Most open-sourced phone for CM developers? - Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I've been using a Samsung Galaxy S II since it came out, but it's frustrating that Samsung hasn't released the source code necessary for proper CyanogenMod development on that device.
Thinking of upgrading my phone, and I'd like to make sure that it's one that has full HW driver sources available. Does that criteria cover most phones now? Or are some favoured by CM developers because it's easier to port new versions of CM to them?

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Developing on SGS2 slow/hard?

Hi,
first of all i want to say that this thread is in no way meant to offend or me being impatient about anything. I am just asking the question to know the answer.
I noticed, that many dev´s for the SGS2 (such as codeworkx and others) have big/giant trouble to bring a new Version to our Phones.
The problems seem to be that big that they have to wait for a Kernel from Samsung to make it even work a bit.
From my other/previous Phone, the HTC Dream i know that there weren´t such big problems.
It got 4 perfectly stable main iterations (2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3) of Android after its updates were discontinued and it already has a 4.0 version that has only 2 issues left to fix. All that without a kernel beeing released from HTC for the specific OS version. (i remember that the Camera drivers for 2.x were completely created from scratch to make it work [or so] )
My question is:
Why is it so much easier/less complicated to make a total new version run on the HTC Dream than on the SGS2? without the help of the manufactor
I'm not sure but I think its because other phones get source code releases for all the hardware or at least most of it to make porting/dev easier. Whereas Samsung hasn't released source for all the hardware in the sgs2 because of contractual obligations/restrictions from other hardware vendors that provide some the chips inside...
I also believe Samsung has modified Android quite heavily and badly in their quest to have the touchwiz interface, which also makes things difficult to reverse engineer etc...
I don't its anything actually difficult about the actual hardware itself
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

Exynos and developer support

Seeing how this is a nexus device, there should be proper source release right? But this is Samsung, who have in the past proved to be one of the worst offenders in terms of releasing source. I originally had the note 10.1 but returned due to the terribly laggy software and insanely bad build quality. I'm unwilling to buy another device that lacks developer support, especially from Samsung.
mysystem said:
Seeing how this is a nexus device, there should be proper source release right? But this is Samsung, who have in the past proved to be one of the worst offenders in terms of releasing source. I originally had the note 10.1 but returned due to the terribly laggy software and insanely bad build quality. I'm unwilling to buy another device that lacks developer support, especially from Samsung.
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Forget who makes it, a Nexus runs Googles software and will get direct updates from them. No kies, no waiting
My old n7 got the 4.1.2 update ** the day ** it was released worldwide.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using xda premium
Kernel source is already available at https://android.googlesource.com/kernel/exynos/ . It's going to run Linux 3.4 and the codename is manta.
ben1066 said:
Kernel source is already available at https://android.googlesource.com/kernel/exynos/ . It's going to run Linux 3.4 and the codename is manta.
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Kernel is not enough! Samsung has to release the kernel because the law says so.
I'm with the OP. I have the SGS3 and things look pretty bad with the sources problem.
Even if stock is great many of us like to experience other possibilities, and CM on a tablet would be so sweet.
So yeah. I'm very very very worried about this issue on the nexus 10. My guess is we won't have the sources. Samsung won't release them.
Didn't they release them for the Nexus S? I don't count the Galaxy Nexus since that was a TI/PowerVR SoC.
This is actually a big moment for Samsung. They've got their Exynos processor and drivers on the Google update list which should mean it'll be faster to update all their other devices (at least from what I've read concerning Exynos drivers).
Am I missing something here? The updates come from Google, so the sources will be in the Android source tree.
alias_neo said:
Am I missing something here? The updates come from Google, so the sources will be in the Android source tree.
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This.
All Nexus devices should have source for building the ROM and kernel posted online by Google for people to build from
EniGmA1987 said:
This.
All Nexus devices should have source for building the ROM and kernel posted online by Google for people to build from
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Is that not what I just said? They're in the source tree. If they're not public at the moment, they should be soon after the device is released, just as they have been for all past nexus devices.
The fact that Samsung built the hardware here is irrelevant.
alias_neo said:
Is that not what I just said? They're in the source tree. If they're not public at the moment, they should be soon after the device is released, just as they have been for all past nexus devices.
The fact that Samsung built the hardware here is irrelevant.
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he actually agree with you, not the opposite

Why all the focus on flagship devices???

Since long I have been a great fan of xda and custom roms and open source ideology. When i started looking up xda back in 2010, i was convinced that this is the place where i can find latest development for my device (at that time samsung galaxy i5801).
But today when i look at things, i don't think the same. I see the latest and the greatest rom developer here, officially supporting only nexus devices or other flagship devices. The unofficial ports are never perfect.
I dont understand the point. Nexus devices already get the latest rom by google. Most flagship also get the same from their OEM. Shouldn't the developers focus on providing the latest updates to the devices which have been forgotten by there manufacturers??
Take for example,
1- galaxy i5801 was updated till android 2.2 by samsung. Xda couldn't provide a single fully functional android 2.3 rom (marcellusbe cm 7.2 alpha9 has battery issues, -- just saying before anybody points out)
2- Micromax is the second largest android phone seller in india. But not even a single of its devices is officially supported by cyanogenmod, paranoid android, aokp, or omni etc.
I mean if you can officially support companies like micromax, you can get much more donations for development because micromax doesnt update its devices itself.
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Sent from my GT-P3100 using xda app-developers app
because most developers are from US and they use flagship devices, it's easy to make custom roms for flagship devices because latest android version is available in Stock rom and they can use drivers from stock rom.
micromax uses mediatek SOC's and they don't release source/drivers that's why it's so hard to make custom roms for them.
qualcomm, on the other hand, open sources their SOC. check the development forums for Xperia 2011 series, you'll see stable kitkat 4.4.2 roms which were released just a few weeks after kitkat was released. that's why you don't buy mediatek.
True said there must be coustom ROMS according to the mobile or tab specification not any model because Android have just grow at large scale leaving behind any specific model so we must start thinking about how well is your processor and RAM

What's the outlook for future development on the Redmi Note 2?

I am about to buy this phone because it is just so damn good for it's very low price tag, however one thing is bugging me about it. I came here to find that there are no Marshmallow ROMs for it yet and the main reason for me wanting to upgrade my phone in the first place is so that I will be able to run the latest Android ROM's without performance problems. I am currently on CyanogenMod 13 on my old Samsung Galaxy S3 and I like it, but it is slow. The Redmi Note 2 doesn't even have CyanogenMod support.
Is this because Xiaomi are going to release an official MIUI based on Marshmallow? I don't want to buy this phone if it means I am going to be stuck on MIUI or on an older version of Android. I am a bit perplexed because this phone sold a lot so why hasn't anyone made Marshmallow for it yet?
Do you think that development is going to pick up for this device or is this device a bad option if you want to run the latest Google Android (not MIUI)?
Certainly, the RN2 is a lot of hardware for the money, but without source code, things are limited to either repacked/tweaked roms, or roms that are built from source, but have significant hardware functionality imperfections because source is not available. It doesn't seem clear to me whether Xiaomi will release a Marshmallow-based MIUI for the RN2 or not. Some people say yes, some people say no, so until it actually happens (if it ever does), who knows. I also bought the RN2 because it was so much hardware for the price, but I am also disappointed with the lack of CM and similar. This is certainly not for a lack of people not trying, but it seems like certain parts of the hardware will never become functional with CM unless the necessary source code is released. If you don't happen to use these parts of the hardware, well, maybe it doesn't matter. Personally, I have stuck with sMIUI because all the hardware is completely working, but I sure wish a CM version with all working hardware will eventually emerge.
verbage said:
Certainly, the RN2 is a lot of hardware for the money, but without source code, things are limited to either repacked/tweaked roms, or roms that are built from source, but have significant hardware functionality imperfections because source is not available. It doesn't seem clear to me whether Xiaomi will release a Marshmallow-based MIUI for the RN2 or not. Some people say yes, some people say no, so until it actually happens (if it ever does), who knows. I also bought the RN2 because it was so much hardware for the price, but I am also disappointed with the lack of CM and similar. This is certainly not for a lack of people not trying, but it seems like certain parts of the hardware will never become functional with CM unless the necessary source code is released. If you don't happen to use these parts of the hardware, well, maybe it doesn't matter. Personally, I have stuck with sMIUI because all the hardware is completely working, but I sure wish a CM version with all working hardware will eventually emerge.
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Thanks for the explanation. It seems really unfortunate that they haven't released the source. I guess I should either buy the more expensive Mi4 (which I believe the source is released for) or I can just wait it out and see if the source code get's released for the RN2. It seems strange to me that they wouldn't release Marshmallow-based MIUI for such a popular, fairly new phone. I think they will release it. If they release MM-MIUI then will that enable other developers to bring stock Android Marshmallow or CyanogenMod to the RN2?
M will deffo be released for RN2. Main reason we still dont have it is:
a) first "official" device with M is supposed to be mi5
b) MTK prolly didnt polish 6.0 yet
Major companies that use X10 (eg Sony & HTC) didnt realse M for their devices either, at least as far as i know, however they are planned. So yeah M will arrive eventually, which is great, but that doesnt mean custom roms will get any better. And knowing xiaomi, and their kernel release policies, this is pretty much 100%. Pretty sure they still havent released any kernel source for their older MTK powered devices.
I think I'm going to buy the Mi4 rather because its kernel is open. I want to know that I'll be able to get android roms of any new releases. It's a real shame because the Redmi Note 2 is cheaper and a more superior device, but I have read that Mediatek are scumbags when it comes to releasing kernels because they want to force you to buy a new device when your OS becomes outdated which goes against the open source licence of Linux. Oh well, I guess that's business.
rimpy said:
If they release MM-MIUI then will that enable other developers to bring stock Android Marshmallow or CyanogenMod to the RN2?
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If they release MM-MIUI for the RN2, unless they release the source code, this will still mean that roms are cooked/repacked, or built from source, but probably imperfectly due to lack of source. Though MIUI is based on Android, I don't think there are free and open MIUI repositories where one could grab the necessary source code for the RN2.
At this point, like everyone said, it is very unlikely that Xiaomi will ever release the source code for the RN2. Without it, custom ROMs will never be proper, and it's the reason there are no MM builds yet.
However, even though MIUI is horrible and God knows that I hate it, it's quite usable. A version of the Xposed framework that works on the latest MIUI builds has been released a couple of days ago, and with it you can get most of the functionality a custom ROM provides. It's not perfect, and I'd prefer AOSP, but it is, IMO, the best this phone has to offer at the moment.
I only got mine about three months ago, and while there were many times I came to regret my purchase, every other phone in this price range and slightly above has inferior hardware. With that said, if you want a phone running AOSP or something very close to it, you'd be better off getting a Nexus or a device that is officially supported by CM.
Thanks all. I was just about to buy the RN2 but I am glad I posted here first. I've learnt a lot and I don't think I would be happy with a phone that has a closed source kernel. The Mi4 has a smaller screen, no SD slot, slower, and costs more, but its kernel source is released and it is supported by CM13. Still very good value for money so that's gonna be my next phone.
It actually isnt slower. Benchmarks only. If you run them side by side with either MIUI or CM youll see than Mi4 is actually much faster than RN2, so yeah, its a better option if you have the money

[Discussion] Where is variety of mods & ROMs? Why are we stuck at same things?

Hello guys, I want to discuss that. Note 8 is my 3rd phone. I was using Samsung Galaxy s2 and HTC One m7. When I was using these devices there were lots of roms, mods, kernels, discussion topics and devdb threads. For example HTC One m7 had so much roms with a huge variety like miui, aosp, gpe port, stock modified, flyme, xosp etc. Maybe some of us thinks these roms are garbage. Maybe it's true, maybe not but there is not much development for N8 and I'm confused. N8 is a still brillant phone and it's nearly 1 year old. So what are you thinking about it? Why there is not enaugh development for N8? Let's discuss it..
Exynos CPUs for most markets.
Snapdragons comes with a locked bootloader so no development there. Well few touchwiz roms (if you are on a bootloader version that's rootable.)
Exynos samsung doesn't release all the source code (if any) so harder to code for.
Note 8 was expensive and hard to develop for so most went to one plus and not as popular as the galaxy S series.

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