4.3 update Discussion and issues HERE !!!

NeoGrandizer · Dec 8, 2013

almath said:
I forced stopped the system update app this morning, that thing is back on and notifying me every 30 minutes. It just "pops up" on screen out of nowhere, I'm gonna accidentally hit install now. Apps to sd is so tempting....

If you don't mind the butt ugly things they did with it. LOL. But that's what launchers and icon themes are for, right? The only thing is the light coloured themes in most default apps. If they only allowed users to choose between a light or dark theme, it would be perfect.

Don't cave in yet though, I've noticed the battery life really sucks (literally and figuratively speaking). After testing it with my mostly configured system, it is taking a bigger hit on the battery. Mostly when in use though. On standby, it's actually a little bit better.

evohicks said:
Sooo tempting
I think I will still probably update when it "finally" gets to us in the UK, the things that Neo has reported missing or changed wouldn't really affect me to any great extent and it looks like any bugs seem to get ironed out with a factory reset etc..
Its great that we have this thread to help with issues, thanks to you guys for the input.

Yeah, even with updates, it comes down to personal preferences and what you would consider better or worse. For me the 4.3 update leans towards the worse side of things. But I can live with it.

And yes, apps to SD is the biggest pro for this update.

NeoGrandizer · Dec 8, 2013

Well, here's my battery life after a good workout with heavy usage. Only a few minutes of talk time and 4-5 SMS. The rest Wi-Fi downloading, LTE internet browsing, gaming, a brief moment of GPS, and mostly setting up.

Mattykuk · Dec 8, 2013

Desperately needing 4.3 on my note 2 so I can use the gear, does anyone know if and when?
Matt

Mattykuk · Dec 8, 2013

Hi where are you in the world? UK still not got update yet

almath · Dec 8, 2013

NeoGrandizer said:
Well, here's my battery life after a good workout with heavy usage. Only a few minutes of talk time and 4-5 SMS. The rest Wi-Fi downloading, LTE internet browsing, gaming, a brief moment of GPS, and mostly setting up.

Whoa that's kinda terrible! Still passing on update.

NeoGrandizer · Dec 8, 2013

Mattykuk said:
Hi where are you in the world? UK still not got update yet

I'm in Canada. And for the first time, I was amazed we got something first before the US. LOL.

almath said:
Whoa that's kinda terrible! Still passing on update.

Yeah, battery life is just draining rapidly when in use. On the other hand, standby time is still good. If left alone, battery life is just as good as 4.1.2. It's only when you start using it that you notice a much more larger hit on it.

:thinking:

I know Samsung tweaked it for better performance. I wonder if they changed the speed stepping of the chip so it's ramped up quickly and more readily than before.

willis68nova · Dec 8, 2013

So my reply back. I have been running for a day now with the factory reset and sdcard format. I have been running for 12 hours now on a fully charged battery and it is showing 82% remaining. I have not been using it much during that time frame but I have been using it as normal for me. So this is a huge improvement over the original install of 4.3 where my battery would be dead in 12 hours. If anything changes I will report back. Thanks

NeoGrandizer · Dec 8, 2013

willis68nova said:
So my reply back. I have been running for a day now with the factory reset and sdcard format. I have been running for 12 hours now on a fully charged battery and it is showing 82% remaining. I have not been using it much during that time frame but I have been using it as normal for me. So this is a huge improvement over the original install of 4.3 where my battery would be dead in 12 hours. If anything changes I will report back. Thanks

How do you find it compared to 4.1.2? I'm curious and positive it would help others here as well. I'm glad your battery problem got sorted.

Sokudo Ningyou · Dec 9, 2013

For anyone that's rooted that wants to try out the Verizon model, beanstown106 got an image of 4.3, and put it up at XDA here. Needs Odin to flash the new modem, apparently, or else wifi won't work, but still; an unpaid developer beat Verizon to it.

casarosa · Dec 9, 2013

Mattykuk said:
Hi where are you in the world? UK still not got update yet

I am in Spain no update here looking at all the postings don't think I will install when it does arrive......not until Samsung REALLY fix it and I mean FIX not use everyone as their testers

womb raider · Dec 9, 2013

NeoGrandizer said:
I also don't like that they removed the swipe lock with a secure lock underneath.

Hi mate, I've seen you mention this a couple of times. Does this mean you won't be able to have a pin when you unlock the phone?

willis68nova · Dec 9, 2013

NeoGrandizer said:
How do you find it compared to 4.1.2? I'm curious and positive it would help others here as well. I'm glad your battery problem got sorted.

As most of you probably know it definitely has a different look and feel than 4.1.2 did. The biggest change that threw me off was the sorting of the settings area. It is no longer one big list it is now broken into multiple tabs. Overall I think the upgrade was good.

The only negative thing I have found (and it isn't really that bad) is: When the screen is black (asleep) and I click on the home button or power button to wake it up it seems like it takes longer to wake up compared to 4.1.2. Besides my battery drain issue (as stated above, and now fixed). All else seems to be working fine so far.

Personal thoughts. I don't like the pin lock screen, it doesn't take up the whole screen it is smaller. Just something else to get used to. Let me know if you have any other questions.

Willis

willis68nova · Dec 9, 2013

Adding this to the thread: Someone else I know just updated to 4.3 and was seeing the same battery drain I was seeing. He did a sdcard reset and factory reset and the battery drain seems back to normal. Thanks

hobocop · Dec 9, 2013

Anyone figure out a fix for font size in text messages?

Even on the smallest size, one full text message doesn't even fit on the screen when the keyboard is open. Pretty ridiculous...

Jore · Dec 9, 2013

NeoGrandizer said:
I'm in Canada. And for the first time, I was amazed we got something first before the US. LOL.

Yeah, battery life is just draining rapidly when in use. On the other hand, standby time is still good. If left alone, battery life is just as good as 4.1.2. It's only when you start using it that you notice a much more larger hit on it.

I know Samsung tweaked it for better performance. I wonder if they changed the speed stepping of the chip so it's ramped up quickly and more readily than before.

Yeah this sucks. Standby mode is great on battery but when you use it just moderately, it's drains allot faster than before.

willis68nova · Dec 9, 2013

hobocop said:
Anyone figure out a fix for font size in text messages?

Even on the smallest size, one full text message doesn't even fit on the screen when the keyboard is open. Pretty ridiculous...

By your statement it sounds like you already used the up and down volume keys while in the text message to adjust the text size. I changed mine to the smallest setting and it seems to be comparable to the 4.1.2 now.

NeoGrandizer · Dec 9, 2013

womb raider said:
Hi mate, I've seen you mention this a couple of times. Does this mean you won't be able to have a pin when you unlock the phone?

Sorry for the confusion. You can still use any secure lock (patten, face, PIN, password) you want. The only thing you can't use is the swipe unlock on top of the secure lock. Basically, 4.1.2 gave you the option to use both swipe and secure locks at the same time. I found this extremely useful for my needs. I can simply swipe an app shortcut, enter my PIN and then get right into the app. Now I need to unlock PIN and then launch the app. Which means I need to rearrange my home screen to accommodate the shortcuts that were on the lock screen.

Brettski15 · Dec 9, 2013

Has anyone done the update for Rogers yet???

wyndslash · Dec 9, 2013

It's still lagging at times but I just don't have the heart to do another hard reset.

NeoGrandizer · Dec 9, 2013

Brettski15 said:
Has anyone done the update for Rogers yet???

Good question. I'm with Telus and miss_vickies has a Bell Note 2. I don't think I saw anyone here mention they are on Rogers.

wyndslash said:
It's still lagging at times but I just don't have the heart to do another hard reset.

That hurts. I do notice lag sometimes, but not often. Which is a good thing because once my Note 2 lags, it tends to lead to a crash and requiring either pressing down the power button for a few seconds or battery pull. But I think it was because I was redoing my entire setup and pushing it a little harder than what I normally would be doing.

Bob Vance · Dec 9, 2013

Neo

I may bite bullet. Can you give me quick setup list for pre-update--order of operations: Backup, wipe cache partition, do the OTA, then factory reset mult times? Is this familiar?

NeoGrandizer · Dec 9, 2013

Bob Vance said:
Can you give me quick setup list for pre-update

As requested my step by step routine when performing an upgrade (in hopes it might help others in the future as well). I do substantial prep work before, during and after the update. It is not for those that are not willing to take the time to test and setup their devices again. This requires a few hard resets back to factory defaults and setting up your device again from scratch (ie. not restoring preferences and system data files; which is actually a bad thing).

What I do is actually a time consuming task and can add substantial downtime for the device. Others may think it's a waste of time and effort to do this, which is fine. I understand it's not for everyone and only meant to guide those that are actually interested. This is strictly my own rationale for doing a clean install. In other words, these are strictly my own opinions and do not reflect the opinions of other users and/or the site itself.

Personally, I like to do clean installations whenever I can. Regardless of platform, I will do it as it offers the best solution in minimizing bugs and issues that may be encountered if doing a straight install or upgrade over an existing system. When upgrading over an existing system, you run risks of older driver or system files not being cleansed during the setup. There could be remnants not fully purged when they should be and later cause conflicts and/or compatibility issues to arise. Either way, older files may not be overwritten or purged properly and issues ensue.

Of course, there are those that have never encountered any issues to date after applying any update or upgrade over an already existing system. Then, there are also others on the other side of the spectrum that do the same and have nothing but issues. Then there are the exceptional cases where the update manages to expose a critical hardware/software fault requiring use of the warranty and sending it in for repair.

Performing a clean install is sometimes the best method in minimizing the chances for any issues or bugs to appear. Unfortunately, it is not a guaranteed perfect process for eliminating bugs or issues; it will only minimize the chances. The reason is electronics (even though they may be the same components) do not perform the same way. There are variances and not one will be exactly the same as another.

The bottom line is that it is a gamble regardless whether or not the update will or will not play nicely with the hardware once it's been done. The decision is ultimately yours to make. I only do this because it helps me evaluate and test the update. Find any faults with it and move on.

Basically, my clean installs involve the following:

1) Prior to Updating

a. Backup: This is the single most important thing you will need to do. As I progress, I will be doing several hard resets back to factory settings. So make sure backups are done properly and for very important data, make redundant copies. I use My Backup Pro, KIES, MyPhoneExplorer, Microsoft Exchange Server, Dropbox, NAS and a few others. I keep multiple backups so if something goes wrong, I know I have my basis mostly covered (with the exception for catastrophic, simultaneous failure).

b. Research: Time to get in and start digging for resources and other things. Most importantly finding a backup ROM for the current device prior to updating (in case of the need to downgrade or revert back). As well as the tools and guides to help in this process should something go wrong. This will help and prepare you in case something does go wrong and you need to downgrade. You should strive to find answers to most of your questions in this stage. Also to look for information about the update and what it brings to the table. What to expect from the update and any known issues with it.

c. Device Prepartion:
(a) Boot into the Android Recovery Console: to do this, simply power down the device. Then press and hold down the Volume Up, Home and Power buttons altogether. When the Note II splash screen appears, only release the Power button, but continue holding down the Volume Up and Home buttons. When the green Android appears, you may release the other buttons. It will now boot into the Console. To navigate the menu, simply use the Volume Up/Down buttons to move the highlight up and down the menu. To make a selection, press the Power button.
(b) Cache Wipe: perform a cache wipe on the device
(c) Hard Wipe: perform a factory reset on the device
(d) Reboot the device

2) Downloading and Installing the Update

d. Setup/Restore: do not do anything at this stage. Just get enough of the setup done to perform the download and install of the update. Nothing else. Another hard wipe will be performed after the update. So don't bother with this now.

e. Download the Update: do not do anything. Just wait for it to completely download; have a cup of tea, read an article, help others in the Android Forums...

f. Install the Update: Once the update has been successfully applied, power down the device.

g. Repeat steps (a) to (d) above under Device Preparation.

3) After a Successful Update

h. Setup/Restore: begin full setup and restore if you wish (in which case, the guide stops here). However, I would rather test the update first prior to doing a full setup and restore. I would do a basic setup first and then begin testing.

i. Testing: begin playing around with the new update. Familiarize yourself with new features and/or layouts. Check and see if there are any noticeable issues or bugs.

j. Partial Setup/Restore: now begin partial setup and restore. Only restore enough that will allow you to operate and work with it normally. Do not do a full setup/restore yet. Continue testing and see if there are any issues or bugs. If things seem fine and you are completely satisfied with the results, power down the device.

k. Repeat steps (a) to (d) above under Device Preparation.

l. Full Setup/Restore: you can now fully setup and restore your device.

This will hopefully ensure minimal issues or bugs with the update and/or pinpoint issues if there are any experienced. Since it is a clean slate (or the cleanest you can get it), troubleshooting any hardware or default software related issues should be easier. The reason being you will be running it bare bones during the initial tests with little to no 3rd party apps involved.

Sorry for the long winded post/guide. If you see a flaw in any of my views, please feel free to point it out. I wouldn't mind having some meaningful discussion on it.

And if you made it this far, thanks for reading.

Bob Vance · Dec 9, 2013

Outstanding, Neo. Thanks

NeoGrandizer · Dec 9, 2013

Bob Vance said:
Outstanding, Neo. Thanks

No worries. Hope everything turns out fine for you. Good luck.

Cryowolf · Dec 9, 2013

I did ota update on my l900 note 2 two
days ago.Update from 4.1.2 to 4.3.The
phone updated fairly quickly, about
15 mins..The only initial problem noted initially was first incoming call
caller claimed to barely be able to hear me.I restarted phone and called
them back and they said reception
and volume were good.This probably
wasn't even related to update.
So far battery life doesn't seem any different.Phone, text, emails,
sms, Internet all seem to work well.
Have done some basic lists with s pen with no glitches, but need to do some further testing.
It'll take another several days to
test more features and get phone set
up to my liking, but so far not
regretting the update.

4.3 update Discussion and issues HERE !!!

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