Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

While CyanogenMod’s future on the OnePlus One may look bleak, Cyanogen Inc. isn’t going to give up on it yet. In fact, if you’re a One owner, you can expect to see the handset’s first Lollipop-based CM update next month.

The Galaxy S5. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android.

Samsung’s TouchWiz user interface for Android is universally mocked for being bloated and slow, but it would appear the South Korean company is finally set to do something about it. Sources say it won’t just be overhauling its hardware for the upcoming Galaxy S6, but also its software as well as it aims to deliver an experience as smooth as pure Android.

CyanogenMod. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

The incredibly popular CyanogenMod ROM is finally available on the international LG G3 (D855) — as well as the Nexus 6 and devices included in the Android One program. The new “nightly” builds, which are based on Google’s latest Lollipop software, can be downloaded now for manual flashing.

OnePlus delivers its own take on Android. Photo: OnePlus

OnePlus has been promising its own Android software for a while, and that’s exactly what it delivered to kick off 2015. The new custom ROM, which is currently in alpha, is based on pure Lollipop and can be flashed using the TWRP custom recovery.

Lollipop extends its unofficial reach. Image: Google

Early CyanogenMod 12 ROMs based on Android 5.0 Lollipop are now available for the OnePlus One and the HTC Desire 816, thanks to the development community. Both give users an early taste of the major changes and improvements that are baked into Google’s latest Android upgrade.