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Tweaks and mods can be fun. They add functionality and customization not usually found within the framework of most Android devices. However, when there are a lot of tweaks you enjoy, it can be a pain to find and install them all. That’s why there are tweak and mod packs out there that give you a bunch of mods all at once. For Sony Xperia Ion users, there is a mod that packs in quite a bit.

Called Smooth Ion, it was released by XDA Senior Member ganeshbiyer. It requires users be running a stock ICS ROM and that it be deodexed first. The features are as follows:

What is “Smooth ION”?
Collection of apps.
Build prop tweaks.
Init.d tweaks.
What does “Smooth ION” contain/do?
Xperia GX Home Launcher. (credit serajr) (not in At&t version)
Jellybean Status bar with Sense 4 recent Apps. (credit ou! & DdcCabuslay)
JB Adreno_Drivers_V3
Latest Sony Xperia V Walkman. (credit Rizal Lovins Sundanesse)
Google Now v4. (credit ReekoTubbs)
Add Jellybean Keyboard (not in At&t version) and Hackers Keyboard (my personal favorite ).
Adds init.d support if not there already.
Adds init.d tweak scripts.
Adds tons of build.prop tweaks.
Delete unnecessary apps.

The pack brings various tweaks and other goodies to Xperia Ion users. To install, just flash via ClockworkMod recovery. The zip wipes cache and Dalvik for you so no need to worry about that.

For additional details, check out the original thread.

Sony has some interesting plans regarding its smartphone future, but issuing timely Android updates are not part of them. The company has shared more details about its Android 4.1 Jelly Bean roll out, but in case you don’t own one of the recently launched Xperia models you won’t like what we’re about to tell you.

The lists of Jelly Bean-upgradeable Xperia devices includes only the following models:

• Xperia T
• Xperia TX
• Xperia V
• Xperia S
• Xperia acro S
• Xperia ion
• Xperia P
• Xperia go
• Xperia J

We don’t have any actual Jelly Bean roll out details for either model, but it looks like the most recent Xperia devices – the Xperia T, TX and V – will be the first to get their Android 4.1 update. That will happen at some point in the first quarter of 2013.

In case you own 2011 Sony Android smartphones, you won’t receive any official Jelly Bean upgrade next year, so you’ll either have to stick it out with Ice Cream Sandwich, or find custom Jelly Bean-based ROMs to install on those Xperia models:

We were glad to provide the Android 4.0.4 upgrade for our 2011 Xperia portfolio across most markets and the majority of models but, after thorough evaluation, we have concluded they will not be upgraded beyond Ice Cream Sandwich.

Beyond Ice Cream Sandwich we would not able to guarantee owners of these smartphones the user experience you expect and we demand. We will however, continue to support all these products with firmware maintenance releases.

We’ll be back with more Jelly Bean upgrade details once Sony starts releasing the update.

Related Posts

• 2011 Xperia phones won’t receive Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update, says Sony’s exec
• Sony backtracks on its Jelly Bean update stance, no decision has been made
• Acer says Jelly Bean updates are coming for several tablets, no names and dates mentioned just yet

Good news for those of you sporting a Sony Xperia Ion. Official CyanogenMod nightlies are now available for your device. Codenamed aoba, the first CM9 build for the Ion is ready for download from get.cm. Also remember to flash the GApps .zip after flashing CM9 to get the latest Google apps installed. Links below.

source: get.cm and gapps
via: android police

Releasing a flagship phone with an outdated version of Android was one of the factors that led to a not-so-impressive Sony Xperia Ion. But to the delight of owners of the phone, Sony is making good on its promise to provide a swift upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich. After we saw the Android 4.0 firmware hitting the LTE variant of the phone a few days back, the update is reportedly coming to the Xperia Ion on AT&T.

You should already see the update notification on your Sony Xperia Ion LT28AT.  However, the update may only be downloaded and installed when you connect the phone to your PC and run Sony’s PC companion software, SuS.

It looks like there are two updates available: build 6.1.c.1.105 and .107. Since there’s no official change log yet, we can’t tell the difference between the two at this time. Some folks have reported that they were able to go to .107 without a hitch, while some said that the .105 update keeps popping up even when they’re already on .107. Hopefully AT&T can clear this confusion by the time they make the update official today.

Regardless of the not-so-smooth roll out, it’s an update that’s worth the slight hassle. Aside from the smoothness that it brings to the Xperia Ion, there are also the many perks that ICS comes with. If you’re an Xperia Ion user, please do share if you have encountered any difficulties while updating the phone. How do you like ICS on your Ion?

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Very recently, the Sony Xperia S received its official update to Android 4.0.4. This is great news for a few reasons, most of which involve all of the fun, new features that come with Ice Cream Sandwich. However, 4.0.4 is the last version of Ice Cream Sandwich, which means the next update could be Jelly Bean. Xperia Ion LTE users, meanwhile, have been waiting for an update to Android 4.0.4, and the wait has just ended.

Mobile Syrup has been discussing that Sony is already preparing the 4.0.4 update. Almost everyone was sure the update would occur sometime this week, but the exact date was only speculation. Thankfully, the wait wasn’t a very long one, as Sony has reportedly begun to roll out the update as of yesterday, September 14.

What’s in the official update?

For starters, Ice Cream Sandwich is a wholly different operating system than Gingerbread. Xperia Ion LTE owners will be treated to a new user interface, most of the features that come with Android 4.0.4, and likely some features that Sony has baked in themselves. The Xperia Ion LTE should also get performance improvements and better battery management that many have been hoping for.

For most users, a notification for upgrade should already appear. If not, you can likely force the update by going into the settings screen, navigating to the About Phone option, and then tapping “check for updates.” According to Xperia Blog, the Xperia Ion update is rolling out to Hong Kong and Taiwan customers now. Other regions should experience their updates in the very near future.

The new version number is 6.1.E.1.19 and it should be a pretty big update. So be sure to be near your phone charger in case you need to plug in during the download and install processes. Since the update is so fresh, there aren’t any reports out yet as to how the update is working.

If you have the Xperia Ion LTE and have already updated, we’d love to hear from you. How is the update? Are there noticeable improvements? Let us know in the comments below.

For those who don’t know, Init.d is required to run scripts on most Android devices. It can be used on pretty much any device that’s rooted, but sometimes it can be hard to make it stick. Usually, it requires flashing a kernel or a ROM that has Init.d support in a custom recovery. For those rocking the Sony Xperia Ion, you now have a different option. You also have some fun new scripts to play with.

Thanks to the efforts of XDA Senior Member popfan, the Xperia Ion now has Init.d support, a CPU Editor, and a ClockworkMod Recovery. This is a great start for a device that was only rooted a short time ago, and provides ROM and kernel developers with a solid development base on which to work. There some problems with ClockworkMod Recovery. It mostly works, but it has shown to be unstable and will reboot randomly. Work is being done to correct it, but for now users should proceed with caution.

For the Init.d support, users thankfully don’t need ClockworkMod recovery. Popfan has provided a nice Windows-only script that will add Init.d support to the Xperia Ion without having to flash it via recovery. After that’s done, users can then use the CPU Editor. The CPU Editor has quite a few nice features, including:

Change CPU Governor
Change CPU Min/Max Frequencies
Apply Settings on Boot – Sticky Mode
Set Dual Core CPU’s Independently – Governor and Frequencies
Force Dual Core – Second Core Online ALL The Time
Seperate Menus For Single and Dual Core Devices – Auto Selects
View Current Settings For Everything
Sticky Mode
OnDemand Profiling
Now uses config file to store values

Even though the Xperia Ion doesn’t have prolific developer support yet, there are some very useful tools for users to play with until more things become available. For more info, check out the CPU Editor thread, the init.d thread, and the CWM thread.

Being released around the same time as the Android juggernaut that was Samsung Galaxy S3, poor Sony Xperia Ion never stood a chance, did it? We don’t think it stopped die-hard Sony fans and early adopters from shelling out between $50 and $100 for the Ion, but thanks to Best Buy, you can now get Sony’s flagship phone for free.

After having sold it for $50 for a couple of months, Best Buy now lets you snag the Sony Xperia Ion 4G for $0. The price is good for new customers and upgraders, and there’s the obligatory two-year contract with AT&T, which starts at $20 per month.

The Xperia Ion has all the makings of a superb phone, but Sony made a blunder by releasing it with Android 2.3 Gingerbread on board. The same thing can be said about the decision to equip the Ion with a Snapdragon S3 processor. Look past these two features, and the rest of the specs are pretty solid, especially its 4.6-inch HD display with Mobile Bravia Engine and 12MP rear camera with Exmor R technology.

We’re not sure when the promotion ends at Best Buy, so better grab the Xperia Ion for free there while you can.

NEXT: Sony Xperia Ion available now on AT&T, offered for only $50 on Best Buy

Red Xperia Ion spotted in the wild, black model offered by Rogers for $49.99 [Gallery] Sony Xperia Ion heading to Canada in July, comes with free 50GB Box storage

Can’t wait to get your hands on the Sony Xperia Ion, but want to know first how much it’ll set you back? We now have confirmation from Rogers Wireless about the price of the phone, and it’s one that doesn’t stray too far from what we’ve reported before. The good news is you can now order the Experia Ion from the carrier’s website.

The Xperia Ion is Sony’s first LTE phone, dontcha know? And the price that you have to pay for that kind of luxury is $49.99 with a three-year contract. We’re not sure why anyone would want to purchase the phone on a shorter contract, as the two-year contract ($449) almost cost the same as buying the phone without a contract ($549.99). But we guess that’s just how it is in Canada.

Despite the phone’s spacious 4.6-inch HD display, Snapdragon S3 processor, and 12MP Sony Exmor R rear camera, it’ll only ship with Android 2.3 Gingerbread. If it’s any consolation, an upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich is reportedly heading to the phone soon. How soon? Better ask owners of Xperia P and Xperia U that are still on the queue line.

Will the attractive $50 price tag of the Sony Xperia Ion be enough to lure you to get the phone?

NEXT: Red Xperia Ion spotted in the wild, black model offered by Rogers for $49.99 [Gallery]

Sony Xperia Ion to be available exclusively on Rogers Sony Xperia Ion available now on AT&T, offered for only $50 on Best Buy

Not to be outdone by its peers that are offering their flagship products in various shade and colors, with the latest being the Garnet Red Samsung Galaxy S3 on AT&T and the white and silver combo HTC EVO 4G LTE on Sprint, it looks like Sony Mobile will offer a refreshed variant of its flagship phone. Meet the red Xperia Ion.

Some beautiful hands-on pictures of the red Sony Xperia Ion have been posted by the folks at yesky, which showcase the velvety phone in various angles. Check them out below.

[Show as slideshow]

If you’re smitten by the black Xperia Ion, it’s hard to deny the oozing appeal of the red model as well. Unfortunately, it appears the red Xperia Ion will only be available for the GSM version. The LTE version, which is released in the U.S. and Canada, will come only in black.

The Xperia Ion was recently launched by Sony Mobile in the U.S. and is now available from AT&T for $99 with a two year contract. In Canada, the Xperia Ion will be a Rogers exclusive and the carrier has just announced that the phone will be offered for a very affordable price of $50 with a three-year contract. Not a bad proposition at all for a phone that boasts a 4.6-inch HD display and 12MP rear camera.

What do you say? Red or black?

NEXT: Sony Xperia SL spotted in Indonesia, what’s in store for the upgraded flagship model?

Sony Xperia Ion available now on AT&T, offered for only $50 on Best Buy Sony Xperia Ion to be available exclusively on Rogers

Good news for Sony Xperia Ion users today, the wizards over at XDA have discovered a root method that’s pretty simple to use.

It looks like once you’ve got your bootloader unlocked, all you’ll need to do is flash an insecure kernel which will allow you to run a root script.  That’s it. A quick download of busybox and superuser from the Play Store will let you take advantage of your newly acquired freedom.

To see the procedure and the necessary info, hit the source.  Remember, with great power comes great responsibility.  Rooting gives you greater control over your phone, but you can mess stuff up too, so don’t blame us if things go south.

If you do decide to go for it (you should), make sure you send XDA user yuunanase some love for putting this together.

source: XDA