[EVO 4G Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] sekigah84:
Common Questions

I am getting an Over the Air (OTA) update from Sprint. Should I accept it if I am rooted?

This is what a Sprint OTA update looks like.

:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:

IF YOU ARE ROOTED, DO NOT ACCEPT THIS OTA.

:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:

This means that your phone's software is not up to date and it is telling you to update. You must download a ROOTED version of the update and manually flash it.

Accepting this will cause you to lose root and worst case, brick your phone. SO DON'T DO IT! lol

This is the link to the latest OFFICIAL ROOTED Sprint ROMs. This will flash a ROOTED 100% stock phone. Meaning it will be rooted but it will be just like your how your phone was before you rooted it. You can NOT remove the Sprint bloatware on the phone. You can also flash a custom ROM with the newest update as its base.

Newest Stock ROOTED RUU - 4.22.651.2

http://xdaforums.com/show....php?t=1110733

3.70.651.1 + Radios

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=874251 NEWEST ROOTED OTA. Use the First link for the Radios.

3.30.651.3 + Kernels

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=836728

3.30.651.2 + Kernels

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=819838

3.29.651.5

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=789913

I rooted using ABC's method. Do I need to root again using XYZ's?

No. Once you are rooted, you are good to go.

I turned my phone into a paperweight/bricked it/"borked" it/its just not working no matter what I do. What can I do?:

If you can still get into your bootloader then you are not bricked! But if you can't get into bootloader and if you have Sprint's Total Equipment Protection Program, you are in luck. They changed their policy on October 23rd. Here are the details of what it covers.

http://www.phonenews.com/sprint-tepsr-changes-next-week-13303/

If the phone is beyond repair, you will have to go through Asurion and pay the $100 deductible. TEP does not cover rooted phones. You have to go through Asurion.

If you don't have TEP, everything except water/fire damage and lost phone replacements cost $35 per incident as long as the phone is not beyond repair. If it is beyond repair, you will have to buy a new phone.

What is PRL?

PRL stands for Preferred Roaming List. Its a list of roaming towers in your area. Its best to keep this updated in crappy coverage areas.

What is PRI?

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=751935&page=7 <- Debate on what it stands for. (REALLY?!)

In actuality it is called "Product Release Instructions" and is essentially a list of settings for the radio. It's the PRI which uses the PRL to enable data roaming by connecting it to towers/cell sites listed in the PRL and for other things such as to allow calls to interrupt an active data session (ring-through).

How do I update my PRL/PRI?

Go to Menu > Settings > System Updates > Update PRL + Update Profile.

If that doesn't work (and for most, it doesn't), you can always download it from here. Mind you the above steps only work for Sense based ROMs. If you are on AOSP you have to download it from below.

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=715485

To update your PR

L

Manually, go to this link (thanks to Noncorp)

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?p=10004743#post10004743

Latest Information:

Radio: 2.15.00.04.08

WIMAX: 27925

PRI: 1.90.003

PRL: 60677

I see "deodex" and "odex" ROMs. What are those?

Basically if you want to theme your ROM you want to use deodexed ROMs. Odexed ROM's are made to be streamlined. There is a performance difference. Deodexed ROM's will take longer to boot up because everything or almost everything is unpacked. Odexed ROM's will boot faster and be more responsive.

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=What+is+deodex

Google is your friend =P

FREE Wireless Tether

:

http://code.google.com/p/android-wifi-tether/downloads/list?can=2&q=Evo

***Some builds don't work with certain ROM's. Trial and error or searching within your ROM's thread will let you know which build numbers will work for you. Also note if you enable WIFI Encryption, the password is CASE SENSITIVE! Make sure you know that as you are typing the password in due to certain keyboards auto capitalizing. ***

Launchers:

ADW - Landscape on Home Screen, Customize Dock Bar, Customize Icons, Customize App Drawer, Free and Pro Versions.

LauncherPro - Landscape on Home Screen, Customize Dock Bar, Customize Icons, Customize App Drawer, Free and Pro Versions, Widgets (Pro Only)

Widgets

Beautiful Widgets - Sense like clocks and weather. Make sure to download the animation package if you want animated weather.

OneSeven - A text based date widget

Tajm - A text based clock

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Battery - Common Questions and Problems

What is the best ROM + Kernel combination for battery life?

There is no right answer for this. Battery life is affected by so many factors, the only thing you can do is trial and error. Here are most of the factors that can affect battery life:

-Phone Settings (Haptic feedback, screen on duration, auto sync, radios, etc)

-ROMs

-Kernels

-Overclocking + underclocking

-Apps

-Signal strength

-Roaming

-Battery type

-Battery stats

-Calibrating the battery

-PRI

-PRL

-The water you drank the other day

-The **** you took just before

So how do I improve battery life?

#1 Go to the bottom: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=790427

#2 Adjust your brightness settings, turn off anything you aren't using, use Wifi if it is available (noticeable), set sync frequencies longer, and turn off haptic feedback.

#3 Get some Ebay batteries. They work decently for the price but you may not enjoy carrying multiple batteries around and doing the battery shuffle with your phone.

#4 http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=778466

#5 Seriously go out and buy an extended battery. It is well worth it if you don't care about the increase in size. If you are like me and use the car dock you will get a bit ticked off that you have to switch back to the stock battery and stock cover when you get into your car but its worth it.

#6 You do the hokey pokey and you turn yourself around, that's what it's all about!

I bought #3 when I got my Evo at launch. The damn aftermarket batteries lasted longer than my OEM.

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ROM Information and Tips Poll of ROM usage: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=951057

Sense ROMs

There are a few flavors of Sense nowadays and you may be confused as to what it all means. If your Evo was fully up to date, it should be on Android 2.2 Froyo using Sense 1.0.

Lately there have been ROM leaks that have pushed it all the way up to Gingerbread 2.3.3/2.3.4 with Sense 3.0. The problem is these are unofficial updates of Sense.

Any leaked ROM will have bugs that must first be ironed out.

Sense 1.0 - Will have everything working. Most of these ROMs optimize performance and are themed with certain mods and tweaks.

Sense 2.0 - Will almost certainly not have 4G working along with other bugs because Sense 2.0 are ported over from other devices who don't use WIMAX. If you need 4G, don't bother flashing a Sense 2.0 based ROM.

Sense 3.0 - Currently there are two leaks that feature Sense 3.0, Kingdom (Evo 3D) and the Sensation leak. The Kingdom leak is the best bet as of now because it has both Android 2.3.3 and Sense 3.0 WITH WORKING 4G! The problem is that it was made for a 3D device so there are bugs that need to be ironed out.

Here are some general guidelines to follow:

If you want stability, stick with a Sense 1.0 ROMs.

If you want to experiment and can do without 4G or don't have 4G in your area, try a Sense 2.0 ROM.

Sense 3.0 is in no way ready for daily use without major bugs.

When picking your Sense ROM from the Android Developer section, make sure you read the titles and the Original Post (OP) by the author of the thread.

They will tell you what the ROM is based off of.

AOSP ROMs (Vanilla ROMs)

AOSP/Vanilla ROMs do not have Sense and is based off the original Android UI. Sense can limit performance and use certain resources. The following two ROMs should be your starting points for AOSP based ROMs as most of them for the Evo are based off Cyanogen Mod (CM). While these have come a long way for the Evo, some functions aren't working such as 720p video recording.

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=956187 CM7 + 4G + HDMI Mirroring

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=915527 MIUI NO 4G

** These have been found to be stable for daily use. Read through each thread to know what is and is not working. There are many other ROMs out there that are in beta that are not listed here. **

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ADB - Android Debug Bridge

A great guide to ADB.

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=879701