Last Updated on April 12, 2017 by Mathew Diekhake
When the guys over at the Googleplex in Mountain View California release a factory image they don’t mess around. Today we are frantically trying to push out accurate guides for just about all the Nexus devices because they are the first smartphones to see the Android 4.4.4 Kitkat update coming there way OTA. If you need to wait it out you have all the freedom in the world to do so but just remember that you could be waiting weeks if you are one of the people who are last to see it. If you want to wait for the system update notification that is fine or you can go to Settings>About Phone>System Updates>Check Now and identify manually if there is anything there you can install. Try and do this over the home WiFi connection because it is more stable than using the mobile data. Also, for most of us, the mobile data is more expensive, and we have less of it to use.
The Nexus 4 is one of the older smartphones in the range, and we are covering it second after the nexus 5 only because we know many are not using it as a daily drive or are at least not as fond of it as they were long ago, so they are more inclined to want this instruction set. There’s also no confusion over what year this is because it only came in 2012 whereas the Nexus 7 has a 2012 and a 2013 and they both require separate guides that I’ll hopefully finish later on.
We love the Nexus 4, but one of the main issues people had with to was a small storage space. It comes with 16 GB of built-in space and lacks the storage expansion slots that make other smartphones an excellent option to buy because they are essentially endless with the amount of storage on offer. Google did make things better by offering more internal memory for the other nexus devices in years to come but for now owners of the 4 variant are stuck with very limited space. If you can use some of it to backup with that is highly advised. Try and squeeze in contacts, call logs, MMS and SMS texts, photos, music, profiles and any other sensitive data.
It is equipped with USB charging, USB Mass Storage, HDMI via Micro USB and USB 2.0 which is great because two of those features are crucial for what we are trying to do here. During this guide, we will be connected to a mac, Windows or Linux-based computer so if the USB charging feature is working then it should charge the battery when plugged into the system unit. If your feature is not working then make sure, you have at least 70% battery power remaining before starting. That number may seem high, but the Nexus 4 came to us in November of 2012 so the battery will not last like it used too. It dispersed a 2100 mAh capacity and 15.3 hours talk-time combined with 16.2 days stand-by time when brand new.
Make sure you enable USB Debugging by visiting the Develop Options menu. This smartphone started on Android 4.2.1 and saw the following updates: Android 4.2.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.4.2 and 4.4.3 before this 4.4.4 update we have here. If you are still using Android 4.2 then the Develop Options menu is hidden.Unlock it by tapping on the build number seven times.
Because this is a factory image and not a typical software installation with Odin you will need Android SDK, fastboot and ADB before continuing from this point. Android SDK is easy enough to use. After the package downloads, it comes with the SDK manager that you use to install the files and drivers for it to work. As you can tell, this will not go down well for novice users and those without experience in the tools mentioned. If you do not have them already then look away now. If you have studied everything, I mentioned and have those installed then this guide is 100% working and waiting for you to use it.
If you are with root access, running a custom ROM or have a custom recovery running all of them will erase until you install them again because we are replacing with stock versions once again.
Do not start unless you have Google Nexus USB Drivers for when we plug in the handset to the computer. It is different from the fastboot drivers.
Install KTU84P Android 4.4.4 KitKat Factory Image On The Nexus 4
1. Download the Android 4.4.4 factory image here.
– extract the contents to the C: Drive or the desktop as long as you remember and can access the occam-KTU84P folder.
2. Download Odin 3.09.
– this is the latest version of Odin and the file is on the page link. Extract the contents to the C: Drive or the desktop.
3. Switch off the handset.
4. Boot in fastboot/bootloader mode by pressing Volume down + Volume up + power at the same time.
5. Go to the occam-KTU84P folder and fetch out the data to copy and paste to the fastboot directory.
6. With the files located in the directory:
– Run the file “flash-all.bat” for Windows users
– Run the file “flash-all.sh” for Linux users
– Run the file “flash-all.sh” for Mac users
7. Wait patiently until it finishes as it will now flash the firmware over the top of your existing firmware. It can take around five minutes to complete and a further 5 for the boot process to end. It will only take this long the one time after completing once. You will experience a normal boot process once again from then onwards.
If the smartphone sticks in a boot loop then you will need to apply a full factory reset. Doing so will wipe the contents of your phone including the contacts, pictures, music and more so make sure you have a backup before starting like I instructed you to have already.
Now you will have a fix in place for the OpenSSL security vulnerability, extra WebView tweaks, Chromium projects and more to enjoy. Let us know what you think of Android’s 4.4.4 and if it satisfied you with enough. Keep in mind this is only meant to be a minuscule update and carries around 3 to 5 MB worth of data with it depending on which Nexus handset you are installing it.