Android 8.1 Oreo + Root for Galaxy Note 3! [Lineage OS 15.1 ROM]

For those of you who want to upgrade your Samsung Galaxy Note 3 to the latest Android 8.1 Oreo, you are in luck as there is a stable version of Lineage OS 15.1 ROM that you can run on it if you have one of the models supported.  While Samsung has stopped updating stock firmware since Android 5.0 Lollipop, you can still grab the latest and best Android 8.1 Oreo and easily install it.  Now, this is an AOSP ROM(What is AOSP?), meaning you won’t be able to get any TouchWiz apps (Samsung apps that depend on Samsung firmware).  As far as the S-Pen goes, it still works you will just have to use a 3rd party app(such as Squid) which work just the same.

Supported Models:

  • SM-N9005, Sprint SM-N900P
  • T-Mobile SM-N900T, Canadian SM-N900W8, US Cellular SM-900R4, Verizon SM-N900V(must unlock bootloader first)
  • China SM-N9008V and SM-N9006
  • Korea SM-N900S, SM-N900L, SM-N900K

In my testing with the SM-N9005 and T-Mobile SM-N900T models, I was able to get everything working including calls, text, 4G LTE, bluetooth, and more.  The only thing seem to not work currently is NFC.  For camera, everything works if you use the FootEj Camera from the Play Store including 4K video recording.  Performance seem to have improved a TON with Antutu Score near 70K, which is 20-30% boost from stock firmwares on the Note 3.  Battery life is also very good.  In fact, there’s absolutely no reason to not upgrade your Note 3 to Android 8.1 Oreo.  Perhaps you have a Note 3 laying around in your house.  This is an awesome ROM and we are just starting.  I should have an update in the future but for right now, highly recommended.

Download:

  • Download Lineage OS 15.1 ROM for SM-N9005, Sprint SM-N900P – Link
  • Download Lineage OS 15.1 ROM for T-Mobile SM-N900T, Canadian SM-N900W8, US Cellular SM-900R4, Verizon SM-N900V(must unlock bootloader first) – Link
  • Download Lineage OS 15.1 ROM for China SM-N9008V and SM-N9006 – Link
  • Download Lineage OS 15.1 ROM for Korea SM-N900S, SM-N900L, SM-N900K – Link
  • Download Android 8.1 Oreo GappsLink
  • Download Magisk v16 – Link (optional, if you want root)
  • Download ODIN – Link
  • Download TWRP (Search for “Galaxy Note 3” in Devices and download latest “img.tar” file for YOUR MODEL of Galaxy Note 3) – Link
  • Download Samsung USB Drivers – Link

IMPORTANT: If after installing your phone calls don’t work, try rebooting your phone a few times first.  If you are not on the latest MODEM, you will have to flash the latest modem for the following models:

  • Download SM-N9005 latest modem – Link
  • Download SM-N900T latest modem – Link
  • Download SM-N900W8 latest modem – Link

Please put your phone in download mode, use AP section of ODIN, and flash this TWICE.

If your phone calls don’t work and you don’t see latest modem above, try checking XDA forums for latest one.

For most part, Lineage OS ROM 15.1 is not bad for daily driving.  If you experience any problems, we do highly recommend you to try Lineage 14.1 based on latest Android 7.1.1 Nougat.  If you are interested in a review of the Nougat version(which is flawless since it has been around for awhile), please do leave a comment below and I will get a quick review up soon.

Credits – XDA <— Please donate to the developers or hit the Thanks button on XDA if you like this, thx!

Also check out these mods I’ve installed along with the ROM:

Q&A

Q: Bluetooth calls are not working!
A: This may be a bug on some of the models.  If you absolutely need bluetooth, you may want to try an Android 7.0 Nougat-bassed ROM instead.  We recommend Lineage OS ROM v14.1.

Q: When will bugs be fixed?
A: Usually within 1-3 months after release of Lineage OS ROM, many bugs will be fixed and we will have a full update when more bugs have been fixed.  For right now, this is still an experimental custom ROM.

Q: Is this the only way to get latest Android 8.0/8.1 Oreo firmware on my Galaxy Note 3?
A: Yes, since Samsung has officially stopped supporting new firmwares for Galaxy Note 3, your best route to get the latest Oreo is through custom ROMs such as this.  But if you want full stability, we recommend going with Android 7.0/7.1 Nougat for now as they have been around for much longer with no bugs.

Have a question?

Please post all your questions at the new Android Rehab Center at HighOnAndroid Forum, thank you for understanding!

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Max Lee

Max Lee is the founder of HighOnAndroid.com. Max makes Android tutorials and review videos for people who want to get high on Android over at his YouTube channel and Korean YouTube channel.