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Jelly Bean available for custom ROM developers [alpha ROM]

A while ago, the Sony Xperia™ News room shared an update on our plans to upgrade certain Xperia™ devices to Jelly Bean. Since then we have received quite a few requests from the Android™ developer community to release an earlier version of the Jelly Bean (JB) software for the developers. This way, advanced developers could try it out and evaluate it, in a similar way to how we did it last year with the ICS alpha release. Please note that there are several limitations to this alpha software, for instance the UI look and feel is not updated to final Sony Jelly Bean software. Read more after the jump!

We’re now making an early alpha ROM of Jelly Bean (Android 4.1) available for Xperia™ T, along with the open source archive, as a way for us to get valuable feedback from the custom ROM community (although we are not far away from the official release of JB for Xperia™ T).  Thanks to the great dialogue we have with open community developers, we see this as a great way for us to get input, and for the open developer community to get to try this alpha out hands-on.

As mentioned above, this JB alpha ROM is strictly targeting advanced developers, and it will not work for ordinary everyday usage, as it only has a limited set of features working (for example, you cannot make any phone calls). Several more legal and usage conditions apply – please see the Important information section below for more details.

Important information
Since this is not the final software upgrade roll out, there are a few requirements to pay close attention to before you flash the ROM:

  • You should be an advanced developer with extensive knowledge in how to flash and switch between different ROMs. If you are a consumer without these developer skills, then we strongly recommend you not do try this as you may damage your phone.
  • You must be using an unlocked Xperia™ T. It will not work on a locked Xperia™ T.
  • You must unlock your phone using Sony’s Unlock boot loader service, and agree to all the legal and warranty conditions that apply. Please note that you may void the warranty of your phone and/or any warranty from your operator if you unlock the boot loader of your phone. Sony can then no longer guarantee the full functionality of your phone, and will not be responsible for any unusable functions or loss of personal data associated to the alpha ROM being flashed to the phone.
  • Also, if you unlock the boot loader, you will not be able to get the final Jelly Bean upgrade from Sony. For additional information about limitations and warranty restrictions, please see Sony’s Unlock boot loader service.
  • You should have read through and acknowledged the limitations of the software described below.

Limitations and functionality
Only a limited number of features and functionalities are working and turned on in this alpha ROM. The reason for some features being disabled is because we have not yet passed all approvals yet. To get more information on how this work is carried out, check out our previous article about the bring up phase.

These are some of the features that are turned off or not yet working in this alpha ROM:

  • Google Mobile Services (GMS) apps are not included (for example, Gmail and Google Maps).
  • Modem is turned off and therefore the SIM card will not be recognised (this also means you can’t make any phone calls).
  • Bluetooth™ is turned off.
  • Wi-Fi® is turned off.
  • FM-radio is turned off.
  • NFC is turned off.
  • UI look and feel is not updated to final Sony Jelly Bean software.

In other words, this software is not intended for ordinary everyday usage – it’s for advanced developer use only. This alpha ROM includes a number of Jelly Bean features that we know will be appreciated by developers and we are thankful for the potential feedback we may get on this.

How to flash the Jelly Bean alpha ROM
To flash the alpha ROM on your unlocked Xperia™ T, use our flash tool for unlocked Xperia devices.  Check out the flash tool page for more information on how to download, install and use this tool.

The Jelly Bean alpha ROM will be a clean flash, so make sure you do a proper back up of everything on your phone before you flash it. Please note that there is another software version available for Xperia™ T smartphones in the Sony flash tool for unlocked devices, as it is possible to flash Xperia™ T with an official Ice Cream Sandwich software versions well.

Developers, please let us know what you think!
One of our ambitions with this release is to get feedback from the talented developers in the open community. So if you flash this Jelly Bean alpha ROM and download the open source archive, please go to this XDA-thread and provide us with feedback once you have tried the software. It’s very much appreciated – we will use the feedback for future product and software strategies, both short term and long term. Your voice counts!

More information:

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  1. By Ozhan Etezadzadeh

    #1

    please release a source for developer to make jb for Xperia U/Sola

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 15 Thumb down 1
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  2. By Kjetil B. Thomassen

    #2

    This may be a bit out of topic, but I do think it is at least partly relevant.

    I have a Sony Xperia S, and I am actively connecting devices to it using a USB Micro A to USB A-adapter (DeLock 65037), combined with a USB A female to female adapter (Microconnect USBAFAF from EET Europarts), and a USB hub. During my testing of which types of devices work with my Xperia S I have come across several that do not work, but that I would very much like you to support in the JB OS. I miss the following drivers, that I can recall right now:
    - USB CD Drive
    - USB Network Adapter (100Base-T)
    - USB DisplayLink for connecting multiple monitors (this is available in open source OS’s)
    - USB Smart Card Reader.
    - ISO9660, NTFS and UDF filesystems, and I guess some would like to have the BSD and Linux ones as well.

    Another problem I have seen is that when I connect multiple disk devices (USB flash memory and/or spindle disks) I only see one of them, not all.

    There could also be other drivers that are needed as I haven’t tested all types of devices.

    I see no reason why you should leave out these drivers, as they should not be a problem for the normal user.

    Another thing that is much needed is a cable that supports the USB OTG-standard that lets me charge the Xperia S at the same time as I have devices connected. This has been done by others by modifying available cables. One example of this can be found here:
    https://sites.google.com/site/sonicboomworld/my-projects/otg-diagrams
    https://sites.google.com/site/sonicboomworld/
    http://www.adverts.ie/accessories/sony-xperia-s-lt26i-dock-station/2318778

    The USB OTG Standard is outlined here:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB_On-The-Go#OTG_Micro_Plugs
    http://www.maximintegrated.com/app-notes/index.mvp/id/1822

    I often use a USB keyboard that I can roll up and take with me (Deltaco TB-197), and I also have a battery (Sony CP-ELSAB) which can charge the phone, so having an adapter that will let me charge the Xperia S while using the keyboard would be very much appreciated.

    Would you please at least consider doing both of these?

    You should also state in your white papers that these phones actually do have a micro-AB receptacle, as your competitors only provide a USB micro B or a custom one. That is actually a feature you should market, since it enables the use of devices without external power. The USB keyboard that I use, can be used with power supplied from the Xperia S over the USB port. This is not possible with a USB micro B connector, as the Xperia S would then not be classified as the initial host. At least that is my understanding of it.

    Kjetil B.

    • By Tobias Nilsson

      #3

      Hi again,

      somewhat late, but I thought you might be interested in some feedback from our Connectivity team:

      - Regarding USB CD Drive and USB Network Adapter (100Base-T): Currently these are not supported. If anyone in the community sees a huge need for these, feel free to let us know.
      - Regarding USB DisplayLink: Since most of our devices nowadays includes HDMI-output, this covers most of these usecases.
      - It could also be good to know that most of our phones support USB host support, and the Android USB Host API.

      I hope this clarifies it to some extent!

      Regards,
      Tobias from Developer World

    • By Tobias Nilsson

      #4

      Hi Kjetil,

      thanks for contributing. I will forward your input to our Connectivity team.

      Regards,
      Tobias from Developer World

  3. By Gene Guarin

    #5

    Hey Sony Devs, I know this is going to be off topic but it’s something that annoyed me in the upgrade from GB to ICS. in the old GB build, there was a tick box that asked if you wanted to have the same volume for ringtones and notification tones. I always had this unticked so that I could set a lower volume for notifications tones. but since ICS, it was just the same volume for both. I don’t know how many other users are annoyed by this change but it was a very handy feature. I’m hoping that you’ll be able to implement this small settings feature again in future upgrades.

  4. By Asif Siddiqui

    #6

    Yes, kindly release the same for the Xperia P, so that it might kickstart development not only for Xperia P, but all the NovaThor devices.

    Please do not disappoint us, Sony. :)

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 11 Thumb down 0
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  5. By Venkatesh Surve

    #7

    This Is acervenky From XDA.
    We Are Waiting For Sony To Release A Alpha Rom For Xperia P As Well,It will definitely help all the active developers on XDA And Also Sources Will Help Us To Port JB To Xperia U and Sola.
    Sony,You Rock While Giving Out Such Goodies.(No Other Company Has Ever Provided A Alpha/Beta Rom)
    This Is A Request From Xperia P/U/Sola Community.
    We Are Expecting Something Good.
    Regards,
    acervenky,
    XPT

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 28 Thumb down 0
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  6. By Malav Shah

    #8

    please release pre JB update for Xperia P also…

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 0
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  7. By Malav Shah

    #9

    great news,
    please release the pre JB update for sony xperia p also

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 6 Thumb down 0
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  8. By Alin Jerpelea

    #10

    we badly needed new blobs and new kernel source to work with

    Sony did it again !

    thanks for this kickstart

    THANKS
    FreeXperiaProject

    • By Саша Кириченко

      #11

      Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.

      Poorly-rated. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 17
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      • By nick holtus

        #12

        that’s not tru, it is not sony’s fault.
        1 the devices have outdated cpu and gpu
        2 sony added a scin to android, which slows down the phone a bit
        3 I don’t believe you are developing or helping, if you where doing that you should know a lot more

        Hot debate. What do you think? Thumb up 9 Thumb down 10
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        • By Саша Кириченко

          #13

          Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.

          Poorly-rated. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 15
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          • By nick holtus

            #14

            You knew it before buying anything from them
            xperia s firmware isn’t buggy, yeah only if you add a lot of themes and such
            port 3.4 kernel youself then…..

            Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 1

  9. By nick holtus

    #15

    Again no xperia p or go.
    that are devices with almost no development because of jellybean.
    No one got it booting right now (only aosp, which is a combination of ics and jb)
    I hope that my request by mail is internally accepted and that we can have jellybean alpha release soon on our xperia novathor devices

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 14 Thumb down 0
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  10. By jonathan moerman

    #16

    Sony can you please supply gralloc sources for xperia P/Go JellyBean?
    The lack of these sources is the biggest problem in porting jellybean to the NXT novathor devices.

    Thanks in Advance!

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 0
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  11. By Nabendu Mondal

    #17

    Please Get Alpha or Beta Sources up and kicking for the Novathor Devices ie For our beloved Xperia P !! We would also like to have a first hand experience of the Xperia P jelly bean and contribute to making ROMS based on It and also to fix a few of the Present bugs !! I hope Sony would be kind and generous enough to grant us a beta build before the official Release

    • By Karl-Johan Dahlström

      #18

      Thanks for your feedback, I will bring this request to the project teams.
      /Kalle

      Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
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      • By Nabendu Mondal

        #19

        Firstly I would like to Thank You and the entire Sony Team out there who try to make our devices better !! Atleast what Sony is doing right is that it is reaching out to its users and also making an effort to get our feedback to its project team !! Also another fact which makes sony stand out is that it is the most developer friendly OEM and ur supporting an entire community of Developers !! I dont see an instance atleast in the recent times where a manufacturer has released a Alpha ROM alongwith the kernel source !! Also the official sony flashtool is a commendable intiative taken by Sony for the rooted users !! Are you guys looking to extend the same to other devices as well?? !! Kalle ,the devices based on Novathor are just a handful and most of them are from the Sony except , 2 from Samsung !! So, the developers need a Beta/Alpha version so that they can use the source to Develop the Custom ROM and probably also help the team in debugging !! Being a Sony purist ,it hurts to see the developers trying to port the Samsung 4.1. Kernel for S3Mini to our Xperia P and at the same time it hurts to put a whole lot of efforts and time for just getting the device to boot !! A fair bit of Support from your end can make a whole lot of Difference to us !! Kindly acknowledge the efforts of xda-developers of Xperia P and Sola !! We would love to see some rocking news from your Dev-Team in the weeks ahead !!

        Thanks & Regards,
        Nabendu Mondal
        (Xperia P Owner & Sony fanboy :-D )

        Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 20 Thumb down 0
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  12. By Daniel Vafidis

    #20

    Yea give us an Xperia P alpha or beta AMD well deliver bug reports for better and faster fixes and stuff, let us be part of the development so Xperia will be the best smartphone experience ever

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 0
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  13. By LP PV

    #21

    The Playstation team should get some time with this ROM. Is it possible that they could include native bluetooth pairing for the SIXAXIS, please ? PSM is picking up steam but the way forward is controller connectivity!
    A lot of users are requesting this over at XDA Developers.

    –
    Sent from my Sony Xperia T smartphone

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
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  14. By Kicko Kim

    #22

    Please help us get jelly bean on the Xperia U!

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 11 Thumb down 0
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  15. By Dipta Datta Gupta

    #23

    Sony, won’t you create a article citing the technical differences between ics and jb like you did last year with gb and ics?

    Sony you are much more time than other oems in releasing jb even for your flagship models. So, please make it a stable release when you release and not like last year’s slow and buggy ics.

    A Proud Xperia P owner.

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 8 Thumb down 0
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