yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Captivate General] kaiserXDA:
There is a way to get out of your Contract early . You need to go on the AT&Twebsiteand look at the map that shows the areas that they provide service and find a place that they do not cover, that is, somewhere they do not provide service. Find a town within that area of no coverage and t ell them you are moving there, you may have to provide a zip code and area code. They asked me for both and I told them both and said I only had a P.O. Box because the place was so rural there was no home delivery. They, AT&T, have to release you from the contract if you move to an area that they can no longer provide you with service. You will even get your deposit back if you had to put one down when you signed up. If there is any outstanding bill when you do this they will use your deposit to pay the balance due and send you a check for the remainder of the deposit. I did this exact thing a couple months ago with no problem. The hardest thing was finding a no service area that is habitable and believable that you want to live there.
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] singular9:
ok, i have a question, should i root my lg thirve (lg optimus one) just because i want to go from stock froyo to gingerbread made by cyanogen-mod.

thats all i would want, because my phone is not getting the update, and to get gingerbread i would need to root.

so should i do this, what are the dangers of it, i mean will my phone be vulnerable to dangerous things, will it break or mess up in any way?
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] TheAndroidStop:
No dangers, really. But yes, root. If you are interested in overclocking, tweaking, and installing any app that requires root (just search "root" on market and see what goodies come up), you should root, no questions asked. I highly recommend CyanogenMod as there are so many additional and useful features and it is pre-rooted (obviously). If you don't like modding or experimenting, then stick to the stock ROM.
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] frikou:
I gotta be honest with you, when I first landed on the Android world I made myself that very same questions over and over again, until one day I said "what the heck!" and done it.

To be truth, isn't that big of a deal, rotting isn't difficult and isn't bad, you just gotta be carefully about what you do because you'r having access to the System folder, so you can really harm your phone, but if you don't mess up with it, you have nothing to worry about.

Some apps need root access because they use the system folder to make changes, so don't simply install any app that request you so, just those that are known and that you need.

So, in conclusion, Root your device, just don't go on the system folder and make changes if you have no idea what you'r doing.
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] foxis1981:
Root is good and healthy to your phone. It gives you more freedom on using your phone. Really, it lets you do a lot more things that you can't do it on an unrooted stock ROM.

Most of us did that before, and it wont harm you phone's health provided that you don't root/unroot too many times in a week :D:D:D:D (it is similar to what my parents told me when I am still young and innocent)

Rooting process in most cases wont brick your phone unless you are trying to flash a rooted ROM without knowing it.

But anyway, if you want to try something new, you need to take the risk. And don't blame on others when you bricked your own phone. Maybe you can search on youtube videos or websites for those step by step rooting guides for your phone.
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] dosage1:
feenius danger

Yes.. root its worth it.. Speeds up your device by removing unnecessary crap, can customize the look much more, rather easy to do.. Just follow a guide on here and good luck .
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] bdude52:
YES!!!!!!!

rooting you phone adds infinitely more possibilities, and makes your phone a lot faster:cool:

also, cyanogen-mod is an amazing ROM,

go ahead, give it a try,

JUST REMEMBER BACK UP EVERYTHING BEFORE FLASHING CYANOGEN-MOD

good luck:)
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] android_owl:
That's right, there a quite a few (a ton!) sites describing the benefits of it:

http://www.androidcentral.com/root

http://www.appsgeyser.com/blog/2012/03/20/should-i-root-my-android-phone/

http://www.androidpit.com/en/android/forum/thread/403299/So-what-exactly-is-rooting-and-is-it-for-me

http://www.addictivetips.com/mobile/top-10-reasons-to-root-your-android-phone-2/

The only thing I recommend is that you know what you're doing. If thats not the status: In the forums are a lot of posts :P
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] Bangoo:
Definitely go for it.

The optimus one especially benefits from rooting/applying a new, better rom.
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] ricky1001:
Don't root and unroot your phone too many times.Thats the caution,otherwise as said it gives you more control over your hardware than unrooted phone.
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] deepstate:
Gaining full control of your device is a big advantage. In addition to this some really useful apps just run with root. :)
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] terradune:
Actually, if that were true, ROM developers would have long given up and we wouldn't have any of the awesome ROMs floating around out there today. There's absolutely nothing wrong with rooting and unrooting repeatedly, as long you follow the correct procedure every time. Although why anyone would do that stumps me. Either you like your phone rooted, or not.

@singular9:

First off, "upgrade" is a very subjective term. Are you certain the ROM you're looking at will give you significant advantages over the one your phone's running now? While I don't doubt that the people behind the CM ROM for your phone are doing some brilliant work, always assume that something may go wrong. (Unlike Apple, other phone manufacturers source their hardware from all sorts of different places. Two phones, same model may have differently branded components.) If something DOES go wrong, are you prepared to undergo the arduous process that unbricking a phone will involve?

I'd say root your phone if - and ONLY IF:

1. You're a careful person who will read instructions and follow them to the letter, in the order they were set;

2. You're prepared to read up on what "root" is, what the terms used are, and accept that your "upgrade" may not quite offer you the benefits you were looking for (whatever they are, as you didn't specify)

If you're okay with the above, then yeah, I guess I'd say go ahead. My phone's rooted - I love it, and loved every step of the journey I took to root it.
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] foxis1981:
haha, it is a joke dude, don't take it seriously. I don't see any reason for unrooting android unless you are preparing to send the phone back for warranty or get it repaired by its manufacturer and tell them : "ohh, I dunno what happened, it just stop working by it self this morning".

Cheers! :D:D:D
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] tlf55:
Root is the better way to take totally control of your phone ! :)
[Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] aji_kambas:
Absolutely yes!

Yes U should, but read each instructions carefully before u root ur device. :D
[Acer Iconia A500] players21:
today my tab ran an system update about 300mb long can anyone tell me what it was for? I dont see any differance with the version number im still on 3.2
[Acer Iconia A500] ctiger:
depends on how old is your tab, or should say when you bought it, it could be sitting turned off and only see the updates now.
[Acer Iconia A500] players21:
Nope had the tab for about 6months use it every day ,I'm guessing I'm the lone one updated odd...
[Acer Iconia A500] gunness1991:
well we have two acer a501s on rogers and they both got updated yesterday evening, and we use 'em everyday. i thought it was ICS but it remained on 3.2.
[Acer Iconia A500] LazySmerf:
I have an A500 and got the update also, still sitting at 3.2.1 rooted.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Nimche:
When the Xperia P came out, I was hoping to get it just because being able to dock it into something. But that dream didn't come true and I bought the Lovely Xperia S and today I see that Engadget has a cradle for Xperia S (its not made by Sony but still)...Just don't know how would that flap allow this??

http://www.expansys-usa.com/expansys-usb-cradle-for-sony-xperia-s-matt-finish-230878/

More sources:

http://www.kidigi.com/product_lv2.php?pid=1370

PRE-ORDER

Photos:
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Nimche:
Hopefully. I have already contacted them (maker) to see when it will be out and I will report here as soon as I know. Have you guys found anything, other models?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] keunhuvac:
Is there any dock that connect to hdmi port and hdmi output? It would better!
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] shmoejoe:
According to the Dutch Expansys, it's expected to be available on April 7.

View attachment 967620

source: http://www.expansys.nl/expansys-usb-cradle-for-sony-xperia-s-matt-finish-230878/

I'm assuming the usb flap won't be an issue because it is indeed very flexible. If it is a problem, scissors work ;).
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] simonf7:
What would be better, would be a replacement flap with a hole for port in it.

Si
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Cholek3:
Noooo.... Look how ugly it looks then:

http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=23537538&postcount=26
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Nimche:
I thought at first that a nice delete with proper opening would be nice so you would insert a plastic to take care of that ugliness + keep the hole for usb open. Its possible but just someone needs to design and manufacture the part.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] power323f:
I would like to see 2 USB openings. 1 for the charger and 1 for the USB on the go adapter cable.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] conradwu:
I am using one of these "cradles" and it's good to have when I watch video in McDonald's. :p

[YOUTUBE]XqeJD1a430w[/YOUTUBE]
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Efe64:
Haha where to get that :p
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] HllRcr:
Cradle

Hi,

did anyone bought the KiDiGi cradle yet?

i found another dutch supplier: pdashop.nl

for protection what do you recommend?

leather case: SE leather flipcase on expansys

or

protective shell: SE Protective Shell black
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] HllRcr:
I foundout that sony released the LiveDock. Who is using it?

still thinking to buy a protective cover. Anyone some experience with leather flip cases or protective shells?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Joshseadog:
Yep, I would also be interested to hear any feedback on Sony DK10 Live Dock.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] tris1979:
This Sony Smart Dock is available on Expansys and according to Phoneareana its compatible with the SXS Looking at the picture it must route the HDMI through the phones USB port.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] RiotRick:
The smartdock is for the xperia p. I don't believe the xperia s will fit in it.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] tris1979:
Who Knows? The Phonearena article I linked to says it will work with the Xperia S, and they quote their source as Sony.

"The Xperia SmartDock is not exactly a new idea - we’ve already seen it demonstrated at CES with the AT&T-bound Xperia Ion, but news is that it will also be compatible with the latest in Xperia’s lineup - the Xperia P, Xperia U and the Xperia S.

The magic of the SmartDock happens on its back where all the ports are included - you have two USB ports to connect your peripherals, and an HDMI port for your TV/monitor. That’s definitely a neat idea given all that processing power lays in your pockets 90% of the time anyway, isn’t it?

source: Sony"
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Abandoned-Trolley:
As looking at the dock the P seems to be taking up the full slot in the dock, then there is no additional room for the S to fit in there. It was my belief that the S wouldn't fit in there, which does seem a strange choice for a flagship device.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] tris1979:
Your right enough. They also have a Smart Dock for the Ion a few vids on youtube which I can't watch just now as on a low bandwidth connection. If you google "sony xperia s smart dock" they all come up.

I wonder if the USB & HDMI connections are on the same side of the xperia P & Ion. If so this might be the reason theres not one available for the S yet.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Nimche:
They are. Docks both have HDMI connection there for Xperia S won't fit on any of them. Through out all these years, I have learned that Sony doesn't make a dock for the flaghships.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] tris1979:
Here is a picture of the ION smart dock which shows both the Micro USB & HDMI connector on the same side

The only way to do it for the Xperia S would be if Sony enabled MHL for it so HDMI could be connected via the USB. Maybe when we get our ICS update this feature will be enabled and a smartdock released for the Xperia S.

If anyone has one of these MHL to HDMI cables they could test it with the Xperia S.

---------- Post added at 10:31 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:20 AM ----------

gsmbuy lists the Xperia S as compatible with this MHL cable.

Does anyone know if the Xperia S is MHL compatible? If it is it would be easy enough to make a Dock.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Joshseadog:
Kidigi Cover-Mate

Hi, Expansys UK has the Kidigi Cover-Mate cradle for Xperia S, just asking if any members here have tried them out and their views on them. I thought it could be good whist phone is connected to TV via HDMI to watch movies and keeping phone charged same time.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] BigPhil:
Does anyone know how to get the music player to go into landscape mode like the picture on the first page? Or the launcher for that matter?

I am running the .73 firmware, and all my apps are up to date.

Edit: I had an orientation lock widget that seemed to not behave itself. I now get a rotating music app, but not the launcher. Any ideas? Alternatively, any ideas how to launch TV mode without connecting a HDMI cable? I have tried dock simulators, but these just launch my alarm clock app.

Edit 2: I have found that when the phone is unlocked on the home screen, and the phone is in a horizontal orientation, scanning an NFC badge rotates the launcher for about a second, then it rotates back. Weird.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] BigPhil:
Just spotted this on ebay

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150799144967#ht_1475wt_1199

Very similar to the expansys one but in stock (and I dont think has the blue LED strip). Oh, and half the price.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] mrsatan:
You could probably rig a smart tag to the back of this thing so that it turns on custom apps for you. Only problem is I don't know if smart tags work if you set them on them permanently or if you are only supposed to tap them on.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] BigPhil:
So, I ordered that stand at 4pm last night, and it has just arrived. Fits the phone perfectly. Ignore the fact that the seller mentions the LT28i.

It also came with a normal USB cable, a 2 wire charge only USB cable that I am hoping will have PIN 2 and 3 shorted to allow full power recharging from hi ampage chargers. And, as complete surprise, a 1500mA charger (if the label can be believed)

9 quid very well spent.

---------- Post added at 09:17 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:09 AM ----------

Yes, there is room for a smart tag (well, an NFC sticker). I do a similar thing in my car dock. The phone is really annoying in how it deals with NFC tags. The tag is ignored until the screen is unlocked. It is then read once. If the screen locks and you unlock it again, the tag is read again. There is no action when the tag is removed.

This works well in a car dock as I have the tag activate the app "Car Mode" which in turn launches the "Car Mode" app. Finally this keeps the screen on preventing the tag from being re-read during screen unlocks. When I leave the car I remove the phone then tap it to run "car Mode" again, which turns that mode off and puts the phone back into normal mode.

Its a lot simpler than it sounds, and I am going to try to emulate that on this dock somehow. May mean cracking out the SDK and writing something.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] RiotRick:
That is just how nfc works. Not sony specific. Tap a an nfc tag -> device reads the tag. There is no continuus read in nfc. The device will just read a tag when it detects one.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] BigPhil:
I am sure I read somewhere that Sony made the decision not to enable the NFC until the phone is unlocked to prevent applications launching without the user being aware. I wish this was configurable. Without it, the use of a smart tag for anything other than what I use it for is pointless. I dont see how any of the scenarios in the advert for it would work in real life. If you have to turn the phone on then unlock the screen, why go to the effort of then tapping a tag when you could have Tasker shortcuts right there.

I don't have access to another NFC enabled android to see if this is genuinely a Sony decision, or just how it works in Gingerbread or ICS.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Joshseadog:
Thanks for the heads up, was looking at the Kidigi make with Expansys. They both look exactly the same only your one is half the price. I have just ordered it on your ebay link and its been dispatched.

I f you go back on youe ebay link now, the item has now been updated to £90.90 LOL

Cheers.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] mrsatan:
So in theory you could add a tag and then you would have to unlock the phone to read it? Does this mean one of the actions you can have the tag do is make the phone stay unlocked so it doesn't read the tag again?

Also does the dock count as ac charging or usb charging? If it is usb charging, you could easily simulate a dock mode without messing up a normal ac charge.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] BigPhil:
Yes, although I have the tag launch an app (Car Home v3) that keeps the screen from locking. Remember you will need a way to turn off whatever app is keeping the screen alive.

The dock is simply a passthrough so if this was your only charge point then you could use LiveWire to launch whatever dock app you wanted, without resorting to NFC. I use my phone a lot, and hence have many AC chargers that I use (work, bedroom, kitchen, car). For me this wasn't an option. The dock does not raise the Android Dock Intent.

If you do go down the NFC route, I bought one of these and haven't looked back. Programmed them to be Sony smart tags (2 of each colour).
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] mrsatan:
how does it fit with the tab cover?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] BigPhil:
There is a recess next to the USB plug so you open the tab, rotate it 180 (same as for charging normally) and dock it. Mush have docked it 30 times so far and it seems to work well.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] PhilStone:
Lots of eBay sellers do that when they've run out of stock temporarily - hike the price up so people don't buy it, without the hassle of removing the ad then putting a new one back up.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] djstoffe:
Tried with my MHL to HDMI cable for my SGS2, but it was no go.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] DeeJay00001:
Does anyone know if we can use a USB splitter cable with the KIDIGI.

I want to be able to use a wireless keyboard / mouse while its docked and charging. A USB Y-cable is the only way I can see it working but not sure if it will damage the phone or the KIDIGI.

Anyone know, would love to know

David J:cool:
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] mrsatan:
You mean a usb Y, with a usb otg cable? Or a usb y with one end into computer and one into power. I dont understand.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] DeeJay00001:
OK what I'd like to do is use the kidigi as the dock to charge the phone and also use a USB hub simultaneously so that I can plug in a keyboard, mouse and USB hard drive.

I understand that the kidigi only has 1 USB port which can only be used yo charge the phone or add an accessory (OTG USB ect)

Just received a response from KiDiGi.

Hi David,

Thanks for your enquiry.

For your concern, we have notice that for your request function will need a USB hub, which is not compatible with synchronization together.

I will suggest you to connect your mouse and keyboard with Bluetooth. Which we have tried working smoothly.

Thanks & Regards,

Julian FONG

KiDiGi Company Limited

The innovative ideas to improve
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] eva_d:
Received the parcel from Expansys with Kidigi dock. However, I can only assume it's Kidigi as such, as the dock came packaged in generic box, completely wasted in transit as well, and the dock itself is completely generic too (doesn't have Kidigi logo and quickstart guide doesn't mention Kidigi anywhere).

The dock itself work just fine. Cool thing about it is that I don't need to take the shell cover off the handset to plug it in. Couple of action shots attached. The only gripe is that SXS launcher doesn't work in landscape mode...
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] DeeJay00001:
I got my KiDiGi this morning. Imalso a little pissed that the SXS doesn't work in Landscape. To solve this problem I I use the desk clock widget. This way I have a larger clock in the dock with weather notification along with the options to go the stopwatch, gallery, music or back home. (Apologise for the picture quality,I only had a Nokia 2330 to take the picture)

David J
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] BigPhil:
Prepare to have your mind blown*.

After doing some experiments I found that the home screen does rotate, but only when car mode is activated (and a few other, less useful circumstances).

I am assuming you dont have a car dock app installed.

Run this app

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vexedbadger.simpletoggles.car_mode_on

and your home screen should rotate. If you do have a car dock, swapping display mode will launch it. Just keep pressing back until you get back to the launcher.

If you want it to auto switch car mode on, get yourself a cheap NFC sticker, use this to code it as an Xperia smart tag

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vexedbadger.smarttagmaker

and have the action launch the Car Mode On app. Stick it to your dock, about 2/3 of the way along.

Let me know how you get on.

-- Phil

* perhaps an exaggeration
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] DeeJay00001:
Cheers

Car mode works flawlessly. As I haven't got any NFC tags I use the Liveware Manager and assign the car mode to the charger.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] eva_d:
Yeah, this is great! However, I personally used Setting Profiles Full app to create a rule which executes the car mode on app (I don't have NFC sticker to fit back of the cradle). Works flawlessly, thanks for pointing it out!

UPDATE

Ha! There's a catch - in car mode display is always on! Which isn't very healthy for LCD displays in long run... doh! :(
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] BigPhil:
Thanks for the update

I guess this is a double edged sword. On one hand that is great if you want to use it as a bedside clock, on the other it means you have to manually turn the screen off when you are done playing with it. I sense a new app coming on...

Have you tried going into settings when you are in car mode. Perhaps it stores screen time-outs and brightness levels separately per display mode?
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] eva_d:
Just checked - no separate setting whatsoever, or I can't find them.

I found a compromise, tough - run Car Mode

and

Desk Clock apps together. Desk Clock has ability to dim the brightness via single button press and turns into "screensaver mode" after a while, so it's fairly safe for the display. Then, whenever I need to leave Clock app, I have Car Mode enabled, hence launcher is working horizontally. Not perfectly ideal solution perhaps, but seems reasonable for time being.
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] skifyr123:
Why buy one, when you can make it yourself! :D With a holder for the NFC-tag
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] BigPhil:
Very nice!
[Sony Xperia S, Acro S, Ion] Nimche:
That is pretty nice. Did you make it all the way from wood block?

Impressive...