I was first introduced to Android 6 years back when I was 17. It was my first smartphone after using some cheap, loud Chinese mobile phones. I was thrilled when I got hold of that Samsung Duos. I explored the phone and opened each and every app within the next couple of hours. That was the time when I had no idea what bloatware and why I was not able to uninstall those system apps.

In simple words, I was a noob.

I had this deep love for technology from the day I can remember and never hesitated to try my hands at new things. I still remember the day when I tried to download some games in my mother’s Nokia feature phone and was charged 100 INR(1.5$), all the money my mother had in her prepaid account, by the service provider. I was only 15 then. The memory is still fresh. Everything was sheer out of curiosity.

Playstore was something to be explored first in Android. If some app is interesting enough I will tap the download button in no time. Except sometimes it took hours to download and install because of the crappy 2G I had before six years. Launchers were the first thing which amazed me. I kept downloading and trying every launcher even though I was satisfied with the current one. Even after all these years, launchers never fails to daze me.

Then I got introduced to XDA Developers, the heaven for all Android users. I learned few tricks and tips from threads. But never understood what flashing ROM is back then. I was happy with the little tricks(that’s what I call) I learned like when you tap on the android version repeatedly, the Android mascots appears.

I developed this habit of checking everyone’s android version and pull this little trick. They sure enjoyed. Tapping on the build number several times opened the door to developer settings. Honestly, most of the developer settings were never used to date by me.

Later I developed my knowledge about Android by indulging more and understood what a custom ROM is, the difference between stock ROM and custom ROM and many more.

Few years passed, I was about to upgrade my phone to a better one because you know Samsung and how it hangs after few years. I researched a lot this time. Because I want an affordable after all.

I settled for Yu Yureka. I was thrilled when I came to know that Yureka is the first phone(at least in India) to be pre-loaded with Cyanogen ROM. Stock Android with lots of customization is what the ROM had to offer. I started using the Yureka and got lost into the OS.

Meanwhile my Samsung was there as my backup device. One day out of nowhere I decided to play with it. I convinced myself to flash a custom ROM. I was scared to be honest, after all, it is my first attempt. I had nothing to lose. I had my main device Yureka.

I searched for the particular model in XDA and found few good custom ROM’s. I downloaded a ROM based on the positive comments and read the instructions carefully. Mind you, every developer had this disclaimer that they are not responsible if the phone bricks.

My first fear was phone getting bricked or over-clocking it and bursting the processor. I prepared for both hard brick and soft brick, kept the stock ROM ready in case of emergency, installed the required software on the laptop.

To rewind back, I thought of flashing custom ROM only because my Samsung got dead slow. It lagged like hell. Yes, I was not using it for any purpose but still even opening an app took a long time. I want to uninstall those bloatware apps but for which I need to root it. After rooting it, the thrill the rooting gave made me move forward with flashing.

I plugged my phone into the laptop and followed the instructions without missing out one. When I saw the boot logo of the custom ROM, the happiness was immense. You can never describe how happy I was. I succeeded in my first attempt. I explored the custom ROM like anything. No, the device was not super fast but at least it was not super slow like it was in stock ROM.

I slept peacefully that night. The feeling of accomplishment was full.

Days passed, random thought of flashing my then current phone Yureka will appear but I ignored it as there was no need. It was perfect in the Cyanogen ROM. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

I did root my Yureka just to use those apps which required root permission.

Fast forward, I bought Coolpad Note 3, the first phone with fingerprint sensor in the Indian market, on November 2015. Till date(May 2018), I’m using it and not serviced even once. It is perfect with few ignorable cracks on the display that happened when I dropped it few times.

I mastered the art of flashing new ROM. Nowadays, I flash just for the sake, no reasons required. If developers post new ROMs, I never hesitated to try even though it is full of bugs. Random reboot, Mobiles heating like oven, Boot-loops never scared me. After flashing my phone like 100+ times, it is still sturdy and in perfect condition.

Big Thanks to all those Developers

Custom ROM is a thing only because of you people who put a lot of efforts just only out of curiosity. No developers charged me to use their ROM. They let it share with other with only proper credits which many of us fail to do. We must be grateful to all those developers. A special thanks to XDA community!

Android is love ❤