Gingerbread on the Droid X, whats new

[BBSeattle]

Did you name the file update.zip or just update? I started with update.zip and it did not work. Make sure it is just "update" and in the root directory of the SD card. Hope this helps.

I've downloaded the update.zip file, and haven't been able to apply it manually... I've gotten to the <!> screen w/ the anroid guy. When I first arrive at this screen it says in yellow letters "E: Can't open /cache/recovery/command" not sure what this means.

I've tried wipe data/factory reset but even after a complete wipe the phone does not allow me to update... HELP!!!!!

 

[pixelsyndicate]

Hey all.

I've had some trouble finding an answer to this question... I've got the DroidX running Verizon's 2.2.1, but i've also rooted it.

I'm fearful that if I don't remove the root, I might not the the official Gingerbread push.

Can anyone 'splain what will need to happen for me to be eligible for the next DroidX update?

Thanks much!

 

[French]

I can tell you this, to shed a bit of light and back up what others have said:

I used to have an old WEP security gateway from AT&T until a storm blew it up last week. I never once lost WIFI connectivity on my unrooted Froyo, unless I moved out of range. Moving back in range, it picked right back up with out a hitch. It seemed to switch to 3G pretty flawlessly as well, but with the obvious freeze that is associated with polling to a new data service provider.

Upgraded to Uverse and got a new gateway with WPA2 security, and it does occasionally drop with the .588 GB leak. Using the on/off WIFI widgit seems to correct the issue. Others have stated that WPA2 and possibly even WPA security protocols may be causing an intermittent loss of connectivity. I have also had a couple of issues with losing WIFI connectivity and the 3G switchover not happening to "pick up the slack". The pages on the browser error out. Turning off WIFI, and pushing the power button to dim the screen and then pushing it again to bring it back on seems to refresh the 3G connection.

Thanks...I didn't know about using the power button...I've also had times where the 3G has gotten stuck and turning airplane mode on and off has fixed that. This is really the ONE thing that keeps the Droid X from being perfect for me. I don't like the overall "unreliability" of my data connection. Thankfully it's not constant, but problem is you don't really know when it's happening until it fails when you are actively trying to do something.

 

[ottscay]

Hey all.

I've had some trouble finding an answer to this question... I've got the DroidX running Verizon's 2.2.1, but i've also rooted it.

I'm fearful that if I don't remove the root, I might not the the official Gingerbread push.

Can anyone 'splain what will need to happen for me to be eligible for the next DroidX update?

Thanks much!

Root won't prevent you from getting the update as long as you haven't done anything else (i.e. no Titantium freezing of apps, no use of Koush's Bootstrap, etc.). You will lose your root access once it's updated.

Also, you'll know when to expect the update - this was clearly a test update meant to be sent to a small number of people, but apparently it didn't go entirely to the intended target audience, so now you can try it out yourself if you want to (but if you don't feel adventurous, don't - it'll come OTA soon enough).

 

[ottscay]

If you swipe (or swype?) from the period to the space bar, it types a period and a space.

I know, but I frequently find myself checking to make sure the sentence is correct, or considering composition, so I almost always hit the period manually. And if I hit the frickin' mic button then I have to wait while the stupid thing launches and then closes.

If I'm in the car or at my desk, I usually start a message with handcent, and then use voice dictation for the contact name and the message body. In the car, it's better than having to type. In the office... I'm just lazy =P

I can see that - I always just long press on the search button and go from there. I still feel like we'd be better served if the mic function required a menu push and the smiley button were next to the period - it's not that much harder to hit the menu button, but it's a ton more time consuming to accidentally hit the mic button rather than the smiley button. Or to have a choice.

I'm sure it's not a big deal to many, but I really hate that button

 

[Scuzzelbutt]

So I was one of the people who got the push, but it failed to install. (rooted, etc.). Where is the file on my phone? Can I try the update->sdcard trick?

So if root does not stop an update, what else can? I used autostart app to disable some junk. If I just re-enable stuff the updates should work?

 

[heraldo]

okay,

I downloaded and installed this version of Gingerbread. i do like the new interface and other things about it. But it has been a little trouble for me. The stock browser is force closing a lot.

I am having trouble with swype as well. Words like, don't, he's, a lot of words that have aspostraphy's(spelling) and I have adjusted settings both ways to correct to no avail!

Sometimes it is slow sometimes it isn't. The phone itself, however when it isn't. the phone is way faster than before

 

[deercreek]

Root won't prevent you from getting the update as long as you haven't done anything else (i.e. no Titantium freezing of apps, no use of Koush's Bootstrap, etc.).

Will using Koush's Bootstrap solely to do nandroid backups prevent me from being able to receive an OTA update?

 

[scraptacular]

1. The "dots" to jump between screens is now gone. Is the only way to go from one screen to another by scrolling through all the screens?

You can press the Home button to view a preview of each screen and then tap the one you want. Faster than the previous red dot swipe? Maybe not, but an option nonetheless.

 

[kklier]

You wont have to install your apps manually again if you wiped your phone. After you sign into your gmail account your phone will begin to redownload your apps (probably best if you turned wifi on for this). It took me about 20 minutes for all my apps to download and install (along with my contacts syncing).

I'm sorry, but how do you backup your apps and settings to gmail?

 

[cmandd]

I'm sorry, but how do you backup your apps and settings to gmail?

Gmail does it automatically with Gingerbread. When you restart your phone and sign in with Gmail, the market starts downloading all the apps you previously had.

 

[bray1720]

Major help needed!!!

I installed the 2.3 update manually last night and everything was going great except for the sync icon. I decided about an hour ago to do the master reset, and now I cannot get past the phone activation. I have ran the automated activation a few times, rebooted several, waited, and it still won't recognize that it's been activated. After the activation is finished, and I select the "next" option, it just brings me back to the original set up screen with the finger pointing to the android, and that will take me back to the activation screen. Is anyone else having this issue? Does anyone have an idea as to how to get around this? Thanks!

Update: had to call in and manually input my account info. I don't think I can blame to update though, because I am pretty sure I had to do the same thing when I did a master reset with the stock 2.1. I think it's something about my area that doesn't actually send the all the information to the phone when you try to activate OTA

 

[ultravisitor]

I also have a question...does anyone know why the 3G icon changes colors from blue to white (the wifi actually does this, too).

I believe it's...

blue = connection established with Google servers
white = connection not established with Google servers

 

[hkklife]

2 annoyances

Overall, I am loving the huge speed improvements. The UI tweaks are rather so-so but I can certainly live with them. So far I have not had any random reboots or FCs so I'm quite thrilled.

I upgraded from a stock, unrooted 2.3.340 on Tuesday, FWIW. I installed update.zip, then did a full device wipe and started over fresh.

#1. When I go into Contacts and hit the green + to add a new contact (or use the menu key then select "Add contact") I am prompted with the "Choose an acount to store new contacts:"

I hate the VZW Backup Assistant but I did make the mistake of signing into it in my eagerness to set up my device. Now I am prompted every time I add a contact for the account selection screen every time I add a contact....and ticking "Remember this choice" does NOT stick. I am prompted every time regardless!

#2 There is STILL no way to program the default VoiceMail contact entry to automatically dial your VM PIN + the # symbol. This is a huge pain when trying to drive or listen to VMs while walking. Every phone I have had since my MicroTac 13 years ago has been able to automatically dial into my voicemail--why not the DX? This is obviously a Blur problem, as my old Moto Droid did it perfectly.

With 2.1 and 2.2 on my DX, I could at least hold down "1" and get it to dial with my password (but it wouldn't do it if I hit the onscreen VM alert notification). But not Blur keeps shortcut #1 locked and it defaults to *86 with no way around it. Arrrgh!

Any ideas as to how to resolve either of the above problems?
I suppose I can do another hard reset and skip setting up Backup Assistant (I sync all my contacts to Gmail anyway) but otherwise, this is going to be a PITA since I deal with lots of VMs throughout the course of the day and I primarily add new Gmail contacts from my phone, not the web.

 

[russelb]

Voicemail Pin Code

#2 There is STILL no way to program the default VoiceMail contact entry to automatically dial your VM PIN + the # symbol. This is a huge pain when trying to drive or listen to VMs while walking. Every phone I have had since my MicroTac 13 years ago has been able to automatically dial into my voicemail--why not the DX? This is obviously a Blur problem, as my old Moto Droid did it perfectly.

With 2.1 and 2.2 on my DX, I could at least hold down "1" and get it to dial with my password (but it wouldn't do it if I hit the onscreen VM alert notification). But not Blur keeps shortcut #1 locked and it defaults to *86 with no way around it. Arrrgh!

Have you tried Settings -> Call Settings -> Voicemail Settings and then setting you pin there after the *86 access code? You may need to insert some pauses. I use Visual Voicemail, so I have not tried this myself, but saw the setting when going through all the settings to see what was there.

 

[russelb]

I have been using the OTA 2.3.3 (unrooted) for the last 48 hours. I downloaded and installed using the update.zip method. I had the stock 2.2.1 on the phone prior to this.

To get rid of the sync icon, I did a factory reset and then let my apps and settings restore on their own. This took a little time as I have 3000+ contacts and a lot of calendar entries, but I made sure I was on my WiFi connection. Everything restored pretty painlessly. One of the things I like about Android is how it backs up to Google's servers, so I don't lose anything if I lose the phone. I understand a lot of people use backup utilities, but don't understand the need for them.

So far I have been happy with GB. I really like the updated interface and find that since I have done the factory reset, I have not had any issues. With Froyo, I would get spontaneous reboots, especially when using the navigation in the car dock. I have not had any of those issues so far with GB. This my second or third update to my DroidX's firmware, and I am firmly convinced that a factory reset is a mandatory part of the upgrade process.

After updating to GB, I was getting Quadrant scores over 1600, but then I enabled encryption on the phone and my score went down to 1162. I know that is low, but the encryption is important for me as I am an attorney and need to safeguard the info in my phone. I did not enable the SD card encryption as it warned that it would lower the quality and the length of videos I recorded.

I have not come across any bugs. Contact shortcuts no longer open the contact, but open a small popup with icons on them. You can then click an icon to open their contact but it is small. I have some contacts with multiple numbers and wish the contact icon would just open their contact screen directly.

The other issue I have is that my touchscreen does not seem as precise. I seem to be making more typing errors and feel like I have to click a little low to activate a button. Not sure if it is just my over size fingers, or if there is really an issue. Previously, I was using the leaked Gingerbread Keyboard, and now I am using the stock multi-touch keyboard. I am not sure if there is any big difference between these two keyboards other than color. I may need to research this further to see if there is a way to calibrate the touch screen, reinstall the Gingerbread Keyboard, or find a different keyboard altogether. I tried Swype, but it made my brain hurt trying to use it as I have been touch typing since I was 12 and Swype made me think about where the keys are rather than just relying on muscle memory.

Overall, I am very happy with the OTA 2.3.3 upgrade and glad that I went to the trouble to install it and factory reset. At this point, I don't care that much about root, although there are a few minor things I would like it for like to delete all the Verizon bloatware.

 

[gafly]

And the battery life stats begin:

9:54 hours on extended battery with normal daily usage
System Battery Level: 80%
Estimated Full Battery Time (Battery Left App): 43:12
Estimated Full Battery Time (Percentage Calculation): 49:30

...Guess we'll find out which number is the closest in 33 more hours

Edit: Oh... btw, I don't have root access.

 

[Scuzzelbutt]

I un-did all my renamed .apk files and autostarted everything again. It failed to update. WTF? Do I have to un-root or something? It would be nice to know where the file is that it is using to update, dos it delete it or do I have to re-download it every time I want to try to update?

 

[gafly]

I un-did all my renamed .apk files and autostarted everything again. It failed to update. WTF? Do I have to un-root or something? It would be nice to know where the file is that it is using to update, dos it delete it or do I have to re-download it every time I want to try to update?

Are you trying to use the update file that got pushed to you?

The easiest, surest, way to get you from Froyo to GB (unrooted)

NEED: RSD Lite
NEED: .340 SBF
NEED: .588 Leaked Update zip

1) SBF to .340 Froyo (unrooted)
2) on your computer rename .588 update zip from it's original name to "update".
3) Move "update.zip" to root of SD card.
4) Turn off DX
5) Turn on DX in Recovery
6) Install update.zip
7) Factory Reset
8) Reboot

 

[ultravisitor]

Ugh. Amazon MP3 no longer works in this build. It was working with the last build. The Cloud Player part of that app is awesome.