[Q] Stock firmwares & Carriers - Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I am coming from a Blackberry background where each carrier gets its own stock OS
I noticed on Android devices that each region (ie: America, Europe, Asia) gets a stock firmware and that firmware can be used with any carrier in that region...is this correct?

nezr said:
I am coming from a Blackberry background where each carrier gets its own stock OS
I noticed on Android devices that each region (ie: America, Europe, Asia) gets a stock firmware and that firmware can be used with any carrier in that region...is this correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sadly the truth is far more complicated! The only 'Stock' releases are with the Nexus devices. (Nexus One, Nexus S and the upcoming Nexus Prime) Everything else is up for grabs! Every manufacturer takes the stock version (AOSP - Android Open Source Project) and adds what they want to it. Usually UI changes, apps etc. Then carriers get hold of it and change what they want!
Some devices are sold exclusively to one carrier or another, with slightly varying versions released for global sale. If you buy an unlocked, global device it should work on just about any carrier in any country though, providing the Radio is capable of working on the required frequencies.
Basically it's a bloody mess!

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[Q] Different Versions For Regions?

New to how android handsets work...
is there a different version for middle east, europe, asia? or are they all the same international version?
is the language support the same on all handsets?
For example, i am in the middle east.. if i order the international version online, will the phone i receive be the same as the ones being sold here (Software and firmware and all that?) or will they differ?

[Q] Flashing to Country Variant - LTE enabled?

So, I'm getting a bit sick of waiting for the Nokia Black firmware update to appear on Three UK, so I was thinking of flashing my phone to the Country Variant so I can get all the updates quicker.
I know LTE was disabled with the early CV-GB ROM, and then I think they enabled it, but does it enable all the LTE bands for that country? Any idea if the Three LTE bands are available, and would I lose anything by switching to the stock ROM?
elyl said:
So, I'm getting a bit sick of waiting for the Nokia Black firmware update to appear on Three UK, so I was thinking of flashing my phone to the Country Variant so I can get all the updates quicker.
I know LTE was disabled with the early CV-GB ROM, and then I think they enabled it, but does it enable all the LTE bands for that country? Any idea if the Three LTE bands are available, and would I lose anything by switching to the stock ROM?
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I've flashed My Lumia 920 cv-it and I didn't get the lite band... I think this will enabled by the provider

which honor 9 model?

Hi. I have a galaxy s8+ which I am thinking of selling to get this phone - mainly because of treble support and the s8+ is too big! I was going to get the 6gb/128gb version which is great value on ali express. I know the Chinese version doesn't have band 20 but that doesn't matter on EE in the UK.
However I wanted to check whether there are other issues with not getting the European version of the honor 9? Does the Chinese version support the new aosp treble based Rom the devs have built? The thread seems vague on this issue. Other there any other issues with the Chinese version?
Appreciate your help.
As far as i'm aware, you can actually re brand the Chinese variant to EU.
Not sure if the version of android on it has Google Play services, or an English language selection, but language packs can be downloaded.
BUT! you will get the OS updates before us lot with EU versions.... who are still stuck on B182, China have got B360 which is oreo.
Either way, its a good buy, destroys the s8 in benchmarks, and just the right size to not be too small or too big in the hand.
There 3 differents STF Chinese honor 9:
AL00
AL10
TL10
I've got an AL00 rebranded to L09 and it's working great, like an European model but without LTE BANDS 7(2600) & 20(800).
Thanks for the responses. I thought the Chinese variants of the honor 9 were the same as Xiaomi - only missing band 20? I'm on EE which doesn't need band 20 but I believe does need 2600mhz (band 7). Any ideas? Thanks
https://m.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=8704&idPhone2=8704#europe,al00
You could change phone version on this link, I think LTE BANDS are corrects but there is errors on size and colors.
Thanks. EE state that most of their 4g coverage is with band 3 so should be Ok! Thanks for the responses guys.
I wouldn't expect huawei to use a different LTE chip in each phone, that would require 2 different versions of the kirin 960, which wouldn't be in the interests of the development cost of the phone.
I'd assume its an OS limitation, since AL10/100 firmwares will run on L09 models after rebranding, and vice-versa.
ambitiousButRubbish said:
I wouldn't expect huawei to use a different LTE chip in each phone, that would require 2 different versions of the kirin 960, which wouldn't be in the interests of the development cost of the phone.
I'd assume its an OS limitation, since AL10/100 firmwares will run on L09 models after rebranding, and vice-versa.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for that
ambitiousButRubbish said:
I wouldn't expect huawei to use a different LTE chip in each phone, that would require 2 different versions of the kirin 960, which wouldn't be in the interests of the development cost of the phone.
I'd assume its an OS limitation, since AL10/100 firmwares will run on L09 models after rebranding, and vice-versa.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd like it to be true.
Do baseband is inside Kirin 960 cpu chip or in another chip?
The way I see it they ship differents variations with differents nand & ram sizes, so maybe they could switch others things without adding tremendous producing cost.
Or they are the same but phoned still keep their original LTE bands over the publicly available rebranding guides.

Can I use any ROMs with the SM-T827?

I purchased a Tab S3 thinking it would be a WiFi model. Turns out it is a SM-T827 (US Cellular) version. I never plan on using a mobile plan with it. Are there any problems if I use ROMs for the 820 or 825 models?
It will not work, they use different roms as they have different internals and also has an imei being a celluar version.
That is too bad. I hate Samsung's UI and slow version of Android.
This isn't an answer to your question, but...
I'm curious how much bloatware they put on the US Cellular variant. I've seen where people flash Verizon firmware successfully onto the US Cellular version, but haven't discussed doing that in the other direction and am tempted to try it.
The Verizon version of Pie has a ton of junk on it.
Thanks

Why does a galaxy watch 4 of other region not support LTE functionality?

As per my understanding -
The hardware of the galaxy watch remains same whether it is purchased in one country or the other.
Samsung might have made some changes in the firmware which are region specific.
But, then LTE functionality (if enabled) is not expected to behave differently with respect to the region/country.
I am saying so because this is what we find in our smartphones. If my smartphone works in the home country then i expect it to work in a foreign country as well.
Then, why is it so that a LTE galaxy watch purchased in USA will not support mobile carriers in an Asian country?
Please correct, if my understanding is faulty.
It is akin to cars and international markets. For example, a car sold in Europe or USA (almost for sure) will have different SKUs around the world even if the base model is the same.
Another thing is that LTE smartwatches are still relatively scarce. So it would be that such devices, like smartphones(before internationalisation), are still locked to their respective regions. Samsung is then the culprit for this issue.

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