[G 2014 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] madagascaradam:
Hi, I've been using my Moto G Titan (dual-sim) for about 4 years now, mostly with custom rom the whole time (CM 12.1 back then). I upgraded to a Moto G3 TE (and used custom roms from xda here) over a year ago. So then on this phone (titan) I updated the firmware and ROM and passed it on to my wife. I put on Viper OS 7.1.2 on it and initially it was working great. Over time though it increasingly slowed down and clearing the cache and such didn't seem to help (my wife didn't really complain much because she never liked using smart phones anyway and she just thought it *has* to be a poor user experience). I also had my phone (Moto G3 TE) stolen about a month ago, so while I'm waiting to get a new phone my wife and I are sharing this phone (Titan) with two different accounts. Talk about sloooooooooow! So now I realize I REALLY need a different rom. Or is it possible the RAM or something is just old and no longer working right?

I've read on here that many people suggest downgrading to stock lollipop or something like that. Others suggest a custom Marshmallow rom. I honestly don't care too much what I downgrade to as long as the most common apps (gmail, facebook, whatsapp - ones for keeping in touch and getting work done, that sort of thing) are working. Oh, and pinterest, that's the one thing my wife loves. I would like to keep an OS version that allows me to used mixed storage (mixed between adopted/portable) if possible, because that helps me with the low amount of internal memory. But I can give that up if necessary, because above all I want it to be smooth, because this lag is ridiculous! Sometimes a phone call comes in and it's ringing but it takes so long for the screen that shows I can accept/reject the call to pop up that by then the caller has already hung up (like over 10 seconds sometimes)! So yeah, I really want a rom that's responsive again and can do those most basic apps.

My questions is: if I'm on ViperOS 7.1.2 and if lollipop or marshmallow (whether stock or custom) is best - then how do I downgrade to those? I have TWRP and root and all that on here already and I'd love it if I could just do it by TWRP since that'd be the easiest for me. But I'll do whatever I need to as long as I can truly understand the step-by-step directions and not brick this phone. (Since right now it's the ONLY phone my wife and I have to work with until I get a new one in another month or two... and even still I'd like my wife to be able to use this one more easily.) I read somewhere that if I have a newer firmware maybe I can't return directly to an older OS? Any information on how to switch OS without messing up my phone would help a lot!

So, please give me a suggestion as to which OS gives you great responsiveness/speed (doesn't lag you down for phone calls especially, but no lag on any other basic programs would also be great). And regarding the OS you suggest, please tell me what steps I need to take to switch/downgrade to it and/or anything else I need to do to keep it going fast. I found this post, but to be honest, it's just not very clear to me what I'd actually have to *do*: https://xdaforums.com/moto-g-2014/general/opinion-best-rom-experience-t3546088 So if you could give me a clear step-by-step guide (or point me to one or more threads/posts that I'd link the processes together), that'd be SUPER helpful! Thanks in advance for any help any of you can offer!