Skip to main content

XDA developer working on porting Android to the Windows Phone-powered Lumia 520 & 525 [Video]

Microsoft’s efforts to get Windows Phone off the ground have never been very successful, but there’s one thing it was very good at, cheap phones. When an Android phone costs $100 we are all impressed, but back in 2013 Microsoft and Nokia turned heads with the insanely cheap Lumia 520. That little phone later proved to be one of the most popular Windows Phone devices ever, and now a developer over on XDA has hacked Android onto it and its successor.

In the video below, XDA user banmeifyouwant shows a Lumia 525 booting into Android Marshmallow in the form of CyanogenMod 13. Despite the phone’s low-end specs, it appears to handle Android just fine. In a second video, he also runs an AnTuTu benchmark which resulted in a score of just over 14,000.

In that first video the 525 is shown using on-screen navigation, however, in the second we see the capacitive buttons working. The developer further says that he intends to release a tool to install Android on the 520 and 525, but unfortunately, the eMMC on his Lumia 525 died, leaving him without a development device.

For now, this will be limited only the Lumia 525 and 520 since the two share nearly identical specifications. It’s possible other devices could eventually be added, but don’t get your hopes up.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

You’re reading 9to5Google — experts who break news about Google and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Google on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Don’t know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel

Manage push notifications

notification icon
We would like to show you notifications for the latest news and updates.
notification icon
You are subscribed to notifications
notification icon
We would like to show you notifications for the latest news and updates.
notification icon
You are subscribed to notifications