[Q] Phone recommendation for T-Mobile US

[Classic Style]

I'm making the move from Verizon to T-mobile (ideally today), and I'm looking for a new phone that is easily rooted and ROMable. My last two phones were the S3 and S4, and Samsung feels like they are a little over-protective for me at this point.

Here's what I'm looking for ideally:
Good battery life - I'm not sure if I fall into the "heavy" or "moderate" user class, but I do essentially live off my phone
A good camera - I'm not satisfied with the S4's camera - so many photos feel blotchy like a painter went back and smeared all the details. I'm not expecting a DSLR quality image, but better than the S4's. Photos from a Z3 I've seen on xda look similar.
Medium-to-large screen - I'm comfortable with the S4 size, something comparable would be great. Not sure I'm quite ready for the "Note" style experience
Usable on T-mobile (obvious) - ideally a phone they offer new so I don't have to buy it outright
Rootable and customizable - If rooting the phone is more than 7 or 8 steps, it's probably not for me. I'm capable of following rooting and recovery mod replacement steps, but if I have to start digging into layers of posts to find info about an acronym, it's probably not for me. While I've rooted the S4, the whole "locked bootloader"/recovery mod task seems pretty daunting to my skill level and understanding considering the risks.

I've heard good things about the LG G3, and I might be leaning that way since it seems the community around it is pretty decent.

Thanks in advance for the input!

 

[gossymer]

Just got the G3 myself and it's got a great battery life (and its removable so you can swap it out with a back up!) and despite the large screen, its got very little bezel so it's pretty comfortable in the hand.

I rooted with the stumproot app, downloaded twrp and flashed it with flashify and then installed superuser via Google Play. It was the first time I didn't need a PC to root my android and it was insanely fast.

You can also use an SD card with the G3 so if you plan to install new lollipop ROMs later, it'll make it even easier to back up your stuff to the card and then wipe and format your whole phone for a pristine install.

The only thing I'm unsure of is the camera since I haven't clicked a photo yet - might be worth checking reviews for comparisons IMO.