LG Fathom VS750 Android development

[einsteinecker]

Well, since our old thread was locked, and since I'm continuing the development, the new thread is here. Many thanks to ajeet17181 for giving me the final piece of the puzzle to resume the work.

​

I am continuing ajeet17181's work on bringing a working Android build to our Windows Mobile phone, the LG Fathom. As of this moment I am only working on the Kernel, where most of the fixes need to be worked on, so let's get to it, shall we?

Download any of the following Android versions:

Gingerbread 2.3.7 (includes Kernel build #119)
DOWNLOAD "einsteinecker_android.rar" (thanks to pizzaboy192 for hosting)
alternate link (untested upload)

What works:
-3G data
-Wifi
-Limited Bluetooth functionality
-Video playback
-3D gaming
-Accelerometer
-Outgoing calls

What doesn't work:
-Camera
-Incoming calls
-SMS
-Vibrator
-Light sensor
-USB
-SD card has a low chance of being mounted.​

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Latest Cyanogenmod Nov 26, 2012
Cyanogenmod with working audio fix, updated link August 28 2013:
Part 1
Part 2
(split into 2 parts because my internet kept cutting it off)

Dead link

Thanks to www2287. Read this post for more info.​

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In some cases, the usual Google apps aren't built into the rom. Read this or this on how to get them.

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Unsupported Android builds
ajeet's LG Fathom Gingerbread 2.3.7
Download here

What works:
-3G internet!
-Accelerometer!
-Wifi
-Real USB support.
-Outgoing calls

What doesn't work:
-D-pad is not aligned correctly.
-Cannot power off from shutdown menu.
-Incredible power drain. This is caused by the phone remaining at a high mhz without any way to fix it. Even if you use SetCPU to change the governor, the voltage looks like it remains the same so power drains even at 245mhz! :crying:
-No multimedia. And by that I mean no gaming for you, anything 3D is not even enabled on the kernel.
-No camera
-No SMS
-Cannot receive calls
-No light sensor
-No vibrator

Cyanogen Mod
Download here (link thanks to Giorgi-geo)
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Cyanogen March 2012 build
Download here. from www2287. This build is not a final build, that means many things are broken in it.
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Android 2.2 Froyo
Download here (NOTE: Due to Froyo not working in some areas, I will not provide support for it)

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LATEST KERNEL: (March 14 2013)

ReRun March 13 2013: New compiling method to fix several bugs. Read this post for more info.

Previous Kernel:
Rerun kernel build #120

Rerun kernel build #119 (This kernel is a restart of my previous work. I basically started over from scratch and compiled it well over 100 times to find an acceptable solution to the battery issue.)

(Can't type the "." symbol? Download this.)


Kernel source:
https://github.com/ajeet17181/fathom-kernel Note: this source is broken, and since I have heavily modified it, wait for me to upload full source someday.​

Booting Android​

-Now, to use it with one of the above Android versions, first extract the android version into your MicroSD card (You must have at least 750MB free space on your card), and then copy the 3 files inside the kernel archive into the Android folder, overwriting any older files. Next, open startup.txt and make sure the line "rel_path=fathom" has the name of the Android folder in your microSD card, if the folder is "2.2", change "fathom" to 2.2.

-Same as usual, run clrcad.exe about 5 times, then click on "haret" .exe file. The kernel will take a while to boot, so let it sit.

Preparing your phone to enable 3G internet on Android
Now that you have the ROM, you will need to edit your phone to enable 3G internet. Download this: http://www.mediafire.com/?azm89r85x6k2hhz (link thanks to da_reeseboy here.)

Please read the .txt inside the LGNPST archive on how to install. I can't help in that regard as I too funked my install until I undid everything and followed the txt file

After you set that up, download this: https://rapidshare.com/files/606560282/Clipboard01.zip, Or the the texty no frills way:

In windows mobile, change Fathom's USB mode to VZaccess manager mode. Open LGNPST and connect your Fathom. Go to "phone setting" and change default phone mode to GSM, and change the APN setting to the one your carrier uses.

I must warn that Android will attempt to connect when it boots, so be sure you have either an unlimited data plan or make sure you won't be charged if you use prepaid. ​

Current developments: Next phase of development will focus on the phone side (calls, sms, data). Because I am in a GSM country, I will be focusing on that.

Note: I am quite a busy person, and I won't be updating everyday, at the moment I have a grave matter to handle, and it is my 1TB hard drive. It has corrupt sectors, and it needs to be replaced. It holds crucial XDA data on it, so it is important to me. At the moment I can't afford a new one, so any donations is greatly appreciated in helping me remedy that problem. You can read more about my Hard Drive here.

 

[einsteinecker]

Changelog

Latest Kernel:

March 14 2013
ReRun New Compile
This kernel was compiled differently than previous kernels, intended to join together the incompatible drivers with the rest of the drivers. This fixed several problems. Read here for more info.​

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November 23, 2012
ReRun kernel build 119
This kernel was restarted from the beginning, and slowly configured to the point where I found a solution to the "connect charger" error on boot. Basically, the kernel source had conflicting power settings combined from the HD2 and Tsunagi sources, and I simply removed the HD2 battery settings and provided a new working source code for the battery. I expect to use this as a base as I further eliminate the invalid .32 codes and replace it with .35 sources.​

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einstein 4x1 (NOTE: read any "readme.txt" files for instructions!!)
-Now, phone will no longer reboot when booting into android. You must make sure your battery level is over 26% in order to avoid this Reboot of Death bug, as it seems like the current build will reset if Android is in a mode where it will warn you to connect your charger. Perhaps we can change Android's low battery notification?
-NVRAM now pointed to /system/etc/wifi/, be sure to root copy the nvram.txt file into the new location.
-(for my modified Gingerbread build) attached are the correct key layouts for the Fathom hardware keyboard (thanks to www2287​

Extreme Battery 003
-Re-started kernel development to ensure junk drivers were no longer included. This led to working Wifi, partial bluetooth, fully working headphone support, accelerometer, and as before, no immense power drain on standby. Overnight standby now a reality with Kernel 003!​

Extreme Battery 002
Fixes:
-Wifi for Froyo, Bluetooth for Gingerbread
-Accelerometer works for Gingerbread only
-Headphones now work without fail
-Need more feedback regarding resetting while phone is on or off​

Extreme Battery 001
Features:
-More CPU governors
-Overclock enabled (use at your own risk!)
-Extreme battery saving (need confirmation, my battery only dropped 2% overnight!)


Working:
-Main speaker
-Phone earpiece
-d-pad now aligned properly
-No more torn screen on the left side!
-Real power-down! Power button is the task manager button beside the camera button. Press this to turn your phone on or off.

Not working:
-Same as before, no outgoing SMS
-Wifi is dead :silly:
-Camera not working
-Never tried GPS...
-When headphones are plugged in, sound dies globally in Android.​

 

[einsteinecker]

Frequently Asked Questions

Where's my microSD card?
It seems strange, but this way worked for me: before you boot into Android, remove the sd card from your phone, then insert it, and then immediately boot into Android. If you did not do this when booting Android for the first time, do this method.

I'm low on storage space.
In "startup.txt", change "data_size=256" to "data_size=512" for 512MB of storage space. If you want more, change 512 to 1024 or 2048 for 1GB / 2GB respectively. Make sure you have that much free space on your MicroSD before you continue!

Can't start Froyo 2.2?
When you see the system process error, immediately press the side button beside the camera, then choose wait, then hold side button, then select power off, and the phone should look like it's booting again, and it should go into Froyo. If it doesn't, repeat again.

Can't boot into Gingerbread 2.3?
Due to a fault in ajeet's battery driver, the OS does not know what the battery life is at boot, and it thinks the battery is dead. Solution? Just make sure you have at least 70% or higher battery life when you boot into Android. I will try to focus on this, but as of the moment, I have not had much success in porting drivers into the kernel, as it is a rather complicated process and it has to be done in a way that will not break the wifi again. (This issue has been fixed in ReRun kernel build 119)

 

[einsteinecker]

Reserved

 

[pizzaboy192]

Awesome that we have someone working on this again. Slightly curious how hard it would be to port this work over to OpenWebOS... But I'll love to see where Android goes. I'd try using it if the CDMA radio worked.

 

[einsteinecker]

Awesome that we have someone working on this again. Slightly curious how hard it would be to port this work over to OpenWebOS... But I'll love to see where Android goes. I'd try using it if the CDMA radio worked.

I'm optimistic CDMA would work, that unfortunately might need to have the Android OS edited to support dual mode CDMA/GSM. A nice place to start would be the Android builds for the Touch Pro2.

 

[pizzaboy192]

I'm optimistic CDMA would work, that unfortunately might need to have the Android OS edited to support dual mode CDMA/GSM. A nice place to start would be the Android builds for the Touch Pro2.

We should also see what other Android-only devices used the same modems. The Droid series usually were world devices, as were a few others (none off the top of my head, but I bet they're pretty easy to find)
Worst case scenario would be to compile two different Android versions that are either CDMA only or GSM only.
I've got 3 Fathoms to test on, and would be more than willing to sell my unlocked one to someone who could use it better than I could (it's currently de-activated and I don't have a GSM SIM to test.

 

[Giorgi-geo]

nice! thanks for your work einsteinecker

 

[Giorgi-geo]

so here's my problem. i did everything as said. HTC logo comes on and that's it. i waited for 40+ minutes for it to load but nothing
edit: never mind. On the third try it loaded correctly

---------- Post added at 09:38 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:00 PM ----------

-No more torn screen on the left side!
-Real power-down! Power button is the task manager button beside the camera button. Press this to turn your phone on or off.

love you. please fix wi-fi soon )

---------- Post added at 09:44 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:38 PM ----------

i was using 2.3.1 android before this. now i installed 2.2 and the difference in performance is huge. 2.2 is much faster and smoother on our device. can you tell me what is the key difference between 2.3.1 and 2.2? if there is none I think it will be better to have 2.2
forget this too. looks like both build work better with your help )

 

[Giorgi-geo]

Also. when in android, and i connect USB and transfer some files onto sdcard. they dont show up in file manager until reboot, and sometimes they just disappear. this is happening since first ajeet build - not a new problem, but maybe you could look into it.

---------- Post added at 02:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:36 AM ----------

Not working:
-Same as before, no outgoing SMS
-Wifi is dead :silly:
-Camera not working
-Never tried GPS...
-When headphones are plugged in, sound dies globally in Android.

bluetooth also does not work )

 

[einsteinecker]

Sorry folks, I meant to update yesterday but I had a mind crushing headache

We should also see what other Android-only devices used the same modems. The Droid series usually were world devices, as were a few others (none off the top of my head, but I bet they're pretty easy to find)
Worst case scenario would be to compile two different Android versions that are either CDMA only or GSM only.

I recall most Droids from Motorola have the OMAP cpu, so I'm not sure if using the code for that would work on our Qualcomm stuff (I believe LG used a Qualcomm reference guide for the Fathom). I figured checking Qualcomm's sources first is a good try.

I've got 3 Fathoms to test on, and would be more than willing to sell my unlocked one to someone who could use it better than I could (it's currently de-activated and I don't have a GSM SIM to test.

I've been interested in something. How is android on the newer updates? What I mean is that, I'm still running stock V4 Windows Mobile ROM on my Fathom, and there is no performance lock like on the HTC HD2 (full 1Ghz on battery). Does the V5 or V7 WM Roms have this too?

i was using 2.3.1 android before this. now i installed 2.2 and the difference in performance is huge. 2.2 is much faster and smoother on our device. can you tell me what is the key difference between 2.3.1 and 2.2? if there is none I think it will be better to have 2.2

forget this too. looks like both build work better with your help )

One main difference I see between 2.2 and 2.3, is that 2.3 rotates the screen immediately after you slide out the keyboard. 2.2 will only rotate once you open a program.

Also. when in android, and i connect USB and transfer some files onto sdcard. they dont show up in file manager until reboot, and sometimes they just disappear. this is happening since first ajeet build - not a new problem, but maybe you could look into it.

If you read the readme text file inside the 2.2 Android build, you'll see it's a problem of the OS:

"- USB Mass Storage (You can copy files from PC to PC. But Android apps cannot see the copied files in the phone before rebooting.)"

I think that is because we run Android from our SD card.

bluetooth also does not work )

Thanks for the feedback. I was going to upload the headphone fix yesterday, but maybe I'll try that bluetooth fix too.

 

[pizzaboy192]

I recall most Droids from Motorola have the OMAP cpu, so I'm not sure if using the code for that would work on our Qualcomm stuff (I believe LG used a Qualcomm reference guide for the Fathom). I figured checking Qualcomm's sources first is a good try.



I've been interested in something. How is android on the newer updates? What I mean is that, I'm still running stock V4 Windows Mobile ROM on my Fathom, and there is no performance lock like on the HTC HD2 (full 1Ghz on battery). Does the V5 or V7 WM Roms have this too?

I am not sure what the differences between the OMAP refrence and the Qualcomm refrence designs are. I know the Fathom is a 1ghz Snapdragon, but not sure what else it has in it.
Also, what do you mean by performance lock? I run my own ROM (V6) and it seems to run well. I don't do OC, but I have successfully underclocked the device to 215mhz (somewhere around there) as a test and it was stable. Eeked almost two weeks of battery out of a test device that way.

 

[Giorgi-geo]

maybe you could fix wi-fi too? it was working before, so if you could compare the code you could probably fix it fast.

---------- Post added at 12:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:19 PM ----------

one more thing. in android it only shows 165mb ram

---------- Post added at 12:54 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:42 PM ----------

IMPORTANT: when going back to Windows Mobile, do not, I repeat DO NOT reset the phone while Android is off (screen off, standby). Make sure Android is on before you go back into Windows Mobile, if you don't, Android will be locked into an eternal "off" state, and you will never be able to go back into Android again.

I think this just happened to me. every time i load android it goes to unlock screen and then turns off. i always turned android off from its own menu so i dont know why it happened. there has to be a way to fix this, help please?

---------- Post added at 01:46 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:54 PM ----------

after 5 tries, i connected phone with charger and on the second try it turned on

 

[einsteinecker]

Hi folks, after my previous build work for headphones and not Bluetooth, I tried fixing Bluetooth but now the headphone port is wonky :silly:

While that was happening, I found out why Wifi wasn't working. Now, on 2.3 Gingerbread Wifi doesn't work (probably firmware problem), but in 2.2 Froyo it does work, but can't find any networks

That's when I was trying to fix things on the Android side (not the kernel) when I apparently got one thing to partially work:

I hope you noticed the 3G icon on the top, yes it's very close to working, the only problem I've got is making the phone realize that there is a sim in there (and the outgoing number to dial). Now, 2.3 Gingerbread can see the sim, so I'm going to try that, but if this works, I think we're in for a heck of a ride

Once I have both headphone and Bluetooth support stabilized, I will upload that. The 3G and Wifi fixes involve the Android OS itself, so that means I have to uploaded the OS or give instructions how to patch them in yourself.

I am not sure what the differences between the OMAP refrence and the Qualcomm refrence designs are. I know the Fathom is a 1ghz Snapdragon, but not sure what else it has in it.

Well I certainly won't rule anything out. Right now any thing is a good thing to test, who knows, maybe the Droid actually has what I'm looking for

Also, what do you mean by performance lock? I run my own ROM (V6) and it seems to run well. I don't do OC, but I have successfully underclocked the device to 215mhz (somewhere around there) as a test and it was stable. Eeked almost two weeks of battery out of a test device that way.

Performance lock is like this: when I had the HD2, while on battery (no AC plugged in) the phone will have only a maximum speed of 768Mhz. My Fathom does not have this, it is a max 1Ghz on battery and on AC. What I'm wondering is, maybe LG's V5/V6/V7 updates changed something, I'm not sure. I sure don't want to risk my only phone either, and there's more: what if all this time LG's updates also updated the phone baseband. So while I'm porting Android to our phones, maybe my updates won't work with the old V4 I'm running. There certainly is a lot of things to consider when doing this stuff :silly:

I think this just happened to me. every time i load android it goes to unlock screen and then turns off. i always turned android off from its own menu so i dont know why it happened. there has to be a way to fix this, help please?

I think there might be a way to fix this, unfortunately I have had little succes porting drivers over to my kernel. It is one of the reasons why I can't get the camera to work yet, porting drivers is not as simple as copying and pasting drivers like in windows mobile.

But I think it could work, you see, my idea was to tell Android that there's a reset button onboard the phone (the one beside the charging port). LG has the code for this, which I was able to see, but haven't been able to get working yet.

Edit: Wifi is still dead on 2.3 Gingerbread, but I fixed the Accelerometer :victory:
Couldn't test Froyo because I broke the Android build, will redo and continue further tests

 

[pizzaboy192]

Awesome work! I'll run some tests on my end with the CDMA half if you'd like and report back to see what is and isn't working connectivity wise there.
As for the WiFi half: is it getting an IP address? Can you check the DNS settings to make sure they are being set properly?
As for the performance lock: none that I know of.
And as for the question about baseband: No baseband differences between ROM versions. They're purely a WinMO flash, and not a BaseBand flash. If you'd like, I can run tests on all 3 OEM versions of the ROM though, as I have 3 unused Fathoms, all on different ROM versions currently. I've even tried cooking a WinMo ROM that autoboots into Android (almost works, tempted to just put a HaRET shortcut in startup and strip out all WinMO core programs.

 

[einsteinecker]

Froyo doesn't like my kernel anymore, even tried a different SD card and it still has a system crash on boot. I guess it's time to work on a new OS :crying:

As for the WiFi half: is it getting an IP address? Can you check the DNS settings to make sure they are being set properly?

It's just scanning, it won't even find the network

And as for the question about baseband: No baseband differences between ROM versions. They're purely a WinMO flash, and not a BaseBand flash. If you'd like, I can run tests on all 3 OEM versions of the ROM though, as I have 3 unused Fathoms, all on different ROM versions currently. I've even tried cooking a WinMo ROM that autoboots into Android (almost works, tempted to just put a HaRET shortcut in startup and strip out all WinMO core programs.

Oh, that's what I wanted to know, if the LG updates include a radio update. I'm highly interested in knowing if there will be better performance in Android if they updated the radio.

 

[pizzaboy192]

Oh, that's what I wanted to know, if the LG updates include a radio update. I'm highly interested in knowing if there will be better performance in Android if they updated the radio.

We could also see what other devices used the same radio chip. I know that plenty of them are out there, it's just a matter of finding one that will provide an updated baseband and see how badly it screws up the phone (since we don't have the OEM baseband, doing that would probably brick any device you modded, if it went wrong)
How are you doing your work? any possibility of throwing it on some place like github so that people like me can try out changes and put our own in to help out? I have a test fleet just sitting doing nothing since I can't get much more out of Windows Mobile and cooking ROMs has gotten rather repetitive.

 

[einsteinecker]

We could also see what other devices used the same radio chip. I know that plenty of them are out there, it's just a matter of finding one that will provide an updated baseband and see how badly it screws up the phone (since we don't have the OEM baseband, doing that would probably brick any device you modded, if it went wrong)
How are you doing your work? any possibility of throwing it on some place like github so that people like me can try out changes and put our own in to help out? I have a test fleet just sitting doing nothing since I can't get much more out of Windows Mobile and cooking ROMs has gotten rather repetitive.

The kernel source is in the first post That's all I'm doing now, I get discouraged when I see the steps I have to take to make the Android OS, neither ajeet or www27 uploaded that and it's going to be a lot to download (I have limited bandwidth) What I've been doing is modifying Android while it's running (root access), and that's how I applied the accelerometer and that 3G thing.

Tomorrow I will upload the latest fix, which includes:

-bluetooth support (paired with headset and able to receive files)
-headphone support fixed
-how-to for the accelerometer (I will add a game so you can test it )

I'm currently prioritizing 3 things: why the SD card doesn't always mount on boot, charging the phone while using Android, and why my kernel doesn't like Froyo and the fixes that used to work.

 

[Giorgi-geo]

I'm currently prioritizing 3 things: why the SD card doesn't always mount on boot, charging the phone while using Android, and why my kernel doesn't like Froyo and the fixes that used to work.

what's wrong with charging? i dont see any problems

 

[pizzaboy192]

Random question: any way to get the Android main to boot off the internal flash? if so, I could build "ROMs" that boot WinMo and immediately start HaRET and handoff to Android. I tried earlier, but ended up with a failed boot every time.