Xiaomi took more than a year to develop Android Nougat MIUI 9 and it recently released it to the Redmi Note 4. As of now, there is no word on when the company will deliver the latest Android Oreo to the popular mid-range smartphone.
If patience is not your strongest suit then there are custom ROMs, which offer first-hand experience of the new Google software with value-added features. Coincidently, the good folks at popular custom ROM community, OmniROM, have released the latest Android Oreo 8.1 ROM for Redmi Note 4 devices.
What's new in Android Oreo?
Android Oreo comes with several value-added features such as picture-in-picture, which allows users to do two tasks simultaneously, like checking the calendar while planning a party on a Duo video call.
There's Smart Text Selection that improves copy and paste function.With the help of machine learning to recognise entities on the screen—like a complete address— users will be able to easily select text they want with a double tap, and even bring up an app like Maps to help during navigation.
It significantly reduces the booting time, extend battery life by cutting down on unnecessary activities of apps in the background, and offers more fluid experiences to phones and tablets.
Most notable aspect of the Android Oreo is the Rescue Party feature, which helps the device to recover from constant boot loops, and also offers additional enhancement in security via Google Play Protect that checks suspicious activities and malware in an application, camera photo taking improvements, performance optimisation and latest security patch.
Read more: Google Android Oreo vs Android Nougat: What's changed?
Prerequisites (things to remember before installing Custom ROM):
- This new OmniROM [official] Android 8.1.0 Oreo firmware has to be installed on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (with Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 CPU) aka mido model only; if tried on other devices, it might get bricked [To check your device model: Go to Settings >> About phone >> model number]
- Make sure the device is rooted before going forward with the custom ROM installation
- Installation of custom ROM requires clearing of memory in the smartphone, so make sure to back all the data by installing TWRP in the smartphone.
- Make sure to install USB drivers on the PC, or your smartphone (Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 with Snapdragon 625) will not be recognised by the computer.
- Make sure the device has more than 80 percent battery, or else there is a chance of the smartphone getting temporarily bricked if the installation process is interrupted mid-way.
- If you face force close, go to Settings >> Setupwizard >> Give permission
- Installing custom ROM improves the device's performance and UI experiences, but also voids the company warranty and the device will no longer be liable to get any updates in future [users can restore the warranty by flashing the device with stock-ROM].
[Disclaimer: This procedure is very technical and should be performed by a person with sound knowledge of rooting (or manual software installation) Android devices. If the step-by-step installation process is not followed properly, there are chances of the smartphone getting bricked or being permanently irreparable. IBTimes India cannot be held responsible for any damage or claims from readers if the procedure does not yield the required results or if the smartphone is bricked. Hence, users are advised to proceed with caution.]
Tutorial: Step-by-step installation guide of OminROM Android Oreo (weekly) on Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (with Snapdragon 625) via TWRP (Team Win Recovery Project):
Step 1: Download Android 8.1.0 Oreo [official] custom ROM on your PC.
[Scroll to find the downloadable files]
Step 2: Connect Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 to the computer.
Step 3: Place the Android Oreo ROM into the phone's storage memory.
[Note: Users are advised to paste the .zip file in the storage root folder, not in any other folder.]
Step 4: Turn off device and disconnect it from PC.
Step 5: Perform Recovery mode sorties by long pressing Volume (Down) + Power buttons.
Step 6: Once entering the TWRP settings menu, clear phone's memory (full) by selecting 'Wipe' option. Once done, select – 'Swipe to Factory Reset' to perform factory reset.
Step 7: Return to TWRP settings and tap 'Install' by the selecting .zip file in the phone's memory downloaded from PC.
Step 8: Return to TWRP menu setting to approve the installation by tapping 'Swipe to Confirm Flash'.
Step 9: Flashing of the custom ROM begins and after few minutes, a message 'Successful' appears on the screen, thus completing the installation.
Step 10: If faced with boot loop problem, navigate back to TWRP settings, and select 'Wipe cache/dalvik'. This procedure will help resolve any issue with regard to custom ROM installation
Downloadable files:
OmniROM [official] Android Oreo 8.1.0 for Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (with Snapdragon 625): HERE (Weekly)
Md5sum: HERE
USB Driver: HERE
[Source: OmniROM developers]
