Database Users

Getting Z2 soon, but really afraid from SONY updates ..

Hey guys
I am going to change my phone and i was going to get XPERIA Z3 but i realized that there is no major difference between Z2 and Z3 that worth the 300$ difference
this phone will be my first phone from sony and the first android phone after 2 iOS years
I was really convinced untill i checked the sony update history .. the phone is at 4.4.4 until now and some people told me it will get the Android L after 1 month and it will not have any major difference .. they told me that sony is the worse company in sending updates to their devices
HTC one m8, motorolla x,g and even the samsung S5 got android L and still no idea about sony
what do you think? i am really worried

First off - the Z2 is a great phone. Its much nicer than the S5 and even the M8 imo.
The Moto G/X got their updates to Lollipop fast because they use a practically Stock version of android, and even then, they (are/were) owned by Google - so naturally they'd get swift updates.
Sony's 5.0.x build is due soon enough, and the Z2/Z3 will be the first to get it from what I've read recently.

If L is your biggest concern for a phone, don't buy it until it's been released for said phone. Then you have nothing to worry about.

geegs8 said:
If L is your biggest concern for a phone, don't buy it until it's been released for said phone. Then you have nothing to worry about.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
actually it is not my biggest concern i am more worried about other problems like self cracking - heat but i depend on luck when getting the phone
btw i am not worry about L .. my worry is the updates after L and sony support for the phone .. i don't like using a powerful outdated phone .. hope you got what i mean .. i told my self I can use CM but even CM hasn't released there CM12 to z2 yet hehe

Bn Waheed said:
. i don't like using a powerful outdated phone .. hope you got what i mean ..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand, but updates are something not really in our control. Sony is definitely not the worst company with updates. It's a great phone, I have no regrets randomly buying it as my first android without knowing too much about androids at all. Pretty proud of my choice, actually The dev community here is great so I wouldn't worry about it. I've had no issues with my phone at all. Don't be worried, be excited

Bn Waheed said:
actually it is not my biggest concern i am more worried about other problems like self cracking - heat but i depend on luck when getting the phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You don't need to rely on luck, a tiny minority of devices have any issues.
Bn Waheed said:
btw i am not worry about L .. my worry is the updates after L and sony support for the phone .. i don't like using a powerful outdated phone .. hope you got what i mean .. i told my self I can use CM but even CM hasn't released there CM12 to z2 yet hehe
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most devices haven't seen L yet, and you won't be seeing an official CM12 until after that as they need drivers to be available for camera etc before committing to a stable release, Sony have committed to releasing L for all the Z devices back to original two year old Z phone that's more than most manufacturers have.
Sent from my D6503 using XDA Free mobile app

geegs8 said:
I understand, but updates are something not really in our control. Sony is definitely not the worst company with updates. It's a great phone, I have no regrets randomly buying it as my first android without knowing too much about androids at all. Pretty proud of my choice, actually The dev community here is great so I wouldn't worry about it. I've had no issues with my phone at all. Don't be worried, be excited
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
concerning about dev community i saw some good roms and i heard that i can't root 4.4.4 without unlocking bootloader .. what are the Disadvantages result from unlocking bootloader? i made a search on google but didn't find the answer
thank you man
ghostofcain said:
You don't need to rely on luck, a tiny minority of devices have any issues.
Most devices haven't seen L yet, and you won't be seeing an official CM12 until after that as they need drivers to be available for camera etc before committing to a stable release, Sony have committed to releasing L for all the Z devices back to original two year old Z phone that's more than most manufacturers have.
Sent from my D6503 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can understand now .. and knowing that the original Z will be updated made me optimistic .. but what do you thing about that article ? i know there were similar news a year ago .. but if it's true will that affect their support for the phone?

Bn Waheed said:
Hey guys
I am going to change my phone and i was going to get XPERIA Z3 but i realized that there is no major difference between Z2 and Z3 that worth the 300$ difference
this phone will be my first phone from sony and the first android phone after 2 iOS years
I was really convinced untill i checked the sony update history .. the phone is at 4.4.4 until now and some people told me it will get the Android L after 1 month and it will not have any major difference .. they told me that sony is the worse company in sending updates to their devices
HTC one m8, motorolla x,g and even the samsung S5 got android L and still no idea about sony
what do you think? i am really worried
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My brother have S5 and some friends have Note 3 and S4 also, i am only one who updated their devices when new update released.
what i have experience from last 18 months is, Samsung give the update for his devices before one month then sony but their software's have many lags. Sony give update one month late but that software is good for daily use.
When kitkat update released in 2014, i update note 3 to them and users start complaining about the software lags.
same in S4 also.
Now its upto you, that you want a software from samsung before one month then sony with lags, or one month late but good from sony
one thing more sony always change his UI and they look great, while samsung have always same UI which looks not premium.

Sony will get the updates eventually but the said phones will never get 20.7MP camera, clearaudio+, unique design....
Ps: about the software future update concernes; Sony may be late for some updates in their history but the fact that they are the only company who share AOSP code and update their kernels alongside the Nexus devices makes them one of their kind in the Android world. No other company updates kernels, just tune the new software for the old kernel. Considering this, once the phone cut off from the company's update list and ROMs like CM come as the only option for being up-to-date, Sony will shine again with their AOSP sharings and fully open source code (I can understand that they don't wanna share their camera code as they have got many of their softwares stolen in the past). Because the rival phones like HTC One M8, Galaxy S5 and LG G3 comes with many limitations and lack of sources for developers (and even some developer-blocking-software let alone limitations)
Sent from Xperia Z2

Bn Waheed said:
actually it is not my biggest concern i am more worried about other problems like self cracking - heat but i depend on luck when getting the phone
btw i am not worry about L .. my worry is the updates after L and sony support for the phone .. i don't like using a powerful outdated phone .. hope you got what i mean .. i told my self I can use CM but even CM hasn't released there CM12 to z2 yet hehe
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Personally I don't think that the self cracking is a widespread problem and that it only affects certain users in certain weather conditions and/or how they look after the phone (care or not, dropping constantly or not etc). I personally haven't experienced the overheating problem (which is said to happen in 4K recording mode (I did 15 mins of recording and when I exited recording the temp was on 60C if I remember correctly)). The only problem I have got with the phone is the off centred back camera (it is about 1-2mm to the top right) but it doesn't affect performance in any way.
Bn Waheed said:
concerning about dev community i saw some good roms and i heard that i can't root 4.4.4 without unlocking bootloader .. what are the Disadvantages result from unlocking bootloader? i made a search on google but didn't find the answer
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For 4.4.4 there is no one click root solution, however it can be rooted while remaining on a locked bootloader. You have to flash the 4.4.2 firmware (this is called downgrading if you didn't already know ) with a program called flashtool. Then you have to root the 4.4.2 firmware and the install [NUT]'s dual recovery. Once you have rooted 4.4.2 and installed the recovery you have to flash a pre-rooted ROM (Niaboc79 has a pure stock pre-rooted ROM and also eXistenZ ROM (the latter is stock based and pre-rooted too)).
Disadvantages:
X-Reality/Super Vivid break
Noise Cancelling headphone algorithm breaks
Some camera algorithms break
Lost warranty
Lost DRM keys (unless the TA backup is made)
Advantages:
Install non-stock based ROM's like AOSP, MC, PacROM, etc.
Install custom kernels
I'm sure there is more advantages and disadvantages. @Envious_Data is a good person to ask about this, have I missed anything?

Correct @gamer649
Advantages and disadvantages of UB
Advantages:
Freedom
Easier to root
Custom kernels
Custom roms (not stock based)
Harder to Brick
Easier to install recovery
Epic mods like Multi-Rom
Disadvantages:
X-Reality Breaks
Lost Warrenty
Lost DRM Keys
Camera Quality (hit and miss, still same for me but worse for a freind)
Evidently less freedom
Noise Canceling works on UB for me but im on a stock firmware (flashed from FTF)
As we know we need to use flashtool to downgrade then we can root and use root to upgrade and keep root

Envious_Data said:
Noise Canceling works on UB for me but im on a stock firmware (flashed from FTF)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When I unlocked my bootloader NC broke for me (I walk the same path to work each time I go) and I could hear the cars passing me whereas I couldn't before I unlocked it. However, I didn't reflash the stock ROM so that may have been a potential fix.
I'm still to unlock my bootloader again (because we now have the epic multiROM) cause I don't wanna lose my eXistenZ setup I'll probably cave in soon though.
Also, thanks for confirming what I said.

@Envious_Data So if i unblocked my BL and lost these features and then re blocked it .. will these features work again?
and according to @gamer649 the first thing i need to do when i put my hands on the phone is a TA backup?
Lost DRM keys (unless the TA backup is made)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
is there any thread has some explanations for these sony stuff? i remember when i had note 2 it was just one click root on any FW

Yeah. There you go
REMEMBER TO UPLOAD BACKUP ON GOOGLE DRIVE, MAIL OR WHAT EVER, WHERE IT CAN BE KEPT SAFE
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2292598

gamer649 said:
When I unlocked my bootloader NC broke for me (I walk the same path to work each time I go) and I could hear the cars passing me whereas I couldn't before I unlocked it. However, I didn't reflash the stock ROM so that may have been a potential fix.
I'm still to unlock my bootloader again (because we now have the epic multiROM) cause I don't wanna lose my eXistenZ setup I'll probably cave in soon though.
Also, thanks for confirming what I said.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well it doesnt work for me unless i flash certain FTFs
So the tiwanese 167 FTF had working Noise Canceling but no other one had
Bn Waheed said:
@Envious_Data So if i unblocked my BL and lost these features and then re blocked it .. will these features work again?
and according to @gamer649 the first thing i need to do when i put my hands on the phone is a TA backup?
is there any thread has some explanations for these sony stuff? i remember when i had note 2 it was just one click root on any FW
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, certain apps and services are drm dependant
Unlocking your bootloader wipes your TA where your DRM keys are kept
X-Reality/super vivid and some Xperia Apps such as playstation
Downgrade>root>backup TA> enjoy
Optional > upgrade, unlock bootloader, flash recovery

lgv2800 said:
Yeah. There you go
REMEMBER TO UPLOAD BACKUP ON GOOGLE DRIVE, MAIL OR WHAT EVER, WHERE IT CAN BE KEPT SAFE
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2292598
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that reminded me with the SHSH stuff for iphone 4 thank you man

Bn Waheed said:
@Envious_Data So if i unblocked my BL and lost these features and then re blocked it .. will these features work again?
and according to @gamer649 the first thing i need to do when i put my hands on the phone is a TA backup?
is there any thread has some explanations for these sony stuff? i remember when i had note 2 it was just one click root on any FW
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The simplest way to get the features back is to restore the TA partition (which is the partition what houses all the algorithms to these features and the TA partition gets wiped upon a bootloader unlock and so does the internal storage). Restoring also relocks the bootloader at the same time so make sure you are on fully stock firmware and kernel before restoring the TA partition.
To take a TA partition backup you have to have rooted your phone first so it is worth downgrading. Also, you CANNOT use anybody else's TA backup on your phone as you WILL hard brick it. I'm not sure about any thread what explains this Sony jargon.

Envious_Data said:
Yes, certain apps and services are drm dependant
Unlocking your bootloader wipes your TA where your DRM keys are kept
X-Reality/super vivid and some Xperia Apps such as playstation
Downgrade>root>backup TA> enjoy
Optional > upgrade, unlock bootloader, flash recovery
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
great i can understand it now, many thanks
gamer649 said:
The simplest way to get the features back is to restore the TA partition (which is the partition what houses all the algorithms to these features and the TA partition gets wiped upon a bootloader unlock and so does the internal storage). Restoring also relocks the bootloader at the same time so make sure you are on fully stock firmware and kernel before restoring the TA partition.
To take a TA partition backup you have to have rooted your phone first so it is worth downgrading. Also, you CANNOT use anybody else's TA backup on your phone as you WILL hard brick it. I'm not sure about any thread what explains this Sony jargon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thank you i got the idea now .. so if TA partitions is safe, i am safe
i will back it up as soon as i get the phone

Bn Waheed said:
that reminded me with the SHSH stuff for iphone 4 thank you man
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah. Like downgrading the iPhone 4 with patched IPSW because the iboot exploit
Bn Waheed said:
great i can understand it now, many thanks
thank you i got the idea now .. so if TA partitions is safe, i am safe
i will back it up as soon as i get the phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks @gamer649 for explaining it quiet nicely

if you unlock your Bootloader your TA partition is permanently wiped
it will NOT come back if you relock it

[Q] What Happened to this phone?

Let's be honest to ourselves here guys, out beloved Moto X Style was officially released in September which means this phone has now been out for at least 3 months and while all the effort that has since been put in this devices by key developers and people from day 1 up till now is very much appreciated and will continue to be appreciated, the development of this device compared to most flagships has been slow motion.
I am just trying to understand what the hell went wrong with this phone that made it end up with such super slow motion development, as when I originally bought the device I was thinking this phone would be at least in the top 20 most active phones on XDA development wise.
It had so much going for it, easy root, easy unlockable bootloader, a pretty much almost complete stock version of android, kernel sources released and motorolas good track record of updating their flagship phones in a timely manner and good hardware to accompany the great bloatware free stock software and a cheap price compared to some other flagships from other companies such as Samsung and Sony
With all this in mind I thought developers would flock to this device and we would have a massive development forum with loads of options between custom roms, mods, themes and other tweaks etc
But this is far from the case and I know the Nexus 6P being released probably had something to do with it, Still this should have been at least in top 20
At first I thought when Android 6.0 MM will be released development will increase then we needed the kernel sources as that was apparently not enough, then we had kernel sources but apart from 1 or 2 roms showing up being in alpha stages nothings changed too much.
This is such a disappointment to say the least.
If only I could understand why this is happening maybe something could be done to fix this or increase the development of this phone, I dont know maybe get some developers from the nexus 6p forums on here some how ...
Any ideas why this has happened and if anything can be done to increase development?
IS THERE ANY WAY WE AS A COMMUNITY CAN GET MORE DEVELOPERS TO WORK ON THIS DEVICE?

djsynth said:
If only I could understand why this is happening maybe something could be done to fix this or increase the development of this phone, I dont know maybe get some developers from the nexus 6p forums on here some how ...
Any ideas why this has happened and if anything can be done to increase development?
IS THERE ANY WAY WE AS A COMMUNITY CAN GET MORE DEVELOPERS TO WORK ON THIS DEVICE?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it's due to a combination of factors, such as :
1) The popularity of the phone/ manufacturer. These figures show Lenovo/Motorloa in 5th place for sales, having a 3.7% market share in Q3 2015
2) The OS (Android) has improved a lot over recent years, to the extent where a lot of people (like me) are happy to stay with stock
3) With phones getting more expensive, more people are put off from unlocking their bootloader due to warranty issues
4) I'm no longer convinced about the benefits of custom ROMs - seems a lot of the time they break more things than they fix. Maybe a lot of other people now think the same.
5) Some apps, for example ones for mobile banking or subscrition TV & Video, will not work with a rooted phone.
In the past I've had various phones from various manufacturers, and I'd say if you get your kicks from installing custom ROMs, then buy a Nexus.

When i had the one plus one there were so many roms that was a brain storm... I prefer some and reliable roms than a plethora where you get confused!!!

2) The OS (Android) has improved a lot over recent years, to the extent where a lot of people (like me) are happy to stay with stock
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
4) I'm no longer convinced about the benefits of custom ROMs - seems a lot of the time they break more things than they fix. Maybe a lot of other people now think the same.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IMO you hit the nail on the head. I love this phone. I had the MXPE 2014 as well, was not a fan. Also owned the original, Loved it.
This MXPE has been great in imo, the lack of development has not been disappointing to me. The stock rom is really pretty good, there are minor tweaks that can be done but most can do these on their own.
I used to be a flash-aholic, but like @GretaLewd has stated...custom roms tend to break things. I'm more in favor of kernel development. But how many different kernels can you have? One way or another they'll be the same.
I also own a Nexus 6P, but my MXPE is my go to device.
I see users complaining about this phone constantly, I really don't think it matters what phone you put in the hands of those users...they would still find fault and complain.
Motorola and Lenovo did good by this device, I just hope they keep up with incrementals for a while.

Isn't the 64bit cpu reason because it takes more work to get cm/aosp roms?
Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

Good thread. Would love to hear more thoughts
Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

Ordered the device today. Hope slow development doesn't disappoint me on this device, as others have stated...

I have been using this device for 2 months now. I am happy with it an didn't face a single issue. I can do a little bit tweaking myself using Xposed.
So far the slow development doesn't bother me.

Only buy a device for what it can do out of the box, not what you hope it will be able to do with additional modding and development... Nothing else is guaranteed!
As it stands I'm very happy with my rooted stock Style, not need for custom roms.

chrisund123 said:
Only buy a device for what it can do out of the box, not what you hope it will be able to do with additional modding and development... Nothing else is guaranteed!
As it stands I'm very happy with my rooted stock Style, not need for custom roms.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a good way to approach Android phones I suppose but I believe
it's still nice to buy a phone that's great out of the box and good development wise, usually flagships tend to have good development and then the mid range and low end phones tend to get smaller developments but I guess there's an exception to everything.

patt2k said:
Isn't the 64bit cpu reason because it takes more work to get cm/aosp roms?
Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I doubt that's the reason since 64 Bit has been the standard since Lollipop and pretty much all the flagships have a 64bit cpu since the beggining of 2015 but that doesn't stop other development forums from flourishing.

GretaLewd said:
I think it's due to a combination of factors, such as :
1) The popularity of the phone/ manufacturer. These figures show Lenovo/Motorloa in 5th place for sales, having a 3.7% market share in Q3 2015
2) The OS (Android) has improved a lot over recent years, to the extent where a lot of people (like me) are happy to stay with stock
3) With phones getting more expensive, more people are put off from unlocking their bootloader due to warranty issues
4) I'm no longer convinced about the benefits of custom ROMs - seems a lot of the time they break more things than they fix. Maybe a lot of other people now think the same.
5) Some apps, for example ones for mobile banking or subscrition TV & Video, will not work with a rooted phone.
In the past I've had various phones from various manufacturers, and I'd say if you get your kicks from installing custom ROMs, then buy a Nexus.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your break down on your thoughts of the subject and I must admit you've mention some very valid points here especially Point 1,2 and 5 but I think out of all of these its Point 1 and 2 that are the most significant, I suppose Motorola have a really small market share explains the lack of adoption between developers when comparing to some of the more prominent manufacturers such as samsung.
and The Android Stock OS has improved significantly within the past couple of years adding some new features that previously people had to root their phones to acomplish such as full app permission controls and backing up app data which google does for you now.

You need to follow development before buying a device these days. i.e. always wait at least 1-2 months. If you follow the development forums you would get an idea if developers are interested in said device or not. I for one, bought it right after I found out that AICP (CM12) rom was being developed. I was interested in running CM13 instead of other AOSP variations. And before I got the device the first (almost daily driver) builds were already uploaded.

Once cm is solid quite a few roms will pop up. Won't be long now.

Official MM has only been out for our phone for a little over a month. give it some time it may pick up. either way it's still an awesome phone out the box... and as stated above, once CM13 is stable im sure we'll see some of the other custom ROMs that are based off it.

GretaLewd said:
2) The OS (Android) has improved a lot over recent years, to the extent where a lot of people (like me) are happy to stay with stock
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is a great point, but I'd like to add that this is especially applicable to our MXPE. We're really close to stock as it is, so there's little motivation to go ROM to debloat like there is on Samsung, LG, and similar phones. On the flip side, we have a lot of really neat features (active display, approach, accelerator gestures, voice controls) that we would lose if we went ROM.
For me, these two points combine, leaving me with little motivation to ROM my phone, especially since I can could get most of the advantages of CyanogenMod with something like GravityBox, which will allow me to keep the Motorola features (I'm currently unrooted because of the warranty, but I'll be rooted in the future for sure) . Of course, these are my own personal opinions, but I suspect that they reflect at least some of the mindset of this community.

I agree with others, that custom roms are often more trouble than they're worth. The only reason to use them these days is if your device isn't going to be updated to the latest version of Android.

Ever since moto introduced 99% stock android + moto display, roms have been entirely unnecessary for me. I used to rom my phones to gain greater flexibility + customizability. Now that I have stock android + Xposed, I doubt I will ever flash another custom rom again.

I'm still waiting for custom super roms that will make this device best in the market. Why can we have a rom with 1080p display, tweak kernel with better control for heating issue for overall battery life and speed?
Sent from my XT1575 using XDA Free mobile app

The biggest issue is that developers don't support devices they don't own. With the launch of the nexus 6 (not the 6p) most developers got it and had no need to update to a y newer devices.
Also to the comment that all flag ships are 64 bit this is not the case. If you look the most popular devices as far as developers are concerned are non 64 bit.
Also as android matures you will see less and less roms. As it will be come harder. There are very few real development teams. Most are just kitchen sink roms. A base with tons of cherry picks and a new name. Nothing even worth looking at twice. But more developers are closing up the source of their projects because of these types of roms.
To be honest most users have no point in flashing roms. Only those that like the development side of it will continue to mod roms and flash things.

i really thought that Sony was a developer friendly OEM

As title says.
i left my old Samsung S3 for a Sony Z3 mainly for the "promise" of more AOSP-like roms, because Sony thinks is "developer / community friendly".
Though my Z3 is rock stable with the latest official software, i find the lack of AOSP-CM love very disturbing: i really thought that "developer friendly" equals "more and better AOSP-CM for all".
that's not true.
Maybe because there are no people working on that device? (i konw that's close to a hobby, the whole AOSP-CM thing)
Maybe sony simply has better stock software (thus, no needs of further development)?
The only AOSP roms available at the moment are very buggy and looks like not actively developed; nonetheless that rom's thread is almost dead, with no evidence of active development.
The need of unlock the bootloader (and losing DRM, i have a backup), waste at least 45-60 minutes to setup a non-sony, bug filled rom is a nonsense.
I tried CyanogenMod (both standard and sabermod) and i only got to rollback to stock software, because of various and very annoying bugs (eg, auto-brightness, camera..).
the very last attempt ended with a screen damage (overheat) that forced me to a warranty-RMAconclusion (at least for me):
too complex and time-wasting to obtain root
lack of both quality/quantity of CM/AOSP roms (despite sony is "developer friendly")
lack of interest on this (Z3 D6603) device?
i'm not a developer... so i only speak for the (final) user side.
please tell me if i'm wrong.

Dont believe always all promises and its also the lag of people to have patients, far to find by some.

Agreed
I believe that they will be friendly after you unlock your phone's bootloader and void the precious warranty along with some of proprietary functions. It's like you have to sell your soul and a kidney to have that extra power (but you can get it back if you backed up your DRM keys thingy)
I am also understand that they have to protect their stuffs but let you have access to root and fastboot at the same time.
When I first unlocked the BL. The thing I missed a little bit is Bionz thingy but then I just gave up and bought a their mirrorless camera. Problem fixed but costs 4x price but enjoy manual mode and (most likely) actual G lenses!
smala said:
[*]lack of interest on this (Z3 D6603) device?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's rare to see a Sony's ads in my country like 3% compared to 70% of Samsung's. Some of my friends looked at my phone and they have no idea that Sony phones existed. I'm like OMG guys...
The phone is good. I have a black one. 3GB of RAM, insane battery life, 8MP 21MP camera with their (so called) G Lens, super stylish Omni-Balance design and frontal dual speakers.
I'm actually really love this phone.
Oh and I would like to see when the single SIM models shares the same rom with dual SIM models. I first bought a really good dual SIM model without a clue and then instantly traded with single SIM one because that time I really want to try Existenz ROM (no cellular function). LOL at myself.
Ps. I also have that goddamn slightly yellow-ish stuff on my navbar (so I can't use tinted navbar because it was the most annoying thing ever.) with two brighter-than-the-rest (idk if that is called bright pixel or what) area. Not a big deal though.
Ps.2 This thing is like a toaster when flashing-backing up-restoring in recovery.
Sorry for a long reply. This is just my thought without being sarcastic except the first line. X D

I guess most of what the OP said was kind of true. However as I moved from my pretty heavily modified Nexus 5 to the Z3, I've seen no interest in rooting the device or adding functionality because the Z3 is good enough IMO. The screen is just how I want it, unlike my N5's extremely warm/orange display and the battery is amazing compared to the N5. For me the work to get root isn't worth it anymore (plus I need mobile banking) ?
Sent from my D6603 using Tapatalk

There are a good 6 or 7 great roms for Xperia z3 without unlocking your bootloader. Like Pandemics, Wolfbreaks, niaboc79. Take a look at the threads. I'm stuck with a z3 where I cant unlock bootloader, which pisses me off, so I'm grateful to these devs that produce such great roms for our z3. These devs are also on the ball. They respond to your stupid questions and politely help you.
I do wish that all sony phones were bootloader unlockable, but I guess the carrier plays some part too.

And then there is their concept MM combined with DRM restore, root, xposed and Gravitybox

And now that a root has been found for mm, both Ub and lb, there will be lots more development for the Z3
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=3337357

smala said:
As title says.
i left my old Samsung S3 for a Sony Z3 mainly for the "promise" of more AOSP-like roms, because Sony thinks is "developer / community friendly".
Though my Z3 is rock stable with the latest official software, i find the lack of AOSP-CM love very disturbing: i really thought that "developer friendly" equals "more and better AOSP-CM for all".
that's not true.
Maybe because there are no people working on that device? (i konw that's close to a hobby, the whole AOSP-CM thing)
Maybe sony simply has better stock software (thus, no needs of further development)?
The only AOSP roms available at the moment are very buggy and looks like not actively developed; nonetheless that rom's thread is almost dead, with no evidence of active development.
The need of unlock the bootloader (and losing DRM, i have a backup), waste at least 45-60 minutes to setup a non-sony, bug filled rom is a nonsense.
I tried CyanogenMod (both standard and sabermod) and i only got to rollback to stock software, because of various and very annoying bugs (eg, auto-brightness, camera..).
the very last attempt ended with a screen damage (overheat) that forced me to a warranty-RMAconclusion (at least for me):
too complex and time-wasting to obtain root
lack of both quality/quantity of CM/AOSP roms (despite sony is "developer friendly")
lack of interest on this (Z3 D6603) device?
i'm not a developer... so i only speak for the (final) user side.
please tell me if i'm wrong.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
go check out the other sections they suck the Sony forum is one of the best for sure.

smala said:
As title says.
i left my old Samsung S3 for a Sony Z3 mainly for the "promise" of more AOSP-like roms, because Sony thinks is "developer / community friendly".
Though my Z3 is rock stable with the latest official software, i find the lack of AOSP-CM love very disturbing: i really thought that "developer friendly" equals "more and better AOSP-CM for all".
that's not true.
Maybe because there are no people working on that device? (i konw that's close to a hobby, the whole AOSP-CM thing)
Maybe sony simply has better stock software (thus, no needs of further development)?
The only AOSP roms available at the moment are very buggy and looks like not actively developed; nonetheless that rom's thread is almost dead, with no evidence of active development.
The need of unlock the bootloader (and losing DRM, i have a backup), waste at least 45-60 minutes to setup a non-sony, bug filled rom is a nonsense.
I tried CyanogenMod (both standard and sabermod) and i only got to rollback to stock software, because of various and very annoying bugs (eg, auto-brightness, camera..).
the very last attempt ended with a screen damage (overheat) that forced me to a warranty-RMAconclusion (at least for me):
too complex and time-wasting to obtain root
lack of both quality/quantity of CM/AOSP roms (despite sony is "developer friendly")
lack of interest on this (Z3 D6603) device?
i'm not a developer... so i only speak for the (final) user side.
please tell me if i'm wrong.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There simply aren't alot of developers left developing on the z3. It is an aging device and most dev's move onto newer phones rather quickly. There are lots of good rom options for the z3 to keep you occupied. But if you were looking for more active development, I think you should have bought a z5 or held out for a zx.
Sent from my D6603 using Tapatalk

I came across several Devices like Samsung S2/3/4/5, Note 2/3/4, Sony Xperia S/Z/1/2/3, LG G2/4x, Nexus 4/7 and some more I think but the variety of Development is really one of the smallest here in Z3.
Actually I'm stuck at the Z3(no money) and got used to it but, except the Battery, it isn't that Killer I expected from it.
Well no, I don't need a Tissue
Downloaded the Slim Stock Sony from here, actually it is Version 5 with some really nice new Features (Launcher/Icons..) + Xposed + Gravity Box and I am happy.
Back in the the Samsung S2 days, many people were complaining about Samsungs politic about their Exynos Chips and Developers had hard times with it but now, just have a look at S3/S3 LTE Forums, always up-to-date.
I don't understand why there is no official Cyanogenmod 13 for the Z3, even the CM 12.1 is just nightly but unfortunately I lost touch to all this back in the S4 Active days so I have to wait for what will come.
On the other side, the Z3 is a stabile daily Device with no bigger Problems so it could be worse. And Android 6 is coming, sooner or later
BTW, my wife's Z5 (Telekom Germany) didn't get MM, yet.
Greetings,
Thomas

ohwarumbloss said:
I came across several Devices like Samsung S2/3/4/5, Note 2/3/4, Sony Xperia S/Z/1/2/3, LG G2/4x, Nexus 4/7 and some more I think but the variety of Development is really one of the smallest here in Z3.
Actually I'm stuck at the Z3(no money) and got used to it but, except the Battery, it isn't that Killer I expected from it.
Well no, I don't need a Tissue
Downloaded the Slim Stock Sony from here, actually it is Version 5 with some really nice new Features (Launcher/Icons..) + Xposed + Gravity Box and I am happy.
Back in the the Samsung S2 days, many people were complaining about Samsungs politic about their Exynos Chips and Developers had hard times with it but now, just have a look at S3/S3 LTE Forums, always up-to-date.
I don't understand why there is no official Cyanogenmod 13 for the Z3, even the CM 12.1 is just nightly but unfortunately I lost touch to all this back in the S4 Active days so I have to wait for what will come.
On the other side, the Z3 is a stabile daily Device with no bigger Problems so it could be worse. And Android 6 is coming, sooner or later
BTW, my wife's Z5 (Telekom Germany) didn't get MM, yet.
Greetings,
Thomas
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No official CM due to, mainly, the camera bug.
They can't release a snapshot version with such a big issue.
Sent from my D6603 using XDA-Developers mobile app

I agree. This is why I personally will try out Samsung. Specifically the Galaxy S7 Edge. I always see Samsung devices getting a lot of attention from 3rd party developers. They always get fully working custom roms and such. I've been stuck to Sony for a really long time (ever since the Xperia X10 Mini Pro) and I'm tired to see all the devices I use to be quickly abandoned. The lack of development is seriously pissing me off (I'm not blaming anyone).

LeParkour012 said:
I agree. This is why I personally will try out Samsung. Specifically the Galaxy S7 Edge. I always see Samsung devices getting a lot of attention from 3rd party developers. They always get fully working custom roms and such. I've been stuck to Sony for a really long time (ever since the Xperia X10 Mini Pro) and I'm tired to see all the devices I use to be quickly abandoned. The lack of development is seriously pissing me off (I'm not blaming anyone).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The only thing why I really HATE Sony is that Bootloader Unlocking thing. I've got a Nexus 4 - unlocking the BL was super-easy and I'm using a custom rom till now.
Next phone was a Moto G - there was a bug which prevented me from unlocking (and rooting) it. But I posted on Motorola's forums and somebody from them helped me and gave me a testing bootloader - also unlocked and custom ROM till now.
But on Z3 I risk loosing DRM keys, good camera, video recording (!?) and YouTube playback - a REAL dealbreaker!
The "missing" development is not such a big thing for me, as the stock ROM is a really good base to work with - so far, I didn't miss that part at all.
But what I miss because of the locked bootloader is to have a recovery in recovery partition which is (more or less) guaranteed to work even when phone is totally messed up. Without unlocking, just to restore a twrp backup, I need to flash stock, root it, install XZDR and restore it - which takes at least 30minutes.
But for daily use, also with root, I'm satisfied with my Z3 with Stock + XZDR + SoundMod + Xposed.

XZ1 Nougat

Hello dear developers,
I think some of you know, that the XZ3 is in the Android preview program for Nougat. https://developer.sony.com/develop/smartphones-and-tablets/android-n-developer-preview/
As far as I can see in wikipedia the hardware of Z1 and Z3 are very similar. The Z3 is the last of the Z series with very similar hardware.
Because there are so many Xperia devices, the community of developers is very thinned out. There is not even one MarshMallow release which is running without problems until now and Google is already short before releasing Nougat.
Sadlly I am no developer on my own. I already fail at creating the necessary Linux environment. But there are many great developers and skilled people here on the forum. Wouldn't it be a great idea that you bundle your skills, skip the MM release and create the maybe last ROM update for our beloved XZ1? A release of stock based N.
It is just an idea, but it would be great if some of you would capture the idea :fingers-crossed:

wrong forum, xperia z1 won't have a stable MM ROM........................

->--- said:
Hello dear developers,
I think some of you know, that the XZ3 is in the Android preview program for Nougat. https://developer.sony.com/develop/smartphones-and-tablets/android-n-developer-preview/
As far as I can see in wikipedia the hardware of Z1 and Z3 are very similar. The Z3 is the last of the Z series with very similar hardware.
Because there are so many Xperia devices, the community of developers is very thinned out. There is not even one MarshMallow release which is running without problems until now and Google is already short before releasing Nougat.
Sadlly I am no developer on my own. I already fail at creating the necessary Linux environment. But there are many great developers and skilled people here on the forum. Wouldn't it be a great idea that you bundle your skills, jump over the MM release and create the maybe last ROM update for our beloved XZ1? A release of N.
It is just an idea, but it would be great if some of you would capture the idea :fingers-crossed:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
None of Xperias will have stable custom roms above LP 5.1.1, because everyone has switched to AOSP trees. Sony blobs are protected by DRM, so, they won't work with camera wrappers and Sony's blobs for AOSP have always and will continue to be crap. Sony doesn't want you to have custom roms. So, think of developer friendlier manufacturers. This crap about Sony being friendly to open source is just that. Their open source developers are just PR people. Sony AOSP has never had a stable rom: not for JB, not for Kitkat and not for LP...

optimumpro said:
None of Xperias will have stable custom roms above LP 5.1.1, because everyone has switched to AOSP trees. Sony blobs are protected by DRM, so, they won't work with camera wrappers and Sony's blobs for AOSP have always and will continue to be crap. Sony doesn't want you to have custom roms. So, think of developer friendlier manufacturers. This crap about Sony being friendly to open source is just that. Their open source developers are just PR people. Sony AOSP has never had a stable rom: not for JB, not for Kitkat and not for LP...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've wondered for a long time now: you talk crap about Sony's software, complain about their blobs being 'crap', and claim Sony isn't friendly to OSS, yet you continue to develop and deploy custom ROMs for the Z1. If it's such a hurdle to develop, why not move to a developer friendly platform/device like the Nexus 6P? I appreciate your work for the Z1, but I think you're beating the dead horse at this point.

kentexcitebot said:
I've wondered for a long time now: you talk crap about Sony's software, complain about their blobs being 'crap', and claim Sony isn't friendly to OSS, yet you continue to develop and deploy custom ROMs for the Z1. If it's such a hurdle to develop, why not move to a developer friendly platform/device like the Nexus 6P? I appreciate your work, but I think you're beating the dead horse at this point.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LP 5.1 is pretty good. It is better than stock. Today I replaced the rear camera module (the old one stopped focusing) and camera is superb. No bugs in LP.
I may move to Nexus, but the phone I buy has to be metal or glass, plus Z1 has enough life ahead of it. I don't care about M or N. From my point of view, Google changes SDK, so that prior features won't work, and in exchange gives us a few different icons and slightly different interface.
Security updates are coming and lp will be supported for a long while. Normal users don't care about versions either. They want a stable device and they get it in LP...

optimumpro said:
I may move to Nexus, but the phone I buy has to be metal or glass, plus Z1 has enough life ahead of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The OnePlus 3 is the next best developer-friendly platform after the Nexus devices. Warranty doesn't go bad if you root or unlock bootloader. It even got CM 13 before launch! It also happens to have a metal back, 16MP shooter with OIS, and everybody's favorite 'Dark Mode'. I don't mean to advertise, but for $399, I'd say that's a great bargain. Don't get me wrong, the Z1 still works beautifully when all is OK, but it's really starting to show it's age: your device's rear camera module stopped focusing until you replaced it, several user's battery in the Z1 (not just on XDA) is going bad, and my Z1's touch digitizer has issues on tap (probably from abuse, but people reported self-cracking screens with their touchscreens completely broken). Not too many people want to go through the trouble of sending it in (to China?!) or fixing it themselves.
I don't care about M or N. From my point of view, Google changes SDK, so that prior features won't work, and in exchange gives us a few different icons and slightly different interface.
...
Normal users don't care about versions either.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Um, what? According to many tech sources, that's the highlight issue with Android: fragmentation. If you wanted to know Android's biggest problem, this is it. In fact, people (including some casuals) blast Android because of this. Maybe you don't care about Android versions, but if you stick with LP or an older platform, you're contributing to the problem.
Security updates are coming and lp will be supported for a long while. They want a stable device and they get it in LP...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As you can probably tell, I've already switched to a different device: a OnePlus 3. Oxygen OS 3.1.3 (6.0.1 Marshmallow), from experience, is quite stable and is developed by the team behind Paranoid Android. Sure, LP's code is more stable because it's been out longer and has more revisions, but it really depends of how you interpret the term (because I've experienced no crashes or FCs so far on MM). I'm fine if you continue holding the torch for Z1's AOSP/CM ROM community and keep LP more secure/stable for them, but I find it a bit redundant as most users have already moved away from this device and transitioned to MM (and even N DP4).

kentexcitebot said:
The OnePlus 3 is the next best developer-friendly platform after the Nexus devices. Warranty doesn't go bad if you root or unlock bootloader. It even got CM 13 before launch! It also happens to have a metal back, 16MP shooter with OIS, and everybody's favorite 'Dark Mode'. I don't mean to advertise, but for $399, I'd say that's a great bargain. Don't get me wrong, the Z1 still works beautifully when all is OK, but it's really starting to show it's age: your device's rear camera module stopped focusing until you replaced it, several user's battery in the Z1 (not just on XDA) is going bad, and my Z1's touch digitizer has issues on tap (probably from abuse, but people reported self-cracking screens with their touchscreens completely broken). Not too many people want to go through the trouble of sending it in (to China?!) or fixing it themselves.
Um, what? According to many tech sources, that's the highlight issue with Android: fragmentation. If you wanted to know Android's biggest problem, this is it. In fact, people (including some casuals) blast Android because of this. Maybe you don't care about Android versions, but if you stick with LP or an older platform, you're contributing to the problem.
As you can probably tell, I've already switched to a different device: a OnePlus 3. Oxygen OS 3.1.3 (6.0.1 Marshmallow), from experience, is quite stable and is developed by the team behind Paranoid Android. Sure, LP's code is more stable because it's been out longer and has more revisions, but it really depends of how you interpret the term (because I've experienced no crashes or FCs so far on MM). I'm fine if you continue holding the torch for Z1's AOSP/CM ROM community and keep LP more secure/stable for them, but I find it a bit redundant as most users have already moved away from this device and transitioned to MM (and even N DP4).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fragmentation has nothing to do with Android versions. Neither Android version has done anything to reduce fragmentation as compared to the previous one. It is the fact that there are hundreds of different devices with varieties of hardware. However, different hardware does not create fragmentation. Unlike Apple, Windows and Linux work on many devices. The problem for Android is that manufacturers don't want to provide hardware addresses (to make open source drivers) or blobs to work with hardware. The question is: why manufacturers provide the necessary info for Windows and Linux, but refuse the same with Android and mobile devices. And I am yet to hear an answer to this...

optimumpro said:
None of Xperias will have stable custom roms above LP 5.1.1, because everyone has switched to AOSP trees. Sony blobs are protected by DRM, so, they won't work with camera wrappers and Sony's blobs for AOSP have always and will continue to be crap. Sony doesn't want you to have custom roms. So, think of developer friendlier manufacturers. This crap about Sony being friendly to open source is just that. Their open source developers are just PR people. Sony AOSP has never had a stable rom: not for JB, not for Kitkat and not for LP...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, they have been doing a lot of work and are very friendly about AOSP. MM already has a working camera if you use 1.2.2 kernel. The only issue there is zoom focus and application restarts when switching between front and back camera, but apart from that everything works well. Sony is being very developer friendly and you can't take that away from them.

olokos said:
Actually, they have been doing a lot of work and are very friendly about AOSP. MM already has a working camera if you use 1.2.2 kernel. The only issue there is zoom focus and application restarts when switching between front and back camera, but apart from that everything works well. Sony is being very developer friendly and you can't take that away from them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Would you have any test build that could be tried out? I'd love to test it out...

olokos said:
Actually, they have been doing a lot of work and are very friendly about AOSP. MM already has a working camera if you use 1.2.2 kernel. The only issue there is zoom focus and application restarts when switching between front and back camera, but apart from that everything works well. Sony is being very developer friendly and you can't take that away from them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Doing "a lot of work" and having stable releases, which they have never had on any android version, are 2 different things. Aren't they? Camera aside, how about random reboots, blank screen issues, failure to wake up, battery drain, slow charging, overheating: what more do you need? And by the way, you think camera focus is the only issue? I bet a lot of users would disagree.
We are almost in August. Last year this time LP 5.1.1 was pretty stable. No chance for MM and N is already here...
Edit: My opinions about MM and Sony shouldn't be taken as criticism of Sony open source developers (who work their butts off) or any other devs (myself included) who contribute to the code, but rather Sony Corporation itself. Sony doesn't want you to have custom roms.
If I am to blame community developers, then it would be for abandoning stable releases like LP 5.1.1 in favor of undercooked new ones like MM. That's double stupidity, because in addition to starting from ZERO, they are following (instead of leading) teenage users who would rather have a slightly changed "cool" user interface, as opposed to a rock solid stable release...

optimumpro said:
Doing "a lot of work" and having stable releases, which they have never had on any android version, are 2 different things. Aren't they? Camera aside, how about random reboots, blank screen issues, failure to wake up, battery drain, slow charging, overheating: what more do you need? And by the way, you think camera focus is the only issue? I bet a lot of users would disagree.
We are almost in August. Last year this time LP 5.1.1 was pretty stable. No chance for MM and N is already here...
Edit: My opinions about MM and Sony shouldn't be taken as criticism of Sony open source developers (who work their butts off) or any other devs (myself included) who contribute to the code, but rather Sony Corporation itself. Sony doesn't want you to have custom roms.
If I am to blame community developers, then it would be for abandoning stable releases like LP 5.1.1 in favor of undercooked new ones like MM. That's double stupidity, because in addition to starting from ZERO, they are following (instead of leading) teenage users who would rather have a slightly changed "cool" user interface, as opposed to a rock solid stable release...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
but, like you said, lollipop are stable, why still develop for it?

brickhayabusa said:
but, like you said, lollipop are stable, why still develop for it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Because stable and maintained are different things. Stable becomes outdated if not further developed. For example, all abandoned LPs are now outdated and shouldn't be used...

optimumpro said:
Because stable and maintained are different things. Stable becomes outdated if not further developed. For example, all abandoned LPs are now outdated and shouldn't be used...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Then why xperia M is really awesome, they have a official cm13 nightly still updte every day, n now they're will building for awaken the Nougat, already tested n booted with Alpha release now,
it all by they devs is superior or factor xperia M devices are supported?
Will realy glad if Honami can like them..

Snp Mania2 said:
Then why xperia M is really awesome, they have a official cm13 nightly still updte every day, n now they're will building for awaken the Nougat, already tested n booted with Alpha release now,
it all by they devs is superior or factor xperia M devices are supported?
Will realy glad if Honami can like them..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Because they are probably using 3.4 kernel together with older camera blobs. In case of honami, they have decided to move to 3.10 kernel and the newer good blobs are drm protected. And they are waiting for Sony aosp to improve 3.10 blobs, which should happen in the next 50-100 years. Because of this, CM is not working on honami. That's why there is not even one nightly MM for Z1. And since other "big" guys can only cut and paste from CM, there is nothing for Z1.

optimumpro said:
Because they are probably using 3.4 kernel together with older camera blobs. In case of honami, they have decided to move to 3.10 kernel and the newer good blobs are drm protected. And they are waiting for Sony aosp to improve 3.10 blobs, which should happen in the next 50-100 years. Because of this, CM is not working on honami. That's why there is not even one nightly MM for Z1. And since other "big" guys can only cut and paste from CM, there is nothing for Z1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry for this one sir,
This screenshoot i take from xda fecebook via someone of member z1 indonesia FB group, but i dont OP like u so i not understanding it, pls help for read that post at this link...
http://developer.sonymobile.com/build-aosp-nougat-7-0/
EDIT: looks like z1 never to be the Nougat :crying:
from here: http://www.xda-developers.com/sony-...g-aosp-7-0-nougat-for-its-xperia-smartphones/

looki looki!!!!
http://uploaded.net/f/ikvebh

santeria27 said:
looki looki!!!!
http://uploaded.net/f/ikvebh
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
U have try that rom?

No tested!!!
Sent from my Xperia Z1 using XDA-Developers mobile app

santeria27 said:
No tested!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haha . Even i cant download that .

Spent 2 hours for downloading this.
Mirror: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B5NqkvihftQXSDI5Vl9Na2h6ak0

No ROMs so far?

Hey guys. I came over to see how many ROMs this phone has, and I was astounded to see the forum empty. Since this phone is supported by the open device program, I'd have thought there would be a vibrant developer community.
What's up with this? No developer interest?

Z5c is also supported by AOSP and there's also not much custom ROMs I guess so far biggest issue is this device is quite new and not so many devs bought it

That's surprising. It's the first time I've seen a device with full kernel support but still not much development.
Usually it's the other way around. Sources are fudged or not released, but developers still find ways to work around it.

andy356 said:
That's surprising. It's the first time I've seen a device with full kernel support but still not much development.
Usually it's the other way around. Sources are fudged or not released, but developers still find ways to work around it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah the device is very good for development even better than Z5c because it does not have any heating issue, but still nothing
I guess we should wait and see if android 7 makes any difference...

Sony wiping camera keys at the time of bootloader unlock (the camera is a huge selling point for the phone) might have to do with this, it's very likely that devs would want to get TA backup working before focusing on developing ROMs for the phone. But since there aren't any devs here working on that either, we might simply have been doomed as well. The only custom ROM I've found so far was an AOSP Marshmallow build made by FreeXperia, plus Sony's device files released for building AOSP M and N.

Also supposedly 7.0 is around the corner so the few that are thinking about roming may be waiting until after its release. Time will tell.

I think the XC will get zero dev support. You can kinda see a trend in the developers support: I had the z3c which had tons of support, now when I look at the z5c forums there are only very few roms, and for the xc not even one developer has posted something yet. until it won't get easier to unlock and root the xperia phones without messing up the DRM protection there won't be a lot of support. I'm thinking about buying the z5c just for that reason.

:/ This is so bad on Sony's part. They try to give the impression that they're so pro development and pro custom ROMs, but then they mess up the camera if people actually want to do something.

andy356 said:
:/ This is so bad on Sony's part. They try to give the impression that they're so pro development and pro custom ROMs, but then then they mess up the camera if people actually want to do something.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if someone doesnt find a exploit to root on locked bootloader then nobody will be able to backup ta data. i wont buy a sony phone if rooting means loosing features of the phone.
z3c has support because the giefroot was once found and this enabled all dev to backup ta data with drm. even if they decided to unlock bootloader they were still able to restore ta and lock again bootloader.
sony's aosp way is almost useless for the majority of people. when samsung was at s1/s2/s3 you could flash what you want and no feature was lost as they was nothing related with drm but now there you also have knox and efuse. if you root you will even loose guarantee and this is not reversible.

I guess it's better to look for a Z3 Compact then. I don't want to deal with this DRM nonsense.
Thanks for all the info, guys. I appreciate it.

andy356 said:
I guess it's better to look for a Z3 Compact then. I don't want to deal with this DRM nonsense.
Thanks for all the info, guys. I appreciate it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i bought a refurbished z3c again and had my battery replaced just because the z5c has this ****ty 810 snapdragon and the x compact a weird vibration motor (too loud) and several other reasons (no root on locked bootloader) and im fine.
ok maybe i get no nougat on this but i dont care because im still on kitkat because this has best battery handling and all apps are still working on kitkat.

Yeah Z5 compact is out of the picture because of the snapdragon 810. Otherwise my second choice after X Compact would have been that. Oh well. Z3 Compact serves the purpose just as well.

x10isrooted said:
i bought a refurbished z3c again and had my battery replaced just because the z5c has this ****ty 810 snapdragon and the x compact a weird vibration motor (too loud) and several other reasons (no root on locked bootloader) and im fine.
ok maybe i get no nougat on this but i dont care because im still on kitkat because this has best battery handling and all apps are still working on kitkat.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah as long as roms go, xperia x compact is out of choices but this phone is gonna get nougat and maybe android 8(or whatever version it's gonna be) so I would say go for it, Im really enjoying screen quality on this baby

I built CM13 but I'm not allowed to post in the dev section because I'm not cool enough
Source is at github: heicrd (just drop the local_manifests in, lunch cm_kugo-userdebug, mka bacon)
Flash zip with CM recovery (AndroPlus's TWRP doesn't work too well) or flash images with fastboot
I would post build links but I'm not allowed to post links either
Working:
Cellular/Data (had to switch APN from ATT Gophone to ATT Nextphone for my gophone sim in order to get data)
WiFi
Fingerprint Scanner
Camera
BT
SELinux
Not working (PATCHES WELCOME):
FM Radio (/dev/radio0 is missing)
Music (audio_hw_primary: start_output_stream: cannot set device: Invalid argument)
Not tested:
NFC
Encryption
Special thanks to Sony-Kitakami for serving as a reference

@EliWallace That's great news! All you need to become member is 10 posts, which you can easily gain from participating in the forum. Then you can post in the dev section.
It's good to see someone take the initiative. I would have liked to do it too, but my knowledge is limited to Android customisation and adb/fastboot commands. :/
I'm sure the other members here would be willing to give you a hand in beta testing and general feedback.

@EliWallace And please make sure you take care of GPL compliance from the very beginning. Devs and mods here take it very seriously. Don't want to see possibly the only custom ROM being bogged down by such pointless issues. Good luck!

andy356 said:
@EliWallace And please make sure you take care of GPL compliance from the very beginning.
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Should be fully gpl compliant (source hosted on github: see first post). Most of it is just rebasing Sony-Kitakami commits to Loire/kugo or cherry-picking upstream commits (as described in the Sony aosp build guide; I didn't write a single line of original code).
In other news, Bluetooth works but fmradio does not.
andy356 said:
Devs and mods here take it very seriously. Don't want to see possibly the only custom ROM being bogged down by such pointless issues.
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As they should.

EliWallace said:
I built CM13 but I'm not allowed to post in the dev section because I'm not cool enough
Source is at github: heicrd (just drop the local_manifests in, lunch cm_kugo-userdebug, mka bacon)
Flash zip with CM recovery (AndroPlus's TWRP doesn't work too well) or flash images with fastboot
I would post build links but I'm not allowed to post links either
Working:
Cellular/Data (had to switch APN from ATT Gophone to ATT Nextphone for my gophone sim in order to get data)
Audio
WiFi
Fingerprint Scanner
Camera
Not tested:
BT
NFC
Encryption
Special thanks to Sony-Kitakami for serving as a reference
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You're cool enough to me Eli Do you know if the DRM kernel patch work for the XC?

charliebigpot said:
You're cool enough to me Eli Do you know if the DRM kernel patch work for the XC?
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Interesting that the camera is working on your build. I build Aosp 7.0 and everthing is working but not the camera and deep sleep (only if bluetooth is enabled, but i think they have fixed it today).
You are mixing the kernel (from android 6.0/7.0) with device tree from android 7.1 and the camera is working.

@EliWallace Post 6 of the most random comments here if needs be. We need you in Dev asap
Great work!!