Firmware
Samsung expands the October 2023 update for more carrier-locked and unlocked Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Z Flip 5 in the US
Earlier today, Samsung officially announced the One UI 6, which indicates that the company may introduce a stable update anytime for Galaxy devices, starting with the Galaxy S23. However, the foldable devices are far behind because the company hasn’t introduced the beta program till now. But ahead of getting any major updates, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Z Flip 5 have started getting a new October 2023 patch update.
Samsung brings a new update for both locked and unlocked variants
A few days ago, the October 2023 update was available for the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5, but at that time it was limited to the Verizon network for locked variants. Now the update is being expanded to more carriers, including T-Mobile, MetroPCS, Spectrum Mobile, Xfinity (Comcast), and US Cellular. At the same time, it is also available for unlocked variants.
For the locked variants of the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5, the new update is coming with firmware version numbers F946USQS1AWI3 and F731USQS1AWI3, respectively. While the unlocked variants of the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5 are the same, the new update is coming with the firmware version numbers F946U1UES1AWI3 and F731U1UES1AWI3, respectively.
What’s new with the October 2023 security patch?
The October 2023 security patch is the latest edition of this year’s security maintenance; it doesn’t bring any new features or novelties for the devices. But as a security patch, it includes more than 40 fixes that enhance the overall security of the devices. Along with this, the update will also bring some internal changes for the devices that will increase their performance and make them more stable.
If you are using the Galaxy Z Fold 5 or Z Flip 5 in the US, you should receive a notification of the availability of the update. Once you get the update, you can install it directly by tapping the notification, which will redirect you to the software update menu. Just click the download button, and it will start downloading and installing automatically.
A short horror moment for a smartphone user is the end of software support! Samsung plays with monthly, quarterly, and biannual firmware security updates including patches for Android OS-related security issues and Samsung-specific security issues. Sad to relate, here we are listing the Samsung Galaxy devices that are losing their software support in 2024.
Samsung has its policies for allotting software support, according to which it delivers the software update on time, and once the device reaches the limit of update, the brand ends the software support for that. Initially, Samsung offered three major updates to flagship devices and two major updates to the rest of the Galaxy devices, then it expanded the limit and started offering four years of major OS updates to particular devices and three for the affordable ones. Now earlier this year, it promised seven years of major OS updates for its flagship Galaxy S24 series.
However, Samsung hardly ditched its software policies, but now things appear the opposite since the giants are shifting the Galaxy S20 and Note 20 series repeatedly between the monthly and quarterly updates list.
Hope your device will not be listed in the list, since here we are mentioning the software support ended devices list in 2024.
Galaxy A series devices
- Galaxy A71
- Galaxy A51 LTE
- Galaxy A02
- Galaxy A01
Galaxy M series devices
- Galaxy M21
- Galaxy M31
Galaxy Tabs & Foldable
- Galaxy Tab S6
- Galaxy Tab A 8.4 (2020)
- Galaxy Z Flip LTE
- Galaxy Z Fold2 4G
- Galaxy W20 5G
- Galaxy S10 Lite
- Galaxy Note 10 Lite
Samsung has been rolling out a new 4G band support update for devices in Europe, which aims to enhance LTE connectivity for smartphones. It has already been rolled out for almost all the popular devices. Now, surprisingly, a new 4G enhancement update has been spotted for older devices as well, including the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy A5.
Notably, the latest updates for the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy A5 are getting new updates with the firmware version numbers G930FPHN8EXD1 and A520FPHNGCXD1, respectively. However, the changelog doesn’t include any details about the update; it repeats similar descriptions, like the standard security patch, which says, “Device stability improvements, bug fixes. New and/or improved features. Further performance improvements.”.
As the company may aim to provide a new band support for 4G TDD, the software is coming with a smaller software package of 16.21 MB, but it is still using the December 2020 security patch, which was the last security patch to arrive for the devices.
In addition to the 4G enhancement, the company may implement minor bug fixes to enhance the stability of the devices. We are currently seeing the update in the Netherlands and anticipate its availability in more countries in the coming days.
If you are using the Galaxy S7 or Galaxy A5 in Europe, then you can easily check for the update by going to the software update menu via system settings. If the update has not arrived on your device, then wait for some time, as it takes time to reach available units.
Firmware
Galaxy XCover6 and XCover7 Get Boost: Second April 2024 Update Brings LTE TDD Support to Europe
Samsung is consistently rolling out a new update to the Galaxy device, which aims to enhance network connectivity. The new software is coming under the second April 2024 security patch. After introducing the update to the popular devices, it has started rolling out the update to the Galaxy XCover7 and Galaxy XCover6 Pro.
Samsung Galaxy XCover6 and XCover7 get support LTE TDD
Notably, the Galaxy XCover7 and Galaxy XCover6 Pro are getting new updates with the firmware version numbers G556BXXU2AXD6 and G736BXXU5DXD2, respectively. The update is exclusively available in Europe.
With the new update, the company has rolled out a new band as LTE TDD; however, the company hasn’t provided any details about the changes, but it is expected that the company will improve the overall speeds or provide stable connections to the 4G-enabled devices.
According to the changelog, models purchased in Germany cannot receive signals in LTE TDD bands in the following countries: Belgium, Denmark, Germany, France, Luxemburg, Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Switzerland, Czech Republic.
If you are using the Galaxy XCover 7 or Galaxy XCover 6 Pro in any European country, then you can now update these devices by simply going to the software update menu in the system settings. If the update has not arrived on your device yet, then you have to wait for some time, as it takes time to reach every unit of the devices.