Old Lyft app on Android 4.4.3 or update to newer Android OS?

[Android Central Question]

Bit of a technophobe here, so I'm not that knowledgeable about my old phone, which is a Moto G 1st gen. I'd like to install the Lyft app (to avoid ordering rides through the browser) but Play Store says the app is incompatible with my device. Is my old OS the reason for this? Problem is, when I select System Updates in Settings, I get the message that my OS 4.4.3 is up to date. Does anyone know of a solution, short of getting a new phone? Thanks!

 

[hallux]

Bit of a technophobe here

Does anyone know of a solution, short of getting a new phone?

Unfortunately, because of the first statement, the second is pretty much an impossibility. Your phone has the latest OS Motorola released for it. Is it the most recent OS SOMEONE has put on it? Probably not, but doing that is not without its pitfalls. You'll either need to become less of a technophobe pretty quick or reconsider the aversion to replacing the device.

The OS installed on a device is built for THAT device. The device manufacturer is responsible for developing and releasing the OS for their devices. Just because a newer version of Android is out does not mean that any particular device will get it, this is due to either the manufacturer of the processor (or SoC) in the phone not officially supporting that OS on that hardware or because the device manufacturer has decided not to continue support for the device.

Google is also dropping support for older versions of Android on a regular basis. The most recent drop was either Ice Cream Sandwich or JellyBean, leaving your device precipitously on the edge of that cut-off as well.

App developers can choose to have their minimum-supported OS even newer than Google's minimum-supported OS, and even block authentication on older versions of their app to force you to update. What this means is that even if you find a version of the app that will work on your device, it may not actually work. I have a couple apps on my phone that block log-ins from older app versions, even if it's a saved log in, and I'm on Pie (the latest OS)!

Even if you DID learn how to install a custom ROM on your phone (the only way you'll get a newer OS), it's simply a band-aid and you will be constantly "chasing" that lowest-supported version. Not to mention that while it's possible to do the results may well be undesirable performance-wise since that phone was released in 2013.

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[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! I agree with hallux. That phone is really out of date -- I'd seriously look into getting a more recent phone, for both app compatibility and for better security (an OS version as ancient as KitKat probably has a number of unpatched security flaws).

 

[kehammel]

Thanks, sounds like good advice. Maybe I'll get a Moto G7. Need unlocked for international travel. Prefer budget models because I just need basic functions on the phone. Suggestions welcome, however!

 

[Rukbat]

If you're talking about the 2013 G, Lineage has a 14 (Nougat) for it at https://www.cyanogenmods.org/forums/topic/moto-g-lineage-14-1-nougat-7-1-rom/. (Full instructions on the page - and remember to back everything up.)

There's even a Lineage 15 (Oreo) at https://www.cyanogenmods.org/forums/topic/lineage-os-15-moto-g-android-oreo-8-0-rom/. And a beta for 16 (Pie) at https://www.cyanogenmods.org/forums/topic/lineage-os-16-for-moto-g/. (The beta is ... well, it's a beta. It may work pretty well, or it may not work well at all. [I'm running the beta of Q as my normal OS and, aside from a few apps I seldom use not having been updated, it's working fine.] If 16 doesn't work, put 15 in.)

That's one way of keeping an old phone working a lot longer than it should. You're still limited by 8 or 16GB of storage, 1GB of RAM and a Snapdragon 400 SoC, but the phone will work with newer apps.