HTC One - GSM or LTE?

HTC One is a new flagship device from HTC for 2013. With no doubts it is a great device with top hardware and innovating software. I will make a review of One soon, so expect a lot of pictures and in-depth comparison of HTC Sense 4+ and brand new HTC Sense 5.

For now some of you might be wondering about possible variants of this device. I made some research and I think I know how would this work. It is not officially confirmed, however I believe it is quite reliable and trustworthy.

Apart of all carriers branded models (also U.S. AT&T, U.S. Verizon and U.S. Sprint), there will be GSM  and GSM + LTE variants available for most countries. Respectively M7_U for GSM and M7_UL for LTE. Now the question is - when new update will come for U, will it come for UL the same day, or maybe week later? I can't answer that, but I hope both variants will be updated at the same time.

First off all, looking at HTC One software, it's easy to spot that both U and UL variants have the same code-name "m7". Model ID (MID) will be probably slightly different. LTE variant has PN0710000, while GSM should have something like PN0711000 or PN0710001. The beginning of the code will be the same for all One variants - PN07.

Now, let's assume we speak about European version (to avoid confusion with different CIDs or MIDs). It is said that Snapdragon 600 (HTC One SoC) has LTE modem already integrated (just like S4 and S4 Pro). So logically, there shouldn't be 2 different variants of S600 (with or without LTE). And so I believe that. This means that GSM variant of HTC One will have LTE modem as well, but most probably it will be disabled. Is it possible to disable LTE modem? Sure. The fact that specific SoC has LTE modem doesn't mean it's activated.

Will it be possible to activate LTE radio in GSM model? I'm not sure yet, but I think it would. How? You'll need S-OFF device, that's obvious. Since both GSM and LTE models will have the same hardware, having S-OFF you should be able to flash M7_UL software (RUU.exe). Of course you'll have to modify your Model ID (MID) in fastboot before (fastboot oem writemid PN0710000). Is there a risk to totally brick your device? Yes! So don't try it before it is confirmed to be working.

To find any official confirmation of my research I visited Qualcomm site and went to the specification page of new Snapdragons 200, 400, 600 and 800 chipsets. Here is the picture of S600 features:

As you can see, LTE modem is indeed integrated, and so will be present in GSM models as well. Here I repeat again - it will be disabled on GSM units and it won't be possible to switch it on/off in settings just like that. Enabling LTE on such units will be either not possible at all, or it will be possible by flashing M7_UL RUU to S-OFF device. Why this does not apply to HTC One X and its LTE brother, HTC One XL? Because One X is based on quad-core nVidia Tegra 3, while One XL is powered by dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4. Yes, both are running different SoCs, because Tegra 3 doesn't have LTE modem integrated.

How to recognize if HTC One is GSM or LTE version? Looking back at some HTC devices like HTC One SV (C525u) you could noticed "4G LTE" text on the back cover. I wouldn't expect similar text this time, because the back case is not removable.

Do you already own LTE version of HTC One? Consider flashing my custom ROM from this site.

Have any questions or comments? Feel free to share! Also, if you like this article, please use media sharing buttons (Twitter, G+, Facebook) down this post!

Negative effects of unlocked bootloader

Those who are expecting a little bit more from their HTC devices are familiar with HTC online tool to unlock the bootloader - htcdev.com. Once generated and flashed token via fastboot gives you possibility to change some of the partitions on HTC device. It sounds great, but there are some serious disadvantages of it. Some people may say this will result in limited warranty, which it is not true, and I explained that issue here. So, what else to expect with unlocked bootloader?

First of all, not all the partitions will be unlocked. Forget about flashing hboot.img, rcdata.img or tp.img. Permission to fastboot flash will be denied. The only method to flash those images is to reboot device in RUU mode (fastboot oem rebootRUU) and flash originally signed firmware.zip (from OTA update) using fastboot flash zip firmware.zip command.

So what can be flashed in fastboot mode? Basically just 3 images - boot.img, recovery.img and system.img. Is it enough to flash custom ROM? Yes. With custom recovery you can flash zips or make nandroid backup. Is it enough to be happy? No. The problematic part is flashing boot.img in custom recovery. It's not possible on S-ON devices, unless your device is supported by 4EXT Recovery with SmartFlash feature. So the only method to have complete custom ROM working, is to flash ROM in recovery and then reboot the device, enter fastboot mode and flash boot.img using fastboot flash boot boot.img command.

The second problem of unlocked bootlader is even more serious, but so far it affects only 2 devices: HTC One X+ and HTC One. Those who used htcdev.com before probably noticed, that unlocking bootloader wipes user data, including content of virtual SD card (because virtual SD card = /data/media).

This is no surprise, because every user is warned about it and have a chance to step back. As long as all applications coming with stock ROM are stored on /system partition, there are no side effects. But for some very strange reason in HTC One X+ and HTC One, some of the stock applications like Flashlight, Calculator, Ringtone-trimmer, PDF Viewer, Teeter, Sound Recorder and more, are stored on /data partition instead. Result? After unlocking bootloader with official HTC tool you end up without having some of the basic HTC applications like Calculator or Flashlight, because /data partition (as mentioned above) has been wiped. System partition on HTC One is almost 2 GB big. Not enough to include few more .apk files?

What is more, missing stock applications on /data partition makes your device not capable to receive any OTA updates from HTC. Why? Because every OTA update checks MD5 checksum of every file that originally came with your device. So even if you didn't flash any custom ROM and your /system partition is unmodified, you won't be able to install OTA update.


This is an example of updater-script part from OTA:

assert(apply_patch_check("/data/preload/Calculator.apk","85aa7b00ec97ffe7179739c8815bf102c4f8666e","7055f0376e6b56be6414fdf8495b82db7fd38564")||apply_patch_check("/data/preload/Calculator.apk.uninstall","85aa7b00ec97ffe7179739c8815bf102c4f8666e","7055f0376e6b56be6414fdf8495b82db7fd38564"));

Once assert will fail, OTA update will cancel the installation process. I think every user should be warned, that unlocking bootloader results in no longer OTA updates support.

To summarize:

1. Unlocked HTC devices via htcdev.com can't have boot.img flashed via custom recovery.
2. Unlocked HTC One X+ and HTC One via htcdev.com will loose some basic HTC applications like Flashlight or Calculator.
3. Unlocked HTC One X+ and HTC One via htcdev.com will loose possibility to receive OTA updates unless user will flash original RUU.exe, which are not officially available for customers.

Conclusion: Is it worth to buy HTC One? Yes! It is currently the best device on the market. If you are not planning to flash any custom ROM - don't unlock your bootloader. And if you want to flash custom ROM, it will probably contain missing applications anyway. This is far too great device and I believe HTCdev team will sort out above issues soon!

Got some questions or comments? Please feel free to leave them above! Also, if you like this article, please use media sharing buttons (Twitter, G+, Facebook) down this post!

HTC One X+ give-away winner is...

I'm happy to announce, that the winner of HTC One X+ give-away contest is...

The winner should send me a private message via Twitter within 7 days with his e-mail address. After 7 days of no contact from the winner, I'll randomly pick another winner.

Congratulations Barry!

This was the first, but not the last contest. Next time you'll probably have a chance to win brand new HTC flagship device - One. Good luck!

PS. Since some users have issues with their tweeter accounts, next give-away will be based on different rules to encourage even more people!

Unlocking bootloader or flashing custom ROM doesn't void your warranty!

Since HTC started htcdev.com with the possibility to unlock bootloader on HTC devices, I noticed that false information and beliefs are spreading around the world and more and more people think (and tell!) other users, that their warranty will be voided after unlocking particular device. This is not true!

In the past I wrote a short article on xda-developers about warranties and why, against common believes, flashing custom ROMs does not void your warranty. You can find this thread here.

Here's some information worth pointing out:

1. Warranty is a contract. In every country there are laws and regulations about warranties, however these vary from place to place and may be slightly different in your country, keep that in mind.
2. If it's a contract, then both sides have some obligations and rights. Both - rights and obligations - needs to be written in the warranty, otherwise they doesn't exist. Warranty statements must be consistent with generally applicable law.
3. As a contract, warranty can be created as the parties want, as long as it's consistent with generally applicable law.
4. To know exactly what's written in your warranty don't try to Google it - take it out of the box and READ IT. Don't trust what others say - their warranty might be different to your own.

Now, the question is - why unlocking the bootloader doesn't void the warranty? The answer is very simple. Because HTC's warranty contract doesn't state it. The only information about warranty on htcdev.com you can find is this:

So, once again:

"It is our responsibility to caution you that not all claims resulting or caused by or from the unlocking of the bootloader may be covered under warranty."

Is there any information, that unlocking bootloader voids warranty? Nope. So basically, what does it mean? Only this - if you brick your device as a result of e.g. flashing custom ROM (unlocked bootloader allows you doing that), you may have no warranty claim for that particular incident.

Two more important things to conclude:

1. If "not all claims may be covered under warranty", then (logic conversion) some claims may still be covered under warranty.
2. Even if you can't claim something under warranty because it was caused by or from the unlocking of the bootloader, that doesn't mean you have lost your warranty. You still have your warranty and you still can claim under warranty, but this warranty won't cover those particular claims caused by or from the unlocking of the bootloader.

So basically, HTC warns you, that some of the actions you might take after unlocking the bootloader may lead to a situation, when particular issue can't be covered under warranty.

Also, this information on htcdev.com doesn't expand or restrict your warranty terms. It doesn't change it at all. If warranty is given in the paper form, then as a contract the only way to change it, is a paper form too (if not stated otherwise in the warranty itself). HTC just kindly reminds you some sort of information you can conclude from the warranty itself.

Once again, if you are interested why flashing custom ROMs doesn't void warranty as well, please read this thread.

PS. I'm also wondering why Samsung users are so crazy about so called flash counter and "Triangle Away" application. They don't need it to have a valid warranty, even with a yellow triangle.

Disclaimer:

This text is just for education purpose. It's not a law itself so you can't base your claims versus a company on this. I may be wrong in many parts - feel free to write a comment under this post and I will make any necessary corrections. I don't know the laws in every country so there may be some slight differences.

Have any questions or comments? Feel free to share! Also, if you like this article, please use media sharing buttons (Twitter, G+, Facebook) below this post!

[Give Away] HTC One X+

Here is something awesome for Android Revolution HD users. I will give away one, brand new HTC One X+ (GSM only) in color of your choice - black or white, to one winner of this little competition. There is no country limit - it's a worldwide party!

The competition starts at 12:00 PM (GMT + 1) on Monday 4th, March 2013 and will continue until 12:00 PM (GMT + 1) on Sunday 10th, March 2013. Winner will be announced on Monday 11th, March 2013.

What you need to do:

1) "Like" HTC (facebook.com/htc) and Android Revolution HD (facebook.com/AndroidRevolutionHD) on Facebook

2) "Follow" HTC (@HTC) and Android Revolution HD (@mike1986_) on Twitter

3) Tweet about this contest with link to this page using hash-tag "androidrevolutionhd" (#androidrevolutionhd)
Example tweet: Win HTC One X+ at http://android-revolution-hd.blogspot.com/2013/02/give-away-htc-one-x.html #androidrevolutionhd

Note: If you already meet the requirements from points 1 and 2, now all you need to do is tweet! No need to re-follow or re-like accounts mentioned above. Re-tweets doesn't count. This must be your own tweet. Remember to include link to this contest and hash-tag #androidrevolutionhd.

How will I select the winner? I will randomly choose one person from the list of my Twitter followers who tweeted about this give away using #androidrevolutionhd hash-tag. Is that all? Yes! Easy as that! Just 2 clicks and 1 tweet to win amazing, high-end HTC One X+ - Engadget's Smartphone of the Year! 

Good luck!

Want to learn more about HTC One X+?
Visit this site - HTC One X+ overview

The only One

Some high quality pictures of new HTC flagship device - the One.

Many people already asked me about the colors of HTC One and which one is better. I was holding both versions side to side and in reality silver one looks better in my opinion. On the pictures, the black one looks very good too, but when holding a silver HTC One you can see how the aluminium zero-gaps body is shining and it looks really gorgeous. Black version doesn't reflect light that much but some potential scratches might be less visible there, which is an advantage. So, which color will you pick? :)

Android Revolution HD on HTC London Event

On Tuesday, February 19th, 2013 in London there is something big going to happen. We've all heard some rumors and seen leaked pictures, but there is nothing officially confirmed just yet. Our biggest expectation is to see new high-end HTC device called HTC One (HTC M7) running new user interface - HTC Sense 5.0. Maybe there is something more...

Why am I writing all this? Because I will be there, relating on live this great event. From Feb. 18th I'll be in London with HTC, counting down the last minutes to the show beginning. Follow me on Twitter (@mike1986_), watch my Facebook site (http://www.facebook.com/AndroidRevolutionHD) and check out this blog regularly for hot & fresh news, photos and details about upcoming HTC top products!

You can see my photos from that great journey here - http://android-revolution-hd.blogspot.com/p/trip-to-london-for-htc-event-2013.html