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[Update] Froyo May Have Been Launched Prematurely

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[Update]: There’s been some clarification on what happened with the file (which is being considered “unofficial” and shouldn’t have even been downloadable in the first place) that was a supposed Android 2.2 update. QuietlyCoding – whose findings you can read here – spoke with Google to determine that even though the update name for Froyo might be the same as what’s been received OTA, it’s still possible that whatever it contained was not intended for installation. If you do decide to flash the file (or stick with the file you’ve already flash), then you do it at your own risk, as usual.

Everyone was excited for the prospect of being able to attempt to apply the Android 2.2 update to their Nexus One over the weekend, but it looks like a gun may have been jumped just a bit too soon. Shortly after the download link for Froyo went live, Google pulled it down without any trace of it ever existing on their servers.

500x_google-tv-froyo-2

Since then, users have uploaded the files to several of their own servers for everyone to download (nothing truly gets deleted from the internet). Some users are having a world of trouble after installing the update, now, and it may be because that version of Froyo is unfinished and was unintended for consumer devices.

The biggest issues appear to be battery life, the lack of certain “advertised” features (although Google did state that not all of the features shown at Google I/O would be enabled in Froyo off the bat), and voice controls not working. Whether or not you are experiencing these issues, it’s apparent that things aren’t as they should be for a lot of people. The fact that Google yanked the download link might not be related to the issues (or may not necessarily mean that it was indeed an unfinished Froyo), but there’s definitely room to check in with them and see what’s going on. We’ll let you know if we’ve heard anything back from them worth communicating.

Quentyn Kennemer
The "Google Phone" sounded too awesome to pass up, so I bought a G1. The rest is history. And yes, I know my name isn't Wilson.

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94 Comments

  1. LMAO!!!!!!!! hilarious

  2. Prematurely? Users may be premature. OTA updates are going OK, AFAIK.

  3. I havent had any problems at all so far

  4. HMMMM , i havent had any issues with mine.. thank you jesus. But when the official OTA is released we will all be able to get it even though we have already applied 2.2, right?

  5. Yeah, for sure. I tried installing the Froyo update on a stock N1, but kept getting Error 7 message.

  6. @Hector I’m referring to the download link that would enable you to install Froyo manually, not the official OTA that Google confirmed they were rolling out.

  7. If you looked into the files of the zip, they are all dated 11-25-2009. Wonder what that means? I was waiting on flashing because I saw this. Did anyone else notice that?

  8. It’s a possible issue. You never know.

  9. I think this is BS. People complain after every single release.

    I’ve been using froyo since day one and have no problems whatsoever.

    It’s just really funny to see when people slap a new name on the old problem. Battery performance was ALWAYS an issue, with or without froyo. Some people ALWAYS had slow Market performance with or without froyo.

    And so on and so forth…

    I think there’s no need to reinforce such bs by posting articles like this ;)

    Peace!

  10. Hence. Google said “the coming weeks” not “the coming days.”
    AFAIK, the main units to get OTA upgrades were the review units…Meaning there is a good chance that the Froyo update is a “review” version meant for tech bloggers.

  11. How embarrassing, they got too excited and prematurely released! Lmao! I’m sorry Jenny.

  12. People jumped the gun and now look what happened. People BELIEVED that consumers were getting Froyo updates. Not true, as far as I’ve seen. I blame Engadget and Gizmodo. Don’t release information about unofficial stuff and then get mad about it. Simple. Google didn’t send an official OTA to the phone therefore, it’s not official. It should have been treated like any other hack.

    “It was only a matter of time. The direct link to download the Android 2.2 “Froyo” update from Google’s servers has been found. According to XDA-Developers, it only works if you have a “non-rooted stock ERE27 system” Nexus One. Meet the requirements? Can’t wait any longer? Download link below.”

  13. pheeeew! I was about to install it on my wife’s Nexus One. I came back here to get the download link and saw this post :).

  14. Ouch.

  15. So people found some random link at Google, assumed that it’s the same as the OTA and now are bitching that this “released” update is borked.

    I suggest waiting for the official release next time.

  16. Most of the people complaining at the ones who can’t flash it, this ROM is intended for T-Mobile US spec devices only. Any attempts to flash onto the AT&T or Vodafone UK branded model will result in errors relating to the signature of the ROM.

  17. From my cold dead hands will you take my froyo back!!

  18. my voice services work fine and my battery is no worse off than before..the only thing that im noticing is that nothing really seems to be any faster

  19. My nexus works fine with froyo. Tmobile

  20. Regarding the comments stating the update was intended for the T-Mobile Nexus One… It’s working great on my AT&T Nexus One. Reverted back to the stock ROM and then applied the update without issue.

  21. Froyo may have been prematurely release? You guys make it sound like Google was providing a general release. Clearly there was no official release notice from Google. Anyone installing this should have treated it like installing a mod.

  22. Worked on my T-Mobile Nexus. Only thing I noticed was my home customizing apps can’t be changed, it appears to be stuck on Panda. I’m fine with that for now. The speed increase is incredible, and it will be cool when the app developers give us updates for moving them to sd cards. It worked for me fine, but I have to agree with Bigmerf, will we still get the update when it is officially released?

  23. I had issues that I posted on another site, but I have done three reboots in a row and found that they are all gone. Why three reboots and battery pulls, well the third times a charm, right! So all is now good. Nexus One T-mobile US.

    Oh and my battery is same as before, and the phone runs cooler as well. If the download that I pulled mine from was a bad link then I’ll just redownload when a good link is found no biggie.

  24. Updated my stock t-mobile nexus one, this past weekend and have had no issues. I am enjoying my 2.2 with all its new features!!!!

  25. Froyo seems to be working fine on my N1. It’s not really a premature launch anyway – it wasn’t launched. Finding a link to it is not the same as google launching it. And people really don’t have a right to bitch about missing “advertised” features when they’ve gone out of their way to install an unofficial early release…

  26. I didn’t rush to download since I wanted others to be the public-beta testers. Actually, I don’t believe the story since it says the site was taken down without a trace. What G has done in the past has posted a notice, not take it down
    .

  27. Seems to be working fine on my N1… No battery issue, no crashing. Seems very fast. On the first day the XiiLive (shoutcast streaming) app wouldn’t work but they’ve already updated it and it’s fine now. Flash works, sound works, trackball lights up… If it’s not the final release it sure seems pretty good to me. I wonder though – for those of us who jumped the gun – how easy will it be for us to get the real Froyo?

  28. Working OK here – battery life after stats reset seem to be about on par with pershoot’s UVed/OCed 33.4/34 kernel, which is fairly blummin’ good!

    @fiveizzo – absolutely.

  29. I would like to know as well if it will be possible for us to get the “real” froyo when it comes out

  30. @Chris … the link came from a phone that received the update OTA … in case you are wondering OTA means over the air …

  31. If “may have” wasn’t in the title, then this article would’ve been misleading. Google released the beta version of Froyo to review units of the Nexus One to test the waters. It is tempting to take what you want if you can so I cant blame Nexus One owners for manually downloading especially since Froyo is the biggest update so far. I just hope the 1s that have a buggy phone now just does a hard reset and hope for the best.

  32. I am very satisfied Moto Droid user. I have waited patiently for each new system release. Every OTA update has installed and run without issue. I believe that says something about waiting for a TESTED release. If you can’t wait you become one of the beta testers (lab rat) like it or not.

  33. Hey, Quentyn… did you purposefully try to make that tiny frozen yogurt cup look like a hand flipping the bird in the thumbnail? ;)

  34. my nexus on for tmobile flashed great, and wifi tether works really well with the battery life. better then my rooted G1.

  35. The update seems to work mostly fine for me. Battery life is better, if anything. Voice controls, Rhapsody and the original Dolphin browser are all broken, but this is acceptable (temporarily) for the performance increase and new features in 2.2. The only scare was that the dialer was invisible for 20 min after installing 2.2, but it showed up and works fine.

  36. Handcent now updated to work with froyo.

  37. It is an official–albeit slow–roll out. It was confirmed by Google.

    http://techcrunch.com/2010/05/22/android-froyo-launch/

  38. Installed it on my N1 and have had it running since the link was found without any major problems. Once the phone froze and had to pull the battery out but apart from that, nothing.

  39. Installed on my Nexus one aswell. No problems so far woot !!

  40. That’s not surprising to hear. It did seem like the battery ran down faster. The new music player is missing. The gallery app is pretty crashy. Mail seems to hang a bit more when loading a message. That was definitely a preview build for press.

  41. I’m happy to be a lab-rat!

  42. I haven’t noticed a single issue that has been noted in these comments. 2.2 seems pretty sweet to me, and I’m no stranger to beta testing.

  43. As with any unofficial release, YMMV. Anybody who updates and expects it to work flawlessly is a bit naive.

  44. No problems here, have had it since you put the link up here; had no problems with install either (tmo nexus one)
    -even helped my sister do her’s via text messages!
    Maybe they pulled it down, to give dev more time to update their apps.

  45. I haven’t had any major issues. I’ve been using it since the link came out. Only thing I noticed that some of my images in the gallery were showing thumbnails as the originals. So I re-synced that media and all is now well. Froyo is what it’s all about. Btw.. I wrote something up from the Phandroid video with the devs. http://www.gdl3d.com/article.php?story=AndroidDevs-AndroidOSvsChromeOS

  46. Handcent was the only problem i had but that’s been already fixed. I’ve had no other problems and I’m happy to be a beta tester for this version. N1 users like G1 users have been the early adopters so this is just another thing we can test and tweak to make better. Unless you have a rooted phone, we should see the official OTA when it’s pushed out.

  47. I updated to Froyo on my unrooted T-Mo N1. I was really happy to have it, but am starting to wish I hadn’t done that. Everything was going fairly well, but I started to notice issues with my battery. Like when charging, it would freeze at certain percentages (say 97% and no matter how long I charged, it would not go above 97%). Do you think that once the “official” Froyo update is released, it would be available to just download from Google and then re-install the update on the phone?

  48. Working great here. Just downloaded the Handcent update. installed the Chrome to Phone app and will figure that out over time.

    HULU shut us down btw. Even config’d as a desktop it doesn’t work anymore. It did….not now.

  49. AT&T Nexus One working fine after Froyo update. Not one single issue! FROYO IS AWESOME!

    What’s even better is all of the lesser known features that Google has snuck in. I just noticed, as I was typing this, that you can swipe up on the virtual keyboard to quickly input numbers! I could list more, but I am watching live coverage on C-SPAN via Adobe Flash! LOL!

  50. I’m new to the Android scene. If i had updated with the froyo file from this weekend, will i still get the official ota update, or will i have to revert to some older version?

  51. I updated this weekend and have no issues. I really love this version of Android. Much faster than previous version. Some of the apps not working correctly but slowly being updated by developers. Handcent was updated this afternoon.

  52. BS.. There are no such wide-spread issues.. The only issues are that some apps are not working because they haven’t moved to the new APIs..
    BTW, I have written up full details about what’s working and what’s not and documented any unannounced features/fixes and how the announced ones are working etc here:
    http://tech.shantanugoel.com/2010/05/23/android-froyo-nexus-one.html

  53. I updated and love it. I have noticed a couple of f/C’s and battery drainage also. My question is will we still get the OTA even though we manually uploaded the “unfinished” FROYO?

  54. Haven’t had any issues expect a few broken apps, which are getting fixed. So if this isn’t an official release then we will probably still get a ota because it will because different build number right? I think so.

  55. Had Froyo since the weekend and its fine. Voda Uk user on original Jan release Nexus. Worth noting that the Nov 2009 date on the files within FRF50 is fairly meaningless – why? Because the kernel contained within, 2.6.32, didn’t exist until December. (And tbh if Froyo was ready back then the N1 would have shipped with it)

  56. Well, I am running a rooted Nexus anyway so even if this isn’t a finished version of Froyo…..it doesn’t matter to me as I can wipe and flash to the new version when it is on general release. Or, go back to whatever I had before.

    My opinion, this is a press-release version of Froyo & not absolutely perfect……

    Moral of the story – look before you leap & if you don’t realise the implications, don’t do it!

    LMAO….

  57. Installed the 2.2 update Sunday and mostly have good things to report. Flash video is just OK in the bundled browser but both video size and quality are reduced compared to Skyfire’s excellant implementation. However, there’s joy in Lake Woebegone that makes up for it as NPR’s DRM-restricted audio feed (http://prairiehome.publicradio.org/programs/), which wouldn’t play at all before 2.2, either with Skyfire or without it, works!

    Also, the previously buggy touchscreen mapping is fixed, at last. No more must I guess where the soft-buttons at the bottom of the screen are to be pushed!

    Overall, the speed increase is noticable–I don’t say it’s 400% faster as some reports have it but browser response is instant now.

    Finally, a bone to the lefties: they get their own landscape-mode, now. As before, hold the phone at 0d for portrait mode, rotate a quarter turn left/counter clockwise/270d for landscape mode. Added with 2.2: turn the phone the opposite way (from 0d rotate right a quarter turn to 90d) for landscape mode. That’s new (though unexciting.)

    After reading the article above I tested speech recognition and it’s fine, superb, really. Just as it was before 2.2. If it can decipher my Southern Drawl with 90(+)% accuracy, you guys ya’ll will love it.

  58. I manually updated, and have been loving most of the changes. It’s noticeably faster, Flash runs well, Air apps run well, and the updates to the Gmail App, phone/browser shortcuts, market, and memory management are quite welcome.

    The only thing I can’t seem to do yet is move apps to the SD card, which I really would like to do. I had a few issues with individual apps (ChompSMS will not work at all, as well as the Nexus modded wallpaper) but in general, it’s been great. I hope this isn’t a borked version of the OTA, though.

  59. Mine is rock solid, no issues yet. N1 on Tmo

  60. The auto brightness does drain the battery. Manually adjusting it gives you about a third better battery life. I tried it for the first full day and blasted through an extended battery but with it controlled manually I’m back to the same battery life I had with 2.1.

  61. I’m glad to be a beta-tester (guinea pig), Froyo is worth it!!! Any time we download a mod/ROM we know we are taking some risk. If this isn’t the “finished” version then we will get that when they send the OTA. If we need to revert to stock to get the “finished” 2.2 then we’ll do that. Froyo was just released so give dev a chance to update their code, some already have done this, how fast is that? I mean have you tried the new Chrome To Phone For Android 2.2 and Google Chrome? Can the iphone do that?

    http://phandroid.com/2010/05/24/download-chrome-to-phone-for-android-2-2-and-google-chrome/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

  62. sweet, i’m glad i grabbed it when i did then. my n1 on tmo has been rock-solid stable. i’ve even noticed the battery life has improved. really loving the froyo. thanks for that original heads-up phandroid!

  63. Here’s a twitter update:

    Romain Guy (romainguy):
    Android 2.2 is being rolled out to a very limited test group. We expect a final build to be available for OTA updates shortly, stay tuned!

    Twitter / Romain Guy: Android 2.2 is being rolle …

    (Sent via Seesmic Seesmic)

    So if this indeed is true.. that means, for those who have already updated manually should still get a OTA because it’s a newer build?? Correct?

  64. The battery is only a problem because most of us sat their playing with the phone for 2 hours straight after install. That happens with EVERY update. There is NOTHING wrong with my phone. I even just installed the Chrome to Android browser plugin; everything is fine. These scare tactics by blogs are annoying. Google simply doesn’t want “regular folks” downloading it. Thing is, 95% of people who have a Nexus One are probably tech savvy; seeing as how they bought the device sight unseen to begin with.

  65. i haven’t really seen this questioned answered so excuse me if its a dumb question, but if we manually updated it, will we still receive the OTA update?

  66. Downloaded 2.2 on Saturday night; wouldn’t work on first two tries at install (battery at 60% or charger plugged in) but installed fine at 100% battery. No problems seen – runs like 2.1 but so much faster! Already uninstalled Opera Mini because the new browser is just as fast (or faster) and has pinch-zoom; also installed Adobe Reader and I see it is the first app I’ve got that will do automatic updates. Battery life seems about the same except that, with all the speed, the phone is more fun to use and gets used more. 2.1 even on N1 was only somewhat better than 1.6 on my Mytouch 3g; But 2.2 is really a great advance.

  67. Looks like it’s a “public leak” – maybe was placed online for short time to let the early adopters grab a copy (and let the modders get a final build to work from).

    Glad to see the AT&T users aren’t having any problems.

    I had a few apps that needed updates (some widgets, some that used hooks into the gmail app which totally changed) Most devs have been quick to respond.

    The repacked version of this worked great on my rooted Tmo N1. :)

  68. p.s. it took a long time to resync mail and contacts. patience peeps

  69. Flash on 2.2 is 1000x’s better than Skyfires attempt. Too many videos that simply would not load with SF.
    The speed increaee is dramatic.

    Its like getting a new phone.
    I have flash set to on demand.

  70. BTW I get a kick out of the douchbag android fanboys.
    they are AS BAD as Apple Fanboys.

  71. Froyo is working very good …

    I see a lot of noob android users , that are too lazy to read or follow installation instructions, from the people (devs )who have the experience …

    More goodies and fixes to come ? ok then welcome to all of them !

    I’ll flash again with the “better” froyo version ..NO big deal … got no problem at all …

    I’m really happy with what I have now, it’s so much better than waiting longer for who knows how long ! XD

  72. @bobert: android fanman! (cough cough)

  73. Like many others, I’m happy to be a Froyo guinea pig. :)

    Pandora has seemed more buggy than usual the past couple of days though, which could possibly be related to the update. Also, I like the redesign of the Car Home app, but its second screen has spots where it looks like you should be able to set up some additional app shortcuts, though I can’t figure out any way to actually do that. That sort of give me the impression that this might not quite be a final build.

    Overall, though, I’m very happy with all the Froyo goodness I’ve seen so far. It made an already impressive phone even snappier.

  74. I laughed iPhone jail-breaker before, but now I realized I’m the one of them!
    aaaaaah, why I didn’t check time-stamp.
    I don’t wanna root and void warranty! (already void?)
    hahaha… sigh

  75. i’m using the premature froyo and loving it. no problem whatsoever.

    and isn’t it better for google that they have millions of willing tester?

  76. moving camera to video crash the system!!!

  77. Like most others I’m happy with my FRF50 build…and I’ll gladly accept the responsibility.

    If there is no official Google update from FRF50 to FRxxx, and that precludes me from getting OTA updates and bugfixes, I always have the option of rooting.

    No biggie, bring on the Gingerbread

  78. I tried that switch to video- works great. Interesting issue.

  79. No problemo’s on my 2.2 update. I was wondering tho, when do we support for apps to sd? Also, when google releases the official update, will we still get it even tho we updated to this unofficial 2.2?

  80. froyo may have been prematurely released IN YOUR FACE, and you still loved it.

    that being said, i’ll wait for an OTA proper release.. always more enjoyable for everyone when release is proper, rather than premature.

  81. No- I’m finding pretty enjoyable here….yep, it’s enjoyable

  82. nexus support told me to go back original because they were waiting for devs to implement apps to sd. OH!!! “(AND IT IS POSSIBLE TO GO BACK TO 2.1)!!” just flash the passimg.zip file from androidtechnical.info site.

  83. and thats without being root or having unlocked bootloader

  84. Fullmetal, have u been to that site? I can’t find any file thats named passimg.zip

  85. Ok, I just got off the phone with Google support, and they said that who ever manually updated will still receive the official update. We just have a version that is unfinished in areas but not to worry, we will soon have full android 2.2!

  86. Wow..thanks Ben! That makes me feel better.

  87. Good work Ben. Sometimes ya gots to take the bull by the horns. I’ll enjoy FRO, and wait for YO, and enjoy even a little mo.

  88. Ben- a Google employee said the same thing in one of the threads on Googles help site. So we’re good!

  89. I just Are confirmed that what we have installed is the test version of froyo and we WILL receive the OTA update

  90. So as Google are already OTAing 2.2 why cant they just post the official update bundle for those who want it and cant/didnt wait?

  91. stock N12 from the Philippines. Updated sunday and can’t look back… quietly amazing!!! ahihihihi

  92. I Have the Motorola Droid and can not wait for froyo is pushed to my phone.

  93. my 1st couple attemps to put froyo on my phone were totaly disaster, after the 4 times trying form other sites and step by step instructions i was finally able to put froyo on my nexus one i can say its amazing playing flash videos i havent had any problems with my phone evrything its working great.

  94. Hello friends, its great to read all the comments and find that i am not alone, after 2.2 update everything is good except the battery life and the browser which says web page not available whereas working fine in MiniOpera the internet please suggest any solution thanks in advance

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