galaxy s2 android 4.0

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anupam_luv

Senior Member
Jun 3, 2009
279
17
New Delhi
Just look at custom ROMs features. Lag fix, lag fix, lag fix..

For example - I have been using HTC Desire Z & HTC HD - and HTC original soft is much more better then Samsung. Not ideal, of course, but much better! But Samsung have better hardware and screens.. ;)

I do not want to discourage people from learning! No! I only ask to do it gradually and safely! Each with a time can begin to flash the phone and use custom ROMs, but not the very next day after switching from iPhone to Android.

lag fix ????? samsung releases fixes every 15-30 days and about kies, it has many other features than firmware upgrade BUT unlike odin it is not dedicated software to upgrade firmware.... kies is more prone to conflicts/errors because of other features integrated within it.... on the other hand Odin works like a charm ... and your get your armours (stock roms) easily from http://www.samfirmware.com/WEBPROTECT-i9100.htm (even before samsung releases officially) and load it on Odin and FIRE... u r done...

even I've come frm omnia i900 (windows mob).... and my i9100 is is jus 15 days old but I will still recommend Odin for firmware updates however u can still avoid rooting ... but Odin is definitely my first choice... kies is thr but for backup/restoring etc...
 

pulser_g2

Admin Emeritus / Senior Recognized Developer
Nov 27, 2009
19,544
11,629
Kies is an unreliable piece of dirt. I have never even installed it... If you are happy with stock, use it.

If you are more discerning and want safer quality stuff, use odin or heimdall... I know 2 people who used kies. I had to fix both using odin due to kies being useless...

Software on SGS2 is amazing compared to other phones I have had. People are being very picky imo...
 
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danielsf

Senior Member
Oct 29, 2010
732
280
Hull
Hi, I have just ordered the galaxy s2, i have currently have the Htc desire, rooted and running cm7, and updating is simple. If you don't mind could you clear something up for me please, do you have to use kies for updating or like most android phone you can just update on the phone it self? Thanks very much :)
 

ParthG

Senior Member
Jul 2, 2011
127
18
how to flash Galaxy S2 with Mac ?
There is a program for Linux and Mac flashers and I believe it's in the same tutorial thread for Odin (Windows) users. However, I find that Odin works best and most reliably so if you have the ability to dual boot, then install Windows on a small partition and use that for Odin.
 

mjeshurun

Senior Member
May 27, 2011
64
4
Kies is the way to upgrade Samsung phones running Android OS.
The unfortunate issue is that Kies on Mac is still very unreliable.
 

Novick770

New member
Oct 16, 2011
3
0
34
Doha
Can you upgrade Galaxy S2 GT-I9100 from a custom ROM to Ice Cream Sandwich. ?or you have to upgrade it to CM7 first before you upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich. ????

---------- Post added at 05:55 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:49 PM ----------

You are absolutely Wright

---------- Post added at 05:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:55 PM ----------

you can update on the phone...

but try the lightning rom in the developer section its much faster
lightning rom rapes your battery
 
Last edited:

maverick1103

Senior Member
Jun 16, 2011
2,012
331
Kidderminster
Can you upgrade Galaxy S2 GT-I9100 from a custom ROM to Ice Cream Sandwich. ?or you have to upgrade it to CM7 first before you upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich. ????

---------- Post added at 05:55 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:49 PM ----------

You are absolutely Wright

---------- Post added at 05:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:55 PM ----------


lightning rom rapes your battery
Not with Speedmod kernel mate! :D
 

kidau

Member
Oct 17, 2011
29
1
Bangkok
Yeah, heard that Lightning + Speedmod works well together!

and I also wonder about the battery.... how much longer does the 2000mAh gives compare to the standard 1650mAh?
 
Sep 27, 2011
48
5
Toronto
You will get the odd mushroom here that will say, use the search button, and stuff like that, but ignore them;) They forget that they was new once too;)

JD@XDA

Sent from my Samsung Galactic Crusader S II

Lol!! :p You said it..!!

A.

---------- Post added at 02:34 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:52 PM ----------

I'm from India.. Galaxy S2 wasn't available at the time when I decided to purchase one. So I had to get it from Nordic 3 Network with SIM Lock.

The phone was made available in India by the time I got it.. However I saved some money compared to Indian price.

I dropped bricks in my pants when I learnt that I have to unlock SIM to use it on any Indian network.

SIM Unlock Procedure involved "Rooting" the phone. So again, that wasn't an easy decision to make.
So be it, I decided.
- I simply downloaded Odin, SuperOneClick and Insecure Kernel (Windows)
- Got the phone into download mode (Vol. Down + Home + Power)
- Then Up button to confirm download mode.
- Connected phone using USB and Odin recognized it with yellow COM Box.
- Flashed the insecure kernel choosing PDA option
- Ran Super One for while the phone is connected to USB and clicked on Root
- It rooted the phone.

When I saw that yellow exclamation during boot, I was out of my senses thinking that I blew the phone.. A research said nothing to panic. Then I downloaded SIM Unlock software from Android Market using Wifi ran it, got the unlock code and unlocked the SIM safely. Now I got on to my cellular network.

I used Odin again in download mode to flash the Stock kernel back to remove that yellow exclamation!

The stock rom that I got with phone was 2.3.3 and now I'm running the phone at 2.3.5 and it's wonderful other than those junky stock apps.

I found a way to get that stuff removed. As I've already rooted the phone, I used Root Explorer app from Android Market.. Went into root (/) then to System and then Apps and removed junk by deleting apps and their related odex files. (using Mount RW)

It's operating just fine with the current ROM and have no complaints.
Compared to Kies, I found Odin as the best firmware flashing tool.

Till now, I used Kies only to back up stuff on my phone or to import videos and music to my phone.

When CyanogenMod 7.1 stable got released, I installed CockWorkMod Recovery using Heimdal by following the instructions under Wiki for Galaxy SII.
I downloaded the zip and installed the CM 7.1 ROM from ClockWorkMod Recovery. ROM looked fine, except that it's crashing some android processes.

So I had to go back to stock 2.3.5.

Bottom Line: Odin and SuperOneClick Rocks
Everytime you flash new firmware you have to root the phone except for CyanogenMod as it already comes sort of with SuperControl!

And XDA has abundant info. In a 20 days of time, using all the info available here, I went on to become shivering pants to confident in Android..!

Now I see my phone like a PC. I know how and when to flash and how to do stuff.

Cheers!
A.
 
Last edited:

mnongkhlaw

Member
Jul 15, 2011
30
0
Great confidence-building response, but more confidence needed!

Lol!! :p You said it..!!

A.

---------- Post added at 02:34 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:52 PM ----------

I'm from India.. Galaxy S2 wasn't available at the time when I decided to purchase one. So I had to get it from Nordic 3 Network with SIM Lock.

The phone was made available in India by the time I got it.. However I saved some money compared to Indian price.

I dropped bricks in my pants when I learnt that I have to unlock SIM to use it on any Indian network.

SIM Unlock Procedure involved "Rooting" the phone. So again, that wasn't an easy decision to make.
So be it, I decided.
- I simply downloaded Odin, SuperOneClick and Insecure Kernel (Windows)
- Got the phone into download mode (Vol. Down + Home + Power)
- Then Up button to confirm download mode.
- Connected phone using USB and Odin recognized it with yellow COM Box.
- Flashed the insecure kernel choosing PDA option
- Ran Super One for while the phone is connected to USB and clicked on Root
- It rooted the phone.

When I saw that yellow exclamation during boot, I was out of my senses thinking that I blew the phone.. A research said nothing to panic. Then I downloaded SIM Unlock software from Android Market using Wifi ran it, got the unlock code and unlocked the SIM safely. Now I got on to my cellular network.

I used Odin again in download mode to flash the Stock kernel back to remove that yellow exclamation!

The stock rom that I got with phone was 2.3.3 and now I'm running the phone at 2.3.5 and it's wonderful other than those junky stock apps.

I found a way to get that stuff removed. As I've already rooted the phone, I used Root Explorer app from Android Market.. Went into root (/) then to System and then Apps and removed junk by deleting apps and their related odex files. (using Mount RW)

It's operating just fine with the current ROM and have no complaints.
Compared to Kies, I found Odin as the best firmware flashing tool.

Till now, I used Kies only to back up stuff on my phone or to import videos and music to my phone.

When CyanogenMod 7.1 stable got released, I installed CockWorkMod Recovery using Heimdal by following the instructions under Wiki for Galaxy SII.
I downloaded the zip and installed the CM 7.1 ROM from ClockWorkMod Recovery. ROM looked fine, except that it's crashing some android processes.

So I had to go back to stock 2.3.5.

Bottom Line: Odin and SuperOneClick Rocks
Everytime you flash new firmware you have to root the phone except for CyanogenMod as it already comes sort of with SuperControl!

And XDA has abundant info. In a 20 days of time, using all the info available here, I went on to become shivering pants to confident in Android..!

Now I see my phone like a PC. I know how and when to flash and how to do stuff.

Cheers!
A.

A few more questions, if you dont mind :-

1. What are SuperOneClick and Insecure Kernel and where can they be downloaded from?
2. What is Stock kernel and why was it needed for getting rid of yellow ! What does that ! mean, anyway?
3. I found the "official firmwares" from here :http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1075278. I considered downloading XXKI3, but then, got confused as there are multiple links :-

A.

Firmware info
PDA:XXKI3
PHONE: XXKI3
Date: 15/09/2011
Android 2.3.5


XEO (Poland): http://www.multiupload.com/XTRG43JVEG

XXKI3 Stock Kernel: http://www.multiupload.com/6XT83N1LLN
Password: intratech@XDA


B.

XXKI3
Android 2.3.5

This original (unmodified) Wipe Package with new bootloader has: PDA: XXKI3| Modem/phone: XXKI3| CSC: OXAKI3

Download: http://www.multiupload.com/NJV6PR87Y3

These packages have the new bootloader removed and repacked with the old ones so you can safely reset the binary counter with a Jig. :)

If you've already flashed a full package from elsewhere and cannot reset your binary counter using the Jig just flash this package in the PDA or Bootloader (Yes both will work) section of Odin to replace the bootloaders and then you can reset the counter:http://www.multiupload.com/LQQBRQVJUD


This Frankenstein™ Non-Wipe package has: PDA: XXKI3| Modem/phone: XXKI3| CSC: XEUKD1
Download: http://www.multiupload.com/7JTWS2E37R

XXKI3 Stock Kernel:http://www.multiupload.com/WDOO81L5H6
Password: intratech@XDA



Which FW is best for India?

There's no mention of features etc. for each and not really sure what "Official" means. If I flash one of these, will my phone's warranty remain valid?

Need a reply ASAP, please.
 

dazzo1965

New member
Oct 22, 2011
1
0
Hello Galaxy s2 owners,

I have 2 questions I need help with:

I sold my iphone 4 to get the Galaxy S2 , it comes with gingerbread. When icecream sandwich comes out (Android 4.0), is it easy for me to upgrade to the new android version.......... like in the iphone you can just sync to I tunes and do it,
I want to know is it simple for a non techie person to upgrade the firmware to ice cream sandwich when it comes out ?

Second question: They released an extended battery for the galaxy s2 anyone has any experiences with it and can tell how long it lasts ?

Thanks
RedCell X

i'm using a gold bussiness battry 2450Mah and yes it does last longer
 

manoeke

New member
Oct 5, 2011
4
0
I have had iphones since the iphone came out, never had an android phone in my hands until 2 weeks ago. I got the galaxy S2 as a present so I didn't do any research in advance. I had it for 3 days and I flashed lightning rom on it using odin.

It's very easy, if you spend a few hours reading, you'll know exactly what to do.

There are risks, but not as many as with iphone. Android is easy if you compare it to ios ( if you jailbreak and stuff)
 

mnongkhlaw

Member
Jul 15, 2011
30
0
Need a response, please

@manoeke,

If you found it easy, kindly make it easy for me too by responding to my post above.

Thanks.
 

IronMit

Senior Member
Feb 1, 2011
179
14
London
There are already dedicated threads for this;

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1103399&highlight=ki4

I spent 1-2 hours reading trying to understand stuff that seemed like jargon to me from the start. But when i actually did it, it took 40 seconds!

Make sure you install Kies and plug your phone in first if you havn't already done that...the drivers need to load.

'rooted kernals' or 'bits of edited firmware' are available on the same thread on post 2 and 3.

You basically look at the letter-number of your kernal version find the 6mb equivilent put into odin and flash whilst in download mode. and you are rooted.



If you want to change your kernal use a 'stock kernal first' this is the entire firmware and it will be 100mb+.
http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1075278

Flash the same way. and then restart and flash the 6mb equivilent to root again.


When you root a little exclamation symbol comes up... to let everyone know you have voided warrantly incase you return it for repairs. But you just flash something again and thats gone.
 
Last edited:

mnongkhlaw

Member
Jul 15, 2011
30
0
You basically look at the letter-number of your kernal version find the 6mb equivilent put into odin and flash whilst in download mode. and you are rooted.

Thanks, my kernel version's 2.6.35.7-I9100XWKF3-CL276555 root @DELL101 #2

So what would be the latest and best FW I should go for from this link (assuming I do not wish to change my kernel right now) :-

http://xdaforums.com/show....php?t=1075278

Also, what's the meaning of "official". Does it mean, even with ODIN updates (as opposed to Kies), as long as I use these "official" FW, my warranty would remain intact or would getting rid of yellow <!> always revalidate my (voided) warranty?
 
Sep 27, 2011
48
5
Toronto
Confusion! Confusion!

1. What are SuperOneClick and Insecure Kernel and where can they be downloaded from?
2. What is Stock kernel and why was it needed for getting rid of yellow ! What does that ! mean, anyway?
3. I found the "official firmwares" from here :http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1075278. I considered downloading XXKI3, but then, got confused as there are multiple links :-

- SuperOneClick helps you root your phone.
- A Kernel is the basic piece of software
- It is programmed to work with your phone's hardware and the UI (OS)
- STOCK Kernel is write protected and it won't allow you to peek inside it.
- Using Odin you flash the phone with Insecure Kernel (Unlocked Kernel)
- SuperOneClick helps you install some add-on softwares which work hand-in-hand with the Unlocked Kernel

- Once the phone is rooted every time you reboot your phone you'd see any ugly exclamation mark. That means phone is indicating that something is not right.
- To get rid of that exclamation mart once you're done rooting the phone, flash the phone with STOCK Kernel and that exclamation will be gone.

To root follow the instructions on this page). I recommend it.

The whole Android is Open Source. So once tweaked you get lot of variants from lot of developers. Every country gets a different Firmware depending on Network and their regional preferences.

Rather getting into those, try to keep it simple. Make sure that you have latest Android OS on your phone with latest Kernel. There are lot of firmwares posted on XDA Firmware page. They are all alphabetical. Higher the alphabet latest the firmware is.

I'm using the below one. It's working just fine in India. And that's the firmware with Latest Kernel and Latest Android Release for Galaxy S2 to date.

ZSKI3

Firmware info
PDA:ZSKI3
PHONE: XXKI3
Date: 23/09/2011
Android 2.3.5

TGY (Hong Kong): http://www.multiupload.com/LAWZ135UF3

ZSKI3 Stock Kernel: http://www.multiupload.com/RH5K6JPH44


---------- Post added at 06:34 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:16 PM ----------

Also, what's the meaning of "official". Does it mean, even with ODIN updates (as opposed to Kies), as long as I use these "official" FW, my warranty would remain intact or would getting rid of yellow <!> always revalidate my (voided) warranty?

ODIN is advanced. Kies is plane and simple and it's meant to be used by everyone. ODIN is sort of Back Door as per Samsung.

The current official Android version on India Galaxy S2 is 2.3.3. You know that Hong Kong has 2.3.5 is available from sources like XDA. But your Kies won't say a thing and when you try to check for update, it says your phone is up-to-date. So you get yourself Hong Kong Firmware and flash it with ODIN.

Assume something happens to your phone (which I hope not) and you go to Samsung with that exclamation mark after rooting, they may try to pin everything on you. So to be on safer side, get rid of that exclamation mark. When you alter the phone and you go back with complaints, that exclamation may jeopardize you and your situation. To avoid that you'll have to flash the STOCK Kernel back on phone.
 

tanjiajun_34

Senior Member
Aug 24, 2010
737
131
Just look at custom ROMs features. Lag fix, lag fix, lag fix..

For example - I have been using HTC Desire Z & HTC HD - and HTC original soft is much more better then Samsung. Not ideal, of course, but much better! But Samsung have better hardware and screens.. ;)

I do not want to discourage people from learning! No! I only ask to do it gradually and safely! Each with a time can begin to flash the phone and use custom ROMs, but not the very next day after switching from iPhone to Android.

At least samsung do update gs2 and pretty much confirm updating to ics, unlike htc which is still not sure....
 

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    Don't listen all this tech oriented guys. :D If before you use your iPhone as-is, you don't need any kind of Odins, firmwares et cetera. Samsung Kies found any official updates, and with two mouse clicks you can install this on your phone. Thats all.

    Samsung Galaxy II have very impressive tech parameters, but really disappointing with software. It is reason why people looking for another ROMs flashing this trough Odin and so on, but still no one from this ROMs don't resolve all problems and bugs..
    And keep in mind - in case of failure - you can brick your phone and/or loose guaranties..

    And I agree with qwerty warrior..
    stay on the safe side
    when u start learning more about android
    then move to the next stage
    1
    Kies is an unreliable piece of dirt. I have never even installed it... If you are happy with stock, use it.

    If you are more discerning and want safer quality stuff, use odin or heimdall... I know 2 people who used kies. I had to fix both using odin due to kies being useless...

    Software on SGS2 is amazing compared to other phones I have had. People are being very picky imo...
    1
    you can update on the phone...

    but try the lightning rom in the developer section its much faster