The Acer Iconia A200 and A100 owners have already been using Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) Android 4.0.3 for quite some time, some through the official update, others through leaked firmware and custom ROMs. The Iconia A500 also saw the leak of an ICS firmware through unofficial means, but unfortunately for most, it didn’t boot or caused problems for those who tried it.

Well, needless to say, the developer community went straight to work on it, trying to make it work properly for everyone. And XDA member smaury has succeeded, bringing us a working custom ROM based on the leaked firmware. Not only that, he has also made a few changes to the ROM, the biggest being that he has removed almost all the Acer-loaded applications, making it bloatware free and quite fast.

Do note that the ROM is currently in the beta stage and will remain a beta as long as it’s based on a leaked firmware, so expect bugs and issues to crop up here and there without warning. Let’s get on with the flashing procedure.

Compatibility

This ROM and the guide below is compatible only and only with the Acer Iconia Tab A500. It’s not compatible with any other device and may render an incompatible device unusable. Check your device model in Settings » About phone.

Warning!

The methods and procedures discussed here are considered risky and you should not attempt anything if you don’t know exactly what you are doing. If any damage occurs to you or your device, including a bricked, non-functional device, we won’t be held liable. You have been forewarned!

ROM Info

Developer → smaury

Pre-Installation Requirements/Tips

  1. Rooted Iconia Tab A500 with Clockworkmod (CWM) recovery installed.
  2. Sufficiently charged battery, at least 50% is recommended.
  3. This procedure will wipe all your apps, data and settings (but it will NOT touch your SD cards, so don’t worry about those). Backup your Apps and important data — bookmarks, contacts, SMS, APNs (internet settings), etc. This Android backup guide would help you.

How to Install Lightspeed ROM on Acer Iconia Tab A500

  1. Download the latest version of the ROM from the original development thread.
  2. Transfer the downloaded zip file from step 1 to the root of your SD card on your tablet.
  3. Boot into Clockworkmod (CWM) recovery. Use volume keys to scroll up and down between options and power/home key to select an option.
  4. [Optional] Perform a Nandroid Backup of your existing ROM, so that you can always restore it from recovery if something does not work out with this rom. To perform a backup, select Backup and Restore –> On the next screen, Select Backup again. Restore your backup using the “restore” option when required.
  5. Perform a wipe:
    1. Select “wipe data/factory reset”, then select “Yes” on next screen to confirm data wipe (will NOT wipe your SD cards).
    2. Select “mounts and storage”, then select “format system”. Select “Yes” on next screen to confirm. Then go back to the main recovery menu after system format is complete.
  6. Now select “install zip from sdcard”, then select “choose zip from sdcard”. Scroll to the ROM file on the sdcard and select it.
  7. Now confirm installation by selecting “Yes – Install *your_rom_name*.zip” on the next screen. The ROM will start installing.
  8. After the ROM finishes installing, select “go back” then select “reboot system now” to reboot the tablet.

You can now enjoy ICS Android 4.0 on your Iconia A500 with Lightspeed ROM. Visit the development page to get more info and the latest updates on the ROM. Share your thoughts on the ROM in the comments.