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LineageOS 17.1 arrives on the OnePlus 5T, Galaxy S5, Fxtec Pro¹, and others
Fresh off the build servers
LineageOS is the most popular custom ROM around, bringing new Android updates to abandoned phones, and a stock-like experience (with or without Google software) to newer devices. The last time we covered the project, it added support for a handful of phones from Huawei, Sony, Xiaomi, and OnePlus. Since then, many more devices have made their way to the official roster.
LineageOS is one of the best custom ROMs around, with official support for dozens of phones and a few unique features. The last time we covered the project, it started offering builds for the Redmi Note 7 Pro, Huawei Honor 5X, and a few others. Since then, a whopping 13 phones are now receiving Pie builds, but there's some bad news for Xiaomi device owners.
LineageOS is one of the most popular custom ROMs available, with somewhere around two million active installations. It typically takes a while for the project to update to newer versions of Android, since development is largely done by maintainers in their spare time. Six months after the public release of Android 9 Pie, it looks like LineageOS is about ready to make the jump — but not before dropping older devices.
The LineageOS custom ROM used to support just about every phone imaginable, but lately the project has been going for quality over quantity. Oreo (15.1) builds have to fulfill stricter requirements to receive official status, and now Lineage is dropping support for 30 unmaintained phones and tablets.
The community behind LineageOS, the successor to the ill-fated CyanogenMod ROM, continues to impress. New devices are constantly being added to the build roster, and we're even seeing new software features crop up, like custom Quick Settings tiles. Now the project has started supporting nine additional devices.
Okay, so there's a small chance the Galaxy Note 7 might explode. That's a bummer, but older note phones probably won't do that. It just so happens a lot of them are on salve via Woot today. These are all refurbished phones, and a few of them might have some cosmetic damage, but they're cheap.
Samsung has been releasing more apps lately and the newest one is for the mobile gamers. Game Recorder+ lets you record gameplay videos on several Samsung devices, with internal audio supported on the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge. The early reviews aren't great, though.
Galaxy Note 3 owners on US Cellular have a fun treat waiting for them today—a Lollipop OTA. You can grab the update via Samsung Kies or by heading to the update menu and pulling down the OTA over WiFi.
If I said Lollipop didn't have its own share of bugs, I'd be lying. But I'd also be lying if I said that it's not the best version of Android to date, because it really is. And today, Note 3 and Note Edge users on Sprint are getting a taste of what 5.0 is like on their handsets, as the Now Network has finally started pushing it.
What's this? A current-generation AT&T phone and its year-old sibling getting updated on the same day? We have an embarrassment of riches, folks. Just a few hours after the Lollipop over-the-air update for the Galaxy Note 4 started on Ma Bell, the Galaxy Note 3 (from 2013) is getting the same treatment. AT&T's support page says that this is Android 5.0, build number N900AUCUEOC1.
When T-Mobile added a new update tracking progress meter to its website last week, the Galaxy Note 3 was listed as undergoing T-Mobile testing, the second step in a three-step process to deliver Android 5.0. Soon it should be moving up a notch, as a changelog has hit Samsung's site saying that today's the day the carrier starts pushing out the over-the-air update to consumers.
We've been seeing a handful of Samsung flagships get updated to Lollipop here in the United States, where the lion's share of phones are still sold with shackles firmly attached to the carriers. The standard international model of the Note 4 uses Samsung's own Exynos chipset, but there's also a variant with a Snapdragon 805, model number SM-N910F. Users in Germany can access the official Lollipop update on these phones today via Samsung's Kies program, according to SamMobile.
If you have a late-model Samsung phone on US Cellular, odds are pretty good that there's a software update waiting for you. The Galaxy S5 and Galaxy Note 4 flagships are getting an updated build of KitKat, along with the last-gen Galaxy Note 3. Don't get your hopes too high: all three phones will still be running Android 4.4.2 after the update. But Samsung is pushing out a few incremental changes, notably for the dialer and camera.
Update, January 11th, 2015: Verizon has issued another update alert for the Galaxy Note 4.4.4. This one also updates the phone to 4.4.4 and includes the same changelog, but for some reason the build number is changed to N900VVRUDNK1. Whether or not there was a problem with the original rollout, we can't say, but it appears to be continuing.
Raise your hand if you like carrier apps added to your phone. Anyone. Go ahead, don't be shy. Well if you don't, here's a great example of why companies like AT&T should leave the software alone. An over-the-air update to 4.4.4 for the carrier-customized version of the Galaxy Note 3 was sent out on November 28th, then unceremoniously pulled. A previous message on the support page explained why:
Those looking for an off-contract deal on fairly recent phones have a treat today: the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy S4 are available in refurbished condition on eBay for 0 (Note 3) and 0 (S4) with free shipping. They are Verizon devices, but are unlocked and technically able to pick up 3G from GSM carriers, according to the seller.
Today T-Mobile has started to push out minor over-the-air updates to a number of Samsung Galaxy devices. Two of them are identical—the S5 and Note are both receiving Chinese language support. The former goes to version G900TUVU1CNK2, while the latter ends up at N910TUVU1ANK4.
The Galaxy Note 4 is Samsung's new baby, but last year's Note 3 is still a fine phone if you're into that whole phablet thing. You can snag an unlocked AT&T Note 3 with 32GB of storage on eBay today for $419.99. It's popped up for less, but those deals were all for the 16GB version.