A number of smartphones from device makers OPPO, ASUS, Samsung, Xiaomi, Lenovo, and Sony now support LineageOS 15.1. Among the devices that gained support for the open-source OS are the OPPO R5, R5s, R7, and R7s, as well as the Zenfone 2 Laser and the Zenfone 2 Selfie from ASUS. Also getting support for the updated version of the software are the Samsung Galaxy S5, Xiaomi Mi A1, Sony Xperia XA2, and the Lenovo P2.
LineageOS 15.1 is based on Android 8.1 Oreo, meaning users of devices running this version of the popular OS can take advantage of stock Android features like picture-in-picture mode, notification channels, and improved autofill functionality. In addition, LineageOS also incorporates plenty of features that are specific to the custom ROM, including the Privacy Guard functionality, Live Display, and gestures. Privacy Guard allows users to check the permissions requested by apps, while the Live Display feature automatically changes the theme of the operating system depending on the time of the day. The latter can be easily controlled by the user through Quick Settings tile. On the other hand, the touchscreen gestures allow the user to control the device even if the screen is turned off by assigning an action to a specific gesture. However, the types of actions and gestures supported by the software ultimately depend on the smartphone’s hardware. Moreover, LineageOS also includes its own set of stock applications like Jelly, which is a Chromium-based browser, and the Eleven Music Player.
The official website of LineageOS provides detailed instructions on how users can install the custom ROM on their devices. The installation commonly involves three key steps: unlocking the bootloader, installing a custom recovery, and then installing the custom ROM from that very same recovery. In addition, users may also have to flash the recommended GApps package in case they want to use the applications developed by Google. The team behind LineageOS is continuously working so that more devices support the newer versions of the custom ROM. Just last month, the OnePlus One, Oppo Find 7 and Find 7A, and several variants of the Galaxy S5 Plus gained support for LineageOS 15.1.