Related
I realise this is probably a bit of a controversial question to ask on XDA, however has anyone else just stuck with the stock Cyanogen OS on their OnePlus One?
I was thinking today when reading about Lineage OS I have pretty much kept my OnePlus One stock since i got it in July 2014, out the box Cyanogen OS had everything i'd otherwise flash a custom rom for. I did try some early Marshmallow roms around February last year, however due to various bugs I went back to stock and waited for the Marshmallow OTA.
These days i'd certainly take stability over having the latest and greatest version of Android. Of course I don't intend that as any disrespect to the developers on here, more than anything I think I just got tired of tinkering with my phone and have enjoyed just using it.
However I do plan on flashing Lineage OS in the future, which seems quite strange after not flashing a custom rom for almost a year.
It's great to see XDA is still going strong, even more so that the OnePlus currently has the most users of unofficial installs of Lineage OS :good:
My father does have the official builds hahahah we both have the opo but he's okay if it works, so keeping it simple is the best way for him.
As far as Cyanogen OS goes
It's bad and bloated
I tried to stay on it, and did for a bit when security updates were being applied
But had a bunch of reboots and overheating issues. Had to dump it.
Was on stock COS till today since i couldnt find a rom that suited my needs and passed safetynet. Today i flashed lineage OS official, everything is smooth and it passes safety net (i can now use my banking app while running nougat). So yeah today is the day i left COS and marshmallow
I don't even know why I'm still on official CyanOS. The screen time is dreadful. I think I'll give LOS a chance in the near future. It can't be any worse than 3-4 hours of screen time, what I'm getting now with official COS.
Cyanogen may be sold in the future and they can push harmful updates to your device, so I'd say updating is a very good choice.
I am keeping it. I would love that someone could recommend me a 6.0 rom alternative though, because can't switch to Nougat. MM has xposed and i need youtube background playback.
I do sometimes think maybe I should have stayed stock but then I think of all the fun I've had
Now I need my phone to work for calls and alarms as a minimum so take less risks now
I'm still on marsh 2.0 from way back last august
i would but cyanogen 13.1 has a problem with the mobile network.........
Luck Patcher
Fatsodonkey said:
I am keeping it. I would love that someone could recommend me a 6.0 rom alternative though, because can't switch to Nougat. MM has xposed and i need youtube background playback.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can try Lucky Patcher. They have a custom patch for YouTube background playback. Works on Nougat. Hope this helps
For anyone who wants the best stable experience, I'd suggest sultanxda's CM13 ROM. May it be for girlfriends, dad's, whoever. That ROM will never fall behind.
Cheers.
Well I am still sticking with rooted cyanogen os. I have color camera, viper4android, Sony Media Apps like Walkman and xposed.
Can anyone enlighten me whether noughat build supports viper4android and a good camera mod like color os or cameranext mod? If so I don't mind installing it immediately..
I'm still on stock ROM, because I'm using NFC payments on the tube. Battery life with screen on is dreadful. I would upgrade in a heartbeat should there be any ROM that's signed by Google. Is there any hope to get that ?
My story sounds a lot like the OP. I got my OPO as soon as the invites started going out (I had signed up long before release) and I just couldn't wait to get it and start rooting and TWRPing and ROMing. I tried just about every ROM that was out there including OOS. But, as is often the case with enthusiast ROMS, there always seemed to be some little something somewhere that didn't quite work right. I also had terrible problems with the radios on almost all ROMs including the stock ROM. That got corrected during the second or third update though.
I have a lot of smartphones, so eventually, I moved onto other phones and other tinkering. Then one day, not too long ago, I wondered what it would be like to restore my OPO back to factory stock - no root; reset the tamper bit - and update to the latest official update - so I did.
I have to say that the OPO has never been as stable and reliable as it is in that condition. Best radio reception since I got the phone, silky smooth Android experience (even on two year old hardware), and rarely any crashes or FCs. Truly a STABLE phone.
But even as good as it is running now, I still worry about not getting any future updates and in particular security patches, so I will be looking to flash a good stable build of Lineage OS after reading up on other users' experiences.
Still have to say though that through all of my phones (Galaxy's, Lumias, iPhones, and everything in between), I'd still put my OPO up there with my trusted iPhone 6S for reliability and the "It Just Works" factor.
Hi! I'm running COS, the latest update i received via OTA. I'll wait for a stable build for Nougat, also, there are some xposed modules I cannot live without so i guess i wait for a little bit.
Fatsodonkey said:
I am keeping it. I would love that someone could recommend me a 6.0 rom alternative though, because can't switch to Nougat. MM has xposed and i need youtube background playback.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which Xposed module let's you do that? please let me know. I know I can search but can't get one that works.
Fatsodonkey said:
I am keeping it. I would love that someone could recommend me a 6.0 rom alternative though, because can't switch to Nougat. MM has xposed and i need youtube background playback.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's an unofficial Lineage OS 13 for our bacon, here in XDA. Stable no issues and xposed compatible
Hi, so I ditched my old P905-V a while back because of the locked bootloader and inability to root. Found a great deal on the P900 tpdau and decided to give the Note Pro another go. However, since I haven't used Android since the 5.1.x days, can anyone give me the rundown on whether Nougat ROMs are worth installing? I never did see MM in action, and I'm thinking the latest Android might be the best bet. However, I'm seeing a ton out there about SafetyNet ... should I just assume stock is acceptable so I can download more apps from the Play Store, or does it really even matter? I mostly want to use productivity apps and the drawing features of the Note with Sketchbook Pro (without paying the price tag of the Tab S3 and still dealing with bloat). Basically, I'm now torn between getting the latest greatest ROM, or installing it only to find I've tripped Knox and can't install the apps I want. My current ROM of choice would be the latest Resurrection Remix since that was developed recently and doesn't have volume level issues. However, if that prevents me from installing Google apps or Microsoft Office suite, I might care more.
Thoughts, anyone?
fantasticrat said:
Hi, so I ditched my old P905-V a while back because of the locked bootloader and inability to root. Found a great deal on the P900 tpdau and decided to give the Note Pro another go. However, since I haven't used Android since the 5.1.x days, can anyone give me the rundown on whether Nougat ROMs are worth installing? I never did see MM in action, and I'm thinking the latest Android might be the best bet. However, I'm seeing a ton out there about SafetyNet ... should I just assume stock is acceptable so I can download more apps from the Play Store, or does it really even matter? I mostly want to use productivity apps and the drawing features of the Note with Sketchbook Pro (without paying the price tag of the Tab S3 and still dealing with bloat). Basically, I'm now torn between getting the latest greatest ROM, or installing it only to find I've tripped Knox and can't install the apps I want. My current ROM of choice would be the latest Resurrection Remix since that was developed recently and doesn't have volume level issues. However, if that prevents me from installing Google apps or Microsoft Office suite, I might care more.
Thoughts, anyone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I used Lineage N for about 2 weeks. It was smooth. I went back to stock because the tablet would get massively hot and sometimes reboot when playing graphic intensive games. Aside from the heat while gaming, it was great. I'd still be running it, but the main purpose of my 900 is gaming.
Give it a shot, share your results.
LaserChicken said:
I used Lineage N for about 2 weeks. It was smooth. I went back to stock because the tablet would get massively hot and sometimes reboot when playing graphic intensive games. Aside from the heat while gaming, it was great. I'd still be running it, but the main purpose of my 900 is gaming.
Give it a shot, share your results.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi I just purchased a P900, waiting for it to arrive in the mail. Does everything else work on the Lineage N build you are talking about? I plan on using mine for GPS mostly, monitoring apps, not gaming. So that rom may work great for me.
Crwys said:
Hi I just purchased a P900, waiting for it to arrive in the mail. Does everything else work on the Lineage N build you are talking about? I plan on using mine for GPS mostly, monitoring apps, not gaming. So that rom may work great for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm actually back on it now. The latest build is great. I think my heat issues have been toned down with less aggressive settings for the CPU and GPU. GPS is working, I just tested it with Google maps. I'm not having any issues this time.
LaserChicken said:
I'm actually back on it now. The latest build is great. I think my heat issues have been toned down with less aggressive settings for the CPU and GPU. GPS is working, I just tested it with Google maps. I'm not having any issues this time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the response.
I suppose I could do ask this question in the Q&A area but how do I do a full backup?
For example: I thought backing everything up in recovery was enough but apparently for my Z2 there is something called a TA Backup? Is this the same for the Galaxy Note Pro? I can't find any threads on doing a backup. Are there any other backups I have to do?
Edit:
Figured it out. Turns out for samsung it is called EFS Partition. So make sure you back that up along with your nandroid.
Hi fellow xdains. I was wondering if any developer would build fuschia OS for our phone. If any Dev can comment on the feasibility of development ATM, and related info would be great.
Your thoughts?
i would have to guess no considering nobody will unlock the bootloader for the verizon variant. i really don't see a major port like this coming.
NoobInToto said:
Hi fellow xdains. I was wondering if any developer would build fuschia OS for our phone. If any Dev can comment on the feasibility of development ATM, and related info would be great.
Your thoughts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can comment. Fuschia OS is a toy and not a fully baked OS.
it would be rather useless on your phone. it's pretty much a demo, with no real applications that only recently could even run on bare metal / real hardware... it can run on the pixelbook (which is an x86 intel cpu laptop) and a few other devices...
it doesn't tun on our phone and you wouldn't want to run it, even if it did - unless you aren't interested in being able to make phone calls, browse the internet or do just about anything that you would normally need or want to do. lol
go watch some YouTube videos on it. you'll see for yourself that it's currently pretty useless...
I hope it fails hard, personally. I believe Google's biggest motivation for developing fuschia OS has more to do with licensing and wanting more control than anything else...
it's still an interesting project, but I can guarantee you, if it ever replaces android or chromeOS - your google device is going to be locked down compared to what it is now.
nine7nine said:
I can comment. Fuschia OS is a toy and not a fully baked OS.
it would be rather useless on your phone. it's pretty much a demo, with no real applications that only recently could even run on bare metal / real hardware... it can run on the pixelbook (which is an x86 intel cpu laptop) and a few other devices...
it doesn't tun on our phone and you wouldn't want to run it, even if it did - unless you aren't interested in being able to make phone calls, browse the internet or do just about anything that you would normally need or want to do. lol
go watch some YouTube videos on it. you'll see for yourself that it's currently pretty useless...
I hope it fails hard, personally. I believe Google's biggest motivation for developing fuschia OS has more to do with licensing and wanting more control than anything else...
it's still an interesting project, but I can guarantee you, if it ever replaces android or chromeOS - your google device is going to be locked down compared to what it is now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with you, but since pixel, google has been moving more and more towards locking more things up. At some point it will be like iOS I guess.
NoobInToto said:
I agree with you, but since pixel, google has been moving more and more towards locking more things up. At some point it will be like iOS I guess.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
how so? what is more locked up since the Pixel?
google has always had their closed source apps and services, but beyond that the pixel is far more open than most android phones I've owned... there are security enhancements, but i don't see that as being locked up... so i'm not sure what ur talking about, in this regard.
the source code for the pixel is included in AOSP, google and the vast majority of retailers sell pixels with OEM unlocking, etc... it's just crappy carriers like Verizon that don't...
I think fuschia OS could be a sign of them going more in the direction of a permissive or more contolled and closed platform, but i'm not sure they'll be able to get it off the ground (many google projects fail or they drop them)...
I don't think the pixel is very closed or locked down though.
nine7nine said:
how so? what is more locked up since the Pixel?
google has always had their closed source apps and services, but beyond that the pixel is far more open than most android phones I've owned... there are security enhancements, but i don't see that as being locked up... so i'm not sure what ur talking about, in this regard.
the source code for the pixel is included in AOSP, google and the vast majority of retailers sell pixels with OEM unlocking, etc... it's just crappy carriers like Verizon that don't...
I think fuschia OS could be a sign of them going more in the direction of a permissive or more contolled and closed platform, but i'm not sure they'll be able to get it off the ground (many google projects fail or they drop them)...
I don't think the pixel is very closed or locked down though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm no expert in this ,but I believe with pixel, google moved away a bit from aosp. It introduced more proprietary elements?
Usage wise I am not bothered with it. I'm happy with stock roms, I quit customizing.
NoobInToto said:
I'm no expert in this ,but I believe with pixel, google moved away a bit from aosp. It introduced more proprietary elements?
Usage wise I am not bothered with it. I'm happy with stock roms, I quit customizing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well, they may have added in their typical proprietary soup, plus introduced some new bits, but I don't think they've moved away from aosp, anymore than would be typical... aosp is just the base system, after all... I've built aosp for the pixel in the past and added gapps.... sure, there are differences vs. stock, but not overly drastic...
the pixel 2 likely has more of a gap, but at the same time, once u drop gapps intoplace; i'm sure it's far less noticeable on aosp...
ya, i'm mostly happy with stock too. but I still use magisk, my own kernel, I tweak android a bit... and have been tinkering with xposed, since it was recently released for Oreo (although, it's currently a bit lack-luster due to lack of Oreo plugins).
nine7nine said:
well, they may have added in their typical proprietary soup, plus introduced some new bits, but I don't think they've moved away from aosp, anymore than would be typical... aosp is just the base system, after all... I've built aosp for the pixel in the past and added gapps.... sure, there are differences vs. stock, but not overly drastic...
the pixel 2 likely has more of a gap, but at the same time, once u drop gapps intoplace; i'm sure it's far less noticeable on aosp...
ya, i'm mostly happy with stock too. but I still use magisk, my own kernel, I tweak android a bit... and have been tinkering with xposed, since it was recently released for Oreo (although, it's currently a bit lack-luster due to lack of Oreo plugins).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Has there been any progress with xposed being compatible with safetynet? I loved using gravitybox with stock rom since it always seemed to be the most stable, feature-rich, customizable option of the custom roms, but xposed trips safetynet (last I checked) and imo that makes it unusable.
uodii said:
Has there been any progress with xposed being compatible with safetynet? I loved using gravitybox with stock rom since it always seemed to be the most stable, feature-rich, customizable option of the custom roms, but xposed trips safetynet (last I checked) and imo that makes it unusable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That will probably never happen, as far as I know, there is no "progress"
Sent from my Pixel using XDA-Developers Legacy app
I have the G Stylus and I love this phone and I rooted it when I got it, but never did anything special with getting a 3rd party ROM etc. I see several ROMS in this forum. What is a comparison of each. I'm currently running Android version 10 and it's starting to bog a little bit. I've been thinking of doing a complete wipe and reinstall to maybe "speed it up" a bit.
I was curious if anyone can shed some light on which roms and their features etc. I'm using this phone primarily for my work so I will need google authenticator and WORK containerization etc. I use MetroPCS and I'm in the US.
steppinthrax said:
I have the G Stylus and I love this phone and I rooted it when I got it, but never did anything special with getting a 3rd party ROM etc. I see several ROMS in this forum. What is a comparison of each. I'm currently running Android version 10 and it's starting to bog a little bit. I've been thinking of doing a complete wipe and reinstall to maybe "speed it up" a bit.
I was curious if anyone can shed some light on which roms and their features etc. I'm using this phone primarily for my work so I will need google authenticator and WORK containerization etc. I use MetroPCS and I'm in the US.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Per the title thread Is have to say stock is the most stable and dependable.
Especially after a good debloating. If you're looking for more options and so on then try any of the custom ROMs. Andr 11 or R has been doing great. I've tried CR-droid, Arrow, and Stag. On Andy 10 or Q I've tried almost all.
I like tons of customization with good battery or the best balance. I love havoc, but RR allows more UI customizations. Personally I thought RR was harder on battery but i can't be 100% sure it wasn't me. A fresh install of arrow and the battery seemed to never die.
Thanks to the community, lineage, vache, and the other developers, testers, and users we have options galore.
Read all the instructions at least twice and try to read the thread if you're not familiar with things. That's the best way to see what works and what won't. If like me, you had never used dynamic partitioning read read read. Best luck.
If you're new to all this, I'll try to help when or if i can as I've been installing on different carriers and brands fur about 11 years. Wherever i got my dx might have been 2011
Good luck
steppinthrax said:
I have the G Stylus and I love this phone and I rooted it when I got it, but never did anything special with getting a 3rd party ROM etc. I see several ROMS in this forum. What is a comparison of each. I'm currently running Android version 10 and it's starting to bog a little bit. I've been thinking of doing a complete wipe and reinstall to maybe "speed it up" a bit.
I was curious if anyone can shed some light on which roms and their features etc. I'm using this phone primarily for my work so I will need google authenticator and WORK containerization etc. I use MetroPCS and I'm in the US.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been using Havoc with Google they have 2 versions but since i use my phone mainly for business the google version of havoc has worked flawlessly now for close to a year i tried cr-droid and a few others but havoc has been the best 1 and i to have metro and its running android 10 you never mentioned which g stylus you have mine is the 2020 version with the 2 speakers and fingerprint on the rear of phone i tried the g stylus 2021 4g version and wasn't that impressed plus not crazy at all with android 11 and most people i talk to ask if i can install android 10 back on there phone since 11 has givin a lot of headaches
The title is basically self-explanatory. I'm particularly interested in these things:
AOSP/LOS/anything clean: how's battery drain? More than on stock or not?
Camera: could we replace ours with gcam? Is 70-105 switch working well?
Camera: do we have smth like XperianceCamera?
What features are we losing with unlocking bootloader? None afaics, but I may have missed something.
Thanks in advance! :^)
About Xperia 5 IV. It works great to me.
1.- No idea, never used stock. I have strong dislikes on Google.
2.- It works fine with OpenCamera, all 4 cameras detected (front, back normal, back close, back wide).
3.- No idea, I would need to try.
4.- It works fine.
Looks like I wrote a novel so TLDR:
I suck at this stuff, just getting back into custom ROMs - tried Pixel Experience 13 and Lineage OS(no Play Services (I think Android 13/A13 Beta)).
Stock Sony Rom + Root is the way to go. At least for right now.
Wouldn't count on GCam working or working well.
(Sony) Photo Pro is proprietary too afaik so you'd need someone to port it to custom OS like Lineage without G Services (what I read someone feel free to correct me). It might work with LineageOS with G Services or whatever else, I didn't try it.
END OF TLDR:
ROM EXPERIENCES:
Pixel Experience was weird, probably worked fine but I don't think the dimensions of the Xperia 5 III work well with how PE is scaled. Just this users opinion. Also I really only tried it to try it- not a huge fan of Google lately.
Lineage OS almost worked but the version I had text messages didn't work. The default one or others from F-Droid. I'm positive its user error on my part. Battery life seemed great though, it's anecdotal but it seemed markedly better without Google constantly checking in. Probably my bias.
Its important to me to have some Sony Apps and overall functionality (seems like low dev support when comparing to other devices IE Galaxy/Pixel) so I think stock Sony ROM+ Rooted is the way to go. Seemingly the general consensus on the forum too (especially since its pretty stock Android anyway).
Bonus objectives for me on stock Sony Rom is to DeGoogle + MicroG although I haven't made it all the way there yet. Then maybe long term try a Xperia 5 IV ROM for sh*ts and giggles for Android 13 since I doubt the 5 III will get it.
FUNCTIONALITY:
Your questions about GCam and losing functionality: I have heard/seen a lot of things online about GCam either needing to be ported to devices individually or that its part of Google's "Special Sauce" software wise. So I would expect stripped functionality if functional at all.
Someone who is a lot smarter and experienced than me should clarify on these last two:
Downsides to an unlocked bootloader+Custom ROM is same as always: risk of user error, bricking your device (soft bricked mine), depending on the ROM you choose you may not have Google Apps/limited so Banking apps and streaming apps won't work or won't go all the way up the resolution chain 4k20 69 fps etc. And I'm sure there is a security disclaimer somewhere out there too if you aren't careful.
Pros are same as always: Control of your device, system wide ad blocker, admin rights to delete bloatware, customization, custom ROMs, better battery life, potentially longer OS support, privacy, security, etc.
RAMBLINGS OF GETTING BACK INTO ROOTING WITH THE X5 III
*In case there are others out there who are similar to me in either getting back into rooting after a long time or the first time*
I'm pretty much a novice at this stuff but I was finally able to get my phone unlocked a few weeks ago and tried a few different ROMs. Out of what I tried I really only remember the Pixel Experience and Lineage OS. PE was fine but I'm not a huge fan of all the Google stuff so I went in the opposite direction and did Lineage OS without the Google Play Store/Services/App Framework whatever. It was almost a keeper for me except messaging wasn't working for whatever reason ((I wonder ^^)but really I think it was because it was an A13 beta). I tried a few different messaging apps but between that and losing some Sony Apps I decided to back to stock.
I feel like the big points for this phone are the camera app, the display customization depending on the content viewed, and possibly the gaming tweaks/music app? Last two are a stretch but eh ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.
The new plan was/is hoping to do was DeGoogle the stock ROM and replace it with MicroG. I haven't gotten around to it because the post I was looking at on how to do it on this forum linked to another post in a different forum and it was for Android 11. My phone is on Android 12. Looking at the comments people had said the process was the same for 12 as 11 or very similar. Shouldn't be too hard but knowing me it will take me another afternoon or two to get it figured out and working.
Long term I'm kind of hoping that when an Android 13 ROM comes out for the Xperia 5 IV we could try throwing it on our devices too. Since I doubt we will be getting Android 13 on the Xperia 5 III. I know the physical camera is different on the 5 IV but everything else seems close enough to a normie like me that maybe it would be worth it to try. Then its back to figuring out how to DeGoogle on an unsupported device and installing MicroG etc etc.
Sorry its such a late response and not the most technical (or maybe even 100% accurate) but that was at least my experience a bit ago trying a few different ROMs on the GSI thread linked in the "How To" post listed here.
This phone has really grown on me and I'm bummed I'm not savvy in any amount of Android development so I am unable to make customizations/tweaks to the stock ROM. Or customize other OS ROM's to port here. Which makes me reliant on others to do the work so I can leech off it haha. On more widely used phones like Samsung or the Pixel its NBD since there are so many users. But a small community like this, it doesn't seem like there is a lot being done. Not a dig or anything, just not a ton of options. Although being able to install a ton of different custom ROMS from the GSI thread is really cool even if it isn't tailored to the Xperia 5 III.
Part of why I threw up so much info on here goes with the last paragraph. You probably won't get a lot of responses. There aren't a ton of peeps here and those who are generally already know what they are doing.
If you end up trying a bunch of different ROMs and find one you really like LMK!
+1 to that. I don't get 5G and had bad time trying to obtain signal. It doesn't worth.
J2 digital said:
Looks like I wrote a novel so TLDR:
I suck at this stuff, just getting back into custom ROMs - tried Pixel Experience 13 and Lineage OS(no Play Services (I think Android 13/A13 Beta)).
Stock Sony Rom + Root is the way to go. At least for right now.
Wouldn't count on GCam working or working well.
(Sony) Photo Pro is proprietary too afaik so you'd need someone to port it to custom OS like Lineage without G Services (what I read someone feel free to correct me). It might work with LineageOS with G Services or whatever else, I didn't try it.
END OF TLDR:
ROM EXPERIENCES:
Pixel Experience was weird, probably worked fine but I don't think the dimensions of the Xperia 5 III work well with how PE is scaled. Just this users opinion. Also I really only tried it to try it- not a huge fan of Google lately.
Lineage OS almost worked but the version I had text messages didn't work. The default one or others from F-Droid. I'm positive its user error on my part. Battery life seemed great though, it's anecdotal but it seemed markedly better without Google constantly checking in. Probably my bias.
Its important to me to have some Sony Apps and overall functionality (seems like low dev support when comparing to other devices IE Galaxy/Pixel) so I think stock Sony ROM+ Rooted is the way to go. Seemingly the general consensus on the forum too (especially since its pretty stock Android anyway).
Bonus objectives for me on stock Sony Rom is to DeGoogle + MicroG although I haven't made it all the way there yet. Then maybe long term try a Xperia 5 IV ROM for sh*ts and giggles for Android 13 since I doubt the 5 III will get it.
FUNCTIONALITY:
Your questions about GCam and losing functionality: I have heard/seen a lot of things online about GCam either needing to be ported to devices individually or that its part of Google's "Special Sauce" software wise. So I would expect stripped functionality if functional at all.
Someone who is a lot smarter and experienced than me should clarify on these last two:
Downsides to an unlocked bootloader+Custom ROM is same as always: risk of user error, bricking your device (soft bricked mine), depending on the ROM you choose you may not have Google Apps/limited so Banking apps and streaming apps won't work or won't go all the way up the resolution chain 4k20 69 fps etc. And I'm sure there is a security disclaimer somewhere out there too if you aren't careful.
Pros are same as always: Control of your device, system wide ad blocker, admin rights to delete bloatware, customization, custom ROMs, better battery life, potentially longer OS support, privacy, security, etc.
RAMBLINGS OF GETTING BACK INTO ROOTING WITH THE X5 III
*In case there are others out there who are similar to me in either getting back into rooting after a long time or the first time*
I'm pretty much a novice at this stuff but I was finally able to get my phone unlocked a few weeks ago and tried a few different ROMs. Out of what I tried I really only remember the Pixel Experience and Lineage OS. PE was fine but I'm not a huge fan of all the Google stuff so I went in the opposite direction and did Lineage OS without the Google Play Store/Services/App Framework whatever. It was almost a keeper for me except messaging wasn't working for whatever reason ((I wonder ^^)but really I think it was because it was an A13 beta). I tried a few different messaging apps but between that and losing some Sony Apps I decided to back to stock.
I feel like the big points for this phone are the camera app, the display customization depending on the content viewed, and possibly the gaming tweaks/music app? Last two are a stretch but eh ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.
The new plan was/is hoping to do was DeGoogle the stock ROM and replace it with MicroG. I haven't gotten around to it because the post I was looking at on how to do it on this forum linked to another post in a different forum and it was for Android 11. My phone is on Android 12. Looking at the comments people had said the process was the same for 12 as 11 or very similar. Shouldn't be too hard but knowing me it will take me another afternoon or two to get it figured out and working.
Long term I'm kind of hoping that when an Android 13 ROM comes out for the Xperia 5 IV we could try throwing it on our devices too. Since I doubt we will be getting Android 13 on the Xperia 5 III. I know the physical camera is different on the 5 IV but everything else seems close enough to a normie like me that maybe it would be worth it to try. Then its back to figuring out how to DeGoogle on an unsupported device and installing MicroG etc etc.
Sorry its such a late response and not the most technical (or maybe even 100% accurate) but that was at least my experience a bit ago trying a few different ROMs on the GSI thread linked in the "How To" post listed here.
This phone has really grown on me and I'm bummed I'm not savvy in any amount of Android development so I am unable to make customizations/tweaks to the stock ROM. Or customize other OS ROM's to port here. Which makes me reliant on others to do the work so I can leech off it haha. On more widely used phones like Samsung or the Pixel its NBD since there are so many users. But a small community like this, it doesn't seem like there is a lot being done. Not a dig or anything, just not a ton of options. Although being able to install a ton of different custom ROMS from the GSI thread is really cool even if it isn't tailored to the Xperia 5 III.
Part of why I threw up so much info on here goes with the last paragraph. You probably won't get a lot of responses. There aren't a ton of peeps here and those who are generally already know what they are doing.
If you end up trying a bunch of different ROMs and find one you really like LMK!
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Thanks for putting all your experiences out here, really a huge help. I would also like to try out lineage, but can't seem to find a supported version. Would you mind pointing me in the right direction?
Claussen said:
I would also like to try out lineage, but can't seem to find a supported version. Would you mind pointing me in the right direction?
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If you don't mind a customized one, try crDroid
i would like to try custom ROM's but since no TWRP anymore to get for the Xperia's i hate to reinstall everything just to test something new.