How would a phone like the Samsung I7500 upgrade its firmware when running on a non google partner carrier? I don't see any kind of manual upgrade options available.
A:
Most phones have a way to flash the ROM from an SD card. You will be at the mercy of the manufacturer to release the upgrade ROM files. That hasn't happened much in the past. You could also use a carrier ROM if you could find one of them.
hacken
2009-06-09 17:58:09
which would probably be a tipper in favour of the iphone :-/
Sudhir Jonathan
2009-06-09 19:30:35
A:
It could flash from SD card or flash over a USB cable like my Openmoko can. Heck, it could flash OTA anyway... if it's got net (via 3G or wifi) what makes you think it needs a 'google partner carrier'?
pjz
2009-06-10 03:08:24
thats precisely the point... neither google nor phone manufactureres are releasing updates, except through OTA. The ones that are out there are not officially sanctioned.
Sudhir Jonathan
2009-06-12 20:43:54
Isn't 'OTA' just a fancy way of saying 'via the net' ? And if so, wouldn't it be possible to figure out how to snag an upgrade over the Internet from the carrier with the upgrade _regardless_ of your current carrier?
pjz
2009-06-16 18:46:54
+1
A:
Just FYI, I purchased a G1 off craiglist from someone who had disabled their T-mobile account before Cupcake (Android 1.5) was released. I then proceeded to unlock the phone and use it on AT&T (I know, no 3G and all that, but I couldn't wait for my AT&T contract to end before getting an Android phone). When I started up the phone the first day I owned it, I believe it had firmware version 1.1 (forget the exact version but it wasn't Cupcake).
The next day when I turned it on it said there was an available firmware update it wanted download (this is while connected to AT&T). I connected it up to wi-fi so the download would go faster, and let it update. When it finished updating and rebooting I had Cupcake installed.
So the moral of the story is, I don't know what it's hitting to get firmware updates, but it's just some internet server, it's not required to be on T-mobile's network to get the updates, it just needs to be connected to the internet.
mbaird
2009-07-16 23:26:36
hmmm... that sounds very encouraging. But then look at the info for the Samsung I7500... apparently that can't get OTA updates. If it was just a server being hit, I don't see why not. And there's also the question of bandwidth charges for the 50MB(?) Download.
Sudhir Jonathan
2009-07-17 12:52:19
That's interesting about the Galaxy not getting automatic firmware updates, looks like the only phones that get it automatically are the "Google Experience" phones, i.e. the T-mobile G1 (HTC Dream) and T-mobile myTouch (HTC Magic). Honestly I kind of prefer this way, lets me pick when I want to update my phone.As for the 50MB download, just connect up to wifi if you are worried about it. It told me there was an update available, and I was able to connect to wifi and then start the download. Although really who is using these phones without an unlimited data plan?
mbaird
2009-07-27 02:54:07