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CyanogenMod is virtually the best-known custom ROM out there, and for good reason: it brings the newest version of Android to devices that would otherwise have to wait much longer to receive it, or would never receive it at all. This week, quite a few popular devices have received CyanogenMod 14.1, which is based on Android 7.1 Nougat.
Cyanogen Inc. may be dying as a company, but the voluntarily-maintained CyanogenMod ROMs are still alive and kicking. Case in point: seven more devices are joining CyanogenMod 14.1, which is based on Android 7.1 Nougat. Six of these Android-powered machines have builds already up, but one doesn't yet.
The lads and lasses on the open source CyanogenMod Team continue to bring their Android nightly ROMs to phones and tablets that have long been abandoned by uncaring manufacturers. This week a handful of new devices get builds for CM13, based on code from Android 6.0. All of them are nightlies (so possibly not ready for primetime), but I'll bet their respective users are happy to get the attention anyway. Here they are:
The OnePlus 3 runs OxygenOS, a custom version of Android that is similar-to-but-not-quite what you get on a Nexus. You get a few more options, but you're still ultimately dependent on a company for updates.
As one of the top custom ROMs, CyanogenMod is constantly adding new devices to its stable. Now it's time for these three devices to have their turn in the spotlight. For the Robin and the dual-SIM Desire 816, this is the first appearance they've made on official CyanogenMod pages. The YU Yuphoria has had CM12.1, based on Lollipop 5.1, for a while, but has now made the leap to CM13 and Marshmallow. Without further ado, here are the three new additions to the CM 13 nightlies:
CyanogenMod's maintainers are on an everlasting quest to conquer the software update war against pesky smartphone manufacturers who drop support way too soon for most of their devices. For instance, Samsung has been struggling to release Marshmallow for the two-year old Galaxy S5, but the CyanogenMod folks are ready to roll Android 6.0's software to an even older flagship: the three-year old Galaxy S4.
The HTC One A9 was HTC's first device to ship with Android Marshmallow, but despite a relatively clean version of Sense, there's still reason to want to flash a custom ROM. Maybe you want the genuine stock Android look. Maybe you want to cut down on the number of pre-installed apps. Either way, you now have the option to flash CyanogenMod and keep Android 6.0 thanks to the arrival of CM 13 nightly builds.
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- CyanogenMod 13 nightlies are now also available for the Galaxy S4 (jfltexx), Australian Galaxy S5 (kltekdi), and the Galaxy S5 Duos (klteduos).
The Samsung Galaxy S5 is scheduled to get Marshmallow eventually, but some models only received Android 5.1.1 in October, meaning most customers are in for quite the wait. Even when the changes do arrive, they may ultimately taste quite a bit like TouchWiz, and that's not a flavor everyone likes having on their tongue.
CyanogenMod can take a phone with a not-so-good software experience and turn it into something that feels more like a Nexus. This is the kind of treatment it can now give to the T-Mobile and international variants of the LG G4. 12.1 nightly builds running Android 5.1.1 are now ready for you to download and flash using your custom recovery of choice.
At this point, custom ROMs are the only things keeping old Galaxy S2s feeling fresh and vaguely modern. If you turned to CyanogenMod as your experience of choice, you've been left stranded on version 11 running Android KitKat. Now you're in for a treat. Fresh builds of CyanogenMod 12.1 are ready for download.
The Yuphoria is a Cyanogen OS phone in India from Micromax subsidiary Yu. It's a mid-range device that competes with hardware along the lines of the Moto G, but that doesn't mean it's not a decent piece of tech to tinker with. That's especially the case now that the first CyanogenMod nightly has hit the web.
One of the most popular dual SIM options right now is the 2nd gen Moto G, which is only available with a second SIM slot in certain markets. People in those parts of the world have reason to be excited today as the first official CyanogenMod nightly for this device is now available.
You could say that using a custom ROM is akin to testing a beta product indefinitely, and in that case, using the beta version of CM Downloader previously available wasn't much of an issue. But for the more cautious ROMers among you, version 2.0 of CyanogenMod's automatic update-downloading and flashing app has gone stable.
LG G Pad 7.0 LTE owners on the AT&T network who are dissatisfied with the default software may be happy to know that CyanogenMod now officially supports their device. The community has started to roll out fresh nightly builds, with one available as of now.
The CM team was originally shooting for last week to get the first CyanogenMod 12.1 nightlies out the door, but they're just rolling out now. This process will take a little time as the new version hits the myriad of devices supported by CM these days. When it does show up, just remember that we're talking about nightly builds, so don't expect a bug-free experience.
Did those rumors of Microsoft investing in professional ROM developer Cyanogen spook you, Android purist? Then you might want to skip flashing today's nightly build for your Nexus 6. Starting late last night, CyanogenMod devotees who flashed the March 31st nightly builds to their phones and tablets were disheartened to see the following message as Android was upgrading:
CyanogenMod may be dropping platinum albums these days, but that doesn't mean that the project isn't still cranking out nightly builds for new devices, just as it used to do in its underground days (I totally listened to them before they were big, you know).
While Lollipop has been officially rolling out to several variants of the Galaxy Note 4, the team at Cyanogen has been busy keeping up with Samsung by releasing CM12 nightlies. Today, the custom ROM is available to one more variant of the Note 4 family: the European N910F.
Were you upset that CyanogenMod changed its boot animation for CM12 (based on Lollipop) to a blinding white flash of branding brilliance? Then you really need to find better things to be upset about. Even so, it looks like the nightly builds released just a few days later have adjusted the boot animation once again, bringing it back to a more sober black. Here it is, for your viewing pleasure:
CyanogenMod supports a few new devices today, all of them Sony. Just head over to the CM download section and you can get nightly builds for the Xperia Z3, Z3 Compact, and Z3 Tablet Compact with LTE (that's Scorpion). This follows the WiFi version of this tablet getting support just a few days ago.