Samsung Galaxy S3 4.3 update issues and more
maliciousbuthot
Enthusiast - Level 2

Ok here goes.

I started with the HTC Droid Incredible after a year it started acting up freezing, shutting down on it's own etc etc. I then upgraded and brought the Droid Incredible 2 renewed my contract ( 2 more years ) and still paid $200 with a mail it rebate ( which got declined because I brought the phone and had one day to mail it to them even with the sales manager's note on the paperwork I sent in ) so after 7 months the phone I did the software update- the phone started dropping called, wouldn't let me connect to the internet, died randomly even with a new battery and would get over 101 degrees ( which tech support saw because they used remote log in to mess with the phone ).

I went back to the store they wouldn't do any but upgrade my phone again BUT this time they used the free upgrade that was on my son's phone  ( I have 3 phones on my account and that was the only one with a free upgrade ) I once again had to buy a new phone this time it was the Samsung Galaxy S3 and once again I had to pay $200 and got a $50 mail in rebate. So, Now 8 months later - today exactly- my galaxy down loaded this new update and the battery drains ridiculously example - I turned the phone on it was at 87% I swiped to unlock it and the battery drained to 57%.......... I text a friend and again the battery drained but this time down to 23%. I put the phone back on charger at 23% leave it alone for 47 mins and checked on it to see the battery actually drained down to 18% while CHARGING!!!!!  so forced stopped a lot of useless crap and turned off even more useless crap didn't help. I did a factory (HARD)  reset, hoping it would go back to the off version or at least see if it was apps draining my battery.

I will be taking the phone to the Verizon store in the morning, I will not be doing yet another upgrade to re new my contract, I do have insurance on the phone however, I am not going to paid the $100 brand new phone when the past two times I've done this I have gotten screwed over. I have been a loyal customer for over 8 years now my bill every month isn't cheap roughly $200 a month for 3 phones. ( I know I can do WAY better with a different company ) It seems to me that Verizon makes a LOT of money on this people this happens to.  I think Verizon selling phones that seem to have update issues is very bad for their business.  This problem needs to be resolved.

In their statement posted on the Verizon site -  According to the statement dated 18 November 2013 at 15:37

the link- http://www.sammobile.com/2013/11/18/samsung-delivers-official-statement-regarding-galaxy-s3s-android...

Samsung has temporarily suspended the upgrade service and the Android 4.3 update (I9300XXUGMG9) has been pulled from FOTA and Samsung KIES. So you wonโ€™t be able to update your Galaxy S3 to Android 4.3 at the moment.

----

IF this was actually pulled from the FOTA how was my phone able to download it today Jan 13, 2014 and how did it install? Where is Verizon in this mess? Since Samsung's statement why hasn't Verizon made sure this wasn't pushed to their loyal customers? Why is Verizon pushing Faulty updates?

If you can answer this questions that would be fantastic. I am loading this messing along with videos of my issues  to my blog and facebook page ( in case someone on this site removes this or ignores my questions  ๐Ÿ˜‰  ) so that these issues and the questions I have asked do not get brushed to the side. I am also added a video displaying all of these issues.

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111 Replies
MetDetDJ
Enthusiast - Level 3

I'm having the same issues you are having on my S3.  I was on the phone with tech support (Verizon) last Friday for about an hour.  I had to get a bit nasty with the tech when he attempted to blame Samsung for this (Samsung didn't release that update without Verizon's OK- and have you noticed Verizon has added their logo to the startup now?).

My data usage has gone up, battery draining much faster (and I have an extended battery!) and I had to re-load some of my widgets on the phone (including the My Verizon widget).  The tech had me start the phone in Safe Mode (holding down the power, volume rocker and Home button at the same time until the Samsung logon screen shows then let go of the power button while continuing to hold the other two buttons until the phone logs on completely).

Whatever he did remotely seemed to make the phone act better yet he decided I need the update 'reflashed' to the phone.  First he credited my account $30 to take care of any possible data overages.  He then contacted my local Best Buy store to see if they could 'reflash' (upload the update again) the phone. 

I went to Best Buy and had it done the next day.  I think the phone was better before the 'reflash'!  The tech gave me his personal Verizon cell number so I will be calling him back today.

An update for the update is coming yet the release date hasn't been confirmed.  The tech said my account will be monitored for any overages in which I will received credits to cover it.

Good luck, Ginger- and I agree with you: if this doesn't get fixed I will move my business to T-Mobile!

Richj
Enthusiast - Level 2

I'm with you, my phone was working fine on 4.1...     since it updated 2 days ago it has been freezing, battery draining, flashing when a call comes in.. It really is worthless now. For what Verizon charges I expect better than this.

MetDetDJ
Enthusiast - Level 3

Make sure to contact Verizon... At the very least you will get a customer

satisfaction $30 credit...

maliciousbuthot
Enthusiast - Level 2

the credit would be nice but if you agree to a credit you

legally you could be agreeing to the software issues they have cause from the update

buyer beware

HellMate
Enthusiast - Level 1

Since I updated my gs3 to jb 4.3, few hours after the update, battery drain was extremely high and having unstable wifi connection,the phone was not been  used and I could see it loosing charge,on jb 4.1.2 the battery would last almost 2 full days, now I cant even get get half day without having to recharge, and boy is is slow...and to make matters worst, the phone turned off one day and no way in heaven it would turn back on, I called Verizon and after few minutes talking to the rep, they put me in direct contact with Samsung....The outcome of the ordeal was...after the update to jb 4.3, IT KILLED the motherboard on the phone, I sent the phone back to them to get it repaired, was without the phone for 1 week, got the phone back, but the battery drain problems and unstable wifi connection remain....Verizon say that they do EXTENSIVE TEST BEFORE THEY ROLL OUT THE UPDATE....REALLY??

Well....how come I`m having these issues after the update, didn't have it before....and I CANT go back to 4.1.2 because of the knox crap that came in with the update.Well Verizon...what are you guys doing to have these problems fixed, this is NOT a isolated case...if you value your costumers MAKE them happy, give quality product that WORK, if you guys don't get the payment ON TIME you charge late fee, should DEDUCT a portion of the payment for the SERVICE that most of us are NOT getting......I`m looking forward for a very good explanation for that.

sher_g
Enthusiast - Level 1

Having the same problem of battery drain after being told to upgrade to 4.3.  I leave it plugged in until I am just leaving the house and then around 3 when the kids and sitter might have to contact me it is drained.  The battery used to last 1.5 days.  Verizon tech had nothing helpful to offer but said Samsung is "working" on another update and passed me over to Samsung support.  The support person at Samsung said there is no information about such a problem!  When I said it was all over the internet she said she didn't read the internet, she instead looked at the notes Samsung has for the various phones/systems.  As others have stated, this makes the phone basically pointless and it is costing a ton.

MetDetDJ
Enthusiast - Level 3

Try this: completely power the phone off after it has recharged and unplug

it. Then start the phone in Safe Mode (hold the power, Home and volume

rocker at the same time until the Samsung splash screen comes on then ONLY

release the power button. You will see the 'Safe Mode' box in the lower

left corner after the phone completely powers up.

Then power the phone down again.

Remove the back cover of the phone. Remove the battery and then the Verizon

SIM card. Wait about one minute then put the SIM card and battery back in.

Power up the phone normally.

I'm suggesting this because this is what the Verizon tech had me do and it

appears my phone is acting close to normal now.

Newsman2010
Enthusiast - Level 2

This fixed my WiFi issue, but the battery drain is still pretty bad. Smiley Sad

Richj
Enthusiast - Level 2

What fixed your WIFI ?

Re: Samsung Galaxy S3 4.3 update issues and more

created by Newsman2010 in Samsung Galaxy S III and Samsung Galaxy S III Mini - View the full discussion

Newsman2010
Enthusiast - Level 2

I *thought* the hard reset fixed it (power down, reboot in safe mode, power down, pull battery & sim, wait 5 minutes, put it back together and start up.) Now I'm getting the "your network is unstable" again. Smiley Sad

Not applicable

Odd.  My update went through a few days ago.  I wasn't happy because I often turn off Mobile data while i'm out just to save data, money and my battery.  Well they took away the feature to turn off mobile data.

I am not complaining because my battery life is better than it was and I already had my settings set so I don't get any notices unless I want them.

No freezing or crashing and I'm past mid-day on day 2 with 79% battery still left.

tikibar1
Community Leader
Community Leader

lizdance40 wrote:

Odd.  My update went through a few days ago.  I wasn't happy because I often turn off Mobile data while i'm out just to save data, money and my battery.  Well they took away the feature to turn off mobile data.

The ability to turn off mobile data wasn't removed, it just may be that you aren't seeing the toggle.  See if this helps:

Dajjmq
Enthusiast - Level 2

the ability to turn your mobile data off an on did not go away..it is just hidden from the Navigation main page.  To reveal it, you just have to select the icon on the upper right hand corner of the screen (after you have revealed the navigation screen by swiping from the top of the screen)

HotBacon
Enthusiast - Level 2

I'm in the same boat.  The download was pushed to my phone and my wife's phone on 14Jan14.  I noticed nothing major yesterday (15Jan14), aside from a few swipes that didn't seem to be acknowledged.  This morning (16Jan14), about 2 hours after unplugging it from the charger, I noticed my phone was blazing hot so I rebooted it. When it came back up, the battery was down to 23% (from 100%) and I had not even used the phone yet (calls or texts).  I emailed my wife to let her know and she said her phone was almost dead as well.

vzw_customer_support
Customer Service Rep

HotBacon,

I understand your concern, I would be worried as well if the phone was hot to touch; rest assured we're here to help and do everything we can to help your phone get back to the best shape. Please make sure your settings are correct, according to these steps http://vz.to/1j1jgs5 . Then, proceed to make sure it's charging correctly http://vz.to/1eV8Ftz . If you continue to have problems please ensure your data is backed up and Auto restore is off http://vz.to/1asfov3 ; perform a factory reset and use the phones as new to test.

AdaS_VZW
Follow us on Twitter at @VZWSupport

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mattyshore
Contributor - Level 1

Since Verizon was fully aware of the bugs and issues with the update for well over three months, and then still then pushed the update through in January and I still have problems that have been mentioned to be fixed or resolved. Clearly from the amount of negative posts you people at Verizon knew about these issues for some time. So why did you allow it to get pushed through? It seems like EVERY SINGLE TIME there is an update, there are known problems and you Verizon people allow it to go through every time. I have been with Verizon since the inception of your wireless division but I am starting to get sick and tired of jumping through hoops just to get an answer. You sold me this phone fully away it came with an outdated sim card. did you people ever mention this? NOPE I had to go down to the Verizon store for a new one. Even the associates at your Dover, DE corporate store were amazed that you sent me a phone with an old sim card. Now I had to buy a new charger since the update wont let my stock Samsung charger work. All together my out of pocket expense was small, but the fact remains I would not have had to buy a new charger had you held off to fix the bugs with the update. I would like to know why, in full detail you refused to correct known issues after they were discovered and allowed the update to go through affecting many, many customers phones? Are you interested in keeping customers happy and satisfied at all or more interested in pushing them away because of examples like this update? I feel you owe me and every other Verizon customer a detailed explanation and apology as that is the decent and moral thing to do if you want to retain current customers.

mattyshore
Contributor - Level 1

Yeah I was wondering the same thing because I got the update the same day as you. I had major battery drain issues, even though they "supposedly" fixed it. I had to buy a new charger because the stock charger plugged into the wall was not able to give the amount of power needed to charge the phone since the up date. I feel Verizon knew fully of these issues and let it get pushed through anyway. I use my phone for business so I can not have the down time and the problems Verizon is causing. Where is the apology from Verizon? They owe us customer at least that much!

abaranov
Enthusiast - Level 1

--replying to OP to create mass in the hopes of Verizon reps heeding the community sentiment.

Verizon,

you need to put pressure on your partners to deliver quality products to your userbase. the latest update was not ready to

be released and the carrier should not have authorized it.

consider this post as another datapoint of poor user experience as result of this update. i am having all the issues discussed in this thread and then some.

the poor quality of the latest update makes my phone irritating to use during normal use and unreliable in emergency situations (imagine having to dial 911 after a car accident your phone reboots itself for no reason!)

because i am a verizon customer and i didnt purchase the phone directly from Samsung, i am blaming the carrier and not the manufacturer. it is the carrier's responsibility to ensure the new update is up to spec. Unless current issues are resolved soon, AND the next update (whenever it may be) is released smoothly, i will be reluctant to recommend verizon services to anyone, and, in fact, may consider switching to a different carrier myself as an act of petty revenge.

Peace

virg1940
Newbie

I'm also having the same issues mentioned here and am completely fed up with you people at Verizon if you are even reading this!  My main issues have to do with WiFi connectivity -- keep getting messages that my internet connection is unstable (even tho it is fine on my computer), keeps scanning for WiFi, says it is waiting for the IP address, but if I look at the WiFi it says signal is strong and there is an IP displayed.  Not having battery issues as some here.  I have been a Verizon customer for over 10 years and started with a Blackberry, switched to Samsung S3 2 years ago and have been happy with it until this release 4.3.  If the bugs are not fixed in a timely manner with a new release I will also not recommend Verizon to friends or family and will probably switch carriers.

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boychik0830
Contributor - Level 1

what is Verizon doing to fix 4.3 problems with the s3 lake battery drain and app crashes NOTHING!!!!!

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