Latest U.S build?

[callanish]

Got a quick question about the current firmware for the U.S version of the M3. Got this M3 recently and couldn't be happier. It's just a solid product and once I got everything setup the way I wanted, I've been very impressed with pretty much everything.

My question is related to the latest U.S firmware. When I received the tablet, I checked for an update to EMUI 5 and there was none, so I used firmware finder and downloaded the upgraded firmware, changed a proxy setting on my wifi connection and that download sent the update to Huawei's upgrader and then performed the upgrade to EMUI 5 fortunately without any problems. When I checked the upgrade again, I received a notice of a further upgrade, this time directly from Huawei, and that was just a small 50mb file, so I'm running what I believe to be the latest version. Just was going through a post on Amazon stating the version coming from firmware finder is a U.S beta. Can someone tell me if the build number BTV-W09C128B351 that I currently have on mine is the latest version and not a beta? Probably will find the answer after searching through the forum, but couldn't hurt to ask owners just to make sure.

P.S Reading that other people have received an update to EMUI 5 when they first turn on their M3 and others having to perform the upgrade themselves.

Edit : So, I was going to delete this because basically the following thread pretty much answered my question, but couldn't delete it, so here we are.

https://forums.androidcentral.com/huawei-mediapad-m3/829893-received-new-update.html#post5947271

 

[vividrich]

How reliable is the update checker? Meaning... What are the odds it will actually tell me there's an update. Just got the tablet yesterday and was sorta surprised it didn't show there was an update.

 

[tflash]

I just got an M3 32GB from Amazon. It had FW vers. BTV-W09C128B005.
System update on the tablet did not show any updates.
I found a method online that upgrades it to BTV-W09C128B350, by putting the update file on an SD card under a folder named 'dload'. Then I held vol up, vol down and power at the same time to initiate the update. I'll find the link to the files and post it here later. It was a pain, but EMUI 5 and Android 7 are waaaaay better then the way it was shipped.

 

[callanish]

How reliable is the update checker? Meaning... What are the odds it will actually tell me there's an update. Just got the tablet yesterday and was sorta surprised it didn't show there was an update.

The update checker was a non-starter for me until I used it with firmware finder and bypassed having to use a micro+SD card in order to upgrade to EMUI 5. First, I picked the 2.5gb file option within firmware finder which is basically EMUI 5, picked the get an update using dns beta option. Added the dns address that firmware finder provided to my wifi settings by holding down your wifi, choosing modify network, tick advanced options, change settings to static, and then change the dns to the one provided by firmware finder. From there, it downloaded the file, but once finished it passed it on to Huawei's upgrader app and it took over from there. Just remember to remove the dns address from your wifi settings when finished. As I mentioned didn't need to use a SD card and once finished, checked the Huawei updator again and there was another small update available. I thought it was the easiest way to upgrade without having to do too many steps. Once the file was passed on to the Huawei upgrader, it did all the work.

 

[vividrich]

Fantastic, that worked perfectly, thanks!

 

[tflash]

The update checker was a non-starter for me until I used it with firmware finder and bypassed having to use a micro+SD card in order to upgrade to EMUI 5. First, I picked the 2.5gb file option within firmware finder which is basically EMUI 5, picked the get an update using dns beta option. Added the dns address that firmware finder provided to my wifi settings by holding down your wifi, choosing modify network, tick advanced options, change settings to static, and then change the dns to the one provided by firmware finder. From there, it downloaded the file, but once finished it passed it on to Huawei's upgrader app and it took over from there. Just remember to remove the dns address from your wifi settings when finished. As I mentioned didn't need to use a SD card and once finished, checked the Huawei updator again and there was another small update available. I thought it was the easiest way to upgrade without having to do too many steps. Once the file was passed on to the Huawei upgrader, it did all the work.

After you updated, is your bluetooth working? Do you still have the updater listed in the settings page?

I upgraded to B350 and BT won't turn on. The updater app is missing. I can only update now by connecting to USB port on a PC and running the Huawei HiSuite program. I upgraded to B351, but I didn't notice any changes. Also, only voice keyboard available. I had to plug in a KB using OTG cable to sign into WiFi and Google playstore. Then downloaded Hacker's keyboard (my fav. kb app) to get on screen kb.

 

[vividrich]

Everything working and present here...

 

[callanish]

Sorry to hear you’re having problems. Like vividrich, I also don’t have any of the issues you are going through. I probably wouldn’t have upgraded or just waited for the OTA if I had to upgrade the way you did it. I took a shot at using the DNS update option because I thought there was a lesser chance of me actually bricking it. I did a complete check of mine and everything works fine.

 

[tflash]

Sorry to hear you’re having problems. Like vividrich, I also don’t have any of the issues you are going through. I probably wouldn’t have upgraded or just waited for the OTA if I had to upgrade the way you did it. I took a shot at using the DNS update option because I thought there was a lesser chance of me actually bricking it. I did a complete check of mine and everything works fine.

I'm returning it to Amazon so I can try that again.
The instructions in FF app were not very good, but I think I can do it with another chance.
I'm going to try using HiSuite first.
Did you have to select 'register the update' to get a dialog box with an IP address?
Did you just have to change the DNS, or did you change the IP address also. Your walkthrough is sort of vague at the 'from there it downloaded' part.
Did you have to initiate the DL, or did it start automatically after you changed the DNS?
What did the DL screen look like, and did you have to wait long for it to DL before it went to the update app?

 

[callanish]

I'm returning it to Amazon so I can try that again.
The instructions in FF app were not very good, but I think I can do it with another chance.
I'm going to try using HiSuite first.
Did you have to select 'register the update' to get a dialog box with an IP address?
Did you just have to change the DNS, or did you change the IP address also. Your walkthrough is sort of vague at the 'from there it downloaded' part.
Did you have to initiate the DL, or did it start automatically after you changed the DNS?
What did the DL screen look like, and did you have to wait long for it to DL before it went to the update app?

- Yes, I had to select register the update
- I just changed the DNS address under ip settings, static, DNS 1 and used whatever firmware finder told me to add. Didn't touch the IP address.
- When I went back to firmware finder, I started the download of the 2.5 GB file manually. Once it finished, it passed the file over to the Huawei update app pretty quickly and then it was more or less a hands off thing as it upgraded the O.S

Firmware finder was pretty good at explaining the process. Knowing what I know now, If I felt that any of the steps required in some way going down the DNS upgrade path posed risk to another tablet you bought, I wouldn't have been so quick to recommend it. The worst scenario I could see is that it doesn't pass on the file to the Huawei updator once firmware finder finishes the download due to a DNS issue. If hisuite performs the upgrade, then great, but the DNS upgrade suggestion without requiring a SD card to make it happen is a viable option in my opinion.

 

[Maged Samuel]

- Yes, I had to select register the update
- I just changed the DNS address under ip settings, static, DNS 1 and used whatever firmware finder told me to add. Didn't touch the IP address.
- When I went back to firmware finder, I started the download of the 2.5 GB file manually. Once it finished, it passed the file over to the Huawei update app pretty quickly and then it was more or less a hands off thing as it upgraded the O.S

Firmware finder was pretty good at explaining the process. Knowing what I know now, If I felt that any of the steps required in some way going down the DNS upgrade path posed risk to another tablet you bought, I wouldn't have been so quick to recommend it. The worst scenario I could see is that it doesn't pass on the file to the Huawei updator once firmware finder finishes the download due to a DNS issue. If hisuite performs the upgrade, then great, but the DNS upgrade suggestion without requiring a SD card to make it happen is a viable option in my opinion.

Dear callanish,
I went through all what you said before reading your post and you did pretty much what I did but let me ask you if you installed that 650 MB firmware after the installation of the 2.49gb file?

Also, does your FB app icon have badge number notifications? And does it look a bit weird like mine e.g. the letter h in "search" on the top is kinda invisible?

I also noted that my wifi connection was very slow but after fiddling around, I was able to get my full speed when I change my dns from dynamic to static! I don't know why but I never had to do this on my 4 yr old phone!

 

[callanish]

Dear callanish,
I went through all what you said before reading your post and you did pretty much what I did but let me ask you if you installed that 650 MB firmware after the installation of the 2.49gb file?

Also, does your FB app icon have badge number notifications? And does it look a bit weird like mine e.g. the letter h in "search" on the top is kinda invisible?

I also noted that my wifi connection was very slow but after fiddling around, I was able to get my full speed when I change my dns from dynamic to static! I don't know why but I never had to do this on my 4 yr old phone!//uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171202/64fa03d66d54a37a7a17d3a1ee78c3b4.jpg

No, didn't install that 650 mb file. Removed the firmware finder DNS address, and after that did another check using huawei's updater which offered a small patch update, but that's it.

Sorry, don't have Facebook, so don't know if that's normal.

As far as Wi-Fi speeds, I'm running through a proxy, so I'm already on a static address. I've got a 150mb connection and I'm currently getting a 52 mb download. I personally think that's pretty decent using 2.4 GHz. Being on static from day one might explain me scratching my head for why other owners are complaining about their wifi speeds. I'd have a bigger problem if websites weren't downloading quickly, but they are. I'm pretty happy with this M3. Like you, there's some things I could complain about, but for $200, and as an upgrade to a Nexus 7 (2013), this is a nice improvement.

 

[gerrya]

I just got this tablet last week with 6.0, I'm curious how long others have gone without seeing 7.0 OTA from Huawei then doing it manually?

 

[Cherenkov]

Looks like this topic is a bit old, just wondering if the May security update is still the most current on this device? I called up their tech support and the guy had no idea what a security patch or Android version was. I'm looking for a decent Android tablet that actually updates for security flaws on a regular basis, was hoping this might be the one.

 

[worldspy99]

I did get the OTA update a few months back. I have BTV-W09C128B351 Build with EMUI 5.0 and Android 7.0

I do notice that my download speeds are quite slow. I get around 12-20 Mbps on the M3 and side by side my Pixel will be running 50-60 Mbps.

Any clues as to how to set the DNS to static?

 

[gerrya]

I did get the OTA update a few months back. I have BTV-W09C128B351 Build with EMUI 5.0 and Android 7.0

I do notice that my download speeds are quite slow. I get around 12-20 Mbps on the M3 and side by side my Pixel will be running 50-60 Mbps.

Any clues as to how to set the DNS to static?

I just noticed this tonight as well side by side with my Pixel, it's almost like the speed is capped. I do notice that when I get far away from my router it will get better speeds than the pixel, Im assuming because the antenna is better/bigger on the M3.

 

[LabRat]

I just noticed this tonight as well side by side with my Pixel, it's almost like the speed is capped. I do notice that when I get far away from my router it will get better speeds than the pixel, Im assuming because the antenna is better/bigger on the M3.

I just ran speed test and I am seeing 50+ down and 23+ up.

 

[wase4711]

wifi is slow because you are locked into a 2.4 ghz wifi speed; no 5ghz for the US on this firmware..

 

[gerrya]

I swapped routers to the latest Verizon gateway and now my M3 speed tests are the same as my other devices.

 

[wase4711]

then your other devices are all 2.4ghz..NOT 5GHZ