Upgrade the Rezound to Android 4.0.4 ICS via CyanogenMod 9

CyanogenMod 9 (CM9) is an Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich based custom mod for various Android devices.  An unofficial CyanogenMod 9 build for the HTC Rezound has been recently compiled by XDA Developers member GrayTheWolf straight from CM9 sources.

This release boasts a standard and solid Android 4.0.4 experience along with a few additions that make it great for customizations.

Being a work in development, the ROM has some issues and bugs.  For example, MHL doesn’t work.  The Camera app works generally, although some apps cause the image to stretch.  Battery life varies, and there are occasional freezes.  Though, these discomforts can be shrugged off as just minor, so they don’t really dampen the experience much.

This guide shows you how to upgrade the Rezound to Android 4.0.4 ICS via CyanogenMod 9 (unofficial).

Warning

• The instructions in this guide are intended for use with the HTC Rezound. Applying these instructions on another device or model may produce undesired outcomes.
• The information in this guide is provided for instructional and educational purposes only. There is no guarantee that these instructions will work under your specific and unique circumstances.
• Use these instructions at your own risk. We shall not hold any responsibility or liability for whatever happens to you or your device arising from your use of the info in this guide.
• Read and understand the whole guide first before actually performing the instructions.

Requirements

• HTC Rezound with either S-OFF or S-ON (with unlocked bootloader)

• Download the following files to your computer:
  • Official CyanogenMod 9 ROM for the HTC Rezound (cm-9-20121001-UNOFFICIAL-vigor.zip, md5sum: 222c7c4f419850477b553ed3540840f8)
  • GApps (Google Apps) package for CyanogenMod 9 (gapps-ics-20120429-signed.zip, md5sum: 7c524e1e078164f681e0aa6753180b2c)
  • AmonRa Recovery (AmonRa-PH98IMG.zip, md5sum: 3d7809716d8194c74671d499e3aa44db)
• Make sure your device’s battery still has at least 70% power. You don’t want the device to shut down in the middle of the procedure.
• Backup all personal data on your phone to make sure you have a copy of your personal data (e.g., contacts, SMS, MMS, Internet settings, Wi-Fi passwords, and the like) in case the procedure in this guide erases such data.
  • For backup tips, check our guides on how to sync your data to the cloud and how to create local backups of your mobile data.

Instructions

Installing AmonRa Recovery

NOTE: Skip this if you already have AmonRa Recovery on your Rezound.

1. Rename AmonRa-PH98IMG.zip into PH98IMG.zip.
2. Copy PH98IMG.zip to the root of your phone’s internal SD card.
3. Turn off your phone.
4. Press and hold down the Volume Down and Power button until Bootloader Mode boots.
5. Bootloader will automatically detect PH98IMG.zip and install it on your phone.
6. Once installation is complete, your phone will automatically reboot.
7. Delete the PH98IMG.zip from the internal SD card once the phone has rebooted, otherwise your phone will keep reflashing the ZIP file when your phone boots into HBOOT.
8. Continue with the instructions for flashing CM9.

For HTC Rezound with S-OFF

NOTE: Follow these if your Rezound has S-OFF.

1. Copy the CyanogenMod 9 ROM and GApps package to your phone’s SD card.
2. Turn off the phone.
3. Boot into ClockworkMod recovery. To do so, press and hold down the Volume Down and Power buttons together until Bootloader Mode boots.
4. Using the volume buttons, navigate to the Recovery option and select it using the Power button to enter AmonRa Recovery.
5. Create a backup of your existing ROM. To do so, select Backup/Restore.
6. Go back to main recovery menu after backup is complete.
7. Select Wipe and confirm the action to wipe the data on your phone.
8. Go to main menu and select Flash ZIP from SD card and flash the CM9 ROM.
9. In the same manner as in step 8, flash the GApps package to your phone.
10. Select Reboot system now to restart your phone into the new ROM.

For HTC Rezound with S-ON

NOTE: Follow these if your Rezound has S-ON.

1. Download the S-ON boot.img file (GrayTheWolf-CM9_Kernel-9-21-2012-PH98IMG.zip, md5sum: 5a223692ae51ec69110974f9f06ad73b) specifically for S-ON Rezound handsets.
2. Rename the downloaded ZIP file to PH98IMG.zip.
3. Copy the PH98IMG.zip to your phone’s external SD card.
4. Copy the CM9 ROM and GApps package to your phone’s internal SD card.
5. Turn off your phone.
6. Boot into HBOOT. To do so, press and hold down the Volume Down and Power buttons together until Bootloader Mode boots.
7. Using the Volume buttons, highlight the Recovery option and select it using the Power button to enter AmonRa Recovery.
8. Create a backup of your existing ROM. To do so, select Backup/Restore.
9. Select Wipe and do wipes for cache, data, and system.
10. Go to main menu and select Flash ZIP from SD card and flash the CM9 ROM.
11. In the same manner as in step 9, flash the GApps package to your phone.
12. Reboot the phone back to HBOOT.
13. From within HBOOT, apply the PH98IMG.zip file.
    • If you get “parsing” errors, extract boot.img from the ZIP file and flash it manually using fastboot.
14. Select Reboot system now to restart your phone into the new ROM.

Congratulations! You have successfully installed CyanogenMod 9 on your HTC Rezound.