It’s been a while since Android 7.0 Nougat has been out. If you have a Nexus device which is currently supported, you already have your taste of the latest Android in most cases. But if you are a non-Nexus user, you would be lucky if your OEM even promised you an update, let alone deliver it so soon already.
This is where the developer community comes in — groups of talented individuals working together to achieve the common cause of getting the latest Android onto devices before the OEM can, and in many cases, because the OEM can’t.
With the large amount of unofficial builds of Android 7.0 Nougat and CyanogenMod 14 builds rolling in, it was a good idea to to create a big list of devices that have already tasted the dessert success.
OnePlus 3: Unofficial CyanogenMod 14 WIP Builds: Early alpha build, has plenty of bugs like broken RIL and camera. Not recommended for daily driver.
OnePlus X: A very early build of CyanogenMod 14 has landed on the device. All that works is that the device boots. Most features crash, so the ROM is good as a proof-of-concept.
OnePlus One: A fairly decent build of AOSP 7.0 is available for the device. The bug list has been shortened since we last reported on it, now being restricted to HW disk encryption, SELinux being permissive, Missing gestures and poorer GPS performance.
Sony Xperia Z3 Compact: This is from outside of our forums, but from a reputable source. The Free Xperia Project team has uploaded a few test builds for quite a few Sony devices, and the Z3 Compact (aries) has one too. In fact, the devices that they have covered with a test build so far are:
Z1 (honami)
Z1 Compact (amami)
Z Ultra (togari)
Z2 (sirius)
Z2 Tablet (castor)
Z2 Tablet WiFi (castor_windy)
Z3 (leo)
Z3 Compact (aries)
Z3 Tablet Compact (scorpion)
Z3 Tablet Compact WiFi (scorpion_windy)
Z4 Tablet (karin)
Z4 Tablet WiFi (karin_windy)
Z5 (sumire)
Z5 Premium (satsuki)
Z5 Compact (suzuran)
X (suzu)
Progress on devices differ and was largely undocumented, so users would have to try out the builds on their own.
We’d like to give our thanks to the Free Xperia Project team, and equally to Sony. Sony actively facilitated developers in the task of bringing Android N to its devices, thanks to their contributions to Open Source. Heck, they even have guides to build Android 7.0 (AOSP!!!) for their device, along with providing binaries for the code that they cannot release. This makes Sony devices dominate this list of devices with Android 7.0 builds so early into release. Granted, these builds have a WIP nature to them, but they aren’t meant for the average user at all.
Sony Xperia Z5: Android 7.0 Nougat Builds: Early alpha release for the E6653, camera is disabled and fingerprint does not work. Surprisingly, other important features like RIL and WiFi do work, so progress is good.
Motorola Moto G: One of the most surprising entrants in this list is this budget device that was released with Android 4.3. Developers have a working alpha build of CM 14, with mentions of most basic features (RIL, Display, GPU) working.
LG Nexus 5: The Nexus 5 gets a mention in here despite being a Nexus is because of the end of its official support this year. But being a Nexus, there quite a few Android 7.0 ROMs for the device. The first builds that landed on the device have received a slew of updates that have shrunk down the “broken” list. It should not be long until these become stable builds, as is usually the case with Nexus devices.
ASUS Nexus 7 2013: Another Nexus, another Nougat build. This is the project that is being actively worked on at the moment. Bug list mentions just poor video recording in 1080p…and that’s it.
ASUS Nexus 7: AOSP 7.0 Builds exist for grouper, along with a bunch of minor bugs to go along with it.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 9.7: A fairly well built ROM for AOSP 7.0 Nougat is available for the tablet. Only bugs mentioned are with video recording being broken completely and that photo orientation is incorrect. But outside of these, the builds look fairly solid.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S: A bunch of Galaxy Tab S variants have received builds for AOSP Nougat. The builds have issues with gaming, broken RIL and a few more graphical glitches.
Jiayu S3: Builds for Android 7.0 are available on this lesser-known device, that too with a MediaTek MT6752 SoC. GPS and audio and video recording do not work as of yet, but this gives the device a good taste of Nougat.
Jiayu S3 Plus: This device with a MediaTek MT6753 SoC also has a build of Android Nougat. Bugs for the ROM relate to the GPS breaking when the RIL fix is applied.
Xiaomi Mi 3 and Mi 4: AOSP 7.0 Nougat builds are available for the Mi 3 and the Mi 4. The bug list includes issues with video recording, Google Now on Tap and the Clock app.
Special mentions
OnePlus 2: Development for CyanogenMod 14 is underway, with developers achieving a booting build of Android 7.0. However, no radios work so your phone has no means of connecting to the Internet. There is no public WIP release as of writing this yet.
LG G5: Development work on Android 7.0 or CyanogenMod 14 was not found. However, LG was starting its own Beta program for the G5 in Korea and there were hopes that a build might get leaked. However, no luck so far.
Motorola/Lenovo Moto G4 Plus: Development work is on and a build for the public is expected in the near future. Scope of progress is not known immediately.
Motorola Moto G 2015: No downloads are available for any booting Android 7.0 Nougat ROMs, but there is a discussion of developers getting it to boot and in a usable state with RIL, WiFi and Camera working. There are bugs with Audio and Camcorder, but since the ROM is not available for download, it does not make it to the list.
Motorola Moto G 2014: Developers have a working build that boots. But a lot of bugs exist, including broken MSIM and Video Recording. There is no public release to download.
Samsung Galaxy S6: This finds a place here because it was surprising to see a recent Samsung device in here, leave alone the Exynos variant (G920F). Developers have compiled CM14 for the device, but the progress of the build is unknown. There are no releases to download, so we cannot judge eitherways. But this gives the device a sliver of hope it can hold on to.
Samsung Galaxy S5: Another surprise entry for Samsung. Developers have a build of Android Nougat that boots, but there is no public release. Things are also mentioned to be a complete mess, so this might take a while before it becomes usable.
Nougat has only been around for a couple of weeks yet we already see plenty of amazing ROMs hitting our devices, in every case before the official OEM has rolled out an OTA. This is part of the beauty of the XDA community, and we must commend the hard-working developers leading the vanguard of Nougat ROMs to users all around the globe. So, if you come across a Nougat build for your device, consider yourself lucky and don’t forgive to say “thanks!”
Keep in mind these are devices in XDA’s Top Device list, meaning they are some of the most popular ones on the forums. That being said, many less-popular devices are receiving Android Nougat as well. If there is a device you want to see on this list, politely let us know in the comments down below and we will add it to the list! Requirements are a publicly available download link, and a booting state at minimum.