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Hi all,
Long time lurker of XDA and Android user/modder since before Gingerbread. I want to apologize in advance if this post is either in the wrong section, and/or if something similar has already been answered/solved in another thread. I did multiple searches with nothing coming up as a direct hit, or even close for that matter.
I recently purchased an S4 from VZW (Mid-Late July). I rooted and installed TWRP 5.2.0.2 (Forgive me if that's not the exact version...) and flashed AOSP ROMs here and there. After a month or so, I started coming across an issue within all ROMs where I couldn't receive or make calls without my phone either freezing or rebooting. Anything I flashed, or modded, failed to remedy this. I tried different GApps packages, 4.2.2 and 4.3 ROMs, different kernels, and both radios, and absolutely NOTHING solved this. I searched everywhere (Even rootzwiki, forgive me fellow XDA members!), and could not find anyone with the same issue.
I attempted upgrading to TWRP 2.6.0.0 and even tried CWM, and that didn't help either. Eventually, things got so bad that I couldn't boot into ANY ROM, 4.2.2 or 4.3. After nearly 10 hours of trying to unbrick my phone, I finally managed to install Beanstalk 4.3, and while it was working incredibly buggy (Not Beanstalk's fault, the developer is a great developer!) nor could I make calls, I could still send texts and emails. I was able to FINALLY get the Odin3 application to work when I got home from work, and was able to flash the stock MDK image. From there I followed the steps to properly root and install TWRP 2.6.0.0. I installed Slim's Beta 5 4.3 ROM and GApps and everything was working properly! Calling, everything! However, when I made a reboot, it froze. Stuck in the "Samsung Unlocked" screen for over an hour. I pulled the battery, booted into recovery and did a factory reset/cache and dalvik wipe. It still didn't boot. From there I did a full wipe, and data format, installed Beanstalks newest 4.3 ROM and GApps, and everything loaded properly. Then I couldn't make or receive calls without the same issue. I then did the superwipe/format and installed PAC's newest nightly and GApps package, and was able to make calls, but then got stuck when rebooting, even after factory resets and cache/dalvik wipes. After multiple attempts, I gave up and reflashed the stock MDK Samsung image in Odin3 and am leaving it as is until someone here can help me.
I know this post was incredibly wordy, and I apologize for that, but I wanted to give you guys as much information as possible and explain where this all started, as it may lead to why I'm having these problems. I appreciate any and all responses and I will answer any question any of you have to the best of my ability. Please someone save me from the horror that is TouchWiz!
-Travis
First, make a NANDROID if it is working perfect on the stock ROM. This is my first step after root and recovery so that I can always fall back on something to check if there is a hardware problem, or just some sort of (system) file problem. Plus, it'll save you time if you have to go back.
Not sure that it matters, but is the stock ROM odexed, or deodexed?
The calling thing reminds me of when you use the phone overseas but it has yet to be unlocked. When you root, do you check with Root Checker? Do you have SuperSU installed? How about BusyBox? I know some items require BusyBox in order to work, but SuperSU should be installed.
As far as SuperSU, do you update it before switching back to the original kernel? One thing I noted is to be absolutely sure you do so in order to not lose your root when completing the rooting steps. I imagine this could cause other problems too.
I also suggest not using TWRP 2.6, which many people will tell you is quite buggy. Best to use the previous version.
The only other things I can suggest is ALWAYS doing a full wipe of everything before adding a new ROM. I used to do this to be sure I incurred no problems on my SGS3, because if I didn't there would always be something buggy happening.
Hope this helps.
Heatshiver said:
First, make a NANDROID if it is working perfect on the stock ROM. This is my first step after root and recovery so that I can always fall back on something to check if there is a hardware problem, or just some sort of (system) file problem. Plus, it'll save you time if you have to go back.
Not sure that it matters, but is the stock ROM odexed, or deodexed?
The calling thing reminds me of when you use the phone overseas but it has yet to be unlocked. When you root, do you check with Root Checker? Do you have SuperSU installed? How about BusyBox? I know some items require BusyBox in order to work, but SuperSU should be installed.
As far as SuperSU, do you update it before switching back to the original kernel? One thing I noted is to be absolutely sure you do so in order to not lose your root when completing the rooting steps. I imagine this could cause other problems too.
I also suggest not using TWRP 2.6, which many people will tell you is quite buggy. Best to use the previous version.
The only other things I can suggest is ALWAYS doing a full wipe of everything before adding a new ROM. I used to do this to be sure I incurred no problems on my SGS3, because if I didn't there would always be something buggy happening.
Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you, Heatshiver!
I always do a full wipe unless I'm doing a dirty flash for a ROM update. I will try reverting back to TWRP 2.5.0.2 (Whichever version that happens to be, I think it's .0.2) tonight and report my results. Also, just to clarify, I always make sure I have the most updated SuperSU/Superuser (Usually the former) and BusyBox.
I appreciate the suggestion.
-Travis
teemunknee said:
Hi all,
Long time lurker of XDA and Android user/modder since before Gingerbread. I want to apologize in advance if this post is either in the wrong section, and/or if something similar has already been answered/solved in another thread. I did multiple searches with nothing coming up as a direct hit, or even close for that matter.
I recently purchased an S4 from VZW (Mid-Late July). I rooted and installed TWRP 5.2.0.2 (Forgive me if that's not the exact version...) and flashed AOSP ROMs here and there. After a month or so, I started coming across an issue within all ROMs where I couldn't receive or make calls without my phone either freezing or rebooting. Anything I flashed, or modded, failed to remedy this. I tried different GApps packages, 4.2.2 and 4.3 ROMs, different kernels, and both radios, and absolutely NOTHING solved this. I searched everywhere (Even rootzwiki, forgive me fellow XDA members!), and could not find anyone with the same issue.
I attempted upgrading to TWRP 2.6.0.0 and even tried CWM, and that didn't help either. Eventually, things got so bad that I couldn't boot into ANY ROM, 4.2.2 or 4.3. After nearly 10 hours of trying to unbrick my phone, I finally managed to install Beanstalk 4.3, and while it was working incredibly buggy (Not Beanstalk's fault, the developer is a great developer!) nor could I make calls, I could still send texts and emails. I was able to FINALLY get the Odin3 application to work when I got home from work, and was able to flash the stock MDK image. From there I followed the steps to properly root and install TWRP 2.6.0.0. I installed Slim's Beta 5 4.3 ROM and GApps and everything was working properly! Calling, everything! However, when I made a reboot, it froze. Stuck in the "Samsung Unlocked" screen for over an hour. I pulled the battery, booted into recovery and did a factory reset/cache and dalvik wipe. It still didn't boot. From there I did a full wipe, and data format, installed Beanstalks newest 4.3 ROM and GApps, and everything loaded properly. Then I couldn't make or receive calls without the same issue. I then did the superwipe/format and installed PAC's newest nightly and GApps package, and was able to make calls, but then got stuck when rebooting, even after factory resets and cache/dalvik wipes. After multiple attempts, I gave up and reflashed the stock MDK Samsung image in Odin3 and am leaving it as is until someone here can help me.
I know this post was incredibly wordy, and I apologize for that, but I wanted to give you guys as much information as possible and explain where this all started, as it may lead to why I'm having these problems. I appreciate any and all responses and I will answer any question any of you have to the best of my ability. Please someone save me from the horror that is TouchWiz!
-Travis
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
sorry for your troubles, but I am always baffled the way people just toss that word "brick" round
Your phone was no anywhere NEAR being a brick...
You simply are playing with fire flashing AOSP ROMs and not knowing how to fix the issues.
AOSP ROMs aren't technically "made" for our phones, the developers do a great job at making it seem like they are, though.
On the SG3 we had an EFS backup that Synergy discovered incase you flash an AOSP and get stuck in roaming which was quite often at first with AOSP, that was easy to fix, but with this phone I would be careful with AOSP ROMs, even myself, with a locked bootloader wouldn't flash anything besides TW, although I am biased as AOSP is my flavor.
I am sorry if this post comes off harsh or any other bad word. It's not meant for that..
Just to kindly ask you to do some research on what a "bricked phone" truly is.
it's a brick.. meaning won't power on, won't get a light when charging, nothing, your phone is just that, a $600 brick. and the only way to bring back to life IIRC is Jtagging the phone.. which requires taking the phone apart and jtagging the motherboard.
I hope you the best my friend.
As much as I love AOSP, I would have to agree with the poster above. I know TW is a pain but there are some pretty good ROMs in that flavor that you shouldn't have any problems with. I've had the no call issue on AOSP, and even though they are nice and free up quite a bit of room it's not worth missing calls over or constantly flashing. Maybe once our bootloader is unlocked things will become different but I'd stick with TW until that happens. I can confirm that TWRP 2.6 is very buggy...you'll have to download the 2.5 version and flash it instead of goomanager they install they latest version everytime I believe.
andybones said:
sorry for your troubles, but I am always baffled the way people just toss that word "brick" round
Your phone was no anywhere NEAR being a brick...
You simply are playing with fire flashing AOSP ROMs and not knowing how to fix the issues.
AOSP ROMs aren't technically "made" for our phones, the developers do a great job at making it seem like they are, though.
On the SG3 we had an EFS backup that Synergy discovered incase you flash an AOSP and get stuck in roaming which was quite often at first with AOSP, that was easy to fix, but with this phone I would be careful with AOSP ROMs, even myself, with a locked bootloader wouldn't flash anything besides TW, although I am biased as AOSP is my flavor.
I am sorry if this post comes off harsh or any other bad word. It's not meant for that..
Just to kindly ask you to do some research on what a "bricked phone" truly is.
it's a brick.. meaning won't power on, won't get a light when charging, nothing, your phone is just that, a $600 brick. and the only way to bring back to life IIRC is Jtagging the phone.. which requires taking the phone apart and jtagging the motherboard.
I hope you the best my friend.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Next time, I'll just say "Soft-bricked". Thank you for your reply.
-Travis
You also may want to try CWM recovery if everything else fails. I like TWRP but I kept having the exact problem you have. I switched and haven't had a problem since.
Sent from my SCH-I545
slim6596 said:
You also may want to try CWM recovery if everything else fails. I like TWRP but I kept having the exact problem you have. I switched and haven't had a problem since.
Sent from my SCH-I545
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Would you mind telling me which version of CWM you're using? I haven't gone back to CWM since I went back to stock two nights ago.
Thank you for the idea!
-Travis
I also forgot to mention that I haven't been able to connect to 4G radios since before I started having issues with AOSP ROMs. Currently I'm on Eclipse's TW (With AOSP Styling) ROM. Everything appears to be working fine, other than 4G.
I've tried the SIM pull and reset, and nothing. I've tried manually setting it to LTE only, at least when I was able to do so when AOSP ROMs would boot for me, and nothing. I have a Galaxy Nexus that I booted up with this SIM in and I get 4G signal. Any Ideas?
Also, when I was on the stock image (MDK) I didn't have 4G either.
Has anyone else run across this issue? (MODS: Let a me know if I should create another thread, or search more intensively. I haven't seen a thread with this exact same situation. Plenty of 4G issue threads, but none with the same issues I've previously had, and I think it may have something to do with my past modding.)
-Travis
teemunknee said:
Would you mind telling me which version of CWM you're using? I haven't gone back to CWM since I went back to stock two nights ago.
Thank you for the idea!
-Travis
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Philz touch modded CWM. Don't have a link though. Sorry.
Sent from my SCH-I545
slim6596 said:
Philz touch modded CWM. Don't have a link though. Sorry.
Sent from my SCH-I545
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! I installed CWM 6.0.3.6 Touch and flashed Eclipse's TW/AOSP ROM and everything works well, but it's still no AOSP ROM.
-Travis
Hi all,
I'd like to thank everyone for the suggestions.
An update: Currently I'm on Eclipse's TW v2.0 ROM (TW, with AOSP Styling) and everything works properly. My current recovery is CWM 6.0.3.6 Touch, and I'm not experiencing any booting or calling issues. 4G is the only thing I don't have working.
I'm hoping that someone with my same problem can give me another idea so I can get an AOSP ROM working, preferably with 4G. I'm sure some, if not most, understand my dislike of TouchWiz and strong preference towards stock Android/stock Android based ROMs. Slim6596 said that he uses Philz Modded CWM Recovery and has no issues anymore. Could that really be my solution?
Again, thank you all for your help and ideas. I love XDA for this reason.
-Travis
slim6596 said:
Philz touch modded CWM. Don't have a link though. Sorry.
Sent from my SCH-I545
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Slim,
Sorry to bother, but I was curious if you were specifically using the LOKI patched version, or just the regular version?
-Travis
teemunknee said:
Hi Slim,
Sorry to bother, but I was curious if you were specifically using the LOKI patched version, or just the regular version?
-Travis
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Loki patched, I believe.
Sent from my SCH-I545
slim6596 said:
Loki patched, I believe.
Sent from my SCH-I545
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks!! I installed the Loki-Patched version last night.
I tried flashing two AOSP ROMs, but have no radio signal at all. I'll experiment.
-Travis
teemunknee said:
Thanks!! I installed the Loki-Patched version last night.
I tried flashing two AOSP ROMs, but have no radio signal at all. I'll experiment.
-Travis
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have stuck to TW ROMs. Pretty soon I'm probably not going to be flashing anything. Switching to Motorola and giving Vz my MDK S4 back. (Reception and dropped call issues.)
Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk 2
teemunknee said:
Thanks!! I installed the Loki-Patched version last night.
I tried flashing two AOSP ROMs, but have no radio signal at all. I'll experiment.
-Travis
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe you have to do the extended phone function. Its a code on the dial pad and select cdma. I have read this but don't recall where.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk 4
egore93 said:
I believe you have to do the extended phone function. Its a code on the dial pad and select cdma. I have read this but don't recall where.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk 4
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you referring to the *#*#4636#*#* dialer code? I didn't even try that because in my settings, everything was set to CDMA, but that's something I can try. I have everything backed up, so I can just wipe, install, and try that. If it doesn't work, I can always revert back.
Thanks for the suggestion!
-Travis
teemunknee said:
Are you referring to the *#*#4636#*#* dialer code? I didn't even try that because in my settings, everything was set to CDMA, but that's something I can try. I have everything backed up, so I can just wipe, install, and try that. If it doesn't work, I can always revert back.
Thanks for the suggestion!
-Travis
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes that's it give it a go.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk 4
Hi. I've got a challenge for the experts
I have a galaxy s4 (i9505) and currently on cyanogenmod 11-20140414-nightly so its running on 4.4.2
The minute i got my phone, i put foxhound rom and was on4.2.2 that time and everything was fine. It was about june last year. A couple of weeks ago, i decided to have a go at other roms or update to 4.4.2 so i tried foxhound rom that ran on4.4.2. This is when the problems started. The first problem was the signal was greatly affected that i could not get any signal indoors. So i tried several other roms like omega rom, cyanogenmod, wanamlite, wicked, virgin rom and several others but none of them perfectly worked. I always cleared cache and restore factory settings but still there were problems. On some roms the camera wont work as if there is another app using it. On others, i cant get any signal even though im in an area where i used to get strong signals. Another big problem is that i cant make a call! The screen goes black and can't do anything until the call gets disconnected. I can't use voice services like skype, ym, everything that uses the mic as if there is an app or service using it. When i put the jack to use the headset, i dont get the notification that im on headset unlike before.
So i decided to use stock rom on 4.3. Now i have even bigger problems. In addition to the previous problems stated, the wifi won't turn on but i can get a signal outside. Even though i have already removed the microsd card and wiped cache and restore to factory settings, the phone still says that the device was modified so i can't really return it even though it is still under warranty.
So now i decided to root it again and temporarily use cyanogenmod since the wifi works, texts and the internet works.
Btw, youtube doesnt work also. It doesnt play.
Sorry for the vrry long post but i just want to give much info as possible..
Thanks so much
Noypi14 said:
Hi. I've got a challenge for the experts
I have a galaxy s4 (i9505) and currently on cyanogenmod 11-20140414-nightly so its running on 4.4.2
The minute i got my phone, i put foxhound rom and was on4.2.2 that time and everything was fine. It was about june last year. A couple of weeks ago, i decided to have a go at other roms or update to 4.4.2 so i tried foxhound rom that ran on4.4.2. This is when the problems started. The first problem was the signal was greatly affected that i could not get any signal indoors. So i tried several other roms like omega rom, cyanogenmod, wanamlite, wicked, virgin rom and several others but none of them perfectly worked. I always cleared cache and restore factory settings but still there were problems. On some roms the camera wont work as if there is another app using it. On others, i cant get any signal even though im in an area where i used to get strong signals. Another big problem is that i cant make a call! The screen goes black and can't do anything until the call gets disconnected. I can't use voice services like skype, ym, everything that uses the mic as if there is an app or service using it. When i put the jack to use the headset, i dont get the notification that im on headset unlike before.
So i decided to use stock rom on 4.3. Now i have even bigger problems. In addition to the previous problems stated, the wifi won't turn on but i can get a signal outside. Even though i have already removed the microsd card and wiped cache and restore to factory settings, the phone still says that the device was modified so i can't really return it even though it is still under warranty.
So now i decided to root it again and temporarily use cyanogenmod since the wifi works, texts and the internet works.
Btw, youtube doesnt work also. It doesnt play.
Sorry for the vrry long post but i just want to give much info as possible..
Thanks so much
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So, which type of rom do you want to be on, assuming most of the things work properly? I don't want to try to address all those issues because there are different ones for the different setups and would take forever. Most likely signal issues are from not using a matched modem with the firmware / rom you are running. Do you know the original carrier / region the phone is from so we can make sure you get the right stuff installed?
Please provide details on the the currently installed baseband version. Also, what is the last official version of Samsung's software that you installed via Odin or OTA (not via custom rom)?
es0tericcha0s said:
So, which type of rom do you want to be on, assuming most of the things work properly? I don't want to try to address all those issues because there are different ones for the different setups and would take forever. Most likely signal issues are from not using a matched modem with the firmware / rom you are running. Do you know the original carrier / region the phone is from so we can make sure you get the right stuff installed?
Please provide details on the the currently installed baseband version. Also, what is the last official version of Samsung's software that you installed via Odin or OTA (not via custom rom)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your reply.
The current cyanogenmod is fine although i prefer the virgin rom. but i can go back to virgin once the problems have been rectified.
I agree that the signal issue has something to do with the modem so i tried different modems using odin but the XXUBMEA wouldnt change despite trying several modems and several times.
The phone is on three network (uk) with its current baseband 19505XXUBMEA.
The official rom i tried was on 4.3 and kies said it was the latest
Thanks again
Alright, I'm with ya so far. I'll look into the rom situation when I get back in front of the PC, but the trick with updating the modem is you gotta flash it twice in a row before you reboot unless you flash official firmware.
es0tericcha0s said:
Alright, I'm with ya so far. I'll look into the rom situation when I get back in front of the PC, but the trick with updating the modem is you gotta flash it twice in a row before you reboot unless you flash official firmware.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks again for replying.
What i havent actually tried (which i'm reading at the moment) is the formatting of data under the advanced options on twrp. I dunno if it will make a difference say i try a new rom. I don't mind trying and starting from scratch. Like format data then install a new rom. Do u think this will make a difference? (will this be similar to formatting a dard drive on a pc before installing windows?)
What i suspect is there is nothing wrong with the roms i've tried but something in the installation got messed up and remains there even after wiping the data.
I think i have tried doing it twice only to find out that it didnt change the modem despite odin saying pass.
Should i format data then install a fresh rom?
Hard
but challeng refused
Ok, so there is something odd here. If you had flashed the official 4.3 via Odin, your modem would have changed to a newer one. The one you have is still a 4.2.2 one. Or were you referring to the last stock rom that you loaded with a custom recovery? Also, which recovery are you using?
Try this modem via Odin:
http://d-h.st/Kwv
Install Guide:
Use Odin v3.04
Untick Autoreboot
Flash modem
Reboot once again into Download Mode using (Vol Down plus Home button combi)
Flash Modem once more
Once done,unplug then reboot device manually.
If this doesn't work, try repeating the flash process again while rebooting manually and with auto-reboot option turned off.
Reference thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2192025
Let's see if that doesn't help anything and go from there.
If you have issues with wifi, there is a wifi fix to be had in the reference thread. Remember to flash that through the Phone slot if needed.
thanks again.
i can't exactly remember what modem i had when i flashed it with the official 4.3 using odin. but my guess would be the XXUBMEA. most of the custom roms i've tried had this modem anyway. some had no problems with 3g signal.
i am using twrp.
i don't want to play around with the modem yet as the 3g and wifi signals are working fine on cyanogenmod. its the call and video that's not working that i want to sort out.
do u think if i reflash by formatting data would clear out the problems i specified earlier? i don't mind trying this if u think it will make a difference.. tthanks.
es0tericcha0s said:
Ok, so there is something odd here. If you had flashed the official 4.3 via Odin, your modem would have changed to a newer one. The one you have is still a 4.2.2 one. Or were you referring to the last stock rom that you loaded with a custom recovery? Also, which recovery are you using?
Try this modem via Odin:
http://d-h.st/Kwv
Install Guide:
Use Odin v3.04
Untick Autoreboot
Flash modem
Reboot once again into Download Mode using (Vol Down plus Home button combi)
Flash Modem once more
Once done,unplug then reboot device manually.
If this doesn't work, try repeating the flash process again while rebooting manually and with auto-reboot option turned off.
Reference thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2192025
Let's see if that doesn't help anything and go from there.
If you have issues with wifi, there is a wifi fix to be had in the reference thread. Remember to flash that through the Phone slot if needed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Noypi14 said:
thanks again.
i can't exactly remember what modem i had when i flashed it with the official 4.3 using odin. but my guess would be the XXUBMEA. most of the custom roms i've tried had this modem anyway. some had no problems with 3g signal.
i am using twrp.
i don't want to play around with the modem yet as the 3g and wifi signals are working fine on cyanogenmod. its the call and video that's not working that i want to sort out.
do u think if i reflash by formatting data would clear out the problems i specified earlier? i don't mind trying this if u think it will make a difference.. tthanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The custom roms you've been using don't install a modem with them, so that would be why you've been on the same one for a bit. Often times the stock rom is a little more picky about which modem it likes best, though this varies by phone and update. What call issues are you having? There were so many issues listed for various things on the first post that I had trouble sorting which problem for which rom (not criticizing, just making sure we're on the same page). And as far as videos go, is it just YouTube that isn't working right or any type of video playback? If it is just YouTube - is it force closing, not loading searches or videos, or some other problem?
es0tericcha0s said:
The custom roms you've been using don't install a modem with them, so that would be why you've been on the same one for a bit. Often times the stock rom is a little more picky about which modem it likes best, though this varies by phone and update. What call issues are you having? There were so many issues listed for various things on the first post that I had trouble sorting which problem for which rom (not criticizing, just making sure we're on the same page). And as far as videos go, is it just YouTube that isn't working right or any type of video playback? If it is just YouTube - is it force closing, not loading searches or videos, or some other problem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks again for your interest.
the issue about the modem is somehow clear. thanks for clearing that up.
i think it is better to tackle the problems i have in my current setup rather than the previous problems. so, as previously mentioned, i am on cyanogenmod 11 (on 4.4.2). here are some of the problems i am aware of or rather, those that i have experienced:
1. calls - whenever i dial a number, the screen goes black as if the phone is next to my ear (could there be something wrong with the proximity sensor? i haven't done anything to rectify this yet though. when this happens, i can't do anything as the seems to hang although i could see the call timer working. during that call however, i can't hear a sound nor the person i just rang. same thing happens when someone calls me. my phone vibrates (because there is another problem with the sound which i will discuss next) and when i answer it, i hear no sound and the screen goes black and i couldn't do anything with the phone. i have to wait till the caller disconnects before the phone becomes useable again.
i tried calling using viber and the same thing happens.
2. sound - phone is muted even though all the volume controls are midway or almost 100%. i tried changing the ringing tone but i don't hear any sound at all. normally, when i switch to a different ringtone, it should give me a preview of what the chosen sound is like.
3. videos - it doesn't work. when i go to youtube, it opens up the site, opens the selected youtube clip, tries to play it but pauses then tries to play again then pauses until i get a message saying "there was a problem while playing. touch to retry."
so far these are the problems i have faced.
sorry for the long post again.
Hmm. Seems weird that you are having so many issues that most others aren't having, at least not since some of the earlier builds. During the install of CM, did you wipe /system? If not, I definitely would just start fresh. Install the most up to date modem. Wipe everything (system, data, cache, dalvik). Use the most up to date CWM (I like TWRP most of the time, but since CM says you should try CWM before reporting issues, it's one of those things...) Some Samsung proximity sensors aren't that accurate and really don't work well with CM. Other users reported that issue i the main CM thread for your phone, but was definitely not prevalent. I had a Samsung phone that I couldn't use a tempered glass screen protector with as they had an app to install to test to see how sensitive it was and mine didn't pass the test, though it worked for everything else.
As far as the video bug. It affected some earlier builds and other roms based off of CM but I hadn't seen anyone commenting about it for a bit so can't imagine it still being a common issue as that's a deal breaker for most. It might just be easier at this stage to either go back to stable CM 10.2 or try another rom altogether, such as Slim.
es0tericcha0s said:
Hmm. Seems weird that you are having so many issues that most others aren't having, at least not since some of the earlier builds. During the install of CM, did you wipe /system? If not, I definitely would just start fresh. Install the most up to date modem. Wipe everything (system, data, cache, dalvik). Use the most up to date CWM (I like TWRP most of the time, but since CM says you should try CWM before reporting issues, it's one of those things...) Some Samsung proximity sensors aren't that accurate and really don't work well with CM. Other users reported that issue i the main CM thread for your phone, but was definitely not prevalent. I had a Samsung phone that I couldn't use a tempered glass screen protector with as they had an app to install to test to see how sensitive it was and mine didn't pass the test, though it worked for everything else.
As far as the video bug. It affected some earlier builds and other roms based off of CM but I hadn't seen anyone commenting about it for a bit so can't imagine it still being a common issue as that's a deal breaker for most. It might just be easier at this stage to either go back to stable CM 10.2 or try another rom altogether, such as Slim.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i know. i don't really want to blame these issues i've mentioned to the rom i am using or have tried. perhaps there was something i did not do or overdid that messed it all up. the cynagenmod 10 (the stable version for my s4 model) had similar issues as the cm11. so i suspect the problem i've created still lingers within my phone that messes up a lot of things.
during installation, i did wipe the system, data, cache and dalvik which i found in the advanced menu.
the thing is, everything else worked fine when i was on 4.2.2 (like the proximity sensors, videos, sounds, etc) so as i said earlier, i don't want to blame it on the roms.
i might have another go on the slim rom tonight but use CWM instead of TWRP.
thanks again for your interest and help
Noypi14 said:
i know. i don't really want to blame these issues i've mentioned to the rom i am using or have tried. perhaps there was something i did not do or overdid that messed it all up. the cynagenmod 10 (the stable version for my s4 model) had similar issues as the cm11. so i suspect the problem i've created still lingers within my phone that messes up a lot of things.
during installation, i did wipe the system, data, cache and dalvik which i found in the advanced menu.
the thing is, everything else worked fine when i was on 4.2.2 (like the proximity sensors, videos, sounds, etc) so as i said earlier, i don't want to blame it on the roms.
i might have another go on the slim rom tonight but use CWM instead of TWRP.
thanks again for your interest and help
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have a screen protector or anything like that? Sometimes if it isn't laying on the screen right or dirt gets around it, it can cause issues. There's also a way to pop out the actual proximity sensor and clean between the part and the little piece of clear glass on the back of the front piece of glass that can help too if it ends up being hardware related.
es0tericcha0s said:
Do you have a screen protector or anything like that? Sometimes if it isn't laying on the screen right or dirt gets around it, it can cause issues. There's also a way to pop out the actual proximity sensor and clean between the part and the little piece of clear glass on the back of the front piece of glass that can help too if it ends up being hardware related.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I put the screen protector when i got the phone and i don't see any visible dirt so i wouldn't want to blame it either. Although i did read about the screen protectors causing problems. But the thing is, even youtube or any videos do not play. Even any sound.
I've tried the slimkat rom by following the developers' instructions and still no youtube, no sound, can't make a call as i can't hear the person i'm calling nor can that person hear me.
Any other suggestions on what to do? I don't mind going back to stock as long as i get all the features back. I went to official 4.3 before but had more severe issues. Or perhaps i did it wrong?
Thanks..
Videos are another issue, but I still think the call problems and such are modem related. What I would do would be to wipe everything, then use Odin to install official Kit Kat, then test this stuff out and see if it works. If so, then you can do a nandroid and redo recovery and try the roms again, then if they still have that issue then your phone just doesn't cooperate with CM roms or something weird like that. If it doesn't work even after official 4.4.2, then there's probably something else going on, possibly hardware related.
es0tericcha0s said:
Videos are another issue, but I still think the call problems and such are modem related. What I would do would be to wipe everything, then use Odin to install official Kit Kat, then test this stuff out and see if it works. If so, then you can do a nandroid and redo recovery and try the roms again, then if they still have that issue then your phone just doesn't cooperate with CM roms or something weird like that. If it doesn't work even after official 4.4.2, then there's probably something else going on, possibly hardware related.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks.
Got hold of the official 4.4.2 and flashed it via odin. Failed. But tried again and now working fine. Sound is back, video is back as well as calls. Just the annoying google search failing all the time.
The baseband it has is I9505XXUFNC9. i didn't install any modem in odin though. Just flashed in the pda section the tar file
Now i don't know whether to root this again and try custom roms or leave it as it is. I saw knox by the way but haven't installed it. Or is it pre installed? I have little knowledge about knox
This seems to be a weird issue that I'm having, and I hope I'm not missing a step...
Anytime I install a custom rom past 4.1.2; I get no phone audio. I can load up web pages fine, SMS/MMS works to my knowledge, but there is no phone audio. I'll call my house phone, and it will ring the house phone, but I cannot hear myself through the other line. I've tried flashing radios/modems, different combination of ROMs and kernels, and the only way I'm able to keep an active phone, that is able to make phone calls, is to stick with a stock ROM.
My first thought is maybe it thinks it's an unlocked phone? And that's causing it to act up, but I've never had an issue like this before. Any help would be appreciated.
tricky_tee said:
This seems to be a weird issue that I'm having, and I hope I'm not missing a step...
Anytime I install a custom rom past 4.1.2; I get no phone audio. I can load up web pages fine, SMS/MMS works to my knowledge, but there is no phone audio. I'll call my house phone, and it will ring the house phone, but I cannot hear myself through the other line. I've tried flashing radios/modems, different combination of ROMs and kernels, and the only way I'm able to keep an active phone, that is able to make phone calls, is to stick with a stock ROM.
My first thought is maybe it thinks it's an unlocked phone? And that's causing it to act up, but I've never had an issue like this before. Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't believe the kernal is problem
What is your specific device model?
What have you tried to flash exactly?
Who is your carrier?
Are you flashing clean with all wipes?
Are you letting rom settle?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I527 using XDA Free mobile app
tricky_tee said:
This seems to be a weird issue that I'm having, and I hope I'm not missing a step...
Anytime I install a custom rom past 4.1.2; I get no phone audio. I can load up web pages fine, SMS/MMS works to my knowledge, but there is no phone audio. I'll call my house phone, and it will ring the house phone, but I cannot hear myself through the other line. I've tried flashing radios/modems, different combination of ROMs and kernels, and the only way I'm able to keep an active phone, that is able to make phone calls, is to stick with a stock ROM.
My first thought is maybe it thinks it's an unlocked phone? And that's causing it to act up, but I've never had an issue like this before. Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After u answer captemos questions… let me ask u this. You say stock 4.1.2, do u mean you have actually odin'd the stock release from sammy?
Gil81 said:
After u answer captemos questions… let me ask u this. You say stock 4.1.2, do u mean you have actually odin'd the stock release from sammy?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Apologize for the delay - been busy at work. I guess I could've been clearer.
I am using the SGH-i717 on AT&T. By stock, I meant a Touchwiz-based rom (i.e., Padawan JB). I have no problems with making or receiving phone calls. Whenever I flash a ASOP-based rom, (i.e., LiquidSmooth, BeanStalk, etc.) I have intermittent phone issues. The phone issues I'm having is not having audio when making or receiving phone calls. I know that it is actually placing the call, but I cannot hear the person on the other end, nor can they hear me. Now if I go into network operators, and select an operator that I know isn't going to work (i.e, Verizon, or T-Mobile), and then use "Choose Automatically", sometimes that works for a little bit. However, that has been working less and less now.
My process of flashing includes flashing the rom of choice after a full wipe and reset (right now, it's LiquidSmooth 4.4), wiping the cache and dalvik a couple of times, installing Polluti0n's rom patch, wiping cache and dalvik a couple of times, then installing PA Stock 4.4 Gapp, and finishing the whole process by wiping cache and dalvik a few times more. This is all done through gimmeitorilltell's TWRP Recovery 2.8.0.0
As stated before; I have no issues with Touchwiz-Based roms. I can make and receive phone calls with no problems. Also, before I rooted the phone, i updated it through Kies; so I assume that would update it to the latest radio available. That would be my first suspect, but I'm having difficulty finding a flashable radio for the device.
There also might be a step I'm missing, since all my experience previously with rooting and flashing came on CDMA devices, so there was no issues with radios.
tricky_tee said:
Apologize for the delay - been busy at work. I guess I could've been clearer.
I am using the SGH-i717 on AT&T. By stock, I meant a Touchwiz-based rom (i.e., Padawan JB). I have no problems with making or receiving phone calls. Whenever I flash a ASOP-based rom, (i.e., LiquidSmooth, BeanStalk, etc.) I have intermittent phone issues. The phone issues I'm having is not having audio when making or receiving phone calls. I know that it is actually placing the call, but I cannot hear the person on the other end, nor can they hear me. Now if I go into network operators, and select an operator that I know isn't going to work (i.e, Verizon, or T-Mobile), and then use "Choose Automatically", sometimes that works for a little bit. However, that has been working less and less now.
My process of flashing includes flashing the rom of choice after a full wipe and reset (right now, it's LiquidSmooth 4.4), wiping the cache and dalvik a couple of times, installing Polluti0n's rom patch, wiping cache and dalvik a couple of times, then installing PA Stock 4.4 Gapp, and finishing the whole process by wiping cache and dalvik a few times more. This is all done through gimmeitorilltell's TWRP Recovery 2.8.0.0
As stated before; I have no issues with Touchwiz-Based roms. I can make and receive phone calls with no problems. Also, before I rooted the phone, i updated it through Kies; so I assume that would update it to the latest radio available. That would be my first suspect, but I'm having difficulty finding a flashable radio for the device.
There also might be a step I'm missing, since all my experience previously with rooting and flashing came on CDMA devices, so there was no issues with radios.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
first off i would flash the rom like so.
1. Factory Data reset
2. Wipe Cache/Dalvik
3. Format System/Data
4. Install rom from Sdcard
5. Wipe Cache/Dalvik
6.Reboot device
7.boot back into recovery
8.Wipe Cache/Dalvik
9. Flash gapps
10.Wipe Cache/Dalvik
Check to see if all is well once the rom is flashed and only the rom. Seems like over kill but can help narrowing down the issue, but i do agree with you as kies being the culprit I never did use it let alone trust it to update the device. Odin would be a better choice and no need to update the device for the latest radio as we have flashable zips. Blazes ics modem is what I'm currently using and has been great, one last thing I'd recommend is to go here http://www.sammobile.com/firmwares/ and grab the JB update and flash it via odin if all else fails.
I experiencing a similar symptom. Intermittently, not one can her me no I can hear anyone. I'm currently on Slimkat 4.4.4 and I have to reboot in order to make the call. Never had this problem when on stock JB 4.1.2.
Can some one point me to how to downgrade to Stock 4.1.2. Thinking about going back, I need a reliable phone.
Upgrade Radio
You must get the best radio for your location:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1693545
tricky_tee said:
Apologize for the delay - been busy at work. I guess I could've been clearer.
I am using the SGH-i717 on AT&T. By stock, I meant a Touchwiz-based rom (i.e., Padawan JB). I have no problems with making or receiving phone calls. Whenever I flash a ASOP-based rom, (i.e., LiquidSmooth, BeanStalk, etc.) I have intermittent phone issues. The phone issues I'm having is not having audio when making or receiving phone calls. I know that it is actually placing the call, but I cannot hear the person on the other end, nor can they hear me. Now if I go into network operators, and select an operator that I know isn't going to work (i.e, Verizon, or T-Mobile), and then use "Choose Automatically", sometimes that works for a little bit. However, that has been working less and less now.
My process of flashing includes flashing the rom of choice after a full wipe and reset (right now, it's LiquidSmooth 4.4), wiping the cache and dalvik a couple of times, installing Polluti0n's rom patch, wiping cache and dalvik a couple of times, then installing PA Stock 4.4 Gapp, and finishing the whole process by wiping cache and dalvik a few times more. This is all done through gimmeitorilltell's TWRP Recovery 2.8.0.0
As stated before; I have no issues with Touchwiz-Based roms. I can make and receive phone calls with no problems. Also, before I rooted the phone, i updated it through Kies; so I assume that would update it to the latest radio available. That would be my first suspect, but I'm having difficulty finding a flashable radio for the device.
There also might be a step I'm missing, since all my experience previously with rooting and flashing came on CDMA devices, so there was no issues with radios.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
follow dzee advice for flashing...rock solid method..but i still would like to know if you were ever on stock unrooted jb 4.1.2
what version of android were you on when you rooted the device the first time.
---------- Post added at 06:19 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:11 PM ----------
dodgy1 said:
I experiencing a similar symptom. Intermittently, not one can her me no I can hear anyone. I'm currently on Slimkat 4.4.4 and I have to reboot in order to make the call. Never had this problem when on stock JB 4.1.2.
Can some one point me to how to downgrade to Stock 4.1.2. Thinking about going back, I need a reliable phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
follow the li.k above ur original post. dzee gives a li.k to sammobile. download the correct tar file and fladh via odin
Hello everyone,
I am a complete noob and hopefully you guys can help me out. I have tried to wrap my head around all the new android terms and my head is spinning. Anyways, I was given a HTC Sensation 4G Z710a on the Bell network. I registered on the htcdev to unlock the bootloader and following the steps, I fail to get the token. I have tried on two PC's and my friend tried on his MAC. My friend thinks the reason it fails is because the phones software is not up to date. Is it possible that it cannot get the token because the software is out of date? We tried to update the software and it fails. The problem looks like it is due to the installation of a clockworkmod. I have tried using the factory reset and the the cwm to do a factory reset and nothing has changed. Other than this, it looks like the phone has S-OFF and is not rooted.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Messed_sensation said:
Hello everyone,
I am a complete noob and hopefully you guys can help me out. I have tried to wrap my head around all the new android terms and my head is spinning. Anyways, I was given a HTC Sensation 4G Z710a on the Bell network. I registered on the htcdev to unlock the bootloader and following the steps, I fail to get the token. I have tried on two PC's and my friend tried on his MAC. My friend thinks the reason it fails is because the phones software is not up to date. Is it possible that it cannot get the token because the software is out of date? We tried to update the software and it fails. The problem looks like it is due to the installation of a clockworkmod. I have tried using the factory reset and the the cwm to do a factory reset and nothing has changed. Other than this, it looks like the phone has S-OFF and is not rooted.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Kind of hard for us to tell you if the issue is the software update, when you haven't told us which update it's on. However, since the phone has already been modded, and is S-Off, that means the bootloader is already unlocked so using the HTCdev website is not needed. You can just update via a custom rom since you already have CWM.
es0tericcha0s said:
Kind of hard for us to tell you if the issue is the software update, when you haven't told us which update it's on. However, since the phone has already been modded, and is S-Off, that means the bootloader is already unlocked so using the HTCdev website is not needed. You can just update via a custom rom since you already have CWM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your reply with the good news. This is probably irrelevant now that you said i can update via a custom rom. Under software information: Android Version; 2.3.3, HTC Sense Version; 3.0, Software Number 1.35.666.1.
It looks like now I need to research how to update via a custom rom and which rom to get. (Update. I looked into flashing a ruu and my cid is SuperCID 11111111. As long as I find a ruu that is Pyramid TMOUS, it should be good?) I am exited to be getting rid of my junky iphone. Do you have any suggestions as to what rom to get??
Messed_sensation said:
Thank you for your reply with the good news. This is probably irrelevant now that you said i can update via a custom rom. Under software information: Android Version; 2.3.3, HTC Sense Version; 3.0, Software Number 1.35.666.1.
It looks like now I need to research how to update via a custom rom and which rom to get. (Update. I looked into flashing a ruu and my cid is SuperCID 11111111. As long as I find a ruu that is Pyramid TMOUS, it should be good?) I am exited to be getting rid of my junky iphone. Do you have any suggestions as to what rom to get??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would upgrade the phone to ICS via the RUU. I suggest this for 2 reasons - 1) so you can have the newest update and firmware as just flashing an ICS rom by itself will not be a good idea as you will have issues with the touch sensors and radios (touch screen won't respond and signal issues) and 2) so you can have experience on how to put the phone back to stock in case there's an issue during flashing a rom, or you need to resell it. Once you have the RUU and know it works, then flashing roms will be much less scary as there aren't many things you can do that would not be fixable by it. You can get away with just flashing the rom and the firmware as well, but I speak with many years of experience and 100s of phones under my belt, and I know that whenever I play with a new phone, I learn how to fix it first before I learn how to mod it.
As far as suggestions, I would start with something simple and solid like Android Revolution HD. See what you like and dislike and go from there.
es0tericcha0s said:
I would upgrade the phone to ICS via the RUU. I suggest this for 2 reasons - 1) so you can have the newest update and firmware as just flashing an ICS rom by itself will not be a good idea as you will have issues with the touch sensors and radios (touch screen won't respond and signal issues) and 2) so you can have experience on how to put the phone back to stock in case there's an issue during flashing a rom, or you need to resell it. Once you have the RUU and know it works, then flashing roms will be much less scary as there aren't many things you can do that would not be fixable by it. You can get away with just flashing the rom and the firmware as well, but I speak with many years of experience and 100s of phones under my belt, and I know that whenever I play with a new phone, I learn how to fix it first before I learn how to mod it.
As far as suggestions, I would start with something simple and solid like Android Revolution HD. See what you like and dislike and go from there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for all your help and suggestion:good:. I am now running the Android Revolution HD.
This is a huge change from my iphone 4.
es0tericcha0s said:
I would upgrade the phone to ICS via the RUU. I suggest this for 2 reasons - 1) so you can have the newest update and firmware as just flashing an ICS rom by itself will not be a good idea as you will have issues with the touch sensors and radios (touch screen won't respond and signal issues) and 2) so you can have experience on how to put the phone back to stock in case there's an issue during flashing a rom, or you need to resell it. Once you have the RUU and know it works, then flashing roms will be much less scary as there aren't many things you can do that would not be fixable by it. You can get away with just flashing the rom and the firmware as well, but I speak with many years of experience and 100s of phones under my belt, and I know that whenever I play with a new phone, I learn how to fix it first before I learn how to mod it.
As far as suggestions, I would start with something simple and solid like Android Revolution HD. See what you like and dislike and go from there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here is another update, and I am not sure if you can help. I thought everything was fine with the install, but it seems like my mobile network is not working. I followed all the steps from http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1098849 except I used Clockwork Mod instead of 4EXT Touch Recovery. I looked through all the related settings and even tried changing them, rebooting and seeing if it made any changes. I also even followed the steps a second time and got the same result.
Messed_sensation said:
Here is another update, and I am not sure if you can help. I thought everything was fine with the install, but it seems like my mobile network is not working. I followed all the steps from http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1098849 except I used Clockwork Mod instead of 4EXT Touch Recovery. I looked through all the related settings and even tried changing them, rebooting and seeing if it made any changes. I also even followed the steps a second time and got the same result.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is it just data or are you unable to make calls and texts as well? If it's just data, then most likely it is an issue with the Bell APN needing set correctly. If you don't get a signal or any connection to the cell towers, then you might not have the right firmware or radio. Did you update to the last update HTC put out for it?
es0tericcha0s said:
Is it just data or are you unable to make calls and texts as well? If it's just data, then most likely it is an issue with the Bell APN needing set correctly. If you don't get a signal or any connection to the cell towers, then you might not have the right firmware or radio. Did you update to the last update HTC put out for it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
:good:You are good! It was just my data that was not working, and you were right on the money. After reading your reply, I checked my APN settings and adjusted them accordingly to what my carrier states. It is working perfectly now. Thank you so very much for your help. Take care.
Messed_sensation said:
:good:You are good! It was just my data that was not working, and you were right on the money. After reading your reply, I checked my APN settings and adjusted them accordingly to what my carrier states. It is working perfectly now. Thank you so very much for your help. Take care.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do this kinda stuff for a living. Glad all is well. Enjoy your "new" phone. :victory:
es0tericcha0s said:
I do this kinda stuff for a living. Glad all is well. Enjoy your "new" phone. :victory:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been getting around 12 hours out of my battery with not too much use on the phone. I am running the SebastionFM Kernel. I read that I will get better battery life on the Bricked Kernel. Can you tell me if that is the way to go? I am trying to dl the kernel to flash it, but I am not sure which file to download. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1256668. Also, when I flash the Kernel, Is it pretty straight forward or are there settings that I would need to choose.
Thanks again.
Messed_sensation said:
I have been getting around 12 hours out of my battery with not too much use on the phone. I am running the SebastionFM Kernel. I read that I will get better battery life on the Bricked Kernel. Can you tell me if that is the way to go? I am trying to dl the kernel to flash it, but I am not sure which file to download. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1256668. Also, when I flash the Kernel, Is it pretty straight forward or are there settings that I would need to choose.
Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Depends on which rom you are using... The developer of the kernel mentioned near the end of the thread that his kernels are a little outdated for the newer Sense roms that are out there, so you might need to proceed with caution. Whenever you are flashing kernels, you should both make sure you have things backed up somewhere safe (Google, your PC, etc) as well as make a nandroid backup in recovery before flashing. It's typically recommended to wipe the cache and dalvik cache before installing new kernels (since you are S-Off, S-On users need a slightly different path to upgrade...). You might look into why your battery life is not as good as it could be in it's current configuration first before changing major components such as the kernel. Look into Greenify to hibernate apps while the screen is off and something like GSam Battery Monitor or Better Battery Stats or Wakelock Detector to break down the battery stats and wakelocks as those typically cause the biggest loss of battery life.
es0tericcha0s said:
Depends on which rom you are using... The developer of the kernel mentioned near the end of the thread that his kernels are a little outdated for the newer Sense roms that are out there, so you might need to proceed with caution. Whenever you are flashing kernels, you should both make sure you have things backed up somewhere safe (Google, your PC, etc) as well as make a nandroid backup in recovery before flashing. It's typically recommended to wipe the cache and dalvik cache before installing new kernels (since you are S-Off, S-On users need a slightly different path to upgrade...). You might look into why your battery life is not as good as it could be in it's current configuration first before changing major components such as the kernel. Look into Greenify to hibernate apps while the screen is off and something like GSam Battery Monitor or Better Battery Stats or Wakelock Detector to break down the battery stats and wakelocks as those typically cause the biggest loss of battery life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it is my battery. I picked up an Anker and the phone is now at 20% after 21hrs. Is there a way to get Emoji to work on my phone? When people SMS me, on the lock screen they show up as a question mark in a box but when i go to read the text message there is nothing there.
Using a different keyboard will let you send Emojis, but not really sure about enabling the view from other people's messages off the top of my head, sorry. I recommend SwiftKey for a great keyboard replacement with lots of built in Emojis.
So my girlfriend's EVO 4G LTE is a bit of.. well, I'm gonna say bastard. I'm not new when it comes to rooting devices but I've never had to deal with one that fought me so much.
I've been through this adventure many times with it, and it gets more complicated each time. Here is what's happened with it so far.
It was stock, and it was terrible. It lagged so much, despite factory resets, that apps like google maps were completely unusable. It got no battery life AT ALL, and was generally freeze-happy and miserable.
So then I s-off'd it and after learning all its quirks, installed recovery and CM 11.2 (I think? It's been a year)
This worked great! For.. a few days. The phone worked, we went on vacation to a roaming area where Sprint had no coverage. We come back, and only the data works, texts and calls do not, and the phone acts like it's not activated. Yay. All attempts to get it activated are met with failure, much to the confusion of the poor sprint person on the line. The phone just will not take, at all. (damn lack of real sim cards..) We tried recovering back to a backup from twrp of the stock firmware but that won't work either? It wouldn't register with sprint even on the backed up version of stock sense. The phone seemed dead at this point. Bricked radio?
So we give up. We bring it to the sprint store, and they do some magic to it, and its back to stock, slow and terrible, but functional. We don't touch it until about three weeks ago.
But, my girlfriend is tired, again, of the terribleness, and asks me to try again. Okay, sure.
I install TWRP again, so far so good. The phone is still S-OFF from last time, which is nice. I go to install CM11.2 from the files used from last time (the MD5 does check out correct) But, the phone complains about not having a new enough bootloader. ???? (So I assume sprint downgraded the bootloader in the process of fixing it. somehow)
I forget the exact numbers, but we can't install CM11.2, only 10. or 10.whatever. the newest 10. Okay, fine. I gather a new set of cyanogen files, gapps, whatever, and flash all of that, so far so good.
This time it works, and stays working! Yay! So I thought.
As it turns out, its on a very old version of android (so old that it goes into a special usb file host mode when usb is plugged in) and more importantly, the camera is TERRIBLE. I've read that the evo 4g lte uses a special ImageSense chip to boost camera performance, and that cyanogen 10 does not support it. I can tell, because the camera is absolutely terrible. The battery life also is terrible, presumably because it lacks optimizations. It had way better battery life on CM11.2 when it worked. Other then that, its working just fine, but the camera is just unacceptable.
So, I want to know what to do from here. I see a few paths.
plan A:
update HBOOT to a newer version to allow the install of CM11.2
(how do I do that? I heard you have to use an RUU, but which RUU? I read that there is some touchscreen driver that is an issue depending on what version you run)
(Once I install the ruu is it business as usual, install twrp and then flash cyanogen like normal? Will it do the crazy not activation thing again? was that a fluke??)
plan B:
update HBOOT, but to a much newer one that allows the install of CM12 or whatever the newer ones are. Presumably updating past the touch screen driver issue and not allowing us to go back to an old version.
(once again, what do I need to do that? Is this advisable? I quite prefer the idea of running a newer version. So if this is the better idea, I will do it.)
I thank you greatly for your help. I'm not used to it being this complicated. I've read a lot of things about this phone and it seems very conflicting at times. I just want to get straightened out.
yeah, it's probably running like crap because the firmware is so out of date.
use this RUU http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2653730
then re-flash twrp and another ROM if you want (i've been running cm12.1 for MONTHS) but she might be able to survive just like that. only fear would be staying vulnerable to security threats, but you've been living in that house this whole time anyway.
for a good while i was running this stock 4.3 with root and some xposed modules installed to get the cm functionality that i missed. but seriously, run the RUU, let it activate, then go under settings and update profile and PRL, fire up maps/navigation with GPS on so that it gets a good lock and its cache populated, then you should be good from there.
Thank you!
Can I use the same utility that I used to flash twrp (that one-click thing that seems to support a half million phones) or do I need something special? This sounds very easy to do. Almost too easy, given that the story of this phone's life is that the easiest thing I've ever done to it was take it completely apart to replace its battery.
never used the one-click stuff. flashing recovery via fastboot is simple enough.
get the adb tools, here's some easy instructions for that http://lifehacker.com/the-easiest-way-to-install-androids-adb-and-fastboot-to-1586992378
get the latest twrp from here https://dl.twrp.me/jewel/
then follow these directions to flash twrp https://wiki.cyanogenmod.org/w/Install_CM_for_jewel#Installing_a_custom_recovery_using_fastboot
if not installing cm or any other rooted rom (you want to root stock) get supersu from here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1538053 and use the twrp installable zip
If you've gone through the trouble to S-Off, then fastboot flash the latest TWRP (3.0.2.0, I believe), which supports the new partition layout (extra 4gig of internal SD space).
From there, flash the official 651.4 developers version, go through the device setup which updates your PRL, then shut it down and reboot to TWRP and flash the latest CM12.1 and a proper gapps package (I use "stock", which is a bit much for some, but I like having everything available to me).
The one thing I do that most don't is to disable zRam and enable swap with my own script I wrote specifically for the external SD I formatted as vFat/ext4/swap.
After doing all this, I do not have the issues you seem to have, and the PRL seems to stay from the last install of stock Sense 5. Even with all the apps I have installed, it's still fairly snappy. Facebook/Messenger, and other memory hogging apps run smooth with no discernable lag, unless there's network issues.
YMMV, but look into using an app like "Ampre" to measure battery life and gauge if the battery is going bad or not.
Outside of that, there's not much left to do with these older devices that hasn't been done already.