Custom ROM support already dead? - Honor 8 Questions & Answers

It really has been a while since all the major ones got an update. I am just asking, because I don't like the fact, that Honor pushes out phones every 3 months while abandoning older phones such as the Honor 8 and now to me it seems the same for the custom roms here on XDA. Well ok, an OREO custom ROM came out a few weeks ago, but it seems to have the same bugs as the Nougat ones (which are still not fixed?). I dont want to moan or something like that, but can anyone give some clarification on that (like: we are still working on our roms but wont publish updates before everything works 100%)?

this is the way its going to be with huawei. if you want custom rom support look elswhere. at least the new phones will get treble which will help with running custom roms but i would still recommend another brand.

Go an Android One Device a few weeks ago, sadly my screen broke overnight (dont know why and how) and had to send the phone back, got my money back because i dont wanted to wait till 2018 to get my replacement phone (Xiaomi Mi A1 imported). Looking for a new device right now, seems like except for the google phones, there isnt a brand which supports atleast two major OS updates and then continues to give devs custom rom support. Had my eye on the Nokia ones (they just said, that they want to open the bootloaders), but I dont know if a Snapdragon 430 would make me happy.

I've had Moto's for several years through the Moto G4 and custom rom availability was the best thing about Motorola phones. That said, Lenovo ruined Motorola and the Honor 8 is still better even without custom rom support. I would take my Honor 8 over the rom rich Moto any day.

Related

[Q] Dead end for custom ROMs?

Hey guys,
I've recently bought the AM7 because my old XZ died. The phone itself is great, but as much as I like the smoothness of EMUI, I feel like there's still something missing. Being used to the Xperia's modding scene, I was surprised by the lack of custom ROM development for the AM7, or Huawei devices in general.. Is there a specific reason for that? Or is it just the small userbase outside of China?
Either way, I feel like the AM7 was a less fortunate decision for me, as a lover of custom ROMs.
Purely due to smaller western world userbase, expect may see one or 2 more decent custom builds appear but will not be comparable to modding support of more popular devices.
Worth working with the EMUI a bit as it far better in many ways to standard android mess but I can understand it not going be everyone's cup of tea ...
Hi, what model you got, 16 or 32 gb, how's the LTE network and what carrier you have, I'm looking for a 32 gb device with U.S.LTE
Sent from my MT2L03 using Tapatalk
EMO UI and Huawei are pretty good when u get used to it. There are a few roms to try, CM11 based. But before you bought this phone you should have read the owners impressions thread. It would have become clear that there arent alot of custom roms´s available. Huawei has implemented some custom things like screenshot button and reboot phone soft key, which i really like and dont see in everyday android devices. Alot of the exposed modules are already avaible in Huawei rom, like system cleaner, battery optimizer, change storage to SD *without link2sd... If you want to know why it´s hard to get a custom rom for our phones. Try the honor 6 thread by CodeWorkx porting CM11, it will explain why there arent alot of roms and why some functionality in those roms is broken on our devices and will probably never be fixed.
Enjoy your phone though, give it a chance you´ll get used to it.
Custom ROMs are EVEN more buggy and not working properly.. so better stay on EMUI 3.0
Whilst not a replacement ROM, a different launcher such as Nova can improve on the stock interphase.

Any chance of custom roms?

As already been know, no custom roms were developed for Kirin proccesor?
Any chance for Honor 8 to receive one?
I like the phone, but not the UI...
We are working directly with Honor to get the proper assets needed for open development. It is a work in progress and we should know a lot more in the coming weeks.
If what the articles on XDA and what @svetius say are true, we should have all the required files to start building custom roms. Question is, with the recent release of N, are the to be provided Honor files going to be for M or N?
If anyone is interested, I have uploaded some documentation about the experience of developing custom roms to prior Kirin devices https://github.com/HiSilicon-Kirin/Documentation
It's pretty basic at the moment but if someone wants to read it you might find it helpful for future development.
COMI80 said:
As already been know, no custom roms were developed for Kirin proccesor?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thst's not true https://github.com/P8LiteDev/android_device_huawei_hi6210sft
Ok, my bad and I apologize .... and I rephrase - existing custom roms on previous Kirins are far from being fully functional.
But good news for future development and thanks everybody for replies.
As for the free lesson....
I have to buy a new phone soon as my z3c is experiencing touch problems (I'm out of warranty because i unlocked the bl...) plus there is no good development for it, and this honor 8 would completely meet my needs. but I'll wait first to see if good development for it will really arrive, otherwise will have to buy something else. really hope so though, also considering the amount of good advertising it is receiving in this forum!
i really like recent huawei phones, my gf has one (g8) which is very nice, but I've never got one myself because of the poor development i found for them.. so i hope some good devs will get this one in particular not too late and be able to properly work on it :fingers-crossed:
moly82 said:
I have to buy a new phone soon as my z3c is experiencing touch problems (I'm out of warranty because i unlocked the bl...)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not true, European laws state that if your phone is defective and you want to use the warranty, the OEM has to prove the malfunction was caused by your modifications. In most cases, unlocking the bootloader won't void your warranty. At least in Europe.
I've sent a few of my previous phones for repairs after flashing custom ROMs... And never had a problem. At least try, even if you want to buy the H8, your Z3c might be repaired regardless, and you would have a fully functional backup phone
COMI80 said:
Ok, my bad and I apologize .... and I rephrase - existing custom roms on previous Kirins are far from being fully functional.
But good news for future development and thanks everybody for replies.
As for the free lesson....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There was no big support that's why, but now honor is providing key devs anything they need to make the honor 8 great, let's hope for nougat
Lurdy said:
Not true, European laws state that if your phone is defective and you want to use the warranty, the OEM has to prove the malfunction was caused by your modifications. In most cases, unlocking the bootloader won't void your warranty. At least in Europe.
I've sent a few of my previous phones for repairs after flashing custom ROMs... And never had a problem. At least try, even if you want to buy the H8, your Z3c might be repaired regardless, and you would have a fully functional backup phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks, I know myself that is clearly true, but I have already tried, and they do not accept the in-warranty reparation, considering I am now blacklisted in their SW as last time I sent it for repair (again for a z3c famous and common defect on the magnetic port coming out, so nothing relevant to unlocking/flashing custom roms etc) they returned my phone not repaired because it was unlocked...
Well, honor 8 should get custom ROMs
moly82 said:
I have to buy a new phone soon as my z3c is experiencing touch problems (I'm out of warranty because i unlocked the bl...) plus there is no good development for it, and this honor 8 would completely meet my needs. but I'll wait first to see if good development for it will really arrive, otherwise will have to buy something else. really hope so though, also considering the amount of good advertising it is receiving in this forum!
i really like recent huawei phones, my gf has one (g8) which is very nice, but I've never got one myself because of the poor development i found for them.. so i hope some good devs will get this one in particular not too late and be able to properly work on it :fingers-crossed:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you want to try an honor phone with Great Rom support look no further than the 5X (GR5) >> http://forum.xda-developers.com/honor-5x
Personally I will pass on the Honor 8 because of the smaller screen size and the kirin processor
yeah i did read about it in this forum but i prefer honor 8 because of the smaller screen I'm the opposite, don't like too big phones actually honor 8 would be even a little too big for me, but could buy it anyway and that's really the maximum size allowed for me processor will be fine as long as development will arrive, if not will probably buy a mi5
Can do a custom rom, but first need a firmware.
If I decide to get this phone, and support for custom ROM's becomes a thing, I feel like the best feature in custom ROM's would be tweaks to the Smart Key aka the fingerprint sensor. Just like with my OnePlus X, many custom ROM's let you set the alert slider for silence, vibrate, ring, or the default DND/priority notification toggle. So I feel like instead of only being able to set 3 functions to the Smart Key, tweaks would allow it to have more than 3 and set it for things that the system doesn't normally allow. That would be awesome in my opinion.
Previously till now, Kirin processor is always a deal breaker for me. I own a Honor 4X with CM12.1 installed.
No custom ROM avaliablity meaning only HUAWEI can provide future updates to us, that's not a good news.
honestly, i am also hesitant about the kirin processor.
i went on a mall last sunday to check the p9 which is most likely the same look except for the hardware and i dont know if i can really take something not close to vanilla android.. but im actually hopeful.. im confused.
yes chance for custom roms
we can expect custom roms for honor 8 in near future but developers work in their leisure time to build custom roms so wait until the kernel sources are released by huawei once they are released there will be different AOSP/cyanogen based ROMS for honor 8.
but never ask for ETAs:angel:
sagar emperor said:
we can expect custom roms for honor 8 in near future but developers work in their leisure time to build custom roms so wait until the kernel sources are released by huawei once they are released there will be different AOSP/cyanogen based ROMS for honor 8.
but never ask for ETAs:angel:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It isn't the kernel source what's needed to build roms (although it's useful), but proper documentation from them.
Huawei nova has SD625, if u not want honor 8
Once they release proper files needed to start development, then we have pretty good devs out there who will start working on ROM immediately.

Meanwhile... no Nougat for US

As we know India got the Nougat. Brazil did too. EU finally gets it's share.
Nothing in US, except a soak announced by RepublicWireless. On the official Motorola / lenovo forums you can be banned if you talk about sideloading the Nougat on US devices. While Moto allows unlocking the bootloader by providing the unlock codes (in US they benefit from that by canceling the warranty), they frown upon what happens next. Like people will unlock the bootloader just for the pleasure of giving up the warranty, nothing more.
I was a Moto fan, me and my family owned a Moto DEFY XT (557D), MotoX (1st gen), Moto G (3rd gen), Moto E (2015) and now in use we have a Moto G4 Plus and a Moto X Pure.
Sadly, service (updates) for US is now last in line, bad interactions on their forums, no true international LTE bands support (band 20 is ommited from US phones, even if it is becoming one of the most important in EU for CA and rural).
I was planning to get the next Moto G5, but sadly I will have to move to a different company for my next phone.
What's sad is the fact that for each of us that have purchased their last Moto, there are probably 10 people that's never owned a Moto that will buy it. The US is pretty much the backwater for Lenovo and we probably are only a small fraction of their sales.
Sent from my SM-T530NU using Tapatalk
At the price point that they try to sell the new Moto they needed loyal customers. The people that hunt bargains will not go for their inflated prices, not when they have likes of ZTE or Alcatel in the stores. Bad marketing strategy.
SoNic67 said:
At the price point that they try to sell the new Moto they needed loyal customers. The people that hunt bargains will not go for their inflated prices, not when they have likes of ZTE or Alcatel in the stores. Bad marketing strategy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I usually get a new phone every two years. I have had my G4 for six months, so I won't make any statements about what I will or won't buy at this time since a lot can change in 18 months. But I will say that Lenova is far from being the only manufacturer to drag their feet on updates. And in reality, I really don't care that much about getting stock upgrades since I unlock and customize every device I have. The custom firmwares are usually much better choices IMHO. So when I am ready to get a new phone (or tablet), the custom ROM choices and development activity will influence me more than whether or not the manufacturer is updating in a timely manner. And introductory prices usually fall in time
Custom firmwares are zero without updated blobs for camera, sensors, modem... That requires manufacturer support.
However my beef is mainly that lenovo had put the US market on backburner.
SoNic67 said:
Custom firmwares are zero without updated blobs for camera, sensors, modem... That requires manufacturer support.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
:good:
All very true. But it seems that the updated drivers for various features are made available long before stock ROM upgrades, thus custom ROM's are also available. In five years of using Android smart phones and tablets, I have never had to wait long for decent custom ROMs based on the latest version as opposed to the long delays for stock upgrades by some manufacturers. Huawei and Asus come to mind.
Anyhow, I wasn't trying to negate anyone's position about the current situation. I merely was stating my own personal opinion and what works for me. My own 2-cents worth so to speak.
US soak seems to be older (-13) than what is out now (-14). Probably is somehow related to the RepublicWireless preloaded app.
I would like to try the US soak test. Has anyone have a URL for it? I heard their was issues but sounds like the same issues I read about Nougat. Any truth to that?
I'm using Nougat 14 and it's having battery drain problems, it's general (check Lenovo forums).
Maybe for that reason they didn't update the US version for now.
Anyway it's taking too much time for be an Android version similar to AOSP, other companies like Huawei have very modified versions and are updating more fast.
Maybe Nokia is going to be what Motorola was. I'm going to wait the Nokia 8 presentation for decide if I buy it or a Moto G5 Plus.
pastorbob62 said:
I usually get a new phone every two years. I have had my G4 for six months, so I won't make any statements about what I will or won't buy at this time since a lot can change in 18 months. But I will say that Lenova is far from being the only manufacturer to drag their feet on updates. And in reality, I really don't care that much about getting stock upgrades since I unlock and customize every device I have. The custom firmwares are usually much better choices IMHO. So when I am ready to get a new phone (or tablet), the custom ROM choices and development activity will influence me more than whether or not the manufacturer is updating in a timely manner. And introductory prices usually fall in time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The main reason I've stuck with Moto so long is the custom firmware options. It's actually unprecedented for me to be still running a stock rom all this time.
Jplabti said:
I'm using Nougat 14 and it's having battery drain problems, it's general (check Lenovo forums).
Maybe for that reason they didn't update the US version for now.
Anyway it's taking too much time for be an Android version similar to AOSP, other companies like Huawei have very modified versions and are updating more fast.
Maybe Nokia is going to be what Motorola was. I'm going to wait the Nokia 8 presentation for decide if I buy it or a Moto G5 Plus.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I ran Nougat NPJ25.93-14 for a week and didn't see any battery drain whatsoever. In fact, the battery life was slightly better than any of the custom ROMs I have tried. I would have stuck with it except I missed the advanced boot menu and being able to customize the status bar. Not to mention it still has bloat that I really don't need.

Honor 8 a viable choice in 2017?

Hello.
I'm looking for a new phone, my budget is around 340 USD and therefore Honor 8 has really caught my eye. I'd like to ask a couple questions.
1. Is the bootloader unlock process problematic? Have you faced any issues with it or is it hassle-free? Coming from an LG device, I want to be extra careful with this.
2. I plan to have this device for a longer period of time, around 3-4 years. Is Honor 8 a viable choice, despite the fact that it will soon be a year from the release? Will it be able to hold off for that long, in terms of ROM support and general performance/usage?
3. How do custom ROM development prospects look right now for the device? From what I've seen, Huawei still hasn't released sources for Nougat. Can I expect good custom ROM support from this device?
4. How satisfied are you with your phone? Would you recommend it to me? Are there anything you don't like about the phone?
Thanks in advance.
Hi , i will just speak about question 4 ....
I had iphone7 , Huawei P9, Galaxy s7 and since 2 month : Honor 8
Yes for me you can buy this phone in 2017
It's a very good phone , very fluid, no lags, the phone is not too big , not to small, you can use with one hand . Screen is good , photo too but not like Iphone7 or Galaxy S7 . I am very happy with quick charge . For me the phone is more faster than an Iphone7, or Galaxy S7 . You can personalize like you want , You have a lot of nice themes on XDA or Google+ Emui Community . Sound is good, with headset is not like an Iphone or Galaxy s7 but to listen music is suffisant for me . Voilà, my advice is very good phone, just photo and music with headset can be better but stay ok for daily use .
The device is solid. Runs fast, pretty good specs, and looks nice.
Expect zero updates. Zero custom ROM support, and even rooting is a pain in the butt.
If you're into it for the dev scene, move on. If you want a half decent device for daily use, not bad at all.
Personally I regret buying it because Huawei is terrible at updates and keeping promises.
But as a daily driver device, it's fine.
Don't buy it's an alright phone but no custom ROM support is like a death sentence for a phone. This phone has been out for like 9 months and doesn't have a fully working custom ROM, that right there tells you that this phone has no future. Also who keeps wants to keep a low to mid range phone for 3-4 years? Must be in a 3rd world country!
I am happy with the phone but I'm disappointed with Huawei/Honor when it comes to updates and I am not going to buy more phones from them.
I would get something else right now, it was a good choice when it was released
Next time I will just pay 200 extra euro and get a real phone
Yeah it is a good phone but i am disappointed i expected few roms by now...i wish i could turn time back and go for xiaomi rednote 3 pro
1. Is the bootloader unlock process problematic? Have you faced any issues with it or is it hassle-free? Coming from an LG device, I want to be extra careful with this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's hassle-free.
2. I plan to have this device for a longer period of time, around 3-4 years. Is Honor 8 a viable choice, despite the fact that it will soon be a year from the release? Will it be able to hold off for that long, in terms of ROM support and general performance/usage?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Huawei offer 2 years of updates, but not monthly updates. Taking a look at honor 6 released in august 2014 - it is indeed so. Latest update for honor 6 is september 30th 2016.
3. How do custom ROM development prospects look right now for the device? From what I've seen, Huawei still hasn't released sources for Nougat. Can I expect good custom ROM support from this device?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. Don't expect good custom ROM for this device.
4. How satisfied are you with your phone? Would you recommend it to me? Are there anything you don't like about the phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm pretty satisfied. I enjoy it's dimensions, design, performance and battery life. Games aside, it's faster than any SD820 phone and most SD821 phones (take a look at performance comparison videos on youtube), so it's definitely going to be quick enough for 3-4 years.
If no custom ROM support, lower than SD820 GPU performance and only 2 years of official updates are OK for you (as it is for me) - I definitely recommend it.
Fobos531 said:
Hello.
I'm looking for a new phone, my budget is around 340 USD and therefore Honor 8 has really caught my eye. I'd like to ask a couple questions.
1. Is the bootloader unlock process problematic? Have you faced any issues with it or is it hassle-free? Coming from an LG device, I want to be extra careful with this.
2. I plan to have this device for a longer period of time, around 3-4 years. Is Honor 8 a viable choice, despite the fact that it will soon be a year from the release? Will it be able to hold off for that long, in terms of ROM support and general performance/usage?
3. How do custom ROM development prospects look right now for the device? From what I've seen, Huawei still hasn't released sources for Nougat. Can I expect good custom ROM support from this device?
4. How satisfied are you with your phone? Would you recommend it to me? Are there anything you don't like about the phone?
Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can easily get a code from Huawei to unlock the bootloader, but there's not much point to rooting the phone with development on it pretty nonexistent.
The hardware is really nice. The phone's a great size, the CPU is a beast, the GPU kind of sucks (but that doesn't matter if you're not playing new/demanding games on it like me), but the security updates are TERRIBLE. The most recent software update for the US version of the phone came out in the beginning of January. So we're almost four months into the year and the December 1st security patch is the most recent one available.
If you'd be happy with Nougat 7.0/EMUI 5.0 in a year from now and don't do anything that having security up to date matters it's fine, but otherwise I'd look elsewhere.

Not Many Roms?

Hello,
my last rooted phone was the s3 many years ago. That aside, tomorrow marks the 3rd day I've had my Oneplus 8 5G. I seen a post where a guy will unlock your bootloader (which I will message him about). I was looking around to see what roms exist and it looks like there isn't many if any at all. There used to be tons for the s3. what happened? is the oneplus 8 not popular for rooting or something.
wwe9112 said:
Hello,
my last rooted phone was the s3 many years ago. That aside, tomorrow marks the 3rd day I've had my Oneplus 8 5G. I seen a post where a guy will unlock your bootloader (which I will message him about). I was looking around to see what roms exist and it looks like there isn't many if any at all. There used to be tons for the s3. what happened? is the oneplus 8 not popular for rooting or something.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, it's just the time for users to enjoy 3 years of oxygenOS update. Android 11 will come sooner for OEM, ROMs are a bit slower.
Plus it's special with OnePlus devices. We could call OOS a custom ROM with all the customizations features it offers. And trust me, it's not funny to flash a ROM on your device right away, take the time to be fed up with the UI/UX, then flash something.
To answer your question, ROMs are coming, but later. We already have unofficial LOS and official Paranoid Android (one if the best ROM out there to me). And we have a lot of kernel (proof that what we need for now isn't to modify the ROM, only maybe the kernel). But it'll sure come !
most likely after android 11 is released. currently in my opinion android 10 is quite stable.
In actuality it is because of the way that android 10 changes file systems and the ways you can interact with them. For a huge example, most phones that shipped with Android 9 or before can install twrp (if available). Phones that ship with Android 10 (and presumably 11 in the future) cannot, because for now, twrp is in a semi functional state, but many important things are broken. Like the ability to modify the system partition. Which is essential to installing a custom rom.

Categories

Resources