Samsung Galaxy Stardust S766C - Root/OS Upgrade - Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hello all, I'm making a thread hoping somebody with far more experience than I in this field can answer some questions that I have.
My current personal smartphone is a Samsung Galaxy Stardust "S766C". It's currently running Android 4.3 Jellybean, and is on the Tracfone network.
Recently, I've noticed a number of apps that I've wanted to install only support Android 4.4 or higher. (Yes, Pokemon GO is one of them). I've checked with my phone's software update, and it doesn't seem any updates are available for my OS, so it doesn't seem I'll be getting any further official updates for this device.
So what I was wondering, is if it's possible to root this phone and install a newer, more compatible OS, such as 5.0 or 6.0? I've also heard custom ROMs can also accomplish a similar feat. Basically, what would I need to do to get these apps installed and functioning normally, without bricking my phone or accidentally discontinuing service?
I've conducted a bit of research, but have been scarce in finding specific tutorials or solutions to my given scenario. I really do not want to upgrade my phone, I purchased it less than a year ago and the hardware is still more-than-enough to meet my needs.
Thanks.

Unfortunately it does not look like there are any options to update your phone, whether officially or unofficially. That's one of the downsides to having a less popular phone on a less popular network. Tracfone and Samsung couldn't care less to update a $100 phone as it's hard enough for them to keep up with the Galaxy S and Note lines while the developers that are into modding phones don't have the inclination or the source code from Samsung for devices like these to be able to make newer versions of Android run properly on older devices. As far as Pokemon Go, you might want to keep an eye on this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/android/help/to-patch-pokemon-to-4-3-jelly-bean-beta-t3412608, though be warned that there are some unofficial versions floating around that might have some spyware included: https://blogs.mcafee.com/mcafee-labs/trojanized-pokemon-go-android-app-found-wild/.

es0tericcha0s said:
Unfortunately it does not look like there are any options to update your phone, whether officially or unofficially. That's one of the downsides to having a less popular phone on a less popular network. Tracfone and Samsung couldn't care less to update a $100 phone as it's hard enough for them to keep up with the Galaxy S and Note lines while the developers that are into modding phones don't have the inclination or the source code from Samsung for devices like these to be able to make newer versions of Android run properly on older devices. As far as Pokemon Go, you might want to keep an eye on this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/android/help/to-patch-pokemon-to-4-3-jelly-bean-beta-t3412608, though be warned that there are some unofficial versions floating around that might have some spyware included: https://blogs.mcafee.com/mcafee-labs/trojanized-pokemon-go-android-app-found-wild/.
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I see, that's unfortunate, I was really hoping there would be at least some sort of option available to give this phone some extra life, but I guess I'll have to look into upgrading sooner than I originally thought.
I'll keep an eye on the Pokemon GO thread, but it doesn't seem like they're getting anywhere too quickly.

Iron124 said:
I see, that's unfortunate, I was really hoping there would be at least some sort of option available to give this phone some extra life, but I guess I'll have to look into upgrading sooner than I originally thought.
I'll keep an eye on the Pokemon GO thread, but it doesn't seem like they're getting anywhere too quickly.
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Not sure what kind of budget you're working with, but if you know someone with an Amazon Prime account, you can get the new Blu HD R1 for $60 with 2 GBs of RAM, 16 GB storage + SD card slot, quad core Mediatek processor, 5" 720P screen, 8 MP camera, and 6.0 Marshmallow. It's nothing special and the discount is because it has lockscreen ads, but it's an upgrade over your current phone in most every way, and is unlocked for any GSM network (Tracfone has GSM and CDMA options). You can remove ads by just replacing the lockscreen with a 3rd party app. Got one coming this week to give to my mom.

es0tericcha0s said:
Not sure what kind of budget you're working with, but if you know someone with an Amazon Prime account, you can get the new Blu HD R1 for $60 with 2 GBs of RAM, 16 GB storage + SD card slot, quad core Mediatek processor, 5" 720P screen, 8 MP camera, and 6.0 Marshmallow. It's nothing special and the discount is because it has lockscreen ads, but it's an upgrade over your current phone in most every way, and is unlocked for any GSM network (Tracfone has GSM and CDMA options). You can remove ads by just replacing the lockscreen with a 3rd party app. Got one coming this week to give to my mom.
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Click to collapse
I do have Amazon Prime, but only the student version. I get free shipping, but I suppose this deal is not included. Total for that phone comes to $109, out of my budget range by about a mile.
I also couldn't find any confirmation that it worked with Tracfone, only Verizon, AT&T, and Net10. Theoretically, it'll just work if I purchase the $1 BYOP Tracfone kit?

Iron124 said:
I do have Amazon Prime, but only the student version. I get free shipping, but I suppose this deal is not included. Total for that phone comes to $109, out of my budget range by about a mile.
I also couldn't find any confirmation that it worked with Tracfone, only Verizon, AT&T, and Net10. Theoretically, it'll just work if I purchase the $1 BYOP Tracfone kit?
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Click to collapse
There's 2 versions of the phone - regular and the one with ads that is $50 off. I'm not sure about whether that is an option for the student version of Prime or not.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01H2E0J5M/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 - see if that link works for you.
But yea, works on Tmo or ATT and I think Tracfone can support either, if I remember right. ATT network for sure.

es0tericcha0s said:
There's 2 versions of the phone - regular and the one with ads that is $50 off. I'm not sure about whether that is an option for the student version of Prime or not.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01H2E0J5M/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 - see if that link works for you.
But yea, works on Tmo or ATT and I think Tracfone can support either, if I remember right. ATT network for sure.
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Click to collapse
Yep, same link that I followed, I can purchase it even though it says "only for prime members", but for $109.

Lame. Have to befriend someone else with a regular Prime account.

Related

Would YOU recommend the LG P769?

I am thinking about purchasing a LG P769 for use on At&t.Since it is a T-Mobile phone,I wont have to have a data plan from at&t which it forces me to have for my Atrix 2 and Galaxy Note.I plan to just unlock it and disable the data.
I've had some LG flip-phones in the past and have owned an LG Thrill which I did not really care for(I got it for free with an upgrade),but I am sure LG has improved slightly...
Is this a decent phone for the average used?I am just looking for good call quality,easy texting and playing some casual games.
Thanks in advance for any input.
PassingThruLife said:
I am thinking about purchasing a LG P769 for use on At&t.Since it is a T-Mobile phone,I wont have to have a data plan from at&t which it forces me to have for my Atrix 2 and Galaxy Note.I plan to just unlock it and disable the data.
I've had some LG flip-phones in the past and have owned an LG Thrill which I did not really care for(I got it for free with an upgrade),but I am sure LG has improved slightly...
Is this a decent phone for the average used?I am just looking for good call quality,easy texting and playing some casual games.
Thanks in advance for any input.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As per current situation in XDA and the restricted support of P769 providers, I will "not recommend it", until LG releases P769 through its own channel, and not from other mobile operators. Read all forum and various threads and posts about P769 before you decide to buy one.
I don't foresee the same XDA support for the P769 as was seen here for the HTC G2 and HD2 Leo. Nevertheless, it is a midgrade phone running ICS (JB 4.1 expected eventually) and serves me well w/o a custom rom. It is dual core, has 1GB of ram, and is physically light. Unfortunately, it includes a bit of T-Mobile bloatware (that is easily disabled). Removal is possible, but research! ...and you probably know that T-Mobile's wifi calling will not work for you on AT&T.
Two areas of concern are the lack of a light sensor for auto-dimming and has only 2GB of internal memory (G2 had 4!). It is sold without an SD card so you will have to buy one. The lack of auto-dimming hasn't bothered me yet, but it might. The 2150mAh battery seems to help with usage life. Whether I recommend it depends on the price.
Anyways, this was quickly written and I may be back to organize and edit this post.
btw... root it and backup root with voodoo (see threads here) before an OTA update installs.
dkouzou said:
I don't foresee the same XDA support for the P769 as was seen here for the HTC G2 and HD2 Leo. Nevertheless, it is a midgrade phone running ICS (JB 4.1 expected eventually) and serves me well w/o a custom rom. It is dual core, has 1GB of ram, and is physically light. Unfortunately, it includes a bit of T-Mobile bloatware (that is easily disabled). Removal is possible, but research! ...and you probably know that T-Mobile's wifi calling will not work for you on AT&T.
Two areas of concern are the lack of a light sensor for auto-dimming and has only 2GB of internal memory (G2 had 4!). It is sold without an SD card so you will have to buy one. The lack of auto-dimming hasn't bothered me yet, but it might. The 2150mAh battery seems to help with usage life. Whether I recommend it depends on the price.
Anyways, this was quickly written and I may be back to organize and edit this post.
btw... root it and backup root with voodoo (see threads here) before an OTA update installs.
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He can get good alternate at the same or bit more cost, he just have to look around. And what if he gets phone with V10G or if V10G is unknowingly updated on V10E? He will lose root and nothing much can be done. He should better go for any HTC or Samsung Grand, a recommended at this moment.
cmahendra said:
He can get good alternate at the same or bit more cost, he just have to look around. And what if he gets phone with V10G or if V10G is unknowingly updated on V10E? He will lose root and nothing much can be done. He should better go for any HTC or Samsung Grand, a recommended at this moment.
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For $150 USD, I'd buy it (no contract), but above $200 I might consider more expensive options. I see the LG 769 now at Best Buy for $200 (no contract). He can return it if it comes with V10G preinstalled. Considering that he wishes to use it with AT&T, he will have to get it unlocked and this will drive his total cost over $200. An AT&T phone might be more economical although I don't know their selections. An AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II is about $300 (StoreSF). The cheapest I see the Samsung Galaxy Grand is around $400 online (Mobile City Online). If you know of a phone with similar or better specs to the LG 769 (min. dual core, ICS or JB, 1GB Ram) at around $200 or less (no contract), please share.
PassingThruLife said:
I plan to just unlock it and disable the data.
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Click to collapse
Never tried this. I guess you can use Wifi only for data?
dkouzou said:
For $150 USD, I'd buy it (no contract), but above $200 I might consider more expensive options. I see the LG 769 now at Best Buy for $200 (no contract). He can return it if it comes with V10G preinstalled. Considering that he wishes to use it with AT&T, he will have to get it unlocked and this will drive his total cost over $200. An AT&T phone might be more economical although I don't know their selections. An AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II is about $300 (StoreSF). The cheapest I see the Samsung Galaxy Grand is around $400 online (Mobile City Online). If you know of a phone with similar or better specs to the LG 769 (min. dual core, ICS or JB, 1GB Ram) at around $200 or less (no contract), please share.
Never tried this. I guess you can use Wifi only for data?
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U r right. At 150 u can go for it. In our country it is 310. And Grand is 350.
Sent from my LG-P765 using xda app-developers app
i would recommend the P768 with 8MP instead of 5MP camera - although software will still take a while and Sony / Samsung is always best.
Go for it mate..got mine too 2 weeks old..and im impressed..actually i have 2 android phone one is d galaxy s advance, they almost have thesame specs.but compare to both performance.,l9 wins,,maybe becoz i already had an upgrade my sgsa to jb..but overall performance game,browse,camera,sounds,not to mention the rom memry becoz thats the only thing i ddnt like to l9 but what the devs cant do about that,,.
And compare to samsung.i just noticed that most of their new released phone have thesame looks/style and thats a plus for l9,slim and light..like other post go for galaxy grand rather l9,naahh,,i even had thought of it overnight and finally had my l9 the ff day..
All in all rating:10/10
Sent from my LG-P768 using xda app-developers app
Based on your requirement: "I am just looking for good call quality,easy texting and playing some casual games", and if you can get 150$ price tag, definitely go for it, it should be the best bang for your buck the last 2, 3 months (USA). For 200$ price tag, it might be still best value out there, but you might want to look around more.
People here in this forum seems to always assume phone must be rooted, must have unlocked boot loaders to be a phone, but it totally depends on your usage to care about those things or not. And from your description, I would say you can live well with either of those (root might be a bonus for some adblocking and backup btw).

UPDATE Today AOJ3 (Not Marshmallow)

Got a new update but its not 6.x its just security updates. Really doesn't say what updates as usual.
Just a monthly maintenance update
Sent from Samsung Galaxy S 6 Edge+
Kinda hoping it included the WiFi calling update.
dbltap said:
Kinda hoping it included the WiFi calling update.
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Click to collapse
Is it not?
findinghomer said:
Is it not?
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Nope. Just a security update as stated above.. Hopefully the update in January will include the WiFi calling.
dbltap said:
Nope. Just a security update as stated above.. Hopefully the update in January will include the WiFi calling.
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Click to collapse
Which is odd, being that the update rolled out at the beginning of the month. You would think the Edge + would be a part of that rollout.
Great no Root, no marshmallows. Love the phone but this should be getting newest sw since it came out with note 5 and they're supposed to be flagship phones but vzw is taking a top spec phone and lock it down so you can't take advantage of the upgraded hardware on the phone.
We jumped on a new, plus sized version, full feauture new tech phone. We spent extra for the phone foregoing the micro sd card and user accessible battery so at least let us experience the benefits of having this phone with software that can exploit these features instead of keeping us on lollipop and locking down the bootloader and preventing root. The s5 and s4 even in lolipop are rootable along with most of the s6 and s6 edge by other US providers. At least let us utilize the features we paid the extra money for the edge plus especially mine is the 64gb version and i would've gotten the s6 edge w 128gb if i knew vz would neuter the phone capabilities.
nj12nets said:
Great no Root, no marshmallows. Love the phone but this should be getting newest sw since it came out with note 5 and they're supposed to be flagship phones but vzw is taking a top spec phone and lock it down so you can't take advantage of the upgraded hardware on the phone.
We jumped on a new, plus sized version, full feauture new tech phone. We spent extra for the phone foregoing the micro sd card and user accessible battery so at least let us experience the benefits of having this phone with software that can exploit these features instead of keeping us on lollipop and locking down the bootloader and preventing root. The s5 and s4 even in lolipop are rootable along with most of the s6 and s6 edge by other US providers. At least let us utilize the features we paid the extra money for the edge plus especially mine is the 64gb version and i would've gotten the s6 edge w 128gb if i knew vz would neuter the phone capabilities.
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Really? Samsung needs to release Marshmallow on the hardware before Verizon can - so don't knock Verizon for "locking it down"
You don't need root to "utilize the features you paid extra money for."
Yes, it would be nice to have a rootable phone, but you knew, or at least should have known, going in that vzw phones are now nearly impossible to root.
Your heart is in the right place, but your arguments make no sense
I gave up my Note 4 Developer edition.. Which had a open bootloader and all that. I came fo this understanding I wasn't going to root, especially since theres no SDcard. I came for the pay features and other goodies. Im not missing root as I thought I would as every phone ive had since android 1.6, i rooted.
Matttrix said:
I gave up my Note 4 Developer edition.. Which had a open bootloader and all that. I came fo this understanding I wasn't going to root, especially since theres no SDcard. I came for the pay features and other goodies. Im not missing root as I thought I would as every phone ive had since android 1.6, i rooted.
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I agree with you - this is the first Android phone I've had (and I've had them since Cupcake) that isn't rooted.

Dying Note II, rootable replaement available? [HELP!]

Got a dying NoteII (need to replace the USB port and apparently as of yesterday, re-flash the PIT)... so for the moment I have no phone and I'm going into withdrawal
I've got an upgrade available on Verizon, so I'll get a phone through there, but I'm trying to find something that's flashable or at least rootable, ideally QHD (1440x2560), MicroSD, removable battery.
Any 'phablet' class, 5.3"++, phones on verizon that are rootable/flashable, that have at least two of those three things? SD slot I can live without if I can get 64GB internal memory or higher, but there doesn't seem to be much of that on verizon, and less and less rootable, too
At the moment I'm leaning to the nexus 6 or Note 3, those seem to be the most recent/'best' phones that I can get at the moment, but I'm hoping there's some I've missed, that are better!
Any suggestions, anyone?
Haven't been able to find a list of what Verizon phones are rooted/romable, but apparently the LG V10 is as of this week, so I'm likely going with that, unless anyone has any better suggestions?
christiebunny said:
Haven't been able to find a list of what Verizon phones are rooted/romable, but apparently the LG V10 is as of this week, so I'm likely going with that, unless anyone has any better suggestions?
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Based on my experience, btw, if you're having PIT issues - like, recovery is throwing up errors about unable to mount partitions - then your eMMC is hosed. Happened to me recently and took me forever to realize it wasn't something I could fix in software. If the display on your phone is in decent shape, though, someone with a cracked/burned-in screen would probably love it, and at least earn you some cash towards a newer phone.
Sadly, the selection of phones for Verizon is pretty sparse. Your best bet these days is buying one outright - Moto X Pure, N6P, international version of the S7/S7 Edge etc - so that bootloader and rooting are never an issue, plus not dealing with Verizon bloatware. Financing outside of Verizon is the way to go, and at that point, you might as well look at an MVNO with good coverage and cheaper rates on data.
Ended up getting the V10, for ~$400 ($18/mo), should be here by morning!
I think the Nexus would have been the best choice, as it is not really a proprietary Verizon phone, but you can always return the V10 and say you did not like it.

Potential new customer. 5X US and development/issues

So I've been out of the loop for about a year now and looking to grab the Honor 5X US version on at&t or T-Mobile. My last phone I kept for 2 years almost ZTE Boost Max(Iconic)
and basically all I did was play with it. Meaning root, PhilZ, Link2sd, Viper4android, and most importantly Xposed.
My questions. Is it a easy plug n play going to a new carrier at&t or T-Mobile in the US with this phone. No issues at all right.
Is all development pretty good. Plenty of options. With the ZTE phone is 1 option for everything and nothing else. I did end up with a custom rom/kernel and a overclocked cpu. Do we have those options.
Thanks in advance I've limited the phone choices to just a couple. $250 budget and want development options and ease of carrier use
AT&T won't be a problem. T-Mob is missing support for LTE Band 12. I've read in these boards that support is coming soon (maybe in the MM update?). I'm not sure about WiFi calling. Normally you need carrier firmware for that type of functionality though.
Dev support seems healthy enough. I'd recommend looking in the development section and judging for yourself
It should be noted that while band 12 support is missing, you can still use the phone on T-Mobile, and you can still get 4G LTE (if it's available in your area).
I don't have WiFi calling here, and you probably do need carrier firmware for that.
Wifi calling wasn't really something I need. I've never experienced good wifi calling reception in the past. I just remember a year or so ago when the new wave of unlocked phones hit like One Plus, and so on there were always issues with not having LTE or something. Good to know at&t is fully supported. I'm a buy and hook up myself online person. Can't stand dealing with customer service on the phone.
So ultimately hows the phone in terms of everything. Signal? Options? Dependability?
So we still don't have MM available on the phones? This is concerning as I wanted the newest OS. The one thing I never liked about android vs Apple. When an update hit, everyone within a 2 year old phone got that update that day. MM came out around XMas so I was hoping for it.
Thanks for the replies and I'm late replying as I'm just a very patient shopper. Any new phone I buy I keep 1-2 years depending
If y'all want latest updates to android. Then there's no doubt about it as we all know this on XDA.........buy a nexus devices
Sent from my Nexus 5X using XDA-Developers mobile app

Question Bye Exynos. Unlocked bootloaders?

With Samsung ditching Exynos. Will bootloaders come unlocked from now on? North America? Europe?
More than likely. Snaps are notoriously hard to root. I wouldn't even consider it with my N10+'s.
Newer models will likely be even more locked down.
Samsung doesn't care to have the niche market of power users anymore. A market they help to create. They just want your green backs.
Samsung used to advertise how they weren't like Apple. Not anymore. Apple did better in the last quarter too. Great plan Sammy... more of the bs that got you into this hole.
blackhawk said:
More than likely. Snaps are notoriously hard to root. I wouldn't even consider it with my N10+'s.
Newer models will likely be even more locked down.
Samsung doesn't care to have the niche market of power users anymore. A market they help to create. They just want your green backs.
Samsung used to advertise how they weren't like Apple. Not anymore. Apple did better in the last quarter too. Great plan Sammy... more of the bs that got you into this hole.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
not really hard its just depends on the manufacturer
blackhawk said:
More than likely. Snaps are notoriously hard to root. I wouldn't even consider it with my N10+'s.
Newer models will likely be even more locked down.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not like that. Usually before S22 Samsung was giving SD version only to limited carrier and those are locked bootloader so not possible /hard to root
Since S22 many regions got SD like Asian countries and those SD version are as easy to root like exynos
So irrespective of SD or Exynos, root capabilities should remain same regional specific rather than CPU specific
The only SnapDragon CPU devices that are hard to root, are the devices usually designed for South America, at least when it comes to Samsung devices.
dr.ketan said:
It's not like that. Usually before S22 Samsung was giving SD version only to limited carrier and those are locked bootloader so not possible /hard to root
Since S22 many regions got SD like Asian countries and those SD version are as easy to root like exynos
So irrespective of SD or Exynos, root capabilities should remain same regional specific rather than CPU specific
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good news then once proven.
Unfortunately I'm in the US. There's also the Knox efuse that gets tripped. That's ok though as my only real incentive to root would be to get out of Android 11 or higher load. Pie remains my favorite version. The way things are going I'll likely ditch Samsung once I stop using my N10+'s years from now.
dr.ketan said:
It's not like that. Usually before S22 Samsung was giving SD version only to limited carrier and those are locked bootloader so not possible /hard to root
Since S22 many regions got SD like Asian countries and those SD version are as easy to root like exynos
So irrespective of SD or Exynos, root capabilities should remain same regional specific rather than CPU specific
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, i Have now switched to Samsung after years of Oneplus, my journey ended then with the Samsung S5 and started with the OP5t and 8t so far.
Now I have turned back to Samsung and would be very happy to get root support of the Samsung S23 Ultra from you.
I've been watching your site since the S21 and think their work is great.
If one purchases the Tweaks Pro package from you, is there also a Telegram or general support group? I would be happy to join there.
U.S. Carriers demand that Bootloader's be locked down. So it is highly unlikely U.S. models will be unlockable anytime soon.
Paul_Deemer said:
U.S. Carriers demand that Bootloader's be locked down. So it is highly unlikely U.S. models will be unlockable anytime soon.
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Click to collapse
This is false. Verizon demands it but AT&T and T-Mobile don't care once it has been paid off and SIM unlocked.
EtherealRemnant said:
This is false. Verizon demands it but AT&T and T-Mobile don't care once it has been paid off and SIM unlocked.
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Not False according to this. U.S. S22 models were not rootable so why would the U.S. S23 models be any different?
Paul_Deemer said:
Not False according to this. U.S. S22 models were not rootable so why would the U.S. S23 models be any different?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am saying it's false that carriers demand it. They've sold other devices that have unlockable bootloaders, it's just Samsung that does the full lockdown nonsense. Also, if it was just the carriers demanding it, the factory unlocked model would be bootloader unlockable as the carriers can't control those - and it is well known that they're in fact not unlockable either. Samsung makes a choice to lock down the US devices.
EtherealRemnant said:
I am saying it's false that carriers demand it. They've sold other devices that have unlockable bootloaders, it's just Samsung that does the full lockdown nonsense. Also, if it was just the carriers demanding it, the factory unlocked model would be bootloader unlockable as the carriers can't control those - and it is well known that they're in fact not unlockable either. Samsung makes a choice to lock down the US devices.
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Click to collapse
Probably true about the US variants but make no mistake Samsung is actively partnered with at least AT&T. AT&T provides Samsung with the firmware specs they want. AT&T therefore has much more leverage than an individual consumer with Samsung. Don't ever let AT&T play off issues by saying they have no input or control of the firmware as in fact they very much do.
blackhawk said:
Probably true about the US variants but make no mistake Samsung is actively partnered with at least AT&T. AT&T provides Samsung with the firmware specs they want. AT&T therefore has much more leverage than an individual consumer with Samsung. Don't ever let AT&T play off issues by saying they have no input or control of the firmware as in fact they very much do.
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Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets are high quality and incur higher BoM (Bill of Material).
Network providers in U.S.A such as Verizon have stringent requirements which Qualcomm SoC pass. Samsung needs to use Snapdragon SoC if they want to launch their devices there.
In order to maintain profit healthy, Samsung use their SoC in other regions.
Further proof that Qualcomm and US Carriers are in the cahoots together and probably why Samsung locks the bootloader because that's the way the carriers want it.
blackhawk said:
Probably true about the US variants but make no mistake Samsung is actively partnered with at least AT&T. AT&T provides Samsung with the firmware specs they want. AT&T therefore has much more leverage than an individual consumer with Samsung. Don't ever let AT&T play off issues by saying they have no input or control of the firmware as in fact they very much do.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile are actively involved in firmware for their devices and for unlocked devices with their network SIM cards but that would never stop Samsung from having an unlocked bootloader on the factory unlocked device if they cared to allow it. They like having us locked in.
EtherealRemnant said:
They like having us locked in.
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Truth. I've had my fill of Samsung's bs. I'll run my N10+'s as long as they're serviceable on Android 9/10 and fulfilling their mission. After which who ever has the best UI, display, form factor, expandable storage and hopefully an spen. Probably 3-5 years from now
blackhawk said:
Truth. I've had my fill of Samsung's bs. I'll run my N10+'s as long as they're serviceable on Android 9/10 and fulfilling their mission. After which who ever has the best UI, display, form factor, expandable storage and hopefully an spen. Probably 3-5 years from now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Personally I don't really care about the locked bootloader cause I have no need to root. I just want Decent Battery Life, Incredible Camera Photos and a Great Gaming experience and Samsung can lock the bootloader till hell freezes over and it won't bother me a bit.
Paul_Deemer said:
Personally I don't really care about the locked bootloader cause I have no need to root. I just want Decent Battery Life, Incredible Camera Photos and a Great Gaming experience and Samsung can lock the bootloader till hell freezes over and it won't bother me a bit.
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I run stock as well... and once optimized they run well. Not optimized they're hot running power hogs. Expandable storage is not negotiable for me. Every computer I own is dual drive by intent.
One thing that I don't like about Samsung is they're always mucking with the Package Disabler apps trying to shut them down over the misuse of the Knox licensing.
Samsung could include a native disabler app. Been suggesting that to them for 8 years running. Samsung's customer support is worse than Sony's... and Sony's is terrible.
If the N10+ was like the N9 I be in a jam, fortunately it's a huge performance leap. Enough so that nothing since it compels me to replace it.
There's been nothing in 3+ years from Samsung that can directly supersede it. Don't need 5G, prefer the better color/gamma accuracy over variable refresh rate displays, and don't want a thicker, heavier phone with less SOT!
So it's the hardware that's the primary issue for me along with Android 11 and up. I want Samsung to provide workarounds for scoped storage in the UI. Fat chance. So then an unlocked bootloader is the only way to achieve this and even then it be a major pain. I don't pay for pain... got lots of it for free
Received today polish 1tb SM-S918B
Oem unlock is switchable
Paul_Deemer said:
Personally I don't really care about the locked bootloader cause I have no need to root. I just want Decent Battery Life, Incredible Camera Photos and a Great Gaming experience and Samsung can lock the bootloader till hell freezes over and it won't bother me a bit.
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Then why are you on xda? I mean, xda has been known for years for development,tinkering and rooting. Anyways, rooting for viper4android, custom fonts, de bloating, customizing anything you desire is why people root.
Been rooting since android 2 but can't even get this S23 into bootloader or recovery mode. It always boots normally regardless of which buttons I hold. What's the correct procedure?

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