Until Sony decides to adorn your Xperia Z3 with the beautiful Android 5.1.1 Lollipop, here is how to do it manually. Very close to AOSP, this unofficial CyanogenMod 12.1 custom firmware is based on the latest Lollipop version. Follow this guide to flash CM12.1 on Xperia Z3.
- Also, read: Galaxy S6 edge Tips to Help You Take the Best Out of Your Curved Phone
Prerequisites to flash CM12.1 on Xperia Z3:
- Backup any important data from your Sony Xperia Z3 as a complete wipe will be required during the flashing process.
- Make sure ADB and Fastboot is configured on your PC.
- Sony Xperia Z3 must be rooted with unlocked bootloader and installed with a recovery tool.
- Your device must be charged to at least 60% of power.
Note: this is a nightly version and while developer is calling it bug-free, please be careful if you aren't very familiar with custom firmwares in beta.
How to flash CM12.1 on Xperia Z3:
Required files: download CM12.1 Android 5.1.1 Lollipop custom firmware for Xperia Z3 from here and save it on your computer. Extract boot.img file separately.
- Connect your Xperia Z3 to your computer using a USB cable and copy the zip file to your phone memory's root folder.
- Copy the boot.img file to android-sdk-windows\platform-tools directory.
- Switch off your Xperia Z3 and enter Bootloader mode: press and hold the Volume Up button while connecting the phone with USB cable. Phone LED will turn blue indicating the Bootloader mode.
- Once in the Fastboot mode, on your PC navigate to android-sdk-windows\platform-tools directory and open Command Prompt with Shift + Right-click > Open Command Prompt.
- Type the following command and press Enter:
- fastboot flash boot boot.img
- Type the command and press Enter:
- fastboot reboot
- Enter in the Recovery Mode: switch on the phone while pressing the Volume Up button a few times.
- Wipe data task: from CWM recovery menu, select wipe data / factory reset and confirm the process.
- Also clean cache from wipe cache partition.
- From recovery menu, select install zip from sdcard followed by choose zip from sdcard. Locate the CM12.1 Android 5.1.1 Lollipop custom firmware and confirm the flashing process.
- Once done, return back to main recovery menu and reboot your into the new custom ROM.
- First boot takes a good 5 minutes so please be patient.
Enjoy the latest version of lollipop on your Xperia Z3.
About the author: Rafia joined Wccftech in 2012 as a tech reporter. She is currently working on stories focusing on people and technologies that are turning Microsoft into a “company to watch” again. She is also responsible for collaborating with tech makers and e-commerce platforms to bring annoying but tempting deals to our readers.
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