I never thought I’d root my Motorola Droid. The typical reasons for doing so, such as creating tethering (serving as a wireless access point for a computer) and overclocking didn’t appeal much to me. What finally pushed me over the fence to the rooting side, though, was when Google released Android 2.1. I really wanted some of the Android 2.1 features, such as a new version of Google Maps, and universal voice input. I really, really wanted voice input.

Motorola Droid

At the time, there was a rumor that Motorola was going to release an update about one month later, and I was willing to wait. Unfortunately, that day came and went. And so did the next rumored day. And then the first promised day. It was really frustrating. I completely lost faith in Motorola and Verizon Wireless in their ability to keep up with Google’s software release schedule.

When the first Android 2.1 root package came available, I immediately rooted my phone and installed it. It didn’t take me long, and it wasn’t scary at all. After rooting, I did have to spend a few dollars to install some very useful apps (RootExplorer and SetCPU), but it was totally worth it.

Rooting enabled me to take control over my phone, and run it how I want to. Now, I love my zippy, custom-skinned, overclocked Droid even more than the day I bought it.

I really think that phone manufacturers and carriers making Android devices have to increase their software development capacity to keep up with Android’s pace of development. Motorola has made it trivial to root their Droid phone (though it does void the warranty), which is a consolation for techies like me. If you’ve flashed the firmware of your router, you can flash the firmware of the Droid phone. You might as well, in my opinion. I’m really happy with the results.