[dvtv75]

Did you put on one of the alternative Android OS? Can't afford a new phone just now, and I was wondering if rooting mine would help, think I will after what you've just said.

It's an S3 that is becoming slower and more frustrating to use every time there's an update. It can take anything from 20 seconds up to a minute to respond to a button press, and of course I'm never sure if I touched the button properly so I hit it again. It'll respond to the entire queue in a second or two, and then I need to start over.

[ravenstine]

No, I left the Samsung-provided Android on it, although I've installed updates here and there.

I never owned an S3, but judging by my experience, getting root and removing all of Samsung's crapware should bring new life to an S3. As I mentioned, their keyboard software is ridiculously slow and bloated, and can make it seem like the apps being used are slow when it's really just the keyboard blocking the UI. It's been a couple years, but I remember their apps took up quite a bit of space.

By the way, another thing that could be slowing down your S3 is the battery. If it's not holding a charge well, the operating system is going to use up less power to try and stay running, hence a significant performance decrease. If your phone has a removable battery, a replacement can be had on Amazon for ~$10. Having replaced my own battery, I can say it's definitely worth doing.

[dvtv75]

Thanks - very much appreciated! The battery is starting to age and is beginning to lose its charge quickly, so I'll look into that.

[abawany]

I love LineageOS and pretty much most of my devices that can run it, run it. This includes various older Note phablets and Note tablets. It is pretty fast, remains up to date, has great privacy controls, and the Google Apps (one of the biggest power hogs, IME) can be slimmed down or omitted if necessary.