Known for having the most features. If you want to change every icon and animation, this is the one.
Launched in 2015 as a 64-bit quad-core Cortex-A53 chip, the MediaTek MT6735 was the king of budget 4G smartphones. Fast forward to 2026, and these devices are officially “vintage” in software terms—most are stuck on Android 5.1 Lollipop or 6.0 Marshmallow.
Because MediaTek chipsets historically had closed-source kernel source code, developing custom ROMs for the MT6735 required immense community effort. Thanks to Project Treble concepts and dedicated developers on forums like XDA Developers and 4PDA, several stable ROM configurations exist: 1. LineageOS (14.1 to 17.1)
The room smelled faintly of solder and old plastic. Under the desk lamp, Asha spread the stripped phone on a towel: a cracked screen, faded logo, Mediatek MT6735 stamped near the camera. It had been in her pocket the night her grandfather finally stopped waking up; now it was the only thing that felt like his voice. mt6735 custom rom
The MT6735 chip has several variants, including the standard MT6735, the downclocked MT6735M , and the ultra-low-cost MT6735P . A ROM compiled for the base MT6735 will brick an MT6735M device. Check your exact hardware revision using apps like CPU-Z.
If your phone spins on the boot animation for more than 20 minutes, boot back into TWRP, go to Wipe > Format Data , type yes , and reboot. This clears encryption conflicts.
Here is a table summarizing some of the more prominent custom ROM projects for the MT6735 chipset. Known for having the most features
The gold standard. For devices like the Lenovo A6000 and Redmi 2 Prime, unofficial builds of LineageOS 18.1 are the most stable.
: You will need a recovery like TWRP (Team Win Recovery Project) to flash the ROM zip files.
You cannot flash custom recoveries or ROMs on a locked bootloader. The method varies drastically by manufacturer (e.g., Motorola requires an unlock code from their site; older MediaTek devices can sometimes be bypassed using SP Flash Tool). Fast forward to 2026, and these devices are
Flashing will completely wipe your device internal storage. Backup your photos, contacts, and SMS messages to a cloud service or PC.
The MT6735 may be an aging platform, but it remains a favorite for hobbyists. Whether you want to use an old phone as a dedicated music player, a backup navigation device, or just a fun weekend project, a custom ROM can make it feel brand new.