The fresh batch of CyanogenMod 12 custom ROMs are rolling out for selected devices for all different smartphone manufacturers. Many of those devices are under the Sammy name. Today I’ll teach you how to flash the new Android 5.0 Lollipop unofficial ROM on the Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini 3G variant. Lollipop makes many changes over the KitKat software including material design user interface, Android Beam, tap and go NFC payments, Android RunTime, updates to the Easter Egg, a smoother and faster ROM, smart notifications with a bevy of new notification features and more.
You might remember us talking about the earlier M12 builds that were for the last stages of KitKat. Well, the official team were producing those ROM for people while they were finishing the first Lollipop builds. Now we have the first batch of custom ROMs for the Lollipop. It’s a nightly build which means CM are rolling out updates for the ROM most nights of the week. There are a few known bugs for some of the other devices, but we don’t see any proof of those same bugs existing on the S4 at this time. However, in time the files may become available. We’ll try and update this post if we see any. Otherwise you can search through Google for any solutions. Often the files come for flashing just like you would the Gapps during the steps below.
We are running you through some of the essentials worth learning before starting with the guide. That way you know what you are getting the phone into, the risks involved, how to avoid any mishaps and more.
- You must have root access before you can flash a custom ROM on any tablet or smartphone. We are not providing the steps for opening the device away from the default factory restrictions.
- You must backup the data because it’s wiped during the guide. Take a Nandroid backup of the ROM after entering recovery mode during the steps. A Nandroid backup makes copies of the phone contacts, WiFi password, settings, pictures, music, video and most other things you need. It can even save your current game data so you can pick up where you left off!
- Those of you not wanting to use the Nandroid backup option should install Titanium backup from the Google Play store. Only people with root access can use Titanium.
- Allow permission for the USB Debugging mode. Find that mode coming from the Developer option menu from the Settings menu.
- You must have a computer for the guide. You are transferring the files from the computer to the device. It’s not done that way for technical reasons; rather it’s the safest method for transferring files.
- You must have a custom recovery installed. Choose from Team Win’s TWRP recovery or ClockworkMod recovery.
- You should run the latest and up to date USB drivers on the computer for the Galaxy S4. That way you are connecting to the PC without any worries. Find the latest drivers for Samsung by visiting the official website.
- Most people already have the drivers working. Verifying how yours are doing by attempting to get access to the phone pictures from the computer.
- Those erring on the side of caution can back up the EFS folder by using the new Samsung EFS backup application available from the Google Play store.
- Make sure you have enough battery for the guide. We are not connecting to the computer for the guide like we would with the Odin application. We are unplugging after transferring the files. That means you cannot rely on USB Charging to reserve the battery. Check you have at least 55% battery power before starting the guide.
- You can find out how much battery power you have by tuning on the phone and looking at the battery icon available from the status bar.
How to update the Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini with CM 12 Android 5.0 Lollipop
- Download the CM 12 ROM file here.
- Download the Google Gapps pack here.
- Use the desktop of the notebook or computer for the zip files.
– do not unzip any of the packages. - Connect the Galaxy S4 to the computer using the USB cable.
- Transfer the files over to the internal storage SD card.
- Disconnect from the computer and turn off the phone.
- Boot the S4 back up in recovery mode.
– press the button sequence for the custom recovery or download the Reboot Manager app from the Gapps page. - Now is the last change to back up the data!
- Select wipe for TWRP or wipe data/factory reset for CWM.
- Wipe the cache partition and the dalvik cache.
- Select “install’ or install zip from SD card.”
- Find the unofficial Cm 12 ROM and confirm the upload.
- Repeat the same for the Gapps pack.
- Head out and select “reboot system now” from the main recovery menu.
- Reboot the device in normal mode and check out Lollipop. The first boot can take minutes longer than usual.
You get stuck with root access until you manually flash another official stock Android firmware version over the last. We don’t recommend accepting any future over the air updates with root access because it can brick the device unless otherwise stated by the carrier or manufacturer. Otherwise people can download and install the Root and Unroot Pro application from Google Play. It comes at a premium price for unrooting.