Android and Me » sprint hero

Sprint Hero and Moment users left behind on Android 2.1

Taylor Wimberly — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 02:02:28 +0000

Sprint customers who recently purchased the HTC EVO 4G can expect an update to Android 2.2 in the “near future“, but older Sprint phones will not be as lucky. A recent announcement from Sprint confirmed that the HTC Hero and Samsung Moment will forever be stuck with Android 2.1.

The notice is unfortunate, but at least Sprint has the balls to drop the bad news early instead of leaving their customers endlessly waiting (**cough T-Mobile**).

Google just released the source code for Android 2.2 and revealed it would build for the HTC Dream and Magic, so we believe that all first-generation Android phones should be technically able to run the latest firmware. However, each software update that is rolled out by a carrier can cost quite a bit and Sprint might be looking for an opportunity to cut cost.

Once again, this raises a very interesting question for carriers that sell Android phones. How long should a carrier support an Android device with firmware updates after it has been released?

Sprint thanks you for your purchase.

Sprint Hero gets Android 2.1 uniting Sprint devices under Eclair

Sean Riley — Wed, 19 May 2010 17:52:43 +0000

Hero owners I know you have waited long enough so you can feel free to skip down to the full upgrade instructions from Sprint at the bottom of the post. For the rest of us lets take a moment to celebrate the end of OS fragmentation for this CDMA segment of the Android world.

Well not the end, but a brief cessation of hostilities. It may have taken a little over 4 months to do it, but right now all Android owners on Sprint can be running Android 2.1 if they so choose. It may actually remain the lone version of Android on Sprint for the immediate future as they are only scheduled to release new devices with 2.1 as opposed to some on the GSM side that are still serving up Android 1.5 and 1.6 devices.

Verizon can nearly claim this same feat, but as Jay pointed out below the Motorola Devour is still holding them back.

Now you will probably be quick to point out that the next 24 hours will likely end Eclair’s reign as the most advanced Android OS version available, but to that I say shut up and let me enjoy this.

Alright the moment is over; who thinks they are getting Froyo and when?

Upgrade Instructions:

Before you start the download, make sure:

You back up your data
- To save important text messages, forward them to an email address:
  - Tap the Applications tab and then tap Messaging
  - Select the text message you want to save and hard press it; you will see a menu to Forward the message
- Any installed applications downloaded from the Android market must be re-installed. To re-download applications:
  - Tap the Applications tab and then tap Market
  - If prompted, sign in with your Google account credentials
  - Tap My Downloads
  - You will see paid applications in the list shown
  - Take note of the free applications on your phone, as they will have to be searched for again and downloaded manually after the update
Your Hero has a fully-charged battery
You have the USB data cable that came with your Hero
You have closed all running applications on your computer and disabled standby and hibernation modes
You have installed HTC Sync on your computer
- Go to HTC’s support site
- Click on the Download link for HTC Sync
- Select Run in the dialog box and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation

To download the update software, go to our HTC Hero download site
Download the RUU ROM Update Utility and save it to your computer desktop
Double click the .exe file and click Run in Windows XP or Yes in Windows 7
On the Welcome Screen, be sure to read the caution message and Read Me file; check the box next to I understand and click Next
On the next screen, follow the steps listed and click Next
You will see the message Verifying information on your Android phone. Please wait…
Once the verification is finished, you will see current information about your Hero such as model ID, image version and language; click Updateto proceed
The screen will show information about the update; to continue, click Next
You will receive a confirmation message that you are ready to update your Hero and the approximate time it will take; click Next to begin the update installation. Note: It is very important that you do not remove the USB cable or launch any programs during the update installation.
The update is complete when you see the message Congratulations! Your ROM update has been completed. Your Android phone is now ready for use.; click Finish to exit
Your Hero will reboot and be ready for set up

Best Buy pegs May 21st for Sprint Hero 2.1 upgrade

Taylor Wimberly — Wed, 12 May 2010 05:23:50 +0000

Ok so most the time these Android 2.1 upgrade dates are worthless, but sometimes they actually turn out to be true. Our friends from Android Central have posted an internal Best Buy document which states the Sprint Hero Android 2.1 upgrade has been delayed again until May 21st. Sprint had hoped to have their Android 2.1 upgrades completed by now, but they are still in testing.

Best Buy employees seem skeptical of the news because they voted down the article 53 times in their employee news system.

A leaked Android 2.1 ROM has been available on XDA for awhile, so it appears the main issue could be distribution right now. All signs point to an over the wire upgrade instead of the over the air (OTA) updates we see on other carriers. This could be a problem for Sprint since the majority of customers are not likely to perform a PC-based upgrade. The Samsung Moment recently received a wired update (which enabled OTA updates) and 90% of users have yet to install it.

Sprint wanted to release the upgrade over the air, but the file size is too large for their internal servers. There is the option to allow Google to host the upgrade files, but Sprint has not fully tested that system in order to meet their “required launch timeframe”.

If there is a required timeframe for launch, we are not sure if that was imposed by Google or Sprint. May 21st is the day after Google I/O so maybe Google will announce something related to the fragmentation of their Android platform versions. It is not unbelievable that we could see several handsets upgraded to Android 2.1 by the end of next week.

The Sprint Hero could see Android 2.1 on May 21st.

Sprint still testing Android 2.1 upgrades

Taylor Wimberly — Fri, 07 May 2010 23:55:25 +0000

Sprint had hoped their Android customers would be upgraded to Android 2.1 by now, but they are still working with HTC and Samsung to deliver you a “positive experience”. We reported Sprint was internally testing their Android 2.1 upgrades last month and hoped to have them ready by early Q2, but it appears they have run into problems.

The two main issues could be Sprint’s inability to deliver over the air updates and the fact that Android 2.1 upgrades require a wipe. Customers will be able to download the updates from their PC, but there is a concern many will not. We recently learned that 90% of Samsung Moments were running a non-current software version (because the last update was also PC-based).

Rolling out a massive upgrade to all your customers is a huge challenge (just ask Verizon). No other United States carrier has released Android 2.1 for a first-gen phone, so it appears everyone is experiencing the same Android-growing-pains together. Either that or Google is secretly conspiring with the carriers on a simultaneous release (I doubt it).

It sounds like Sprint customers have a few more weeks of waiting at least. Sprint only uses “Q2″ when referring to the release schedule, so it could happen at the end of June for all we know.

The following is a quick update that was posted on the official Sprint forums.

We wanted to let you know that Sprint continues to work closely with Samsung and HTC to deliver the highly anticipated Android 2.1 upgrade for Samsung Moment and HTC Hero. We are on track for the upgrade to be available in Q2. Sprint had hoped to have this resolved by now – we thank our customers for their patience as we work to bring them a positive experience with this upgrade.Official Sprint StatementRe: Android 2.1

Android 2.1 upgrades for Sprint coming over the wire

Taylor Wimberly — Sat, 01 May 2010 02:28:32 +0000

A new leaked document from Sprint confirms the pending release of Android 2.1 for the HTC Hero and Samsung Moment. As we reported earlier this year, both upgrades will be PC-based (vs over the air) and will likely require a wipe.

Sprint will not initially offer over the air upgrades because the Android 2.1 packages are too large (80 MB for Moment, 117 MB for Hero) for their OTA servers. We pointed this out last year and it looks like Sprint was unable to come up with a working solution on time. Sprint has the option to use Google’s servers to roll out their upgrades, but they have not fully tested it and would be unable to meet the “required launch timeframe”.

The document claims the Moment will receive Android 2.1 on April 30 (today) and the Hero will follow in the first week of May. We know these dates change a lot, but both upgrades have been tested internally and should be ready to go.

Keep an eye on the Samsung Moment and HTC Hero support pages for updates. The files and instructions to perform a manual update will be posted on Sprint’s site when they are available.

It is also interesting to note that Sprint claims 90% of their Samsung Moment customers have a phone with a non-current software version. This could be because previous updates required the user to take their phone to a Sprint repair center or manually download the file. If the Hero and Moment follow a similar upgrade path, then we can assume a large portion of users will not update their phone without some extra help from Sprint.

The wait is almost over.

Sprint to Employees: No 2.1 in March, more details in April

Ian Wheat — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 17:39:02 +0000

Can you hear the groans from Sprint customers? According to a Sprint employee at XDA-Developers CDMA Hero forum, Sprint has sent employees a memo outlining how to keep customers’ spirits up regarding the new update. This information has been taken as a refutation of recent rumors that the Hero and Moment would be updated on March 26th. Some key quotes can be found here:

Let your customers know we are actively working on having the Android 2.1 platform available to our Hero and Moment customers over the coming weeks. Look for more information coming in April about Android 2.1 platform for Hero and Moment.Internal Sprint Memo

The memo concludes by reminding Sprint employees that their customers use superior Android handsets and that About.com readers nominated the HTC Hero as their favorite smartphone in their 2010 Reader Choice Awards.

So, “over the coming weeks” and “information coming in April” aren’t exactly the words that Sprint customers want to hear, but some information is better than none, right? Granted, this is just a rumor from a Sprint employee, so take it with a grain of salt, a shaker, or none.

Sprint rolls out flawed Android strategy at developer conference

Taylor Wimberly — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:56:04 +0000

I’m not the only one who is worried about the Sprint OTA problem. Check out this blog post from developer Rick Scherle who attended the Sprint developers conference.

Unfortunately, the phones are running Android version 1.5 while the rest of the world is on 1.6. This means that a lot of newer applications (including the new version of the Android Market) won’t run. With everyone else talking about releasing 2.0 next month, Sprint is saying “2010″ for version 1.6. That’s bad.

Worse is the fact that Sprint’s network doesn’t support OTA (over the air) upgrades for the Android. This means that, while other carrier’s customers get their phones upgraded automatically, Sprint users will have to visit the Sprint store or go through some complicated software installation procedure using their PC and a USB cable, a gymnastics exercise which is beyond most users.

So, bottom line, is it time to move back to Sprint? They have snappy data speeds and really broad coverage in most of the country, plus a lot fewer dropped calls than T-Mobile, and I’ve been really happy with their customer support. A lot of people should be really happy with Sprint’s new Android offerings.

But I can’t do business with them if they don’t have the products I want, and what I want is the current version of the Android operating system and all the latest software. After all, what would my friends say?

A tipster from our last post suggested that Sprint might skip Android 1.6 and jump right into Android 2.0. However, that might not occur till 2010.

According to a report from AndroidGuys, HTC will indeed be skipping Android 1.6 for the European Hero. If HTC skips Android 1.6 for their phones with Sense UI, then I guess it makes sense the the Sprint Hero could also skip this update.

When I was at CTIA, a representative from Samsung said their Moment phone might not receive Android 2.0 till Q2 2010.

Am I making too big a deal about this? The hardcore user could probably care less about OTA updates, but we only make up about 5-10% of Android phones sold. Do you really think your little sister or Mom is going to hook their phone up to a PC and perform these updates as they are released?

Some might argue that the average Android user can do without updates, but that is naive. Since Android is built off a Linux kernel, it is vulnerable to the same security exploits and it is important to receive regular updates and patches.

If you own a Sprint Android phone, please sound off.

Sprint giving away 500 Heros to developers

Taylor Wimberly — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 19:21:56 +0000

Sprint is gearing up for their 9th annual developers conference and this year Android is the focus. Google engineers will be on hand to discuss Android development and Sprint will be giving away 500 free Hero phones to developers (free phones are awesome). The registration fee is $350 and I would suggest signing up soon before the event fills up.

Attendees will learn how to leverage the full suite of open development capabilities available from Sprint for:

Mobile Devices (Android, Mobile Java, Palm Mojo, RIM Blackberry, Web Development, Windows Mobile, etc.)
Network/Product Capabilities (LBS, Messaging, M2M, 4G, etc.)

WHEN:	October 26-28, 2009
WHERE:	Santa Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara, CA
WHO:	All application developers and content providers!
PRICING:	$350. Early bird is over, but there’s still time to get a great price for the conference:
	Buy 3, Get 1 FREE! Send 3 people at $350 and get a 4th conference registration, FREE! Email Chandra.P.Fender@sprint.com with your 3 full-price registrants information and we’ll send you a free conference code for the 4th registration.

Sprint Announces Extensive Android Content at the Sprint Developer Conference

HTC and Sprint will be giving away 500 handsets at the HTC Android hands on coding lab, Oct 26
Google will be present on the Android Marketplace and Android development best practices Oct 28

Sprint Hero review roundup

Taylor Wimberly — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 04:47:14 +0000

Sprint Hero review units began shipping out this week and reviews started showing up today. The general consensus is that the device is awesome and it will be the best Android phone available for American customers when it launches October 11, 2009.

We should be getting our hands on a review unit soon, so please let us know what questions you have about the phone. I’m really interested to play around with the Sprint specific software like NFL Mobile Live, Nascar Sprint Mobile Cup, Sprint TV, Sprint Navigator, and the visual voicemail app. It should also be fun to see if we can load a custom rom on it.

Reviews have been posted at:

Videos are also up:

Noah from Phonedog has a quick overview of the phone up.

MobileTechReview.com posted a video review of the Hero on YouTube.

And finally, PhoneScoop has also weighed in.

HTC Hero coming to Sprint on October 11

Guest Blogger — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 17:11:24 +0000

If you have been like most Android lovers, scouring the web wondering when that beautiful HTC Hero was going to show up in the US, search no further. This morning Sprint announced in a press release that the HTC Hero will be coming to the Now Network, with pre-orders starting as early as today and the device launching October 11th for $179.00 with a two year contract.

One catch, though… Sprint and HTC have redesigned the device. The unmistakable look and feel to the original Hero will be cast asunder and a new “Sprinted” version will show face. Don’t worry though, everything else looks to be the same: the 3.5mm headphone jack, wifi, bluetooth, 5MP camera and the Sense UI- just no chin or rugged curves. We wonder why Sprint would even call it the Hero with such a completely redesigned look, but who really cares, the US is getting it’s first device with HTC Sense and the Android community is getting a great device to play with.

So what do you think? Would you switch carriers to Sprint for a Hero? Anyone on Sprint already and totally excited about the news? Sound off in the comments below or in the forums.

For more information, check out the Sprint press release.

-Ryan Mills (aka DroidHead)