The latest version of Xiaomi’s custom Android version, MIUI 8, was recently unveiled in India. And when the global public beta versions were released, many fans were disappointed with the lack of support for most devices, including the Redmi Note 3.

Xiaomi recently released the MIUI 8 developer ROM for the Redmi Note 3, and we decided to give it a whirl. The sad news is that the ROM is still based on Android 5.1.1 Lollipop.

There is an Android 6.0 Marshmallow based MIUI 8 ROM available for the Note 3 Kenzo variant as the Snapdragon 650 is called, but it is extremely buggy, and we cannot recommend it.

The Lollipop based MIUI 8 though, is very stable and safe to use. Here is how to install it on your Redmi Note 3.

Requirements:

You don’t need anything special to install the ROM. We tested it on a phone with a locked bootloader. Just remember to backup all of your data, as flashing the new firmware will delete all of your personal data. If you have an SD card in the Redmi Note 3, simply move your music, videos, downloads, photos, etc to the memory card, and you can move it back after the ROM has been flashed.

We also recommend using APK Extractor (from Mihir) which is available at the Google Play Store. This app can save all your installed app’s APKs so you don’t even have to redownload them (although you will need the data files for your games).

How to install the MIUI 8 Global Developer ROM on the Redmi Note 3 (Snapdragon 650)

Download the MIUI 8 developer ROM from the official MIUI website.
Copy it to your phone (if possible save it to your SD card).
Open the Updater app on your phone.
Select the option which says “Choose Update Package”
Navigate to the folder where the ROM file is located and hit the OK button.
It should prompt you to backup your data, and then tap on the “Erase and Update” button”. Do so, and it will reboot and install the ROM.
Wait for the phone to reboot into MIUI 8.