How to Root and Install Custom Recovery on the Chuwi V88 RK3188 Android Tablet

If the name that sounds like a Star Wars character doesn’t snare you in, Chuwi V88’s features certainly will.  The device features a 1.8GHz quad-core CPU, 2GB RAM DDR3 RAM, and a 7.9 inch IPS touchscreen display which are sure to put any other top-of-the-line tablet to shame and while it runs Android 4.1.1 currently officially, there are a few custom ROMs available for this device and you could find something later than what the company is offering currently if you look hard enough.  Before that though, you need to be rooted and for that, you will need to have a custom recovery (we’ll use ClockworkMod Recovery in this case) beforehand.  The guide below should help you with both those aspects.

I.  Before You Begin

1.  Charge your device to 75% or more before you start to prevent unwanted shutdowns.

2.  Back up everything you feel is important to prevent data loss if anything goes wrong with the procedure.

II.  Necessary Downloads

1.  Oma_RK31_Chuwi_V88_CWM_Root.7z [Download link available on this page as root-tool]

III.  Installing ClockworkMod Recovery.

1.  Extract Oma_RK31_Chuwi_V88_CWM_Root.7z to a folder on your desktop.

2.  Connect your device to your Windows PC and copy the Oma_Chuwi_V88_Root_Script.zip file to your device’s SD card.  Disconnect your device from the PC.

3.  Enable USB Debugging on your device by going to Settings > Development options and ticking the USB debugging checkbox.  If you don’t see the Development options, go to Settings > About phone and keep tapping on the build number until you see the message, ‘You are now a developer‘.

4.  Connect your device to your Windows PC.  If there are any drivers being installed at this point, let them do so before continuing.  You can use the Driver folder in the extracted Oma_RK31_Chuwi_V88_CWM_Root folder if Windows does not automatically find the necessary drivers.

5.  From the extracted folder, double-click on RKAndroidTool.exe to start the CWM installation process.

6.  Uncheck option #2 (parameter) and click on Run to start flashing the custom recovery image.

7.  Once successfully flashed, your device will automatically boot into ClockworkMod Recovery.  Now, select ‘install zip from sdcard‘ using the center button available on the front of the device.

8.  Navigate to the location of Oma_Chuwi_V88_Root_Script.zip using the Volume Up and Down keys and the Power button to select it and start flashing to device.

9.  Once flashed, go back to the main menu and select ‘Reboot system now‘.

Wasn’t that easy?  You know have a custom recovery and have rooted your Chuwi V88 tablet successfully!