What is a factory reset, When, How, Why to use it

First lets understand what a factory reset does. It removes all USER DATA and restores the device back to factory settings providing that the device is not rooted. User data is defined as apps, call logs, contacts, and anything else the user has placed in the devices memory. Stuff that is on the SDCARD is not affected by a factory reset. A factory reset really only deals with the Data and the Cache partitions.

If you are on a Rooted device then again a factory reset will only remove the Data and Cache partitions. It does not mess with the System partition. If you have a custom ROM on the device after a factory reset you will still have that same custom ROM on the device. This is because again factory reset does not mess with the System partition of the phone.

Factory reset is given its name because the manufacturer of the device does not expect that you will change the ROM that is standard on their devices. While the practice of Rooting is not foreign to them they do not expect that the user of the device will change the basic structure of the OS. Which many who are rooted do. A factory reset will also not remove any ROM upgrades or OTA's.

Doing a factory reset has some advantages for a few purposes. One of the big ones is wanting to remove all Data from the device. This is handy if you plan on giving the device to someone else and don't want to give them your contacts or any other information. In some circumstances it can even be handy to just start over especially if you have some minor issues and you assume the issues are Data related. If rooted its a great way to wipe the Data and Cache area's to prepare to change the ROM of the device.

Hopefully by now you have a better understanding of what a factory reset is and why you would want to use it. Also I hope this has cleared up some confusion about this subject as there are plenty who use this the wrong way and then are like well poop. I know the first time I did it I though well at least I can go back to factory settings and boy was I surprised when I found that the custom ROM I put on there was still there.

EDIT: Please do note that a factory reset is not recommended for some devices as it can do more harm then good. One should always check with the community of the device you have to make sure it is not going to have any ill affects. Also you should make sure that you have a backup of everything before going down this road. Again this is a guide to help explain what it is and not a thumbs up to do so.

How to install drivers for any Android device on Windows

While following any rooting method for an Android device, one of the most important steps is to setup the device drivers correctly on your PC/ Laptop before using any rooting tool. I am writing out this guide, as this is the step where most of my readers get stuck, i.e. driver installation part. This guide should work for all Android devices out there and on all Windows versions. I have tested this method on a variety of devices and on Windows XP and 7.

How it Works!

An application called Pdanet allows you to tether your PC via your Android device to connect to internet on PC. For the app to run, a small application needs to be downloaded on the pc end. The Pdanet for PC application, during its installation, installs the drivers for all kind of Android devices, and that's the only thing we are currently interested in.

How to get it to work!

So, now you know how the installation of Pdanet will install the drivers for your device. Read the simple step by step guide below to install drivers for your device. And remember, it won't get any simpler guide than this one for installing your Android drivers.

1. Download Pdanet from here.
2. Double click the file you just downloaded.
3. Don't connect your device until I say that!
4. Continue through the installation by pressing next > next, till a screen saying something about drivers appears.
5. Skip to the next step if this one doesn't apply to you. If you already tried installing some drivers, it will ask you if you want to uninstall currently installed drivers and install them using pdanet. Click yes there. Clearly put, if it asks you to overwrite previous installation of drivers, or anything like that, you have to press yes.
6. The pop-up screen will look almost like the one attached below asking you to select your device manufacturer. Choose your device operator and click ok. If your device is not in the list, click Others and then press OK.

   

   Device Manufacturer selection: Pdanet

   Note: All Indian Device manufacturers like Karbonn, Micromax, Spice, Lava and every other brand not listed in the options that appear fall in the others category.
7. A scary warning in red will appear saying that Windows couldn't verify the publisher of the software. Click on "Install this Driver Software anyway". This warning may appear multiple times, keep clicking on install drivers anyway until it stops appearing.

   

   Windows warning during Driver Installation

8. Then Pdanet will ask you to connect your device to the computer. Now you have to connect your device to your PC/ Laptop using USB cable. Don't enable any modes like: USB storage or tethering. Just let the driver installation complete.
9. Once the installation of the driver completes, you have successfully setup your device drivers.
10. Now exit pdanet from the taskbar by right clicking on the app icon (as shown in the snapshot below). This will prevent pdanet from interfering with ADB/ anything else you are going to use. This is just a precautionary measure.
11. Now you can continue with rooting your device or playing around with ADB and Fastboot.
12. To check if your device drivers have been installed successfully, try setting up ADB on your PC using this guide. The process will be a lot easier now, as you have already installed the drivers. If on giving the command "adb fastboot", you get a response with your device name (may not be device name laways, in my case it was ?1234567890), your drivers have been installed successfully. Otherwise, if nothing appears under "List of devices attached", then you still have to do it rightly.
13. Another (easier) method of checking whether your drivers have been installed correctly is, connect your phone to the PC, and don't turn USB Storage/ Tethering on. Start Device Manager, your device should be listed as Android ADB Interface as shown in the snapshot below.
    

    

    Is your device listed there?

C230w modify Titanium S1+ Kitkat 4.4.2

The Phicomm C230w is one shitty phone. The stock rom is so bad that it can't even run as a smartphone. One way is to root the phone with custom base on official rom. Here I present to you the Titanium S1+ custom rom modify for C230w with Kitkat 4.4.2 install.

Philz Touch Recovery Install

Root Checker

  
NenaMark 2

 

Titanium S1+ custom rom Kitkat 4.4.2 for C230w

Video Recording



Photo Taking

Pro:

1.Stable custom rom, all functions of the phone work. No loss of signal, 3G, crash, etc....
2.Lastest Kitkat 4.4.2 version
3.Camera back 5mp
4.Can play almost all the games
5. Better than C230w stock rom

Cons:

1.Battery drain fast usage 10mins - 5% battery ( Calling & SMS only)
2.Front speaker no bass