HTC may be moving on to newer devices and their older ones are falling behind, but phones based on Android tend to die hard due to the active support from their community, and the One M7 is no exception. Android 5.0.2 Lollipop is now available for the device, although not from official release channels but rather in the form of a custom ROM, much like many other old Android phones tend to get at some point in their life cycle.
The ROM is the Liquid Smooth ROM released by XDA, and it’s been reported to run very well and also optimizes the user experience significantly. A lot of work has gone into making this Android version smooth and intuitive for the user, especially users that aren’t that tech savvy and need a little more time to get around the menus.
At the same time, the fact that it’s a custom ROM also means that users will need to have at least a little bit of experience with gadgets in order to get the update on their devices. The problem is that the phone has to be manually flashed using specialized tools, and it can’t just be updated over the air like with a normal Android update.
And while that’s a normal procedure that’s pretty well documented online, it still takes some time to learn how to do it, and it’s also prone to error. Users need to be careful if they’re doing it for the first time, and always make sure to read the instructions carefully. In the end, following the guideline for flashing a phone tends to be a safe procedure that carries little risk, but it’s still worth noting that if the phone ends up bricked, this will void its warranty and preclude the user from getting official support for it.
Which might be a moot point for the One M7 anyway, given the device’s age – so those who want to get their hands on Android 5.0.2 but don’t have a device that actually supports the OS should definitely give a try to the Liquid Smooth ROM. It can be downloaded over at the XDA website, and it’s accompanied with detailed instructions for the flashing procedure. It should be possible for anyone to get the job done, even those who’ve never flashed a phone before, but we can recommend the latter to seek help from a more experienced friend or acquaintance, just to make sure that they’re removing any element of risk from the equation and guarantee that the procedure will go through smoothly.