Paranoid Android 7.2.0 delivers new features, supported devices, and more

The Paranoid Android flame was reignited back on May 31 with the release of the Android 7.1.2 Nougat-based Paranoid Android 2017. The popular Android ROM had been in hiding since 2016, but is now back with support for a number of phones and the promise of more to come in future.

Since its initial release a few weeks ago, the Paranoid team has been working on a bunch of new and improved features which have now been released in Paranoid Android 7.2.0. Among these is Accidental Touch, a new feature intended to prevent the effects of unwanted taps on the display while it’s in use. Say you accidentally hit the return key or home button while typing out a message or playing games, Accidental Touch would stop that action from being carried out, allowing you to continue with what you were doing. What’s more, it said to work for hardware or software buttons too.

The next new addition, Pocket Lock, is similarly concerned with accidental input. This aims to stop the device being meddled with while it’s in a pocket by switching off “major input sources.” You can long press the power button to remove the effects of Pocket Lock, should anything go awry.

Meanwhile, Color Engine, the theme engine introduced with Paranoid Android 2017 a few weeks ago, is getting gray as a new primary and accent color for you to play with, while the Paranoid team has also addressed compatibility issues with the Substratum Theme Engine.

The team noted that “most” of the reported bugs so far have now been fixed, in a press release we received via email.

Moving on, there are now a few new additions to the Paranoid Android supported device roster, including much-loved OnePlus One. The team did note, however, that some issues have held up support for the OnePlus 2 but that it will be added later when it’s in good shape. The same applies to the Nexus 5.

The Paranoid Android devs have also asked fans to respond to this poll regarding which Sony devices they would like to receive Paranoid support in the future. The team doesn’t have the “infrastructure” right now to cover all of the Sony devices, so they’re looking for cues on which ones to prioritize.

Here’s the list of stable handsets recently added to the lineup:

• bacon – OnePlus One
• onyx – OnePlus X
• gemini – Xiaomi Mi5
• shamu – Nexus 6
• Robin – Nextbit Robin
• zl1 – LeEco Le Pro3

And finally, here are some of the general improvements included in version 7.2.0.

• Option for double tap to sleep on status bar
• Screen off action for button settings
• Fix for navigation bar swiping
• Notification light fixes and improvements
• Updated PA browser based on M60
• Pulse on pickup fixed
• Different fixes for contacts handling and integration into Google apps
• Various Bluetooth connectivity fixes
• Improvements for hardware key lighting
• Higher quality wallpapers
• Optimized fingerprint unlock speed
• Fixed reboot to recovery message
• Various performance enhancements
• Various power related enhancements

The devs say that the kernel sources for the phones are already online, with the rest of the device specific sources going online by the end of the week.

Have you checked out Paranoid Android 2017 yet? What are your thoughts on it? Let us know in the comments.