Atrix 4G questions from a prospective owner - Atrix 4G Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hi guys,
A buddy is offering me his atrix 4G unlocked from Korea with Carrier (Anycall) branding. I just wanna know if everything available on the forums can be used on this version? Unlocking the bootloader and getting root should not be a problem but it's the custom roms and themes that I am worried about. I don't wanna end up buying something running only stock lol!
Why are all roms on the atrix only P-Roms?
How would you guys rate the roms for the atrix compared to other phones? Are they full featured? bug free? Stable?
THANKS

because the bootloader isn't unlocked?
check out the dev forums they just got 2nd init working but no roms have been created for it.
The P-roms are fine and stable since they are just P-roms.

I would check out sevens vguide to flashing deodexing and theming. If your firmware is supported there follow the instructions and you'll be gingerblured in no time
sent from my rooted,
and chillin, canadian Motorola Atrix

I might be able to get the At&t version so there should be no limitations to what I can install right?
How is your overall experience with the atrix? Im using a Nexus S right now and it is really really fast.

nexus s? nice. right now you might some things faster with the NS since you are on gingerbread and possibly using a custom rom? with that said the atrix is pretty damn fast as well. contemplated the S but wasn't enough of a spec upgrade over the N1. would love to hear your comparisons between the two.

Related

[Q] custom roms for at&t atrix 4g

I am a flash-0-holic and am used to having many options as a G1 owener. The Atrix is a much nicer phone but I am wondering if there will be a lot of custom roms developed for it. After reading many psts it almost seems like many users are happy with the stock moto rom with hotspot/tethering and root added. I am currently looking to buy a new phone but not without custom roms. I currently like the evo 3d, atrix 4g, moto photon but still waiting on custom rom devel and unlocked boot loader. Can anybody tell me how things are for Atrix users keeping in mind what I am used to with a G1
reading the dev forum for even 5 minutes will answer most of your questions
tman7510 said:
I am a flash-0-holic and am used to having many options as a G1 owener. The Atrix is a much nicer phone but I am wondering if there will be a lot of custom roms developed for it. After reading many psts it almost seems like many users are happy with the stock moto rom with hotspot/tethering and root added. I am currently looking to buy a new phone but not without custom roms. I currently like the evo 3d, atrix 4g, moto photon but still waiting on custom rom devel and unlocked boot loader. Can anybody tell me how things are for Atrix users keeping in mind what I am used to with a G1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The development has just begun. Unlocked BL was about a week ago. We're working on an international unlocked BL atm, but there is a guaranteed stable 2-int international being developed as we speak and that may yield international fruitfulness.
There are 6-8 quality developers who could have a full conversation in code who work on the atrix, and a lot of normal computer geeks who help out here and there (and make simple mods such as bootscreens and such).
It's definitely a great phone, I'm so glad I got it, and the dev community is great. I would recommend it.
tman7510 said:
I am a flash-0-holic and am used to having many options as a G1 owener. The Atrix is a much nicer phone but I am wondering if there will be a lot of custom roms developed for it. After reading many psts it almost seems like many users are happy with the stock moto rom with hotspot/tethering and root added. I am currently looking to buy a new phone but not without custom roms. I currently like the evo 3d, atrix 4g, moto photon but still waiting on custom rom devel and unlocked boot loader. Can anybody tell me how things are for Atrix users keeping in mind what I am used to with a G1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I was wondering about this too. I'm in canada and thinking of getting a Bell atrix. Is the unlocked bootloader worth getting an ATT one? Does anyone know if Bell is going to unlock their atrices, I hear theres a gingerbread update due in august. If I use a custom ROM like CM7, will I lose webtop, or will i be able to install it again?
Orangestrat said:
Yeah, I was wondering about this too. I'm in canada and thinking of getting a Bell atrix. Is the unlocked bootloader worth getting an ATT one? Does anyone know if Bell is going to unlock their atrices, I hear theres a gingerbread update due in august. If I use a custom ROM like CM7, will I lose webtop, or will i be able to install it again?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
knowing that the ATT one is already unlocked why wouldnt u get one over the Bell if u had a choice...IJS
djkinetic said:
knowing that the ATT one is already unlocked why wouldnt u get one over the Bell if u had a choice...IJS
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The bell ones are cheaper, don't have the ATT branding, and I would guess the radio software is different, but I"m not sure

AT&T Atrix... Worth it? Rom Development?

Hey!
So, i can buy an used At&t Atrix to replace my Droid2, at a VERY cheap price.
My question is simple: Is it worth it?
And, about the roms... I have seen that Atrix Development is not as advanced as the development on Droid2, where we have Cm7 and MIUI.
Is there any reason to this? Because the Bootloader of Atrix can be unlocked, so development should be easier... Or there is something that im missing?
Thanks in advance!
cletus8 said:
Hey!
So, i can buy an used At&t Atrix to replace my Droid2, at a VERY cheap price.
My question is simple: Is it worth it?
And, about the roms... I have seen that Atrix Development is not as advanced as the development on Droid2, where we have Cm7 and MIUI.
Is there any reason to this? Because the Bootloader of Atrix can be unlocked, so development should be easier... Or there is something that im missing?
Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Development is moving on the atrix CM7 is well into beta but is very stable and works wonderfuly, there is also an increasing list of other roms available
the atrix is a beast of a phone and is definitally worth the upgrade
that being said there will probably be many phones released in the near future that are just as good if not better than the
personallhy i have no complaints
I have been around the block the past few months, trying every phone i can,, inspire,atrix,infuse, lg thrill, dell streak, even iphone4, lol
Im going to stick it out on the atrix, I like the form factor, screen size and res,, not to mention its a beast of a phone once you get the fine tuning done,, currently have a 32 gb card, with a seidio 3200 Mah ext battery, and seidio holster,, and oc'd at 1.3g.....
Im back and forth between cm7 and alien.. either one rocks,, I say go for it, but as with anything its all bout what you like,, etc..
I'll buy it then
Ya
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App
Smart choice. I am holding onto my Atrix for another year at least. Hope ICS comes soon.

[Q] Questions for Motorola Photon

Hi, im an owner of Samsung Epic 4G. Im grateful for XDA developers and CM for supporting Samsung Epic. But now, it getting old and Im looking in getting used Motorola Photon for faster user experience and longer battery life. I have some questions for this forum. I recalled somewhere that if you unlocked the bootloader, it will break 4G. Not sure if they got it working now. Second, I see some threads that CM9 will support this device. Is that true that moto photon devs working on it. Thank for taking ur time to answer my few questions! I hope Motorola Photon will exceed my exception!
silverhawknike said:
Hi, im an owner of Samsung Epic 4G. Im grateful for XDA developers and CM for supporting Samsung Epic. But now, it getting old and Im looking in getting used Motorola Photon for faster user experience and longer battery life. I have some questions for this forum. I recalled somewhere that if you unlocked the bootloader, it will break 4G. Not sure if they got it working now. Second, I see some threads that CM9 will support this device. Is that true that moto photon devs working on it. Thank for taking ur time to answer my few questions! I hope Motorola Photon will exceed my exception!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ya, unlocking the bootloader does break 4g, and we don't have a workaround.
Cm9 doesn't officially support the photon but we do have a wonderful cm9 kang that I'm running right now. Battery life is good, and pretty much everything works aside from some small things. I
Also, it requires an unlocked bootloader.
Sent from my MB855 using xda premium
really? Thanks! Are they working on 4G or it is impossible to fix?
silverhawknike said:
really? Thanks! Are they working on 4G or it is impossible to fix?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are obviously many devs spending countless hours to extract the maximum benefit from the hardware. Unfortunately Sprint & Motorola forces the enthusiast to cripple network performance as the price for experimenting.
I was naive and uneducated and bought the Photon before I realized this limitation. This is the first Android device I'be owned with a locked bootloader. It is an unusual feeling. /whiner
Best regards,
-boggsie
Sent from my NookColor using Tapatalk
is it possible to root it without unlocking bootloader?
silverhawknike said:
is it possible to root it without unlocking bootloader?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, rooting does not break 4G, only unlocking the bootloader will break 4G.
Sent from my MB855 using Tapatalk
silverhawknike said:
is it possible to root it without unlocking bootloader?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As trcurren mentions, it is possible to root without unlocking. You'll probably want to go to a Sprint store and take some time to try to setup the Photon with stuff you're likely to want if you choose to buy one.
You may not be that particular. For the last 18 months, I had always run Cyanogenmod on my devices, so that is the user experience I had come to expect. It's a great phone but, for example, when the last four devices I had on Cyanogenmod, I could setup the home screen with Launcher Go Pro in a very particular way. With the Photon, I can't quite get there.
You may end up being very, very happy. Just investigate and dive in an informed buyer.
Best regards,
-boggsie
Well, it either this or Sprint galaxy SII. Motorola Photon is cheaper and it have longer battery life than Galaxy SII.

Why not work on locked roms.

I cant see what there is to gain by unlocking and installing a rom that only works on an unlocked phone. Why should I give up 4g? Wish I knew how to make my own rom.
Questions should be in Q&A or general, but to answer your question, not everyone lives in a wimax area so what is the point of 4g when there is no signal to use?
^ this. I'll probably need someone to change my diapers for me by the time sprint has 4g in my area. Oops tmi?
Sent from my MB855 using Tapatalk 2
a good sprint locked rom would prolly be a good idea actually since a lot of new users prolly gunna end up with this 2.3.5 bootloader and even later as sprint moves to ics
Whats wrong with mine? Im the only one actually works on them and it seems people dont appreciate them thats why I dont put more time to them
Sent from my Motorola Electrify using xda premium
I live in a 4g area and sprints 4g isn't good anyway so long live the unlocked roms! I mean if you stand in the middle of the street and don't move then it's awesome.
I like yours rocko...have tried them all but the most stable is 2.4..on it now. Tried the 3.5 but it does not have 4g for sprint.
Keep up the good work
mrfordwrench said:
I like yours rocko...have tried them all but the most stable is 2.4..on it now. Tried the 3.5 but it does not have 4g for sprint.
Keep up the good work
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ill work on that sprint leaked one have a couple testers probably 2night
Sent from my Motorola Electrify using xda premium
mrfordwrench said:
I cant see what there is to gain by unlocking and installing a rom that only works on an unlocked phone. Why should I give up 4g? Wish I knew how to make my own rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Since I also live in a 4g area I'm not willing to give up my 4g by staying perm unlocked. Ive been reading and learning and am testing a locked rom just adding the tweaks hope to be ready in a few days.
I dont live in a 4g area, but most of my daylight time is in a 4g area and I use it. Lets face it! We have to pay for it. It should work. There is no way to compromise for me to give up 4g for some of the custom roms out there. I had an Evo before my Photon and I will say that when the time comes I will ditch this Photon and get a Samsung or HTC phone. Shame on Motorola for locking down their phones. Even the company I work for has given up on motorola and went to other radio manufacturers. It just seem there are more people developing on HTC and Samsung for the very reason that they are "OPEN" and not locked down.
Just my 2 cents...
RockoDev said:
Whats wrong with mine? Im the only one actually works on them and it seems people dont appreciate them thats why I dont put more time to them
Sent from my Motorola Electrify using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i can honestly say ive never flashed any of your roms. right now my ideal one would be the 2.3.5 with fixed hdmi.. with that id be happy :/
mrfordwrench said:
I dont live in a 4g area, but most of my daylight time is in a 4g area and I use it. Lets face it! We have to pay for it. It should work. There is no way to compromise for me to give up 4g for some of the custom roms out there. I had an Evo before my Photon and I will say that when the time comes I will ditch this Photon and get a Samsung or HTC phone. Shame on Motorola for locking down their phones. Even the company I work for has given up on motorola and went to other radio manufacturers. It just seem there are more people developing on HTC and Samsung for the very reason that they are "OPEN" and not locked down.
Just my 2 cents...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you need to look up what open is, as it stands htcs "unlock is getting more and more locked down
I understand what you mean about htc being more locked down...that is why htc was second in my choices of my next phone. But I know that whatever man can lock down can be unlocked. It just take the desire too do it. If I was more of a developer and more advanced in this particular field I could spend more time working on it. But I am still learning and trying to figure it all out.
But thanks for your observations, and you developmental skills. We all appreciate it.
Back to the subject... what advantages do an unlocked bootloader with no 4G have over a locked bootloader with 4G.. rocko's rom is pretty nice and extremely smooth and he achieved that with a locked bootloader. Why flash a gingerbread rom that's made for an unlocked bootloader... I can kinda understand the purpose for an ICS rom because of its custom drivers
Sent from my I9300 using XDA
tsdeaton said:
Back to the subject... what advantages do an unlocked bootloader with no 4G have over a locked bootloader with 4G.. rocko's rom is pretty nice and extremely smooth and he achieved that with a locked bootloader. Why flash a gingerbread rom that's made for an unlocked bootloader... I can kinda understand the purpose for an ICS rom because of its custom drivers
Sent from my I9300 using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In the defense of unlocking, I don't remember when was the last time I wasn't on a ICS base rom. I have full 4g in my area and everywhere I have to go to work. but I like customizability and choices. sprint 3g is fast as **** here so I don't miss 4g at all. I don't think I've even run a kernel that can't be overclocked to 1.4 in a while also... so, I stay unlocked. Also, Rocko's roms are sweet.. locked or unlocked thanks for all the hard work...
mrfordwrench said:
I dont live in a 4g area, but most of my daylight time is in a 4g area and I use it. Lets face it! We have to pay for it. It should work. There is no way to compromise for me to give up 4g for some of the custom roms out there. I had an Evo before my Photon and I will say that when the time comes I will ditch this Photon and get a Samsung or HTC phone. Shame on Motorola for locking down their phones. Even the company I work for has given up on motorola and went to other radio manufacturers. It just seem there are more people developing on HTC and Samsung for the very reason that they are "OPEN" and not locked down.
Just my 2 cents...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I plan to ditch my Photon in a couple of weeks for an HTC One but I fully expect it to be locked down after HTC locked down the One for ATT. Im not real sure how I feel about that but the bottom line is I hate this phone. Its laggy, the screen sucks for gaming.. its a great PHONE but its a lousy smart device.
MadFlava said:
I plan to ditch my Photon in a couple of weeks for an HTC One but I fully expect it to be locked down after HTC locked down the One for ATT. Im not real sure how I feel about that but the bottom line is I hate this phone. Its laggy, the screen sucks for gaming.. its a great PHONE but its a lousy smart device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll give ya $100 for it right now.
CCallahan said:
I'll give ya $100 for it right now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have an Otterbox Defender that needs to go with it. If you want to adjust the price a little, we can make it happen. You can check my feedback on Ebay if you want and Ill give you my contact info.. Im a straight shooter. Id even be willing to go back to my OG Epic 4G just to get rid of this thing.
RockoDev said:
Whats wrong with mine? Im the only one actually works on them and it seems people dont appreciate them thats why I dont put more time to them
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Rocko,
Your Blur build is what i use when i need to go back to blur Great build! Id run it as my daily, but im a CM addict.
To the OP,
its all in the name of "bc they can." 4G(WIMAX) for me is over rated, 3G downloads emails and all that jazz plenty fast enough. id rather have the latest software then 4G, and ive been glued to CM since my EVO.
MadFlava,
screen sucks for gaming... Solitaire works great on my photon ha ha obviously im not a big gamer. I dont plan to make a move to a different phone unless the devs move. Ill follow them
[rant mode enabled]
(if this affects my chances of ever getting dev status I'm not sure if I care as I've been waiting for almost a year)
Almost every day there's a "I can't find it" thread or post for a file that I personally hosted. Where can these files be found? In a STICKIED thread that I try to maintain and keep up to date. This leads me to believe that the money spent hosting and the work involved in the stickied thread is ignored and unappreciated by many.
People are still flashing 2.3.5electrify pudding on photons after it has been said many times "don't do it". Again this goes back to the previous paragraph. I'm now to the point that if you bork your phone considering that the information is obviously available, you deserve it.
Nobody is developing for locked? Since when? There's three locked ROM's/mods that I know of right now without looking. Rocko Locked to start, which I have said is a bloody good ROM for those that want eyecandy. Imperium Locked is for those that want a barebones ROM that was updated less than a week ago. Here's a surprise for folks. The Deblur/Debloat Script is an ODEXED version of Imperium Locked without the theme change! How many Locked ROMs do you want, or is it that reading and searching are to much of a bother.
Other annoying things are "I don't like the way it looks" complaints and the general lack of "thanks" or support. If you don't like the way a ROM looks then flash a theme. That's what they are there for. If you can't be bothered to flash a theme (and don't say there are none) then don't flash anything. Developing takes effort, time and money. If you are not developing, hitting the "thanks" button or donating then you are leeching, plain and simple.
Also. Why is this thread in the development section? I don't see any development work posted.
[end of rant]
Photon Locked vs unlocked;
Locked ROMs give you the benefit of being very close to the stock base in many cases. Things like PRL and profile updates work and in some cases you can choose to accept an OTA update with little to no issues. You also loose fewer stock features with locked like 4G. The drawback is that battery life is shorter, it runs slower and fine tuning is almost impossible.
Unlocked ROM's give you more choice and greater flexibility with things like full themes, kernels and overclocking/undervolting. It then becomes a choice of need vs want. My daily is my own ROM that is underclocked to 750MhZ single core and NOT undervolted. With the tuning of profiles, my battery fall off is 1% every three hours, video playback is around six hours and during a call my phone never breaks 456MhZ. In short, battery life is insane with a standby mode of 10 days before I get a low battery prompt. This cannot be done with locked. The only thing I loose is 4G but considering the impact 4G has on battery life I can actually transfer more data than if I did have 4G just at a slower rate.
If LTE proves to be more battery friendly then I may change my position but for now I personally choose flexibility and the ability to fine tune over 4G any day.
The DeBlur tool is awesome. I just had to flash back because Im going to participate in the SOAK if I get chosen. Everyone should run the DeBlur tool.

[Q] So, I can get a Photon for cheap...

But after doing some searching here it appears that:
- if the Photon is on 2.3.4 it's usable, rootable, and even possible to unlock the bootloader allowing for most any ROM in the development subforum and even updating/upgrading to the KDDI radio to make GSM usage possible here in the US
- if the Photon is on 2.3.5 it's basically dead in the water and practically no mods at all are possible (I'm saying practically no mods, because some do exist) until hopefully someone discovers a root or unlocking method for the bootloader
For all the Q&A things and FAQs etc, it sure seems pretty logical that somewhere, in big banner font that's bolded and italicized that if you have a 2.3.4 Photon MAKE SURE YOU DON'T TAKE THE OTA UPDATE TO 2.3.5. Wonder why that oh-so-simple yet oh-so-valuable piece of information isn't just slammed in people's faces right from the gitgo.
Am I correct in my appraisal of 2.3.4 vs 2.3.5 'cause it's pretty tough to locate a Photon with 2.3.4 on it anymore, the one I just found on craigslist is cheap ($50 with all the original stuff including box too) but it's 2.3.5. I know that's still a fantastic price for a solid Motorola Photon that works without any known issues (even has an 8GB microSD card in it), and I know that Motorola keeps saying they'll be coming out with an official ICS for the Photon (later this year), but... even for $50 is it worth it to get a Photon if I can't do anything but run it pure stock until... well, a miracle happens?
Any info is appreciated, opinions and suggestions too.
Yeah, that's the short version. You are correct.
I think I'd buy it at $50 regardless. If/when the official ICS shows up you'll be glad you did.
br0adband said:
But after doing some searching here it appears that:
- if the Photon is on 2.3.4 it's usable, rootable, and even possible to unlock the bootloader allowing for most any ROM in the development subforum and even updating/upgrading to the KDDI radio to make GSM usage possible here in the US
- if the Photon is on 2.3.5 it's basically dead in the water and practically no mods at all are possible (I'm saying practically no mods, because some do exist) until hopefully someone discovers a root or unlocking method for the bootloader
For all the Q&A things and FAQs etc, it sure seems pretty logical that somewhere, in big banner font that's bolded and italicized that if you have a 2.3.4 Photon MAKE SURE YOU DON'T TAKE THE OTA UPDATE TO 2.3.5. Wonder why that oh-so-simple yet oh-so-valuable piece of information isn't just slammed in people's faces right from the gitgo.
Am I correct in my appraisal of 2.3.4 vs 2.3.5 'cause it's pretty tough to locate a Photon with 2.3.4 on it anymore, the one I just found on craigslist is cheap ($50 with all the original stuff including box too) but it's 2.3.5. I know that's still a fantastic price for a solid Motorola Photon that works without any known issues (even has an 8GB microSD card in it), and I know that Motorola keeps saying they'll be coming out with an official ICS for the Photon (later this year), but... even for $50 is it worth it to get a Photon if I can't do anything but run it pure stock until... well, a miracle happens?
Any info is appreciated, opinions and suggestions too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello and welcome. Yessir you are right on most everything. Except consider the fact that you still have the ability to use two great actively updated roms. Technically having a locked bootloader just prevents you from using a custom kernel. You can run any rom you want as long as its compatible with the stock kernel -- that means only blurbased roms. Granted youll be stuck in gingerbread, but Peetrs hybridrom is more or less a complete deblur so its just like running a clean aosp gingerbread rom. So given that, if moto releases official ics im positive someone will deblur that aswell, giving you a generally clean ics. Point is, youre not completely screwed intoanything using stock. But even if you were, stock is actually not bad at all and you can still root and mold it how you like. For 50 bucks? You wont be disappointed. And even if you are, you can get much more than 50 bucks off of it if you throw it on ebay.
Yah, I figured as much. The primary beef for me is it being 2.3.4 and having missed the opportunity to install that KDDI radio - I don't use Sprint so I had serious hope of getting it working with that T-Mobile $30/unlimited data plan (I live in Vegas and T-Mobile now finally covers that band here afaik, could be delayed but I'm pretty sure it's in effect now).
Since that's a non-option now, I'll still consider getting the Photon. I played with one a few weeks ago, was somewhat disappointed in some aspects, that Tegra 2 had so much potential but it's so weak by comparison. Irritates me to no end it lacks proper video decoding support for some of the stuff I use (MX Player can play most anything, but it's forced to use software decoding for some of the files I have because the Tegra 2 just won't do hardware decoding of some h.264 profiles and it really sucks).
But yeah, for $50 I suppose it's not a bad deal overall for a dual core smartphone these days. Would rather have an Atrix 2 like I did a few months ago but, can't find one of those under $150 these days. Doesn't stop me from scanning craigslist almost constantly, however.

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