need a custom rom - Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

looking for a custom rom for 2 different phones s3mini SM-G730A and a s4 SGH-1337 both have kitkat 4.4.2 currently. I did a search for the top 10 roms but but it doesn't seem like my phones are supported by them. can someone please post me a link to where i can get custom rom preferably based off marshmallow. also the best methods to flash them...much thanks!

Both are at&t with locked bootloader.
No custom rom for locked BL.

upgrade options
R324D said:
Both are at&t with locked bootloader.
No custom rom for locked BL.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so what are my options? can i port my own rom? when i bought this s4 off ebay was described as new factory unlocked with 4.4.2 but upgradable to 5.0 or 5.1. how can this be done?

galaxys4rooted said:
so what are my options? can i port my own rom? when i bought this s4 off ebay was described as new factory unlocked with 4.4.2 but upgradable to 5.0 or 5.1. how can this be done?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's Sim factory unlocked, not bootloader.
You always can port any rom you want, butit doesn't matter, you can't flash device with bootloader locked.
Another option for unlocking bootloader is by using sunshine apps, check their web on www.theroot.ninja to check if your device is available to unlock. Cheers.

rootninja support
R324D said:
That's Sim factory unlocked, not bootloader.
You always can port any rom you want, butit doesn't matter, you can't flash device with bootloader locked.
Another option for unlocking bootloader is by using sunshine apps, check their web on www.theroot.ninja to check if your device is available to unlock. Cheers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
rootninja only seems to support htc and motorola phones. i originally purchashed dr.fone root because it supported rooting the s3 mini i had. Recently I purchased the s4 sgh-1337 because it was a samsung phone with 2gb ram that dr.fone supported rooting. I do not like this phone as the battery does not stay charged long due to it basically has the s3 mini battery to power a 5" screen. I plan on buying another samsung phone soon. do you recomend any models I should buy that can be rooted easily that I can put a custom rom onto?

galaxys4rooted said:
rootninja only seems to support htc and motorola phones. i originally purchashed dr.fone root because it supported rooting the s3 mini i had. Recently I purchased the s4 sgh-1337 because it was a samsung phone with 2gb ram that dr.fone supported rooting. I do not like this phone as the battery does not stay charged long due to it basically has the s3 mini battery to power a 5" screen. I plan on buying another samsung phone soon. do you recomend any models I should buy that can be rooted easily that I can put a custom rom onto?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, Smartphone with exynos chip has slow Android development.
If you are flashaholic and happily to try bleeding edge development ROM, obviously the answer is Google's Nexus/Pixel smartphone, it's the largest community shared ever, just pick any of nexus 5 or 6 variant. Even the old nexus 5 2013 still in active development until now.
But if you are hardcore Samsung fans (apparently), just pick any model that using Qualcomm chipset, especially the latest one.. I can't recommend specific model because haven't yet used any Samsung's phones, sorry 'bout that.
Or the easiest way, always check xda forum for specific phones model to help you deciding.
Cheers.

100.00 price range
R324D said:
Well, Smartphone with exynos chip has slow Android development.
If you are flashaholic and happily to try bleeding edge development ROM, obviously the answer is Google's Nexus/Pixel smartphone, it's the largest community shared ever, just pick any of nexus 5 or 6 variant. Even the old nexus 5 2013 still in active development until now.
But if you are hardcore Samsung fans (apparently), just pick any model that using Qualcomm chipset, especially the latest one.. I can't recommend specific model because haven't yet used any Samsung's phones, sorry 'bout that.
Or the easiest way, always check xda forum for specific phones model to help you deciding.
Cheers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the google nexus pixel seems to be a good phone but cost more than Iwant to spend on a phone. I'm looking to spend nieghborhood of 100.00. I'm not necisarily a diehard fan of samsung just that I have had quite of few of them and had good luck with them and been satisfied with them except for this s4 that sucks the battery down when I hardly use it. Looking to give this one to my sister after buying one I can customize and set up the way I want.

Related

[Q]Need help choosing phone for development & testing

Guys, I'm working on developing an AOSP ROM. I need your help in choosing a phone I can use for the testing. I was thinking of starting with a cheap Samsung Galaxy series phone since they have dual bootloaders (boot.bin and sbl.bin). Better safe than sorry, right? My work partner suggested we start off with a Vanilla Android phone, like an old LG. Can you guys recommend me one to proceed with? Is there a phone out there with Vanilla Google Android and possibly two bootloaders ?
Anyone?
c'mon guys !!
Most developers like the Nexus series phones since they are easy to unlock the bootloader and have a lot of other devs.
Thank you for replying But is the Samsung Galaxy series the only one in the Android universe with dual bootloaders?
Also, what phones run on Vanilla Android other than the Google Nexus series? I take it the old LGs do? If so, which ones?
Someone, please respond...
bump!
Someone please provide some input on this..
I REALLY gotta know this at the earliest so I can acquire the phone. Someone, please help out !!
not sure if this helps but the pantech burst is getting the ICS update shortly (they have it ready just having server issues trying to get it out today) its a cheep but badass att lte phone
I don't live in the USA. I need something available internationally. Also, it needs Vanilla Android. Is Google Nexus my only chance?
Prasad007 said:
I don't live in the USA. I need something available internationally. Also, it needs Vanilla Android. Is Google Nexus my only chance?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If your serious about development and testing pure vanilla Android is the way to go and the Google's Nexus line of phones and tablet it the way to go. You can easily compile AOSP for these devices, easily unlock the bootloader and root to flash custom ROM's. Also kernel sources are easily available, along with other great resources that will allow you to learn a lot about development.
shimp208 said:
If your serious about development and testing pure vanilla Android is the way to go and the Google's Nexus line of phones and tablet it the way to go. You can easily compile AOSP for these devices, easily unlock the bootloader and root to flash custom ROM's. Also kernel sources are easily available, along with other great resources that will allow you to learn a lot about development.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's EXACTLY what I needed to hear! Thank you so much for your time! Considering I'll start with JB, is it necessary to acquire the latest Nexus available, or will any older variant do?
Prasad007 said:
That's EXACTLY what I needed to hear! Thank you so much for your time! Considering I'll start with JB, is it necessary to acquire the latest Nexus available, or will any older variant do?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wouldn't go any lower then the nexus s, since that's the oldest pure Google device that officially supports compiling AOSP JB from source. Personally I'd pick up the galaxy nexus if you want something right now. If you can wait until around November (November 5th) it's rumored Google is launching several (Supposedly five new nexus devices) new nexus devices to celebrate androids 5th birthday :thumbup:
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium
shimp208 said:
I wouldn't go any lower then the nexus s, since that's the oldest pure Google device that officially supports compiling AOSP JB from source. Personally I'd pick up the galaxy nexus if you want something right now. If you can wait until around November (November 5th) it's rumored Google is launching several (Supposedly five new nexus devices) new nexus devices to celebrate androids 5th birthday :thumbup:
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good to know Guess I'll be picking up the Galaxy Nexus then!

(clarification) All HTC One Models

As the title states this is a clarification for people that either don't know or are confused. All HTC one models are the same across the board hence you can flash international roms.at&t,tmobile,and sprint users can flash international roms without any problems.
I have an at&t version and been flashing international roms on it.I am currently on android revolution he Rom latest build on 4.2.2 that just came out and man this thing is blazing fast! You think it was fast before..load 4.2.2 with sense 5 and this thing fly's smooth!
So to clear the air yes it is okay to flash international roms.again if your still a tad bit scared ateast check and read the entire thread to stay on the safe side
Happy flashing
This is why I don't regret going with HTC instead of Samsung. I've always hated that international and US variants were different in hardware for most Samsungs. HTC one is a real winner and believe they will make a comeback in time.
Sent from the Sexiest Android Device (HTC One)
SKyRocKeting727 said:
This is why I don't regret going with HTC instead of Samsung. I've always hated that international and variants were different in hardware for most Samsungs. HTC one is a real winner and believe they will make a comeback in time.
Sent from the Sexiest Android Device (HTC One)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
Exactly! lol back when i had the HTC sensation tmobile version. One quick root/unlock bootloader and i was flashing international roms back and forth like crazy haha
Don't forget poor sprint. They get nothing lol
Sent from my Tricked out HTC One
Squirrel1620 said:
Don't forget poor sprint. They get nothing lol
Sent from my Tricked out HTC One
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They'll get it eventually. What sprint has is Google Wallet, which i can't stand not having
SKyRocKeting727 said:
This is why I don't regret going with HTC instead of Samsung. I've always hated that international and US variants were different in hardware for most Samsungs. HTC one is a real winner and believe they will make a comeback in time.
Sent from the Sexiest Android Device (HTC One)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmm.... All SGS4s that use the S600 qualcomm chipsets can flash each others ROMs, so this is a slight misconception.
i9505 and all its variants can share roms. About 70% or more of the SGS4s in the world are a variation of this edition including the future GE coming out.
i9500 is stuck in its own community. This is the one you are referring to and it is a small community that seems to be minimizing.
marcviado said:
I have an at&t version and been flashing international roms on it.I am currently on android revolution he Rom latest build on 4.2.2 that just came out and man this thing is blazing fast! You think it was fast before..load 4.2.2 with sense 5 and this thing fly's smooth!
Happy flashing
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How are LTE speeds with the latest update?
Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk 2
crea78 said:
How are LTE speeds with the latest update?
Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Using Vanilla Rootbox and was pulling 28mbps earlier today with 2 bars of LTE service.
SlimJ87D said:
Hmmm.... All SGS4s that use the S600 qualcomm chipsets can flash each others ROMs, so this is a slight misconception.
i9505 and all its variants can share roms. About 70% or more of the SGS4s in the world are a variation of this edition including the future GE coming out.
i9500 is stuck in its own community. This is the one you are referring to and it is a small community that seems to be minimizing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmmmmmm...different processors for S4 variants, the Snapdragon 600 and the Exynos. Where as the HTC one ONLY has the Snapdragon 600 for all variants. We can flash international ROMS on our AT&T model. Try flashing a S4 (Exynos based)Rom on a S4 that has the Snapdragon 600 processor. Obviously you didn't read my first post correctly as I said that I disliked how Samsung tends to make phones with different processors for one phone i.e (Galaxy Note, S2, S3, S4) which had different processors between the international and US models.
I believe it had to do with Samsung's Exynos LTE capabilities in the US.
Sent from the Sexiest Android Device (HTC One)
SKyRocKeting727 said:
Hmmmmmmm...different processors for S4 variants, the Snapdragon 600 and the Exynos. Where as the HTC one ONLY has the Snapdragon 600 for all variants. We can flash international ROMS on our AT&T model. Try flashing a S4 (Exynos based)Rom on a S4 that has the Snapdragon 600 processor. Obviously you didn't read my first post correctly as I said that I disliked how Samsung tends to make phones with different processors for one phone i.e (Galaxy Note, S2, S3, S4) which had different processors between the international and US models.
I believe it had to do with Samsung's Exynos LTE capabilities in the US.
Sent from the Sexiest Android Device (HTC One)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes I did read your post, but you made it seem like roms aren't interchangeable at all. My point is that there is a international S600, i9505, and its variations make up about 75% of all the SGS4s in the whole world. For example, the US T-Mobile SGS4 can flash roms from the International i9505.
Sure, it can't flash from the i9500, but the development mostly lies in the i9505 and it's variants anyways.
SKyRocKeting727 said:
Hmmmmmmm...different processors for S4 variants, the Snapdragon 600 and the Exynos. Where as the HTC one ONLY has the Snapdragon 600 for all variants. We can flash international ROMS on our AT&T model. Try flashing a S4 (Exynos based)Rom on a S4 that has the Snapdragon 600 processor. Obviously you didn't read my first post correctly as I said that I disliked how Samsung tends to make phones with different processors for one phone i.e (Galaxy Note, S2, S3, S4) which had different processors between the international and US models.
I believe it had to do with Samsung's Exynos LTE capabilities in the US.
Sent from the Sexiest Android Device (HTC One)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I just flashed an i9505 international rom onto my ATT S4, all the US Carrier Variants are the same as the i9505, the i9500 is the only difference and thats the exynos cpu, and as stated most variants out right now are the i9505 including the upcoming GE, that said all the One Variants contain the same chipset, so that does make things less confusing.
Sprint users can't flash any ROM actually. Only certain ROMs are compatible.
Please edit your OP with this information as it's currently misleading to others
SGS2 FAQ | HTC One FAQ
SlimJ87D said:
Hmmm.... All SGS4s that use the S600 qualcomm chipsets can flash each others ROMs, so this is a slight misconception.
i9505 and all its variants can share roms. About 70% or more of the SGS4s in the world are a variation of this edition including the future GE coming out.
i9500 is stuck in its own community. This is the one you are referring to and it is a small community that seems to be minimizing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You seem to be forgetting the fact that the Att and Verizon (I think verizon) have the bootloader locked with no current solution to unlock which has made it super difficult for devs to make solutions for rooting them and there's barely any development going on for those two either. HTC on the other hand has a incredible community full of development and amazing devs (not saying the s4 doesn't, but ours seems more so) and a lot of people (myself included) don't even bother with root because HTC did such an incredible jib with the one and sense 5.
Sent from the Pure Ninja Black HTC One
Pure+ said:
You seem to be forgetting the fact that the Att and Verizon (I think verizon) have the bootloader locked with no current solution to unlock which has made it super difficult for devs to make solutions for rooting them and there's barely any development going on for those two either. HTC on the other hand has a incredible community full of development and amazing devs (not saying the s4 doesn't, but ours seems more so) and a lot of people (myself included) don't even bother with root because HTC did such an incredible jib with the one and sense 5.
Sent from the Pure Ninja Black HTC One
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is true but shabby penguin has a modded cwm recovery that allows you to flash any rom from tmobile, sprint, Verizon, or the international i9505 version. Development is fine over there. I have the best of both worlds with the one and the S4. Lol
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda premium
HTC One (Model 802t)
Hi,
I am wondering if you can help in rooting my Chinese Dual Sim HTC One (Model 802t). As with all Chinese phones, it is restricted with limited apps. Even Google Play Store is not available as the Chinese has their own app stores with limited apps.
I bought this phone from China Mobile in Shenzhen, China.
Some info of the phone for your ref.:
ROM Version :1.12.1403.2
Android Version : 4.1.2
HTC Sense : 5.0
Software No : 1.0.0.802t
HTC SDK API level ; 5.23
Kernel version : 3.4.10-gbec450b, [email protected]#1, SMP PREEMPT
Baseband version : T2.05.1281.25_10.27.4081.02-1237.18.19.0528
Build No. 1.12.1403.2.CL186762 release-keys
Browser Version : WebKit/534.30
Hope the above info helps.
Please advise.
Thanks
thimschiew said:
Hi,
I am wondering if you can help in rooting my Chinese Dual Sim HTC One (Model 802t). As with all Chinese phones, it is restricted with limited apps. Even Google Play Store is not available as the Chinese has their own app stores with limited apps.
I bought this phone from China Mobile in Shenzhen, China.
Some info of the phone for your ref.:
ROM Version :1.12.1403.2
Android Version : 4.1.2
HTC Sense : 5.0
Software No : 1.0.0.802t
HTC SDK API level ; 5.23
Kernel version : 3.4.10-gbec450b, [email protected]#1, SMP PREEMPT
Baseband version : T2.05.1281.25_10.27.4081.02-1237.18.19.0528
Build No. 1.12.1403.2.CL186762 release-keys
Browser Version : WebKit/534.30
Hope the above info helps.
Please advise.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No
Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk 4 Beta
thimschiew said:
Hi,
I am wondering if you can help in rooting my Chinese Dual Sim HTC One (Model 802t). As with all Chinese phones, it is restricted with limited apps. Even Google Play Store is not available as the Chinese has their own app stores with limited apps.
I bought this phone from China Mobile in Shenzhen, China.
Some info of the phone for your ref.:
ROM Version :1.12.1403.2
Android Version : 4.1.2
HTC Sense : 5.0
Software No : 1.0.0.802t
HTC SDK API level ; 5.23
Kernel version : 3.4.10-gbec450b, [email protected]#1, SMP PREEMPT
Baseband version : T2.05.1281.25_10.27.4081.02-1237.18.19.0528
Build No. 1.12.1403.2.CL186762 release-keys
Browser Version : WebKit/534.30
Hope the above info helps.
Please advise.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It has been posted a method to root the device on the international section look for it if you can't find it let me know I'll help you find it
Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk 2
does anyone know if the radio chips are the same in the HTC One across all carriers? or if we are able to change them via a radio flash?
Pure+ said:
You seem to be forgetting the fact that the Att and Verizon (I think verizon) have the bootloader locked with no current solution to unlock which has made it super difficult for devs to make solutions for rooting them and there's barely any development going on for those two either. HTC on the other hand has a incredible community full of development and amazing devs (not saying the s4 doesn't, but ours seems more so) and a lot of people (myself included) don't even bother with root because HTC did such an incredible jib with the one and sense 5.
Sent from the Pure Ninja Black HTC One
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
BS, bootloaders were unlocked a few days after the ATT release thanks to Dan.
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
SlimJ87D said:
BS, bootloaders were unlocked a few days after the ATT release thanks to Dan.
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope the bootloader is not unlocked. There's just a way to get around it and flash roms.
Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk 4 Beta

Should i buy the S2?

Hi guys. I know the S2 is one old phone, but i found one, slightly used for just over 110 dollars. I want it mostly for messing with it and putting kitkat on it (since he hates Samsungs bloat), but I intend on giving it to my father to replace his Galaxy Ace 2 which is stock, untouched.
Is it worth it?
No.
vPro97 said:
Hi guys. I know the S2 is one old phone, but i found one, slightly used for just over 110 dollars. I want it mostly for messing with it and putting kitkat on it (since he hates Samsungs bloat), but I intend on giving it to my father to replace his Galaxy Ace 2 which is stock, untouched.
Is it worth it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Get moto g instead
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
i am using it its one of the best phone around moto g is good but newly launched s2 is old and has good support from devs
It's really old, mate. Most of the dedicated S2 devs have moved on. We do have good ROMs but most are made for a variety of devices including S2 (CM, SlimRom, Omny).
Also, the S2 hardware is no match to current gen chipsets are way better. Faster GPS, better WiFi connectivity and IPS-LCD tip the scale for me....
I'd go for a current gen device with modest specs. Sony have good simple devices, MotoG is a good choice. The Nexus4 comes to mind too.
vPro97 said:
Hi guys. I know the S2 is one old phone, but i found one, slightly used for just over 110 dollars. I want it mostly for messing with it and putting kitkat on it (since he hates Samsungs bloat), but I intend on giving it to my father to replace his Galaxy Ace 2 which is stock, untouched.
Is it worth it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have my words.... No ...
Reason - 1.most of the developers have moved on .
2.Although we have kitkat.. Its still no where near to what real kitkat is...
Fanboys will try to prove me wrong but i have seen kitkat on moto g and s2 ... And belive me u cant compare how bad kitkat we have (no disrespect here ) all thanks to sammy...
3.Official cm support for kitkat came very late .. Very late i mean very late... Probably we wont see official cm support for next version of android...
If it wasnt for wayland_ace ...we would have no kitkat yet .
4. KITKAT still has lots of minor bugs.
5. Eek i run stock rooted deoxed ics and its the best stock rom combo for fast performance and xtreme battery life... Only for this benefit.. A YES is present

This is possibly my dream tablet; how 'dev-friendly' is it?

The Z4 Tablet is possibly my dream tablet, it has a great screen, microSD slot, good battery life and it seems dev-friendly.
I've got no Sony experience and I see surprisingly little custom ROM development. How 'dev-friendly' is this tablet? Does Sony provide source codes, drivers? Are they easy in unlocking bootloaders and flashing stuff like radios? Does it seem likely custom post-Marshmallow ROMs will be cooked in 1,5-2 years from now on?
do some research!
e.g. here "Anybody work on root?" much off topic posts unfortunately
there are two section with the title "Development" here ...
look at the phones: Z3+ and Z5 (nearly the same sources)
and all you need with almost useful documentation in SONY's Developer world:
http://developer.sonymobile.com/
DHGE said:
e.g. here "Anybody work on root?" much off topic posts unfortunately
there are two section with the title "Development" here ...
look at the phones: Z3+ and Z5 (nearly the same sources)
and all you need with almost useful documentation in SONY's Developer world:
http://developer.sonymobile.com/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I admit my question was a bit lazy, but it'd be pretty easy for people like you with lots of experience/knowledge on this Sony platform to give me a general idea.
I ordered a Z4T, but while reading this subforom while waiting for the shipment, things start to itch me a bit.
I'll anwer my own questions the way I see it now: Sony is pretty developer-friendly by providing source code and build instructions, but it's pretty buggy and there are very few developers doing stuff for the Z4T. I guess it's because of the bad availability of the device and the relatively small user base. The people @ FXP build ROMs, but I haven't heard much about how useful these builds are. If anything, I heard people downgrading from the 5.1.1 build. Rooting is only possible by unlocking the bootloader and flashing @AndroPlus' custom kernel. His current TWRP build has a bug that makes it impossible to restore a device backup.
Sony provides the option for unlocking the bootloader, but you'll completely lose your warranty. Furthermore, the TA partition will be irreverably changed and you'll lose functionality.
Marhsmallow has been announced, so there's that.
SONY's devices are good compromise for me
@jelbo
Good summary!
My opinion:
The SONY devices are good hardware. I like them because they are water resistant since I lost a phone after cycling in heavy rain.
I have a Tablet xperia Z with CyanogenMod on it. Android 5.1
The start with that 3rd party ROM was slow and it was quite buggy. Also battery life was worse than with stock ROM.
I have a SAMSUNG Galxy S5 phone. They have Knox-protection on their devices. Quite evil compared to SONY. Because it was released with Kitkat I could root it via exploit and keep Knox untriggered. I could get CyanogenMod, even Marshmallow Alphas for the phone. But the drivers are not that good and the battery life with stock is very good (up to four days for me).
So I will keep that phone on stock and I used Titanium Backup to get rid of SAMSUNG's bloatware.
SAMSUNG do not provide documentation and many of their SOCs are proprietary - no chance to do any development for these devices.
Long post short: SONY is very open and relatively easy to hack on their devices.
Better (now) in price and features than the Nexus devices IMO. I would never buy a device without any chance to do development on it.
I think the bug in TWRP will get fixed soon (has bitten me once).
Thanks for your kind reply
DHGE said:
@jelbo
Good summary!
My opinion:
The SONY devices are good hardware. I like them because they are water resistant since I lost a phone after cycling in heavy rain.
I have a Tablet xperia Z with CyanogenMod on it. Android 5.1
The start with that 3rd party ROM was slow and it was quite buggy. Also battery life was worse than with stock ROM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds familiar. In my experience with the last few phones I've had, AOSP-based ROMs were always a tad slower and less battery-friendly than stock or stock based ROMs. For example, the stock 'Google Play Edition' ROMs ran like a dream on my HTC One m7, but others were always less smooth / battery friendly.
So, for the Z4T I'm not partularly worried about the lack of 3rd party ROMs. I'll be fine with stock rooted. But for the longer term, because of the unpopularity, I think it's unlikely to see much going on in a year from now on and that kind of makes me doubt my purchase.
I have a SAMSUNG Galxy S5 phone. They have Knox-protection on their devices. Quite evil compared to SONY.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, but not more evil than Sony I think. Samsung's bootloader unlock 'trips' Knox and it'll disable features like secure storage and services that depend on it. It's also irreversible. It's an awful lot like Sony's irreversible TA partition 'tripping'.
Because it was released with Kitkat I could root it via exploit and keep Knox untriggered. I could get CyanogenMod, even Marshmallow Alphas for the phone. But the drivers are not that good and the battery life with stock is very good (up to four days for me).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I could root my Galaxy S6 using an exploit, without tripping Knox. I'm running 5.1.1 with an engineering bootloader, while still having my Knox untriggered. It's a luxury I'm not gonna have on the Z4T, unless an exploit will be found.
SAMSUNG do not provide documentation and many of their SOCs are proprietary - no chance to do any development for these devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, it's one of the reasons I want to avoid a Samsung as my new tablet. Exynos is a black box, so custom, stock-based ROMs will be the best you can get. BUT, I'm doubting now. Custom, stock-based ROMs are fine with me - as you mention, battery life is great. And on top of that, Samsung is so popular that lots of development is being done. I think chances are bigger to see the Marshmallow successor being ported for older Samsung devices than we'll see on this Sony Z4 Tablet in the future. But that's an assumption, I don't have Sony experience, but I see things re pretty dead here, even though the device was released quite a long time ago.
Long post short: SONY is very open and relatively easy to hack on their devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not really seeing that yet, but again, I've only looked at the Z4T now.
Better (now) in price and features than the Nexus devices IMO. I would never buy a device without any chance to do development on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The microSD is an essential part for me. If the Pixel C would have had a microSD-slot I'd have chosen that. Development and future updates are a huge selling point for Nexus devices.
I think the bug in TWRP will get fixed soon (has bitten me once).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let's hope so.
Hopefully the Z4T will get some more love soon, as I have just sent my Pixel C back and taken a punt at a open box Amazon warehouse deal last night with 40% off the LTE
I love my Z3CT, Z3C and Ultra, which have had great support from the devs, so am expecting the Z4 to be the best hardware of the lot, but would also love a root method while keeping the bootloader locked for now.
Heres to hoping perhaps MM will lead to some kernel exploits.
scoobydu said:
[...] as I have just sent my Pixel C back [...]
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Click to collapse
What made you return your Pixel C?
I love my Z3CT, Z3C and Ultra, which have had great support from the devs [...]
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Click to collapse
Did it take a while to get to that point? Do you think the Z4T will have the same support?
jelbo said:
What made you return your Pixel C?
Did it take a while to get to that point? Do you think the Z4T will have the same support?
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Click to collapse
Dont get me started on the Pixel C from Google UK pricing error on day 1 and their refusal for a week to refund or swapout 32g for 64g devices, due to their error; then I had a hardware fault with the screen not responding after 24hrs of use. I found their support just awful More issues were being reported in the xda forum and I decided I wasn't going to spend £550 to beta test for google. Nice solid device but heavier that the Z4 and sliding the keybard across the keyboard to remove it, just made me nervous of scratching something everytime I did it.
To be honest the Z4 forums are very quiet, but so were the pixel c's; as a few people were commenting.
I had to root my Z3 Tab by loading the Z3 phone firmware and rooting that, as that had a kernel vunerability and the kernel on the Z3 tab didn't.
Once the Z3 phone firmware was loaded and rooted, I could backup my TA partition and reload the Z3 tab firmware, rooted.
Its generally the phones that get root and the tabs have to utilise what they can, unless of course a dev has the tab.
The tab forums got much busier once the device had a less risky root method.
Sad to see that Nut hasn't got a recovery done, but I am assuming that due to root only being available by unlocking and losing TA, so limited testers, but haven't had time to read the history yet.
I have to say though that the Z4 is fantastic in comparison to the Pixel C and I am very glad I have reverted to the device that I know especially at £360 for the LTE version + keyboard on Amazon open box. First time using and the device is pristine. To be fair the Z4 is many iterations of getting it right and the Pixel is googles first try. Once its at Pixel C v4 it will probably be very good!
Heres to hoping MM is officially released soon, so the chances of rooting may get better.
from Nut
This is the reason why I didn't release XZDR for the Z3+/Z4/TabZ4 yet, too much difference with the Shinano and older device trees.
Edit:
That should be solved with 2.9 though...
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Seems the 64 bits is a material change, so things need to progress in 2.9 from my early readings.
scoobydu said:
Dont get me started on the Pixel C from Google UK pricing error on day 1 and their refusal for a week to refund or swapout 32g for 64g devices, due to their error; then I had a hardware fault with the screen not responding after 24hrs of use. I found their support just awful More issues were being reported in the xda forum and I decided I wasn't going to spend £550 to beta test for google. Nice solid device but heavier that the Z4 and sliding the keybard across the keyboard to remove it, just made me nervous of scratching something everytime I did it.
To be honest the Z4 forums are very quiet, but so were the pixel c's; as a few people were commenting.
I had to root my Z3 Tab by loading the Z3 phone firmware and rooting that, as that had a kernel vunerability and the kernel on the Z3 tab didn't.
Once the Z3 phone firmware was loaded and rooted, I could backup my TA partition and reload the Z3 tab firmware, rooted.
Its generally the phones that get root and the tabs have to utilise what they can, unless of course a dev has the tab.
The tab forums got much busier once the device had a less risky root method.
Sad to see that Nut hasn't got a recovery done, but I am assuming that due to root only being available by unlocking and losing TA, so limited testers, but haven't had time to read the history yet.
I have to say though that the Z4 is fantastic in comparison to the Pixel C and I am very glad I have reverted to the device that I know especially at £360 for the LTE version + keyboard on Amazon open box. First time using and the device is pristine. To be fair the Z4 is many iterations of getting it right and the Pixel is googles first try. Once its at Pixel C v4 it will probably be very good!
Heres to hoping MM is officially released soon, so the chances of rooting may get better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your reply, good info. I'm glad to hear some reassuring comments on the Z4T. Looks like you had a great deal as well. In the Netherlands they're hard to get. I payed €635 for the WiFi model... I'm still doubting a little bit to go for a discounted Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 for €380 though. I read it'll even get Marshmallow in April. Price difference is pretty big and there's lots of stuff for it already.
I'll have a look in some Xperia phone subforums on XDA.
jelbo said:
Thanks for your reply, good info. I'm glad to hear some reassuring comments on the Z4T. Looks like you had a great deal as well. In the Netherlands they're hard to get. I payed €635 for the WiFi model... I'm still doubting a little bit to go for a discounted Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 for €380 though. I read it'll even get Marshmallow in April. Price difference is pretty big and there's lots of stuff for it already.
I'll have a look in some Xperia phone subforums on XDA.
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Click to collapse
Yes there are no deals on the Z4 Tab in the UK and all the new prices are the same retail price.
Thats why I decided to take a chance on the Amazon one, as I could return it if it was damaged or anything; and normal 12 months warranty with Amazon.
For me I haven't had a Samsung since my Tab 7.7 and wouldn't personally have another, but each to their own. The devs were always complaining at Samsung not releasing all the source code to their SoC's, wheereas Sony seemed to be more dev friendly.
The Z3 Tab is fantastic if you didn't mind the 8inch, but I am hoping once the Z3+ root is forthcoming and general 64bit root/recovery is done, then we will have some progress; he says, not being able to help the devs on whats seems a lot of work.
jelbo said:
I've got no Sony experience and I see surprisingly little custom ROM development. How 'dev-friendly' is this tablet? Does Sony provide source codes, drivers? Are they easy in unlocking bootloaders and flashing stuff like radios? Does it seem likely custom post-Marshmallow ROMs will be cooked in 1,5-2 years from now on?
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Click to collapse
It's a shame that such a good device is so low supported by free developers even though it seems it's more open by the Sony in comparison with Samsung.
I noticed that some people think in the thread that not so much users have this device. I have an old phone so called HTC desire HD which was released in the faraway 2010, it is excellent supported as it even has the contemporary android 6.0. I don't believe that there are more HTC decide HD users rather than xperia tablet z4 users. Moreover, I see as my comrade-users of our device crying ? everyday on a Russian 4pda.ru site, that we wait but there's no a good root method, there is no a good description or a video showing us how does the only custom ROM work. What works and what is broken. And just not seeing good news over the course of several months. Of course, I am very disappointed in dramatic fashion, but I hope The change will come.
Thank you for attention!)
cut the drama
- you should not compare a phone to a tablet (numberwise)
- look into the fora for phones Z3+/Z4 and Z5
they have nearly identical SoCs, differences a sometimes build options
- there is a HUGE xperia cross devices forum here with tons of additional info
- the Z4 Tablet became available in June 2015
- the first sources from SONY showed up in .... June 2015
- I rooted the device in July - having done no Android programming or rooting before
- I ordered the device after researching (see below) and before there was root available because my findings showed that there would be sources and documentation from SONY so that if all else fails I would get later a custom rom or could even roll my own
- a video for "seeing" developing/hacking? Dream on...
- there is lots of documentation (even video) available, maybe no video on how to do a web search or an xda search
- searching (and reading and trying things out) worked for me - coming from SAMSUNG phones with no prior development experience on Android ... TRY IT
DHGE said:
- you should not compare a phone to a tablet (numberwise)
- look into the fora for phones Z3+/Z4 and Z5
they have nearly identical SoCs, differences a sometimes build options
- there is a HUGE xperia cross devices forum here with tons of additional info
- the Z4 Tablet became available in June 2015
- the first sources from SONY showed up in .... June 2015
- I rooted the device in July - having done no Android programming or rooting before
- I ordered the device after researching (see below) and before there was root available because my findings showed that there would be sources and documentation from SONY so that if all else fails I would get later a custom rom or could even roll my own
- a video for "seeing" developing/hacking? Dream on...
- there is lots of documentation (even video) available, maybe no video on how to do a web search or an xda search
- searching (and reading and trying things out) worked for me - coming from SAMSUNG phones with no prior development experience on Android ... TRY IT
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good summary.
Small point, but the rooting element is by unlocking the bootloader, which not all will want to do. It is though an option that exists and we are thankful for those that have done so in order to progress the dev support.

Did the V10 get decent Dev support/activity/ROMs?

So I've been looking through the V10 Android Development threads and wondering if someone can give me an idea of what it's been like on XDA with the V10 in terms of Dev support/ROMs/ etc? Doesn't look like there's been much interest in this phone from Devs? Is there a reason why? Locked bootloader? No "sources" released? Is there a CM ROM available anywhere?
Reason I ask is because I'm seriously considering getting a V20 which looks like a great phone and I've always had Nexus phones in the past. Currently rocking a Nexus 5 which I still love. The V20 looks to me almost like a larger more modern and advanced Nexus 5 (both made by LG). The G5 I saw in a phone shop and it really didn't appeal to me (build quality seemed poor). What's the likelihood the V20 will get decent Dev support? Is there anything that will make it more likely?
The answer is NO, V10 dont have development because in some markets they still have locked bootloader and developers dont care about this kind of devices...if they cant do their job well and for all variants of the phone!
also the unlocked version of V10 doesnt have CM support and i think never will have. V20 will be the same history like V10, no bootloaders unlocked, no development, if you want a phone to install custom rom's and so on you never should get a LG phone, you should go for Xiaomi or other brand, and most importante Mediatek devices have more development than Qualcomm ones, so...if you dont care about the processor battle get a Mediatek phone.
Awesome if I want CM, development, unlocked bootloaders, etc I have to by a piece of s**t. Horray.

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