Jelly Bean Xperia lock-screen leaked; available to install for rooted ICS devices

The newest lock-screen found in Sony’s latest Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean firmware has leaked courtesy of xda-developers. This is the lock-screen found in the Sony Xperia Z and will be used in all Jelly Bean firmware versions. You can install it to your Sony Xperia as long as it is rooted and running Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich. It works fine on stock ROMs too.

Whilst the new lock screen works without any issues, it is worth noting that there are no swipe-able notifications as seen in the current ICS lock screen. This is as Sony has changed how this works and you now pull the status bar directly from the lock screen and swipe notifications from there. See below for instructions on how to install.

Guide to installing Jelly Bean Xperia lock-screen

1. Download Jelly Bean lock screen apk

There are two apk files to choose from:
A) “Slide-to-unlock” text is included every time you unlock the phone. Download here.
B) “Slide-to-unlock” remains only for the first three times you unlock the phone. The text then disappears for every subsequent unlock. It will reappear when you reboot your phone, once again only for three times. Download here.

2. Back up existing lock screen

Use ‘Root Explorer’ or a similar app to navigate to: system > app

Back up (i.e. move) the existing UxpNxtLockScreen.apk to a location on your SD card. Note where you have downloaded it in case you want to change the lock-screen back.

3. Move new lock screen apk into correct folder

Move the newly downloaded UxpNxtLockScreen.apk to: system > app

4. Use correct permissions

If using Root Explorer, long press on the file and click on ‘Permissions’. Make sure the permissions are set to: r w -, r – -, r – – [or see below]