Welcome back to another TechFanciers guide! If you caught the previous video installing Android 17, you know the custom ROM scene for the CMF Phone 1 is heating up. Today, we are moving on to something new and highly anticipated: installing the latest Evolution X 11.6.2, which brings the Android 16 QPR2 experience to the device.
Here is a complete breakdown of the installation process and a first look at what this ROM has to offer.
Pre-Requisites
Before beginning, ensure your bootloader is unlocked and you have backed up all your data, as this process will completely wipe your device. You will need a PC (Windows, Mac, or Linux) and the specific files linked at the bottom of this post.
Installation Guide
- Download and extract the OTA Ripper tool onto your computer.
- Place the downloaded Nothing Flasher script files and the Evolution X ROM
.zipfile into the extracted OTA Ripper folder. - Power off your CMF Phone 1 completely. Boot into Fastboot mode by pressing and holding the Volume Up and Power buttons simultaneously.
- Connect your phone to your PC using a reliable USB cable.
- Drag the ROM to OTA Ripper exe to extract the ROM.
- Download the Nothing Flasher script and paste inside the Extracted ROM folder.
- Run the
flash_all.batfile on your computer. - The script will ask if you want to wipe data; press Y and hit Enter.
- Allow the script to run. It will automatically reboot your phone into
fastbootdmode and flash the required system partitions. - Once the flashing process done, it will ask to reboot to system.
First Impressions & Key Features
Booting up Evolution X 11.6.2 reveals a fresh, highly customizable UI. Here are the standout features from the initial setup:
- The Evolver: Evolution X’s signature customization hub is fully present. You can easily tweak your status bar icons, change lock screen clock fonts, and customize boot animations.
- Smooth Performance: The ROM supports the CMF Phone 1’s 120Hz refresh rate out of the box, making the entire UI feel incredibly snappy and fluid.
- Play Integrity & Security: Running on the March 1, 2026 security patch, the ROM passes basic Keybox attestation.
- Working Biometrics: Both the under-display fingerprint scanner and face unlock features are working perfectly.
The Verdict
Overall, the Evolution X 11.6.2 custom ROM brings a very smooth, highly customizable Android 16 experience to the CMF Phone 1, though it does come with a few minor compromises. While you will likely enjoy the fluid UI, excellent vibration feedback, and the extensive “Evolver” customization suite (which includes fun tweaks like custom boot and fingerprint animations), there are a few noticeable bugs, such as a missing floating window option and occasional glitches with the brightness slider. Battery performance is relatively solid now, offering around 6 hours of screen-on time, with a full recharge taking about an hour and a half via the official 33W adapter. The biggest hurdle for daily use is getting payment apps like Google Pay and Bhim to work; passing Play Integrity requires manual tinkering with Keybox XML and PIF JSON files to bypass root detection, which might be a hassle depending on your comfort level with modding.
Download Links
OTA Ripper: https://github.com/syedinsaf/otaripper/releases
OG Post Link: https://t.me/CMFPhone1Updates/103
Nothing Flasher: https://github.com/spike0en/nothing_flasher/tree/galaga-tetris
Keybox and JSON.pif (working as on 02 Apr 2026): https://www.mediafire.com/file/3zan3jwrfnw9c38/working_keybox_31_mar_26.zip/file