By As the HTC Hero update to Android 2.1 continues to make its way to all corners of the world, the latest reports are that those that purchased the phone for Orange’s network in Europe are now receiving the first part of the two part update. This initial update is not Android 2.1 itself, but rather a preparatory update that will get the Hero up to speed for the push to 2.1.
No word on when the actual big package will drop, but it should be getting close. With this latest update for Orange it looks like only those with the phone on Three’s network are left without any sign of the update whatsoever.
[via EuroDroid]
I’ve gone from the Hero on Orange to the Desire, same network. It’s annoying having to wait even longer for Orange to make changes that I can’t imagine anyone wanting or needing. However, I am definitely expecting the same delays for the Desire’s 2.2 upgrade, whenever that is. If Sense UI wasn’t such a big deal to me and I know not everyone feels the same about it, I would have gone for the N1 on Vodafone for sure. But at this moment in time, I am still more than impressed with HTC phones with Sense and will choose them over Samsung and S.E. any day of the week.
Man people complain about updates when they are a month late but this phone came out in June of 2009 thats 13 months! Damn I’m glad I own a Nexus so I don’t really have to put up with that type of crap.
OMG… I was taking wagers whether Orange UK or Telus in canada would be last to get this :P I guess that answers that question!!! Shame shame shame….
Finally!!
I put the date forward a month, and about 20 seconds later had the prompt! One step closer to that all-important 2.1 now, I’m so relieved…
I sent two emails to Orange asking what was going on… the first was replied by some idiot saying that it was Samsung’s responsibility…
I once said on XDA that there’d be a working custom v2.2 ROM for the Hero before the official 2.1 ROM came out. As an Orange customer, I’m right! ;)
What I don’t understand is why it’s taking so long for the ORIGINAL Hero to get this update. Good grief, the Droid Eris on Verizon was the last of the Hero devices to be released, and it got the upgrade first, followed quickly by Sprint. What is so different about the original that is causing the delay, and why didn’t it get the upgrade first?
I’m in Asia and only recently got my 2.1 Android + Sense update to the Hero. It is an improvement in some ways, like performance, speed of browser, speed of Street view in Google Maps, pinch and zoom in Maps, Helicopter view in Home screen, better Market, fancier HTC flip clock+weather widget, etc. There are however some disadvantages: the whole ROM is larger and my installation could not be completed until I uninstalled quite a few apps to make space for it. Even after installation, I was told at the new OS needed a buffer of 25MB or more to work well. I ignored that (I had about 23 MB space left) and found that the Sense UI program kept force closing and starting itself when I opened other apps that required a fair bit of cache to work (Contacts, Browser, Market, Albums). Once I uninstalled a few more apps to satisfy that minimum buffer space, it was fine. But that means I can’t really install more apps, or even update certain apps where the updated version is larger. Most annoying. Finally, the new OS doesn’t work that well now with the contacts functionality of Handcent. Previously, if you filtered away certain contacts (like those on your SIM card) using “View” in the menu settings of “People”, the same filters would work in Handcent. Not anymore. No matter what your viewing filters are, Handcent shows EVERY contact you have in Google contacts, SIM and your phone memory. Potentially very unwieldy if you’ve got lots of each type but don’t necessarily want to view all while texting.
Sitting in London, looking at my phone, tapping my fingers, still waiting. Come on Orange UK, sort it out.
Im so sick of carriers polluting the stock OS with their rubbish that nobody uses or cares for.
I would be a thousand times happier with my carrier (Orange) if they just released their phones with stock android OS and you could update directly from google.
the quicker my contract runs out the quicker im buying a carrier free phone and just getting PAYG