Among the smartphones of the famous manufacturer Lenovo there are very interesting models that, despite their rather respectful age by the standards of the modern world of Android devices, regularly perform their functions and are an excellent solution for undemanding users. One of these options - the S660 model, or more precisely, the software part of the device, updating the OS version, restoring functionality and introducing new functions to the smartphone using firmware, will be discussed in the article.
Lenovo S660 is a mid-level device at the time of its release, built on the MTK hardware platform. Technical characteristics allow the device to satisfy the basic requirements for a modern smartphone, and the software part is quite easily modified and completely replaced using standard and widely known software tools in certain circles. The possibilities for replacing the Lenovo S660 system software are quite varied, and if the instructions are scrupulously followed, they can be implemented by any user of the device independently.
Any intervention in the smartphone system software, including the instructions below, is carried out by the owner of the device at his own peril and risk! The administration of lumpics.ru and the author of the material are not responsible for devices that are inoperative as a result of user actions!
Why update firmware on Android
The answer is as simple as three pennies, often in the software, specifically in the shell made by the smartphone manufacturer based on the Android OS, for example, FlymeOS, there are many shortcomings and bugs. As a result, the user faces various problems and inconveniences. Let's look at examples:
- Terrible photo quality with a good camera, for example, you have a top-end camera, like the LG G5, and the photos are a blurry mess, “neither fish nor fowl”.
- The smartphone does not want to turn on or reboots on its own
- Constant freezes
- Very strong heating, in this case it is advisable to lower the processor clock frequency, that is, do a downgrade
- The SIM card disappears or blinks (the problem may also be in the hardware, but it’s worth trying to reflash it)
- Slow multi-touch screen response
- Some other problems
There are other reasons, for example, I wanted to get new functionality or look at a new Android.
Firmware
The technical characteristics of the Lenovo S660 allow you to install various versions of Android into your smartphone, including the current ones. To bring the latest features to your phone, you will have to resort to installing unofficial modified OSs, but initially you should update, or better yet, install the latest official version of the system. Whatever the desired result, that is, the Android version, it is recommended to go step by step, installing the OS in each method starting from the first and completing the manipulations when you obtain the desired/necessary system software on the device in question.
Method 1: Lenovo MOTO Smart Assistant
To manipulate the software part of the Lenovo S660, the manufacturer has created a specialized program called Lenovo MOTO SmartAssistant. You can download the distribution from the developer’s official website in the technical support section:
The method described below is suitable for updating the version of the official Android if for some reason the update was not carried out via OTA.
- Install Smart Assistant by running the installer
and following his instructions. - We launch the tool and connect the S660 with the “USB Debugging” mode activated to the PC.
- After identifying the device in the program,
go to the “Flash” tab. - Smart Assistant will automatically check for an update for the system and, if it is present on the server, will issue a corresponding notification.
- Left-click on the downward-pointing arrow located near the update volume value. This action downloads the files necessary for transferring to the device’s memory to the PC disk.
- Once the download is complete, the “Update” button becomes active, click it.
- We respond to the system warning reminder about the need to back up important data from the device in the request window that appears by clicking the “Proceed” button.
- Further processes are carried out automatically and are accompanied by a reboot of the smartphone, after which the operating system will be updated,
which is confirmed by checking in Smart Assistant.
Method 2: Factory Recovery Environment
Another method, which is considered official, involves using the capabilities of the factory recovery environment to install system software. This method allows you not only to update the official Android, but also to completely reinstall the OS on the device.
How to flash Lenovo S660
Attention! Be sure to read the disclaimer. All actions are at your own risk. Be sure to back up the files you care about!
- The smartphone must be charged at least 30%.
- We will use TWRP Manager, you can download it from our archive with firmware or from the market
- Installing TWRP Manager
- Download and upload the firmware file (located below) and place it on your memory card
- Launch TWRP recovery mode by turning off the phone and holding down the power key and volume rocker up, the display should show “recovery” and a menu as in the screenshot below.
- First we reset the data (Wipe button). Your smartphone will be completely cleaned
- Then press back and select Reboot recovery, this action must be confirmed (usually by swiping to the right, i.e. drag the slider across the screen to the right)
- Now you can click Install, selecting the file and confirming your intentions. I would like to draw your attention to the fact that the firmware process is not displayed on the screen, so you need to sit and wait.
This is how we flashed the Lenovo S660 via TWRP recovery .
Download firmware
It's up to you, of course, but we recommend upgrading to Android above version seven
- Android Pie 9.0 or just a pie - there’s nothing to say, the best thing there is now!
- 8.1 Oreo is also a very good option, not raw, unlike the nine.
- Seven Nougat – suitable for those with mid-range or budget-class hardware.
- Six Marshmallows is a good thing, of course, but outdated, something newer would be better.
- Android 10
- Android 11 (2020)
How to create a backup?
Attention! Resetting will erase all data on your Lenovo S660 phone. If you haven't backed up your contacts, pictures, videos, documents, and everything else, you should do so, otherwise you'll lose all the personal information you had on your device.
To avoid losing your data, follow these recommendations.
- Upload photos, documents and videos to your computer via a USB cable. You can also use Google Photos to backup pictures, and the Google Drive cloud service is suitable for documents and folders, but you can “upload” the number of files onto it. You will have to pay to expand your storage.
- To avoid losing contacts and applications, activate cloud synchronization in the settings. Follow the path “System” - “Advanced” - “Backup”. Enable Backup to Google Account.
Once you finish this, you can perform Hard Reset Lenovo S660.
How to get root rights
This is knowledge loaded so to speak. We can recommend two universal applications for this case:
These are the latest versions at the time of writing, there may be newer ones, this can be viewed on the websites of these programs
- ZYKURoot 2.2 – (website zykuroot.info)
- Rootkhp Pro 2.7 – (website rootkhp.pro)
These programs have a list of supported devices, but this list is updated haphazardly, so it happens that a device has been supported by the program for a long time, but the developers forgot to write about it.
Hard Reset for Lenovo A660
Instructions on how to do a Hard Reset on Lenovo A660 (factory reset). We recommend that you familiarize yourself with a visual guide called resetting settings on Android. .
Reset codes (open the dialer and enter them).
- *2767*3855#
- *#*#7780#*#*
- *#*#7378423#*#*
Hard Reset via Recovery
- Turn off your device -> go to Recovery
- "wipe data/factory reset"
- “yes - delete all user data” -> “Reboot System”
How to log into Recovery?
- hold down Vol(-) [volume down], or Vol(+) [volume up] and the Power button
- A menu with the Android logo will appear. That's it, you are in Recovery!
Resetting settings on Lenovo A660 can be done in a very simple way:
- Settings->Backup and reset
- Reset settings (at the very bottom)
Obtaining root rights
Obtaining root rights will provide full access to all functions of the system, including deeper changes to its operating system. In addition, this will allow you to make a backup of it with all the data. This was once a complex process, but now there is a simple Kingo Root program that will allow you to gain administrator rights in just a few clicks.
You need:
- Download the latest version of the Kingo Root program and install it on your computer.
- Enable installation of applications from unknown sources in the smartphone settings. To do this, you need to go to the settings, then select the “ Security
” item, and in it activate “
Unknown sources
”.
- Connect your phone to the computer using a USB cable, open the program and click the “ Root
” button, the process of installing root rights will begin, which will be displayed in the window. - Upon completion, it will say that the root was successful. That's it, now you are a superuser.
How to unlock a pattern key
Removing a forgotten pattern key, regardless of its complexity, has ceased to be a global problem even for an ordinary user who is little familiar with the security mechanisms of the Android operating system and its loopholes. Not long ago we came across a program for unlocking the Gaigunlock graphic key (Gaigunlosk). Step-by-step instructions in Russian and a description of how the program works are published at the link above.
Among the smartphones of the famous manufacturer Lenovo there are very interesting models that, despite their rather respectful age by the standards of the modern world of Android devices, regularly perform their functions and are an excellent solution for undemanding users. One of these options - the S660 model, or more precisely, the software part of the device, updating the OS version, restoring functionality and introducing new functions to the smartphone using firmware, will be discussed in the article.
Lenovo S660 is a mid-level device at the time of its release, built on the MTK hardware platform. Technical characteristics allow the device to satisfy the basic requirements for a modern smartphone, and the software part is quite easily modified and completely replaced using standard and widely known software tools in certain circles. The possibilities for replacing the Lenovo S660 system software are quite varied, and if the instructions are scrupulously followed, they can be implemented by any user of the device independently.
Any intervention in the system software of a smartphone, including the instructions provided below, is carried out by the owner of the device at his own peril and risk!!
In order for the installation procedure for Android in the Lenovo S660 not to take much time, to proceed without errors and to result in a real improvement of the smartphone in software terms, the user who is going to flash the device is required to carry out several stages of preparation.
Drivers
The first thing you should take care of in order to be able to interfere with the software part of any Android device is to equip the operating system of the PC used as a tool for firmware with components for pairing a smartphone and utilities, that is, specialized drivers.
As for installing drivers for the Lenovo S660 device, there should not be any difficulties. You will need two packages, which are available for download here:
- After unpacking LenovoUsbDriver.rar
the user receives an auto-installer for advanced mode drivers for the device,which needs to be launched.
- The second downloaded archive contains components for different versions of Windows "Preloader VCOM Driver"
, which serve to pair a computer and a smartphone, which is in a specialized mode designed to overwrite areas of the device’s memory.This driver must be installed manually following the instructions:
- After installing the drivers, you should check whether the Lenovo S660 is correctly detected by the operating system in various modes. This will eliminate the factor of missing or incorrectly installed components if unexpected situations arise during processes involving the installation of Android.
Opening "Device Manager", connect the device in the states described below and observe the devices detected in the system. After installing the drivers correctly, the picture should match the screenshots shown.
Root rights
To carry out serious operations with the system software of any Android device, and most importantly, to create a full backup of the system before reinstalling the OS, you will need Superuser privileges. Getting root rights for Lenovo S660 is quite simple if you use the tool.
Backup
Flashing a smartphone using almost any method means deleting all user data from its memory, so before you start installing Android, you should make a backup copy of everything important. In order to save information, one or more methods described in the material are used:
Proceed to interfere with the device’s memory only if you are 100% sure that all important information is saved in a backup copy!
In addition to personal information, firmware procedures in some cases lead to damage to an extremely important section that contains information necessary for the operation of wireless networks - “NVRAM”
. Having a dump of this memory area makes it easy to recover lost IMEI and other data if necessary. In methods No. 3–4 of Lenovo S660 firmware proposed below, a separate paragraph describes how to make a backup of a partition before overwriting the device’s memory.
