[Q] Software update questions - T-Mobile Galaxy Note 4 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

As far as smartphones go, I've only owned iphones and then the nexus 4 when I switched to Android, and now the nexus 5. As such, I have zero experiences with software updates that don't come directly to my phone from google or apple.
If I buy this phone (the t-mobile version) and have it carrier-unlocked, am I dependent on t-mobile for android updates? And what if I buy it directly from Samsung in a factory-unlocked model? Who does the disseminating of my android updates in that case?

Related

Amazon N6 on T-Mobile

I should have my Nexus 6 from Amazon tomorrow evening. From what I can tell, what Amazon is selling is the generic US version that works on all US carriers.
I wasn't planning on buying a new phone, but my Note 2 took a dive off the table a week ago and landed on the tile floor, shattering the glass. The six inch screen, on the Nexus 6, coupled with the huge sale on Amazon made my decision for me I'll probably try to replace the glass on the note 2 later, so I can sell it. I never used the S-Pen. I bought the phone for the large screen.
I have read quite a bit on the forum, but haven't seen answers to my questions. It is possible that I missed something.
I am a bit confused about the listing of 5.1.1 ROMs on the Google site. They list a ROM that doesn't say who it is for, a ROM specifically for T-Mobile and a ROM for everyone but T-Mobile.
My carrier is T-Mobile. What exactly is the difference between the T-Mobile ROM and the others? If is is only WiFi calling, then I don't care, as I don't use it. If there is more to it, please elaborate.
When I get the phone, I'll note which ROM it has, then let it do an OTA update over WiFi to see what ROM it updates to. Once I put a T-Mobile SIM in the phone, will future OTA updates be the T-Mobile only version or the generic version?
Thanks.
Every rom works on this phone - but only SOME support WiFi calling (T-Mobile specific)
They should explicitly say whether they do or don't support WiFi calling (most don't)
If you don't care for this, use whatever you want. It will work just fine. You can use whatever rom you please.
Once it's using T-Mobile service you'll get only T-Mobile specific updates. If you're rooted or on a rom, OTAs won't happen - so don't expect that.
Just to follow up, the original Android version that was on my phone was 5.0, Build LNX07M. The following four OTA updates were applied via WiFi (no SIM yet).
5.01 Build LRX22C
5.1 Build LMY47D
5.1.1 Build LMY47Z
5.1.1 Build LMY48I
What I find curious is that the last update wasn't LMY48M, which seems to be the latest. Does anyone know what the difference between 48I and 48M is?
I really like this Nexus 6 so far. Although it is taller and wider than my Galaxy Note 2, it is much thinner and lighter. I love the extra 1/2 inch of screen and the higher resolution.
Tomorrow, I go to T-Mobile and swap my micro-SIM for a nano-SIM.
Thanks.

International Urbane In UK

I've just purchased an international Urbane on Amazon uk for a decent price. Amazon have made it clear it has a 12 month warranty and they will replace or refund if there are issues, and I have that on a live chat transcript so they can't go back on that.
However, as someone who's never owned an LG Android device, I'm wondering if I'm going to have problems with this International model here in the UK? For example, will OTA work or any other form of updating without having to go via ADB? I've heard Wear 2 is coming to this watch, I'd hate to miss out if I can't get it installed here in the UK. Will my UK S7 Edge work with it ok, and will Android Wear installed on my phone from the UK play store work ok? If there are going to be issues I'll simply return it. It's due for delivery tomorrow so any advice on this will be appreciated.
Beefheart said:
I've just purchased an international Urbane on Amazon uk for a decent price. Amazon have made it clear it has a 12 month warranty and they will replace or refund if there are issues, and I have that on a live chat transcript so they can't go back on that.
However, as someone who's never owned an LG Android device, I'm wondering if I'm going to have problems with this International model here in the UK? For example, will OTA work or any other form of updating without having to go via ADB? I've heard Wear 2 is coming to this watch, I'd hate to miss out if I can't get it installed here in the UK. Will my UK S7 Edge work with it ok, and will Android Wear installed on my phone from the UK play store work ok? If there are going to be issues I'll simply return it. It's due for delivery tomorrow so any advice on this will be appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using the EU W200e variant with 3G not the LTE version, as far as updates go, everything is fine, OTA operates normally and frequencies are not an issue. I see no reason for the LTE variant to be any different, others are using it successfully.
Thanks. It's actually the 1st gen Urbane I've bought, so it has no cellular ability. But as long as it can be used in the UK and can be updated to Wear 2 when LG release the update, that's good enough for me.

Using an unlocked att device outside USA

I want to buy a galaxy note 5 from Amazon while I'm in America and use it in a different country where I live.
The device I am considering is the sm-n920a. I've checked the cellular bands and they Mach.
I'm have a few questions since it is not the international version or the sm-n920c that is sold in my country.
1. I heard people saying that it won't fully support my language since it is an att phone. It seemed odd to me because I thought that if the international version supports the language any module should.
2. Will there be a problem with OTA updates?
3. At the price point of 360$, is the note 5 really the best phone to buy?
Thanks
chaimgross said:
I want to buy a galaxy note 5 from Amazon while I'm in America and use it in a different country where I live.
The device I am considering is the sm-n920a. I've checked the cellular bands and they Mach.
I'm have a few questions since it is not the international version or the sm-n920c that is sold in my country.
1. I heard people saying that it won't fully support my language since it is an att phone. It seemed odd to me because I thought that if the international version supports the language any module should.
2. Will there be a problem with OTA updates?
3. At the price point of 360$, is the note 5 really the best phone to buy?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have an unlocked AT&T Note 5 and an international one, both work perfectly even though I live outside America. And about updates I am not sure but you can always search for custom roms with the latest features for the device on the forum. And overall the n5 is a great phone in my opinion, has everything you need in a phone and more.

Need a new phone, looking note 8 or gs 8/8+, unlocked vs carrier?

I'm currently using a nexus 6p on verizon and its getting long in the tooth. I want to buy an unlocked note8 directly from samsung or bestbuy, but not sure what I would give up vs buying one from verizon. Would I just pop a sim in, have them register my new imei and off I go?
I saw a mega thread thats like 50+ pages deep in the howto section about flashing between carriers, would I need to flash a certain file to the phone to get it to work properly on verizon? The unlocked seems to support all the bands. I just want the flexibility to use whatever carrier, so if I decide to switch my note over to TMO or cricket I won't have any concerns. Also might not get a note, but it looks nice, has newer software, was more recently released.
How is samsung with releasing OS updates? Would it be reasonable to expect android 8 on the note 8?

How to buy the right Note 9 for the US

I'm considering buying a Note 9. I usually buy a year old model of a flagship phone when the prices come down. I see lots of Note 9 phones on amazon for reduced prices. It appears there are several different models and the descriptions from the sellers are usually not clear.
I saw another thread that said all the US versions were the same hardware. Can I buy an unlocked Sprint, Verizon, AT&T, or T-Mobile phone and use it on any carrier? I will mostly be using AT&T and T-Mobile for now.
How could I tell if a phone is the US non-carrier branded model?
Can I flash a more universal ROM to a carrier branded phone and get rid of the carrier bloatware? Will the universal ROM still pass MDM security checks so I can use it with my company's MDM (Intune)?
DonS said:
I'm considering buying a Note 9. I usually buy a year old model of a flagship phone when the prices come down. I see lots of Note 9 phones on amazon for reduced prices. It appears there are several different models and the descriptions from the sellers are usually not clear.
I saw another thread that said all the US versions were the same hardware. Can I buy an unlocked Sprint, Verizon, AT&T, or T-Mobile phone and use it on any carrier? I will mostly be using AT&T and T-Mobile for now.
How could I tell if a phone is the US non-carrier branded model?
Can I flash a more universal ROM to a carrier branded phone and get rid of the carrier bloatware? Will the universal ROM still pass MDM security checks so I can use it with my company's MDM (Intune)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Buy the USA unlocked model U1. You can then flash the USA T Mobile or AT&T rooms should you wish.
However, I also read that AT&T doesnt allow full network speeds for non AT&T devices. Maybe someone with an unlocked U1 on AT&T can chime in.
Sent from my SM-N960U1 using Tapatalk
I have been running unlocked bought directly from Samsung phones since the note7 and I use them on AT&T. I am in Wyoming, and have noticed no loss of speed. I have Verizon for work phone and my unlocked phones is always faster in speed tests . Not very scientific buy my experience.
Sent from my Samsung SM-N960U1 using XDA Labs

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