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Difference between xperia xz, xperia z5 and xperia x dual

Hi all,
I own a xperia z3, I want to get some new phone. As I only go for Sony phones. I need your help in understanding the difference between below mentioned 3 phones.
1. Xperia xz
2. Xperia z5
3. Xperia x dual (performance)
What are the major difference between them. I'm mainly stuck between z5 and xz.
I'm from India and I use reliance jio sim so I need volte in my phone. Mainly looking about performance and battery
Please help me out. I have searched Google but not able to get the difference properly.
Thanking you all in advance.
Sent from my Moto G (4) using XDA-Developers mobile app

for me , i'd go with xperia xz. Even though it costs a little bit more money than any xperia devices, it looks so cool and it can be upgraded to android 7.0. I'm also getting the xz

derek1036 said:
for me , i'd go with xperia xz. Even though it costs a little bit more money than any xperia devices, it looks so cool and it can be upgraded to android 7.0. I'm also getting the xz
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply. Ya look wise xz is gorgeous. Even z5 can be upgraded to Android 7.0 rite. So why pay that extra is my confusion
Sent from my Moto G (4) using XDA-Developers mobile app

The XZ is there new top of the range phone.
Can you can pick up the older Z5 however software support will run out much quicker than there new phone.
USB C is a new added bonus which adds better data transfer speeds but also charging due to the quick charge.
Here are some good reads to help you
http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/138505-sony-xperia-xz-vs-xperia-z5-what-s-the-difference
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Sony...vs-Xperia-Z5-A-quick-specs-comparison_id84830
The main things between the Z5 and XZ are here,
Better processor
Better LTE (9)
Better GPU 530 instead of 430
New software support that will last longer
Front camera is much better

Thanks for the reply.
Sent from my Moto G (4) using XDA-Developers mobile app

xtremegiri said:
Thanks for the reply. Ya look wise xz is gorgeous. Even z5 can be upgraded to Android 7.0 rite. So why pay that extra is my confusion
Sent from my Moto G (4) using XDA-Developers mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah your right z5 is also cool because it has a fingerprint sensor too. I'll just get them both.

Personally If you have just got the z5 wait until the new Xperia flagship
There are some differences but not worth the expense personally.
The next top of the range one will be a better jump from a Z5 to go to .

There is no better speeds with USB type c if there is USB 2.0 behind it all. And quick charge is available without type c too. Still I would buy xz

HugePotato said:
There is no better speeds with USB type c if there is USB 2.0 behind it all. And quick charge is available without type c too. Still I would buy xz
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've run a transfer test and it seems there is a performance increase over normal USB2 by far.

kaistledine said:
I've run a transfer test and it seems there is a performance increase over normal USB2 by far.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
USB Type C is just a connector type if i'm not mistaken. USB 3.x is much faster than USB 2.0, and that's why you get higher transfer speeds, but a normal USB 3.0 conection (no type C) should deliver similar speeds as a USB 3.1 type C connector (limiting factor would probably not be at the USB connection, but memory read/write speeds on phone memory, sdcard, PC HDD,...)

HugePotato said:
There is no better speeds with USB type c if there is USB 2.0 behind it all. And quick charge is available without type c too. Still I would buy xz
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
doctorlirio said:
USB Type C is just a connector type if i'm not mistaken. USB 3.x is much faster than USB 2.0, and that's why you get higher transfer speeds, but a normal USB 3.0 conection (no type C) should deliver similar speeds as a USB 3.1 type C connector.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Issue is that the specs listed for the phone only list this USB typeC connector has having USB2 not USB3.x however it performs like a USB3.
I wonder if they've listed it wrong on the official specs.

kaistledine said:
Issue is that the specs listed for the phone only list this USB typeC connector has having USB2 not USB3.x however it performs like a USB3.
I wonder if they've listed it wrong on the official specs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe USB C specification came with USB 3.1, not sure if it is required... but i'd be really surprised if XZ had only USB 2.0 with a type C connector. If you get transfer speeds over 30-40 MB/s... then it is USB 3.x for sure (USB 2.0 max is around 35). It could be a mistake with the listed specs.

I was shocked when I saw it listed as USB2 on their site.
Will have to see if anyone else flags it up.

One way to test is copy some big file to phone from computer and see how fast it copies.

Actually it is just 35MB/s, checked with 1,45GB file.

mhl/tvout/hdmi

As in topic, does asus zenfone 6 have ability to stream out video through usb to hdmi adapter?
After some time android q will come to this device and it will contain native desktop mode so i would like to use it.

I'd like to know the answer as well.
Is it USB 3+ that can do video over type C?
For example One+ 6 has only USB 2.0 over type C, and doesn't support video, while Samsung has USB 3.1 over type C as expected that supports video over type C.
Sure simple type C to HDMI adapter will be needed.
I wasn't able to find any specs for Zen6 type C at all.
any one knows?

mikek753 said:
I'd like to know the answer as well.
Is it USB 3+ that can do video over type C?
For example One+ 6 has only USB 2.0 over type C, and doesn't support video, while Samsung has USB 3.1 over type C as expected that supports video over type C.
Sure simple type C to HDMI adapter will be needed.
I wasn't able to find any specs for Zen6 type C at all.
any one knows?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
According to GSMarena it's 2.0.
I looked at the USB diagrams and it appears that alternate modes over USB-C use the same pins as SuperSpeed meaning that you can't have alternate mode without the other (but not vice versa).
Unless I'm missing something, there shouldn't be any display mode. However I'm not sure if the GSMarena data sheet is accurate.

I currently have sony xperia z3 compact which has usb 2.0 (micro usb, but this doesn't make change IIRC) and also support mhl (see gsmarena https://m.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_z3_compact-6538.php). In my opinion it doesn't depend on version of usb which device is equiped with, at least it 's not the main reason for not supporting mhl. The question is, does mhl work on zenfone 6 with (potentially, because i couldn't find any information on asus website) usb 2.0 type c connector?

pawloland said:
I currently have sony xperia z3 compact which has usb 2.0 (micro usb, but this doesn't make change IIRC) and also support mhl (see gsmarena https://m.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_z3_compact-6538.php). In my opinion it doesn't depend on version of usb which device is equiped with, at least it 's not the main reason for not supporting mhl. The question is, does mhl work on zenfone 6 with (potentially, because i couldn't find any information on asus website) usb 2.0 type c connector?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Display output via microusb worked differently as the regular port does not have the pins or bandwidth for it. I had an LG G2 which could also output a display signal. I think it's possible to do the same via USB-C but at the same time I think it's simpler to use alternate mode hence the conclusion I came up with. If I have the time I'll go digging around some more later.

I opened a ticket with ASUS support and they state none of the models they currently sell (including Zenfone 6) cand output HDMI over usb-C.
they might be stupid though, because ROG phone does.

apoklyps3 said:
I opened a ticket with ASUS support and they state none of the models they currently sell (including Zenfone 6) cand output HDMI over usb-C.
they might be stupid though, because ROG phone does.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It seems we have to wait untill somebode actually try connecting it to tv to be sure that it doesn't support hdmi output.

pawloland said:
It seems we have to wait untill somebode actually try connecting it to tv to be sure that it doesn't support hdmi output.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I looked at a few things and I think I was correct in my first post. While I think it would be technically possible to implement MHL on USB-C like they did on MicroB (it would just piggyback off the necessary pins like it used to do), it doesn't seem like it would make sense to do that and I can't find an adapter/cable that would work in that scenario so you'd need 3.1 because they all require Alternate Mode support. However Alternate Mode is an optional spec so just because a device supports 3.1 doesn't mean it'll support display functionality.
I should also note that the ROG Phone has USB-C 3.1 according to GSMArena.
Another note is that it appears that MHL officially lists MHL as working on USB-C via Alternate Mode.

Meanwhile ASUS launching an external display that is advertised to support input from a mobile phone, but hey, no their latest flagship. they are so dumb they are launching devices that don't their other devices..
why would anyone cheap on using usb2.0 connector, when internally SD855 supports 3.1 and so does UFS2.1, is beyond me. It must save la 0.something to use 2.0 instead of 3.1

pawloland said:
It seems we have to wait untill somebode actually try connecting it to tv to be sure that it doesn't support hdmi output.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Test on LG 27uk850W, not working, just charging

Xtr3m3ro said:
Test on LG 27uk850W, not working, just charging
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you connected it to tv using usb-c/hdmi adaprer or just by usb cable?

No native HDMI output for my device using usb-c to hdmi cable.
However I think the Asus portable monitor thingy they announced at computex actually supports data over usb to transfer the image.. but I am not sure at all.

mikek753 said:
I'd like to know the answer as well.
Is it USB 3+ that can do video over type C?
For example One+ 6 has only USB 2.0 over type C, and doesn't support video, while Samsung has USB 3.1 over type C as expected that supports video over type C.
Sure simple type C to HDMI adapter will be needed.
I wasn't able to find any specs for Zen6 type C at all.
any one knows?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The OnePlus 6 does support HDMI out with a DisplayLink adapter. It's not great though, as you can't charge it at the same time and it runs the battery down incredibly fast, less than two hours.

Thanks for confirming it, it's a real downer situation though, I was really expecting to have the possibility to output videos through HDMI and potentially do the same with emulators + bluetooth joysticks (since it can handle even gamecube/wii games thanks to the SD855)

hack.causality said:
The OnePlus 6 does support HDMI out with a DisplayLink adapter. It's not great though, as you can't charge it at the same time and it runs the battery down incredibly fast, less than two hours.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IIRC video output via Displaylink adapter works on every device if it can install displaylink app. Displaylink support doesn't depend on mhl support on specific device. I'm just to clarifying for internet strangers.

gnrsenpai said:
Thanks for confirming it, it's a real downer situation though, I was really expecting to have the possibility to output videos through HDMI and potentially do the same with emulators + bluetooth joysticks (since it can handle even gamecube/wii games thanks to the SD855)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm right there with you buddy. I was so used to MHL that I never questioned whether newer phones would support it or the type-c equivalent. Trying to find a SD855 phone that charges while outputting video is hard enough, let alone one that's rootable with a headphone jack and a non-curved screen (my preference). I'm beginning to think we're going to have to wait until the holiday season when the ROG Phone 2 comes out. In the meantime I'm half-satisfied by using my tablet (shield) hooked to a monitor and keeping my emulator folders synced with my phone with Dropbox/SyncThing.

pawloland said:
Have you connected it to tv using usb-c/hdmi adaprer or just by usb cable?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
usb-c cable, i use that cable for macbook to have second monitor, and charging

hack.causality said:
I'm right there with you buddy. I was so used to MHL that I never questioned whether newer phones would support it or the type-c equivalent. Trying to find a SD855 phone that charges while outputting video is hard enough, let alone one that's rootable with a headphone jack and a non-curved screen (my preference). I'm beginning to think we're going to have to wait until the holiday season when the ROG Phone 2 comes out. In the meantime I'm half-satisfied by using my tablet (shield) hooked to a monitor and keeping my emulator folders synced with my phone with Dropbox/SyncThing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
please, let me know when you find such phone, which :
is rootable, unlocked bootloader
video output to HDMI, with charge if possible
headphone jack

mikek753 said:
please, let me know when you find such phone, which :
is rootable, unlocked bootloader
video output to HDMI, with charge if possible
headphone jack
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nubia red magic 3 is your best best. It doesn't support HDMI output yet but apparently they've said they may support it in a software update. It has USB c 3.1. Also 90hz screen, headphone jack, 5000ma battery, SD 855, it even has a CPU fan lol. It's newly out but I think you can install twrp and root it but customs ROMs might be few if any. It's the closest phone I've found to meeting my needs of 3.5mm, SD 855 and HDMI. Only thing it's missing is expandable really.
---------- Post added at 09:43 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:41 PM ----------
mikek753 said:
please, let me know when you find such phone, which :
is rootable, unlocked bootloader
video output to HDMI, with charge if possible
headphone jack
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Specs
https://m.gsmarena.com/zte_nubia_red_magic_3-9692.php
Oh, and it's only £410.......

Hi, any news? Has anyone bought a displaylink product and used it working with the Zenphone 6?

USB-c to HDMI Out

I was under the impression that any phone using Snapdragon that has a USB 3.1 port should be able to support HDMI/DisplayPort. That's why I bought the 4a. Imagine my chagrin when I found out it doesn't work. After doing some digging around... it seems that this might be disabled at the Kernel level. Seeing as writing new kernels is kind of what people do here... I'm wondering if anyone here has sorted this out and enable the functionality? Or... failing that... if anyone is up to the challenge?

It's been attempted (not for the Pixel 4a, but for the 4) but nobody has been successful.

MishaalRahman said:
It's been attempted (not for the Pixel 4a, but for the 4) but nobody has been successful.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see (I think you were also in the thread that I looked up on reddit...)
Did the 4 have USB 3.1? Also... Can you point me towards some of the attempts? I'm a problem-specific programmer and I may be able to figure something out...

updates?
any updates?
TeamRainless said:
I see (I think you were also in the thread that I looked up on reddit...)
Did the 4 have USB 3.1? Also... Can you point me towards some of the attempts? I'm a problem-specific programmer and I may be able to figure something out...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Would love to be able to do this on my Pixel 4a 5G
really ****ty of Google to disable this feature just to try to sell Chromecasts.

I guess nobody has bothered with this

would be nice to have to mirror my phone on my laptop would you be able to enable with adb or would i need to root or have a different kernal

F

I wonder why this vendor states this HDMI output product specifically works with the Pixel 4a?
USB-C to 4K HDMI Adapter PD Port HDTV Adapter Charger Port TV Video Hu
USB-C to HDMI Adapter Type-C PD Charger Port HDTV AV Converter. Plug and play, no extra driver is needed. 4K HDMI Port: This Type-C to HDMI adapter supports the video resolution up to 4K(3840X2160)@30HZ with the compatibility of most monitors, projectors, HDTVs and other devices with HDMI port...
odemobile.com

JohnC said:
I wonder why this vendor states this HDMI output product specifically works with the Pixel 4a?
USB-C to 4K HDMI Adapter PD Port HDTV Adapter Charger Port TV Video Hu
USB-C to HDMI Adapter Type-C PD Charger Port HDTV AV Converter. Plug and play, no extra driver is needed. 4K HDMI Port: This Type-C to HDMI adapter supports the video resolution up to 4K(3840X2160)@30HZ with the compatibility of most monitors, projectors, HDTVs and other devices with HDMI port...
odemobile.com
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
cause they're lying lol

Bright09 said:
would be nice to have to mirror my phone on my laptop would you be able to enable with adb or would i need to root or have a different kernal
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
MyPhoneExplorer can mirror your device...

gentle_giant said:
MyPhoneExplorer can mirror your device...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please correct me if I am wrong, but it looks like with MyPhoneExplorer you can only "mirror" your device onto a computer - not a TV set or firestick or roku type devices - is this correct?

If I have this correct the Pixel 4A uses a Snapdragon 730G which this says that it supports DisplayPort:
https://www.qualcomm.com/content/da...dragon-730g-mobile-platform-product-brief.pdf
So it seems to me it must be the config options for how the kernel was built.
You can grep the kallsyms to see if there is any altmode in there. (This is from a different device.)
Code:
typec_altmode2port
typec_altmode_attention
typec_altmode_dev_type
typec_altmode_enter
typec_altmode_exit
typec_altmode_get_partner
typec_altmode_get_plug
typec_altmode_group
typec_altmode_notify
typec_altmode_put_plug
typec_altmode_register_notifier
typec_altmode_release
typec_altmode_unregister_driver
typec_altmode_unregister_notifier
typec_altmode_update_active
typec_altmode_vdm
typec_match_altmode
typec_partner_register_altmode
typec_plug_register_altmode
typec_port_register_altmode
typec_register_altmode
typec_unregister_altmode
Or you can look in /proc/config.gz to see if there is any likely option.

Renate said:
You can grep the kallsyms
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you elaborate a bit more on how to do that (without root)?
which kallsyms -> <nothing>
/proc/kallsyms: inaccessible or not found
Renate said:
Or you can look in /proc/config.gz to see if there is any likely option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The only relevant occurrences of .*alt.* in this file is the empty comment section:
Code:
#
# USB Type-C Alternate Mode drivers
#
# CONFIG_TYPEC_DP_ALTMODE is not set
#
# USB Type-C Alternate Mode drivers
#

@wireroot Thank you for the config.gz, that's what I was looking for (but didn't know what it was called).
It seems pretty clear that the drivers weren't built in.
It also shows what somebody could try for rebuilding the kernel.
Yes, /proc/kallsyms can be protected by permissions.
There's also /proc/sys/kernel/kptr_restrict set to 1 which prevents you from getting the addresses (which we don't care about for this).
Code:
# echo 0 > /proc/sys/kernel/kptr_restrict
# cat /proc/kallsyms
I see that my (unrooted) cheesy phone doesn't have permission for /proc/kallsyms either.
I usually just extract kallsyms directly from the payload in the kernel in the boot image.
It's easier and the best way if you don't own the device in question.

Renate said:
It seems pretty clear that the drivers weren't built in.
It also shows what somebody could try for rebuilding the kernel.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So with the kernel as it is (default) we are out of luck ...
Do you have an idea how "realistic" it is for a/the LineageOS maintainer of the Pixel 4a (sunfish) to actually rebuild the kernel with the required drivers? I guess this question is hard/impossible to answer without knowing the developer and his knowledge, but out of curiosity I still try to ask this question
Anyway, how come that you stumble across this old, "deserted" thread even though you don't even have a Pixel 4a and still try to help us?

wireroot said:
Do you have an idea how "realistic" it is for a/the LineageOS maintainer of the Pixel 4a (sunfish) to actually rebuild the kernel with the required drivers?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Theoretically, it shouldn't be that hard if they are already in a position to build a kernel anyway.
I never build anything from scratch but I do patch kernels for simple modifications (this is not that).
wireroot said:
Anyway, how come that you stumble across this old, "deserted" thread even though you don't even have a Pixel 4a and still try to help us?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was working on the more global problem of figuring out how to determine if some device supports some kind of video over USB Type C.
I may end up building a USB PD simulator to negotiate alt modes, but that's a bit of a deep dive.
Much easier is making a USB 2.0 Billboard class device but I'm not sure how universally that fallback is implemented.
If you give me a boot image I can give you the kallsyms.

Renate said:
If you give me a boot image I can give you the kallsyms
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for the offer ... but I don't have any clue what I, as an ordinary LineageOS/Android user (not a dev), could do with that?

Looking for an android tablet that can charge OTG

Trying to build a carplay setup with carlinkit, but I need an android tablet that can charge OTG while connecting data to the dongle at the same time. Any recommendations for a table that is known to allow OTG charging? Seems like a lot of tablets don't these days, even the old samsung tab A used to allow otg charging, but not anymore with the newer ones

zentg said:
Trying to build a carplay setup with carlinkit, but I need an android tablet that can charge OTG while connecting data to the dongle at the same time. Any recommendations for a table that is known to allow OTG charging? Seems like a lot of tablets don't these days, even the old samsung tab A used to allow otg charging, but not anymore with the newer ones
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have answered this before, same answer applies to your case as well.

Slim K said:
Have answered this before, same answer applies to your case as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
tbh i never heard or seen the term otg certified before and i can't find specs for what version of usb these android tablets are.
Is there a list anywhere showing which tablets are otg certified or usb 3.0 and higher?

zentg said:
tbh i never heard or seen the term otg certified before and i can't find specs for what version of usb these android tablets are.
Is there a list anywhere showing which tablets are otg certified or usb 3.0 and higher?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
on-The-Go certified means the manufacturer lists that functionality as part of the official spec and as such has paid for the USB-IF certification/guarantees full support. For example my Poco X3 nfc lists otg as part of the spec even though it only has a USB-C 2.0, but it still lists it and it works as intended.
Just search for a newer tablet in your budget and look their spec in multiple websites (example link I have provided above). Fact checking is always a good thing

User848 said:
Any other manufacture devices support this (some Chinese devices, like Xiaomi)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
zentg said:
I need an android tablet that can charge OTG while connecting data to the dongle at the same time. Any recommendations for a table that is known to allow OTG charging?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The lenovo tab 8 (hd) does simultaneous otg and charging.
Hope it helps
Cheers
Daniel

mbquartiano said:
The lenovo tab 8 (hd) does simultaneous otg and charging.
Hope it helps
Cheers
Daniel
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Daniel, I have a Lenovo Smart Tab M8 HD (2nd gen) next to me and so far no avail in getting OTG and charging to work simultaneously. Would you mind sharing your set-up?

Fire HD 10 11th Generation (2021) Bootloader Unlock + Root Brainstorming

Currently running: Fire OS 7.3.2.1 - Fire HD 10 (2021 - 11th gen)
I think anything is possible. I don't want to hear that Fire OS 7 is "unrootable". Nonsense!
I also don't see many threads for this generation of the device on here, which is why I opted to make this thread.
But seriously, I want to try and tackle this crazy complex puzzle. Fire Toolbox is amazing and really improves the performance of the tablet. But I just want more. Would anyone have any tips on how to start brainstorming and planning how to find any vulnerabilities within the device/software? Are there certain files on the device I have to look in? Maybe running some scripts or doing some programming? I really wanna see what I can contribute but I just have no clue where to start.
I guess it would be helpful to mention what my personal end goal with this tablet is:
Unlock bootloader
Root
Install custom roms (upgrading Android version)
Any feedback/ideas/brainstorming/thoughts of any kind would be much appreciated!

How about HD8 plus latest edition android 11 12th gen? Google Play having issues installing. Tried manually as well as fire toolbox 29.2.

nsfxpython said:
Currently running: Fire OS 7.3.2.1 - Fire HD 10 (2021 - 11th gen)
I think anything is possible. I don't want to hear that Fire OS 7 is "unrootable". Nonsense!
I also don't see many threads for this generation of the device on here, which is why I opted to make this thread.
But seriously, I want to try and tackle this crazy complex puzzle. Fire Toolbox is amazing and really improves the performance of the tablet. But I just want more. Would anyone have any tips on how to start brainstorming and planning how to find any vulnerabilities within the device/software? Are there certain files on the device I have to look in? Maybe running some scripts or doing some programming? I really wanna see what I can contribute but I just have no clue where to start.
I guess it would be helpful to mention what my personal end goal with this tablet is:
Unlock bootloader
Root
Install custom roms (upgrading Android version)
Any feedback/ideas/brainstorming/thoughts of any kind would be much appreciated!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry to burst your bubble of illusion, but it's practically impossible. The latest unlocking methods (amonet, kamakiri) exploited bootrom to achieve arbitrary RW of the eMMC. However, as you may well know, Amazon has disabled bootrom on their newer devices (or even on the 'older' ones, with OTA updates - that's called blowing fuses -). Considering the conditions presented, the chances of unlocking the new devices are minimal if not nil.
If you really want to do some research to find something useful, find an exploit in the preloader, which is still accessible. Another thing that could be useful is a root shell (even if it is temporary). That requires you to find some exploit that fits your kernel (which is probably new, considering the Android version).
That said, don't expect this to be a piece of cake.​

A temp root shell should be possible via the waiting game. We could watch the still opensource upstream android OS code for possible kernel exploits. Then just find a way to run a found exploit in a fire hd before amazon rolls a patch OTA. Fire OS is highly customized, but obviously is still android in there somewhere.

The Android platform certs got leaked somewhere and are being used to sign malware as per this issue on the chromium bug tracker: https://bugs.chromium.org/p/apvi/issues/detail?id=100
It might be possible to spoof an application's signature to be that of the android uid using whatever those certs are to gain root access. Probably just grasping at straws here though.

loocool2 said:
The Android platform certs got leaked somewhere and are being used to sign malware as per this issue on the chromium bug tracker: https://bugs.chromium.org/p/apvi/issues/detail?id=100
It might be possible to spoof an application's signature to be that of the android uid using whatever those certs are to gain root access. Probably just grasping at straws here though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Smart idea! MediaTek is also affected.
Now only a public key-list is needed to run apps on system level.

Fire OS 8.3.1.1 gives elevated access to system apps via USB debugging; see here. likely another Amazon mistake - too bad its never been released on Fire HD 10.

Isn't there something about taking it apart and shorting the motherboard somewhere like the old psp battery.

Brettroth said:
Isn't there something about taking it apart and shorting the motherboard somewhere like the old psp battery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unlikely, i assume the motherboard got updated with last iterration of the 11th gen fire lineup

I don’t know the significance of this, but I was playing around with some old equipment that I had laying around and ran across something interesting. I don’t have the time or knowledge to do anything with it however…
I plugged one of these usbc converted into my HD 8 2020 and 2022. https://a.co/d/bRtoBPw
I then plugged in a uart cable that I had built for a different project. Which is essentially the nexus debug cable with a male USB end instead of a headphone jack. ( https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/File:Nexus-debug-cable.png )
I did try the headphone jack, but there is no output from there.
Looking at the output during boot up it sure looks like uart to me, I can’t seem to get the baud right - I tried everything that minicom has without success.
Long story short, I’m pretty sure there’s uart hidden in the USB c connector on the HD 8 2020 and 2022 devices.

Reverse-anastomosis said:
I don’t know the significance of this, but I was playing around with some old equipment that I had laying around and ran across something interesting. I don’t have the time or knowledge to do anything with it however…
I plugged one of these usbc converted into my HD 8 2020 and 2022. https://a.co/d/bRtoBPw
I then plugged in a uart cable that I had built for a different project. Which is essentially the nexus debug cable with a male USB end instead of a headphone jack. ( https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/File:Nexus-debug-cable.png )
I did try the headphone jack, but there is no output from there.
Looking at the output during boot up it sure looks like uart to me, I can’t seem to get the baud right - I tried everything that minicom has without success.
Long story short, I’m pretty sure there’s uart hidden in the USB c connector on the HD 8 2020 and 2022 devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Update:
I think that what I was seeing was probably just garbage from the USB OTG adapter that I was using. That would explain why I couldn't get the baud rate right.
I built a cable that should have worked the same way, without using the adapter, and got nothing back from the device.
MTK devices usually don't use the ID resistor method on their debug cables, but I did try that as well with various resistances - without success.
If I could figure out what multiplexer these devices use, I might be able to get somewhere, but as it stands, I think it is a dead end. If they left UART open on the device, it could lead to a root solution - and it doesn't appear that this has been investigated.
The boards on both the 2020 and the 2022 have pads marked RXD and TXD, I tried connecting directly to these without any success, so they must be turned off. I attempted to turn UART on via fastboot, but any OEM commands I tried were locked (not surprising)
If anyone has a USB C breakout like what is used for Google debugging; it would be interesting to see if it did anything. I don't have one, and don't really need one.
If anyone has any other ideas, I am willing to use my devices for testing. The 2020 model is pretty beat up by my kids, and it won't break my heart if I kill it. I got a pretty rocking deal on the 2022 model, I'd rather not brick it, but am willing to take some risk.

Reverse-anastomosis said:
Update:
I think that what I was seeing was probably just garbage from the USB OTG adapter that I was using. That would explain why I couldn't get the baud rate right.
I built a cable that should have worked the same way, without using the adapter, and got nothing back from the device.
MTK devices usually don't use the ID resistor method on their debug cables, but I did try that as well with various resistances - without success.
If I could figure out what multiplexer these devices use, I might be able to get somewhere, but as it stands, I think it is a dead end. If they left UART open on the device, it could lead to a root solution - and it doesn't appear that this has been investigated.
The boards on both the 2020 and the 2022 have pads marked RXD and TXD, I tried connecting directly to these without any success, so they must be turned off. I attempted to turn UART on via fastboot, but any OEM commands I tried were locked (not surprising)
If anyone has a USB C breakout like what is used for Google debugging; it would be interesting to see if it did anything. I don't have one, and don't really need one.
If anyone has any other ideas, I am willing to use my devices for testing. The 2020 model is pretty beat up by my kids, and it won't break my heart if I kill it. I got a pretty rocking deal on the 2022 model, I'd rather not brick it, but am willing to take some risk.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Double Update:
I couldn't accept my failure - so I decided I had to sacrifice the 2020. I tore into it - and spent an unreasonable amount of time getting to know it with my multimeter. I stuck my probe where few have probed before!
I found an area around the main chip with an interesting bit of shielding and though to myself - you sneaky old amazon...what are you hiding here?
I found a nice little row of 4 pins...which have a hardwire connection to the USB-C port - on pin #3, or #6 depending on which direction you count from - and ground.
I am now 100% certain that the UART to USBC connection exists. I don't own a cable that outputs that pin - and unpowered my USBC-USBA OTG adapter does not output that pin - I assume that when it is powered with the resistors there must be enough crossover somewhere to see that a signal exists, it is just too corrupted to understand by the time it hits my serial/USB adapter.
I did throw my multimeter on the visible TXD testpoint on another 2020 device, and it did show some rapidly shifting voltage up to 1.8 volts during boot - so I assume I must have damaged the other one when I was soldering my jumper to it, so it must be outputting something. Also, there are RX0 and TX0 on the back of the logic board - when I get my replacement testing board I will investigate those for anything interesting before I fry it with random components(see below)
I plan on purchasing a USBC cable with all of the pin wires, and hooking it up to see if we can get rx and tx - Maybe Console? I can't tell for sure, but it looks like the same row of pins are present on the 2022 model, so this probably translates to that device as well.
Also, of interest, there is a post here on XDA of a person who got their hands on an onyx development device. There is a small component present on that device, as well as the one in the FCC auth photos, that is conspicuously missing on our production devices - It appears that it was soldered on, and then removed(on the production devices). There is also a cable connector that has been removed - I couldn't find anything too interesting, other than some oscillating voltage up to 1.8V, so maybe another UART? This applies to the 2022 model as well.
As near as I can tell - the missing component that I am interested in, is a diode, although I can't identify what kind exactly. The pins don't ohm out to anywhere that I can tell, but the upper pin does draw down my multimeter - as if it is grounded, but the pin is not ground. The lower pin seems to be leaking just a little bit of power - up to around 1.8 volts before resetting.
Just thought vomiting here - but I wonder if this component is essential to accessing BROM and bypassing the efuses that prevent one from entering BROM via short (Which BTW I am pretty sure I shorted every test point on the logic board, some do nothing, some return you to preloader, and some just completely prevent powerup (like CLK). I didn't find any that caused a brick that wasn't fixed by battery disconnect.
I plan on purchasing another 2020 board to test my diode theory on. If anyone has a vulnerable 2018 HD8 and a non-vulnerable 2018 HD8 it would be interesting to see if we could find the same cluster of components on their logic boards to compare.
Part of the reason that I am so interested in the missing diode, is that this component cluster appears largely unchanged from the 2020 model to the 2022 model of the HD8, and if it does lead somewhere interesting, it would be a pretty easy hardware mod - as far as such things go.
I attached some images below with the interesting stuff circled.

Reverse-anastomosis said:
Double Update:
I couldn't accept my failure - so I decided I had to sacrifice the 2020. I tore into it - and spent an unreasonable amount of time getting to know it with my multimeter. I stuck my probe where few have probed before!
I found an area around the main chip with an interesting bit of shielding and though to myself - you sneaky old amazon...what are you hiding here?
I found a nice little row of 4 pins...which have a hardwire connection to the USB-C port - on pin #3, or #6 depending on which direction you count from - and ground.
I am now 100% certain that the UART to USBC connection exists. I don't own a cable that outputs that pin - and unpowered my USBC-USBA OTG adapter does not output that pin - I assume that when it is powered with the resistors there must be enough crossover somewhere to see that a signal exists, it is just too corrupted to understand by the time it hits my serial/USB adapter.
I did throw my multimeter on the visible TXD testpoint on another 2020 device, and it did show some rapidly shifting voltage up to 1.8 volts during boot - so I assume I must have damaged the other one when I was soldering my jumper to it, so it must be outputting something. Also, there are RX0 and TX0 on the back of the logic board - when I get my replacement testing board I will investigate those for anything interesting before I fry it with random components(see below)
I plan on purchasing a USBC cable with all of the pin wires, and hooking it up to see if we can get rx and tx - Maybe Console? I can't tell for sure, but it looks like the same row of pins are present on the 2022 model, so this probably translates to that device as well.
Also, of interest, there is a post here on XDA of a person who got their hands on an onyx development device. There is a small component present on that device, as well as the one in the FCC auth photos, that is conspicuously missing on our production devices - It appears that it was soldered on, and then removed(on the production devices). There is also a cable connector that has been removed - I couldn't find anything too interesting, other than some oscillating voltage up to 1.8V, so maybe another UART? This applies to the 2022 model as well.
As near as I can tell - the missing component that I am interested in, is a diode, although I can't identify what kind exactly. The pins don't ohm out to anywhere that I can tell, but the upper pin does draw down my multimeter - as if it is grounded, but the pin is not ground. The lower pin seems to be leaking just a little bit of power - up to around 1.8 volts before resetting.
Just thought vomiting here - but I wonder if this component is essential to accessing BROM and bypassing the efuses that prevent one from entering BROM via short (Which BTW I am pretty sure I shorted every test point on the logic board, some do nothing, some return you to preloader, and some just completely prevent powerup (like CLK). I didn't find any that caused a brick that wasn't fixed by battery disconnect.
I plan on purchasing another 2020 board to test my diode theory on. If anyone has a vulnerable 2018 HD8 and a non-vulnerable 2018 HD8 it would be interesting to see if we could find the same cluster of components on their logic boards to compare.
Part of the reason that I am so interested in the missing diode, is that this component cluster appears largely unchanged from the 2020 model to the 2022 model of the HD8, and if it does lead somewhere interesting, it would be a pretty easy hardware mod - as far as such things go.
I attached some images below with the interesting stuff circled.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, any more updates to this? I don't know much about finding these kinds of exploits via hardware but this "uart" that you mention is able to possibly give root access? I'm intrigued....

nsfxpython said:
Wow, any more updates to this? I don't know much about finding these kinds of exploits via hardware but this "uart" that you mention is able to possibly give root access? I'm intrigued....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not really - you can follow my progress over on my other thread. I am going to post an update today.
Hardware UART information
I have been playing with my 2018, 2020 and 2022 HD 8's, and made a few interesting discoveries. I had been posting in another thread, but it seems to be pretty dead, and I think this stuff is interesting enough to warrant its own thread. 1...
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