Verizon began updating the Galaxy S III back towards the end of last month and almost immediately after we began hearing about issues dealing with the update. Most of the issues seem to have been on the topic of connectivity, specifically with 4G LTE however things were just not right for those who had updated. Verizon has yet to say what they may do to make things better for those who updated and are experiencing issues, but it looks like they have since pulled the update.
With that in mind, the folks at Droid-Life have recently posted a statement coming by way of a leaked screencapture. The statement is basically an acknowledgement about how the update is causing problems and that it was pulled. Perhaps most important here, it also mentions working with Samsung to find a solution.
“Latest Samsung i535 Galaxy S III device software update was pushed to devices between 5/24 – 6/6 has been rescinded due to problems which cause poor to no signal. The software update which caused problems is baseband version i535VRBLMD3 & build number JZO54K.I535VRBMD3. Marketing is aware of the issues & has been working with Samsung on a solution.”
This is nice in at least other Galaxy S III users will not have to deal with these issues. The unfortunate part is that we have yet to see a firm timeline as to when a fix may be rolled out. In the meantime, those having issues may want to contact Verizon and see if there is anything that can be done — after all, there is not a simple method of rolling back the update on your own.
Bottom line here, what should have been a solid update with new features to include Multi-Screen, Multi-Window, Best Shot and more turned into an update that is limiting the use of your handset. Some users dealing with LTE connectivity have found a fix with a simple change in settings. You can head to Settings -> More Networks -> Mobile Networks and change the preferred network mode from Global to LTE/CDMA.
Aside from the LTE issue, this update also caused problems with the Talkback app. This doesn’t seem to be as widespread however we have seen some complaints. Not to mention, this is one that caused an issue with our Galaxy S III. The Talkback app was turning itself on after every restart/reboot, however it was able to be disabled. The one catch, that hand icon appears stuck in the notification shade. With that, here is hoping Verizon has a relatively quick fix in the works.
I had problems with the update and went to a Verizon store. They replaced the SIM card, which helped, but didn’t completely fix the problem. I went back and they gave me a new phone.
SIM might show minimal improvements but this needs to be fixed by a software update. Actually.
I also went to the store and got a new SIM. That is really going to fix a baseband problem right?? I eventually got them to replace my S3 (even with it being “out of warranty”). Thankfully I was fortunate enough to get a replacement device that had the old firmware. I suspect I would be having the same issues if the replacement device would have been upgraded before shipment.
My phone got the update on 6/3/13, and I’ve had poor battery performance (probably due to the phone constantly looking for signal), and basically no 4G at all. I called them and they offered to send me a CPO phone, but I just bought this one brand new (and the last time they sent me CPO it had a huge scratch on the screen. Not impressed, not taking the chance.) I asked if I could somehow get a credit toward my bill as I paid for data plan that I can’t used. They said they could talk to me about this once they get an update out that fixes this but right now they could do nothing.
My wife and I both have the S3 and updated them and have had no problems.