ASUS ZF3U Nougat/Android 7.0 AUG-2017 Update Released [OTA and Manual Available] - Asus ZenFone 3 Ultra Guides, News, & Discussion

UPDATED TOPIC! 02.08.2017
ASUS has released the NEWEST Nougat Update for ZF3U:
Newest Release: Version WW-14.1010.1706.50 Release Date: 2017/08/01 Size: 1.71 GBytes
Previous Version: Version WW_14.1010.1705.49 Release Date: 21.06.2017
Here is the official Update for Manual Install. DIRECT from ASUS Servers. Version WW-14.1010.1706.50 Release Date: 2017/08/01 Size: 1.71 GBytes
http://dlcdnet.asus.com/pub/ASUS/ZenFone/ZU680KL/UL-ASUS_A001-WW-14.1010.1706.50-user.zip
Via:
http://https://www.asus.com/Phone/ZenFone-3-Ultra-ZU680KL/HelpDesk_Download/
If the link is expired Get it from the Asus ZenFone 3 Ultra Support and Firmware Website under Drivers and Tools-ANDROID Section. It is for the WW Version:
UPDATE! :OTA Update Working ONLY with phones with LOCKED Bootloaders. The Manual Update will work with both LOCKED and UNLOCKED Bootloaders. I have tested the OTA Update and after I unlocked my ZF3U's bootloader, I can no longer get update notification (on my previous ZF3U-I am on my 2nd one). From what I have read, ASUS servers block any devices with unlocked bootloaders from accessing automatic system updates. My only option is to find a way to RELOCK the bootloader or use the Manual Update file.
Enjoy!
Changelog:
Android 7.0 Nougat comes with handful of features such as App Shortcuts, Multi Window support, restart setting to power menu, Launch the camera by pressing the power button twice, Image Keyboard support, 100 emoji added, GIF Support, Quick Reply via Notification, Notification Redesigned panel, Notifications prioritization, Enhanced Doze Mode, System UI Tuner, Customizable Quick Settings, Don Not Disturb, New Settings Panel Redesigned, Data Saver per App, seamless updates and New Emoji Support.
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ASUS ZenFone 3 Ultra=ZU680KL(A001) software Image:V14.1010.1706.50 for WW SKU only*
Improvement Item：
1.Modify strings in several apps
2.Google security patch update
3.Update FR E-label
For more information please refer to：
TW：http://www.asus.com/zentalk/tw/ReleaseNotes
WW：http://www.asus.com/zentalk/ReleaseNotes
Steps of Update:
1.Check software version of your device**
2.Download device software and Update SOP (From “Manual” Item)
3.Only apply to same SKU update, Example: WW->WW, CN->CN, .
4.Software update cannot transfer the software SKU and downgrade the software version.
5.Wrong SKU may cause update failure, please update the same SKU version only.
*How to know the device model?
Path: Settings->About-> Model number
Example: ASUS_Z00ED
**How to know the device software version?
Path: Settings->About-> software information->Build number

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AWFRONT said:
The Asus Zenfone 3 Ultra is now receiving the Android 7.0 Nougat update with software version 14.1010.1702.36. The update is rolling out over-the-air.
Check for it from Settings > About > System Updates on your Zenfone 3 Ultra. If you’ve got the update, go ahead and download/install it.
It appears to be currently available for the WW (Worldwide Version)
Currently no manual install file is available but I guess this will be available very soon. I also think this may be the first and last final update from ASUS for the ZF3U before they launch another version but it is nice to have the newest version after all and I very much look foreard to making use of multi-window on the device.
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Mine is WW version but couldn't receive the update yet. Why?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

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ctorbaoglu said:
AWFRONT said:
The Asus Zenfone 3 Ultra is now receiving the Android 7.0 Nougat update with software version 14.1010.1702.36. The update is rolling out over-the-air.
Check for it from Settings > About > System Updates on your Zenfone 3 Ultra. If you’ve got the update, go ahead and download/install it.
It appears to be currently available for the WW (Worldwide Version)
Currently no manual install file is available but I guess this will be available very soon. I also think this may be the first and last final update from ASUS for the ZF3U before they launch another version but it is nice to have the newest version after all and I very much look foreard to making use of multi-window on the device.
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Mine is WW version but couldn't receive the update yet. Why?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It may be because your Bootloader is unlocked. If it is you will not receive the update. My ZF3U's bootloader was locked when I received the update. However, when I unlocked the bootloader, rooted and then decided to wipe everything through TWRP to do a fresh install of everything to reinstall Android 7.0 the trouble started. Now, I cannot do firmware update using the system Update menu (notification of update availability is not there). This is because the bootloader is now unlocked and I don't know if it is possible to relock it. I guess I have to wait for the full manual package of Android 7 to become available or see if anyone can help me to relock the bootloader and then update from Android 6.0 original firmware. I was excited to be finally getting Android 7.0 but only managed to use it for 1 day. Oh well, you live and learn.:crying:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

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UPDATE! As some of us have found out. ASUS has now removed the Nougat firmware (MANUAL Update file) for the ZF3U. As my device's bootloader is unlocked I can no longer receive OTA updates. Perhaps someone could give us an update on the status of the OTA release of Nougat for the ZF3U. I have downloaded the file before removal and successfully installed it. I don't mind uploading it to a file sharing website. However, I am currently using it and I am still having the same issues I had when I used the OTA update, so my advice is for everyone to wait for a confirmed final version of the firmware as the version we have may still be buggy. This may be the reason why they removed it and lets hope they fix and reupload soon. Here are quick my observations of the firmware;
-Fingerprint scanner still not registering when device is setup for the first time or under settings later,
-Screen Rotation is not functional on some of my apps that were able to use it previously with Android 6.0
-My device serial nunber has changed to 111111111111111 (15x1s)( I tried lots of things to put it right but all attempts failed)
-Dual Sim settings access from the notification menu shortcuts is no longer there (it was very useful for me),
-Multi-Window is not operating on all the apps for some reason. On the OTA that i had installed I was able to use it but on the manual firmware file this does not seem to work properly.
-My device is no longer showing under my ASUS account as a registered device (I don't know if this is a firmware issue or not as bootloader does show the correct serial no)
Also, does anyone know how or where in the firmware I can extract the boot.img, recovery.img and all the othr essential .img files to restore stocj recovery after root/twrp installation?
If anyone has any ideas as to why the serial number and fingerprint issues are there, I would like to hear from you. Other issues are tolerable. Thanks.

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AWFRONT said:
UPDATE! As some of us have found out. ASUS has now removed the Nougat firmware (MANUAL Update file) for the ZF3U. As my device's bootloader is unlocked I can no longer receive OTA updates. Perhaps someone could give us an update on the status of the OTA release of Nougat for the ZF3U. I have downloaded the file before removal and successfully installed it. I don't mind uploading it to a file sharing website. However, I am currently using it and I am still having the same issues I had when I used the OTA update, so my advice is for everyone to wait for a confirmed final version of the firmware as the version we have may still be buggy. This may be the reason why they removed it and lets hope they fix and reupload soon. Here are quick my observations of the firmware;
-Fingerprint scanner still not registering when device is setup for the first time or under settings later,
-Screen Rotation is not functional on some of my apps that were able to use it previously with Android 6.0
-My device serial nunber has changed to 111111111111111 (15x1s)( I tried lots of things to put it right but all attempts failed)
-Dual Sim settings access from the notification menu shortcuts is no longer there (it was very useful for me),
-Multi-Window is not operating on all the apps for some reason. On the OTA that i had installed I was able to use it but on the manual firmware file this does not seem to work properly.
-My device is no longer showing under my ASUS account as a registered device (I don't know if this is a firmware issue or not as bootloader does show the correct serial no)
Also, does anyone know how or where in the firmware I can extract the boot.img, recovery.img and all the othr essential .img files to restore stocj recovery after root/twrp installation?
If anyone has any ideas as to why the serial number and fingerprint issues are there, I would like to hear from you. Other issues are tolerable. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After some thought on your issue, do you now which version of the device you have? Maybe you have an China(CN) device and not World Wide(WW)? Just trying to think about your issues and it seems to possibly be that your firmware may not working correctly. This very well maybe because ASUS dropped a faulty firmware on you/us, or maybe because you tried WW firmware on a CN device? Or vice versa? Have you looked into what would happen if a firmware for a different region was installed on a device?
As for the images, I believe you can get the boot.img inside the firmware zip files you download from ASUS. Just unpack it and the boot.img should be in the root of that folder. I can't find the recovery.img from anywhere, other than from Shaka's megadownload page. I was able to get that one working on my Zenfone though and successfully put my Zf3U back to stock.

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doctahjeph said:
After some thought on your issue, do you now which version of the device you have? Maybe you have an China(CN) device and not World Wide(WW)? Just trying to think about your issues and it seems to possibly be that your firmware may not working correctly. This very well maybe because ASUS dropped a faulty firmware on you/us, or maybe because you tried WW firmware on a CN device? Or vice versa? Have you looked into what would happen if a firmware for a different region was installed on a device?
As for the images, I believe you can get the boot.img inside the firmware zip files you download from ASUS. Just unpack it and the boot.img should be in the root of that folder. I can't find the recovery.img from anywhere, other than from Shaka's megadownload page. I was able to get that one working on my Zenfone though and successfully put my Zf3U back to stock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply. My version of ZF3U is the Worldwide WW version and the firmware is definitely the correct one as stated on the original changelog from ASUS as I posted above. I have not tried the CN firmware but I am tempted to give it a go to see what happens. I also noticed that everytime I go into recovery via TWRP I see this red message stating "failed to mount factory/partition [invalid parameters]"
What does this mean and could the phone be stuck between two firmwares and not sure what to do even though I have wiped every wipeable area using TWRP(like I used to with Samsung devices but not sure if this could have caused it). Could this explain why I still cannot use fingerprint scanner on neither Android 7 nor Android 6.
At one point I used the ASUS Flash Tool and I noticed a message whilst attempting to load the firmware stating something like 'encrypting device.....' does this mean anything? Has my device been encrypted somehow in the process resulting in lack of fingerprint registrations on the scanner. Coming from Samsung/Sony/Huawei devices, I am finding the update process with ASUS a bit of a hassle but lets hope they will fix this soon as I believe that currently there is no phablet better than ZF3U. Due to the fact that the firmware has now been removed from their servers, I am beginning to believe that the firmware is faulty and is not doing a clean wipe/reinstall of all parts of the device configurations.

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AWFRONT said:
Thanks for the reply. My version of ZF3U is the Worldwide WW version and the firmware is definitely the correct one as stated on the original changelog from ASUS as I posted above. I have not tried the CN firmware but I am tempted to give it a go to see what happens. I also noticed that everytime I go into recovery via TWRP I see this red message stating "failed to mount factory/partition [invalid parameters]"
What does this mean and could the phone be stuck between two firmwares and not sure what to do even though I have wiped every wipeable area using TWRP(like I used to with Samsung devices but not sure if this could have caused it). Could this explain why I still cannot use fingerprint scanner on neither Android 7 nor Android 6.
At one point I used the ASUS Flash Tool and I noticed a message whilst attempting to load the firmware stating something like 'encrypting device.....' does this mean anything? Has my device been encrypted somehow in the process resulting in lack of fingerprint registrations on the scanner. Coming from Samsung/Sony/Huawei devices, I am finding the update process with ASUS a bit of a hassle but lets hope they will fix this soon as I believe that currently there is no phablet better than ZF3U. Due to the fact that the firmware has now been removed from their servers, I am beginning to believe that the firmware is faulty and is not doing a clean wipe/reinstall of all parts of the device configurations.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hhhmmm, I had a similar issue with a corrupted cache partition that was causing boot loops. I was able to get it fixed. Try this. Download the latest WW firmware from the website, MM no nougat. Then flash the original boot.img and recovery.img from Shaka's megadownload page. Boot into stock recovery and do a factory reset. They should wipe all the partitions and format them again. After that install update from SD card and choose the latest WW firmware zip you just downloaded. Profit??

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doctahjeph said:
hhhmmm, I had a similar issue with a corrupted cache partition that was causing boot loops. I was able to get it fixed. Try this. Download the latest WW firmware from the website, MM no nougat. Then flash the original boot.img and recovery.img from Shaka's megadownload page. Boot into stock recovery and do a factory reset. They should wipe all the partitions and format them again. After that install update from SD card and choose the latest WW firmware zip you just downloaded. Profit??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have tried your suggestion numerous times and;
-it appears that when I boot to Android M, I don't have any sound in calls, fingerprint and other issues fully remain.
-when I upgrade to Android N, then Iam able to hear call sounds but fingerprint scanner still does not register and other issues still remain.
I have a feeling that somewhere along the process my device has enabled some sort of encryption and this is preventing the device from enabling all the features. No matter how many times I install/reinstall/wipe using stock or TWRP no change.
Does anyome know how I could disable encryption either using some sort of google service or through root etc... In settings device reports that it is encrypted. Also when I first booted the device after firmware update encrypting device message was shown. Not sure whats going on with my device. Hope to find out/fix soon though.

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ASUS Releases new update to fix the previously faulty update that was withdrawn.
Latest Version WW-14.1010.1703.42
Previous Version [Withdrawn due to faults] WW-14.1010.1703.36
I have updated my original post (First Post of the Topic) with all the latest links and the newest changelog.
Enjoy!

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AWFRONT said:
ASUS Releases new update to fix the previously faulty update that was withdrawn.
Latest Version WW-14.1010.1703.42
Previous Version [Withdrawn due to faults] WW-14.1010.1703.36
I have updated my original post (First Post of the Topic) with all the latest links and the newest changelog.
Enjoy!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
???? Thank you!!!

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ASUS has released the NEWEST Nougat Update for ZF3U.
Version WW-14.1010.1706.50 2017/08/01 Size 1.71 GBytes
ASUS ZenFone 3 Ultra=ZU680KL(A001) software Image:V14.1010.1706.50 for WW SKU only*
Improvement Item：
1.Modify strings in several apps
2.Google security patch update
3.Update FR E-label
For more information please refer to：
TW：http://www.asus.com/zentalk/tw/ReleaseNotes
WW：http://www.asus.com/zentalk/ReleaseNotes
Steps of Update:
1.Check software version of your device**
2.Download device software and Update SOP (From “Manual” Item)
3.Only apply to same SKU update, Example: WW->WW, CN->CN, .
4.Software update cannot transfer the software SKU and downgrade the software version.
5.Wrong SKU may cause update failure, please update the same SKU version only.
*How to know the device model?
Path: Settings->About-> Model number
Example: ASUS_Z00ED
**How to know the device software version?
Path: Settings->About-> software information->Build number
Once again, I have updated my original post (First Post of the Topic) with all the latest links and the newest changelog.
Enjoy!

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Never mind.

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AWFRONT said:
Thanks for the reply. My version of ZF3U is the Worldwide WW version and the firmware is definitely the correct one as stated on the original changelog from ASUS as I posted above. I have not tried the CN firmware but I am tempted to give it a go to see what happens. I also noticed that everytime I go into recovery via TWRP I see this red message stating "failed to mount factory/partition [invalid parameters]"
What does this mean and could the phone be stuck between two firmwares and not sure what to do even though I have wiped every wipeable area using TWRP(like I used to with Samsung devices but not sure if this could have caused it). Could this explain why I still cannot use fingerprint scanner on neither Android 7 nor Android 6.
At one point I used the ASUS Flash Tool and I noticed a message whilst attempting to load the firmware stating something like 'encrypting device.....' does this mean anything? Has my device been encrypted somehow in the process resulting in lack of fingerprint registrations on the scanner. Coming from Samsung/Sony/Huawei devices, I am finding the update process with ASUS a bit of a hassle but lets hope they will fix this soon as I believe that currently there is no phablet better than ZF3U. Due to the fact that the firmware has now been removed from their servers, I am beginning to believe that the firmware is faulty and is not doing a clean wipe/reinstall of all parts of the device configurations.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey @AWFRONT How did u manage to go back from android 7 to 6 ...i recently updated my phone to nougat and want to go back to mm. Could u help me out I have unlocked bootloader

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Hi! I did not downgrade from Android 7.0 to 6.0 on my new/2nd ZF3U. If you read a post I made in another topic you will see that I am now on my 2nd ZF3U because the 1st one had some serious issues and then it powered off so I gave up and sent for repair through my insurance but they said it could not be repaired so I bought another one with the payout I received and this one I am using, I use in its factory state with Bootloader locked and unrooted and given the lack of developer support for this handset, I do not want to modify anything.
My advice would be to stick with Android 7.0 and if there are any features you are missing then write them out and send to Asus and hope thy will fix in future update. With my previous ZF3U, I did do a downgrade on the 1st ZF3U but this resulted in Fingerprint scanner failing and I could not hear the other side when making and receiving calls and the device serial number in About Phone section was incorrect (changed to all 1s).Unless you have insurance and a spare phone, I would not recommend you downgrading. Too much of a risk with this handset. If you want to do it, then go ahead and you can share yoir findings here.
Instructions to follow:
-Disable and erase fngerprint records in settings
-Prepare a microsd card with the MM manual firmware in it and reboot into recovery.
-If you are rooted then wipe cache and factory reset but do not wipe data/system partition,
-Select update from SD Card and select firmware file and wait for the process to complete.
-reboot back.into recovery, you should hopefully see the factory kernel has downgraded to I think version 1.26 from 3.11 and then do another factory wipe and reboot and see the results.
Sorry, cannot be of much help but I wish the developers could pay a little bit more attention to this device like the Samsung Note series.?

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AWFRONT said:
Hi! I did not downgrade from Android 7.0 to 6.0 on my new/2nd ZF3U. If you read a post I made in another topic you will see that I am now on my 2nd ZF3U because the 1st one had some serious issues and then it powered off so I gave up and sent for repair through my insurance but they said it could not be repaired so I bought another one with the payout I received and this one I am using, I use in its factory state with Bootloader locked and unrooted and given the lack of developer support for this handset, I do not want to modify anything.
My advice would be to stick with Android 7.0 and if there are any features you are missing then write them out and send to Asus and hope thy will fix in future update. With my previous ZF3U, I did do a downgrade on the 1st ZF3U but this resulted in Fingerprint scanner failing and I could not hear the other side when making and receiving calls and the device serial number in About Phone section was incorrect (changed to all 1s).Unless you have insurance and a spare phone, I would not recommend you downgrading. Too much of a risk with this handset. If you want to do it, then go ahead and you can share yoir findings here.
Instructions to follow:
-Disable and erase fngerprint records in settings
-Prepare a microsd card with the MM manual firmware in it and reboot into recovery.
-If you are rooted then wipe cache and factory reset but do not wipe data/system partition,
-Select update from SD Card and select firmware file and wait for the process to complete.
-reboot back.into recovery, you should hopefully see the factory kernel has downgraded to I think version 1.26 from 3.11 and then do another factory wipe and reboot and see the results.
Sorry, cannot be of much help but I wish the developers could pay a little bit more attention to this device like the Samsung Note series.?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
all of this from twrp or stock recovery

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If you have TWRP installed then apply from it, if not you can use the stock recovery of Android 6.0 as posted in one of the topics of ZF3U forum sections and flash it using custom recovery and then flash the appropriate firmware file of Android MM version 6.0 and on completion wipe cache, factory data and reboot.
Due to lack of developer support for this device, I do not recommend that you rollback the firmware. When my 1st device failed I realised that ASUS devices don't have the software fixability ease of Samsung devices so I am using my 2nd ZF3U in its original factory state. I love the device as it is and don't want to mess with it and root is no longer important to me.

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does anyone know if this latest firmware update Version WW-14.1010.1706.50 2017/08/01 Size 1.71 GBytes is still rootable before i update from Android 7.0 (WW_14.1010.1703.42),thanks

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gubbilo144 said:
does anyone know if this latest firmware update Version WW-14.1010.1706.50 2017/08/01 Size 1.71 GBytes is still rootable before i update from Android 7.0 (WW_14.1010.1703.42),thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
mine is

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Malam

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anybody updated to WW-14.1010.1711.62 is it still 7.0 or 7.1.1