Should I Mod My Mobile Phone?

Phones are getting more and more powerful, and the things they can do are only getting more impressive. But sometimes you want to go a little bit further than what the manufacturer intended. That’s when you might start asking whether modding is for you.

Rooting your phone is the easiest way to gain absolute power over your device. You can do what you want with it – after all, it is your device. But if you’re considering doing it, ask yourself just how much power you want. What is it that annoys you so much you can’t do what you want to do within the constraints of the base firmware?

Because there are some issues with rooting that could cause problems later on. For that reason, it’s best not to just do it for fun.

But if you have a good reason, unlocking your phone can be an incredible move.

To Mod or Not to Mod – The Root of The Problem

So what can rooting do? You can remove all that bloat software that you’ve never opened but can’t delete. You can change the look of things that usually are unavailable to you. And, of course, you can download premium mods for popular software. That’s just scratching the surface.

Some apps work better with complete control, and that’s worth thinking about as well. You can also use it to get around charges for using your mobile hotspot too. It may be that these don’t go far enough and you may be able to add a custom ROM if you want even more control.

The downsides aren’t quite as big as the upsides. First of all, rooting isn’t as important as it used to be. Certainly on Android, a huge amount of what people used to want to do is now officially supported.

But worse, the power to change everything means the power to change everything and you have to be careful how you use that power. It can be extremely easy to brick your device, both while you’re going through the rooting process and while you’re using it. That’s not to say you shouldn’t do it – the opposite in fact. You should do it if it will suit you, just make sure to be extremely sensible in how you use it.

That means knowing what you’re doing before you do it. Check mods and downloads to make sure you’re not downloading viruses. Research what you’re changing before you change it.

Some apps – specifically banking apps and the like – might check that they’re running on a phone that hasn’t been rooted. If you want to mod your device and you regularly use these kinds of sensitive apps, you would be sensible to to keep your device as it is. You can always buy an alternative device to manage your money (or to mod) if it’s that important to you. But function must come before form.

If you’re finding there are limits to what you can do, consider rooting your device. But if you’re happy with the access you’ve got, it’s probably better to leave your phone as it is.