Database Users

What will be the best version of S4?

What will be the best version to buy, i9500 or i9505? I am talking about modding and custom roms like sammy based and aosp. Which will have the best contribution/support from this community?

i500 = better cpu. i505 better gpu.
i500 is appearing to have better battery life, HOWEVER this could be due to different/ more intensive tests being ran on the different phones. Each reviewer runs their phones through different tests, so it's hard to say as I don't think a test model for both variants has been sent to a single reviewer.
i505 is looking to have better XDA support as it will be more widely available.

IDK, let me check the other 100 or so threads about this and I'll get back to you.

Please use the search feature before starting a new thread
POLL: I9500 OR I9505, What will you buy?
Thread Closed

[Q] Galaxy S4 Active (I9295) modding?

I've looked all over the forums, but didn't find a section dedicated to the Galaxy S4 Active.
Therefore, my question sounds like this: Considering that the only major (known to me) difference from S4 I9505 to the S4 Active is the case, are S4 I9505 ROMs compatible on the S4 Active?
From looking on GSMarena, I see that the S4 Active is using the same chipset as the S4 I9505. Are there any major differences I should be aware of? Has anybody tried to install an I9505 ROM on an S4 Active and managed to do so successfully?

The camera is different in Active
Sent from my GT-I9505 using XDA Premium HD app

As Obagleyfreer already noted the camera is a different model which needs a different set of drivers. Also the display isn't the same - its LCD and not AMOLED. I like the LCD way more than the AMOLED but the changes make it impossible to use an i9095 rom straight away. You have to change a few parts of the system before you can use it.
In my opinion Samsung did a very stupid thing releasing that many different S4 devices in such a short time and without announcing them at the same time. Who buys a S4 active when he's bought an S4 two months before... I sincerly hope that the S4 active will gather a larger attention in the future (hopefully with the international release) because until now I couldn't find much discussion about it. I'm glad at least root was achieved

Hi,
as a proud owner of the S4 Active I was wondering why there's less attention spent on the device.
Just found the guide how to root. Seems like it's not working yet for EU devices
Regards
basediver

basediver, have a look at this thread, I successfully rooted my EU (i9295) S4A and also restored stock recovery.

VolkS7X said:
I've looked all over the forums, but didn't find a section dedicated to the Galaxy S4 Active.
Therefore, my question sounds like this: Considering that the only major (known to me) difference from S4 I9505 to the S4 Active is the case, are S4 I9505 ROMs compatible on the S4 Active?
From looking on GSMarena, I see that the S4 Active is using the same chipset as the S4 I9505. Are there any major differences I should be aware of? Has anybody tried to install an I9505 ROM on an S4 Active and managed to do so successfully?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes they are very similar, but the s4 active has a completely different display and display driver. Which means it needs to have a different kernel.

..

[Q] A different N9006 (Chinese Version) with better RAM and a crappier CPU?

**EDIT** This thread is about the Chinese SM-N9006 ONLY.
I just picked up this phone last weekend, (imgur.com/Js8e4FI or see "deviceinfo.png" below), which seems to be similar to all the other Chinese N9006s out there, but after further examination, I'm not so sure.
I rooted it with Framaroot and checked it with a new version of Antutu, (I think I had one of the adjusted versions before), and CPU Identifier, and it showed a very different processor than the others I've seen online. (imgur.com/caapx2o or see "cpu identifier.png" below)
Evidently, the Quad-core 1.2Ghz MTK6589 is actually a dual-core MT6572 which I'm not sure even uses both cores.
I'm not that surprised about that, but I am surprised that the RAM seems to actually be close to 3GB! When I check the running apps tab it shows almost 3GB total RAM, (imgur.com/7B4jFRx or see "running apps.png" below), which is backed up by both Antutu, (imgur.com/0OMilGl or see "antutu.png" below), and CPU Identifier.
So, have they made a new N9006? One with a crappier processor but more RAM? It only got an Antutu score of 8115, but it seems to run relatively quickly. The main reason I'm curious is that I want to be able to try out other roms, but I'm not sure I can trust anything from this phone to figure out which roms are safe for it. I'm not sure that it's even correctly reporting the rom info you can see in the device info picture.
In case you can't see the device info, this phone seems to have: (This is all the info I've been able to scrounge up from this phone)
Star Note3 n9006
Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 Cortex-ARM7
Adreno 330 GPU
MT6572 x2 1.3GHZ
Model Number: SM-N9006
Android Version: 4.3
Baseband Version: N9006ZCUBMI3
Kernal version: 3.4.0-1590669 [email protected]#1 Thu Nov 7 10:38:17 CST 2013
Build Number: JSS15J.N9006ZCUBMI5
Custom build version: i7208.pip.02.02.a.a-v0.0.9b1107
Supposedly, I can be sure of the rom info from booting into factory mode, (power + vol. down), but I'm getting the same menu in Chinese that others have gotten.
Factory Mode menu (sorry about the quality): (imgur.com/ivDFE4s or see "screencrap.png" below)
Does anyone know what the options are in that menu, or how to change the menu to English, OR another way to get the rom info from the bootup screens? Thanks!

MediaTek Cpu ?? impossible i guess you got a Chinese knock off

Dheemanth10 said:
MediaTek Cpu ?? impossible i guess you got a Chinese knock off
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, I know it's a knockoff, I identify it as a Chinese model in my first sentence. That's why I'm not surprised that the specs are faked. Even after rooting it, deleting the un-upgradeable version of Antutu they had locked on it (I'd heard about the "adjusted" versions), and installing a new version of Antutu, it is still faking the processor.
I'm not sure any info can be trusted from the current rom on this phone, which is one reason why I want to figure out which roms are safe for it.

Stephandroid said:
Yup, I know it's a knockoff, I identify it as a Chinese model in my first sentence. That's why I'm not surprised that the specs are faked. Even after rooting it, deleting the un-upgradeable version of Antutu they had locked on it (I'd heard about the "adjusted" versions), and installing a new version of Antutu, it is still faking the processor.
I'm not sure any info can be trusted from the current rom on this phone, which is one reason why I want to figure out which roms are safe for it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are not ANY ROMs other than the one it shipped with which are safe for it. If you tried to flash a real stock or custom Note 3 ROM onto it, it probably wouldn't flash at all, and if it did, it would brick the device.

Stephandroid said:
I just picked up this phone last weekend, (imgur.com/Js8e4FI or see "deviceinfo.png" below), which seems to be similar to all the other Chinese N9006s out there, but after further examination, I'm not so sure.
...
So, have they made a new N9006? One with a crappier processor but more RAM?
...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First of all - in the world there ARE true Samsung N9006 Note 3 phones - which are completely different devices! So your phone is NOT a Samsung N9006, so it can't be referred to as a "new N9006". At most you can say it is a new fake N9006.
And regarding the RAM - the problem is that even on real N9005 you don't have close to 3GB RAM reported, you only get listed about 2499 MB or so, the rest is mapped to video/3D and similar stuff and does not get listed. The fact that 3000 MB are listed seems to suggest that in the kernel there is another hack so it reports much more than reality.
Also the screen captures suggest that the real screen is nowhere near 1920x1080 so that info also seems to be faked

xclub_101 said:
First of all - in the world there ARE true Samsung N9006 Note 3 phones - which are completely different devices! So your phone is NOT a Samsung N9006, so it can't be referred to as a "new N9006". At most you can say it is a new fake N9006.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry for the confusion, the only discussions I've seen on xda which refer to the N9006 are in reference to the Chinese version. I've changed the title accordingly.
I agree with you that the resolution is definitely faked, as well as the RAM. Are there any apps that can accurately judge the true amount of RAM? Antutu gives a RAM Operation score of 435, and a speed score of 712, but I'm not sure how that corresponds into real world amounts.
donalgodon said:
There are not ANY ROMs other than the one it shipped with which are safe for it. If you tried to flash a real stock or custom Note 3 ROM onto it, it probably wouldn't flash at all, and if it did, it would brick the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If there is success with any of the attempts being made, I want to know if my phone is the same as theirs. There are threads which reference another Chinese version where attempts are being made. (I'm not allowed to link URLs yet but you can cut and paste: forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2460126 forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2495375)
With the increasing interest in the Chinese versions, even if there isn't one now, I'm sure there'll be one eventually. That's why I'm interested in finding out how to gain info about the rom I'm using. Even if I don't change roms, it would be nice to see the real specs of the phone, and be able to use some things like Xposed.

Stephandroid said:
Sorry for the confusion, the only discussions I've seen on xda which refer to the N9006 are in reference to the Chinese version. I've changed the title accordingly.
I agree with you that the resolution is definitely faked, as well as the RAM. Are there any apps that can accurately judge the true amount of RAM? Antutu gives a RAM Operation score of 435, and a speed score of 712, but I'm not sure how that corresponds into real world amounts.
If there is success with any of the attempts being made, I want to know if my phone is the same as theirs. There are threads which reference another Chinese version where attempts are being made. (I'm not allowed to link URLs yet but you can cut and paste: forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2460126 forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2495375)
With the increasing interest in the Chinese versions, even if there isn't one now, I'm sure there'll be one eventually. That's why I'm interested in finding out how to gain info about the rom I'm using. Even if I don't change roms, it would be nice to see the real specs of the phone, and be able to use some things like Xposed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The point is that real Samsung firmware won't work on a clone. The real Samsung devices don't use the same chipset as the clones do.

You're phone is not a Chinese Version, the chinese versions are made by Samsung.
your phone is a copy product.

There is a real chinese note 3 SM-9006 made by Samsung...what you have is just a crapy copy made in some backyard factory. STOP thinking you have anything else. Just be happy that it can even make a phone call.
Teleported from my SM-N9005 from the Enterprise

Stephandroid said:
**EDIT** This thread is about the Chinese SM-N9006 ONLY.
...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A number of people including myself already told you - this is NOT a SM-N9006!
Searching for the CPU and resolution will get you to one of the appropriate threads (or you can start yourself one BUT NOT IN ANY NOTE 3 FORUM)
Here is for instance one about the fakes with MTK6589 and I believe 1280x720:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2460620
This one seems closer to what you have:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2549036
Search around http://forum.xda-developers.com/android there might be other!

Your screenshot clearly show it is fake, the color, everything is wrong.
This is NOT a real SM-N9006 but FAKE.
You should change your title.

Not a Note 3.. doesn't belong here... Thread closed

[Q] Which GS4 model should i get?

I would prefer to be without a contract, I'm okay being without LTE in the USA, would like international usability, and am confused about all these different variants in model numbers, processor types, and versions (e.g. Google edition, Active edition, etc...). Thanks!

whiteblazer01 said:
I would prefer to be without a contract, I'm okay being without LTE in the USA, would like international usability, and am confused about all these different variants in model numbers, processor types, and versions (e.g. Google edition, Active edition, etc...). Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Go for I9506.I think is the best.I own this phone and is better than I9505.But if you are looking for any custom rom you will not find anyhing for it(yet) only root and a few mods compatible from I9505.But overall is way better than i9505.The Snapdragon 800(2,3 Ghz and Adreno 330) does his job very well.And....there is no official android 4.3 for it.Just 4.2.2.I9506 rocks the benchmarks.In Antutu(stok ROM,stock Kernel) it scores around 35000 pts.

none , don t purchase an s4 , if u really want a Samsung device the s5 is coming soon , also concerning international usability with regional lock Samsung is not a good option

If you're considering a Google play edition device, you're better off with the nexus 5
Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk

aresbv2000 said:
Go for I9506.I think is the best.I own this phone and is better than I9505.But if you are looking for any custom rom you will not find anyhing for it(yet) only root and a few mods compatible from I9505.But overall is way better than i9505.The Snapdragon 800(2,3 Ghz and Adreno 330) does his job very well.And....there is no official android 4.3 for it.Just 4.2.2.I9506 rocks the benchmarks.In Antutu(stok ROM,stock Kernel) it scores around 35000 pts.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the recommendation, I'm looking into this. What carrier are you using; any plan suggestions? (I'm not too eager to sign a contract)
difyel said:
none , don t purchase an s4 , if u really want a Samsung device the s5 is coming soon , also concerning international usability with regional lock Samsung is not a good option
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Has the S5 been announced? Doesn't Samsung usually release new year flagship phones in March/April? I'll need one much sooner than that.
Also, what's the problem with international use on a GS4? I think I remember reading that International GS4s in the USA don't have 4G use, and USA GS4s don't work well in other countries. If I get a rootable GS4, would this resolve this concern?
Thanks again for the help guys!

[Q] Can I use the 910C (Exynos) in Hungary?

tl;dr: ^ See topic text. ( I guess I would not have LTE here with that, but that's not a big issue at all. Coverage is horrible in Hungary anyway. )
A few shops* sell the 910C here as well, not just the F version.
Now I know that the Exynos version is faster, more power efficient.
And I guess all official updates will also reach this variant faster or pretty much with the same speed.
On the other hand, we have the Snapdragon, which got much more custom roms and section on XDA.
(Honestly it feels so weird that the 1.9ghz A57 can beat the S805 clocked at 2.7ghz in single-thread....)
Anyway. Personally, I used the S3, S4, Note 2, S4 Mini, Motorola phones... and every time I installed Cyanogenmod or other CM/AOSP-variant roms, it was riddled with bugs.
Don't get me wrong, the Note 2 have the DN4 Rom which is basically a Note 4 rom ported, and it's great. It's stable, it's got a few quirks, but it works.
But from that, it doesn't seem to be a good deal to trade speed, and power just for more roms. (Let alone Knox which I don't want to trip.)
Sooo... I would be pretty fine with the Exynos version.
But can I use it here?
* = all gsm shops are shady in the country, that's why I'm super-cautious.

Use Exynos in Hungary
If you mean just using it as a normal phone I don't see why not.
The type of processor will have no influence on the normal use of the phone. (as in calling, texting internet and email and such)
If you would want to root it and start working with custom ROMs it might not e the best idea. Most open source development is on the Snapdragon variant.
The AOSP ROMs have come a long way over the last couple of years. I experience hardly any bugs with the bigger devellopment teams.
All the best, Willem

Thank you! Well, I know the difference is tiny, but you cannot install roms and stuff without tripping KNOX anyway. It will be a business phone so I would like to keep my warranty.

Not sure if allowed, but please, excuse my bump.
I would like to order the phone as soon as possible.
So far I'm convinced that the Exynos will be fine for me.
But the main question remains. Can I use it in this country?
I tried to look up the chipset, the phone, everything - but there is just no information on what frequencies does it support / etc.

So I had a wild idea. Screenshot the box at unboxing on Youtube, so I can check.
Then I used this:
http://www.worldtimezone.com/gsm.html
That says it should work. What do you guys think?