***Official Samsung Fascinate 2.2 Speculation Thread***

[SirKronan]

My biggest gripes with not having 2.2 is 1) no flash support and 2) a freaking (non-android) e-reader (Nook Color) is being updated from non-android OS to Froyo in April....yet my Android phone can't receive the nearly outdated Android OS. Not unhappy with my verizon coverage, but unhappy with the workings between samsung and verizon to the point that I won't purchase another samsung phone, just as I won't purchase another palm due to similar issues with them in the past.

What the heck do I do then? I'm running out of companies to buy a cell phone from. I went through three Eris phones, and as an Eris early adopter who truly wanted to love the Eris, I swore off HTC in similar fashion. They didn't support that phone worth a crap. Even with OTA 2.1 there were still bugs and lag galore with that until I finally installed a custom ROM, and I had to go through 7 or 8 of those until I found one that met my needs the best, and then the needs of my wife who inherited it.

Part of the reason I got rid of the Droid X (not all, but part) was because of the locked bootloader. After that I really got into the modding and dev community here and on XDA, started modding the daylights out of my phones, and I've come to appreciate the truly open nature of Samsung phones. There are ROMs, kernels, and clockwork recoveries for ALL the Galaxy S variants of which I am aware. We could overclock, undervolt, run superclean and AOSP stuff galore. And because HTC and others allow developer modding of their devices, which is in the true spirit of Android, I've grown more and more critical of Motorola's stance, which fails to change, phone after phone, bootloader after bootloader.

Some more information on that here:
Motorola Locked/Encrypted Bootloader Policy | groubal complaints

Please go and sign if you have a modern Moto smartphone, or do not have one in part or in full because of the encrypted bootloaders. Motorola is still a member of the OHA, but they should NOT be:
Alliance Members | Open Handset Alliance

So if I swear off Samsung now because of a super late Froyo (HTC was super late with Eclair to the Eris) then who do I have left? Pretty much the LG Revolution is going to be my only choice on Verizon. I suppose it's going to be a good phone though. Even though it's a thick, LTE phone like the others and has that nasty radio business, it's a dang attractive looking phone, and if it has a screen equal to (or perhaps better?) than the screen on the current HTC offerings (TB/Desire) then it will once again move into position as my top choice for upgrade.

I am really hoping LG comes through, because I love voting with my wallet. I bought an LG fridge (bottom freezer), and LG front loading laundry appliances and they have been kicking ass for three years (quiet, efficient, get the clothes really clean and keep all my food really cold and fresh. With two young children, I say sanitize cycle FTW!) We are still rocking the trusty VX8700 on our third line to keep my old Wyoming number. I would LOVE for them to have a competitive android handset on Verizon.

If not, I'll have to get an iPhone, I guess. I mean, who is left on VZ after swearing off Samsung, HTC, and Motorola??

 

[MrSmith317]

SirKronan,
I personally say swear off the phone not the manufacturer. The fascinate seems to be the one phone Samsung left behind. Maybe they don't like verizon, maybe the verizon pushed bloatware + bing caused them too many QA issues and they're not offering an update because of this. Who knows. I loved my OG Droid and only went to the fascinate so that I wouldn't jump like a dog at the LTE offerings instead of carefully weighing my options.

A smart man once said that we can do anything with the hardware, base your purchasing decision on the hardware...the dev community will handle the rest. And to a certain extent that's how I'm looking at things. So if Sammy likes to drop support on one phone on one vendor then so be it but when it comes time for an LTE phone, I'll be weighing all the info on all the available phones rather than swearing off a particular vendor. Except Apple, those guys can kiss my ass.

 

[SirKronan]

SirKronan,
I personally say swear off the phone not the manufacturer. The fascinate seems to be the one phone Samsung left behind. Maybe they don't like verizon, maybe the verizon pushed bloatware + bing caused them too many QA issues and they're not offering an update because of this. Who knows. I loved my OG Droid and only went to the fascinate so that I wouldn't jump like a dog at the LTE offerings instead of carefully weighing my options.

A smart man once said that we can do anything with the hardware, base your purchasing decision on the hardware...the dev community will handle the rest. And to a certain extent that's how I'm looking at things. So if Sammy likes to drop support on one phone on one vendor then so be it but when it comes time for an LTE phone, I'll be weighing all the info on all the available phones rather than swearing off a particular vendor. Except Apple, those guys can kiss my ass.

2.2 will come for the Fascinate, and even though the Fascinate will be the last U.S. Galaxy S device to get 2.2, ALL Galaxy S variants got Froyo WAY too late for a modern high end device. And you have to consider that I also owned an Omnia, which was supported about as well by Samsung, which means pretty much not at all. What a piece of junk. Lots of hardware potential, but unworkable software, and no carrier/manufacturer support.

And you're right that the dev. community will be there, and they have been in spades. I'm running that fabled superclean ROM right now and it is oh so sweet and awesome.

Apple DOES support their devices with timely updates though, and they provide a smoother, faster, and more reliable out of box experience than any Galaxy S variant in the U.S. has been able to provide. They are just a closed ecosystem that frowns on outside development, and used to move frequently to block it. Motorola is doing the same, now. Shame on them. I really don't want an iPhone, either though. Hehehe. I'd miss my SuperAMOLED screen too much, and I drop my Fascinate a lot. I'm twice as likely to break the heaver iPhone which has glass on both sides, which is the stupidest thing I've ever heard of from a design standpoint ...

 

[boosh71]

sh*t, just bought a fascinate on ebay yesterday, wish I would have read this thread first. Currently have a Motorola Droid 1 running Android version 2.2.2. Didn't realize the Fascinate is still on 2.1. Where have I been?

 

[SirKronan]

sh*t, just bought a fascinate on ebay yesterday, wish I would have read this thread first. Currently have a Motorola Droid 1 running Android version 2.2.2. Didn't realize the Fascinate is still on 2.1. Where have I been?

Worry, not, friend, and welcome! Just throw the SuperClean ROM on there. Fascinate + SuperClean = best phone I've ever had. Period.

 

[Tarrant]

sh*t, just bought a fascinate on ebay yesterday, wish I would have read this thread first. Currently have a Motorola Droid 1 running Android version 2.2.2. Didn't realize the Fascinate is still on 2.1. Where have I been?

I'm hearing rumors that 2.2 will be out for the Fascinate before the end of the year, boosh. Of course, that'd largely be analogous to Nintendo releasing the SNES a week before Sony releases the PS3, but... hey, you know, better late than never. ;>

 

[Member138406]

Duke Nukem Forever and Detox will come out before Froyo on this phone... Seriously tho... what a joke.

 

[Anthony2816]

I'm hearing rumors that 2.2 will be out for the Fascinate before the end of the year....

People were saying that in 2010, too!

 

[brug]

It will be out before the end of the year. Just WHICH year no one knows!

 

[ISASoilder]

Well now that we know the release dates for both the charge and Fascinate 2 im starting to beleive 2.2 will be some time in December llz Verizon's Spring roadmap leak shows Samsung Droid Charge, Xperia PLAY coming in April - Phone Arena I guess i will have to use my new every 2 year!!!

 

[SirKronan]

It will be out before the end of the year. Just WHICH year no one knows!

Haha. We were saying that last year, too! Thanks for bringing back those warm memories, brug.

 

[ohhnoregrets]

I really wish our fascinates had a front facing camera..

 

[saps]

I really wish our fascinates had a front facing camera..

Well sadly it doesn't and none of the so called FFC camera mods that might work on other SGS work on ours. You're going to have to upgrade to something new to get that FFC. There are many choices these days and even more in the months to come ahead.

 

[SirKronan]

Well sadly it doesn't and none of the so called FFC camera mods that might work on other SGS work on ours. You're going to have to upgrade to something new to get that FFC. There are many choices these days and even more in the months to come ahead.

Not many choices on Verizon yet - iPhone or TB. Neither of which are quite perfect, IMO. At this moment, I'd take an iPhone over the Thunderbolt. But the Verizon phones supposedly just around the corner are giving me more hope ... the LG Revolution looks like a good contender, and the Stealth might materialize into something, too. We'll see...

Right now I'm seriously enjoying superclean on my Fascinate. I know this is the OTA speculation thread, but I just wanted to chime back in and report that for some reason with superclean my GPS is working great again. One time it locked almost instantly. The other time it locked within 25 sec. I can handle that. Way faster than my Garmin locks. I'll keep testing it until I'm convinced it's good to go for the long haul, though, because it worked when I first put on the EB01 leak.

To those of you who can't wait any longer, Superclean really is super, easy on your phone, and easy on the eyes too. I opted to throw the stock puzzle lock screen back on, though, with the battery % mod, and both work perfectly. I will likely put on the Samsung music player as well, as I like having the lock screen controls.

sorry for the off topic mumblings...

 

[Tarrant]

SirKronan,

You don't work for Verizon, now, do ya?

I'm kidding. Mostly.

There is a vast array of good alternatives to the Fascinate out there (as well as every other Verizon product) -- particularly those products that are still supported.

T

 

[chmodx]

I had my fascinate for 2 weeks before being a roid x. After I got it and found a lot of apps musing from the market I also discovered this forum. I keep an eye on here just to monitor your luck with group but I see samsung is still shafting this group.

The droid x forum is buzzing about gb now, but so far nothing but the typical blogger articles with no credibility (as is typical).

 

[SirKronan]

SirKronan,

You don't work for Verizon, now, do ya?

I'm kidding. Mostly.

There is a vast array of good alternatives to the Fascinate out there (as well as every other Verizon product) -- particularly those products that are still supported.

T

Lol. Used to sell their phones, among other carriers' phones. I've been dealing with cell phone companies for a long time, and I have some decent connections up the Verizon ladder. Let me tell you one thing: things have gone downhill a bit at big red since they started catering big time to Apple...

 

[lpt2569]

2.2 will come for the Fascinate, and even though the Fascinate will be the last U.S. Galaxy S device to get 2.2

Samsung Continuum is a Galaxy S device as well. I know very few care, or count it as a legit device, but it's a Samsung Galaxy S Device on Verizon just like the Fascinate. Seems as though the Continuum may be the one left behind completely, but who knows.

 

[superta1]

Bought my phone in Novemeber....I was promised that 2.2 was coming my Jan 2011. I of course trusted in them, however not holding the sales guy responsible as he doesn't have any control over the release. It's now been 3 months and still nothing....WTF. I love my Fascinate changing from my blackberry by all means, but Damn, give me my 2.2. Even an official message from Samsung or Verizon stating that the update is either coming or not would be appreciated. Every single day I'm checking for system update only to be disappointed daily when it tells me nothing new available. Sorry to vent but I sorta feel betrayed this far in the game.

 

[fastbagger]

I emailed Samsung and this is the response I received.


Thank you for your inquiry.



We do apologize for the inconvenience. Samsung feels it is important to make the Android 2.2/Froyo upgrade available only after we feel that we can give the millions of Samsung owners a simple and reliable upgrade experience. Due to the complexity and unique functionality of each Galaxy S device, we are performing additional testing and are working to make the Android 2.2/Froyo upgrade available to U.S. Galaxy S owners, including the Samsung Fascinate, as soon as possible.



Thank you for your continued interest in Samsung.



Sincerely,

Technical Support

 

[nunyazz]

 

[superta1]

I emailed Samsung and this is the response I received.


Thank you for your inquiry.



We do apologize for the inconvenience. Samsung feels it is important to make the Android 2.2/Froyo upgrade available only after we feel that we can give the millions of Samsung owners a simple and reliable upgrade experience. Due to the complexity and unique functionality of each Galaxy S device, we are performing additional testing and are working to make the Android 2.2/Froyo upgrade available to U.S. Galaxy S owners, including the Samsung Fascinate, as soon as possible.



Thank you for your continued interest in Samsung.



Sincerely,

Technical Support

Appreciate that feedback. I feel a little more at ease now. Love the phone but looking forward to the update. Thanks !!

 

[grin0048]

Appreciate that feedback. I feel a little more at ease now. Love the phone but looking forward to the update. Thanks !!

This is the same canned response they've been feeding people for months, it really shouldn't make you feel at ease.

 

[SirKronan]

This is the same canned response they've been feeding people for months, it really shouldn't make you feel at ease.

I haven't seen one quite that reassuring though, point blank saying directly that they are just testing it extra, and that they for sure will release 2.2 for the Fascinate. This reeks of "legitness" and a direct approach that they simply should've come out and said in such a fashion a LONG time ago. I thank the poster as well. Many of us have suspected as much for the longest time, but it's nice to get a little more direct confirmation from Sammy.

 

[katsimbris]

Many of us have suspected as much for the longest time, but it's nice to get a little more direct confirmation from Sammy.

Agreed. If that's a real response, that it would be an honest response of, "We have something, and we're testing it. And we don't have it finished, so that's why you don't have it." Which is more optimistic and straightforward than any other response I've seen.

Mike K