As the title says I'm on the latest Panama CSC firmware but I've seen many references to the BTU firmware, which should be this one here at SamMobile? I just traded my Nexus 6P for this phone, I don't want/need to root don't want to flash a custom ROM I just want to make sure that I have the best/most correct stock ROM for me in the US on AT&T. I've noticed that my Tab S2 is running a BTU ROM, granted it's a WiFi only tablet but I know it works here for me, which makes me question if I shouldn't switch from the Panamanian ROM.
Questions:
What advantage does switching to the BTU firmware give me?
Will the BTU ROM get me Nougat sooner than others?
Will OTAs still happen (will they happen on the Panama version for that matter?)
Is it as simple grabbing the firmware from SamMobile and flashing it to the phone using Odin?
Or -- should I just stick with the ROM I have now?
I just got this device to use in the US as well, only with T-Mobile. When I got it, it was running the Italian firmware which worked fine except no Samsung Pay. So, I dug around and found a thread here on XDA on how to get Samsung Pay working on this model. That lead me to flash the Australian firmware (XSA) in order for working Samsung Pay (which it is working beautifully now!). That was my only reasoning for flashing a new firmware ... However, I am seeing certain firmwares have historically had faster updates. (From what I have seen around, people mentioned BTU & XSA have seen faster updates - nothing concrete on this, just something I remembered seeing in a post or two ... I assume (and hope) OTAs will happen as normal)
If you want to flash a new firmware, yes, it's as simple as downloading it and flashing with Odin. It will wipe internal storage, so be sure to backup accordingly.
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
I've also seen references to the XSA firmware as well. I think that Samsung Pay is now working on BTU as well. SPay is working, upto the point of actually buying something, on my phone right now with the Panamanian Firmware so I'm assuming that SPay is working most everywhere now. If I do flash I'll go BTU simply because it's an English language native version, yeah I realize it shouldn't matter but I feel better. Also my Samsung Tablet is on a BTU firmware and it gets OTAs so I know that should also work.
Thanks for confirming.
YankInDaSouth said:
I just got this device to use in the US as well, only with T-Mobile. When I got it, it was running the Italian firmware which worked fine except no Samsung Pay. So, I dug around and found a thread here on XDA on how to get Samsung Pay working on this model. That lead me to flash the Australian firmware (XSA) in order for working Samsung Pay (which it is working beautifully now!). That was my only reasoning for flashing a new firmware ... However, I am seeing certain firmwares have historically had faster updates. (From what I have seen around, people mentioned BTU & XSA have seen faster updates - nothing concrete on this, just something I remembered seeing in a post or two ... I assume (and hope) OTAs will happen as normal)
If you want to flash a new firmware, yes, it's as simple as downloading it and flashing with Odin. It will wipe internal storage, so be sure to backup accordingly.
Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
Okay.. so there's a short answer and a long answer.
The short answer - If you look at all the firmware news and firmware download sites (Sammobile, etc) - you will notice that historically, XSA and BTU variants are the fastest to market with some other variants quickly following and some taking a lot longer. (also go to the end of this reply to see a note about the US market)
Now for the long answer (it's quite long.. so if you don't really care about the details just skip it..)
The CSC is country specific for a reason - it can contain changes to the cellular modem behavior and optimizations (for example, band preference), support advanced features (VoLTE - or HD Voice as it's sometimes referred to, WiFi calling), and compliance with local regulatory requirements (for example, camera shutter sound control, use of Samsung Pay).
As such, is most cases, you are better off using the version specifically optimized for your carrier and country, which usually translates into better cell performance (signal strength, dl/ul speeds) and the ability to leverage advanced features (VoLTE, WiFi Calling) as supported by your carrier. It's actually something quite annoying with Samsung, iPhones (and even some android phones) don't need all these local adaptations.
The issues with using your country and carrier-specific firmware are that you will probably get some additional bloatware, updates may take longer, and some features like Samsung Pay will not be available. In recent years, the modem optimization part (signal strength, and speeds) has been improving to a point where most firmware work well in most places and networks.
So basically it's a trade off - do you want a phone that is optimized for your network and will give you best cell reception, speeds, and potentially support VoLTE, etc.
or do you care more about timely security updates, and potentially support of services not available in your original firmware.
If it's the latter, than you may consider flashing a different region's firmware.
That changes a when dealing with the US market (and some others)
In the US, the big carriers (Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint) actually implement hardware (and / or low level firmware) changes directly with Samsung.
Aside from the obvious changes (using SD820 instead of Exynos 8890) the cellular modem (and supporting software) are completely different and the carriers add specific software to optimize its services and offer advanced features (besides filling your phone with tons of bloatware and taking forever to certify new builds)
So as a US AT&T customer, you will not get any advanced features (HD Calling, Wifi calling) regardless of which firmware region you use. In that case, using XSA or BTU have no downside to them.
The only way to get these advanced features is to get an unlocked SD820 variant (SM-930U) and flash AT&T's (or you respective carrier's) CSC on it (using TWRP) but that means using 3rd party ROMS and manually updating your phone. (and tripping knox).
N-way said:
Okay.. so there's a short answer and a long answer.
The short answer - If you look at all the firmware news and firmware download sites (Sammobile, etc) - you will notice that historically, XSA and BTU variants are the fastest to market with some other variants quickly following and some taking a lot longer. (also go to the end of this reply to see a note about the US market)
Now for the long answer (it's quite long.. so if you don't really care about the details just skip it..)
The CSC is country specific for a reason - it can contain changes to the cellular modem behavior and optimizations (for example, band preference), support advanced features (VoLTE - or HD Voice as it's sometimes referred to, WiFi calling), and compliance with local regulatory requirements (for example, camera shutter sound control, use of Samsung Pay).
As such, is most cases, you are better off using the version specifically optimized for your carrier and country, which usually translates into better cell performance (signal strength, dl/ul speeds) and the ability to leverage advanced features (VoLTE, WiFi Calling) as supported by your carrier. It's actually something quite annoying with Samsung, iPhones (and even some android phones) don't need all these local adaptations.
The issues with using your country and carrier-specific firmware are that you will probably get some additional bloatware, updates may take longer, and some features like Samsung Pay will not be available. In recent years, the modem optimization part (signal strength, and speeds) has been improving to a point where most firmware work well in most places and networks.
So basically it's a trade off - do you want a phone that is optimized for your network and will give you best cell reception, speeds, and potentially support VoLTE, etc.
or do you care more about timely security updates, and potentially support of services not available in your original firmware.
If it's the latter, than you may consider flashing a different region's firmware.
That changes a when dealing with the US market (and some others)
In the US, the big carriers (Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint) actually implement hardware (and / or low level firmware) changes directly with Samsung.
Aside from the obvious changes (using SD820 instead of Exynos 8890) the cellular modem (and supporting software) are completely different and the carriers add specific software to optimize its services and offer advanced features (besides filling your phone with tons of bloatware and taking forever to certify new builds)
So as a US AT&T customer, you will not get any advanced features (HD Calling, Wifi calling) regardless of which firmware region you use. In that case, using XSA or BTU have no downside to them.
The only way to get these advanced features is to get an unlocked SD820 variant (SM-930U) and flash AT&T's (or you respective carrier's) CSC on it (using TWRP) but that means using 3rd party ROMS and manually updating your phone. (and tripping knox).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Excellent information, that was exactly what I needed to know. I went into this knowing I wouldn't have all the features I could but I have what I want and need. I was using a nexus 6P prior so none of them were available to me before. I'll grab the BTU firmware and flash that.
Thank you for this detailed and concise answer! This is exactly the kind of information that I have been looking for to help me make a decision on whether to get this device or not!
I'm on AT&T now and wanted the unlocked bootloader in order to use custom recovery (TWRP), which is why I was looking at the Exynos variant of the S7 in the first place. But after reading your explanation, it seems like far too many tradeoffs to make the purchase worthwhile for me.
Related
Sorry, I'm not too much in the know, but I heard there is some sort of new update coming in the near future that will improve various aspects of the S7 like better in building reception etc.
So what do I need to be on the look out for? This deal from Target is pretty fair on top of my 5% Red Card bonus. Would this phone work with whatever update Tmo pushes out to receive the full benefits vs a tmobile puchased S7?
http://www.target.com/p/unlocked-samsung-galaxy-s7-edge-g930f-32gb-gsm-black/-/A-51032209
bump
Nope, your link is for the international version, which won't get VoLTE, wifi calling, or updates. You want either the 930T or 930u. Anything else won't work properly.
Edit for clarification - The upcoming changes for the S7 are for more advanced LTE functionality. The extended range/building penetration are already in place, it's Band 12 LTE. The international version you linked will receive data on this band, but you CANNOT call/sms on it, as it's a data only band. The only calling/SMS that can be done on it would be on VoLTE, which you will not have.
So yeah, you'd be getting a crippled phone with none of the advantages you want.
In the last week, the rom maker below got a Note 7 port working on a 930f with T-mobile VOLTE + wifi calling + video calling. Assuming you root and want custom roms, there is an viable option in the international model.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/s7-edge/development/rom-n7-rom-port-romcontrol-t3430358
That being said for the OP:
Why target, swappa is $200 less on either model.
The international model has no US warranty.
The international model is faster with a better battery life but is slighltly weaker playing games: having both for now, completely stock, the 930f is slightly faster feeling. On the other hand, it is like night and day to compare a custom/tweaked rom/kernel of a 930F to a engineering bootloader based 930t's stock rooted rom (the custom roms seem to remove video calls)
The US model (if root matters) has a root solution that can be negated in future builds.
The international model's root trips knox, unlike the US version, reducing the resale value.
entropism said:
Nope, your link is for the international version, which won't get VoLTE, wifi calling, or updates. You want either the 930T or 930u. Anything else won't work properly.
Edit for clarification - The upcoming changes for the S7 are for more advanced LTE functionality. The extended range/building penetration are already in place, it's Band 12 LTE. The international version you linked will receive data on this band, but you CANNOT call/sms on it, as it's a data only band. The only calling/SMS that can be done on it would be on VoLTE, which you will not have.
So yeah, you'd be getting a crippled phone with none of the advantages you want.
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Well, the title says it all.
I'm on a canadian G935W8 version with Rogers and I was looking to flash some different modems as my call quality isn't the greatest.
I have looked all over and can find some Euro modems, but does anyone have any Idea which modems are both Exynos and LTE compatible that I can flash?
I'm rooted with TWRP installed on stock rom build APG1 (because rogers is terrible and never updates their stuff)
Thanks.
JG
I believe modem itself has got nothing to do with call quality? Unless if there is a glitch that I am un-aware of. What you could try is download an app called "Phone INFO Samsung" as your phone is rooted and navigate to SERVICE MODE -UE Settings - Setting -Protocol - AS- Release ver - AMR Ctrl -WB AMR Settings - and tap 4.(WB-WB)
Not sure about your provider, but I do believe they are offering VoLTE service to customers, are you not able to use it? Just for your info, I am using SM-G930F(Exynos,Australia,BPHJ build) and don't have any concern on call quality, even I am on 2G Network.
Tbh, I am not really sure if cross-flashing modem would even work or not, even if it works, I do remember that North America uses unique frequency band, and I doubt new modem would be compatible with that(No research have done, so I might be totally being stupid here) .
And finally, as your model is G93"5"W8 you should've posted this question on S7e forum.
Hope these information helps.
I have the G995U1, and I really love this Galaxy S8+ phone. I am upgrading from a Nexus 6P. Though my concern has been receiving the 4x4 MIMO and QA256, and I know in order to do that I have to flash a modem on this S8+ to receive 100% of T-Mobile's network specs. My only issue is I have no idea how exactly to do this (I couldn't find many resources on specifically the modem) and where the download for said modem file is.
I am not looking to install T-Mobile's firmware by any means, I just want all the full specs T-Mobile's network provides, as I don't want to have to go through the reinstallation of my apps and settings process all over again.
Can someone help me, or address my concerns?
I have tried to search through the forums looking for custom ROM's that support Voice Over WiFi (not VoIP like Hangouts etc) to no avail . I am sure there would have to be separate builds (one for AT&T, one for T-Mobile etc etc) so it might be a bit much to ask but wanted to make sure before I gave up on it !
Thanks in advance...
VoWiFi isn't really a feature that custom ROMs come with or without.
Basically if the phone's original firmware comes with it, then the custom ROM will have it.
But - it has dependencies. For example, on Samsung devices, it depends on you having the correct CSC, which is a region related file. This contains things that enable VoWiFi, VoLTE etc.
What phone do you have?
the_scotsman said:
VoWiFi isn't really a feature that custom ROMs come with or without.
Basically if the phone's original firmware comes with it, then the custom ROM will have it.
But - it has dependencies. For example, on Samsung devices, it depends on you having the correct CSC, which is a region related file. This contains things that enable VoWiFi, VoLTE etc.
What phone do you have?
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What I have is a pos iCrap 6 , it's a temp phone because I accidentally stepped on my Nexus 6 to end it's days . I am looking for my next droid and am impressed with the spec's of the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 and the Ulefone T1. In either case I would look at a custom ROM if available. Unfortunately I am limited to AT&T or Verizon here, Sprint is meh for coverage (absolute 0 bars anywhere in or around the house and for 1/2 mile) and T-Mobile is worse, so that leaves me with the 2 hardest to get VoWiFi working unless you use their phones... More then likely going to have to go the route of in home signal amplifier to bring the signal to the basement.
Thanks for the reply, have not done a custom ROM for sometime so wasn't sure where the VoWiFi came from.
I live in Australia and I know there's carrier firmware for Optus, Telstra, Vodaphone, and just XSA for Australia I would like to know if Optus, Telstra, Vodaphone specifically tune there modem files they provide in there firmware, so using Optus firmware with Optus sim card provides a better reception, battery life network speeds, then say using XSA with a modem that's for all Australia and no specific network intended.
I've also read someone suggesting sometimes carriers don't update there modem files they just stick with one that they found to work throughout a phones lifetime, uncertain how true untrue this statement was.
Thanks.
I'm on Optus and not noticed any difference between XSA, Optus, and the generic BTU carrier firmware in either speed or reception, or any other phone functionality.
However the carrier firmware is what enables things like VoLTE which I've never used, so I can't comment if different carrier firmwares break or fix VoLTE.
Beanvee7 said:
I'm on Optus and not noticed any difference between XSA, Optus, and the generic BTU carrier firmware in either speed or reception, or any other phone functionality.
However the carrier firmware is what enables things like VoLTE which I've never used, so I can't comment if different carrier firmwares break or fix VoLTE.
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Yeah well besides bloat apps which they don't even have much of these days, seems the VoLTE and there timing of there security updates separate them. Yes XSA would remove VoLTE, no clue if Vodaphone VoLTE would work on Optus VoLTE enabled firmware, guessing no. There are ways to make VoLTE work on XSA complicated.
Maybe you just haven't noticed a difference i have tried looking for these types of answers in the past never found much tho.
I use my phone a lot at work so I definitely know battery life didn't change between firmwares. If there was a difference in speed it wasn't detectable, and phones almost always showing as 4G.
You could always just flash the home_csc for each one and test it for a few days each.
Beanvee7 said:
I use my phone a lot at work so I definitely know battery life didn't change between firmwares. If there was a difference in speed it wasn't detectable, and phones almost always showing as 4G.
You could always just flash the home_csc for each one and test it for a few days each.
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Yeah my understanding, when testing different modem files it's never as simple as what works for one person been the same for someone else. It would change from suburb to suburb area network provider ect i'm still not 100% sure the best or most reliable way to measure which ones are better worse then others, like improved battery life or worse, improved reception or worse, improved 4G data speeds or worse, i believe these are the only benefits to changing it, i'm unsure if it effects bluetooth wireless gps or anything else.
I did post elsewhere and someone is suggesting that the Telsta, Vodaphone, Optus do fine tune there stuff individually, tho your points valid and kinda is what i was planning after getting answers.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/ge...-baseband-carrier-tuned-t3895739#post78815632