Two days ago we released some information that the CyanogenMOD team had teamed up with the FreeXperia team to bring CM7 to a host of new Xperia devices. This was some pretty great news for the those of you that love your Xperia device but wished for some AOSP love. We love it when two super teams come together to combine their efforts for the bettering of the world.
What we missed was a blog post yesterday by Sony Ericsson. Â It offered up some more information about how they feel about custom ROMs and development. The SE Developer program has been watching closing and seeing just what the developers have been up to. They recognized the importance of the open Android ecosystem and stepped up to the plate to be one of a handful of manufacturers that offer support for further development. They initially chose to work closely with a group of devs that called themselves the FreeXperia group. Offering them 20 devices and technical know-how.
Even though there are limited SE handset here in the U.S., I still feel that having such an amazing amount of support coming directly from the device manufacturer is great. It is one of the biggest keys to the success of the Android and its actual open platform idea. Check out the release that Karl-Johan Dahlstrom, Head if Developer Relations for SE had to say about all of this –
Back in the spring of earlier this year, Sony Ericsson announced and released the option to unlock the boot loader for 2011 Xperia™ phones. We then moved on to explain how to build your own Linux kernel. As a third step, we have now supported the FreeXperia group. The reason for this is that we firmly believe in the openness of Android™, and we are really impressed by the huge activity shown in our products. By being supportive and open, we hope to both learn from the open community, and also share knowledge when that is possible.
During some time now, the FreeXperia group of independent developers have been working on the CyanogenMod custom ROM for our latest Xperiaâ„¢ phones. From a Sony Ericsson Developer program perspective, we were impressed by the passion shown and decided to help out with some bits and pieces, since we are aware that Sony Ericsson phones have been somewhat difficult to work with from an open developer point of view. A few proprietary solutions needed to be explained and we helped them with that. This included the camera, where we provided debugged and rebuilt camera library binaries, which we will soon make available on Developer World under a special EULA license. We also supported the group with approximately 20 devices, to make their work easier.
However, please pay attention to this important and legal fine-printed text that you should not skip. We once again must make it clear that if you unlock the boot loader, and put a custom ROM on your phone, you may void your warranty. Sony Ericsson does not guarantee any functionality of your phone while going down this road. This is for advanced developers only, who are aware of the risks involved and have the knowledge to minimise the risks. For normal consumers, we strongly recommend NOT to unlock the boot loader and use custom ROMs, as it is not needed. We are proud to deliver great phone experiences through our rigorously tested and official software releases.
Overall, we do think the initiative to support these independent developers is a way for Sony Ericsson to show our support to the open developer community. We truly hope to make a difference in the world of Androidâ„¢.
Karl-Johan Dahlström
Head of Developer Relations
Sony Ericsson
Source: Sony Ericsson Blog
