>>6It is not like jail breaking.
Jail breaking an iDevice allows you access to Cydia, and a few other tweaks here and there.
Rooting an android device allows you to get root access to your phone. Now, what that means is that you can have full access to everything.
And I mean everything.
That means you can force your phone to run faster than it's set to do (companies often put a cap on this so that they can keep releasing newer phones people will buy), you can delete any files you want (if you're stupid, then this includes the program that turns on your phone, just be careful), including stock apps that you normally couldn't remove.
On top of that, you can forcefully give your device an upgrade that your phone provider doesn't usually give. An example would be a friend of mine who's running the newest version of android on his phone, which is about 3 1/2 - 4 years old. You can also mess with the operating system, putting on a linux distribution made for phones instead if you so choose.
Now, without rooting (keep in mind), you can still install apps from any site on the net simply by downloading a .apk file and opening it with the package installer built into your phone by browsing for it with a file manager (ES File Explorer is my personal choice).
However, there are indeed risks.
For one, you void your warranty. This should be obvious.
Two, you can brick your phone. By that, I mean that you can make it into a fancy paperweight that will never turn on or function ever again.
But: there are plenty of guides out there that go step by step over this process to try to help others figure out how to do it, so unless you're bad at following directions, the chance of you bricking your phone is relatively low.
Here's some guides:
http://www.howtogeek.com/115297/how-to-root-your-android-why-you-might-want-to/
http://www.androidcentral.com/root
Of course, be sure to google search "how to root _____ on _____" with the fist blank being your phone model, the second being the android version you're on.
