Chuwi Hi9 Air launched on March 2018 and came out of the box with Android 8.0 Oreo and supports Project Treble.  Are you looking for AOSP Android 8.1 Oreo on Chuwi Hi9 Air? If yes, then you are in the right place. Today we will guide you on how to install AOSP Android 8.1 Oreo on Chuwi Hi9 Air smartphone.

If you are here for the first time to install AOSP Android 8.1 Oreo on Chuwi Hi9 Air, you can read our article to know the difference between custom ROM and stock ROM. To install a custom ROM, you need to unlock bootloader and you must have the latest TWRP Recovery on your phone. This is a treble based ROM built by phhusson. Well, he is an XDA Recognized Developer who built most of the GSI treble ROM in XDA forum. Thanks to him for making this possible to install on Chuwi Hi9 Air. If your device supports TWRP Recovery, You can follow our tutorial on how to flash custom ROM using TWRP Recovery.

What’s in Android 8.1 Oreo:

After rolling the Android 8.0 Oreo, we know that Google will surely come up with the latest version which will improve the features which were implemented in Android 8.0 version.

As you’d expect, Android 8.1 Oreo is an incremental update that builds out some of the new features found in the first version of Oreo. Android 8.1 Oreo is an improved version and shortcomings of Android 8.0 Oreo – This doesn’t mean Android 8.1 doesn’t include the new feature because it does. Here are all the features of Android Oreo [8.0/8.1]

Features of Android Oreo:

  • Notifications Channels (8.0)
  • Picture In A Picture (8.0)
  • Multi-Display Support (8.0)
  • Keyboard Navigation (8.0)
  • Background Limits (8.0)
  • New Wi-Fi Features (8.0)
  • Better Icons (8.0)
  • Autofill (8.0)
  • Cheeseburger Emoji (8.1)
  • Neural Networks API (8.1)
  • Pixel Visual Core co-processing technology to third-party developers (8.1)
  • and many more

Steps to Install AOSP Android 8.1 Oreo on Chuwi Hi9 Air

To install this ROM on Chuwi Hi9 Air, First of all, you need to Unlock Bootloader on your device, and then Install TWRP Recovery. If you already have TWRP, then you can simply follow the below guide to Install TWRP Recovery. In case if there is no TWRP, then flash the firmware via ADB Sideload method.

  • How to Install Stock ROM on Chuwi Hi9 Air [Firmware Flash File]

Pre-Requisite:

  • Supported Smartphone: Chuwi Hi9 Air
  • Charge the Chuwi Hi9 Air to a sufficient battery level to avoid any sudden shutdowns during the process.
  • We strongly recommend you to take a complete backup of your personal data, including the internal storage. The phone will be formatted, so be prepared for it. You can also follow our Android backup guide for the same. [Follow any method]
  • How to Backup Your Android Phone Without ROOT
  • How to Backup Complete Stock or Custom ROM using TWRP recovery
  • Backup Your Android Apps and Data with Titanium Backup
  • How to Backup Your Android Phone Directly to PC with TWRP!!
  • How to Backup Your Data on Android device
  • If you already have TWRP: then you can Create and Restore Nandroid Backup via TWRP
  • You need a USB cable to connect your phone to PC.

Required Downloads:

Method 1: Install via TWRP Recovery

  • First of all, make sure to download and move all the above required ROM packages on your Chuwi Hi9 Air Internal storage.
  • Now reboot your phone into TWRP Recovery and Swipe Allow Modifications (Appears for the first time only)
  • Once you are in TWRP Recovery, first of all. Take a complete backup of stock or custom ROM using TWRP.
  • Now wipe the cache, data, and system before flashing the AOSP Android 8.1 Oreo on Chuwi Hi9 Air.
  • To Wipe data: Go to Wipe —> Advanced Wipe and select Dalvik/ART cache, cache, and Data and then swipe to wipe. [su_note note_color=”#fef0ef” text_color=”#000000″]Warning: Make sure not to select Internal storage[/su_note]
  • Now you can install the System image file in TWRP: Install -> Install Image -> select system.img
  • That’s it! Reboot and enjoy!

Method 2: Install via ADB Sideload

—> How to Install Generic System Image on Project Treble Devices

  • How to Backup Your Android Phone Without ROOT

  • How to Backup Complete Stock or Custom ROM using TWRP recovery

  • Backup Your Android Apps and Data with Titanium Backup

  • How to Backup Your Android Phone Directly to PC with TWRP!!

  • How to Backup Your Data on Android device

  • If you already have TWRP: then you can Create and Restore Nandroid Backup via TWRP

  • Download Chuwi USB Drivers.

  • You need to Unlock the bootloader on any MediaTek device. [Skip this, most MediaTek powered device already comes with unlocked bootloader]

  • Download and Install TWRP Recovery on Chuwi Hi9 Air.

  • Download AOSP Android 8.1 Oreo Phh-Treble GSI build here: Click Here

  • If you have downloaded NoGapps file, then you can try Open Gapps or Android 8.1 Oreo Gapps package.

  • Download Magisk zip file for root your device or flash SuperSU zip file

arm = 32 bit arm processor arm64 = 64 bit arm processor aonly = a partition scheme ab = ab partition scheme vanilla = there is no Gapps installed Gapps = Gapps are installed floss = an open source alternative to Gapps SU = superuser (root) noSU = no superuser (no root)

If you face bootloop with Gapps, then flash the Vanilla version and then you can install the OpenGapps or any other alternative Gapps.

I hope this guide was helpful to install the AOSP Android 8.1 Oreo on Chuwi Hi9 Air based on Project Treble GSI images.

Source: XDA || Credits to phhusson

If this method doesn’t work, then go to the AOSP Android 8.1 Oreo Phh-Treble thread in XDA and report your issue.

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