Last Updated on April 9, 2017 by Mathew Diekhake

A new custom snapshot ROM based on Android 4.4.4 KitKat is available for the HTC One X. The ROM is the CyanodenMod 11 M12 variant which is available on many devices this week. The global version of the One X announced February 26 2012 is several years old now. That means it’s likely not your daily drive any more and you can start thinking about tinkering with the operating system with a snapshot build. As you probably know, custom ROMs come in three main types: Nightly, Snapshot and stable. The ROM here is not a stable build, it’s the snapshot variety. That means it gets updated roughly once a month instead of every night. We know the M12 has a focus on features, so if you want heaps of cool features for the last stage of KitKat, now’s the best time to update. Android 5.0 Lollipop is out now for many devices. The CM Team is working hard on creating their features on the Lollipop. Forget about waiting for that and enjoy KitKat M12 for the time being.

HTC have several devices in their range with similar names to the one we have here. there’s the One X+, One X AT&T, Desire X, Windows phone 8X and the X LTE. Only install the following file on the standard One X. Each file is made with only one device in mind; therefore, installing the file on a different device doesn’t work. Moreover, you may cause damage to your existing handset by flashing the incorrect files.

CyanogenMod

There’s no point being here unless you have root access on the smartphone. You cannot install or customize a device without the internal system unchained and away from the restrictions placed by the manufacturers as they were pumping them out of the factory. You can use the “root checker and unroot pro” application from the Google Play Store and check if your phone has root access. Furthermore, as you can see by the name, it also unroots the device if you want to take the custom ROM away and return back to the official version of Android modified by HTC and Google away from stock.

  • Correspondingly, you ought to take a Nandroid backup before starting. Nandroid is the favorite way to back up the current ROM. Backup the data with Titanium from Google Play. Titanium works for those with root access but won’t work for any other device. Those looking for something different can back up from the custom recovery. You want to make copies of the phone contacts, market apps, SMS texts, EFS folder, call logs, pictures, music playlists, songs and any other data you don’t want to lose. if you don’t have the internal hardware unlocked yet you may prefer using Helium for Android. Since the One X doesn’t come with a great deal of internal storage space you may be running low. If that is the case, you can sign up to Google Drive services and store data in the cloud. It’s Google owned and operated. In addition, the offer a free amount of limited space which is often more than most people need.
  • You must use a Windows PC, notebook or laptop after the steps. It must have a USB slot mounted in the side so we are able to connect the smartphone to the Windows OS without any trouble. Similarly, you want the latest USB drivers so everything works. Many of you have the up to date drivers already. Test you situation by plugging the phone into the computer and seeing if you can get access to the data.
  • Enable USB Debugging Mode from the Developer Options menu. You find that menu directly from the Settings menu. Of course, you must turn on the phone before you see any of this.
  • The following is for advanced Android users only. That shouldn’t be a problem since you cannot start here without rooting the handset.
  • Make sure you have the up-to-date USB drivers from HTC. You can download them from the official website. A good number of you have them already. All you need to do is connect the phone to the computer and access the pictures. You know the drivers are working if you can find the pictures.
  • The handset comes with USB charging as s stock feature. That means it immediately charges the battery once it’s plugged into the PC. It doesn’t charge as fast as it does when using the traditional phone charger in the wall. However, you will find the battery reading a higher percentage before finishing the steps compared to beforehand. Those of you without USB charging working will want to save at least 50% battery power before starting the steps. You can check your reading by looking at the white KitKat status bar at the top of the display. There you will find the battery icon and the amount.

Update HTC One X with CM 11 M12 Android 4.4.4 KitKat Snapshot Custom ROM

  1. Download the M12 ROM file here.
  2. Download the latest version of Google Gapps here.
  3. Connect the phone to the computer using the USB.
  4. Transfer the files (zipped) to the SD card.
  5. Disconnect the mobile from the computer.
  6. Boot it back up in TWRP or CWM recovery.
  7. Select ‘wipe data/ factory reset’ for ClockworkMod users and ‘wipe” for team Win’s recovery.
    – remember this is the last chance to take the Nandroid backup before your data is wiped.
    – you won’t find the data ever again after a factory reset unless you are storing a backup.
  8. Navigate to ‘install zip from SD card’, then select ‘choose zip from SD card’ for CWM people.
  9. Navigate to ‘install’ for Team Win people.
  10. Upload the CM 11 M12 zip file.
  11. Repeat the process, but flashing the Google Gapps pack.
  12. Go back to the main recovery menu and select ‘reboot system now.’
  13. You are running the new Snapshot ROM.

Remember performing a factory reset from inside recovery mode is the way out of any problems. Alternatively you can try flashing another ROM on the OS.

Are you a fan of CyanogenMod ROMs? Why not track all the latest news from the team by installing the official app from Google Play here.