Showing posts with label Android Update. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Android Update. Show all posts

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Virgin Mobile Samsung Intercept Android 2.2 Has Arrived!

The long awaited update for the Virgin Mobile Samsung Intercept has finally arrived. The prompt is on your screen, and you're excited to get started. But take it from me, don't click that button just yet. After receiving the update prompt from Virgin Mobile I too was excited to get started. I didn't have a charger handy, but my battery was full, so I figured it would be fine. What I didn't count on was my poor signal. In the process of updating I received the following error:

assert failed:("/tmp/modem_delta.bin","modem_delta.bin")
E: Error in /cache/54dbc743fd5b.update-SPH-M910_OTA_DI06ToEC07.zip
(Status 7)
Installation Aborted
A sheer sign that the download failed at some point losing valuable information.  So what now you ask?  Can you simply try it again?  The short answer is no, the prompt will not appear again when you power up the phone.  You have three options:

1. Contact Virgin Mobile regarding the issue.  As many can tell you this will take time and may be days, weeks before you finally get it updated.

2. Do a factory reset on the phone.  In doing so you will lose all of your apps, contacts, and any other data on the phone. Some have reported that the update prompt will appear again after this is done, but what's the point if you lose everything?

3. Become one of the many hackers like me and download the Update.zip file from the following forum:  SamsungInterceptForum.com.  After waiting patiently for months now I'd had enough.  I had been granted my wish for the "Official Update" and it failed.  So, being computer savvy, I took it upon myself to fix the issue.  I am happy to say the update was faster and completely flawless using the instructions and files supplied in the forum.  Props to tifferrr89 for the post.

So why didn't Virgin Mobile just release the download file for the Samsung Intercept?
Testing the update at first was a good plan on their part.  Pushing it out to 5000 as a initial test will verify that it is in fact working correctly without bricking 1/2 of their customers phones.  But after that initial test, an official release of the file would have been nice.  The way the Android update system works, there is no more chance that it will brick with the file downloaded than over the air, and as I have found, it may be more likely to fail receiving the "official OTA update".

What can I do to make sure the official update works?
1. Take your charger with you at all times.  This is one of the downfalls of the OTA updates.  It will come at some point and you want to be ready.  Mine showed up at 12:05am.

2. Check your signal strength before you update.  If you have poor 3G access make sure you find a wifi network that works before updating.

3. Be patient.  The progress bar can be deceiving.  In my case it went really fast for about the first 1/4 then stopped.  I thought something was wrong and went outside to find better signal.  Bad move on my part as it lost the wifi access it was using.

Closing thoughts about the Virgin Mobile Samsung Intercept Android 2.2 Update

Overall I'm happy with the update.  Speed has improved to acceptable levels, the calling function doesn't seem to lock up the phone anymore, and the transition was extremely smooth.  Stay tuned for more to come about what's new.

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Virgin Mobile's Samsung Intercept Update Delayed Again


On a rather unfortunate choice of days Virgin Mobile has announce the further delay of the Android 2.2 update for the Samsung Intercept.  Stated by Virgin Mobiles Customer Care on Twitter "Due to some issues encountered during testing the update has been rescheduled to be released further in the month."  And confirmed by Virgin Mobile USA on Facebook.  Could this be one of the biggest April fools jokes known to man?  My guess is no.  We can all hope that the final release of the update will be trouble free thanks to the additional time taken to fix the errors.

Thursday, March 31, 2011

Preparing for an Android Update

With the Android 2.2 update just around the corner for Virgin Mobile USA customers, I thought I would cover a few essentials to make the transition as smooth as possible.  Many of us have heard the horror stories of updates gone bad, phone numbers lost, text messages gone, apps missing, but did you know there are steps you can take to prevent them?  .  Taking a second to prepare could save you hours on the phone with tech support.

1. Let Google store your contacts.
Many people are used to storing contacts on their phone, but allowing Google to store them for you will not only make an update easier but a complete phone change as well.











2. Backup your phone with software.  
Apps like "My Back Up Pro" and "Titanium Backup" will backup user data to prevent loosing everything.  Lookout Mobile Security combines data backup with antivirus protection for overall security.

3. Manually backup you contacts.
Never hurts to be too careful.  So doing a manual backup of your contacts should be your last line of defense.  Contacts can be exported to your SD card for later retrieval.

4. Power up 
When the update arrives, make sure the phone is plugged in.  Doing so will prevent the battery from draining before the update is finished.  Failure in the middle of an update could have disastrous effects.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Virgin Mobiles Andorid 2.2 Update for the Samsung Intercept - What's the fuss about?

We have all been patiently waiting for months now for Virgin Mobile to release the Android 2.2 update on the Samsung Intercept, but what's all the fuss about?  Many of us don't even know what the update is, let alone all of the changes that will happen.  I did some digging and this is what I have found.



1. General Android OS speed, memory, and performance optimizations
Thanks to some tricky little programming on Google's part, the overall responsiveness and speed will be improved.  Something that has been plaguing the Intercept since it was released.  Applications will be given a boost courtesy of JIT implementation and the browser is receiving Chrome's V8 Javascript engine.

2. Unlock Screen Change
Having played with the LG Optimus running Android 2.2, I can tell you that the user interface has changed a fair amount.  The first thing you will notice is the unlock screen has changed.  You now have to slide the unlock button to the right to unlock the phone.  You also have a quick sliding silent button on the unlock screen as well.

3. New non-scrolling dock
They have added a new dock to the bottom of the home screen that contains the Phone, Tray, and Browser buttons.  As you scroll the different home screens this dock is always visible and indicates which screen you currently are on.

4.Updated Camera App Layout
The slider is out and new transparent buttons are in.  Giving you single handed setting adjustments and shutter.  After digging around I have yet to find if the "Night" shot mode that makes the Intercept's camera so great is still included.  They claim the change is all visual, but that has yet to be seen.

5. New Dial Pad
Switching from the current multi colored dial pad to a more uniform gray keypad with larger spacing between keys.



6. Technical Stuff
Also included with the update is a bunch of technical stuff.  I'll spare you the details on that.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Samsung Intercept 2.2 Update - Virgin Mobile

It's official, the long awaited update for the Virgin Mobile Samsung Intercept to Android 2.2.  Which rumor has it, this update will speed up the Intercept to more usable levels, and fix may of the bugs we all put up with on a day to day basis, has been delayed by Virgin Mobile USA.  Originally scheduled to be delivered on the 25th of March 2011.  It has been offically delayed until the first week of April.  According to Virgin Mobile USA the update was delayed due to "internal timing issues".

As much as we all would like to see this update go through, making sure the errors that occurred when Sprint updated their version of the Intercept is well worth the wait.  The original update Sprint pushed through bricked nearly 50% of the phones that received it, forced them to pull the update, and send hundreds of customers to sprint stores to replace their phones.