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To get to the point, people DON'T UPDATE YOUR VIBRANTS and T-MOBILE HANDLES THE ISSUE HORRIBLY! Obviously this is not a universal problem, but if you do happen to be one of the lucky ones that bricks their phone with the update there is no saving it (at least with the help of T-mobile).
I just got off of the phone with tech support and they were less than helpful. After the regular punching in numbers, talking to two different people, and trying to re-boots that everyone with half a brain have tried, they informed me that they would replace the phone but I had to PAY for shipping. While I realize this is a normal policy when it comes to random malfunctions, which may or may not have been the users fault, this is absolutely ridiculous when the problem is 100% their fault. Seriously, T-mobile ships a top of the line phone that has some major flaws and inactivated software (media hub), then breaks the phone with it's official update, and somehow this is MY responsibility to pay to get fixed? The rep even asked if I at this point wanted to add insurance so next time I wouldn't have to pay for shipping and if I wanted to pay extra for expedited shipping! They were trying to make an add-on sale while fixing an issue THEY caused!
That's not even the end of it, because I was so irritated they sent me to a "loyalty specialist" (who sounded like a used car salesman). He rambled on about how he would waive the shipping fee (he made it sound like he just saved my first born child). I told him I appreciated that but it didn't fix the fact that T-Mobile was not handling the issue well. When a large number of phones break from an issue originating from the provider they should either 1) have re-furbished phones (or even set aside new phones if necessary) to replace these broken phones as they come up or 2) offer free over night shipping of the replacement phone. He told me that these options were too expensive for T-Mobile, and that if I like I could sign up for either of their two insurance plans, as they would allow me to do an in-store replacement (he later noted that one of them was only available within the first 14 days of owning the phone...). I couldn't believe they were trying to another add-on sale! The best part being, I later called around to all my local T-Mobile owned stores and none of them have the Vibrant available for in-store replacement (and never have).
So the Cliff-Notes of my rant:
1) DON'T UPDATE YOUR VIBRANT
2) If you did brick your phone, make sure to complain and they should refund the ridiculous shipping charge
3) If you don't own a Vibrant and are thinking about it consider the following (Don't let it stop you, just consider it):
- Still on 2.1, when Nexus One has been on 2.2 for months (and the Galaxy S 2.2 official ROM has been leaked so it does exist in some form.) => Meaning updates are super scarce and extremely late.
- T-Mobile is selling a good phone with many flaws, and their first attempt to fix it bricked many phones (do a google search I am not the only one).
- While it may be better than other companies, T-Mobiles customer service is FAR from flawless
P.S. My phone was completely stock (so please don't mention how I did this with a lag fix, etc.). I waited at least 15 mins before I pulled the battery, before which I had noted the T-Mobile sound starting without the animation (seems like a timing issue or something). And finally, I realize this is a duplicate post to many others but I want people to find this info (not be at the bottom of a really long thread) to get the word out how T-Mobile deals with their errors.
I hate when people mess with their phones then get angry at a company for "breaking" their phone. Im running stock rom with root and also got bricked, but, I manned up and knew I was in the wrong and accepted what happened. I didn't put the blame on TMo, because completely untouched vibrants that I was aware of had no issues with this OTA. If you added functionality to it after the fact that it wasn't originally on there before when you initially purchased it; then its YOUR fault that it bricked, NOT T-mobiles. Take some responsibility and stop crying.
Had the same problem but this is a pretty fix using Odin.
If you install an update from an OTA T-Mobile should be held responsible
I don't know about you guys but when you have been a customer for 10+ years, T-Mobile will pretty much suck your balls.
Either way, if you guys rooted it, then that takes the fault from T-Mobile to you. You changed the phone. The update was designed for a pristine un-edited Samsung Vibrant, if you changed anything in the system by rooting or flashing it is your fault for changing the equation. T-Mobile is NOT at fault for your actions.
Yeah why warranty the phone when you can just ODIN and fix it yourself? Do a xda search. If you're gonna use xda to complain at least use it to solve your own problems as well. Unless your phone is hardware locked it is 100 % fixable.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
starkiller86 said:
I hate when people mess with their phones then get angry at a company for "breaking" their phone. Im running stock rom with root and also got bricked, but, I manned up and knew I was in the wrong and accepted what happened. I didn't put the blame on TMo, because completely untouched vibrants that I was aware of had no issues with this OTA. If you added functionality to it after the fact that it wasn't originally on there before when you initially purchased it; then its YOUR fault that it bricked, NOT T-mobiles. Take some responsibility and stop crying.
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P.S. My phone was completely stock (so please don't mention how I did this with a lag fix, etc.). I waited at least 15 mins before I pulled the battery, before which I had noted the T-Mobile sound starting without the animation (seems like a timing issue or something). And finally, I realize this is a duplicate post to many others but I want people to find this info (not be at the bottom of a really long thread) to get the word out how T-Mobile deals with their errors
Did you not read that part?
I bricked two stock Vibrants with the update. The second one failed during Mini-Kies update and was hardware locked.
It is a known issue according to the Tech guy that I spoke to while getting my replacement.
First phone wouldn't power on after failure, second phone was hardware locked so un-fixable.
No, no.
This happened to me, I had a rooted phone I had uninstalled the inflight internet, etc on it and hadn't overclocked or anything like that. Phone kills itself. I went to the tmo store and they only make you pay for shipping if you take the overnight option.
PROTIP - DON'T ASK FOR EXTRA SPEEDY SHIPPING AND THEY'LL PAY FOR IT.
so i guess we are just SOL for the data on the phone? I just lost an entire vacation of pictures. I had not had a chance to root this phone either. this is ****ing awesome.
dechire said:
so i guess we are just SOL for the data on the phone? I just lost an entire vacation of pictures. I had not had a chance to root this phone either. this is ****ing awesome.
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I guess this is just an example of "store your pictures on the external SD card"
Then if you brick it you can still get your pictures back ....
watcher64 said:
I guess this is just an example of "store your pictures on the external SD card"
Then if you brick it you can still get your pictures back ....
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Word. That's one of the first things I did when I got the phone and was playing with the features. Switched it from phone storage to memory card.
Sorry to hear you lost photos.
Protip: Pay the damn overnight shipping fee...it'll be deducted from your bill (flex pay) which makes it free: )
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Here is the business side
If I am T mobile every time some person has a problem and I offered free shipping, the Every moron would be shipping the device back for Any problem. Way way costly, so that is not going to happen. If you Really believe the phone is factory defective then, pay the shipping and move on. If you messed with it at all then the burden to resolve is yours and be honest about that. Remember the reason people are in here is to customize the phone and improve it. Like the XDA mantra sez.......... It is not just the result... but the journey....
Like one of the other posts stated:
If you rooted it, then that takes the fault from T-Mobile to you. You changed the phone. The update was designed for a pristine un-edited Samsung Vibrant, if you changed anything in the system by rooting or flashing it is your fault for changing the equation. T-Mobile is NOT at fault for your actions.
Gr8gorilla said:
First phone wouldn't power on after failure, second phone was hardware locked so un-fixable.
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There is a hardware lock fix now, you really should flash that before you do anything else. Yeah, you run the risk of bricking with the hardware unlock, but it's probably a safer bet than flashing away.
dechire said:
so i guess we are just SOL for the data on the phone? I just lost an entire vacation of pictures. I had not had a chance to root this phone either. this is ****ing awesome.
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If you Odin it with the JI6 update, you might still be able to get a working system out of it. Worth a shot to see if you can get it without having to flash to stock first (which will wipe).
With all the time you spent with tech support, you could have found the thread that delineates how to fix your phone and update through odin. Its very easy and, frankly why be on a developers forum when you are not willing to tinker around a bit.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
dechire said:
so i guess we are just SOL for the data on the phone? I just lost an entire vacation of pictures. I had not had a chance to root this phone either. this is ****ing awesome.
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As long as the phone still powers on you can still use ADB Pull and save the data from the /sdcard folder. This update isn't a totally bricking the phone (at least it didn't mine) just making the display and inputs not work. To quote Billy Crystal: "He's only MOSTLY dead"
Odin was really simple to reflash the stock ROM and then I was able to do a nandroid restore from there.
The T-Mobile OTA update left my phone only booting to the vibrant screen, but it was a pretty simple fix with Odin. The hardest part was getting the proper drivers installed in windows!
Mini kies wouldnt even let me update,so I rooted and flashed bionix 1.8,works great.**** tmo.
Fyi to the people with hardware lock. I did the update on my gf's phone which was hardware locked and it failed. The phone would only boot to the vibrant screen. The good news is the ota update unlocks the hardware because her phone is able to get into recovery and download mode even thought the update failed. The point is don't worry if ota fail on you because you can just use odin to fix it since it unlocks the download mode.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
mr2t32 said:
Fyi to the people with hardware lock. I did the update on my gf's phone which was hardware locked and it failed. The phone would only boot to the vibrant screen. The good news is the ota update unlocks the hardware because her phone is able to get into recovery and download mode even thought the update failed. The point is don't worry if ota fail on you because you can just use odin to fix it since it unlocks the download mode.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
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If the update even gets that far...
IT'S A TRAP!
Well I just found out the hard way that VZW is even more evil than I thought.
Called about my G3 because of audio issue with the headphone jack, seeking an RMA.
Without my permission verizon ran some remote diagnosis on my phone and discovered root, right while I was on the call. Tier 2 support did this by the way.
Not sure how... I froze all the VZW bloat I could find in titanium.
Just wanted to let you guys know to watch your back. I'm not sure exactly when verizon got wind of my root. Whether it was right there while I was on call or the minute I rooted.
Verizon is literally the devil
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
What did they say once they discovered root on your phone? Just denied the RMA? Would they let you make an insurance claim at least?
The rep responded "after running diagnostics on your device I see your phone is rooted so your warranty is invalid"
Then he preceeded to try and give me instructions to call LG and get the flash tool to return to stock.
My issue with the audio jack is obviously a HW issue and not an issue with software/root
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
Always put your phone in Airplane Mode if you have to call them. If they say they need the phone turned on to run diagnostics, REFUSE, and tell them that you don't consent, or tell them that the phone is not near you, then continue talking and tell them that you're NOT calling about a software but hardware issue and there's no reason that they need to run a Software Diagnostic.
Someone else mentioned the same thing however from what I understand their system polls your phone every few hours so that may not help. Even if the phone was offline the system may still show root status regardless of the phones current state.
Couldn't hurt though...
Either way it's a little to late for me. I just hope that someone sees this thread before calling only to get a big fat middle finger from VZW.
Flash to stock and wait a bit on official software to make sure Verizon's system shows official software.
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
I woulda said root (software) has nothing to do with audio jack (hardware). Not that it wouldve really gotten you anywhere anyway.
Either way, Verizon doesnt really cover hardware warranty, they just send the phone over to LG, which the rep directed to you anyway. So sounds like youre gonna have to contact LG directly.
Or maybe you even get a do-over. You could flash back everything to stock, and then just walk into store and try the same thing. The reps at the store arent nearly as sharp as the phone reps.
Good to know tho, thx for the heads up!
Yeah but I got the phone on the VZW website on a black Friday deal. So that would leave me without a phone. I'm assuming they would have to ship it back and would not just exchange it on the spot.
Couldn't hurt though I call tomorrow and ask if they will swap it on the spot.
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
I had same exact audio jack prob on G2. They didnt take my phone or anything, they shipped me a new one and i sent back the old one afterwards. There's something like a 30 day grace period to ship your phone back before they charge you for it. Was easy peasy
---------- Post added at 06:01 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:58 PM ----------
Oh and doesnt matter where you bought the phone , its a Verizon phone and youre a Verizon customer so they will help you no matter what. That G2 was from Ebay. If its under warranty by LG, its under warranty. Again, Verizon just assists yoh with the warranty as a customer service. The money comes out of LG's pocket, not theirs.
Yeah but their service department knows I have root. I'm pretty sure they will just tell me to screw off if I go to swap the phone. But it couldn't hurt to try. Thanks for the info.
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
True but you never know, give it a shot and let us know.
---------- Post added at 06:58 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:36 PM ----------
Check out this article from Droid Life. Verizon actually saw tge article and made some clarifications in regards to root, warranty and what they consider void or not void.
Verizon Begins Charging Full Price of Warranty Phones if Rooted? (Updated)
What exactly should happen if you were to root your phone, play around with ROMs/hacks/etc., somehow manage to break it, and then send it in to Verizon for a warranty replacement? Should you be allowed to get a replacement or not? According to reports, you can get a replacement, but the rooting of your phone voids any warranty you had and gives Verizon permission to charge you for a new one if they determine that your broken phone was tampered with.
Our buddy @P3droid has apparently heard from a couple of friends who have run into the scenario that we described above and then been slapped with a pretty hefty and unannounced bill. Fair or unfair?
I’ll just say this – we’ve known that rooting your device voids your warranty since well back in the original DROID days, so it makes sense that Verizon would do this. As unpopular as this may sound, I can’t fault Big Red for going this route. If you decide to take your phone out of its original factory status, tinker with its guts, and break something, it shouldn’t be their responsibility to take care of you.
With that said though, a broken volume rocker, faulty screen, etc. has nothing do with rooting, so I’d hate to see someone get charged for something that they didn’t cause even if they decided to root. It’s an interesting topic, and one that I would love to hear all your opinions on.
Update: Our friends at Verizon saw this post and wanted to reach out to clarify everything immediately. First up, is the fact that their policy says absolutely nothing about checking for root on devices. When a phone is received, a phone is checked for three things and that definitely isn’t one of them. They check to see if the box that the device was sent in is damaged, if the outside of the phone looks awful, and if it powers on – satisfy all of those and they move on to the next phone. So basically, these reports of being charged for a rooted phone simply mean that these people were sending in garbage phone with defects.
So…sound off!
http://www.droid-life.com/2011/06/1...ging-full-price-of-warranty-phones-if-rooted/
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I would take the word of a Verizon PR Rep over some call center dweeb. Just b/c he works there doesnt mean he's rhe end all be all.
I'll tell you what's up there. Worked for the company for a while and encountered this. Rooting does not really void a warranty, as the warehouse does not check for root, they just check if a phone has physical damage to it. Now if your phone is rooted, reps are advised to tell you that it can't be supported any longer by VZW. But that could happen with any company. If you modify a LG TV, LG might not want to support it either. If you are just rooted, it might be one thing, but different roms MIGHT affect different things. Yours probably is the hardware issue though. If you haven't been already taken care of, if you call back in, just let a rep know that you don't want anyone to remotely access your phone. That is not supposed to be done without your permission. I have had a few phones replaced under warranty that had been rooted. If nothing else, just return a phone to stock. But if you don't want to worry about any of that, just turn your phone off, and tell them that you tried to accept the most recent 12B update, and now your phone won't fully boot up, and leave the phone powered off the whole time.
subhelix said:
I'll tell you what's up there. Worked for the company for a while and encountered this. Rooting does not really void a warranty, as the warehouse does not check for root, they just check if a phone has physical damage to it. Now if your phone is rooted, reps are advised to tell you that it can't be supported any longer by VZW. But that could happen with any company. If you modify a LG TV, LG might not want to support it either. If you are just rooted, it might be one thing, but different roms MIGHT affect different things. Yours probably is the hardware issue though. If you haven't been already taken care of, if you call back in, just let a rep know that you don't want anyone to remotely access your phone. That is not supposed to be done without your permission. I have had a few phones replaced under warranty that had been rooted. If nothing else, just return a phone to stock. But if you don't want to worry about any of that, just turn your phone off, and tell them that you tried to accept the most recent 12B update, and now your phone won't fully boot up, and leave the phone powered off the whole time.
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I would assume that because I have already been caught that they have the voided warranty on record... or is this not the case?
I thought that once they caught you, thats it, the jig is up and they put a note on your account that the phones warranty is void.
I think I might know what happened. I have noticed that when I first rooted my G3 (3 Days Ago) that the Verizon Mobile app asked for root permissions immediately upon rebooting for the phone. I accidentally gave it permissions and it went on about its ways. I later removed the permission and didn't worry about it any longer. Not thinking anything about it I think that once you give the Verizon app permission it will figure out your rooted and sync up with your account (which it does automatically during the setup process) by your phone number tied to the Sim card. I think that's exactly how they knew, and I think a warning goes out and is posted on the account phone number saying its a rooted device.
Possibility? Let me know.
Wow, now that I think of it, you might be right!
Same thing happened to me a few days ago. I had already granted it access before i even realized it was the actual Verizon app. Shrugged my shoulders after I realized it but thought it had something to do with the actual ROM im running (Jasmine 3.0).
That being said, if it were me, id still try the store. Things arent nearly as automated and recorded as you think they might or should be in the real world.
Not to mention, reps at the store are idiots and dont really know too much about smartphones outside of using the setup wizard. I cant tell you how many times tge in store reps have told me or someone else to call the hotline b/c they werent sure or didnt know. The physical store employees are the bottom od the Totum pole. Halfbof them are fresh out of High School
Its not just Verizon that does this by the way.. These phone companieshave this in place as a standard to protect themselves against people bricking phones, and crying out for a replacement. History has shown them that when people root, they tend to flash custom roms, and more dangerously, custom kernels.. As well, people attempt to change the way their CPU functions, and alter the phone to better its performance.. When these things are done, it changes the system hardware stability, and things can get weak or damaged.
So as a way of cutting you off from future complaints, they make it clear that if you root, your warantee is void.
NEVER tell them its rooted, never walk into a store with a rooted device and ask for help, and if you call for support, dont just put it in airplane mode.... PULL THE BATTERY!!! They are able to access your phone through GPS, wifi, bluetooth, and data connection
If the battery is in your device, it can be accessed... The Government has been doing it for years to track people...and contrary to common thought, I believe I read some documentation that "front facing" cameras were a Government idea...
Anyways, be safe, and be careful...youve just learned proof that someone is watching
JJT211 said:
Wow, now that I think of it, you might be right!
Same thing happened to me a few days ago. I had already granted it access before i even realized it was the actual Verizon app. Shrugged my shoulders after I realized it but thought it had something to do with the actual ROM im running (Jasmine 3.0).
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Why on Earth would you grant something root privileges without verifying what was asking first? This is exactly the type of thing more senior folks in the modding community are constantly complaining about.
yes NEVER EVER GIVE MY VERIZON SU!!! this is what probably happened and it throws flag in their system if you call or request service
Its totally possible.
From what I understand the response from denying root access and the response from not having it at all have two different signatures.
Once I saw a VZW app requesting root I immediately denied it. But that right there could have been the dead giveaway.
I already tried flashing back to stock using the KDZ method. Still the problem of audio quality persists.
Either way, it's BS this is most definitely a hardware issue and should be covered under warranty.
Sent from my VS985 4G using XDA Free mobile app
Yes it's BS but it shouldn't really be a surprise. And it's nothing we haven't been warned of before
I suggest calling back in. If you are now back on stock, you should have no problem. I know it sucks ass, but representatives are just doing a job. What we were told, if someone was rooted, to try to suggest that they return to stock and then we can support the phone, and that is again no matter what the issue might be. Well, as long as it can boot up. So if you flashed back to stock using the KDZ method, root should not be detected anymore. And it might have been noted at that time that it was rooted, but it's a different story now since the phone is back to stock.
Here's the background: rooted my Kyocera Brigadier last June with King Root. Installed Titanium Backup and used it to delete Verizon's bloatware from the system. I did not make backups of the programs I deleted. Phone has run great, except the last few months would not notify me when voice mail messages were left for me. In November started getting notices for updating system to Lollipop. I've been exiting out of the notice half a dozen times a day ever since. Finally, three nights ago decided to do the update. Charged battery to 100%, backed up programs and settings with Titanium backup, and tried to delete King Root. There was no option to uninstall the app in App Manager, so I disabled and re-started phone. Checked phone for root with Root Checker, found it was no longer rooted, and initiated the update. After an hour, phone would vibrate, display "Powered by Android" then the "Kyocera" splash screen, then go black, and go through the cycle all over again. I plugged the phone in to keep it charged, and let it run the cycle over night without trying to interrupt it in case the update was taking longer than expected. Next morning, same thing - vibrate, splash screens, black screen, repeat. So, I have found that I can get the phone into stock Recovery, and I have executed the "factory reset", and "clear cache" commands. Phone still does the bootloop routine. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to rescue my phone?
Same thing happened to me last night! So aggravating! I've been searching all day and found nothing for this phone. There's not much support since the bootloader is still locked down. Couldn't find a stock rom or anything otherwise we might be able to flash it through fastboot. I think we may just be screwed unless Verizon will replace it. Probably gonna try to get a replacement tomorrow. :crying:
A guy at the Verizon store fiddled with it yesterday for 1/2 an hour, mostly going into Recovery and doing the same things I already tried. They said, "sometimes these old phones aren't compatible with the new software", then offered to sell me a new phone. I asked, and they said that there is no service place to send the phone for repair, Verizon just treats these units as disposable. Break it and it's time for a new one, at your own cost, even if it's Verizon's update that broke it. I'll be checking with Verizon support to see if the guys in the store were mistaken about repairs, but I suspect they know what they are talking about. I may fiddle with the "Software Update Assistant" (I found on the Verizon website) later this evening, and see if it will work with the phone in Recovery.
Is there a way to permanently disable the OTA notification?
giltwist said:
Is there a way to permanently disable the OTA notification?
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I'm not sure. You could check under Settings > System Updates to see if there's a disable option under there.
OlafTheOx said:
A guy at the Verizon store fiddled with it yesterday for 1/2 an hour, mostly going into Recovery and doing the same things I already tried. They said, "sometimes these old phones aren't compatible with the new software", then offered to sell me a new phone. I asked, and they said that there is no service place to send the phone for repair, Verizon just treats these units as disposable. Break it and it's time for a new one, at your own cost, even if it's Verizon's update that broke it. I'll be checking with Verizon support to see if the guys in the store were mistaken about repairs, but I suspect they know what they are talking about. I may fiddle with the "Software Update Assistant" (I found on the Verizon website) later this evening, and see if it will work with the phone in Recovery.
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I would definitely talk to tech support, I chatted with a Verizon rep because I had to activate an older phone because of this problem and they said that would be the best option. I'm not totally confident in the knowledge of a lot of Verizon store employees. I think if this happens because of their update then it should be their responsibility to replace or repair the phone free of charge and if we complain loud and long enough then we might get somewhere. As for the "Software Update Assistant" is that a downloadable program? I checked on the Verizon website and I'm having a hard time locating it if it is. From what I read it looks like it's something that starts up when you plug the phone in but of course it would have to be working already. Also, I don't think this phone has a download mode which would allow the computer to pick it up as a USB device. I know if you boot it into the bootloader it will show up as Android Bootloader Interface so maybe we can do something from there. I couldn't get mine to show up while in recovery mode. Maybe if someone can get a copy of the Verizon firmware update we can flash the update through ADB.
OlafTheOx
I found the upgrade assistant on my computer actually so no need for the link. If you need the program, PM me and I'll send it to you somehow. Maybe you can do something with it. I messed up my recovery mode so I can't boot into it to see if it will work but it's not doing anything in the bootloader. If you happen to have a copy of your recovery.img that would be amazing. If you can fix yours and then make a copy of the recovery.img that would be much appreciated. Let me know.
Update:
After some research, I discovered DMClient is the app that handles OTA updates on our phone. Froze it in Titanium Backup (Pro needed). Boom. No more annoying OTA notifications.
giltwist said:
Update:
After some research, I discovered DMClient is the app that handles OTA updates on our phone. Froze it in Titanium Backup (Pro needed). Boom. No more annoying OTA notifications.
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Could you possibly make a copy of your recovery image? I can't seem to find anything of any use for this phone on any forums.
leblanca7x said:
Could you possibly make a copy of your recovery image? I can't seem to find anything of any use for this phone on any forums.
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I have a TWRP-made backup of my recovery, if that would help? I made it by fastbooting (NOT FLASHING) the TWRP build found here:
https://basketbuild.com/devs/Captain_Throwback/Kyocera_E6782/TWRP/KK
PM me and I can give you a temporary dropbox link.
I need the stock rom or some sort of file to restore my Brigadier. Please PM me with links. And what program do I use to load the rom into this phone?
Well, if anyone is interested, my phone is up and running. I wound up sending it to the Kyocera repair center in Texas. They took about 3 weeks to make the repair and ship it back to me. They installed Lollipop (along with all the Verizon bloatware). It appears that they did the repair under warranty, which surprised me, since I bought the phone used last summer. No invoice to pay. Cost me $20 to insure and ship it by UPS. The info on how to send it in is at this address https://www.kyoceramobile.com/support/repairs/united-states/faq/ Be warned, they were not very communicative about it. I got one email to acknowledge receipt of the phone, then it just showed up one day by FedEx. No paperwork in the box, just the phone. Not complaining, mind you, just try not to get too anxious while waiting if you send your phone in.
What version of Lollipop do you have now? I'm curious if it is the last... I was about to send my broken phone to repair center last year but decided to fix it myself... Now it's fully working without their help. LP without bloatware and with root. Good choice...
Sent from my E6782
Obsy said:
What version of Lollipop do you have now? I'm curious if it is the last... I was about to send my broken phone to repair center last year but decided to fix it myself... Now it's fully working without their help. LP without bloatware and with root. Good choice...
Sent from my E6782
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Android version: 5.1.1
Software version: 2.906VZ
I've been getting prompts to update the firmware again. The prompts started 2 days after I got my phone up and running. Apparently, the repair center didn't have the latest version of Verizon's OS. The update prompts are for Software version: 2.955VZ according to Verizon's support website. Not sure if I'll try to root the phone any time soon, so I'm tempted to go ahead and do the update, hoping for the best since I haven't screwed with the system yet. I may try rooting with Kingroot again, if the unrooted experience turns out to be as aggravating as I expect it will be.
Anybody brave enough to try Flashfire to install the OTA (possibly) more safely?
Hi, i have the problem after my try to upgrade android version through assistant. My phone constantly tries to launch but cant, could you help me? what should i do? im not from usa.. maybe someone could send me a android version wich works for this phone, and it possible to install it? need your advise
OlafTheOx said:
Well, if anyone is interested, my phone is up and running. I wound up sending it to the Kyocera repair center in Texas. They took about 3 weeks to make the repair and ship it back to me. They installed Lollipop (along with all the Verizon bloatware). It appears that they did the repair under warranty, which surprised me, since I bought the phone used last summer. No invoice to pay. Cost me $20 to insure and ship it by UPS. The info on how to send it in is at this address https://www.kyoceramobile.com/support/repairs/united-states/faq/ Be warned, they were not very communicative about it. I got one email to acknowledge receipt of the phone, then it just showed up one day by FedEx. No paperwork in the box, just the phone. Not complaining, mind you, just try not to get too anxious while waiting if you send your phone in.
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HeLLO, my friend tell me please the address and contacts of this servise center or maybe list of it. i have bootloop after trying updayting through verizon software update. And im in Ukraine now
All the information you need to send your phone in for service is at this webpage:
https://www.kyoceramobile.com/suppor...ed-states/faq/
I lucked into a sale on a HUAWEI Y538 smartphone at Best Buy the other day, knowing we have no Boost Network around here for the cellphone service. Perfect!
I just wanted it as a nice little media player and access to my LAN, like my KitKat tablet. Nothing terribly fancy. I rooted it with Kingo, hoping to remove that nag cellphone activation every startup. I have to press Accept, then Self Service comes in and I click the no button. In addition as many of you know, Lollipop has a lot of unwanted background apps running . I spent a whole day trying to tame this and the only good news is that I worked out the factory reset.
My real question is if it's possible to remove that startup nag entirely, but either way, to ask if it's possible to downgrade to KitKat or something else? As a WiFi-only media player Lollipop would seem to be quite awful.
I've been on computers for decades but no experience with Android except my happy KitKat tablet. If some kind soul could be persuaded to help me out, well that'd be really cool.
JoeyTablet said:
I lucked into a sale on a HUAWEI Y538 smartphone at Best Buy the other day, knowing we have no Boost Network around here for the cellphone service. Perfect!
I just wanted it as a nice little media player and access to my LAN, like my KitKat tablet. Nothing terribly fancy. I rooted it with Kingo, hoping to remove that nag cellphone activation every startup. I have to press Accept, then Self Service comes in and I click the no button. In addition as many of you know, Lollipop has a lot of unwanted background apps running . I spent a whole day trying to tame this and the only good news is that I worked out the factory reset.
My real question is if it's possible to remove that startup nag entirely, but either way, to ask if it's possible to downgrade to KitKat or something else? As a WiFi-only media player Lollipop would seem to be quite awful.
I've been on computers for decades but no experience with Android except my happy KitKat tablet. If some kind soul could be persuaded to help me out, well that'd be really cool.
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https://www.techmesto.com/unlock-bootloader-huawei-honor/
http://forum.xda-developers.com/and...how-to-data-off-shell-command-tasker-t3370783
Well I can't thank you enough for trying, but it seems Huawei changed their procedure. I got the 4 informations required and registered with Huawei. Going to the unlock page changes to Chinese and says too much traffic for servers in English. So I emailed Huawei Mobile support and got the following reply:
Dear User,
Huawei Customer Service is pleasure to be at your service,sorry to bring you the trouble,if you want to unlock your phone, you should meet these conditions as follow:
1.Please register your Huawei ID in our official website http://huawei.com/en/ on your phone.
2.Log in your Huawei ID for continuously 14 days.
3.Each Huawei ID should not apply for the unlock code more than twice within half years.If you meet the information,please go to http://emui.huawei.com/en/ and click the 'download'button to login your Huawei ID other than any other third party ID to apply for the unlock code.Please contact us by mail or local service hotline as following if error message appears.
TEL: http://consumer.huawei.com/en/contact-us/index.htm?tag=hotline
Mail: http://consumer.huawei.com/en/contact-us/index.htm?tag=email
Please submit your mobile model, SN, IMEI/MEID and erro message in your e-mail.We also need to know that your phone is rooted, it can be out of the best working state and part of functions may not be able to work normally. In additon, the system is vulnerable to be invaded by viruses once your phone is permitted to unlock. What's more, for the lacking of fully tested, the third party software will not be compatible with your phone. Unlocking will bring unexpected negative impacts and the device will be not normal, and can not be restored, Huawei after-sales service office will not provide warranty service for your rooted phone, and you may bear the cost. So we strongly advise you to think it twice.
If you have any other problems, please send your feedback to us. We will be at your service to help you to solve your problems.
Once again thank you for contacting Huawei device.
Best Regards.
Huawei Device Customer Care Team 3206
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If I 'm reading that right they want me to log in every day for 14 days, which is kind of nuts.
To be fair the phone may possibly be rooted using Kingo (fast boot showed an "unlocked" message which I don't know if that means rooted but probably not boot unlocked), and for all I know that changes some of the information.
So I'm just replying FYI so you know how it went. Maybe I should do factory reset and try again?
Long day I'll go crash and see how it looks in the morning. Thanks for trying!
Joey
Happy here to report a partial solution, 1/2 way there!
If you take out the SIM card inside the phone it only nags once and saves probably 30 seconds of boot-up time. It's a great improvement!
bg260 said:
https://www.techmesto.com/unlock-bootloader-huawei-honor/
http://forum.xda-developers.com/and...how-to-data-off-shell-command-tasker-t3370783
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I bought the same phone at BB ($10 on sale) to use like you do (unactivated). What you're trying to do is actually super simple. Merely put the device in Airplane mode, then turn back on the wifi (and GPS if you like). You will not be prompted to activate your device. You actually should be doing this anyway as it saves your battery by not having the cell radio constantly trying to talk to the tower.
In case you missed it, there is a firmware update to the phone that can be downloaded via the Emui app on the phone. I'm not sure what all the update affects, but it doesn't impact your ability to use the procedure I described to avoid the constant activation reminder.
I believe this was in response to your question @JoeyTablet
bg260 said:
I believe this was in response to your question @JoeyTablet
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Oops, sorry, yes it was meant for @JoeyTablet
zerozed99 said:
I bought the same phone at BB ($10 on sale) to use like you do (unactivated). What you're trying to do is actually super simple. Merely put the device in Airplane mode, then turn back on the wifi (and GPS if you like). You will not be prompted to activate your device. You actually should be doing this anyway as it saves your battery by not having the cell radio constantly trying to talk to the tower.
In case you missed it, there is a firmware update to the phone that can be downloaded via the Emui app on the phone. I'm not sure what all the update affects, but it doesn't impact your ability to use the procedure I described to avoid the constant activation reminder.
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I believe this was in response to your question @JoeyTablet
Remember, quote or mention the member if you want them to be notified.
zerozed99 said:
I bought the same phone at BB ($10 on sale) to use like you do (unactivated). What you're trying to do is actually super simple. Merely put the device in Airplane mode, then turn back on the wifi (and GPS if you like). You will not be prompted to activate your device. You actually should be doing this anyway as it saves your battery by not having the cell radio constantly trying to talk to the tower.
In case you missed it, there is a firmware update to the phone that can be downloaded via the Emui app on the phone. I'm not sure what all the update affects, but it doesn't impact your ability to use the procedure I described to avoid the constant activation reminder.
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COOL! Perfect it boots and no need to click anything further - and besides it's less stray microwaves. Also to report Huawei replied and said they accept bootloader code requests at: consumer (at) huawei.com. They say to include IMEI and serial numbers in the email. Both can be found in Settings >> about phone or underneath the back cover.
Where to go from here, I'd also like to disable sneaky RAM-stealing apps like Sprint cellphone and some apps I'll never use, such as most Google Play. Add decent firewall and decent media player, and have a good time!
Recommend root method I'm good to go.
JoeyTablet said:
COOL! Perfect it boots and no need to click anything further - and besides it's less stray microwaves. Also to report Huawei replied and said they accept bootloader code requests at: consumer (at) huawei.com. They say to include IMEI and serial numbers in the email. Both can be found in Settings >> about phone or underneath the back cover.
Where to go from here, I'd also like to disable sneaky RAM-stealing apps like Sprint cellphone and some apps I'll never use, such as most Google Play. Add decent firewall and decent media player, and have a good time!
Recommend root method I'm good to go.
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I've read elsewhere (here on XDA) that folks have gotten root using Kingo root (mostly tethered to a Windows PC and not the app version). Note that this root method often requires you to run the rooting program multiple times before it is successful. I'm not a fan of Kingo after being forced to use it to re-root another device (it took well over a dozen times before root took). Also, Kingo doesn't use SuperSu, it installs a Kingo version of SuperSu which CAN be removed (not exactly easily) but users of the Huawei Y538 Union have gotten bootloops trying to remove Kingo's proprietary SuperSu, so not advisable at this time. Even after rooted you are not able to remove the pre-installed bloatware because of the locked bootloader (which is different than the carrier unlock). To be honest, I've pretty much decided to just not root this device and just install an SD card if I need the space...I'd rather do that than risk bricking the device when (for me) there's really no need. I'm going to wait it out and see if anybody can figure a reliable way to deal with the device without bricking before I do anything else.
If you do root using Kingo, you might be able to "freeze" the background apps you don't want using Titanium Backup. I've read that folks haven't had any luck using TB to uninstall the bloatware, but if you're just trying to free ram it *might* work. I believe the risk would be the device expecting certain apps to run, and if unable it might bootloop/brick. Without a custom recovery allowing a nand backup bricking seems like a real possibility.
Please post your results if you unlock your bootloader. It surprises me that they're offering this, as I thought they only supported carrier unlocking. If you're able to figure out how to trim down the bloat please share.
I'm currently using Google's Play Music app for music/podcasts since I've already got 20,000 song's uploaded and since I can't delete that app anyway. Otherwise I'd just use Doubletwist for offline listening.
In case you, or anyone else with this phone is interested, I ended up purchasing a cheap ($5 delivered) case for this thing. Overall I like the case, but if you have any questions about that, let me know.
Yeah that case is perfect. I might have found the same on eBay searching " Huawei Union Y538 Case Innovaa".
As for Kingo ROOT, I have one hit and one miss to report. The KitKAt tablet it worked and I un-rooted after I got my business done. But the Lollipop phone is another story. I run a really tight ship on the Windows end, and Kingo rooted Lollipop, I got some functions involving root accomplished, but it ended at some point (completely offline except for USB tether to PC).
I factory reset the phone and tried again. Kingo downloaded more stuff and my firewall asked for access to PCAccelerator and acdsee.. The former is considered a virus and the second an image viewing app, which I don't use (maybe it's payloaded who knows).
I don't wish to scare anyone nor besmirch Kingo ROOT's reputation if it's a wholesome rooting app, but advise great caution and use a firewall that notifies things like this (I use NetLimiter on PC).
So I await the boot-unlock code and hope I live to tell about it Thanks a million zerozed99! That case is icing on the cake.
For what it's worth, no reply from Hauwei, and yesterday I sent another SOS asking, if not for boot unlock code, even just a stock KitKat ROM for the Y538. We know that model ran KitKat as well as Lollipop.
It just kills me to see this cute little quadcore wasted with all the bloatware taking up valuable RAM and battery power as well.
Ladies & Gentlemen, distinguished colleagues at xda-developers... Please bear with me.
I started coding on Macs in 1981(1981!). I later went on to 5 years formal education in Computer Science at a decent University, and spent the better part of 2 decades volunteering for low and no income people- those were the best years of my life!
Now I'm on the old side, with some heart disease that has four stents in my heart and the no-fun life expectancy that goes with it.
Now, being a reasonably informed geek, I'm seeing some disturbing things I want to air out in "public" if you'll so allow me.
The idea Hauwei will send you a boot unlock code, I don't think it's true. They make it easy to fill out a form with at least four identifying informations, but I have YET to see anyone receive their code! In my case the form advances to a page written in Chinese! I believe this is a spy device and priced to spy on a certain demographic. The almost perfect unlockability and easy bootlock application with no one reporting being sent a code.... there's a reason.
Granted one thing: I've never owned a cellphone nor did I even want cell access from this. Maybe you've noticed the same thing(s) years ago. I just wanted a little quadcore computer to play around with, to access my LAN and play media, and this has me worried the kind of entities that design such forced options.
Oh well, no luck. anyone else going to wait a bit or should I trash this?
Can't tell you how much I'd like Marshmallow and the evil bootloader out of there for something else.
Lollipop is not so bad IMHO except for the lack of privs to access our own SD cards.
If you hold down the volume-down button and press the power button until the phone starts up you can boot into fastboot mode. I've read here in XDA someplace that there are 2 available builds of TWRP custom recovery for the y6, both work on our phone, tho only one of the builds works fully. I have not tried to install either on my y538 yet, but I will, and I'll let you know what I find out.
If you can get the bootloader unlocked, you should be able to flash SuperSU from TWRP.
I suggest you google the xda guide to fastboot. It is not very complicated.
I doubt we can locate any custom ROM for this device. However, if we can get rooted we can backup stock and then remove all the bloatware. ES File Explorer is great in root mode for managing the SD card.
More useful info: I pulled my SIM out before I fired up the phone for the first time, and when I turned on the phone it didn't download any of the extra crapware from Sprint! I have the Virgin version, and I expected all that stuff to download, but it did not. Also, if you look in the App Manager settings, you will see a few apps which shipped on your phone in the Disabled state!! You may wish to enable Lookout or others of the stock disabled apps. Also, without root, you can remove the Sprint ID app here, and disable any of the Google spots you don't want, like Play News or Play Movies.
This is my first Huawei device, though it's my twenty-somethingh Android, and so far I am very pleased with the layout of the settings and of the notifications tray. This is way liveable, and they allow us to disable most of the bloat.
Good luck!
I have a A52 5g and a tab S7+ wifi, that are both remotely controled and monitored, and serve as gateway to my home network and basicaly every device connected to it. I noticed it at first and mew NOTHING related to this, didnt even know what open source was. Since then i have come to understand that, somehow, my phone seems to run a custom version of android, my guess is, built from AOSP and designed to disguise itself as oem samsung ui, but in background enables remote access and total takeover of every function. I have discovered, using total commander, that storage has been partitioned in 2 separate locations, and that one folder in there is called root system file, and filled with data/apk/installkits/etc.. this has me asking for help in 2 specific questions:
Am i holding a rooted device or is there another possibility that creates this situation? I was convinced its rooted untill i read here that root prevents from using samsung pass, secure folder etc.. and those seem to work on mine(or is it a version of those apps?) If its indeed rooted, will it wype everything if i flash it with the stock rom? And should i trust a small cell repair store to do that or learn how to do it myself?
2: i have bought 3 brand new phones since august, and made sure not to use my usual accounts, no use backups, not even set it up near my home wifi, and it almost instantly started self installing harmful software in background. I see no other way for it to link itself to be owned by me at initial setup, but for the sim card, new of course, but with my usual phone number and service transfered to it. Is that enough to make a breach and compromise a new device? If so, what would be different after fpashing the stock rom, if everything reinstalls itself? Do i need to change my number? Change cellular service provider even? I know its an unusual request but im a fast learner, i have compiled lots of technical info on specific apps, ip's, servers, build id numbers etc.. that i know would make more sense to anyone more qualified than me, and i am about ready to try and wype/flash the thing myself, i just would feel better with a little help since i have gone this far pretty much alone, since no service provider or manifacturer actualy feels like this is their problem to solve....
Here you can download firmware for your phone and flash with Odin, which you can also download at the bottom of the page, there are instructions on how to do it also.
Make sure to download correct firmware for exact device you have. There are few different A52 5G models.. SM-A526B, SM-A526U, SM-A5260, SM-A526U1, SM-A526W.
You will lose all data after flashing new firmware. After this your phone will be like brand new from Samsung..
If your device is rooted then that means your warranty is void and manufacturers and carriers are under no obligation to help you.
I'm trying to understand your situation but its so conflicting I don't know where to begin.
For example, you say your device runs a custom AOSP with a Samsung UI. Thats exactly how it actually works. Samsung take the AOSP, customise it with their own functionality, then overlay their own skin as the UI. Theres absolutely nothing unusual about that.
I'm conflicted as to whether your rooted or not. If the manufacturer or carrier has physically seen the device and won't repair it then that would suggest your definitely rooted. If you spoke to them virtually and told them your rooted then they will use it as an excuse whether you're truly rooted or not. The partitions you mention could be the internal storage and an sd card which can be seen non-rooted. I dont know what you mean when you mention a "root system file". Is it an actual folder called "root" or is the app you're using just telling you that you've reached the "root" of the filesystem? I can't quite work out what you mean. You also say Knox-powered apps still work which just adds to the confusion.
You stated you have had 3 new devices and they all self-installed harmful software. To get one device compromised is possible. To get three compromised means your either a high profile government target (which I doubt because they wouldn't be so sloppy as this) or your doing something to compromise your own devices such as continuously visiting dodgy websites.
Flashing will fix things but so would having a new device. The only common denominator is you so either you're doing something wrong or you truly are a government target in which case I wish you good luck!
First let me appologise for the long silence, i cut off most online activity for a while and just read your answers. To clarify, i have not solved my prolem yet. But ill try to explain better what you ask about my situation:
About de os version arobase40 got it right. I Asked google play help reps. And a stock samsung version of android would not trigger googles warning about running a custom version of android. So that point to a modified after-the-fact more than to the fact samsung has their propierary version installed.
About beeing rooted or not, ylwhat you are asking is what im not totaly certajn of, also. I know partition can happen without rooting, its seems to have created a "virtual sd card" since its named as such when sd card slot is actualy empty. About the root files folder, i cant say for sure, all i can say is that its holding a large amount of Gigs that dont get taken into account when looking at storage capacity and usage, and accessing that folder gives me a message that root files cant be access from this device. Does it mean my device had root acess privileges revoked to prevent viewing files that hide what is given control of the software remotely, so i dont find out or have the capacity to remove or alter those files?
What is absolutely sure is that if it is rooted, it wasnt done by me. As for the chance the devices were not factory brand new, 1 of them was not, got it opend box from amazon, a saudi arabia version, but my prkblems had started months before getting it, did not keep it more than 2 months, and all others before and since are 100% pure factory new, some directly from my cellular service provider, as financed device came with 2 year agreement of service,(actualy 2 of them i got this way) and the last one is my tab s7+ i got online directly from samsung canada website, on preorder, delivered on release day.
And lastly the fact i cant seem to shake those persistent leeches, is not from having reckless habbits online, but from having careless and uneducated habbits before that all started, usual older lazy dude stuff, like not changing my wifi password after a ruff breakup with bipolar psycho ex gf, or having only a few passwords reused on most my accounts. I have stopped doing those things long ago now that i know better, but i suspect that i could have been unaware something gettnng installed and staying dormant for a while, maybe? The ex had way more opportunities than needed to do something like this and is more than psycho enough to realy do it also. For having the skills to do it, lets say she has "assets" that can easily get her guys willing to help about that. It may also be coming from somwhere else, but as you say im not a super spy or a high ranking gov. Official. Im not even that interesting, and have absolutely no usable id for fraud or anything, my credit history would raise more red flags then there is in all china. So after so long struggling with this still very active, i cant even think of a rational reason to do so much effort into this, theres nothing to gain, i only can imagine that maybe a twisted mind seeking revege, or with a sick way of amusing themselves could see the point to all that, but i dont realy care. I only want to get rid of it.
As for the way it manages to be so much persistent, i can only see one option left i didnt remove from the process, and its through my phone number/account on the sim card, even a new sim on a new phone, still is linked to my cell service. I did initial setup with only that new sim card, accounts freshely created during setup, with no info or anythink linkable to my previous accounts, and even did it sitting outside, far from any building that could get me in range of a wifi network. And it still was no more effective at staying secure.
Thats why i did not yet try to flash a stock rom myself on my device, because it would, at best, become exactly like it was when brand new, and i know that this is not enough to keep it secure, and that means theres still something im missing in the whole picture.