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jason2811

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 8, 2006
729
2
Any way to get rid of TouchWiz and get stock Android on a Note 2? I really liike the stock Jelly Bean lockscreen for example.
 

3bs

macrumors 603
May 20, 2011
5,434
24
Dublin, Ireland
Any way to get rid of TouchWiz and get stock Android on a Note 2? I really liike the stock Jelly Bean lockscreen for example.

Yep it's doable.You have to be rooted though and this voids your warranty. There are many different ROMs based on AOSP and you have to pick one. The most stable is probably CM10.1. You might not be able to use the S pen though which you will have to decide whether it's worth it or not.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1992378

If you need any help let me know but don't proceed unless you have a few hours of free time in case something goes wrong.

This will be handy too: http://galaxynote2root.com/
 

Dr McKay

macrumors 68040
Aug 11, 2010
3,531
260
Kirkland
Its worth pointing out that if you're worried about voiding your warranty, you can relock the bootloader and they'll be none the wiser.
 

3bs

macrumors 603
May 20, 2011
5,434
24
Dublin, Ireland
Its worth pointing out that if you're worried about voiding your warranty, you can relock the bootloader and they'll be none the wiser.

Yeah sorry forgot to mention that you can avoid them finding out. You'll have to unlock your bootloader to flash a ROM and that wipes everything on your phone. Unlocking it also does that if I'm not mistaken so this whole process is not hassle free but definitely worth it if you don't mind putting some work into it.
 

jason2811

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 8, 2006
729
2
Yep it's doable.You have to be rooted though and this voids your warranty. There are many different ROMs based on AOSP and you have to pick one. The most stable is probably CM10.1. You might not be able to use the S pen though which you will have to decide whether it's worth it or not.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1992378

If you need any help let me know but don't proceed unless you have a few hours of free time in case something goes wrong.

This will be handy too: http://galaxynote2root.com/


Thanks!
1) Is the locked bootloader on all Note 2 phones or just the ones from Verizon?
2) I heard that the camera on the Note 2 does not work on CM10. Is that true?
3) How have you liked CM10 compared to TouchWiz?
 

3bs

macrumors 603
May 20, 2011
5,434
24
Dublin, Ireland
Thanks!
1) Is the locked bootloader on all Note 2 phones or just the ones from Verizon?
2) I heard that the camera on the Note 2 does not work on CM10. Is that true?
3) How have you liked CM10 compared to TouchWiz?

I think most phones come with a locked bootloader. Unlocking/locking it is very simple the only downside is it wipes the phone.

There are sometimes issues that arise in AOSP ROMs that don't exist in TouchWiz, one of them is sometimes the camera says it can't connect and you have to reboot the phone. That happened on my GS3, I assume that's what you're talking about.

I've always loved AOSP ROMs including CM10 which is probably the most famous. CM10 lacks some features which other ROMs do but I think it's the most stable ROM. But like I said, you will lose some functionality and features like pop up play, pop up browser etc. You can always backup your current stock ROM after you root your phone then if you don't like CM10.1 or other ROMs you can just go back to your stock ROM very easily.
 

cynics

macrumors G4
Jan 8, 2012
11,959
2,156
Its doable but I think you lose out on a lot of good features that are exclusive to the note series especially that related to the s pen. Also keep in mind features like multiple windows is not a function of stock Android.
 

jason2811

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 8, 2006
729
2
Its doable but I think you lose out on a lot of good features that are exclusive to the note series especially that related to the s pen. Also keep in mind features like multiple windows is not a function of stock Android.

Thanks. Is there any way I can get the look of stock JellyBean with a launcher?
 

dalbir4444

macrumors 6502a
Oct 30, 2012
572
0
Thanks. Is there any way I can get the look of stock JellyBean with a launcher?

Install Nova or Apex launcher, as well as holo locker. After this the only remaining touchwiz-like interface will be the notifications and the settings menu. If these are still a big deal to you, then there's probably a mod you can find on the XDA forums.

Like others said, I wouldn't recommend flashing a non-Samsung based ROM for this phone because it has some unique features that set it apart from stock Android.
 

Esoom

macrumors 6502
Apr 30, 2010
415
51
Colorado
Yes, just poke around XDA for a while and flash some roms. you can always go back to stock, although I haven't done custom roms in a while, just too much work and they're all buggy.
 

dalbir4444

macrumors 6502a
Oct 30, 2012
572
0
Yes, just poke around XDA for a while and flash some roms. you can always go back to stock, although I haven't done custom roms in a while, just too much work and they're all buggy.

They're not all buggy. Only the nightlies and the ones that are still in development. For example, now that 4.2 is out, the 4.1 ROMs are quite stable.
 

3bs

macrumors 603
May 20, 2011
5,434
24
Dublin, Ireland
Yes, just poke around XDA for a while and flash some roms. you can always go back to stock, although I haven't done custom roms in a while, just too much work and they're all buggy.

While they do have bugs, some of them can run even better than the stock ROM. Every GS3 ROM I tried (about 5-6) was smoother than stock. The TouchWiz ones were almost bug free (for me) but AOSP/AOKP had some issues probably due to Samsung being a PITA and not sharing the code the devs need, but even then they were things I was willing to put up with because they weren't major issues.
 

walie

macrumors 6502a
Nov 15, 2010
676
2
only the Verizon Note 2 has a locked bootloader


I would say go with Nova/Apex launcher with Widgetlocker for the lock screen. You lose too much s-pen functionality, camera features and video out with an AOSP rom
 

hallaisen

macrumors regular
May 28, 2006
209
0
I bought my note 2 two days ago and put CM10.1 on it the second day. Its insanely nice and there are hardly any bugs at all. Very very smooth and beautiful :D The camera app works with the latest nightly...
 

jrswizzle

macrumors 603
Aug 23, 2012
6,107
129
McKinney, TX
I thought Android was the greatest thing ever right out of the box?? :rolleyes:

Alright, alright I'm just messing with ya'll. Don't go all flamewar on me. I've wanted to try a Note II or GS3, but won't give up my iP5.....trying to see if I can finagle one from my employer (currently I have a 4S for work).
 

3bs

macrumors 603
May 20, 2011
5,434
24
Dublin, Ireland
I bought my note 2 two days ago and put CM10.1 on it the second day. Its insanely nice and there are hardly any bugs at all. Very very smooth and beautiful :D The camera app works with the latest nightly...

Don't you feel like you're missing out on all of the features which are a big reason why a lot of people buy this phone for?

By the way you should check out JellyBam which combines CM10.1 + Paranoid Android + AOKP. It's probably not as smooth and stable as CM10.1 but worth checking out since you have a lot more features :D
 

jason2811

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 8, 2006
729
2
Don't you feel like you're missing out on all of the features which are a big reason why a lot of people buy this phone for?

By the way you should check out JellyBam which combines CM10.1 + Paranoid Android + AOKP. It's probably not as smooth and stable as CM10.1 but worth checking out since you have a lot more features :D

What launcher or ROM do you use? Or do you simply stick with TouchWiz?
 

3bs

macrumors 603
May 20, 2011
5,434
24
Dublin, Ireland
What launcher or ROM do you use? Or do you simply stick with TouchWiz?

I had a GS3 which for the longest part I used AOSP ROMs on like CM10 and Paranoid Android. Towards the end I was using a TouchWiz based ROM. I sold my GS3 now and have a Nexus 4 which comes with vanilla Android.

I use Nova launcher but that's just personal preference.

If you really want to try this out then do it. Unlock the bootloader. Root your phone. Make a nandroid (name of backups of whole phone) and then flash a custom ROM like CM10. If you don't like it or miss the TouchWiz features then you can go back to your stock nandroid backup. The beauty of nandroids is they backup everything and take you back where you left off. You can transfer app + data between ROMs using Titanium Backup.
 

3bs

macrumors 603
May 20, 2011
5,434
24
Dublin, Ireland
Here is a good stock like experience without root or modding.

http://phandroid.com/2012/12/15/20-...-stock-android-experience-without-root-guide/

You can't beat an AOSP ROM tho.

Wow I didn't know all those apps existsed in the Play Store thanks for sharing!

There's a problem with all the ROMs or maybe gapps (google apps) I've been using. If you have the quick controls turned on for the stock AOSP browser then the url bar gets stuck and doesn't go away when you press enter and you can't touch it either. I'll try the ICS browser in that link. I just love the quick controls!
 

ChazUK

macrumors 603
Feb 3, 2008
5,393
25
Essex (UK)
Wow I didn't know all those apps existsed in the Play Store thanks for sharing!

There's a problem with all the ROMs or maybe gapps (google apps) I've been using. If you have the quick controls turned on for the stock AOSP browser then the url bar gets stuck and doesn't go away when you press enter and you can't touch it either. I'll try the ICS browser in that link. I just love the quick controls!

It is a great way to get a stock like experience, that's for sure (I'll keep it bookmarked just in case I stray from my Nexus roots! :D

I used to love the gestures in the stock AOSP browser. It's a shame they couldn't implement it into Chrome but with the swipe to change tabs gesture it'd be an impossibility. :(

Does ICS Browser+ work on Jellybean at all? I've read it doesnt. :(
 

3bs

macrumors 603
May 20, 2011
5,434
24
Dublin, Ireland
It is a great way to get a stock like experience, that's for sure (I'll keep it bookmarked just in case I stray from my Nexus roots! :D

I used to love the gestures in the stock AOSP browser. It's a shame they couldn't implement it into Chrome but with the swipe to change tabs gesture it'd be an impossibility. :(

Does ICS Browser+ work on Jellybean at all? I've read it doesnt. :(

I haven't tried yet but I hope so. I want to use it until this AOSP browser bug gets fixed. I remotely installed it to my Nexus 4 so I'll find out when I get home.
 
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