Sony has just started seeding the Lollipop update for Xperia Z3 and Z3 Compact smartphones. Available in the Nordics and the Baltics for the time being, the update will soon reach other countries. But what if you had bought some other model of Xperia and still waiting for the update? Well, Sony is mum on this issue. May be you will have to wait some for more weeks to receive the OTA update.
But remember the saying - where there is a will, there is a way. Yes, here it is. Upgrade your Sony Xperia smartphones OS to the latest Android 5 Lollipop manually. Well, the procedure for manual update is no more rocket science but a simple step by step instruction where everything pops up right in front of your eyes in a lucid manner. All you need to do is click the buttons you're asked to.
Still sceptical? Then you better not upgrade and wait for the OTA update to arrive. The procedure for upgrading the OS manually needs some tools to be downloaded; a computer and an active Internet connection are pre-requisites for the process. Let's get moving.
The two tools we require to execute the entire process is XperiFirm, successor of NaviFirm, which we used to download the firmware for Nokia phones. The XperiFirm downloader detects your Sony Xperia phone/tablet's version number to download the required firmware for your phone. Download it here.
The tool has different versions for Windows, Linux and Macintosh system so you need not to worry about if in case you're not using a Windows PC. After downloading the XperiFirm tool on your system execute the following steps:
- Enable USB debugging on your Xperia device. Go to Settings>> Developer options.
- Enable Unknown sources on your phone from Settings>> Security.
- Install appropriate driver for your Xperia device. It the step sound complex, please download the PC Companion suite.
- Connect your Xperia to the PC before starting the process to download necessary USB and ADB drivers.
- The Xperia phone/tablet should have above 80% battery.
Once the downloading process of XperFirm is complete, kindly double click on the installer file and follow the instructions to install it on your computer.
Check the exact model number on your phone from Settings->About Phone->Model Number and choose the appropriate model on the left pane of XperiFirm tool. Once you select, the right pane will list all the firmware available for your region. Click on it to download.
You will now be prompted if you want to download the firmware. Click on Unpack automatically check box on the bottom left, then click Download to proceed further.
Choose a folder on your system to download the Android Lollipop firmware package.
The firmware should now start downloading.
Once the download is complete, you should be able to see a Dialogue box prompting, Unpacked Successfully, click OK.
The Unpacked Successfully message will appear again on the download dialog, click Close button.
You should find a new folder containing Android Lollipop firmware files on the download location. You now have all the necessary files to create FTF file to flash on your Xperia device.
Installing Android 5.0.2 Lollipop using Flashtool
1) Download and install Sony FlashTool. Go to Tools menu on the top menu bar, click Bundles-> Create.
2) A pop-up called Bundler will appear. Click on the three dots next to Select source folder.
3) Select the appropriate folder where you have saved the firmware files earlier and click OK.
4) The 'folder list' list box on the bottom left of the Bundler dialogue box will show you all the firmware files. Double click in the Device space option and input the Xperia device that you want to flash.
5) Once you have selected your device model, a prompt will show up to choose the device variant. Click on the particular variant you are having. You will get the the required information on your Xperia device, go to Setting>> About phone>> Model number.
Note: Don't be sceptical if your device is not listed in the dialog box. The FTF firmware bundle you created includes the loader.sin file that can be flashed. The Device Selector is used to identify a device if the FTF bundle does not include the loader.sin file. If the loader.sin file is included then Device Selector is used for naming purposes and does not affect the flashing.
6) Input the Branding and firmware version into the respective boxes.
7) Highlight all the files shown in the folder list list box. Click the right arrow button to shift them into Firmware content section, click Create.
7) Flashtool will start creating FTF firmware file. The progress process will be indicated by a green progress bar.
8) When FTF firmware file is compiled, you will see the message "Torrent File Creation Finished", followed by another message "Bundle Creation Finished."
9) To ensure the FTF firmware has been successfully created, go to "C:Users [Your PC name].flashToolfirmwares". Here you should be able to see the FTF firmware files.
10) Now that the FTF file has already been created, you can flash on your Xperia device. Click on the lightning bolt button below 'File' menu and select the 'Flash device' radio button, Click 'Ok'.
11) Select Flashmode then click OK.
12) Select the firmware build you want to flash from the Firmware pane on the bottom left. If you want to retain your apps/data, uncheck Data under Wipe pane. Click Flash.
13) Flashtool will indicate saying it is "preparing files for flashing".
14) Wait for about one minute, a pop-up will appear titled "Wait for FlashMode". Now switch off your Xperia smartphone/tablet and hold the Volume Down button while connecting the USB cable.
Note: Ignore the instruction saying 'press the back button', which is for older Sony Ericsson devices.
15) Now sit back and relax until you see the text saying Flashing finished.
You can safely disconnect your Xperia phone and turn it on. Android Lollipop firmware should now have been installed on your Xperia smartphone/tablet.
Source: XperiaBlog.
