[ROM] Flashing the Starmobile Crystal with I-Mobiles IQ2 T18 Official ROM

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***!!!WARNING!!!***
THIS WILL DEFINITELY VOID YOUR WARRANTY

BACK-UP YOUR CURRENT ROM (THIS IS A MUST!)

THIS PROCESS WILL ERASE ALL THE USER DATA ON YOUR PHONE! CREATE A BACK UP OF YOUR CONTACTS, IMPORTANT DOCS, EMAILS, MESSAGES, etc.


DISCLAIMER:
Do the following at your own risks. I will not be responsible if anything happens to your device. Steps are provided as a guide to help you

flash a different rom to your Starmobile Crystal. I've personally just tried using the procedure below for only 3 times but they were all

successful. ***Ultimately YOU are responsible for your own actions.***


HI TO ALL CRYSTAL USERS!

Here is a *translated* guide on how to flash the i-Mobile IQ2's latest T18 firmware to our Starmobile Crystal.

You don't need to have a rooted phone for this procedure.


I couldn't find a changelog for the T18 version so I'll just share the differences that I've noticed after flashing the ROM:

* A new setting for GPS could be found under Location services call GPS EPO --

-- Its a MediaTek proprietary off-line server based A-GPS technology. It supports up to 30 days satellite orbit prediction, which can

be used to greatly enhance user experience by improving GPS Time To First Fix (TTFF). -- as per the About EPO from the EPO settings in the

phone.

I've noticed an improvement with GPS if this feature is turned on. Before I couldn't get a fix when I'm inside my house but at least now I'm

getting one -- although its within a 200m radius. Works much better out in the open. The only downpart here is you would need to download the

EPO file for it to be effective. What if you're in a life and death situation where there's no way to get wifi or a data connection?


* Interface seems to a lot smoother. (Maybe because there's still a few apps installed)


* Games are a bit less laggy. I've tried Temple Run 2 and O2jAM and I've seen a bit of improvement there.


* Gyro sensor with Temple Run 1 is still not fixed || All other apps seem to be working fine with it.


* Battery drain is reasonable, just like the crystal's.


* OC'ing / UC'ing is still not possible.. || Still looking for a compatible kernel / ROM.


* a version of CWM could be flashed using MobileUncle Tools for this firmware! \ (^_^) /


* The T18 firmware has LED flash enabled for video capture -- the T10 version which I initially tried did not.


* THe T10 firmware had a red "x" for sim 2 located at the status bar since I didn't had a sim 2 inserted and I couldn't get it off -- This was

fixed in the T18 firmware.


* Haven't noticed any bugs except when the phone is charging and the battery has a low percentage -- everything becomes laggy! But I did had

the same experience with the Crystals firmware too.





So HERE WE GO -- ONTO THE GUIDE



THINGS THAT YOU WOULD NEED


1.] SP Flash_Tool

2.] i-Mobile IQ2 T18 ROM -- Its technically a T17+ rev.

3.] ADB Drivers, phone drivers - This can be obtained via PdaNet and manually installing the driver from the SP Flash_Tools folder

4.] A computer running on Windows 7

5.] Basic knowledge of flashing ROMS is a plus!










Step 1

* Download all the files below and extract the .rar files into seperate folders *

- Root_with_Restore_by_Bin4ry_v15.7z -
http://www.mediafire.com/?cnnkb7fkjav8b0k

- PdaNetA4013.exe -
http://www.mediafire.com/?30i3p5badhczzhy

- recoveryIQ2v17.img -
http://www.mediafire.com/?8klxfo4q672xxrp

- SP_Flash_Tool_v3.1222.00.rar -
http://www.mediafire.com/?b7c1e88teokmnkb

- i-Mobile IQ2 T18 update -
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B7V7...=sharing&pli=1



Step 2

* Install the USB drivers of your phone. *

Installing ADB drivers via PdaNet

- Install PdaNet and when asked if you would like to install the drivers - select yes > Other > OK;
- If you get a pop up that the driver is not signed, just select install anyway. You'll be prompted to connect your phone to

your PC - do so. Once installation is complete, you can unplug your phone

Installing the Drivers for the Preloader
- Turn off your phone, remove the battery and connect your phone to your PC.
- On your computer, go to Control Panel > Device Manager and look for the USB driver for MT65xx Preloader (this flashes on and

off every 5 secs or so) then right click it and select Update Driver.
- Select the "Browse option" > "Let me pick.." > Let the Show all devices highlighted then click Next > Have Disk then navigate

to the folder where you extracted SP Flash_Tools
- Open the folder > Open new usb driver > Open the Win7 folder and select usb2ser_Win7 for 32-bit systems and usb2ser_Win764

for 64-bit
- Let the drivers install. Once done, unplug the USB cable from your phone.


Step 3

* Flashing the ROM *

- Open flash_tool.exe from the SP Flash_Tool folder
- Once you have the program loaded, click on Scatter-loading found at the right hand side buttons of the interface
- Navigate to the directory where you extracted the T18 ROM and open the IQ2 LBAMW01.1.0.1.2T18A1229_M121 folder
- There should only be one file here -- MT6577_Android_scatter_emmc; Go ahead and open it.
- Click the Format button at the upper left portion of the Interface; Dont change any setting on the pop-up window, just click OK
- Connect the USB cable to the phone (battery should still be removed) and wait for the status bar fill up and go back to 0%. Unplug your phone immediately and stop the process by clicking the button to the right of the Download button at the top of the interface.
- Click on the Download button > re-attach the battery to your phone and then connect the USB cable back to the phone.
- Flashing of the ROM would take place at this point - DO NOT INTERRUPT! It should only take 3-6 minutes to complete.
- You'll know that flashing was successful once you see a pop-up box with a "green" circle. You wont miss it - seriously!
- You can unplug your phone from the pc and turn it on. You should see a green i-mobile logo instead of the Starmobile logo.
- The phone would take a while to boot up after updating, don't worry -- its normal.


Step 4

* Root your phone!!! *

- You can follow the Rooting guide for Starmobile Astra here by OP

http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1998965

Step 5
* Install CWM Recovery *

- Follow the guide on how to Install CWM on the Astra except use the file recoveryIQ2v17.img from the downloads list


That should be it! Enjoy using your IQ2 phone! If you do find problems or have a better way of getting this done -- please share it with

everyone. This guide was translated from http://droidfriend.com/forums/index.php?topic=1001.0 by Comdevx.



*Note* After installing CWM, it would be best to boot into recovery and format data / wipe cache / wipe dalvik cache before using the phone.




================================================== ================================================== ====
everything happens for a reason.

Adding Tweaks for build.prop -- You can follow this steps to turn off camera shutter sound since this official ROM does not have the option to:

guide taken from androidforums*com by n0ve

1- Open up any file explorer app, I use Root Explorer, ES file explorer is fine as well, (free in app store).
2- Click to mount system as R/W.
3- Navigate to /system
4- Longpress on build.prop. -> Tap Open With -> Tap Text Editor.
5- Scroll down towards the bottom where You should see: # #ADDITIONAL_BUILD_PROPERTIES
6- Nine lines down is: ro.camera.sound.forced=1
7- Change =1 to =0.
8- Tap your menu key -> Tap Save/Exit (your build.prop will automatically be backed up as build.prop.bak If using Root Explorer. If using other apps, I suggest making a copy of your original build.prop, rename it to build.prop.bak, then edit the original Build.Prop.
9- Reboot your phone.
Now, once you place your phone in silent mode, it will stay silent.


Now, I've also tried to edit these fields to change Model number and Build number on the Settings > About phone screen.
ro.build.sim.version=Starmobile Crystal
ro.product.model=Starmobile Crystal

How to backup the stock ROM?

---

Hi
I want to try this TUT ,but before that, I would just like to know how you backed up your StarmobileCrystal stock ROM?

hi I tried this But it seems im stuck Step 3 -- Connect the USB cable to the phone (battery should still be removed) and wait for the status bar fill up and go back to 0%. Unplug your phone immediately and stop the process by clicking the button to the right of the Download button at the top of the interface. It stops while it's filling up the bar. And this pops up

"BROM ERROR : S_FT_DA_NO_RESPONSE (4001)

DA didn't send response data to FlashTool! "




I have tried a dozen times but i cant seem to figure out what's the problem.

Thanks!!

Dear OP,

I flashed T18 succesfully from their Thai website. However, I just noticed after flashing that my orientation and magnetic sensors are no longer working. when i checked the specs of Starmobile Crystal, it says it has G sensor. Checking also my crystal, it says it has yamaha 530 magnetic and orientation sensors. I just want to know if you were able to extract the stock ROM of crystal and provide a download link somewhere? I tried to flash my stock ROM but found out that the preloader bin file is corrupted.

Overall IQ2 T18 edition is an excellent ROM, fast GPS and no bloat apk's. Im just not comfortable seeing that my compass is no longer working.

Here is the Custom rom i.e SENSE based Custom rom released for Star Mobile Astra:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=2247296

Also Contains TWRP recovery.

WORKED!

---

Originally Posted by maki3325

***!!!WARNING!!!***
THIS WILL DEFINITELY VOID YOUR WARRANTY

BACK-UP YOUR CURRENT ROM (THIS IS A MUST!)

THIS PROCESS WILL ERASE ALL THE USER DATA ON YOUR PHONE! CREATE A BACK UP OF YOUR CONTACTS, IMPORTANT DOCS, EMAILS, MESSAGES, etc.


DISCLAIMER:
Do the following at your own risks. I will not be responsible if anything happens to your device. Steps are provided as a guide to help you

flash a different rom to your Starmobile Crystal. I've personally just tried using the procedure below for only 3 times but they were all

successful. ***Ultimately YOU are responsible for your own actions.***


HI TO ALL CRYSTAL USERS!

Here is a *translated* guide on how to flash the i-Mobile IQ2's latest T18 firmware to our Starmobile Crystal.

You don't need to have a rooted phone for this procedure.


I couldn't find a changelog for the T18 version so I'll just share the differences that I've noticed after flashing the ROM:

* A new setting for GPS could be found under Location services call GPS EPO --

-- Its a MediaTek proprietary off-line server based A-GPS technology. It supports up to 30 days satellite orbit prediction, which can

be used to greatly enhance user experience by improving GPS Time To First Fix (TTFF). -- as per the About EPO from the EPO settings in the

phone.

I've noticed an improvement with GPS if this feature is turned on. Before I couldn't get a fix when I'm inside my house but at least now I'm

getting one -- although its within a 200m radius. Works much better out in the open. The only downpart here is you would need to download the

EPO file for it to be effective. What if you're in a life and death situation where there's no way to get wifi or a data connection?


* Interface seems to a lot smoother. (Maybe because there's still a few apps installed)


* Games are a bit less laggy. I've tried Temple Run 2 and O2jAM and I've seen a bit of improvement there.


* Gyro sensor with Temple Run 1 is still not fixed || All other apps seem to be working fine with it.


* Battery drain is reasonable, just like the crystal's.


* OC'ing / UC'ing is still not possible.. || Still looking for a compatible kernel / ROM.


* a version of CWM could be flashed using MobileUncle Tools for this firmware! \ (^_^) /


* The T18 firmware has LED flash enabled for video capture -- the T10 version which I initially tried did not.


* THe T10 firmware had a red "x" for sim 2 located at the status bar since I didn't had a sim 2 inserted and I couldn't get it off -- This was

fixed in the T18 firmware.


* Haven't noticed any bugs except when the phone is charging and the battery has a low percentage -- everything becomes laggy! But I did had

the same experience with the Crystals firmware too.





So HERE WE GO -- ONTO THE GUIDE



THINGS THAT YOU WOULD NEED


1.] SP Flash_Tool

2.] i-Mobile IQ2 T18 ROM -- Its technically a T17+ rev.

3.] ADB Drivers, phone drivers - This can be obtained via PdaNet and manually installing the driver from the SP Flash_Tools folder

4.] A computer running on Windows 7

5.] Basic knowledge of flashing ROMS is a plus!










Step 1

* Download all the files below and extract the .rar files into seperate folders *

- Root_with_Restore_by_Bin4ry_v15.7z -
http://www.mediafire.com/?cnnkb7fkjav8b0k

- PdaNetA4013.exe -
http://www.mediafire.com/?30i3p5badhczzhy

- recoveryIQ2v17.img -
http://www.mediafire.com/?8klxfo4q672xxrp

- SP_Flash_Tool_v3.1222.00.rar -
http://www.mediafire.com/?b7c1e88teokmnkb

- i-Mobile IQ2 T18 update -
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B7V7...=sharing&pli=1



Step 2

* Install the USB drivers of your phone. *

Installing ADB drivers via PdaNet

- Install PdaNet and when asked if you would like to install the drivers - select yes > Other > OK;
- If you get a pop up that the driver is not signed, just select install anyway. You'll be prompted to connect your phone to

your PC - do so. Once installation is complete, you can unplug your phone

Installing the Drivers for the Preloader
- Turn off your phone, remove the battery and connect your phone to your PC.
- On your computer, go to Control Panel > Device Manager and look for the USB driver for MT65xx Preloader (this flashes on and

off every 5 secs or so) then right click it and select Update Driver.
- Select the "Browse option" > "Let me pick.." > Let the Show all devices highlighted then click Next > Have Disk then navigate

to the folder where you extracted SP Flash_Tools
- Open the folder > Open new usb driver > Open the Win7 folder and select usb2ser_Win7 for 32-bit systems and usb2ser_Win764

for 64-bit
- Let the drivers install. Once done, unplug the USB cable from your phone.


Step 3

* Flashing the ROM *

- Open flash_tool.exe from the SP Flash_Tool folder
- Once you have the program loaded, click on Scatter-loading found at the right hand side buttons of the interface
- Navigate to the directory where you extracted the T18 ROM and open the IQ2 LBAMW01.1.0.1.2T18A1229_M121 folder
- There should only be one file here -- MT6577_Android_scatter_emmc; Go ahead and open it.
- Click the Format button at the upper left portion of the Interface; Dont change any setting on the pop-up window, just click OK
- Connect the USB cable to the phone (battery should still be removed) and wait for the status bar fill up and go back to 0%. Unplug your phone immediately and stop the process by clicking the button to the right of the Download button at the top of the interface.
- Click on the Download button > re-attach the battery to your phone and then connect the USB cable back to the phone.
- Flashing of the ROM would take place at this point - DO NOT INTERRUPT! It should only take 3-6 minutes to complete.
- You'll know that flashing was successful once you see a pop-up box with a "green" circle. You wont miss it - seriously!
- You can unplug your phone from the pc and turn it on. You should see a green i-mobile logo instead of the Starmobile logo.
- The phone would take a while to boot up after updating, don't worry -- its normal.


Step 4

* Root your phone!!! *

- You can follow the Rooting guide for Starmobile Astra here by OP

http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1998965

Step 5
* Install CWM Recovery *

- Follow the guide on how to Install CWM on the Astra except use the file recoveryIQ2v17.img from the downloads list


That should be it! Enjoy using your IQ2 phone! If you do find problems or have a better way of getting this done -- please share it with

everyone. This guide was translated from http://droidfriend.com/forums/index.php?topic=1001.0 by Comdevx.



*Note* After installing CWM, it would be best to boot into recovery and format data / wipe cache / wipe dalvik cache before using the phone.




================================================== ================================================== ====
everything happens for a reason.

My first time doing this! It worked! Thanks
But one question though, what if i wanna bring it back to the old starmobile crystal rom, how do i do that?

HELP

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So i might have overlooked your post and forgot to backup my Stock ROM! I know you said it's a must, and unfortunately that's the only thing i did wrong. If you do have backup files, or if there are any sites where i can download them, please please share it.. Thanks very much!

Good information
Thanks