If their phone is so old that it’s running 13 I wouldn’t be surprised if Lineage no longer officialy supports it. It’s not magic, it’s a lot of work to support old phones and isn’t always even possible.
I don’t think 4 years ago is that old for technology nowadays, people have been saying for the past 6-7 years that yearly phone upgrades don’t feel too different. Most devices from the past 5 years should be capable to run 17 unless they want the AI stuff or their RAM is really low.
It’s not about capability, it’s about hardware support. If the manufacture of the chip isn’t providing updates its difficult to impossible to provide OS updates.
You should look into the reasons why android OS upgrades are so difficult to come by. It’s more complex than you realize.
you can probably gain temporary root using one of the recent linux vulnerabilities like ghostlock, then you might be able to hack around and find a way to unlock the bootloader
It’s more about stealing your passwords and stuff like that. Crypto wallets, password managers, bank apps, 2FA apps, 2FA text codes… People put a lot of their life on their phone.
I don’t even know what mine is. There’s been a software update waiting since the day I bought it but I never installed it. I update my OS when I switch devices every 7 years or so. Same applies to apps. I update them when I’m forced to. If it’s working I won’t touch it. Updates reliably makes everything worse. They fix bugs I’ve never ecountered and introduce new ones along with UI changes that I will.
I’m on android 13, and my phone hasn’t received updates in years.
Slap LOS on it or something. If there is a device maintainer you could still get security updates.
If their phone is so old that it’s running 13 I wouldn’t be surprised if Lineage no longer officialy supports it. It’s not magic, it’s a lot of work to support old phones and isn’t always even possible.
I don’t think 4 years ago is that old for technology nowadays, people have been saying for the past 6-7 years that yearly phone upgrades don’t feel too different. Most devices from the past 5 years should be capable to run 17 unless they want the AI stuff or their RAM is really low.
It’s not about capability, it’s about hardware support. If the manufacture of the chip isn’t providing updates its difficult to impossible to provide OS updates.
You should look into the reasons why android OS upgrades are so difficult to come by. It’s more complex than you realize.
you don’t do kernel updates for custom roms (other than backporting a few things that’s needed)
if a device got android 13 officially it’s definitely possible to get android 17 running on it technically
Not sure I can. It’s a Verizon motorolla. I don’t have access to anything but clearing the cache. Last I checked, nothing’s allowed on these things.
LineageOS also took some time to build an Android 17 release, and to get it out to all devices.
I have it as of a couple weeks ago. Biggest difference I’ve noticed: it no longer shows the battery level for my Bluetooth headphones.
Huh. I’m on LOS 24 and the bluetooth battery indicator is still there for me
A quick search told me it’s a common Android 17 glitch, not by design, and not specific to LineageOS. I haven’t tried to troubleshoot more.
Hackers rubbing their hands together, thinking of all the unfixed vulnerabilities
My phone won’t update. It’s out of my control. Thanks, KNOX…wait… kNOX is Samsung… not sure what bullshit has my Motorolla locked down from Verizon…
you can probably gain temporary root using one of the recent linux vulnerabilities like ghostlock, then you might be able to hack around and find a way to unlock the bootloader
“I can’t wait to take control of really old mobile hardware”
It’s more about stealing your passwords and stuff like that. Crypto wallets, password managers, bank apps, 2FA apps, 2FA text codes… People put a lot of their life on their phone.
I don’t even know what mine is. There’s been a software update waiting since the day I bought it but I never installed it. I update my OS when I switch devices every 7 years or so. Same applies to apps. I update them when I’m forced to. If it’s working I won’t touch it. Updates reliably makes everything worse. They fix bugs I’ve never ecountered and introduce new ones along with UI changes that I will.