10 Reasons to root Android

In the Previous blog post I Discussed the reasons for which you should not root your android device. In this I will tell you the reasons to root your android device. 

Android is one of the most open, versatile, and customizable mobile operating systems out there. You may think you don't need to root your phone, but you'd be surprised at how much more you can accomplish with a little work. Here are 10 reasons rooting your phone is worth the hassle

10. Unlock Hidden Features and Install "Incompatible" Apps

Sometimes, even Android isn't open enough to give you some of the features you want. Either an app is blocked by carriers, hacks into Android's system files, or otherwise isn't available. Luckily, rooting can help with that: you can install carrier-blocked apps, get features from the latest version of Android, make incompatible apps compatible, power up your hardware, get features like Beats Audio from other phones, or emulate exclusive features like those on the Moto X. Whatever you want, rooting gives you the power to do a lot more.

9. Automate Everything

You've probably heard of Tasker, the awesome app that automates just about anything on your phone. You don't need to root your phone to use it, but if you're rooted, it can do a whole lot more. Certain tasks, like toggling 3G, GPS, changing CPU speed, turning the screen on, and others require root access. So, if you want to get the full benefit of an app like Tasker, you'll definitely want to root your phone. For more automation inspiration, check out your best Tasker actions, as well as our most recently featured Tasker tricks.

8. Boost Your Phone's Speed and Battery Life

You can do a lot of things to speed up your phone and boost its battery life without rooting, but with root—as always—you have even more power. For example, with an app like SetCPU you can overclock your phone for better performance, or under clock it for better battery life. You can also use an app like Greenify to automatically hibernate apps you aren't using—perfect for those apps that always want to run in the background when you're not looking.

7. Block Ads in Any App

Look, we of all people understand the need for occasional ads—it's how we make money. But ads can also get in the way and use up data. If you want to block ads in certain apps or on certain devices, rooting is by far the best way to do so. AdFree, AdBlock Plus, and Ad Away are all great options. Of course, if you aren't rooted, going into airplane mode works in a pinch too.

6. Back Up Your Phone for Seamless Transitions

When you move to a new Android device—or restore your device to stock for any reason—you can make your life a lot easier by backing up your apps and settings first. That way, you can get your entire setup back in just a few taps. If you aren't rooted, you can back up a few things like apps and data, but you won't necessarily be able to backup system apps and their data, or automate the entire process as well as Titanium Backup can. Check out our guide to Titanium Backup for more tips.

5. Remove Pre installed Crap ware

Titanium Backup is good for more than just backups, too. It can also uninstall that annoying, battery-draining, space-wasting crapware that comes preinstalled on so many phones these days—and, sadly, this feature is root-only. Freeze them first to make sure your phone operates normally without them, then delete them completely to free up that space. You'll be glad you did.

4. Tweak the dark corners of Your phone 

If you're the kind of person that likes to fiddle with every little feature—both on the surface and under the hood—rooting is for you. Whether you want to customize your keyboard layout with something like Keyboard Manager or give yourself faster scrolling, improved multitasking, and extra themes with Pimp My ROM, rooting gives you the power to tweak just about any corner you can think of. If you want to do it, chances are someone over on a forum like XDA has created a mini-app or tweak that will help.

3. Flash a Custom Kernel

Some of Android's most under-the-hood tweaks require a custom kernel, which you can only flash with a rooted device. The kernel is responsible for helping your apps communicate with the hardware of your phone, which means a custom kernel can give you better performance, battery life, and even extra features like WiFi tethering (on unsupported phones), faster battery charging, and lots more. You can flash kernels manually or simplify the process with something like Kernel Manager.

2. Flash a Custom ROM

Okay, so you probably already know about this one—but it's one of the best benefits of rooting. A custom ROM is basically a custom version of Android, and it truly changes how you use your phone. Some merely bring a stock version of Android to non-stock phones, or later versions of Android to phones that don't have it yet. Some add a few handy features, some add lots of really unique features, and some change your operating system from head to toe. No matter what phone you have—even if it's a Nexus—we highly recommend checking out the custom ROMs out there. You won't be disappointed. Note: As some of you have noted, you don't actually need root access to flash a custom ROM—though you will need to unlock your bootloader (a process that sometimes comes bundled with root access). Still, it requires freeing your device from manufacturer lockdowns, so we've kept it in the list despite this technicality!

1. Truly Own Your Device

n the end, all of this boils down to one thing: you own your device, and you should be able to do with it as you please. Certain manufacturers and carriers try to keep that from happening, but with root access, you truly own your device and open yourself up to all the possibilities other parties try to block. Sure, there's some risk involved, and we don't usually recommend rooting other people's phones, but in the end, you can't put a price on true openness and control

5 Reasons not to root Android

Android is well known for its seemingly never-ending customization options and its permissive rooting credentials (well, among other things). Distributions that cannot be modified to enable elevated permissions are quite rare, as enthusiasts seek to have virtually every possible feature available at their disposal. But should you pursue that path? Does root provide what you need, or what you think you need?

There are a couple of good reasons why you probably should root Android. I've explained them in a past article. But, on the other hand, root is not for everyone, as the risks can far outweigh the benefits and you are likely to regret your decision once things get messy (and they can get messy). So here is why you should not do it.

1. Might Expose You to More Security Risks

In layman's terms, rooting a distribution is practically achieved by exploiting a security flaw and installing an application (like SuperSU) to manage requests for elevated permissions (that are enabled once the security flaw is exploited).

Theoretically, this means that the distribution is more secure because there is one less security concern to deal with and because users have an app that lets them know when another app wants to use elevated permissions. However, it's a double-edged sword that's more dangerous than you think.

In reality, novice Android users are likely to get inundated with a bunch of requests and they end up accepting them all, as the reasons for the requests are not exactly easy to understand and folks just want their software to work. You should definitely not fall into the same trap, if you are not familiar with elevated Android permissions. Here's what could happen.

Mishandling root access is a major security issue, as it practically opens the door to unwanted access, data leaks and theft, hardware failure and so on, if the developer has malicious intent. It is also worth noting that root is especially a security risk in corporate environments, where dealing with sensitive data is involved.

To top it all off, CyanogenMod founder Steve Kondik, the man behind one of the most popular custom Android distributions, believes that rooting Android 4.3 "might severely compromise the security of the system". The third Jelly Bean iteration, and likely its successors too, is slowly moving Android in the no-root-allowed direction.

2. Say Good-Bye to the Warranty

As we all know, manufacturers are not keen on honoring warranty claims for devices modified by their customers. That includes both hardware and software alterations, the latter of which includes root. Except for a few companies (Google with its Nexus lineup springs to mind), most Android makers will void the warranty on your device, if it has been rooted.

To make matters worse, Android makers also go to great lengths to know whether your device has been rooted and prevent you from hiding it, if it was. Samsung's latest bootoaders for the Galaxy S4 make it impossible to reset that information, at least momentarily. Considering that good smartphones are not cheap, it's wise to take this into consideration.

3. Android Is Better (And So Are the Devices)

The reasons for rooting Android are becoming less in number compared to the days of old when the operating system was still in its infancy. There are very few things that you can't do now with stock Android distributions. You can even perform backups nowadays without needing to use elevated permissions (Helium is a good example of this), which is something that was unheard of a year or two ago.

Similarly, there is no need to root Android to extract every bit of performance out of your device (assuming it's not an old one), because most new devices that are sold today are plenty fast to begin with. The advancements in mobile processors have made it possible to run any Android distribution (even heavily-customized ones) without any hiccups. Overclocking is definitely not as important for boosting performance as it once was, when there are highly-clocked quad-core processors with at least 2 GB of RAM around.

4. Can Cause Update Issues

There are two main issues related to rooting Android and performing updates. First, after applying the update the root will most likely be removed and users will have to go through the risky process again. And two, updates may fail to install due to software modifications that occurred while the distribution has been rooted (either because of user alterations or due to the root access itself). So where does this leave you?

Well, in the first case the worst that could happen is that you will be unable to root Android, because the update patches the security exploit that was used for rooting. Needless to say, your low-level modifications will most likely be returned to stock as well, which can lead to a time-consuming process of having to revert (basically, re-do) them to their altered state.

In the second case, your device is basically exposed to any security exploits which would have otherwise been patched by installing the available update. It's a lose-lose scenario, either way, in most cases.

5. Rooting Is Not Easy Nor Trouble-Free

Experienced Android users may find the process of rooting Android as simple as installing an app from Google Play. Beginners, however, may find themselves in a pickle, having to deal with some not very straightforward procedures. It is not unheard of for a rooting process to fail, rendering a device useless (known as bricking). Luckily, in most cases a firmware flash will solve the problem, but this is not easy to perform either for beginners and will only lead to more downtime.

Similarly, when rooting users basically have to have blind faith in the developer responsible for the tool or the app that is/will be used, hoping that there's no sneaky backdoor built into it or that it will not harm the device. In most cases I haven't found this to be of issue (though one can never know for sure), but considering the multitude of Android devices available and the multitude of tools and apps available for rooting their distributions, the aforementioned risks are not part of a far-fetched scenario.

Choose Carefully

This article is not meant to scare you into believing that rooting Android is utterly useless and full of risks. As with anything in life, the good things come at a price and it is up to you to decide whether the risks truly outweigh the benefits or not. Many of us have enjoyed rooting Android, but that doesn't mean that you should do it too without knowing what you're getting into beforehand.

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