Get Android Go edition benefits on any Android 8.1 custom ROM

If you have one of the older Android phones and you are running an Android 8.1-based custom ROM on the device, you can now get the Android Go benefits.

Android Go is Google’s attempt to create a lightweight version of the Android for devices with low RAM and internal storage. The first Go-enabled Android version – Android Oreo (Go Edition) – was unveiled in November last year. While we are still waiting for the Android Go edition-powered commercial devices to arrive in the market, an XDA developer has created a flashable ZIP, which can be used to enable the benefits of Android Go edition on any Android 8.1-powered phone.

Since Android Oreo (Go edition) was launched as part of the Android 8.1 release, the Android 8.1-powered phones already include a lot of what is need for Go-edition features. This ZIP file simply gives the users an option to enable or disable the low-RAM property on their device, which is used by the Android system to identify if your phone is Android Go-edition or normal Android. The changes made by this ZIP file can be retained with future ROM updates, so you don’t have to worry about re-flashing the file after a ROM update or new ROM release.

When the low-RAM property is enabled, you will lose certain features and some UI elements will change, but your phone will be noticeably faster.

Here are the changes you can expect to see after enabling the Go edition:

• Flat recent / multitasking UI
• Multi-users disabled
• High-end graphics disabled
• Less recent apps cache,
• Multi-window disabled
• Minor notification icons changes
• Less logger buffer sizes (devs),
• No apps notifications access / zen access / VR listeners or picture in picture (PIP) access.

These may not be all of the Android Go tweaks, but they will still be able to benefit your phone quite a lot.

Here are a few devices and custom ROMs that the XDA users have already tested the ZIP on:

• Sony Xperia SP (AOSP Oreo 8.1)
• Sony Xperia T/TX/V (AOSP Oreo 8.1)
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Pro (AOSP 8.1)
• Wileyfox Swift/Cherry Mobile G1 (crDroid 8.1)
• Sony Xperia Z (Xposed Oreo)
• Moto G (AospExtended)
• Google Nexus 6 (AICP 8.1 test build)