Since there isn't much information (in English) about how to upgrade the Zopo ZP100 phone to ICS I've now done it myself (after reading a lot of Russian forums using Google Translate I finally took the plunge into the deep end of the pool and just did it).
Files needed
ICS ROM (b79):
http://narod.ru/disk/48456521001.ee...T75_h932_b79_pulid_sw 20120428-14151.rar.html
Root:
http://files.dangerd.org/pub/ZP100//zopo zp100 4.0ROOT by008.rar
Flashtool:
http://narod.ru/disk/44888871001.ee...6c3e795/SP_Flash_Tool_exe_v3.1206.01.zip.html
USB Drivers (and a flashtool I didn't use):
http://chinamobiles.org/downloads/zap/ZP100fix.zip
CWM Recovery:
http://files.dangerd.org/pub/ZP100//recovery.img
First of all: Make a note of your IMEI-number(s)
Download the files and unpack all (in seperate folders).
Shutdown the phone and plug it in via USB, Windows will search for a driver which you find in the package ZP100fix.zip (different inf-files depending on windows version).
Unplug phone, remove the battery.
Replace the recovery.img from the ICS ROM with the one downloaded seperately.
Start flashutil.
Load Scatter-file: MT6575_Android_scatter_emmc2.txt
Make sure that Options -> USB Mode is selected.
Click Download
Connect phone (still with no battery, at least I had to leave it out).
Flashing begins.
When all is done it displays an "OK window".
Now reboot the phone and when booted connect to USB again and run Root.bat from the package: zopo zp100 4.0root by008"
Follow on-screen instructions.
I did not need to install any separate Google Apps, it was included in the ROM.
Now you need to add some IMEI-numbers to your phone.
In the original ROM I could only ever see one IMEI for my zp100, so I wrote that down.
IMEI2 I took from an old Nokia I hadn't used for a few years.
Use terminal app or adb shell or whatever to execute the following (replace IMEI_1 and IMEI_2 with your IMEI's):
echo 'AT + EGMR = 1,7, "IMEI_1"'> /dev/pttycmd1
echo 'AT + EGMR = 1,10, "IMEI_2"'> /dev/pttycmd1
Update: Zopo IMEI Tool in English can be downloaded from here: http://depositfiles.com/files/wi41lcuvb (should eliminate the need for the terminal-hack above). If the system language on your phone isn't set to English the utility will be displayed in Chinese by default, so setup your phone to use English before running it.
If you want your external sdcard mounted as /sdcard (/mnt/sdcard) instead of /mnt/sdcard2 you have to replace the /etc/vold.fstab with the following:
http://www.cactuz.net/files/zp100/vold.fstab
Use root-explorer (make a backup of the old one) to replace it, then shutdown your phone and remove the battery, then plug it all back in and start again and your external sdcard shoudl be mounted on /sdcard (/mnt/sdcard) instead.
Hope this helps.
I'll report back here with any bugs etc.
To use RecoveryMod I have to chose it from the menu in MobileUncle Tools or ClockWorkMod Rom Manager, I have not been able to boot to CWM using VolUp+Power.
Some of my favorite apps can't be downloaded from Google Play Market:
Vignette
Endomondo Pro
Snowstorm Weather Widget
GPS Status
I have been able to restore them all using MyBackup Pro and they are running fine, they just aren't compatible according to Play Market.
So any app you really need is good to make a backup of using MyBackup (or Titanium or any other backup app of your choice) so you can restore it if it can't be installed using market after the ICS upgrade.
Note that all these apps can be installed fine on my other devices using ICS (HTC Desire with CM9 and Samsung Galaxy Tab P1000 with CM9 or AOKP) so it's this ROM that is the issue AFAIK.
Thank you ... I'll follow up in a couple weeks
Ordered my zopo yesterday (for the second time -- waited 2 weeks from the first store (merimobiles) and then cancelled when they still hadn't shipped it. Hopefully I'll have better luck this time.)
I appreciate you posting this info and will try it out when I get the phone.
Good luck Dave,
I ordered mine from etotalk.com, got it in about a week with DHL used for shipping.
I've updated the first post with some more info in regards to RecoveryMod and mounting external SDcard as /mnt/sdcard (/sdcard).
Since I use this phone daily I will probably not experiment much with it until any new official release is available. But the current one (b79) is good enough.
There are quite a lot of crappy chinese apps (crappy since I don't know what they do and they aren't translated into a language I can understand) installed with this ROM bit they can all be removed using the normal App-menu in the system settings.
imei no.
hello, u said that u have write the imei no. of old nokia phone which u don't use. i want to know that can i also change both the imei no. as i m from india and in india only valid imei no. works, and i m planning to purchase this phone but i am afraid that if the imei no. are not according to india then it will not work so i just wanted to know that if i write my old dual sim phone imei to zopo zp100, will it work without any problem.
rohit: I can't say for sure if the phone actually reports two IMEI's to the service provider, but at least it displays two IMEI's when I check "About phone" in the sytem settings.
Sorry I can't say if it works or not in India.
hello
hyy , i have ihtc one x aka b79 , followed your procedure it works gr8. but i am facing a problem with usb mass storage and am not able to lock into gps any possibilities to fix this error? and does anyone has an access to orignal android 2.3.4 rom for b79 , to restore to previous bug free state?
DaveKnowsAll said:
Ordered my zopo yesterday (for the second time -- waited 2 weeks from the first store (merimobiles) and then cancelled when they still hadn't shipped it. Hopefully I'll have better luck this time.)
I appreciate you posting this info and will try it out when I get the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hiii from which website did u ordered this phone i am also planning to ordere thinking to order from ttmalls.com is it trustable
official android 4.0 is announced.
Newby with ZP100
I have bought a ZP100 with Pandawill.
Received yesterday. Wait around 10 days from China to France
It seems to be ok but there is no Android Market application (or Android Play store)
So i cannot download my applications that i bought with older phone and my phone is not interesting without applications
There is a chinese application looks like a chinese android market but ... i am french and chinese is only beautiful drawings for me.
I difficultly download some but cannot find others
If i change ICS (what is ICS ? System ?) will i resolve my problem ?
I download 2 files (http://www.zopomobile.com/xiazai.php) this morning but i don't know how to install it and afraid there is only chinese language
MP_MT75_h932_h5500_zwx_20120419-203646_ZYQ_PC.rar
ZP100_20120510new4.0.rar (think is the last android version)
I flashed ROM very often on Windows mobile samsung phones i900 and GTi8000 but i don't know Android (just install Android as 2nd system on GTi8000 Samsung). Hope someone can explain me what to do to improve the basic system
Other problem : sometimes i have no network on the 2 SIMs, all stop. I must stop and reboot the phone. Has somebody the same problem ?
Last : how to switch to recovery mode ?
Thanks
@cuctaz
Can you execute nandroid backup/restore in the recovery mode?
E:Can't mount /cache/recovery
ZP100 and ICS upgrade experiences
Hi Guys,
I bought the ZP100 1,5 weeks ago from etotalk.com.
After 1 week i tried to upgrade to ICS about this and Colonel ZAP's description.
My experiences with the ICS upgrade:
When i received the phone, on that was etotalk v1.0 firmware.
It is a very good customized rooted ROM, works fast and it has just some minor bugs.
The only problem was, it could only read the internal storage, when i insert an external SD card. It was strange, but i accept it programming defects.
I downloaded the official 2.3.6 and this B79 ICS, VCOM (Flash) drivers and the flash program.
At first, i downloaded the ClockWorkMod Recovery for chinese phones.
Unfortunately it is make a factory reset on the phone, but after you customize it, you can make full backup about your ROM.
IMPORTANT! Copy the backup to your computer, because the ICS ROM formatted my external SD
This is very recommended, because...
At first i installed the linked B79 ICS ROM.
The default language is chinese, but it contains english, so if you know the android, it is not a challenge to change it. It couldn't read the internal memory neither, just after format it.
It wasn't rooted, and deleted IMEI. When i tried to root (different way as 2.3.6, need USB debug mode and ADB) the Windows doesn't recognize the ADB driver. The driver wasn't in Android SDK, and i can't download it (i haven't tried it on Linux yet). For a moment Windows showed it found HTC Dream device. I downloaded HTC drivers, but it didn't work with it neither.
Without this you can't restore the IMEI.
Ok, go back to the official 2.3.6.
I flashed it back. Almost the same effects. Default chinese language, the internal memory cannot readable. I could root it and install CWM recovery back.
Basically it doesn't contains Play store, but you can install it.
The ROM full of chinese programmes and my experience was it is very unstable.
I uninstalled the chinese programmes, and installed Play store. When i wanted make a call, the phone restarts. The Google Play Store froze every time.
Finally i restore back the etotalk ROM, and i use it.
Maybe if i have time/mood i will install the official ICS, but about my experiences i have doubts with it.
p.s.: in about 30C outside temperature i used the phone (installing programmes). After 10 minutes using it sings that the battery is too hot, remove it from the phone.
Is any other better quality battery what is compatible with this phone? thanks
---------- Post added at 10:34 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:19 AM ----------
Hi jbctiong,
I used CWM recovery 5.5.0.4.
Just carefully, because it make a full factory reset.
And you need to insert an external SD card
carabaothai said:
I have bought a ZP100 with Pandawill.
Received yesterday. Wait around 10 days from China to France
It seems to be ok but there is no Android Market application (or Android Play store)
So i cannot download my applications that i bought with older phone and my phone is not interesting without applications
There is a chinese application looks like a chinese android market but ... i am french and chinese is only beautiful drawings for me.
I difficultly download some but cannot find others
If i change ICS (what is ICS ? System ?) will i resolve my problem ?
I download 2 files (http://www.zopomobile.com/xiazai.php) this morning but i don't know how to install it and afraid there is only chinese language
MP_MT75_h932_h5500_zwx_20120419-203646_ZYQ_PC.rar
ZP100_20120510new4.0.rar (think is the last android version)
I flashed ROM very often on Windows mobile samsung phones i900 and GTi8000 but i don't know Android (just install Android as 2nd system on GTi8000 Samsung). Hope someone can explain me what to do to improve the basic system
Other problem : sometimes i have no network on the 2 SIMs, all stop. I must stop and reboot the phone. Has somebody the same problem ?
Last : how to switch to recovery mode ?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
go to this link you will be able to fix android market
http://colonelzap.blogspot.in/2012/04/zopo-zp100-rooting-and-market-fix.html
@rohit_shah000
Thanks for the link i will check
@vzzoli
Thanks for your experiences
What is the ClockWorkMod Recovery for chinese phones.
WHy you needed it ?
Now we can download the 4.0 official
Somebody try it ?
hello carabaothai,
I used it for backup/restore my ROM.
But you can use nandroid backup too.
Sorry for my abscence from this thread, I've been busy all weekend actually tuning a car instead of my phone
buntybauva: I've got no problems with USB Mass Storage, could you explain what problems you experience?
I made a nandroid backup of the old ROM, but I haven't used it so don't actually know if it works.
rohit: I ordered mine from etotalk.com
carabaothai:I forgot to mention that the ICS-rom I linked to (and flashed myself) is in Chinese as default, but can be changed to English using the System Settings, luckily there are icons in there so you can find the symbol for language (hint for anyone who doesn't know: It's an "A").
ICS = Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0)
I have not experienced problems with loosing network on the SIM cards.
jbctiong: I had not tried any nandroid backup/recovery yet, tested right now and it doesn't seem to be able to actually do any backup. Some mount errors for sdcard.
vzzoli: Thank you for sharing your experiences.
I agree that the etotalk-ROM is quite good, but I always want the latest stuff on my gadgets
I have not had any issues with reading my sdcard nor in etotalk-rom or in the later ICS-rom.
The ICS rom did not format my external SD. But one should always make a backup of course (I backup my SDcard before every flash I try).
One bug I found in the current ROM is that the Cam/Videocam-switch on the phone doesn't make any difference what position it's in.
I'm going to see what the russian forum says about the official release, I'm quite happy with the one I'm currently running so no real need to change, but there could be performance reasons to change or maybe something else.
I downloaded to the "official" ROM and updated my phone
I think this is the same ROM as B79, just renamed the version.
Remove the IMEI, not rooted, other MTP driver needed etc.
@cactuz:
What operating system did you use for root the phone?
I'm using Windows, and the new official ICS ROM wants different ADB drivers than the 2.3.6.
Without this, i can't root it, and restore IMEI.
Buntybauva's mass storage problem maybe that the Windows recognize the ICS phone as media device, but can't mount as usb mass storage without a third party program
vzzoli: I used Win7 32bit when I rooted the phone, used the scripts supplied in one of the links in my initial post.
When I restored the IMEI I used Linux since that is my prefered choice whenever using ADB.
I can't check right now what version because I've apparently forgot my VPN-password so I can't connect to my computer at work
Does the camera-switch work for changing between Camera and VideoCam on the new official rom?
hyy
after ics upgrade is anyone facing problem with gps lock?
buntybauva: Not worse than before, the GPS was terrible for me before as well as after (but I do get a fix after quite some time). Though some of the guys on the russian forum has modified the antenna as far as I know.
Maybe DangerD could help us out because I think he has been involved in it.
Hi,
I'm opening this post to publish the result of some digging and struggling with a chinese device running the Spreadtrum SC6820 chip.
Details of the phone are can be found on http://www.cellphonemic.com/feiteng-a7100
EDIT: The original ROM is created from base firmware version mt6515_c910_ht_en_4.0_v01. Please be careful if your version is different as I have had reports of LCD display issues (greenish colors and ugly pixels). A a sensible approach, please never flash a new ROM without having a backup firmware. Chinese devices often change the chipsets without changing the device version, so it makes it hard to have an universal ROM.
So, let me try to explain the outcome of my work and how to flash the ROM into this device.
First of all, I want to say thanks to pogodancer for his help in my investigation and for providing me the software for flashing the device, as I couldn't get any version to work.
So, getting to the point, I have created 2 versions of the firmware:
Standard Stock ROM - Rooted
This is mostly a copy of the stock rom of the device with the following changes:
- SU binaries included
- SuperUser app added
- Ayu_Sales.apk (CAIVS) application removed - In case you want to know what this app is, check your mobile phone bill. If you find SMS messages sent to chinese numbers (starting by +13) that you have never sent, you now know who to blame
As the ROM is rooted, you can now mount as RW the /system folder and change anything you want.
Link to the firmware: http://www.mediafire.com/?4x9ra4y3e53isjf
Modded Stock ROM - Rooted
This is a modified version of the rom I have done to clean the device from unwanted and chinese software and to add some missing apps. Details are:
- SU binaries included
- SuperUser app added
- Ayu_Sales.apk (CAIVS) application removed
- Go Keyboard (and all its language plugins) removed
- Default Launchers (there were 2) and theme removed.
- ADW Launcher added
- GMail added
- Google Talk added
- Gallery3D substituted by Cool 3D Gallery
And that should be all.
Link to firmware: http://www.mediafire.com/?8i3soi585vjvyfh
Now, for the flashing software, the link to get it is: http://www.mediafire.com/?o9km8vl287ev24j
Instructions for flashing, from pogodancer, are:
0. Be sure to have installed the correct drivers. For my SC6820-device I see 5 items in Win7-32bit-device-manager (ADB-Composite, 2 x COM-ports, 2 x USB devices: all without exclamation marks). You can use the drivers from the package folder "SCI-android-usb-driver-jungo-v4-.rar".
1. Disable just in case your Win7 firewall.
2. Launch "ChannelServer.exe" from package folder "CHANNELSERVER" and allow firewall if asked.
3. Start "ResearchDownload.exe" from package folder "ResearchDownload".
4. In ResearchDownload-application chose firmware with first button (for me: 6820_2.3.5_c910_hteng_s5_en_4.0_v01.pac).
5. Be sure that the Baudrate from Win7-Device-Manager-Comports-Settings in CHANNELSERVER equals the Baudrate-settings in ResearchDownload-Settings (second button). I recommend 115.200.
6. Press the Start (Play) button in ResearchDownload-application (third button).
7. Turn off the phone.
8. Keep holding the "- volume" key.
9. Without releasing the button "- volume" plug the usb-cord from phone to Win7 (install the driver if not done before in step 0).
10. The process of firmware-burning should start now in ResearchDownload-application and take approximately 1 Minute. You can release the Vol.Button once it starts.
11. Wait until the firmware-flashing has been finished (A green sign appeares + "Passed" is written in ResearchDownload-application).
12. Remove the battery, wait 20 seconds. Put battery back and turn on the phone (first boot may take a while but not more than 5 minutes).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please note that I have flashed the phone it in a Windows XP virtualbox machine and I realized I didn't need the CHANNELSERVER application, so I went directly to step 3.
And that should be all. As usual, use this at your own risk and make sure you are flashing the same device or you could get a nice bootloop.
Cheers.
NB: In case anyone is wondering why flashing the firmware instead of directly rooting it, I just want to say I have tried probably all methods that exist (even the last version of Unlock Root that claims being able to root a MocorDroid2.3.5 like this device). I have also tried to do it manually via an ADB shell, but no exploit seemed to work on this model. It is surprisingly horribly well protected. So, after many days of fighting with it I decided it could be a better solution to unpack the firmware, unmount it, modify it and remount it. And, after many attempts (failed as you may imagine) I have been able to get to these 2 working (and rooted!!) versions of the firmware.
Enjoy!!
-- EDITED --
I have just detected that there are two devices looking very similar with same SC6820 chipset, but made by two different manufacturers:
- Feiteng A7100
- TiangJI A7100
If you happen by chance to have the second one, please DO NOT USE the ROM in this post, as it won't work with your device. The TiangJI device includes a TV antenna that the Feiteng does not, so please verify it before flashing your phone (specially if you don't have a stock firmware backup for your mobile phone).
Hi Yekdall,
you are great. Very good job. I guess I only have tried your modded version and it works great !!! Thank you very much for your work.
I am looking for installing Clockwork but I am still stock at the message "flash_image not found". Do you have an idea to solve this ?
Another less important question: I installed the Holo-Locker (beneath the Holo-Launcher), but after booting I see for 2 seconds the Android 2.3 Locker before changing to the Holo-Locker. Do you know how to skip the Android 2.3-Locker ?
Have a nice weekend.
Hi Yekdall,
when you dial:
*#*#556#*#*
then a few seconds you can read "Android" but nothing more happens. Do you have any idea what this dialer-combination is good for ?
Launcher
Hi Yekdall,
I am still testing. It seems that the ADW-Launcher is a bit laggy when you have installed a lot of apps.
Do you want to test the Holo Launcher ? Is it worth to make a new rom with Holo, or should we just delete ADW from system/app and replace it with Holo, but I don't know if that works flawless ?
pogodancer said:
Hi Yekdall,
I am still testing. It seems that the ADW-Launcher is a bit laggy when you have installed a lot of apps.
Do you want to test the Holo Launcher ? Is it worth to make a new rom with Holo, or should we just delete ADW from system/app and replace it with Holo, but I don't know if that works flawless ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I have never tried Holo, but based on the comments in the Market, it could be a better option. I added ADW as I was using it in another Gingerbred device I have and it works very well.
Regarding the phone, your second option should work flawlessly. If you substitute it in the system/app folder and reboot the phone, android will detect the available launcher and use it.
AW: [ROM] Feiteng A7100 - Spreadtrum SC6820 - Rooted
Hi Yekdall,
I tested a bit last weekend. Finally your rom in version 1 (only rooted) is preferred and running.
I replaced ADW with Holo launcher in system/apps. But I did not change the locker because it seems the stock lockscreen can not be removed totally. I deleted the GoLauncher plugins also. At last I put GSAM battery monitor into system/apps.
Then installed 60 apps to the external sd. There were only 4 games not working. On the internal sd I still have 80 mb free. I also installed seeder, maybe it is useful.
All in all I am satisfied. The system is running fine.
But my A7100 has a very weak micro. Do you have any solution to make the micro louder ?
Sent by my Hero H9500 / Stock Ice Cream Sandwich
Flash rom for s6802 - spreadtrum haowanda
Dudes i need the flash rom for de s6802 SPREADTRUM HAOWANDA I TRY UPDATE WITH THIS FLASH AND MY TOUCH HAVE BEEN INVERTED FOR SIDES, CAN ANYONE HELP ME?
pogodancer said:
Hi Yekdall,
I tested a bit last weekend. Finally your rom in version 1 (only rooted) is preferred and running.
I replaced ADW with Holo launcher in system/apps. But I did not change the locker because it seems the stock lockscreen can not be removed totally. I deleted the GoLauncher plugins also. At last I put GSAM battery monitor into system/apps.
Then installed 60 apps to the external sd. There were only 4 games not working. On the internal sd I still have 80 mb free. I also installed seeder, maybe it is useful.
All in all I am satisfied. The system is running fine.
But my A7100 has a very weak micro. Do you have any solution to make the micro louder ?
Sent by my Hero H9500 / Stock Ice Cream Sandwich
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AW: [ROM] Feiteng A7100 - Spreadtrum SC6820 - Rooted
Eduardo,
you have another Device than us. You need a different Firmware.
Sent by my Hero H9500 / Stock Ice Cream Sandwich
Yeah Dude thanks a lot you rom but i'm agree with pogodance ADW-Launcher is a bit laggy but it's seem ok because these phone Ram its small factor with processor anyway i'm really thank to you
I got a phone A7100 with SP6820A cpu model ARMv7..
can I use this firmware??
AW: [ROM] Feiteng A7100 - Spreadtrum SC6820 - Rooted
Awandroid89,
I am not sure ab out the letter A in your processor Name. See eduardos posts.
I recommend To contact your dealer To give you a Firmware link before flashing this Rom.
Sent by my Hero H9500 / DRX-Rom 1.7.6 - Android 4.0.4
Hello i have FeiTeng N9300 i checked all is same motherboard. Cpu dual sim all is same. Can i use this rom ?
---------- Post added at 11:09 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:29 PM ----------
oh my god i can't wait your reply, and i install this rom to my phone. Now LCD screen don't work. When i open phone just sounds come (Opening melody) But nothing come to screen. Its black screen and can't see anything can you give me my phone rom ? FeiTeng N9300 I can't find..
i founded feiteng mini n9300 rom was so hard but finally i found and my phone is work now
AW: [ROM] Feiteng A7100 - Spreadtrum SC6820 - Rooted
tombalaci_46 said:
i founded feiteng mini n9300 rom was so hard but finally i found and my phone is work now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi tombalaci,
you can post the link here. Maybe other users are looking for the same rom.
Sent by my Hero H9500 / DRX-Rom 1.7.6 - Android 4.0.4
Mm, you are right. In internet you can't find rom. I talk with factory like 3-4 days finally they send me with msn lol. I should upload it and release, because hard for get.
I will do it.
Thanks.
Hi tombalaci, first of all thanks for finding that ROM, and can you please tell us when will you upload it?
Thanks in advance
Hello dear, my internet upload speed is so low. but soon i will upload. Do you need it fast ? You have same phone and same problem like me ? And your n9300 have market ? Because my phone is haven't
Link is done you can download here http://www.tombalaci46.com/minin9300_firmware.rar
Hi Yekdall,
You can share how to backup rom Spreadtrum Android use Reaseachdownload tool or anothers tool.
Thanks you
AW: [ROM] Feiteng A7100 - Spreadtrum SC6820 - Rooted
Hi trucpv,
maybe this post can hell you:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=37897021
Sent by my Hero H9500 / DRX-Rom 1.7.6 - Android 4.0.4
So you've got a cheap Chinese phone based on the budget MediaTek MTK MT67xx SoC (system-on-a-chip) chipset and you want to root it.
You've tried lots of tools and failed, and you've been searching the internet and xda for your model and found nothing (or you might have found stock ROMs for your device online but not rooted ones). Read on....
These phones are INSANELY common all across Asia because MediaTek is the cheapest chip manufacturer and so is the top choice for <USD$100 super-cheap (often free subsidized) phones. Here is a partial list of phones that use the MT67xx across many countries:
Sony Xperia E4g | Kingzone N3 Plus | Bluboo X8 4G | Bluboo X6 | Elephone P6000 | Just5 Blaster | Unistar X8 | Ulefone Be Pro | Cubot X16 | Lenovo Vibe P1m | Meizu m2 | Doogee X5Pro | Lenovo A2010 | Acer Liquid Z530 | Micromax Canvas Express 4G Q413 | Huawei Enjoy 5 | Elephone M2 | Doogee Valencia2 Y100 Pro | Gionee Marathon M5 | coolpad note 3 lite | coolpad note 3 | Alcatel One Touch Flash Plus | Gionee Elife S7 | Lenovo Vibe S1 | Lenovo K3 Note | Lenovo P70 | Lenovo A7000[35] | Meizu M1 Note | Sony Xperia C4 / C4 Dual | Sony Xperia C5 Ultra / C5 Ultra Dual | DaKeLe Big Cola 3 (iPhone 6 clone) | HTC One E9s | HTC Desire 820s | Mlais M52 Red Note | Innjoo One [36] | Ulefone Be Touch[37] | Ulefone Be Touch 2 | Kingzone Z1 | Umi eMax | Mstar S700 | Vivo X6/X6 Plus | THL 2015[38] | Huawei Enjoy 5s | Elephone M2 | Lenovo A7010 | Lenovo K4 Note | Acer Liquid Z530S | Meizu m2 note | InnJoo two [39] | Infinix Note 2 X600 | Elephone P6000 Pro | Elephone P8000 | BLU Life One X (2016) | BLUBOO XTOUCH | Coolpad Note 3 | Quantum Go 4G | Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 | Xiaomi Redmi Note 2/ Prime | LeTV Le 1s | Meizu m1 metal | Meizu MX5 | Gionee Elife E8 | Sony Xperia M5 / M5 Dual | BLU Pure XL | Allview X2 Soul Xtreme | HTC One M9+ | HTC One E9+ | Infinix Zero 3 | Lenovo K5 Note | Sony Xperia XA | Meizu MX6 | iNew L4 1 GB | Oukitel U8 Universe Tap | Bluboo C100 | Siswoo A5 price comparison | Gionee Marathon M5 | Zopo Color E ZP350 | Doogee S6000 | Cubot X15 | Meizu m2 2GB 16GB | VK World VK560 | ZTE Blade D6 | Leagoo Elite 4 1GB 16GB | Oukitel U6 | iNew L4 2 GB | VK World Discovery S1 | Wiko Selfy 4G | Acer Liquid Z630 2GB 16GB | THL 2015 A | Blackview BV2000 | UMI Fair 1GB 8GB | NO.1 S6 (4g) | iNew U5 | ZTE Blade V6 | Huawei Enjoy 5 TIT-AL00 | Acer Liquid Z530 | Uhans U100 | Zopo Hero 1 | Ulefone Paris X | Zopo Flash C ZP530+ | ZTE Blade A1 | Uimi U6 | Gionee Marathon M5 Prime | Uimi U6c | HomTom HT7 Pro | ZTE Small Fresh 3 C880S | Zopo Color S5.5 | KingZone N5 MT6735 1.3GHz | MyWigo City 2 | LG K8 K350N | AIS Lava iris 500 | Lava iris 550Q
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am including the list above for two reasons:
so that people searching for their model may find this thread and be helped
so that you can just get a glimpse of the insane variety of companies and models that use the same chip family
For reasons explained below, you will find that most of these devices are resistant to the "easy" one-click rooting methods and most of them do not work with ANY of the "easy" tools that have been developed for other phones, even MediaTek (MTK)-specific tools. Of course tool support will improve over time, but as we will explain, there is something unique about your MediaTek device that will always make it harder to root.
I finally got my MT67xx-based phone rooted, and here is the information that I wished someone had posted on xda as I slogged through my search.
My goal here is NOT to provide the steps for a specific phone model, but rather to help the (literally) millions of you out there who have MT67xx-based phones find a solution by giving you a few basics to understand MediaTek MTK and rooting, and pointing you in the right direction so you know what questions to ask.
There's some bad news, and some worse news...
WHAT ALL THESE PHONES HAVE IN COMMON:
The MT67xx chipset inside your phone uses a relatively new (2014) 64-bit processor architecture, compared to the ubiquitous MediaTek MTK MT65xx, MT83xx, MT81xx processors that use a 32-bit architecture. And around the same time that MT67xx came out, MediaTek also switched devices to a new filesystem/partition format which determines where and how Android and all your data gets stored in your device's flash memory.
What these two technical changes mean is that:
many of the vulnerabilities in Android that the "easy" one-click root tools exploited to do their job (e.g. old standbys like RageAgainstTheCage, framaroot, etc.) no longer work. Updating Android is another thing that often causes these vulnerabilities to cease to work, but changing processor architectures is a biggie too.
many (but not all) of the old tools developed to root and otherwise modify MediaTek devices broke, and have not yet been fixed. Most notable is the MTK Droid Tool, a standard tool for hacking MTK devices that you will still find used in 99% of guides out there on the internet. It doesn't work on your MT67xx (at least no version I could find). Same is true of many other tools, such as some of the tools to reset your phones IMEI when rooting/modding operations disrupt your ability to call, tools to get into "MTK Engineer Mode" etc.
That is why you will find so many pages on the internet that say "Root Any Android Phone" (complete BS: if you see this, the person is either clueless or lying) or even "Root Any MediaTek Phone" and the procedure fails.
So, you would think that the cool ROM hackers and root tool folks would whip up some new tools quickly, right?
This is the point where you need to understand a harsh reality...
WHAT ALL THESE PHONES DON'T HAVE IN COMMON:
This is perhaps Android's greatest strength and weakness: every manufacturer (as well as ROM hacker here on xda) is free to tweak open-source Android in almost any way they see fit, whether to save money, integrate a new feature, customize for local market and culture, try to lock out competition, or whatever. And so they did.
Even though these devices all use MT67xx chips, it seems like every manufacturer felt compelled to make as many tiny changes as possible, and the result is that there is no easy way for kind xda hackers to develop one master ROM image of Android that will run on them all (rooted or otherwise). And it's even hard to make a rooting tool or mod that works on all devices.
Instead, the device-specific differences are significant enough that you actually need a developer to spend hours to days on each model in order to produce a workable Android ROM (rooted or otherwise).
And that is why, all over xda-developers and other sites, you rarely see custom ROMs for your MTK device. Although I'm guessing there are many times more cheap MTK devices in the world than devices with more expensive chipsets, the market of cheap devices is utterly fragmented into hundreds of vendors, so it is generally not worth any ROM hacker's time to develop for a particular device, because the reward (glory or karma, whatever turns them on) is minimal compared to a single device (e.g. most Samsungs) that is used by millions.
Sometimes the cheap MTK software/hardware changes that break both root tools and ROMs seem trivial and pointless. Like a vendor might move a critical system file for no obvious reason, switch the order of SD cards so that old software breaks, leave out key system programs they thought "nobody would need," introduce new and usually-broken encryption methods to lock out modders, etc.
THE SILVER LINING
Seems pretty grim, huh?
This cloud has one major silver lining.
I'm going to tell you about a tool that does work on MT67xx devices. You may or may not end up using this tool as part of your rooting strategy (more below), but it's good to hear some good news sometime
As far as I can tell, all MediaTek devices MT67xx, MT65xx, MT83xx, MT81xx work with the SP Flash Tool, a MediaTek MTK-specific tool that lets you flash (write) new versions of Android and tools that you need to install or modify Android (ROMs, custom recovery images, recovery updates) on to your device.
SP Flash Tool lets you flash "images" to your device, even if your device is totally bricked or has been utterly wiped clean from some earlier messup. An "image" is geek speak for a file that contains the whole contents of a partition of your Android device's storage, such as the partitions that contain the Android operating system (boot and system), the partitions that contain a recovery tool that lets you do less primitive operations like updating Android, installing SuperSU, or backing up your device (recovery), or even the partition with the logo shown on boot (logo).
So that means SP Flash Tool is super-powerful and super-dangerous (in fact, it's suicidal if you use it on a device containing important data you haven't backed up), but on the other hand it also means that at least you always have some tool that can install new images, no matter how messed up you have made your device.
The significance of this cannot be understated. For Android devices with other chipsets, there is of course some way to flash images (various tools referred to as "recovery console," "bootloader/fastboot mode," etc), but the chipset and manufacturers (even on some MediaTek MTK devices) try to ruin your day by:
locking your bootloader or recovery console so it can only flash images cryptographically signed by the manufacturer using secret keys, meaning you can't use them to modify your phone in the way you want,
providing you only with flashing methods that work if the certain partitions stay intact---meaning that if you make a certain kind of mistake, you may much more easily "brick" your phone so that you have no way of ever using it for anything but a doorstop.
MediaTek's SP Flash Tool, on the other hand, does not get in your way with any kind of lock---it always lets you flash images to the device, even if your flash memory has become completely garbled with nonsense. The tool literally works on your phone before your phone has started to boot up (kind of scary actually and a huge design flaw security risk, oh well). It is still up to you of course to flash something that works, but at least you have the option.
A very important principle for SP Flash Tool is: only flash partitions that you need to flash. That will likely be recovery, and maybe boot/system and maybe logo if you are playing around. Even though you may find a ROM with all partitions, only flash the ones the instructions say you need to flash. Otherwise you invite problems that might clear important settings on your device (e.g. mobile radio/carrier settings you need for your calling to work, etc.).
You're probably thinking that using SP Flash Tool, you can first make a backup of your device, so that no matter what you try, you can always restore your backup. Good news: this is kind of true: the SP Flash Tool is capable of this kind of backup, as seen in this thread, this thread, and this thread. But when you look at those threads, you will see there is a catch: the technique relies on being able to extract something called a "scatter file" from your device, and the tool they always use for this? You guessed it, MTK Droid Tool, the tool that doesn't (yet) work on MT67xx devices. This nice thread explains the situation and gives you a way to get the "scatter file" to make your backup, but as you can see it's more technical than many people will be willing to do. So basically we are waiting for better tools to be available to less technical users for backing up MT67xx devices. If you don't mind bricking your device at all or until such a tool comes out, it won't matter. But for most users you will want some kind of backup in your rooting strategy. If anyone knows of a better new tool that works on MT67xx, please reply below.
So consider the application of SP Flash Tool as a backup tool for MT67xx devices to be something that's not ready for everyone yet. If anyone knows an easier tool for making scatter files on MT67xx or even doing backup, let us know.
There are other ways of making backups of your device before you attempt to root your device, though, so you might not need to use SP Flash Tool as your backup. More later...
Also, some reading this thread may have found a stock ROM for your exact device (one that is just like the manufacturer gave you, not rooted) that can serve as your backup in case your rooting attempts fail.
HOW TO ROOT YOUR PHONE
Typically when you want to root any Android device, you google the name of the device with "root" and you will find either:
"easy" one-click rooting tools (e.g. Kingoroot, Kingroot, One Click Root, framaroot) that you install on your device or your PC and click one button to root.
software that you are supposed to flash to your Android device to make it rooted (either complete ROM images containing a complete copy of Android for your device, already rooted and usually with other handy mods, or flashable update images that root your existing copy of Android).
The "easy" one-click tools may be worth trying, because they literally are just one click, but they come with a massive downside: many of them, such as Kingoroot, have been repeatedly accused of, and occasionally caught at, doing extremely shady things on your device after installation, such as sending your device's private IMEI number to servers in China. Kingroot (yes, it's different from Kingoroot) is a one-click tool that is recommended on xda, but which installs extremely invasive "purify" and/or "scanning" software on your device (also frequently connecting with servers in China for unknown reasons which the closed-source makers of these tools will not disclose). I personally find the many creepy clone Kingroot advertising websites and obviously-fake "user" posts about Kingroot that are gushingly positive about Kingroot to be a major, major red flag. If they have to make fake one-sided posts to convince people to install, what are they hiding? Many people use Kingroot simply because they've tried everything else and it's the only one-click tool that can root their device (because the Kingroot developers accomplish root using new exploits that nobody else has found, and devote significant resources to keeping up to date on exploits, perhaps using money they got from.....), then they use other tools that supposedly strip away Kingroot and its bloat/sketchiness and replace it with a more trusted root solution such as SuperSU (SuperSU requires your phone to be already rooted or requires you to flash something to install it). There even seems to be an arms war between Kingroot and these "Kingroot stripping tools" which causes problems on your phone as each party releases updates. You get the picture.
If you're reading this thread, you may have already tried these one-click tools and seen that they don't work on your MT67xx, or you may be too suspicious of them.
So, you moved on to looking for software that you could flash to your device that would root your device.
You searched in xda and Google for your make and model and found.....nothing. Except hopefully this thread.
Now you know why you didn't find anything using your make and model (you didn't skip the sections above, did you?). Fortunately, there is some hope.
Flashable software that can root your device will likely take one of two forms:
ROM: A complete ROM (complete version of Android, with images for boot and system partitions) that is already rooted, and probably contains other nice enhancements you might like as well. To use a ROM image, you flash the boot image and system image your boot and system partitions using SP Flash Tool.
UPDATE: An update file that you apply on top of your existing version of Android to get root, such as the one distributed with SuperSU. To apply this type of update, you don't install an APK file (e.g. from the Play Store). Instead, you download a "recovery flashable ZIP" and boot your device into a special "recovery mode" where you make some choices on a retro 1970s text menu to choose and apply the update---more later.
If you want to use a ROM, the ROM definitely has to be customized for your device. Flashing a ROM meant for another device is a near-guarantee to render your device inoperable, unless the other device literally only differs by the marketing name (extremely unlikely: remember when we said above how each manufacturer loves to make tiny confounding changes?).
So you are unlikely to find a ROM for your device at all (if you did, you probably wouldn't be reading this thread). If you have a lot of spare time on your hands, you could try flashing ROMs from a lot of similar devices (definitely it must be the same chipset and Android version, ideally same country, same mobile carrier or another company that actually uses the same mobile carrier's network). But that's not too likely to succeed. If you do succeed, my god definitely post it to xda so future people can be helped.
So you are left with the option of rooting your device using a "recovery flashable ZIP" update like the one that comes with SuperSU.
You still need to ask two questions:
does SuperSU (or other rooting package) work on my device?
does the "recovery mode" that comes with your device let you flash these ZIPs?
For question 1 you are not likely to find an answer (again because of the insane fragmentation of devices in the MTK market as explained above). So you are going to have to just try it, after making a backup. You can at least feel comforted by the fact that the amazing developer, Chainfire, has done insane amounts of work to make SuperSU's flashable installer ZIP work on as many devices as possible. But it's nearly impossible that he's had time to test on your MTK device, because of the severe low-end market fragmentation problem explained above (and don't ask him to: it's your job to try).
You can find many tutorials on the internet about how to get to your device's recovery mode (it's device-specific but typically involves holding down 2-3 buttons while turning on your device then making further menu choices, then holding down two buttons again when you see an image of an android laying on his back) and how to install the "recovery flashable ZIP" that comes with SuperSU or your root package.
Question 2 really depends on your device. Even though all devices we are talking about here use MT67xx chips, many device makers give you a crippled "recovery mode" that will only install updates cryptographically signed by the manufacturer using a secret key, meaning they are useless for installing SuperSU. You should just give it a try and see if you get an error message during install about the "signature" of the update being wrong (remember, while trying the SuperSU update, if you suddenly see the android lying down again, hit the same sequence of buttons that you used to get into the recovery console in the first place to get back to a screen with actual information).
If the stock recovery mode that comes with your device is not suitable for installing SuperSU, then you need to replace the recovery mode that comes with your phone with a "custom recovery" (Chainfire actually recommends using a custom recovery anyway to avoid problems). Fortunately, you have a tool in your arsenal which can replace the stock recovery with a custom recovery: SP Flash Tool. Whew. The recovery mode on your device is on one of those partitions that you can flash with SP Flash Tool. All you need to do is find a custom recovery "image" from the internet that can do SuperSU. By far the most common custom recovery tools people use are called TWRP and CWM (ClockWorkMod). These custom recovery tools even give you other cool features that the stock recovery didn't, like the ability to make backups in a way that is much easier and less technical than with SP Flash Tool.
So everything's great, right? Just install TWRP/CWM and then install SuperSU.
Well, not quite. It turns out that just like Android versions, recovery images have to be built specifically for your device. There isn't just one file for TWRP/CWM: there's one per device. So you are now faced with the challenge of finding a custom recovery image that works on your device.
So it seems like Catch-22, right? You're stuck.
Well, not exactly. It turns out that while recovery consoles are indeed device-specific, they are less device specific than Android versions. Your chances of finding a recovery image that was designed for another similar MT67xx device but works on your device are much greater than your (near zero) chances of finding a complete Android ROM that does the same.
So search on xda and Google for the chipset of your device, and look for people who have successfully used custom recovery images across similar devices. For example, my device has an MT6735 so I searched on xda and found several threads where people used recovery consoles across devices. Read the threads for your chipset and see if you recognize any similar devices. Or just try some (after making a back-up of course, including a backup of the stock recovery image in case you need to go back to that (though some devices have a nifty feature where they will restore the stock recovery automatically if a custom recovery crashes)). They may work, they may not. If you have success, definitely report it here to help others.
So hopefully, maybe with some trial and error, you can install SuperSU to root your phone, either using your phone's stock recovery or a working custom recovery that you can find on the internet. Whew.
Since you will be looking for rooting solutions on the internet and seeing many guides, I should mention that other than using SP Flash Tool or the recovery mode, there is another way to flash images to your device, usually known as the bootloader or "fastboot mode." Fastboot mode is an alternative to the "recovery mode" (you enter the fastboot mode by pushing a different set of buttons down as you turn on your device). You will find tons of references to fastboot mode as it is a key way to flash on many devices, but for your MediaTek MTK device, fastboot mode is unlikely to be useful to you: as an MTK owner, you have access to SP Flash Tool which is not encumbered by the many restrictions that some device vendors place on fastboot mode and is pretty much better all-around. Fastboot mode involves using adb command line tools, which are intimidating to some users. Many vendors completely lock down fastboot mode so that it cannot flash at all, some vendors require you to find a magic easter egg option to enable fastboot flashing and force you to erase all your data in the process of just turning that switch on, and some vendors make you call them to get a l33t secret code that you have to use to enter to unlock fastboot using an "oem unlock". Fortunately, you can bypass all that idiotic DRM nonsense by just using SP Flash Tool and get the same work done. The only advantage of fastboot mode is on some devices it lets you boot a proposed recovery console to try it one time without actually installing it: but on my device, and many MTK devices, that functionality is simply not implemented.
So what if you have exhausted all the possibilities above, and you are still stuck: None of the one-click tools work on your device. You can't find a ROM for your device. SuperSU can't be installed using your stock recovery mode, and you can't find any custom recovery image that works on your device that you could use to install SuperSU on your device. Well, then you are really in new territory where there are further steps you can take, but it's going to get a lot more technical. Since SP Flash Tool works, you do have the power to modify system files on your device, so you do have the power to root the device. First of all you can become a ROM developer and build a ROM for your device, but that is a massive undertaking and I don't even know if you can find the correct drivers to accomplish this. So instead, to get root, you're going to have to figure out how to extract a partition image (boot or system) from your device, extract all the files from that image (there are "kitchens" on xda that help you do this kind of thing), modify those files in a way that gives you root, flash the partition back, and then boot your system normally, letting the nefarious code you added give you root as the system boots. This is non-trivial but kind of fun if you are into that kind of punishment. I went through that whole process because I thought my device was one of those extreme cases (I had not yet figured out that there was probably some other custom recovery image that would have worked on my device, because there was no thread explaining this fact on xda ). The steps I took are definitely beyond the scope of this post, but if folks are interested I can share some details in a separate post (there is nothing revolutionary: I hacked /init.rc to perform an elaborate series of file copies, chmod, chown, etc. at user boot time to install SuperSU, basically simulating all the many steps that SuperSU would have taken from its install script in the recovery mode, had I been able to use the useless locked recovery mode on my device).
After you root your phone (and depending on how you root your phone) you may run into a situation where you can no longer make/receive calls because you have accidentally cleared out your phone's IMEI setting.
This, again, is a case where there are a ton of tools to fix your IMEI that are designed specially for MTK devices, but most of them do not work on MT67xx series, only the older chips (yes, you guessed it, including our old friend MTK Droid Tool).
So you will probably have to hunt around until you find an IMEI fixer that works. Many guides suggested a super-creepy Chinese app called Mobile Uncle that includes a horrific screen begging me to install all the most privacy-destroying popular Chinese social media apps, but Mobile Uncle failed to work on my MT67xx, so save yourself the viruses and use another tool. After I rooted my phone I tried 3 different apps until I found one called "MTK Engineering" that just worked, and I set my IMEI by following the visual guide in method number 1 on this website (I didn't use Mobile Uncle but the UI is the same), adding in the extra hack of adding a space between the "AT" and the "+" , and surrounding the IMEI number in quotes, as explained on this website. Phew.
Good luck and hope this guide saved you from going down several 12-hour ratholes like I did!!!
MANY MANY THANKS: I have linked to many articles on xda and the internet above. Please explore those links for more information. Thanks to Chainfire for sure for SuperSU and for whoever made SP Flash Tool (MediaTek?). And I really got a lot of helpful info from alexzap's articles. This MTK rooting/flashing guide is also pretty cool but doesn't address the newer MT67xx issues.
(reserved)
lsemprini said:
So you've got a cheap Chinese phone based on the budget MediaTek MTK MT67xx SoC (system-on-a-chip) chipset and you want to root it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First of all, thank you very much for such an educational thread. I am also a newbie to MediaTek devices but after owning an MT6752 Desire 820s there are a ton of things I have learned so far with the device and MediaTek in general which I am glad to share.
lsemprini said:
So that means SP Flash Tool is super-powerful and super-dangerous (in fact, it's suicidal if you use it on a device containing important data you haven't backed up), but on the other hand it also means that at least you always have some tool that can install new images, no matter how messed up you have made your device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I totally agree with you, SP Flashtool is the best thing to have ever happened to the MediaTek fraternity. I have been using it to test flashing partitions on my phone, corrupting the bootloader and bricking the device but it would always come to my rescue.
It is so powerful such that it can unlock, lock or relock the bootloader on HTC devices without using the official HTC bootloader unlocking method, fastboot or adb and does not require root.
The HTC bootloader somehow restricts a phone to boot into meta mode for flashing but holding volume up while connecting phone to PC tends to force the phone to access meta mode where flashing of any partition can be carried out by SP Flashtool.
I consider this a security risk but still interesting as it is too easy to access the device's userdata partition via a recovery hack since it can unlock the device's bootloader and flash a custom recovery, preserving the userdata partition which would have been wiped if one used official methods unless one encrypted their internal storage.
However newer MediaTek devices seem to have fixed this security hole. The likes of HTC One M9+, E9 and E9+ with an MT6795 processor cannot be flashed by SP Flashtool unless the device is S-off as of now. It could work with an SP Flashtool update maybe?
lsemprini said:
So consider the application of SP Flash Tool as a backup tool for MT67xx devices to be something that's not ready for everyone yet. If anyone knows an easier tool for making scatter files on MT67xx or even doing backup, let us know.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, it is possible to backup newer MediaTek SOCs (MT67XX) devices using SP Flashtool's Readback feature without root but it requires the exact scatter file of the firmware one is currently on, or at least the Partition start address of a partition you want to back up and its physical size if one cannot get the scatter file.
MTKDroidtools can at least show the partition types on the MT67XX devices but unfortunately the start and physical addresses of the partitions are not exactly as they are supposed to be on the device.
However if you are lucky to find the scatter file you can use it to readback on SP Flashtool, not reading back the entire NAND of the phone but reading back each partition individually as it is depicted on the scatter file and saving the backup file as partion_name.img eg boot.img. This is technically dding an entire partition but without using root.
The start address is depicted on the scatter file and the length is the partition_size on the scatter file.
This can be vital especially for creating a custom recovery for a device which is currently unrooted.
lsemprini said:
So you've got a cheap Chinese phone based on the budget MediaTek MTK MT67xx SoC (system-on-a-chip) chipset and you want to root it.
You've tried lots of tools and failed, and you've been searching the internet and xda for your model and found nothing (or you might have found stock ROMs for your device online but not rooted ones). Read on....
These phones are INSANELY common all across Asia because MediaTek is the cheapest chip manufacturer and so is the top choice for <USD$100 super-cheap (often free subsidized) phones. Here is a partial list of phones that use the MT67xx across many countries:
I am including the list above for two reasons:
so that people searching for their model may find this thread and be helped
so that you can just get a glimpse of the insane variety of companies and models that use the same chip family
For reasons explained below, you will find that most of these devices are resistant to the "easy" one-click rooting methods and most of them do not work with ANY of the "easy" tools that have been developed for other phones, even MediaTek (MTK)-specific tools. Of course tool support will improve over time, but as we will explain, there is something unique about your MediaTek device that will always make it harder to root.
I finally got my MT67xx-based phone rooted, and here is the information that I wished someone had posted on xda as I slogged through my search.
My goal here is NOT to provide the steps for a specific phone model, but rather to help the (literally) millions of you out there who have MT67xx-based phones find a solution by giving you a few basics to understand MediaTek MTK and rooting, and pointing you in the right direction so you know what questions to ask.
There's some bad news, and some worse news...
WHAT ALL THESE PHONES HAVE IN COMMON:
The MT67xx chipset inside your phone uses a relatively new (2014) 64-bit processor architecture, compared to the ubiquitous MediaTek MTK MT65xx, MT83xx, MT81xx processors that use a 32-bit architecture. And around the same time that MT67xx came out, MediaTek also switched devices to a new filesystem/partition format which determines where and how Android and all your data gets stored in your device's flash memory.
What these two technical changes mean is that:
many of the vulnerabilities in Android that the "easy" one-click root tools exploited to do their job (e.g. old standbys like RageAgainstTheCage, framaroot, etc.) no longer work. Updating Android is another thing that often causes these vulnerabilities to cease to work, but changing processor architectures is a biggie too.
many (but not all) of the old tools developed to root and otherwise modify MediaTek devices broke, and have not yet been fixed. Most notable is the MTK Droid Tool, a standard tool for hacking MTK devices that you will still find used in 99% of guides out there on the internet. It doesn't work on your MT67xx (at least no version I could find). Same is true of many other tools, such as some of the tools to reset your phones IMEI when rooting/modding operations disrupt your ability to call, tools to get into "MTK Engineer Mode" etc.
That is why you will find so many pages on the internet that say "Root Any Android Phone" (complete BS: if you see this, the person is either clueless or lying) or even "Root Any MediaTek Phone" and the procedure fails.
So, you would think that the cool ROM hackers and root tool folks would whip up some new tools quickly, right?
This is the point where you need to understand a harsh reality...
WHAT ALL THESE PHONES DON'T HAVE IN COMMON:
This is perhaps Android's greatest strength and weakness: every manufacturer (as well as ROM hacker here on xda) is free to tweak open-source Android in almost any way they see fit, whether to save money, integrate a new feature, customize for local market and culture, try to lock out competition, or whatever. And so they did.
Even though these devices all use MT67xx chips, it seems like every manufacturer felt compelled to make as many tiny changes as possible, and the result is that there is no easy way for kind xda hackers to develop one master ROM image of Android that will run on them all (rooted or otherwise). And it's even hard to make a rooting tool or mod that works on all devices.
Instead, the device-specific differences are significant enough that you actually need a developer to spend hours to days on each model in order to produce a workable Android ROM (rooted or otherwise).
And that is why, all over xda-developers and other sites, you rarely see custom ROMs for your MTK device. Although I'm guessing there are many times more cheap MTK devices in the world than devices with more expensive chipsets, the market of cheap devices is utterly fragmented into hundreds of vendors, so it is generally not worth any ROM hacker's time to develop for a particular device, because the reward (glory or karma, whatever turns them on) is minimal compared to a single device (e.g. most Samsungs) that is used by millions.
Sometimes the cheap MTK software/hardware changes that break both root tools and ROMs seem trivial and pointless. Like a vendor might move a critical system file for no obvious reason, switch the order of SD cards so that old software breaks, leave out key system programs they thought "nobody would need," introduce new and usually-broken encryption methods to lock out modders, etc.
THE SILVER LINING
Seems pretty grim, huh?
This cloud has one major silver lining.
I'm going to tell you about a tool that does work on MT67xx devices. You may or may not end up using this tool as part of your rooting strategy (more below), but it's good to hear some good news sometime
As far as I can tell, all MediaTek devices MT67xx, MT65xx, MT83xx, MT81xx work with the SP Flash Tool, a MediaTek MTK-specific tool that lets you flash (write) new versions of Android and tools that you need to install or modify Android (ROMs, custom recovery images, recovery updates) on to your device.
SP Flash Tool lets you flash "images" to your device, even if your device is totally bricked or has been utterly wiped clean from some earlier messup. An "image" is geek speak for a file that contains the whole contents of a partition of your Android device's storage, such as the partitions that contain the Android operating system (boot and system), the partitions that contain a recovery tool that lets you do less primitive operations like updating Android, installing SuperSU, or backing up your device (recovery), or even the partition with the logo shown on boot (logo).
So that means SP Flash Tool is super-powerful and super-dangerous (in fact, it's suicidal if you use it on a device containing important data you haven't backed up), but on the other hand it also means that at least you always have some tool that can install new images, no matter how messed up you have made your device.
The significance of this cannot be understated. For Android devices with other chipsets, there is of course some way to flash images (various tools referred to as "recovery console," "bootloader/fastboot mode," etc), but the chipset and manufacturers (even on some MediaTek MTK devices) try to ruin your day by:
locking your bootloader or recovery console so it can only flash images cryptographically signed by the manufacturer using secret keys, meaning you can't use them to modify your phone in the way you want,
providing you only with flashing methods that work if the certain partitions stay intact---meaning that if you make a certain kind of mistake, you may much more easily "brick" your phone so that you have no way of ever using it for anything but a doorstop.
MediaTek's SP Flash Tool, on the other hand, does not get in your way with any kind of lock---it always lets you flash images to the device, even if your flash memory has become completely garbled with nonsense. The tool literally works on your phone before your phone has started to boot up (kind of scary actually and a huge design flaw security risk, oh well). It is still up to you of course to flash something that works, but at least you have the option.
A very important principle for SP Flash Tool is: only flash partitions that you need to flash. That will likely be recovery, and maybe boot/system and maybe logo if you are playing around. Even though you may find a ROM with all partitions, only flash the ones the instructions say you need to flash. Otherwise you invite problems that might clear important settings on your device (e.g. mobile radio/carrier settings you need for your calling to work, etc.).
You're probably thinking that using SP Flash Tool, you can first make a backup of your device, so that no matter what you try, you can always restore your backup. Good news: this is kind of true: the SP Flash Tool is capable of this kind of backup, as seen in this thread, this thread, and this thread. But when you look at those threads, you will see there is a catch: the technique relies on being able to extract something called a "scatter file" from your device, and the tool they always use for this? You guessed it, MTK Droid Tool, the tool that doesn't (yet) work on MT67xx devices. This nice thread explains the situation and gives you a way to get the "scatter file" to make your backup, but as you can see it's more technical than many people will be willing to do. So basically we are waiting for better tools to be available to less technical users for backing up MT67xx devices. If you don't mind bricking your device at all or until such a tool comes out, it won't matter. But for most users you will want some kind of backup in your rooting strategy. If anyone knows of a better new tool that works on MT67xx, please reply below.
So consider the application of SP Flash Tool as a backup tool for MT67xx devices to be something that's not ready for everyone yet. If anyone knows an easier tool for making scatter files on MT67xx or even doing backup, let us know.
There are other ways of making backups of your device before you attempt to root your device, though, so you might not need to use SP Flash Tool as your backup. More later...
Also, some reading this thread may have found a stock ROM for your exact device (one that is just like the manufacturer gave you, not rooted) that can serve as your backup in case your rooting attempts fail.
HOW TO ROOT YOUR PHONE
Typically when you want to root any Android device, you google the name of the device with "root" and you will find either:
"easy" one-click rooting tools (e.g. Kingoroot, Kingroot, One Click Root, framaroot) that you install on your device or your PC and click one button to root.
software that you are supposed to flash to your Android device to make it rooted (either complete ROM images containing a complete copy of Android for your device, already rooted and usually with other handy mods, or flashable update images that root your existing copy of Android).
The "easy" one-click tools may be worth trying, because they literally are just one click, but they come with a massive downside: many of them, such as Kingoroot, have been repeatedly accused of, and occasionally caught at, doing extremely shady things on your device after installation, such as sending your device's private IMEI number to servers in China. Kingroot (yes, it's different from Kingoroot) is a one-click tool that is recommended on xda, but which installs extremely invasive "purify" and/or "scanning" software on your device (also frequently connecting with servers in China for unknown reasons which the closed-source makers of these tools will not disclose). I personally find the many creepy clone Kingroot advertising websites and obviously-fake "user" posts about Kingroot that are gushingly positive about Kingroot to be a major, major red flag. If they have to make fake one-sided posts to convince people to install, what are they hiding? Many people use Kingroot simply because they've tried everything else and it's the only one-click tool that can root their device (because the Kingroot developers accomplish root using new exploits that nobody else has found, and devote significant resources to keeping up to date on exploits, perhaps using money they got from.....), then they use other tools that supposedly strip away Kingroot and its bloat/sketchiness and replace it with a more trusted root solution such as SuperSU (SuperSU requires your phone to be already rooted or requires you to flash something to install it). There even seems to be an arms war between Kingroot and these "Kingroot stripping tools" which causes problems on your phone as each party releases updates. You get the picture.
If you're reading this thread, you may have already tried these one-click tools and seen that they don't work on your MT67xx, or you may be too suspicious of them.
So, you moved on to looking for software that you could flash to your device that would root your device.
You searched in xda and Google for your make and model and found.....nothing. Except hopefully this thread.
Now you know why you didn't find anything using your make and model (you didn't skip the sections above, did you?). Fortunately, there is some hope.
Flashable software that can root your device will likely take one of two forms:
ROM: A complete ROM (complete version of Android, with images for boot and system partitions) that is already rooted, and probably contains other nice enhancements you might like as well. To use a ROM image, you flash the boot image and system image your boot and system partitions using SP Flash Tool.
UPDATE: An update file that you apply on top of your existing version of Android to get root, such as the one distributed with SuperSU. To apply this type of update, you don't install an APK file (e.g. from the Play Store). Instead, you download a "recovery flashable ZIP" and boot your device into a special "recovery mode" where you make some choices on a retro 1970s text menu to choose and apply the update---more later.
If you want to use a ROM, the ROM definitely has to be customized for your device. Flashing a ROM meant for another device is a near-guarantee to render your device inoperable, unless the other device literally only differs by the marketing name (extremely unlikely: remember when we said above how each manufacturer loves to make tiny confounding changes?).
So you are unlikely to find a ROM for your device at all (if you did, you probably wouldn't be reading this thread). If you have a lot of spare time on your hands, you could try flashing ROMs from a lot of similar devices (definitely it must be the same chipset and Android version, ideally same country, same mobile carrier or another company that actually uses the same mobile carrier's network). But that's not too likely to succeed. If you do succeed, my god definitely post it to xda so future people can be helped.
So you are left with the option of rooting your device using a "recovery flashable ZIP" update like the one that comes with SuperSU.
You still need to ask two questions:
does SuperSU (or other rooting package) work on my device?
does the "recovery mode" that comes with your device let you flash these ZIPs?
For question 1 you are not likely to find an answer (again because of the insane fragmentation of devices in the MTK market as explained above). So you are going to have to just try it, after making a backup. You can at least feel comforted by the fact that the amazing developer, Chainfire, has done insane amounts of work to make SuperSU's flashable installer ZIP work on as many devices as possible. But it's nearly impossible that he's had time to test on your MTK device, because of the severe low-end market fragmentation problem explained above (and don't ask him to: it's your job to try).
You can find many tutorials on the internet about how to get to your device's recovery mode (it's device-specific but typically involves holding down 2-3 buttons while turning on your device then making further menu choices, then holding down two buttons again when you see an image of an android laying on his back) and how to install the "recovery flashable ZIP" that comes with SuperSU or your root package.
Question 2 really depends on your device. Even though all devices we are talking about here use MT67xx chips, many device makers give you a crippled "recovery mode" that will only install updates cryptographically signed by the manufacturer using a secret key, meaning they are useless for installing SuperSU. You should just give it a try and see if you get an error message during install about the "signature" of the update being wrong (remember, while trying the SuperSU update, if you suddenly see the android lying down again, hit the same sequence of buttons that you used to get into the recovery console in the first place to get back to a screen with actual information).
If the stock recovery mode that comes with your device is not suitable for installing SuperSU, then you need to replace the recovery mode that comes with your phone with a "custom recovery" (Chainfire actually recommends using a custom recovery anyway to avoid problems). Fortunately, you have a tool in your arsenal which can replace the stock recovery with a custom recovery: SP Flash Tool. Whew. The recovery mode on your device is on one of those partitions that you can flash with SP Flash Tool. All you need to do is find a custom recovery "image" from the internet that can do SuperSU. By far the most common custom recovery tools people use are called TWRP and CWM (ClockWorkMod). These custom recovery tools even give you other cool features that the stock recovery didn't, like the ability to make backups in a way that is much easier and less technical than with SP Flash Tool.
So everything's great, right? Just install TWRP/CWM and then install SuperSU.
Well, not quite. It turns out that just like Android versions, recovery images have to be built specifically for your device. There isn't just one file for TWRP/CWM: there's one per device. So you are now faced with the challenge of finding a custom recovery image that works on your device.
So it seems like Catch-22, right? You're stuck.
Well, not exactly. It turns out that while recovery consoles are indeed device-specific, they are less device specific than Android versions. Your chances of finding a recovery image that was designed for another similar MT67xx device but works on your device are much greater than your (near zero) chances of finding a complete Android ROM that does the same.
So search on xda and Google for the chipset of your device, and look for people who have successfully used custom recovery images across similar devices. For example, my device has an MT6735 so I searched on xda and found several threads where people used recovery consoles across devices. Read the threads for your chipset and see if you recognize any similar devices. Or just try some (after making a back-up of course, including a backup of the stock recovery image in case you need to go back to that (though some devices have a nifty feature where they will restore the stock recovery automatically if a custom recovery crashes)). They may work, they may not. If you have success, definitely report it here to help others.
So hopefully, maybe with some trial and error, you can install SuperSU to root your phone, either using your phone's stock recovery or a working custom recovery that you can find on the internet. Whew.
Since you will be looking for rooting solutions on the internet and seeing many guides, I should mention that other than using SP Flash Tool or the recovery mode, there is another way to flash images to your device, usually known as the bootloader or "fastboot mode." Fastboot mode is an alternative to the "recovery mode" (you enter the fastboot mode by pushing a different set of buttons down as you turn on your device). You will find tons of references to fastboot mode as it is a key way to flash on many devices, but for your MediaTek MTK device, fastboot mode is unlikely to be useful to you: as an MTK owner, you have access to SP Flash Tool which is not encumbered by the many restrictions that some device vendors place on fastboot mode and is pretty much better all-around. Fastboot mode involves using adb command line tools, which are intimidating to some users. Many vendors completely lock down fastboot mode so that it cannot flash at all, some vendors require you to find a magic easter egg option to enable fastboot flashing and force you to erase all your data in the process of just turning that switch on, and some vendors make you call them to get a l33t secret code that you have to use to enter to unlock fastboot using an "oem unlock". Fortunately, you can bypass all that idiotic DRM nonsense by just using SP Flash Tool and get the same work done. The only advantage of fastboot mode is on some devices it lets you boot a proposed recovery console to try it one time without actually installing it: but on my device, and many MTK devices, that functionality is simply not implemented.
So what if you have exhausted all the possibilities above, and you are still stuck: None of the one-click tools work on your device. You can't find a ROM for your device. SuperSU can't be installed using your stock recovery mode, and you can't find any custom recovery image that works on your device that you could use to install SuperSU on your device. Well, then you are really in new territory where there are further steps you can take, but it's going to get a lot more technical. Since SP Flash Tool works, you do have the power to modify system files on your device, so you do have the power to root the device. First of all you can become a ROM developer and build a ROM for your device, but that is a massive undertaking and I don't even know if you can find the correct drivers to accomplish this. So instead, to get root, you're going to have to figure out how to extract a partition image (boot or system) from your device, extract all the files from that image (there are "kitchens" on xda that help you do this kind of thing), modify those files in a way that gives you root, flash the partition back, and then boot your system normally, letting the nefarious code you added give you root as the system boots. This is non-trivial but kind of fun if you are into that kind of punishment. I went through that whole process because I thought my device was one of those extreme cases (I had not yet figured out that there was probably some other custom recovery image that would have worked on my device, because there was no thread explaining this fact on xda ). The steps I took are definitely beyond the scope of this post, but if folks are interested I can share some details in a separate post (there is nothing revolutionary: I hacked /init.rc to perform an elaborate series of file copies, chmod, chown, etc. at user boot time to install SuperSU, basically simulating all the many steps that SuperSU would have taken from its install script in the recovery mode, had I been able to use the useless locked recovery mode on my device).
After you root your phone (and depending on how you root your phone) you may run into a situation where you can no longer make/receive calls because you have accidentally cleared out your phone's IMEI setting.
This, again, is a case where there are a ton of tools to fix your IMEI that are designed specially for MTK devices, but most of them do not work on MT67xx series, only the older chips (yes, you guessed it, including our old friend MTK Droid Tool).
So you will probably have to hunt around until you find an IMEI fixer that works. Many guides suggested a super-creepy Chinese app called Mobile Uncle that includes a horrific screen begging me to install all the most privacy-destroying popular Chinese social media apps, but Mobile Uncle failed to work on my MT67xx, so save yourself the viruses and use another tool. After I rooted my phone I tried 3 different apps until I found one called "MTK Engineering" that just worked, and I set my IMEI by following the visual guide in method number 1 on this website (I didn't use Mobile Uncle but the UI is the same), adding in the extra hack of adding a space between the "AT" and the "+" , and surrounding the IMEI number in quotes, as explained on this website. Phew.
Good luck and hope this guide saved you from going down several 12-hour ratholes like I did!!!
MANY MANY THANKS: I have linked to many articles on xda and the internet above. Please explore those links for more information. Thanks to Chainfire for sure for SuperSU and for whoever made SP Flash Tool (MediaTek?). And I really got a lot of helpful info from alexzap's articles. This MTK rooting/flashing guide is also pretty cool but doesn't address the newer MT67xx issues.
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My device MT6735 I want IMEI restore tool
I tried mobileuncle tool not working for imei backup restore
Wow, a lot to read there, but this has been the most helpful thing I have found so far related to rooting my phone model. Not sure why this thread hadn't appeared in my earlier Google searches even though this thread has already been around for three months. Anyway...
You said your device has an MT6735 SoC, can I ask which phone model you have? as that's the exact same SoC that mine has (LG K8), and you've managed to root yours.
Apparently trying to root an LG K8 with a one-click root tool has bricked a few people's phones, so I don't even want to give that option a try.
It seems the best method for me to try would be getting a working custom recovery onto my phone, then installing SuperSU, all after making a backup of course. Hopefully I won't need to resort to modifying files myself like you had done, I dunno if I'd be confident enough to either.
Thank you for such a thorough guide and explanation. Time to go look up custom recoveries~
lsemprini said:
The significance of this cannot be understated. For Android devices with other chipsets, there is of course some way to flash images (various tools referred to as "recovery console," "bootloader/fastboot mode," etc), but the chipset and manufacturers (even on some MediaTek MTK devices) try to ruin your day by:
locking your bootloader or recovery console so it can only flash images cryptographically signed by the manufacturer using secret keys, meaning you can't use them to modify your phone in the way you want,
providing you only with flashing methods that work if the certain partitions stay intact---meaning that if you make a certain kind of mistake, you may much more easily "brick" your phone so that you have no way of ever using it for anything but a doorstop.
.
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I have an iBaby888 i6S+ Clone, mt6735, very good chip, hampered by bad design in the way the device's main storage is. Of course, I can fix this with a tool called "Reziser" which will open up that 2gb upper limit, BUT, I need to apply the zip from a Custom Recovery. But I can't INSTALL any Custom Recovery, Why? Because the bootloader is not only LOCKED: it is NON-UNLOCKABLE. /fastboot oem unlock = FAILS every time. I don't comprehend this idiocy of design, in a device that comes with a fake IMEI in the first place. Not to mention the device has issues with Google App updates which cause play store to stop working within 5 minutes of unboxing.
What do I do to unlock this? Or, better yet, is there a pre-made, unlocked Recovery ROM I can flash with SPflash, that is 8.4mb or less? One of the reasons why TWRP fails is that it tells me that my Boot.img or Recovery.img are too big and will cause "overlap" - When I know that I they are *not* too large. But I am thinking this failure is occurring because of the LOCKED state of my boot loader and stock recovery. And the Stock recovery is practically worthless.
Is there some kind of secret code or fastboot command I can apply to bust the crud out of this junk? This device COULD run as well as the device it is mimicking, if not for the 2gb main storage limit and locked bootloader that prevents all useful tools from being loaded. I can't even install xPosed, because the main binary has to be installed via Recovery, and it is also why SuperSU Me bricks the device, Kingroot is the only method of rooting it, and there is no working method of replacing Kingroot with SuperSU, all because of the locked issue.
I have a similar my6582 device, I rooted it and installed CWM recovery, no sweat, using MTK Droid tools. But Oh Yes! Guess what! There is NO Version of the tool for 67xx's! and that device actually has a 4gb storage area, in that respect it's a better device, save for the very low-res screen (160dpi, my iBaby version is 320dpi).
So, you got anything I can try, I am only just learning now to work with Androids, I have been an Apple Jailbreaker for 5 years (which is why I love these clones). I had a similar issue with running out of system storage space on Apple devices too, but we use system folder stashing (symlinking to the larger user partition) to prevent our system storage from being stuffed full. I have noticed on my Samsung and other higher end androids, I am always given 8 to 16 gb of system storage. But these MediaTek devices, why in blazes are they only given 2 to 4gb of space. when the chip can handle so much more? I can only move so many apps to my card with Apps2SD, and if you move too many, the system does not run well.
Sorry for the rant, I have been up against brick wall city over and over today, I have tried a dozen tools that all failed to unlock my bootloader, all for the same reason, the default unlock method just doesn't work.
Aerieana said:
Wow, a lot to read there, but this has been the most helpful thing I have found so far related to rooting my phone model. Not sure why this thread hadn't appeared in my earlier Google searches even though this thread has already been around for three months. Anyway...
You said your device has an MT6735 SoC, can I ask which phone model you have? as that's the exact same SoC that mine has (LG K8), and you've managed to root yours.
Apparently trying to root an LG K8 with a one-click root tool has bricked a few people's phones, so I don't even want to give that option a try.
It seems the best method for me to try would be getting a working custom recovery onto my phone, then installing SuperSU, all after making a backup of course. Hopefully I won't need to resort to modifying files myself like you had done, I dunno if I'd be confident enough to either.
Thank you for such a thorough guide and explanation. Time to go look up custom recoveries~
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Have you managed to root your LG K8?
LG K8
I see I'm not the only one wondering about rooting his/her LG K8 Let me know if u figure out sth about it
Would be good to see some tracking on which phones have had success before we buy the phone.... what do I best search for in choosing a cheap phone?
Alcatel Onetouch POP Astro 5042T MT6732
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some interesting information regarding flashing and rooting some MT67xx phones
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X-weApon-X said:
I have an iBaby888 i6S+ Clone, mt6735, very good chip, hampered by bad design in the way the device's main storage is. Of course, I can fix this with a tool called "Reziser" which will open up that 2gb upper limit, BUT, I need to apply the zip from a Custom Recovery. But I can't INSTALL any Custom Recovery, Why? Because the bootloader is not only LOCKED: it is NON-UNLOCKABLE. /fastboot oem unlock = FAILS every time. I don't comprehend this idiocy of design, in a device that comes with a fake IMEI in the first place. Not to mention the device has issues with Google App updates which cause play store to stop working within 5 minutes of unboxing.
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I have the same device as you. I managed to get it rooted by using Kingroot & Kinguser APK here on XDA. Once that was done, I backed up the chinese bloatware to the sd card and removed them. I now have about 500gb free space on system as I moved most of my must have apps to the system/apps folder.
Google Play for me does not crash because I changed the space available. This I believe is the key, Google Play crashing was always because of low space. Mine has updated and I can still use it.
The only isue I have is that the 6735 is slow. I don't know if it's the cheap sd/emmc or lack of RAM, but the phone can get pretty slow. Now that I have root I can make changes here and there. I plan on opening it up and replacing the SD card with a faster one.
I've tried unlocking the bootloader and it failed for mine too. I may try one of these services that unlocks MTK bootloaders.
Still working on performance on mine but thus far I have removed 90% of the iPhone esque apps and have all Android appsnow, no more Apple looks...only lock screen and settings.
Chaos Storm said:
I have the same device as you. I managed to get it rooted by using Kingroot & Kinguser APK here on XDA. Once that was done, I backed up the chinese bloatware to the sd card and removed them. I now have about 500gb free space on system as I moved most of my must have apps to the system/apps folder.
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When you removed those, did they leave an ugly icon on the springboard? What did you use to remove them, I used Apps2SD. I really want to know how to access the icons on the "Springboard", I don't know where they are in the Filesystem.
I created a TWRP recovery for mine, it's totally upside down, really difficult to manage, but the first thing I did when I booted, was to go into recovery and close it right away to install SuperSU. From there, it's easy. I can share the recovery.img I made. It's larger than the allotted 6544kb, I'm not sure if it is causing me any problems, it might be because of the larger size.
Google Play for me does not crash because I changed the space available. This I believe is the key, Google Play crashing was always because of low space. Mine has updated and I can still use it.
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Did you use "Resize"? - I used that, and it increases UserData from 2gb to 4gb, that's as big as it gets. My Samsung GTAB3 has 12gb of UserData, that's adequate, I can install ALL of my apps to internal. But you can't install Resizer from anywhere than Recovery. Same with the Lollipop version of xPosed.
The only issue I have is that the 6735 is slow. I don't know if it's the cheap sd/emmc or lack of RAM, but the phone can get pretty slow. Now that I have root I can make changes here and there. I plan on opening it up and replacing the SD card with a faster one.
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6735 is much faster than an MT6582, but any speed is cancelled out by the inordinate partitioning system. Just not enough ROOM. My GTAB3 seems much faster, but only because I have so much more free space even after installing 100 apps.
Replacing the SDcard Should be easy, I did it to my other clone, installed my Patriot card, which is the best card I've had. Be really careful, take the SIM slot out, unscrew the two bottom screws, then use one of the Apple Suction Cup tools to pull up from the Home/Touch ring. The entire assembly should pop right out. Be very careful! Flip it over, and unscrew all of the little screws. Take the audio assembly out from the bottom, and then you can probably see where the Card goes in if you pull up on the Motherboard, on mine it is right under the Front Camera. There is a little battery taped in there, untape that and you'll see a little Ribbon Cable, carefully take that off. The Card slot is right underneath, you can reach in with Tweezers and pull it out, then reverse the process putting the new card in. Of course, on the iBaby clone, it may be more like the Sophone, once you start pulling up on the Display, you will see if it's a full assembly or if the Display comes off. If that's the case, it's much easier to get to the Card slot, but you have to carefully remove the display.
One thing I noticed, without GAPPs it hauls arse. I was running it after flashing with Format+Download, after reboot, it has a *****in Android black logo on white, with a little "Bite mark" cut out of the side. I love that. here are the codes to add the Apple logo and GAPPs:
1. *#35741#*
2.*#15963#*
Choose the leftmost button on the first row.
Choose the rightmost button on the second row.
Tap on Reboot.
- That process will do a "factory reset" while Installing GAPPs, so don't install any apps before you do that.
I've tried unlocking the bootloader and it failed for mine too. I may try one of these services that unlocks MTK bootloaders.
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There is no need to do it, if you install a Recovery, I can give you my image. Once you have TWRP installed, you can do everything.
Still working on performance on mine but thus far I have removed 90% of the iPhone esque apps and have all Android appsnow, no more Apple looks...only lock screen and settings.
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I left the Camera, Calculator, "Facetime" = Skype, but I hate Skype so I removed the fook out of THAT. That damned "UC Browser" has to go, and the "Tips", "Watch" and "Stocks" are placeholders that do nothing. "Health" is Runtastic, but the Chinese version has SLife which is a better app. I backed all of the cloneapps with Titanium, but they are system apps, so I don't know if they can be restored, I'm trying to restore SLife now. Didn't go in. I'll try again later. But I, wondering if when you uninstalled the crappapps, if it left icons on your springboard.
Crap! I just tried to install Xposed, and FAILED because my 2GB System area is TOTALLY full, probably because of the GAPPS + the Crappapps. Now I have to get in there and delete the crap out of some serious stuff. The GAPPS apps are HUGE. I don't want them all, just Market/Google. Google Music was installed, I hate that and don't use it.
Oh Yah, if you find you want to block Google App updates, read down in this thread. This was about 2 months of research before I came up with this method, which worked until I flashed my device a month ago:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/group.php?do=discuss&group=&discussionid=4064
I just followed my own instructions, so we'll see how effective this is.
---------- Post added at 01:38 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:30 AM ----------
When I removed the apps I also removed the Home Launcher and replaced it with Google Home. However, after a few system edits it has started to crash, most likely because some of the system functions are tied to the home launcher, so I've reverted it back to semi stock.
I removed the apps by using Root Explorer and going to:
/system/apps , /system/priv-app, /system/vendor/operator/app, /system/app_ch, /system/app_en and cut & paste to the sd card. There is at least 600MB of space just in useless chinese apps.
If you have a TWRP to share that would be awesome.
Is there a way to backup the stock recovery just in case? To flash the new recovery do you do that via fastboot?
Thanks in advance!
So I spent some time today porting TWRP and got that working.
From what I've read from the TWRP thread, I would need to compile TWRP from sources to fix the rotation bug. I might do that if I have time.
Since CyanogenMod was released for another MTK6735 device, I am doing a quick and dirty port to see how well if at allit plays with the goophone, as CM would be awesome to have.
Chaos Storm said:
Since CyanogenMod was released for another MTK6735 device, I am doing a quick and dirty port to see how well if at allit plays with the goophone, as CM would be awesome to have.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, quick and dirty it was. Even though I double checked the META-INF and made sure everything was OK, the second attempt at porting resulted in a bootloop and no more recovery.
Anyways, I found the required firmware files on needrom and have gotten the phone back running.What's interesting is that on the previous build the dialer code would not work, but now they do. Anyways, now that I have a rom for this phone, I can hack to my hearts content.
META Mode MT6753
Hi guys,
I spend a few hours to recover my bricket ulefone paris via SP Flash Tool & going into META mode.
Problem is: device isnt recognized any more after a flash with a wrong preloader (ok, it was an offical rom, but anyway..). But how does the META mode for the MT6753 chipset works?
I´ve tried several combinations (Volume +, Volume + and Power, Volume -, etc.) when connecting it via USB to my PC running SP Flash with the correct image - but the device manager show no new device.
Before the false flash it worked perfect....
So is there another possibility to flash this device via META mode or is the another key combination for META mode?
Thanks!
Thanks!
A huge thank you for being the only one out there to clearly articulate the issue that is specific to the MTK chipset and SP Tools version that needs to be used. I waded through so many forums to find this very useful info. Appreciated.
Estupenda y muy trabajada explicación de lsemprini :good:
Para los profanos se deduce entonces que hay que confiar de las app´s como kingoroot, etc. que te prometen con 1 click brickear tu phone, tienes muchas posibilidades de conseguirlo.
Me uno al equipo entonces de los que tenemos un MediaTek MT6750 comprado barato, pero eso sí, con 3 Gb de RAM y 32 Gb de ROM + slot card.
Pero soy de los que me gusta to have root in my phone y veo que tendré que esperar.
He visto for developers este sitio con esta información que me ha parecido interesante: http://www.ayudaroot.com/general/conseguir-archivo-scatter-cualquier-dispositivo-mtk/
Please, up any information about news news.
Cheeeeeers!
Root to alls Meizu
Hi guys!
Good news para los poseedores de terminales Meizu.
No se necesita aplicaciones de terceros ni correr el riesgo de dejar hecho un ladrillo nuestro juguete, ya que la firma Meizu contempla el derecho de superusuario desde nuestro propio terminal. Puede variar según que modelo, en concreto desde el que yo tengo el Meizu M5 se hace de forma tan sencilla como ir a:
Ajustes > huellas y seguridad > permisos de superusuario. Además puedes escoger qué tipo de aplicaciones tendrán derechos de superuser y cuáles no lo tendrán.
En otros modelos se hace desde la cuenta "My flame" que es la ROM que usa Meizu en Android.
click en My Flame > para acceder a más ajustes del registro > en Personal Settings, en la parte inferior verás que hay la opción con otro click de > abrir > system privileges
Y eso es todo amigos! sencillo y sin complicaciones, como debe de ser !
Una vez tenemos root privileges sobre nuestro Meizu, me gustaría si alguien sabe cómo hacer un downgrade de smarshmallow a kitkat, ya que no me gusta nada la 6, para mí, la mejor es la 4.4.4.
Bye!