Ford Motor Company SYNC/MyFordTouch/MyLincolnTouch Compatibility - Samsung Galaxy S (4G Model)

Hello, Hopefully I can help with some frustrations regarding the various levels of SYNC systems and their apparent compatibility issues with Galaxy S phones. I will help anyone with this system to the best of my ability, and being a technician for Ford, i have a pretty good handle on these systems.
First off, I would encourage anyone with a question about this system to reference the Device Compatibility Matrix that is available at syncmyride.com, as is some basic troubleshooting information.
Always make sure that your CIP is up to the most current software level. Version numbers are different for each vehicle line(Fiesta, Focus, Fusion, Flex, Edge, MKx, MKt, MKs, MKz, F series, E series, Mustang etc).
There is a known compatibility issue with Samsung Galaxy S family phones that is fairly consistent, however not 100% of the time.
The common symptoms both from my engineering department, and from my own experience is a complete lockup/disconnect when updating the phone book(sync) or a blackscreen and complete system lockup(mytouch variants).
In some instances, mainly with the AT&T flavor, the phones will not connect via bluetooth for media/text messaging or sync services, however they will usually work as a phone. None of the Galaxy S series will accept phone book downloads, and that has been known to completely lock out the system, requiring a hard reset and occasionally a full reflash of the APIM(Accesory Protocol Interface Module, SYNC's brain box) to unlock.
I have found a dead consistent workaround for this that I dont imagine ford would be willing to back, but it is rock solid reliable and relatively simple, it involves flashing a rom that does NOT include touchwiz. I am not familiar enough with these phones to say exactly what, however every phone I have attempted to pair/use with touchwiz has failed, with touchwiz, or stock touchwiz gone, and again, I am not familiar enough to say for sure, the problem disappears.
I have first hand used Bonsai(epic 4g) and Beautiful SGS4G(Galaxy S 4g) as well as CM7(Vibrant) and had zero problems pairing or using any functions with the vehicle. Phone calls, streaming audio, Pandora, Text messaging, navigation etc all work smoothly with no hangups or hitches since romming the phones.
Again I hope this is helpful and if i can help you directly, feel free to contact me via pm or in this thread, however pm is going to be the best way to get in touch with me.
A few quick things that I have consistenly observed...Blackberrys are trouble. SYNC does NOT like BB's. Sync is also very sporadic with non smart-phones. Regular ol dial only phones do not seem to be very compatible, even though there are some listed on the compatibility matrix. Mytouch systems(8" touchscreen navigation with a black background and 4 way grid homescreen with top left-phone, top right-nav/services, bottom left-audio, bottom right climate control) are VERY tempermental. SYNC systems(smaller MFD that is non touch screen, or newer mustangs/raptors etc) are much more forgiving and much hardier from my experience.
Take care!

Great information, thanks.

Hmm -- app possible to remote control a late model ford, like driving the thing around with nobody in it?

lol its not quite that integrated. So far our capabilities in the shop are not that far above what you can do as an end user. I would imagine they will tie remote start, unlock/lock, windows etc in probably by end of the 2013 m/y.
We have managed to run diagnostics through sync as its tied into the HS/MS can networks, but beyond basic code pulling and system network integrity tests we haven't been able to pull reliable data out. Nowhere near solid enough to do realtime diagnostics or fault tracking.

Related

Moving to what ?

I like others am getting to the point of dumping my Touch Pro on eBay and moving to something else. I've had it since September, tried almost all the tweaks / registry hacks / hard reset and starting from scratch, and the device is simply not reliable enough to use as an everyday business tool - TF3D hangs or crashes, emails are not sent / received using MS push with 3G always on, general slow response of the device (which impacts receiving calls) and a GPS system that is unusable due to the lag / freezing.
I have tried the official HTC support desk route, but they were less help than an ashtray on a motorcycle.
I must have a windows mobile device as there is some software that I use everyday and have done for a number of years that I need to keep on WinMo.
Given the recent press statement by SE that the next Xperia type device will not be manufactured by HTC (http://www.gsmarena.com/the_next_sony_ericsson_xperia_wont_be_made_by_htc-news-716.php) what devices are people moving too from the Touch Pro ?? I see the viable choices as Xperia or the Palm Treo Pro if I want to stick with a keyboard, and Omnia and Touch HD if I don't.
What have others moved over too and are there any other alternatives that I may have overlooked ?
Thanks
Halfpenny said:
I like others am getting to the point of dumping my Touch Pro on eBay and moving to something else. I've had it since September, tried almost all the tweaks / registry hacks / hard reset and starting from scratch, and the device is simply not reliable enough to use as an everyday business tool - TF3D hangs or crashes, emails are not sent / received using MS push with 3G always on, general slow response of the device (which impacts receiving calls) and a GPS system that is unusable due to the lag / freezing.
I have tried the official HTC support desk route, but they were less help than an ashtray on a motorcycle.
I must have a windows mobile device as there is some software that I use everyday and have done for a number of years that I need to keep on WinMo.
Given the recent press statement by SE that the next Xperia type device will not be manufactured by HTC (http://www.gsmarena.com/the_next_sony_ericsson_xperia_wont_be_made_by_htc-news-716.php) what devices are people moving too from the Touch Pro ?? I see the viable choices as Xperia or the Palm Treo Pro if I want to stick with a keyboard, and Omnia and Touch HD if I don't.
What have others moved over too and are there any other alternatives that I may have overlooked ?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just purchased the Touch Pro, after being a Treo person for a number of years. Everything I've heard about the Treo Pro has been great. It would be a step down in terms of screen real estate, but has the advantage of much easier one-handed navigation.
first off, i just want to say that i have no lag, gps works perfectly (with agps disabled) and all my emails download regularly with no problems. im using NATFs 3.2. however, it seems like you already made up ur mind. i would not recommend the omnia because of the lack of keyboard and small screen. the touch hd's screen is better for the onscreen keyboard. personally i need a physical keyboard; so if i was to move on, i'd probably go for the xperia x1a (whenever the hell they decide to release it) or samsung epix. however neither one of those devices appeal more to me than my fuze
I have heard the Omnia is a nice power house and im figuring you made up your mind but maybe your Touch Pro is defective... i have had ZERO problems with mine and it has never crashed on me and i have had it since the beginning of Nov
Halfpenny said:
I like others am getting to the point of dumping my Touch Pro on eBay and moving to something else. I've had it since September, tried almost all the tweaks / registry hacks / hard reset and starting from scratch, and the device is simply not reliable enough to use as an everyday business tool - TF3D hangs or crashes, emails are not sent / received using MS push with 3G always on, general slow response of the device (which impacts receiving calls) and a GPS system that is unusable due to the lag / freezing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With the stock AT&T ROM and a few tweaks, I'm not having those issues on the Fuze. TouchFlo has never hung or crashed and I haven't had any e-mail problems with an Exchange account.
The delay in answering calls has been discussed in other threads. The GPS can be a bit flaky on the Fuze, but I've worked around that. So I'm not sure those issues you've had with the device are normal, or maybe I've just been lucky.

Safe Mode

Whenever i say that new smart phones aren't really phones, but actually entertainment devices that make calls, everyone nods and agrees. But what if there was a way to reverse that so they only made calls and pretty much nothing else? I'm looking to find a "safe mode", in which lots of services and drivers aren't even loaded.. ever. A good example of its use would be when i needed to drive 4 hours away for a funeral. I had no need for twitter and angry birds, I just needed to freely communicate with relatives. Another example is being stranded on the highway cause of dead car battery. Most Evo users would be clinging to dear battery life. Sometimes we want to be saturated with features, and other times we would be just fine with a classic green screen phone that only needs a weekly charge.
Would it be possible to dual boot into a very minimalist rom? If i knew my phone had a mode for emergencies, i wouldn't be searching every inch of the web for juice saving tips. Is this possible? If so, which rom would accomplish this? Thanks.
Sent from my HTC Evo 4G [rooted] Sprint 2.3.3(stock Sense, came preinstalled) Freedom-Aggressive kernel 0.8.5 hardware v.4
I have an option on my DroidX and it might work for you. I think it is generic for Android phones.
From the dialer do *#*#4636#*#* and go into the phone menu and you can change the network or disable the data connection altogether. On my phone it makes and receives phone calls and text messages but nothing else.
There is sometimes a delay when I make a change, a few seconds, so be patient.
I have a feeling you could do some damage in this menu so make a note of anything you change.
Since you are rooted, you could also install Droidwall or something similar and be very selective about what applications you allow to have a data connection.
You can theoretically create a custom CM7 or AOSP ROM with only the essentials- the phone.apk, contacts.apk, mms.apk, settings, and their corresponding supporting files/ framework.
Mind you, the screen would still be the biggest battery drain. And there comes a question of dual booting (which should be possible in my phone at least, with Magldr...).
Swyped from my HTC HD2 running CM7 (Gingerbread 2.3.5)

2015 Honda CR-V EX-L and bluetooth

I have posted a similar post in the CRV Owners forum, but I thought this forum would make more sense since it's filled with a bunch of hardware-hacking programmers!
The interface between my car and my phone (LG G2 Lollipop stock) is abysmal. I have seen a number of posts on the web about this issue with modern cars, but no real solutions. The following is a list of what I would like the interface to be between the phone and car. Then at the end of the email I'll flame a little about the "why"s.
GIve me a button to allow me to talk to my phone directly without the HondaLink getting in the way. There was a similar issue with a Volkswagon and a solution using Tasker to intercept the call. That solution doesn't work with my Honda and is a kludge.
Always have the phone interrupt the radio (whether it's a call or audio, e.g. Google maps navigation). For me, the information coming from the phone will always be more important than the music or talk show on the radio.
Mirror the phone screen onto the car screen when I'm driving (so I can see my map when I need to)
When I receive a call, let the phone do the talking (the phone can speak the caller's name to me and can send the caller's name over the bluetooth connection) and let me hit a button to answer it.
Has anyone successfully hacked into the firmware/software in the CV-R to fix these issues? Is it possible? At this point, based on my research, I see no other option. If there is another option that doesn't involve replacing the system or "just dealing with it," I'd love to hear it.
The "why"s:
My phone is custimizable, has all of my contacts, recognizes my voice, has GPS, accurate and up-to-date maps, and does everything that I need a phone and navigation system to do. The Honda solution tries to duplicate all of that functionality and does it very poorly. As one user wrote last year, my $50 bluetooth headset can listen to my phone and pipe in navigation directions and let me know when I get a call. It is a joke that an expensive car can't even get that part right. The fact that I can't put my phone screen on the car screen while I'm driving is idiotic. Now I've got to find some way to hold my phone up for navigation. I don't want this post to degenerate into a series of posts and counter-posts on whether drivers can handle the increased cognitive demand. I've been driving long enough to see that the majority of drivers are not paying any attention at all to the road anyway and no one seems to care.
The hardware in the CR-V seems to be capable of doing the things that I have listed above. So, if the Honda programmers can't get it the way I want it, the only solution is to take the programming away from them and do it ourselves. Has anyone done this yet?
Thank you in advance for your help.

I've Given Up On Android

The very first Android phone I purchased was in 2010, and it was an HTC Desire. I have been a huge fan of Android ever since, owning literally hundreds of phones and tablets from various manufacturers such as Samsung, Huawei, Motorola, Xiaomi, LG, Sony....the list goes on and on. I've tried iOS a few times, but I simply just didn't like iOS. In recent years my loyalty to Android was severely tested because of an issue that many may think is inconsequential and even petty, but to me it was ultimately a deal-breaker - delayed push notifications (predominantly when the screen is locked and off)
So picture this - I'm sat at home with three other members of my family who also own Android phones, and we have a group chat (FB Messenger) going with other members of the family. Every time someone posts a comment *PING*...but wait, four android phones, and only two went *PING*...then a few seconds later another goes *PING*, then a few seconds later the fourth goes *PING*.
I'm not exactly sure when this issue first arose, but I only really started to notice around the time Oreo was mainstream, and I've been obsessed with trying to figure out a cure ever since. Of course I've tried literally everything that's been suggested, hard resets, turning off battery optimisations, locking the affected app in the recents, disabling Doze with ADB, clearing the cache, custom roms, different routers, different networks, heartbeat fixing apps for GCM/FCM, bla bla bla...none of it works. Now I have finally accepted there is a flaw in the way the Android OS handles push notifications, a flaw that affects every single Android device, at least since Oreo, and maybe even before. It's a strange one because the issue doesn't seem to occur when the screen is awake, only when it is locked and off. At one stage I was hopeful features like AOD on AMOLED devices might be a solution, but alas, even with AOD active, the problem persists.
Now before you say "I've never had a problem with push notifications on my Android device", are you sure. Have you ever really been in a situation where you would notice? Try it for yourself, perform a test using a similar scenario to the one I mentioned in the second paragraph. Create a group chat in any messaging app you like, and have several of the group members with Android devices sit in the same room with their screens locked and off, then have one person send a message in the group chat, then watch as some get the messages immediately, some with a slight delay, and some not at all until they wake the screen. Do it a few times and you will soon notice there is no pattern at all, sometimes you will get the notifications immediately while others are delayed, then sometimes others will get the notifications immediately and yours will be delayed.
My most recent (and very last) Android purchase was the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (outright, not on contract, so you know roughly how much I paid). When I'm paying that amount of money for a mobile phone, I expect timely push notifications as a given, but no, the same issue occurs even with one of the very latest and greatest. I contacted Samsung Tech Support and the guy admitted it's the most common complaint he deals with every single day. I was previously given a similar story by Motorola and Huawei support too, and a little digging around online shows that thousands of Android users are complaining about the very same issue. Needless to say they now have that phone back.
I know I know, something this trivial shouldn't really bother me this much, but it does, it's just who I am. I can accept there is no such thing as a perfect mobile phone, I can live with an average camera, a budget processor, a dull screen, lifeless aesthetics etc. but there are some compromises I just won't make. Apart from the obvious (the ability to make and receive calls and texts), my requirements are quite simple - I require a phone with stable WiFi, Bluetooth and NFC, a decent battery life and of course timely push notifications. With no Android device currently able to fulfil my very simple requirements, it really did only leave me with one option - joining the dark side....so I bought an iPhone.
I have owned an iPhone for just over a month (that's two weeks longer than my last three Android devices), and thus far my delayed push notification woes have vanished. Now when someone in the family posts in our group, *PING* immediately every single time. The battery life is acceptable for someone like me who isn't the most demanding user, WiFi, Bluetooth and NFC have presented no issues, and it makes and receives calls and texts without a problem. I can honestly say the only thing I miss so far is my Android App Drawer. I know iOS introduced their App Library in iOS 14, and it's a start, but it's just not the same. There is probably an app in Cydia that would give me an app drawer, but I'm not quite ready to get into the world of jailbreaking just yet (I'm not that brave).
So after my big rant, here's a summary - Android push notifications are broken, they've been broken for some time and Google don't seem interested in fixing the problem. If someone told me tomorrow that Google had finally fixed push notifications, I would drop iOS like a hot potato and rekindle my love for Android. Please Google, help bring me back from the dark side, it's really cold out here!
Des
energy6uk said:
The very first Android phone I purchased was in 2010, and it was an HTC Desire. I have been a huge fan of Android ever since, owning literally hundreds of phones and tablets from various manufacturers such as Samsung, Huawei, Motorola, Xiaomi, LG, Sony....the list goes on and on. I've tried iOS a few times, but I simply just didn't like iOS. In recent years my loyalty to Android was severely tested because of an issue that many may think is inconsequential and even petty, but to me it was ultimately a deal-breaker - delayed push notifications (predominantly when the screen is locked and off)
So picture this - I'm sat at home with three other members of my family who also own Android phones, and we have a group chat (FB Messenger) going with other members of the family. Every time someone posts a comment *PING*...but wait, four android phones, and only two went *PING*...then a few seconds later another goes *PING*, then a few seconds later the fourth goes *PING*.
I'm not exactly sure when this issue first arose, but I only really started to notice around the time Oreo was mainstream, and I've been obsessed with trying to figure out a cure ever since. Of course I've tried literally everything that's been suggested, hard resets, turning off battery optimisations, locking the affected app in the recents, disabling Doze with ADB, clearing the cache, custom roms, different routers, different networks, heartbeat fixing apps for GCM/FCM, bla bla bla...none of it works. Now I have finally accepted there is a flaw in the way the Android OS handles push notifications, a flaw that affects every single Android device, at least since Oreo, and maybe even before. It's a strange one because the issue doesn't seem to occur when the screen is awake, only when it is locked and off. At one stage I was hopeful features like AOD on AMOLED devices might be a solution, but alas, even with AOD active, the problem persists.
Now before you say "I've never had a problem with push notifications on my Android device", are you sure. Have you ever really been in a situation where you would notice? Try it for yourself, perform a test using a similar scenario to the one I mentioned in the second paragraph. Create a group chat in any messaging app you like, and have several of the group members with Android devices sit in the same room with their screens locked and off, then have one person send a message in the group chat, then watch as some get the messages immediately, some with a slight delay, and some not at all until they wake the screen. Do it a few times and you will soon notice there is no pattern at all, sometimes you will get the notifications immediately while others are delayed, then sometimes others will get the notifications immediately and yours will be delayed.
My most recent (and very last) Android purchase was the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (outright, not on contract, so you know roughly how much I paid). When I'm paying that amount of money for a mobile phone, I expect timely push notifications as a given, but no, the same issue occurs even with one of the very latest and greatest. I contacted Samsung Tech Support and the guy admitted it's the most common complaint he deals with every single day. I was previously given a similar story by Motorola and Huawei support too, and a little digging around online shows that thousands of Android users are complaining about the very same issue. Needless to say they now have that phone back.
I know I know, something this trivial shouldn't really bother me this much, but it does, it's just who I am. I can accept there is no such thing as a perfect mobile phone, I can live with an average camera, a budget processor, a dull screen, lifeless aesthetics etc. but there are some compromises I just won't make. Apart from the obvious (the ability to make and receive calls and texts), my requirements are quite simple - I require a phone with stable WiFi, Bluetooth and NFC, a decent battery life and of course timely push notifications. With no Android device currently able to fulfil my very simple requirements, it really did only leave me with one option - joining the dark side....so I bought an iPhone.
I have owned an iPhone for just over a month (that's two weeks longer than my last three Android devices), and thus far my delayed push notification woes have vanished. Now when someone in the family posts in our group, *PING* immediately every single time. The battery life is acceptable for someone like me who isn't the most demanding user, WiFi, Bluetooth and NFC have presented no issues, and it makes and receives calls and texts without a problem. I can honestly say the only thing I miss so far is my Android App Drawer. I know iOS introduced their App Library in iOS 14, and it's a start, but it's just not the same. There is probably an app in Cydia that would give me an app drawer, but I'm not quite ready to get into the world of jailbreaking just yet (I'm not that brave).
So after my big rant, here's a summary - Android push notifications are broken, they've been broken for some time and Google don't seem interested in fixing the problem. If someone told me tomorrow that Google had finally fixed push notifications, I would drop iOS like a hot potato and rekindle my love for Android. Please Google, help bring me back from the dark side, it's really cold out here!
Des
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Now that's what I call a structured rant!
But what type of phone did you owned ?
I know this problem from samsung phones, and other phones I've tested. usually it's because of the OEM's aggressive take on battery management. They freeze apps in the background, and run them periodically to check notifications.
I know that's frustrating, but with your story I could feel the social isolation you've felt. And even with all the perks in the world, I wouldn't want a phone that makes me the third wheel.
But I'm much more radical than you, I don't want to change my phone, so I changed my friends. Way better now you should try it, those Apple "cool kids" pigeons weren't good friends anyway.
Obviously I'm just kidding, but I think the issue can be solved by using a ROM to espace your OEM's restrictions, or try another brand. If you ever want to come back to the light (which I'm sure you will because I couldn't bare iPhones after using an android all this time, seriously wtf if that file manager of them, and wtf is the "Other" memory partitions that increases without me having any control over it!), ask in various xda sections if users experience notifications latency, and if they don't know suggest them your little experiment you described in this post.
Hope you'll come back from your journey in the shadow,
Have a great day
Interesting rant.
Were all the phones that your friends had on the same networks? It could easily be a network latency issue
affecting how fast each message was distributed. Given that the passage of a message, say a Whatsapp message is at least: :
from phone screen
to
Whatapp encryption software
to
wi-fi-switch
to
domestic router
to
domestic ISP
to
internet backbone
to
commercial ISP
to
Whatsapp run cloud server
to
Whatsapp redirection processes
to
commercial ISP
to
internet backbone
to
domestic ISP
to
domestic router
to
wifi-switch software
to
friend phone
to
Whatsapp decryption software
to
phone notification sub-routine
to
phone screen
I'd say a small discrepancy in arrival times would be expected.....
I only mention this because it seems that you've tested massive of phones - but did you take into account different networks?

Alcatel Go Flip V keyboard support

(For explanation as to why I want the following, see below section)
I have an Alcatel Go Flip V under Verizon that I would like to get keyboard support on for bluetooth keyboards. It runs an AOSP fork and has no keyboard support. Bluetooth keyboards gave some connection error, vague enough to make me question if the decade-plus old keyboard's ancient standard caused issues, but even a wired keyboard refused to function. Some poking made me believe the device needs custom firmware to get even bluetooth keyboards to function, due to no support. I'm very much a noob, but here's what I know:
APKs cannot be run, though are recognized as such. NOT an 'unusable file' error
ABD shell and push/pull are firmware disabled
Some debug menus exist, but don't allow full ADB access or the like
Alcatel tends to lock down their phones pretty good
Is there any way to get keyboard support with or without hacking the device? I'll do testing on a spare that has some issues that warranted replacement, but still works fine for these purposes.
[Explanation]
I got the flip phone for the reason of getting a phone without artificial limits in place that is barely capable of browsing the web and cannot install games (for I get distracted easily) but can provide a hotspot for those times when my laptop is appropriate to use. I don't like artificial limits, as I am greatly tempted to remove them, so a smartphone is not a preferred solution (If it is the best solution I can just swap my SIM to my mom's old DROID MAXX 2). The flip phone is great most of the time, but the occasional time when I need to make longer messages made me wonder if I could find a 4g slide phone with a full QWERTY keyboard. The only ones I could find were Blackberries which still have that temptation issue mentioned above, and some HTC MyTouch device that's old and carrier-locked. This sent me down a rabbit hole trying to find if my current phone could support external keyboards, bluetooth or otherwise, which it did not, but made me wonder if I could get a modified OS that supported keyboards. I am willing to do anything short of hardware modification to the spare phone, as some hardware fault caused the screen to invert the colors and be mirrored on the vertical axis, making it nigh-unusable as a normal phone but perfect for testing.

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