Beta Close Notice for Note 9 Users: Insulting, Amusing, Insensitive...

[medianemesis]

Dear Samsung, this is insensitive and cruel.

Long backstory. Ever since Samsung opened up their Android P beta last year, users have actively signed up, installed said beta and constantly given feedback to help smooth out bugfixes.

There were 3 updates to the Android P beta (last one was sent out on December 27) before the official version started rolling out to users.

Since then, every recent flagship model has received the official update except unlocked Note 9 users - yes, the very first people who got invited to the beta program.

Initially, the Samsung USA beta developers begged for patience. Their default response was that the official OS needed to go through carrier testing before it would be released to unlocked phones. I actually joined in promoting this BS excuse when other beta forum members got upset. Then one by one, network-locked phones got their update alongside the unlocked versions of older models. Guess which phone never got the update? The unlocked Note 9 in North America.

After these OS updates, the USA beta forum released a canned response every time they were asked when the update will roll out. At one point, they mentioned it would be pushed on the day of the S10 launch. That was a lie. Since then they have gone silent.

Yes, everyone says that is the downside of buying an unlocked device. Yes, we understand we may never even get the official update. We may rant, but we can live with that.

This morning 03/11, a notice pops up in the Samsung Members app telling everyone the beta ends tomorrow 03/12 so to hurry up and download the official version, making it sound like the delay has been on the part of users. Basically we are being kicked out.

Great! You'd think the official OS has been finally released to all users, right? Wrong.

As of the time of writing this, the "latest" update for the unlocked Note 9 is still the December 27th version.

Dear Samsung, get you PR right and your departments to coordinate properly with the devs. Despite the robo-responses, it is somewhat amusing that your customer services sends out a notice for the close of beta testing without communicating with the devs to ensure every user has a chance to install the official update. This means that after the 13th, unlocked Note 9 users will have no avenue to provide feedback or even assist and notify each other about the beta they are stuck in.

As I said in my last post on here, I still think tech sites/bloggers/vloggers are complicit too. They were quick to tout the features of the Note 9, roll out post/videos about the beta and updates for a few carriers and then everyone pivoted to the S10 as if to forget the Note 9 exists. Can't wait till the Note 10 comes out too, so they can sell you screen protectors and cases and ignore any woes your S10 has. The cycle continues.

Long rant. There is no TLDR here. Basically, we are screwed...

 

[alodar101]

I think its amazing, that companies spend so much time and money learning how to communicate and fail so epicly in some areas. The PR that Samsung went through after their exploding phone incidents, cost a pretty penny. That said, how well do they communicate on other things....not so pretty a penny.

I'm trying to remember exactly how this worked in other betas. On the IOS beta, users did NOT get a dedicated 'final' build. We got what was assumed the last build and then proceeded to get what other builds beyond the last build release given to others. Running the PIE beta, I don't recall recieving a dedicated final build on the pixel. We got the last release, then nothing until the 2nd update after the official release.

I'm assuming with the NOTE9, you got the final build, then nothing. Becasue of the UI updates, there may be other updates. If this is indeed the case, you beta testers do have the final build. Which thens leads to 2 questions...When will the final release, for everyone, non beta be out. Should you expect a final UI update. yeah, eventually. YOu have the final build itself I assume.

I think the bigger question here is a basic, what is Samsungs release policy. Basically, it makes no sense for unlocked, non carrier aligned devices, to be stuck behind carrier based releases. I do NOT buy the final testing by carriers as the hold up. Essentially, this is simply a cover story made support to cover holes in the release. Having worked big tech for many years...i know support is not in the main stream when it comes to releases. They 'produce' information that is not wrong...to cover gaps.

We know...Samsung has a unique update policy. We don't know wha thte policy is, but we know its different than many companies. It has little to do with respect...or caring for their customers. It may have more to do with the release of a washing machine than the timing of the finish of a beta. At the end of the day we buy samsung phones because we like them. Imagine this time next year, S10 uses will be bemoaning getting the Android Q update. Early adopters will complain about not getting respect for adopting early. And Samsung will , back handedly blame carriers and misdirect its beta testers. Its all part of the game. Unfortunately, this single reason is one of the driving factors in phones like the Pixel. NO overlay to deal with ....I have both...less angst with the Pixel when it comes to updates...

 

[pizza_pablo]

Verizon Note 9 still does not have official pie.

Couldn't beta users just roll back to Oreo?

 

[mustang7757]

Verizon Note 9 still does not have official pie.

Couldn't beta users just roll back to Oreo?

Yes

 

[medianemesis]

No, this isn't the case actually. Samsung rolled out 3 beta builds (the last being in December) and then announced a final build that has fixes from that last December beta plus February security updates. This final build is the version that has been pushed out to carriers and other older unlocked phone models like the Note 8.

Note 9 beta testers are still on the December build with its attendant bugs and the lack of January and February security updates that have been pushed out to other devices.

It is one thing giving canned responses to users complaints, but then it is another thing to shut down the forum entirely as if to pretend beta users don't exist anymore.

Beta testers are tired, they aren't even looking for a final build number. Samsung only had to just push out the January and February security patches and most people would have been content with that.

 

[medianemesis]

Side-note: Apart from editing a repeated reply to text like these, is there a way to delete your reply on the AndroidCentral forum..?

 

[medianemesis]

Yes, they could. But despite the hassle of rolling back to Oreo with a PC and Smart Switch, they'd still be stuck without recent security updates and no OneUI.

Thus rolling back would mean being even way behind than beta users...

 

[recDNA]

Unlocked Oreo in VZW haven't had any security updates either past the 12/1 update.

I don't care about Pi but I would like security updates

 

[berfles]

Unlocked Oreo in VZW haven't had any security updates either past the 12/1 update.

I don't care about Pi but I would like security updates

Tell me about it.

I know this has been explained before, but who is responsible for the security updates being so slow on unlocked phones? There's no reason for those to take months to get deployed.

 

[medianemesis]

Android P is being pushed out to Verizon customers and beta testers with unlocked Note 9 devices as at the time of posting this.

The Samsung OneUI beta forum has also been closed and migrated to the Samsung Members app.

I guess that is the successful end of this saga. It was a bittersweet experience joining the beta, an experience some have sworn never to repeat again (maybe until Samsung tempts us with Android Q).

Adios...

 

[alodar101]

Sure, but.....final build + UI experience + Security Patch = Release build??

Samsung, may....indicate the final build is unchanged from december. Adding the security patch in the time frame of the release, plus the latest UI update may indeed be the Release build. If...IF ....this is their thinking, then you do have the final release. Whether its right or wrong to you, to them, they are on track. They may indeed be using the carriers to test the final build +UI Experience + Security patch combinations as simply a way to defer direct testing. Knowing that the major carriers in the US rarely release anything without full test passes, you could indeed be looking at as much as a 16 week delay, per carrier, on a release. Though I doubt each carrier would invoke so long a delay, it accounts for some of the initial delay.