Bell phones and the lack of 3 button combo - Galaxy S I9000 General

I'm starting a new thread because it doesn't necessarily fall in to unlocking of the phone (as I've been asked).
I'm guessing any new purchases of this phone will have the recovery/download 3 button combo feature completely disabled.
The reason why I say this is that I've been to 5 different stores between yesterday and today (with the most recent one having a stock amount of 9 phones) and here are my findings:
Every single boxed up phone has the feature disabled. (All I did was have them install the battery (no sim or anything) and pass the phone to me).
However, every one of those 5 stores that I went to, I did it flawlessly on their demo phones.
So my guess is, as the demo phones would have been the first batch Bell provided (and some being on display before any actual product released to the public), all subsequent batches of these phones will have this feature disabled.
I went to 2 different best buys that have ample stock of the phones because it is onsale this week, and none of them worked... nor did they work at the future shop I attended or the 2 bell stores (including the one I purchased and returned initially).
But every single demo did.
So if anyone got their hands on the very first batch of phones and it works then you're a lucky one. For the rest of us, I think we are S.O.L.
There's got to be a way to do it... Anyone know a Bell Representative or better yet a person inside samsung that will leak that info to you?
Heck I don't even want to unlock the phone. I'll stay on Bell's network, I just want to be able to load new versions of Android without any risk of bricking my phone.

Thank you! It was annoying reading all those posts abt this in that thread.
And I'm not too sure that the new phones don't have it. There have been a few people on the thread that have said that they got the phone at launch, and it didn't have the feature, but when they went to return it and get a new one (from the new shipment) it was fine...
So really I dont think its very easy to tell if its gonna work or not...

I think I'll wait til september to buy the phone.
I don't care too much about custom roms and the like, the stock one is fine, but Bell has a history (See the i7500L) of not updating their firmwares in a timely fashion. The i7500L is still on 1.5. Terrible if you ask me, considering the "open-source" feel of android.
So there are rumours, I don't know if its true or not, that bell is going to have an official 2.2 update in september. Maybe then I'll buy it and by then all phones will have the 3 button combo on them.
I just went to a local future shop here, and the phone representative contacted their Bell Rep, who was at another store, he couldn't do it on the phones they had there, but promised to call Samsung on Monday to find out if their is an alternate way.
Maybe you have to hit a reset button along with it. I remember doing something similar on my old HTC diamond phone, maybe this is the same thing (sort of).
Too bad, I loved this phone all the 4 days I had it (up until reading about the 3 button combo). I sort of miss it.

I just put a call in to Samsung to find out why some work and some don't, they said because the phone was so new that I had to call a number specifically set up for support on the Galaxy S but they are only open Monday to friday..
So hopefully with all this calling around I'm doing something will be figured out.

I got my Vibrant on launch day, 3 button combo didn't work. Swapped it out for a new one, from a new shipment last Thursday (august 12th) 3 button combo works.

arr0ww,
Can you confirm what i've been reading on wiki then?
It states:
"Note: There are many Bell I9000M floating around with this feature disabled, without the Download Mode enable you wont be able to restore from a failed firmware flash. We highly recommend you to take it back and exchange it for a model that can work properly with the 3 button combination. The first batch from around Aug 5 or Serial # ending with 6000000 have the 3 buttons combo disabled, the new batch after Aug 11 with Serial # ending with 6500000 have the working 3 buttons.
example of full Serial # 89302610202006500000"
Do your last 7 digits end with 65 and not 60?
Also, where did you get yours exactly? I think if its close to me, I'll just pop by that store and get it (assuming your somewhere in the GTA).

I got mine first thing Launch morning. My serial is 59XXXXX. 3 button combo IS working.

it shouldn't be hard to fix the issue. from what i've read, and people have said, the 3-button combo is written into the SPL part (256kb) part of the Nand. all we would theoretically have to do is flash our SPL with some else's 3-button enabled SPL. now two of my friends bought their phones same day as me, and have theirs enabled, and both are rooted, so it's not hard to get our hands on a copy.
i have posted another thread in the software technical section about this and haven't gotten any replies (maybe it's the wrong section). the g1 users flash their spl, but they don't talk about how to make an image of the current spl. so i'm stuck here. i know it can be done, just don't know how yet.
apparently nandroid backup doesn't backup the spl, so that's useless to us. from the SPL backup kit for the g1 users, i read the batch file, and it reads specific hex addresses in the nand and writes them to a file, but i would assume these addresses are different for our nand. so once again, useless.

For all those that have their 3 button disabled... can you confirm if your serial ends with 60XXXXX? Maybe its limited to just that batch of s/n's.
As for wang1chung.. hopefully its a simple fix.. but i'll refuse to buy one again unless I get one that is confirmed working or easily fixable to get it working without a cable.
Thanks

Electroz said:
I got mine first thing Launch morning. My serial is 59XXXXX. 3 button combo IS working.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
it is possible the bug was only in the batch with numbers ending in 60xxxxxxxx
since the ones on 59xxxxxxxx works, and 65xxxxxxxx works
that seems to be the logical sense

this would be nice
problem is, no one has been able to get a way to extract, and flash back the good SPL to the bad phones
wang1chung said:
it shouldn't be hard to fix the issue. from what i've read, and people have said, the 3-button combo is written into the SPL part (256kb) part of the Nand. all we would theoretically have to do is flash our SPL with some else's 3-button enabled SPL. now two of my friends bought their phones same day as me, and have theirs enabled, and both are rooted, so it's not hard to get our hands on a copy.
i have posted another thread in the software technical section about this and haven't gotten any replies (maybe it's the wrong section). the g1 users flash their spl, but they don't talk about how to make an image of the current spl. so i'm stuck here. i know it can be done, just don't know how yet.
apparently nandroid backup doesn't backup the spl, so that's useless to us. from the SPL backup kit for the g1 users, i read the batch file, and it reads specific hex addresses in the nand and writes them to a file, but i would assume these addresses are different for our nand. so once again, useless.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Hey guys, are you still able to start in recovery mode with a cable and ADB. I would like to know cause my G-sensor is dead and I went to Best Buy to exchange it and the phones were all lacking this mode.
I didn't swap ysterday because of this but I have to do something before aug. 20. After that I will have to see with bell what they want to do and it will surely go for a repair. I would prefer to have a new one working right away but the lack of recovery mode is discouraging me.

my s/n is 52xxxxx and 3button is disabled
sp991, recovery mode is still accessible via adb to those with the 3button disabled.
allgamer, i only suggested that as no one else had suggested anything else? i assumed it would be possible since the g1 users can read their spl via the command " pmemdump -a 0x8c000000 0x40000 " and save it to a .nb file to update later. maybe this would be better accomplished in the hands of talented coders/developers.

Mine is 64xxxxx and it is disabled.
adb works.

I exchanged my first i9000m coz the download mode wasn't working.
The second one I got two days ago goes into download/recovery mode without problem!! This one has IMEI ending with 65xxxxxx and manufactured in Aug.
I also tested new one at Bell store today which had IMEI # 65xxxx as well, but it didnt go into download mode. The guy at the store said it was the newest batch as they received it yesterday, and now i'm totally confused....coz I thought all newer batchs are download mode enalbed..

sp991 said:
Hey guys, are you still able to start in recovery mode with a cable and ADB. I would like to know cause my G-sensor is dead and I went to Best Buy to exchange it and the phones were all lacking this mode.
I didn't swap ysterday because of this but I have to do something before aug. 20. After that I will have to see with bell what they want to do and it will surely go for a repair. I would prefer to have a new one working right away but the lack of recovery mode is discouraging me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
do you have any other best buy store that you can go to?
try testing with the Download mode, it's easier than testing with the Repair mode
the Download mode kicks in right away, after you put in the battery, and do the 3 button test
http://forum.xda-developers.com/wiki/index.php?title=Samsung_Galaxy_S/Vibrant_GT-I9000M
check the wiki for some visuals
you can do it even with the plastic back and screen protector on top

trueimage said:
Mine is 64xxxxx and it is disabled.
adb works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ADB will always work, but it's useless if it gets bricked
good to know 64xxxxxxxx is not good
so i guess batches between 60xxxxxxxx to 64xxxxxxx are bad?
since the 59xxxxxxxx were good, and 65xxxxxxxxxx are also good

karakake said:
I exchanged my first i9000m coz the download mode wasn't working.
The second one I got two days ago goes into download/recovery mode without problem!! This one has IMEI ending with 65xxxxxx and manufactured in Aug.
I also tested new one at Bell store today which had IMEI # 65xxxx as well, but it didnt go into download mode. The guy at the store said it was the newest batch as they received it yesterday, and now i'm totally confused....coz I thought all newer batchs are download mode enalbed..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that's exactly what we are trying to find out, to see if there is any pattern
but if the one you tested with 65xxxxxxxxxxx didn't work, then i guess we can't really identify it via the serials numbers, and only can be tested manually.

Try downloading the new firmware for bell the JH2 that you can download via Kies this might fix the 3 button combo for people have issues. as the recovery screen is a bit different. give your a warning now that you have entered the system menu. the old recovery screen did not have this.
Someone that can't get into recovery should try this update..

no dice, just updated
EDIT: what's worse is i thought it would've at least helped with the gps lag, and now i can't find my location at all. under the gps performance testing option, i can't pickup any satellites whatsoever.
i'm pissed now, as i needed it to go on a roadtrip tomorrow

Related

reflashing blind?

My still under warranty 6900 has a totally black screen. I can see that the backlight is on- it is the actual lcd that is black and the phone will receive calls. (I can't see if it goes to bootloader since the screen is black) Presumably, this has nothing to do with the nsfan6.5 ROM on it.
Verizon CS told me on the phone that if they sent me a warranty replacement then found it to be water (or physically) damaged, they would "have to" bill me for the RETAIL value of the phone. She gave me the option to take it into a verizon store to have a tech first OK the replacement to avoid this possibility. He OK'd it and is should be here shortly.
Is there a way to get it back to stock rom while not being able to read what is on the screen? For that matter, is this even worth doing or will VZW not notice?
PS- I'm trying to decide what ROM to put on the replacement phone- Android is tempting but I think I'm going to wait for the smart people to finish getting stereo bluetooth and standalone GPS all sorted out. I'm sure I'll play with it on the SD card in the meanwhile. Thoughts?
I realized I should add:
On the phone I need to send back, I have the bell (complete with ugly blue start up screen) 3.42.50 radio and whatever nsfan 6.5 build was most recent back then.
To accomplish the flash, I also have a 2gb microsd card (with reader) and have downloaded the stock verizon rom.
Also, the touch screen appears to work (vibrates on touch) however, no amount of guesses with random screen touches could get the phone to connect with activesync or tether (sadly, the last type of connection I made was as a removable drive). In other words, things might not be where they are supposed to be on the screen so telling me to tap at pixel 120x200 (or wherever the "next" or "ok" button might invisibly be) may or may not work.
thanks again!
Enter bootloader - Hold Camera and Power and soft reset.
Connect to usb
Run RUU from stock rom.
dvirus1023 said:
Enter bootloader - Hold Camera and Power and soft reset.
Connect to usb
Run RUU from stock rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL, thanks. I just logged on to say I'd figured it out. It finally dawned on me that 10 months ago i'd noticed (or heard or something) that you didn't need the active sync connection going if you entered bootloader first.
Fantastic. Many thanks.
Just in case someone reads this trying to do the same thing: I saw elsewhere that you need to run imcoke.41 before reflashing with stock ROM so that's what I did.
Correct?
I think you need to run the .40 unlocker, not the .41
.40 is supposed to be overwritable, .41 is not
I've been using .40 before I send back my phones. When I flash the VZW ROM it usually errors out the first time, then you follow the instructions on the screen(pc) and it takes the second time.
scotttr said:
I think you need to run the .40 unlocker, not the .41
.40 is supposed to be overwritable, .41 is not
I've been using .40 before I send back my phones. When I flash the VZW ROM it usually errors out the first time, then you follow the instructions on the screen(pc) and it takes the second time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're right. I'm hoping it was .40 that I used and just wrote .41 here. Regardless, I already sent it off.

[Q] Which Lag Fix/Root/Firmware work for the Bell Vibrant?

I swapped my Vibrant out at BestBuy with one that has Download/Recovery mode, so its now time to play.
Which lag fix and root procedures work with the Bell Vibrant? Also which Firmware is compatible?
AllGamer...since you seem to be the "guy" to talk to about the Bell Vibrant, do you want to start a sticky thread, one that lays out which fixes/root/firmwares are compatible with our phone?
i will be buying a Bell Vibrant very soon, so i just wan to know how can you tell it has the recovery feature?
Hold down Home+VolumeDown+Power. It will boot up into a screen with a yellow yield sign and say "Download mode".
Mine doesn't have it so im going back to exchange.
Sent from my GT-I9000M using XDA App
Want to hear a funny story?
I was in my Bell store today, seeing if they had any accessories in for the Vibrant yet. My sales rep was there, and we started talking about the device, unlocking, modding, etc.
He mentioned they had five returns since Monday regarding the download and recovery mode issue they swapped out on the DOA plan. Guess there's a lot of modders in the downtown Vancouver area.
I asked him if they still had any of those returns, he said yep, they had all of them, they hadn't been processed out of the store yet. He brought a couple out, and I fired them up, did the download keypress and fired them up. Repeated this process for four working phones in total, the fifth was well and truly dead.
Guess what?
EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM WENT INTO DOWNLOAD MODE.
EVERY
SINGLE
ONE
So did all the demonstration models.
I'll leave it to you to figure out the moral of this story.
Croak said:
Want to hear a funny story?
I was in my Bell store today, seeing if they had any accessories in for the Vibrant yet. My sales rep was there, and we started talking about the device, unlocking, modding, etc.
He mentioned they had five returns since Monday regarding the download and recovery mode issue they swapped out on the DOA plan. Guess there's a lot of modders in the downtown Vancouver area.
I asked him if they still had any of those returns, he said yep, they had all of them, they hadn't been processed out of the store yet. He brought a couple out, and I fired them up, did the download keypress and fired them up. Repeated this process for four working phones in total, the fifth was well and truly dead.
Guess what?
EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM WENT INTO DOWNLOAD MODE.
EVERY
SINGLE
ONE
So did all the demonstration models.
I'll leave it to you to figure out the moral of this story.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe some people don't know how to do it properly, but when I was bringing my SGS in for replacement, I had no problems popping the demo phone into recovery and download modes Just wouldn't work with mine and the one they let me try out of the box. Ended up heading to Future Shop and couldn't get either of their 2 available phones to work.
Hopefully local stores have got another batch in stock.
DarthV said:
Maybe some people don't know how to do it properly, but when I was bringing my SGS in for replacement, I had no problems popping the demo phone into recovery and download modes Just wouldn't work with mine and the one they let me try out of the box. Ended up heading to Future Shop and couldn't get either of their 2 available phones to work.
Hopefully local stores have got another batch in stock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what is the exact process to initiate the bootloader mode?
aquenne said:
what is the exact process to initiate the bootloader mode?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pwr+Home+Vol- for download, switch vol+ and vol- for recovery. Power on with all 3 kept pressed, then let go of the pwr button before it loops another reboot. Or at least that's how I did it.
It took me a few tries to get it to work.
Now I don't have a problem.
I'm sure all those returns will simply go into the exchange pile.
This phone is freaking sweet !
DarthV said:
Pwr+Home+Vol- for download, switch vol+ and vol- for recovery. Power on with all 3 kept pressed, then let go of the pwr button before it loops another reboot. Or at least that's how I did it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah i see. mine is working.
Coming from an HTC Touch, the key difference is you could initiate the bootloader mode WHILE the phone was running. This process requires the phone to first be off.
there are 2 topics in the Dev section with the undate.zip to root your phone
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=748131
arr0ww said:
I swapped my Vibrant out at BestBuy with one that has Download/Recovery mode, so its now time to play.
Which lag fix and root procedures work with the Bell Vibrant? Also which Firmware is compatible?
AllGamer...since you seem to be the "guy" to talk to about the Bell Vibrant, do you want to start a sticky thread, one that lays out which fixes/root/firmwares are compatible with our phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Talking about how to activate the recovery/download thing. What I read (and what worked for me) was when the samsung logo appears on screen, let go of the power button for like half a second then hold it again. Worked flawlessly for me!
I rooted mine in-store while waiting for the paperwork to be finished.
AllGamer said:
there are 2 topics in the Dev section with the undate.zip to root your phone
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=748131
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just rooted and installed the "OneClick Lag Fix 2-3. 2181 Quadrant score...holy crap this thing flies now!!!
Bell vibrant doesnt have recovery mode any suggestions???
Hi guys I think im writing in the right section. I just got an unlocked bell vibrant and cant enter recovery mode can anyone suggest a solution I cant stand this Lag!
mariotenuta said:
Hi guys I think im writing in the right section. I just got an unlocked bell vibrant and cant enter recovery mode can anyone suggest a solution I cant stand this Lag!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you should have opened a new topic, instead of lapping onto another one.
lag fix has nothing to do with the recovery mode
you can install the lag fix without being able to get into recovery mode
does that answer your question?

One way to "fix" a phone with 3-button recovery/download disabled

This is not quite as insane as heating your phone in the oven, and you probably won't want to do this but...
Try bricking your phone, and then sending it to Samsung. I did, and I now can use the 3-button grips to enter download and recovery mode.
If I had the option, and prior knowledge of the importance of the 3-button method of getting into recovery or download mode I would have been more careful when I got my phone. I wasn't, and I purchased a phone with a disabled 3-button recovery. Darn.
Because I have flashed firmware onto different devices without any past problems, I elected to flash the Bell JH2 firmware (from JG9, using Odin), despite the lack of recovery options. In truth, I had little choice, as somewhere along the customization road I messed something up badly enough that continual force close messages made the phone unusable.
Obviously the flash failed, and I was left with the black screen of death.
I took the phone back to Bell, and they sent it along to Samsung (last Wednesday). Today I got the phone back and, just on the off-chance, tried the 3-button grip to enter download mode; less than a second later I was in download mode. I can now enter download and recovery mode with ease. Samsung also upgraded the phone to JH2.
I could't find any mention in the forums that Samsung would enable the 3-button features, or that JH2 enabled the features, but it appears that one or the other has done so. Draw what conclusions you will.
Before anyone asks: I have confirmed that the phone is the same phone (the s/n and imei stickers on the phone match the stickers on the original box, which wasn't sent with the phone to Samsung, and the phone remains sim unlocked), and I employed the same 3-button procedure this time as in all previous, failed attempts (actually I tried every trick of timing, grip, battery insertion, sim card and xd card in the previous failures).
wow! you got the phone back so quickly?!?!?!
it's been more than 5 weeks already for me, and i still don't have my original phone back
good thing i bough a few...
Yeah. I was a little surprised myself.
While I didn't like the sinking sensation I experienced when I bricked the phone, all-in-all I am not unhappy with the result, as I expected to have to wait a month or two before I would be able to unlock the phone, cancel the Bell plan and use the phone with my Rogers.
Now I have a fully functional, unlocked phone after less than two weeks of ownership (yep, I bricked the phone 4 days after I got it - I guess I should be more appreciative of the features of my former HTC Hero )
i beat you, i bricked my first SGS on the 3rd day of owner ship trying to flash Froyo Alpha, knowing i had a disabled 3 button phone
I am happy to hear you got your phone back so quickly. Mine was sent off by Bell on Wednesday, it died on its own accord though, no rooting or anything.
This loaner N97 is killing me, why on earth these phones are so popular in other parts of the world boggles my mind. Its most clunky slow ass OS I have ever used.. resistive touch screen on top of that makes me want to kill something.

[Q] Suddenly won't boot, help

I have a Galaxy S as shipped by Bell Canada. It doesn't have the 3 button download mode so I'm staying away from 3rd party roms for now.
It is unlocked and rooted. All has been well until today. I had it off for a while to use the SIM in another phone. When I turned it back on it asked for the SIM unlock code. I Dismissed that and checked the phone, all seemed well other than no SIM activation. I turned it off and removed the SIM and now it won't boot. I get the usual logo, the song, and for a long time the S logo. If I wait long enough it then appears to be off. If I press the back or menu key they will light up but that's it. I can't do anything else other than pull the battery.
I tried the hard reset with holding volume down and tap the power button. That only turns it back on with the same problem. The actual SIM is fine and working in another phone.
Is there anything I can do? If I could hard reset it I'd take it back to the store but I hesitate for now while it still contains my data.
this is a problem i have just posted about a couple of mins ago
but i can get it recovery mode and fatory reset with the vol up, home and power
then it will boot but obviously i have to then reset everything from scratch which is really annoying so anyone got any idea re this
lucky for you that you can get into recovery. Right now I'd be happy with a hard reset, it doesn't take long to rebuild the setup. I'd like to know who decided to remove the recovery mode, that's evil and keeps me from simply resetting the device.
its all the apps re downloading and installing them and resetting up accounts and swype and all that lot need a fix asap
do you know what version of andoid you are running
yes but at least you can get a working phone again, I can't without being able to get into any boot menus. Honestly it only takes 30 minutes to setup again from scratch. I'm on 2.1 and what I find at least on my HTC when it had 2.1 is that I setup the google account, let it sync contacts etc, then from Market Downloads I'll see listed all my apps that were previously installed. As long as I don't leave that screen I can install each app one after the other. Or a proper backup....
Any other magic key combos to reset this thing???
did you try hooking up to kies?
Yes but that does nothing since it never fully boots.
3rdcoast said:
I have a Galaxy S as shipped by Bell Canada. It doesn't have the 3 button download mode so I'm staying away from 3rd party roms for now.
It is unlocked and rooted. All has been well until today. I had it off for a while to use the SIM in another phone. When I turned it back on it asked for the SIM unlock code. I Dismissed that and checked the phone, all seemed well other than no SIM activation. I turned it off and removed the SIM and now it won't boot. I get the usual logo, the song, and for a long time the S logo. If I wait long enough it then appears to be off. If I press the back or menu key they will light up but that's it. I can't do anything else other than pull the battery.
I tried the hard reset with holding volume down and tap the power button. That only turns it back on with the same problem. The actual SIM is fine and working in another phone.
Is there anything I can do? If I could hard reset it I'd take it back to the store but I hesitate for now while it still contains my data.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same thing happened to my phone, but a factory reset did nothing. The internal SD card gave out. Phone is now sent away for 3 - 6 weeks awaiting repair.
my phone did this to me today too, I was just about to post about this when I saw this thread.
So its an SD Card problem? theres no hope of getting it fixed without sending it in?
Yes I think it is the internal card meaning there isn't anything good enough to reset to. I walked the phone over to the store and I'll have to wait for new stock next week. Actually I'm lucky they will exchange it since I bought it outright which apparently is "against policy" even though they list a no contract full price. We'll see how it goes next week but overall I despise the telco industry in this country.
3rdcoast said:
Yes I think it is the internal card meaning there isn't anything good enough to reset to. I walked the phone over to the store and I'll have to wait for new stock next week. Actually I'm lucky they will exchange it since I bought it outright which apparently is "against policy" even though they list a no contract full price. We'll see how it goes next week but overall I despise the telco industry in this country.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i went to best buy today to try and exchange it, and apparently they only have a 14 day exchange policy with phones despite it saying 30 day on the receipt, anyhow i phoned samsung and they said i have to go through bell, even though im using the phone on telus, so that should be interesting.
So all the people that are having this problem have the Bell model?
Today i got mine off eBay, as soon a i turned it on, i get exactly the same thing.
It wont load into Android, i see that galaxy S logo and then black screen.
If i go into recovery i see "cant mount SD Card".
The more is search this forum the more i see that all the people with this problem are owners of the Bell i9000M model.
I seriously think they have some defect with the manufacturing line of the phone.
Have you guys installed any firmware on your phone before this happened?
mine is like that out of the box.
Mine is the same Bell model. There seems to be some issues with them which makes the lack of download mode even more dangerous. Right now it doesn't feel like the warranty is going to cover us for problems not our fault. I hope they replace it next week but if it still lacks download mode I'll remain nervous.
Seems like everyone is with the Bell model but my questions is:
Have you guys installed another firmware than the factory one which caused this to happen?
Are you running Stock?
We need to try and narrow this down as i am seeing too many posts about this issue, and they are with the Bell model.
clubtech said:
Seems like everyone is with the Bell model but my questions is:
Have you guys installed another firmware than the factory one which caused this to happen?
Are you running Stock?
We need to try and narrow this down as i am seeing too many posts about this issue, and they are with the Bell model.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i put new firmware on it last week, can't remember what it was but it was upgraded through kies so it's one samsung pushed to me, not a froyo unstable one.
bigc_13 said:
i put new firmware on it last week, can't remember what it was but it was upgraded through kies so it's one samsung pushed to me, not a froyo unstable one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. if it was pushed to you via Kies i assume you were running stock JH2.
So it just stopped booting out of the blue?
To the OP: have you install any firmware on your device before this happened?
clubtech said:
Seems like everyone is with the Bell model but my questions is:
Have you guys installed another firmware than the factory one which caused this to happen?
Are you running Stock?
We need to try and narrow this down as i am seeing too many posts about this issue, and they are with the Bell model.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't flashed any 3rd party roms. I did do the official update via Keis which even at the store today they reminded me that I should do the update.. That update seemed to go well and has been working for over a week until I turned it off for an hour. It still isn't clear if the disabled 3 button mode is hardware or software related but we all seem to have that in common too. So before they dismiss the whole thing and we get hosed over technicalities such as unlocking it should be clear that there are clear defects in these phones as far as I can tell.
I want to be comfortable that I'm not left out of hundred of dollars just because I choose to buy it outright and not be tied to contracts. Samsung has to play nicely because it is their phone. Bell has to play nicely because they are bringing them in and distributing to retail. What carrier I use should be irrelevant because the problems are not related to usage.
FYI, the clerks went off for conference to decide if I somehow got the phone against policy. Either they trust my story or I got mine moments before they got the memo about not selling outright.
clubtech said:
Thanks. if it was pushed to you via Kies i assume you were running stock JH2.
So it just stopped booting out of the blue?
To the OP: have you install any firmware on your device before this happened?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here, stock JH2 from Kies. Not rooted. Boots to Galaxy S logo, then black screen. Mine is sent in for repair... Almost two weeks now.
Seeing more and more of this being posted. There is obviously some issues with this phone.
clubtech said:
Thanks. if it was pushed to you via Kies i assume you were running stock JH2.
So it just stopped booting out of the blue?
To the OP: have you install any firmware on your device before this happened?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Our posts crossed..
Yes I believe mine had the JH2, the official keis offered firmware. I was looking forward to the biggie update at the end of the month so wasn't about to risk bricking before then. Irony stepped in anyway.
I'm a bit nervous until I get a new one. At that point if the 3 button mode still doesn't work I'll remain nervous that I'll get another potential brick.
edit-> yes, I simply shut it down for an hour or two to use the SIM in another phone to test that phone. At next boot it died. I knew something was wrong when the logo stayed up for much longer.
I have the 3 buttons enabled so it is not related to the 3buttons being disabled, however when i boot into recovery it clearly displays an error that it can not find the internal SD.
There is definitely something wrong with the Bell Galaxy S corrupting itself.
I bought mine from an eBay seller, he is saying the phone booted fine when he shipped it but when i opened the box today i only got this black screen after logo.
Gladly the seller will take it back.
Maybe this is why there are shortages everywhere in Canada. I hope the caught this up and are fixing it with the new batch.

note 4 died. good battery.rooted.service did nothing since it was rooted

so, this phone died for me in 2017, and have been in a drawer since then. then i thought why not ask. so long story short if i remember correctly: bought it new. i rooted it since all the cool kids do that. then i did some update i think. and then in the winter of 2017 in beginning it just started behaving weirdly for me and then it turned off and all kinds of shenanigans. cant restart using different methods, sometimes it blinks, sometimes that bios menu comes up. blabla. so i tried to send it to the local repairshop that the seller used. but since i had it rooted they refused to fix it. so now i have a phone that costed 600 euro + 70 euro in service cost and it doesnt work. and then its been in a drawer since then.
i took it out, had it and the battery in a freezer for a while like some has said on internet didnt work.
anyway. does anyone here know any tips? if i want to flash the room can that be possible? or is this a lost cause? was this a common problem with note 4? i loved it and it crushed my heart when it stopped working. i still have a few months of pics etc on it from back then that ive never been able to get out. i attached it to the computer now and the computer makes a sound but nothing more.
any tips?
darknessviking said:
so, this phone died for me in 2017, and have been in a drawer since then. then i thought why not ask. so long story short if i remember correctly: bought it new. i rooted it since all the cool kids do that. then i did some update i think. and then in the winter of 2017 in beginning it just started behaving weirdly for me and then it turned off and all kinds of shenanigans. cant restart using different methods, sometimes it blinks, sometimes that bios menu comes up. blabla. so i tried to send it to the local repairshop that the seller used. but since i had it rooted they refused to fix it. so now i have a phone that costed 600 euro + 70 euro in service cost and it doesnt work. and then its been in a drawer since then.
i took it out, had it and the battery in a freezer for a while like some has said on internet didnt work.
anyway. does anyone here know any tips? if i want to flash the room can that be possible? or is this a lost cause? was this a common problem with note 4? i loved it and it crushed my heart when it stopped working. i still have a few months of pics etc on it from back then that ive never been able to get out. i attached it to the computer now and the computer makes a sound but nothing more.
any tips?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds to me like either dead emmc or misconnection.
If it's just? misconnection there are tips (increasing the pressure by cardboard).
Can you access download mode?
Sometimes it shows there "dead emmc".
I somewhere read about a testing app.
Gotta search.
Where in Europe are you?
In the German Android-hilfe forum there is a member who fixes that.
Either exchanging the emmc or resoldering it.
If the chip is dead probably the data are lost.
afaik flashing the stock ROM deletes data.
It's a known problem, yes.
bmwdroid said:
Sounds to me like either dead emmc or misconnection.
If it's just? misconnection there are tips (increasing the pressure by cardboard).
Can you access download mode?
Sometimes it shows there "dead emmc".
I somewhere read about a testing app.
Gotta search.
Where in Europe are you?
In the German Android-hilfe forum there is a member who fixes that.
Either exchanging the emmc or resoldering it.
If the chip is dead probably the data are lost.
afaik flashing the stock ROM deletes data.
It's a known problem, yes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Excellent feedback and assessment @bmwdroid . Thank you for sharing.
I only wish to add that there is a way to flash Samsung firmware while keeping user data. Of course, this method wouldn't be effective when it comes to emmc hardware failure so Im posting it for general information purposes only.
If you have downloaded the firmware for your Samsung Galaxy device you’ll find 2 CSC binaries with *.tar.md5*extension (namely CSC and Home_CSC ) inside along with BL, AP, and CP.*CSC*and*HOME_CSC*are necessary for different purposes, and you have to choose one or the other depending on your goal.
CSC –*If you flash the CSC file, it’ll perform a*factory reset*of your Galaxy device and wipe all data while installing a new firmware to bring your device to the same*state as it was when you purchased it. Go with CSC if you want a*clean installation.
HOME_CSC*–* On the other hand, if you want to*keep your Samsung phone’s data and settings*even flashing the stock firmware, you can select the HOME_CSC file.

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