stock 2.3.4,I was running ROMs based of 2.3.7 for a couple of months.The difference was clearly visible,as without the bloatware,my device was much smoother than that of my friends,running the same hardware.

But the real deal was getting onto ICS,while the most of the world,with same hardware,was still running high and dry on GB ROMS,totally cut-off from support from OEMs.Heck,even most new released devices(read Xperia) were still running GB ROMs.
Although these ROMs are labelled as nightly builds,I can vouch for them being more stable and usable than most of the GB ROMs available out there(including the stock ones).And there is still a stable one in the pipeline.
Making a 2 year old hardware run the latest piece of software,is an achievement in itself,let alone making it more stable and usable than the stock softwares.And to my amazement,the battery life keeps on getting better!
And with their unrelenting support and love for the device,I'll be soon off to JB!

Thank you all the devs who make my "2 year old device" put the "latest devices" to shame.Keep up the good work.Oh yeah,and I love your work,and when we meet,I shall definitely buy you all beer :D

- Obsessive Compulsive Flasher(CM9 nightlies,almost every week .. CM10 in a couple of weeks)

Root,bloody root !

And so,you bought a smartphone/tablet.Aata kay ?
Play Store/App Store : Angry Birds/Fruit Ninja ?

NAH !
Its time to get rooting !
Why ?

Because its my device.I don't want my 1GHz proc to be underclocked to 800 Mhz,to "save battery".Hell,I can close down the weather widget,that'll give me enough juice.Neither do I want my carrier to monitor my locations/calls/messages.Well,but you can't do either,because you are NOT the admin of the phone.You are just a guest user.

So,basically,in order to get admin privileges or in other words,to gain "root-access",you'll need to root your phone.But it comes at a cost,your device's warranty becomes void.
(CAUTION : You may end up bricking up your phone if process is not followed properly,or well,if just not your day !)

Well if you've rooted your phone,you are opened to a whole new world of possibilities,like custom ROMs(oh yeah),3rd party apps which never made it to the store,or awesome stuff apps,for which which otherwise were paid,or those manufacturer/carrier apps which just sat there,consuming your ever precious battery,can finally be turned off !
And this ain't limited to just your software,no sir !There are few hardware tweaks as well,like controlling the processor clock speed,or setting the voltages,which again if not done properly might burn your device.)

But the most brilliant thing about rooting your device is the very fundamental of open-source technology,cross-platform.Touchpad,probably the most awesome tablet,both in terms of hardware as well as software.But probably HP didn't realise the device's potential and killed off the WebOS,another brilliant open-source technology.A tragedy indeed.
This led to a fire-sale,and the tablets were sold off within minutes at a $99 rate.Well it might seem stupid to spend money on a product,which even its manufacturer disowned.But all the smart-asses who did buy the devices were blessed with Android goodness,courtesy CM team.Still in its alpha stage,it looks very promising indeed.

P.S. + Disclaimer :
Rooting MAY BRICK your device,rendering it useless forever.Do it at your own risk !

Rooting your device will void your device's warranty.

Also,if you wish to root your device,please go through the instructions provided,carefully.Missing even 1 word from it might put your device into boot-loop or other error messages,or worse,brick your phone altogether,and you'll be rendered speechless for atleast 5-6 hours,cursing yourself for even having a thought about rooting your device.

Oh and yeah,if you root you device,this is what you'll be using,while running a gingerbread ROM !