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[Q] Identifying and routing my mini android phone

Hi all,
Background:
I bought an android phone from Chinavasion. It is described as
Wholesale Waterproof Android Phone - Mini Android Phone From China
I cannot identify its device type which is why I am posting here. The play store identifies the phone as
Alps Ratech72_wet_rlk_lca
The phone has a MT6572 Dual Core 1GHz CPU and runs Android version 4.2.2.
I want to increase the ram of the phone. It is 256MB. I want to use virtual memory. I have a 2GB sdcard in the phone. I am planning to give it 512MB. Can I do this without rooting? If I have to root it, then how do I do so? I would prefer not to use an exploit.
Anyone any suggestions?
Pranav

Hiya,
I went around looking for some hints on this phone as well but didn't come up with anything.
I got my device yesterday and I understand your issue. I have no sollution for you but I do have a solid work-around to get some more app space which, I'm afraid, involves rooting.
Activate USB debugging, connect your device to a PC. Download and run Kingo Android Root and follow the instructions.
After that I "adb'ed" to make the phone choose the SD-Card as the default installing path. Run th following command with adb.
Code:
# adb shell pm set-install-location 2
For the apps that wouldn't move to the SD-Card, due to su issues, I moved manually with the app called Move app to SD card.
Grant the app root access to sort out the apps not willing to move by themselves.
With this sorted I now have 500 mb of apps installed on the SD-Card. I am running low on memory now due to some parts of the app still installs on the phone memory.
Not a real app2sd script but it certanly will get you some more apps installed!
Another hint: When I ordered the phone they said it supported 16 GB SD-Cards only but I'm running flawless with a 64 GB card!
I'd love to see a costum recovery (since I don't know chinese) and CM for this device, but since it's not a western phone I guess we'll have to settle with stock.
Hope this helps.

A few hours has gone by and without doing any backups I replaced some system apps and now I can bearly work the phone! Haha.. Thou shall not do this sort of thing after 2 h sleep.
Anyway, don't be afraid of doing what I wrote in the previous post, it worked just fine! I'm hoping you'll do it, it's the only way I can think of to get the system files back. :-S
Since there seem to be no one but you and me who have bought there phones..
edit: Sorted out my problem, got it running again! However, if you are going to root it, please do share the stock files! :-S

PranavLal said:
Hi all,
Background:
I bought an android phone from Chinavasion. It is described as
Wholesale Waterproof Android Phone - Mini Android Phone From China
I cannot identify its device type which is why I am posting here. The play store identifies the phone as
Alps Ratech72_wet_rlk_lca
The phone has a MT6572 Dual Core 1GHz CPU and runs Android version 4.2.2.
I want to increase the ram of the phone. It is 256MB. I want to use virtual memory. I have a 2GB sdcard in the phone. I am planning to give it 512MB. Can I do this without rooting? If I have to root it, then how do I do so? I would prefer not to use an exploit.
Anyone any suggestions?
Pranav
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
to use virtual memory you would have to root it and plus you cant get that much more ram with virtual memory, 256mb of ram on a 4.2.2 phone? i hope you got a good deal for it because 256mb will get you nowhere with nowadays google play apps updates hogging all the ram.

Some more info. Appearently the phone is also called "Nanex" and/or Z18 Mini Smartphone.. Maybe it's called different things in different regions?

Move to SD card SUCCESSFUL!
Im so glad there was this thread, it seems like nobody else knows about this awesome little phone!
I followed the instructions that "pingaan" posted and it worked! now i can install as many apps to SD card as i want, awesome!

I'm glad I could help.

I've been using this device for about a week now and I have to say that the stock rom is horrible! There are many flaws and no updates incoming, as far as I know.
Another disappinting thing is that the screen material is >VERY< easily scratched so DO NOT order this phone without screen protection.
I am going to order a new one cause I love that it's so small! It's even smaller than my old "dumbphone", but I don't see myself using stock rom. I'd rather not use the phone at all.
I'm going to try to compile a custom recovery and port a suitable CM11 rom to this device for proper usage.
Don't expect it any time soon, cause my days are normally filled up with family, house and work.
Regards.

pingaan said:
I've been using this device for about a week now and I have to say that the stock rom is horrible! There are many flaws and no updates incoming, as far as I know.
Another disappinting thing is that the screen material is >VERY< easily scratched so DO NOT order this phone without screen protection.
I am going to order a new one cause I love that it's so small! It's even smaller than my old "dumbphone", but I don't see myself using stock rom. I'd rather not use the phone at all.
I'm going to try to compile a custom recovery and port a suitable CM11 rom to this device for proper usage.
Don't expect it any time soon, cause my days are normally filled up with family, house and work.
Regards.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
everything about this phone is pretty good for the size, except the ram is so ridiculously small, i've tried to add virtual ram with link2sd and partitioned sd card, but apparently link2sd won't work without hacing the bootloader unlocked first, but i can't unlock the bootloader as it seems like there doesn't seem to be proper drivers for this phone.
if you are planning to do a custom rom on there, please let us know how when and how you managed to get the bootloader unlocked plz! :fingers-crossed:

Since I noticed the screen being easily scratched I ordered a new device from a different retailer, along with a plastic screen protection.
There is an interesting thing about this. The bootanimations are different and there's also a reboot option in the powermenu on the new.
Maybe the bootloader already is open? I mean, if you can change the power menu you need to alter the framework, right? The bootanimation is quite easy to change with root access however.
Have you checked the built-in recovery? There is actually an option for installing "update.zip"..
Do you have a proper app2sd script that I can try out on my old device?
Cheers...

Anyone have a backup of the ROM for ratech72_wet_rlk_lca ?? I plugged in a MTK Tool and I seem to have corrupted the system ;-( ... Didn't even get a chance to backup!
Help would be appreciated!

z18 ROM
regardtv said:
Anyone have a backup of the ROM for ratech72_wet_rlk_lca ?? I plugged in a MTK Tool and I seem to have corrupted the system ;-( ... Didn't even get a chance to backup!
Help would be appreciated!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anyone find a copy of the ROM I need it also?

Best custom rom + kernel for battery life and storage usage?

I need a custom rom + kernel that has the best battery life and storage usage because asus's stock rom (at least on this device) has so much bloatware (so it uses so much storage)
and since i only have 16gb of storage, i need to save space
also it drains my battery pretty bad, i don't really care about other things (performance, customizations, features, etc) since i only use this device for whatsapp, and social media
My device is Asus Zenfone Selfie ZD551KL (Z00T)

Flashing a Custom ROM requires having a Custom Recovery ( like TWRP ) previously installed. So it's on you to look for a suitable Custom Recovery as 1st thing of all things.

Okay so i found out that most custom recoveries are just either cwm or twrp with some other functionality that i dont need, so i decided to just use the mainstream twrp since for some reason i can't access the official cwm website, but now i still don't know what custom rom + kernel should i use

Only to clarify:
Android ROM contains full Android operating system and a few system apps that comes pre installed with the device.
Android's kernel works as an intermediator between the operating system and the hardware. Kernel is the heart of Android. Android’s kernel is a modified version of the Linux kernel and resides inside the Android operating system.
Knowing this you have to find a Custom ROM what is at 100% suitable to your Asus Zenfone Selfie ZD551KL (Z00T) .

MTK6889 Note30 Plus confusion

I have the MTK6889 Note 30 Plus it has a 10 core Processor 1440x1340 graphics 512 gigs storage and 12 gigs of ram dual sim cards micro sd card add on sounds Great Huh? well in there lies the problem it says it comes with android 10 pre installed and it does a custom version of it android 10 and lollyPop 4.1 so what i want to know is can i wipe this phone which is an unlocked phone and install android 11 on it and have a somewhat decent phone because right now it sucks and it even has a 48 mp rear camra and i believe the front is like 13 i really like the phone but because of the way they set it up it does not work right at all like it tells me im running out of storage space when there is over 500 gigs blank and i cant have updated programs because it wont download them saying not compatable its crazy.

Never heard that an Android phone comes with with 2 Android versions installed - as you say Android 4.1 & Android 10 - unless it would be a dual-boot phone.

No its not a dual boot phone but it does have a custom built android 10 whom ever built the phone must have had some things that her or she liked from 4.4.1 lolypop i was going through a bunch of the files and aplications last night and it has lollypops UI or something i just want a normal phone that works with android 10 or 11 i mean this phone has some great properties about it just not the Operating system can you help me set it up better?

FrankL5862 said:
No its not a dual boot phone but it does have a custom built android 10 whom ever built the phone must have had some things that her or she liked from 4.4.1 lolypop i was going through a bunch of the files and aplications last night and it has lollypops UI or something i just want a normal phone that works with android 10 or 11 i mean this phone has some great properties about it just not the Operating system can you help me set it up better?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi FrankL5862,
I'm familiar with the issue, also got a bricked "Note30 Plus" and an also Chinese clone of "S21 Plus 5G".
The Android OS is made into a custom ROM of Lollipop 5.1.1 thats the base Android OS. While they say it's
a Android OS 10 or 11 version they also cheated about the other specifications... You can easely check it with
"Droid Hardware Info" or "Device Info HW" both apps are available as APK-file or in the Google Playstore.
So basicly the smartphone is fake cause of the specs... But it is nice to play around with it and use it to get
more of the control of MediaTek based machine
Can maybe anyone get for me the firmware for the "Maimeite Note30 Plus MT6572" and for the "S21 Plus 5G MT6580"? Haven't found them yet...

FrankL5862 said:
No its not a dual boot phone but it does have a custom built android 10 whom ever built the phone must have had some things that her or she liked from 4.4.1 lolypop i was going through a bunch of the files and aplications last night and it has lollypops UI or something i just want a normal phone that works with android 10 or 11 i mean this phone has some great properties about it just not the Operating system can you help me set it up better?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
did u ever get an answer to this question

Custom ROM for SM-J500FN

Hi
My first time here.
I've seen there is a forum specifically for this buy I'm not sure if my question should go there or here.
Samsung Galaxy J5 (2015) ROMs, Kernels, Recoveries
I have a Samsung J500FN with Android 6.0.1 and I'm looking for a custom ROM that can make it last a bit longer. Here are my requirements.
I don't want to root it as that will probably not allow me to use my banking app.
I need a ROM that does not have, or allows me to remove, all the bloat that comes from factory: word, excel, weather, powerpoint, chrome, facebook, samsung's internet, etc.
I've seen that some of the available ROMs come with Android 8, 9 and even 10 but I suspect these OSs take up a lot more space. If that is so I don't want them as my mobile only has 8 GB and I don't want to have to spend my days deleting cache, memory and apps.
Any suggestions?
Thanks in advance, Eduardo

Eduardo de Juan said:
Hi
My first time here.
I've seen there is a forum specifically for this buy I'm not sure if my question should go there or here.
Samsung Galaxy J5 (2015) ROMs, Kernels, Recoveries
I have a Samsung J500FN with Android 6.0.1 and I'm looking for a custom ROM that can make it last a bit longer. Here are my requirements.
I don't want to root it as that will probably not allow me to use my banking app.
I need a ROM that does not have, or allows me to remove, all the bloat that comes from factory: word, excel, weather, powerpoint, chrome, facebook, samsung's internet, etc.
I've seen that some of the available ROMs come with Android 8, 9 and even 10 but I suspect these OSs take up a lot more space. If that is so I don't want them as my mobile only has 8 GB and I don't want to have to spend my days deleting cache, memory and apps.
Any suggestions?
Thanks in advance, Eduardo
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
chill bro,
1) for banking app like sbi uno and other use magisk. its open source and works well to hide root.
2) android 7 would be great for you because samsung switched to art in it and is a lot faster smooth and consume less space and is supported by most apps.
3) i know the pain of having 8gb rom so, try to use opera mini instated of chrome and try to optimise system by removing unnecessary software using root+magisk.
4) android 9 is also good. just flash try and see if its what you need.
thanks hit like if i helped.

@Eduardo de Juan
IMHO LineageOS is the right choice for you.
How To Install Lineage OS 17.1 for Samsung Galaxy J (Android 10 Q)
Now you can install Lineage OS 17.1 on Samsung Galaxy J which is stable enough to use as a daily driver. Finally, Android 10 Q is official
www.getdroidtips.com

[email protected] said:
chill bro,
1) for banking app like sbi uno and other use magisk. its open source and works well to hide root.
2) android 7 would be great for you because samsung switched to art in it and is a lot faster smooth and consume less space and is supported by most apps.
3) i know the pain of having 8gb rom so, try to use opera mini instated of chrome and try to optimise system by removing unnecessary software using root+magisk.
4) android 9 is also good. just flash try and see if its what you need.
thanks hit like if i helped.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would like to try Android 7 if it's lighter then Android 6 but I prefer not to have root.
I've been reading that ING app doesn't work with magisk so I prefer not to struggle there.
Why doesn't my phone automatically update to Android 7, doesn't Samsung provide for this?
Where can I download a Android 7 ROM ?
BR, E

jwoegerbauer said:
@Eduardo de Juan
IMHO LineageOS is the right choice for you.
How To Install Lineage OS 17.1 for Samsung Galaxy J (Android 10 Q)
Now you can install Lineage OS 17.1 on Samsung Galaxy J which is stable enough to use as a daily driver. Finally, Android 10 Q is official
www.getdroidtips.com
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you think that even if it's Android 10 it will be lighter than my present Android 6?
As I mentioned I don't want to root. I see that the link you included has a GAPPs installation so I guess the Lineage ROM comes without those.
I use OpenSuse linux so I would like to install from there, any problems?
Otherwise can I do it from a Windows 7 virtual machine?
BR

It really doesn't matter whether it's Android 10 or Android 6 or whatever version what is running. As with any Android for each app a predefined heap size ( the maximum amount of RAM the app can allocate ) exists which is passed through configuration properties inside Android's build.prop file. Usually, heap size is relative to the RAM size of the Android device. So, an Android device with 1 GB of RAM will normally have a heap size of 128 MB and a device with 2+ GB RAM a heap size of 256 MB.
Assuming Android OS itself is eating 500 MB RAM to properly run, then on your phone can - at maximum - run up to 30 apps using 256 MB ( large-heap-size ) simultaneously.

jwoegerbauer said:
It really doesn't matter whether it's Android 10 or Android 6 or whatever version what is running. As with any Android for each app a predefined heap size ( the maximum amount of RAM the app can allocate ) exists which is passed through configuration properties inside Android's build.prop file. Usually, heap size is relative to the RAM size of the Android device. So, an Android device with 1 GB of RAM will normally have a heap size of 128 MB and a device with 2+ GB RAM a heap size of 256 MB.
Assuming Android OS itself is eating 500 MB RAM to properly run, then on your phone can - at maximum - run up to 30 apps using 256 MB ( large-heap-size ) simultaneously.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your reply.
What I meant by lighter refers to the scarce 8 Gb on my device, not the RAM. With only 8 Gb there is a very low limit to the amount of apps I can install. Maybe with Lineage there is more of those 8 Gb free.
And that takes me to the Gapps packages. When reading the link for Gapps it offers various packages and I'm a bit lost as to which I should download.
Open Gapps for LineageOS 17.1 GSI build: Download
Open Gapps for Android 10
ARM: Download Open Gapps 10 ARM Zip
ARM64: Download Open Gapps 10 ARM64 Zip
BiTGApps for Android 10 Custom ROM | Link
GApps for LineageOS 17 | Link
BR

I've downloaded the Lineage ROM file and have a doubt about the name of the file and whether it's valid for my model. The name of the file is
lineage-17.1-20201213-UNOFFICIAL-js01lte.zip
What worries me is the "...js01lte" part.
My mobile is SM-J500FN, also "j5nlte"
BR

ok, I think I'm almost ready to flash my first ever custom rom.
I've been reading to understand what I'm getting into.
One doubt. It seems that TWRP is capable of installing the custom rom without me telling it what partition it should be flashed to.
My question, if I want to flash a Samsung stock ROM can I also use TWRP or must I use Odin or Heimdall and flash it to the appropriate partition?
BR, Eduardo

Before I proceed
Installation instructions state "Then, select the System, Vendor, Data, and the Cache partition and perform a right swipe to format the selected partitions."
My device doesn't show the vendor partition.
Is it ok to proceed ?

Eduardo de Juan said:
Before I proceed
Installation instructions state "Then, select the System, Vendor, Data, and the Cache partition and perform a right swipe to format the selected partitions."
My device doesn't show the vendor partition.
Is it ok to proceed ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Still insstalling? I think lineageOS is not the right solution for you. I got the same phone and made it work by disabling bloatware.

Hi Kurtin
from what I've learnt until now disabling bloatware doesn't free up any space, it just doesn't show but it's still there.

You need to see the partitions separately. The stock version of each app is stored in system partition. That is no problem. You can't use free space in system partition.
Our problem is data partition. Each enabled app will try to store it's data and updates in data partition. That makes the device unusable.

I think I understand what you mean and therefore installing a different ROM won't help unless it changes the partition setup.
Thanks for your support.

Eduardo de Juan said:
I think I understand what you mean and therefore installing a different ROM won't help unless it changes the partition setup.
Thanks for your support.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Installing a different ROM will help. Custom ROMs usually have less bloatware that occupies data partition for updates.
Same effect as disabling apps in stock ROM.

Hi
our exchange started when you stated "I think lineageOS is not the right solution for you. I got the same phone and made it work by disabling bloatware."
Can you propose a better custom ROM that addresses our needs or didn't you explore that track?

Eduardo de Juan said:
Hi
our exchange started when you stated "I think lineageOS is not the right solution for you. I got the same phone and made it work by disabling bloatware."
Can you propose a better custom ROM that addresses our needs or didn't you explore that track?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LineageOS 17.1 should be OK.

Please Help with Getac ZX70 Tablet rom

I am seeking help with a Tablet. Getac ZX70 (Intel® Atom 2gb memory and 32gb storage)
It currently is running Android 5.1.1 and rooted utilizing Kingroot.
my goal is to upgrade to 6 or better to take advantage of expanding 128Gb sd card to internal storage for running custom applications.
Only true must haves are .........WiFi , Bluetooth, web browser would be nice plan to run an OBD2 automotive diagnostic APK. currently running fine but limits me to only 9Gb left of internal storage limiting me from additional future software installations and updates.
Any custom roms out there or how to install or create own?

To upgrade existing Android you need a Custom Recovery to flash a Custom ROM. Hence you as 1st thing of all things have to search for a suitable Custom Recovery.

jwoegerbauer said:
To upgrade existing Android you need a Custom Recovery to flash a Custom ROM. Hence you as 1st thing of all things have to search for a suitable Custom Recovery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
turns out I was able to download image for android 7.1 from Getac support page listed under "ZX70G1"
The trick to updating the rom was to do it from inside the Bios .
hooking up a usb keyboard and hitting esc during power up.
now to try to debloat this thing any Ideas?