In case you needed further confirmation that a Samsung Galaxy S6 Active for AT&T is indeed a thing, the boys at SamMobile are now chiming in with details of their own. According to their sources, the phone will feature one hardware spec that’s sure to make any Android fan drool and no, we’re not talking about water resistance here.
Going by the model number SM-G890A, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Active will reportedly come equipped with a whopping 3,500mAh battery — that’s a fairly big bump from the regular S6’s 2,550mAh battery (which is actually smaller than the previous Galaxy S5).
We also get a look at the dimensions 73.6 x 146.9 x 8.8mm and compared against the regular S6 model (70.5 x 143.4 x 6.8mm) is only about 3mm wider and taller, but a good 2mm thicker. Probably to compensate for that larger battery and added ruggedness.
Looks like the only thing we’re waiting for now is for Samsung or AT&T to make this thing official. Well, before the device is leaked in the wild like last year’s version. Even with a more battery efficient Exynos 7 process at the helm, we could always use a little extra battery life from our devices. With water resistance, a likely more rugged form factor, and substantially bigger battery — anyone considering picking up the Galaxy S6 Active for AT&T?
With the Samsung making the semi-controversial decision to ditch the water resistance of the Galaxy S5 in the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge, we tried to make sense of it. In the end, we conjectured Samsung would likely introduce a rugged “Active” variant of the Galaxy S6, like they did with the S5 and S4 before it. Of course, we didn’t have much to go on, only what history showed us. But a new discovery could be lending credence to our initial guess.
A mysterious Samsung device going by the model number SM-G890A was discovered in a user agent profile on Samsung Mobile. If we look at last year’s Samsung Galaxy S5 Active on AT&T (SM-G870A), the model number isn’t too far off at all. The UA prof also shows it coming equipped with the same QHD resolution display and if you needed further confirmation what we’re looking at here is the Galaxy S6 Active, @upleaks recently tweeted that same model number, also guessing it could be — what else — but the AT&T Samsung Galaxy S6 Active.
Now, nothing is confirmed at this point, but we imagine we’ll hear more as we near the April 10th launch of the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge. That being said, would any of you be willing to ditch the fragile glass back of the Galaxy S6 for something a little more durable, possibly with water resistance?
We now know pretty much everything there is to know about the Samsung Galaxy S6. The specs, the features, the price… it’s all on the table. With the device going on sale April 1st and launching April 10th, people are debating whether it’ll be their next phone and one limiting factor could be the disappearance of a key Galaxy S5 feature that didn’t make its way to the new S6: water resistance.
There is no doubt that the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge are the sexiest Galaxy devices yet. But to achieve said sexiness, Samsung made compromises in areas they were previously adamant:
The battery is not removable
There is no expandable memory card slot
The device is not water resistant
When we reviewed the Samsung Galaxy S5, water resistance was one of my favorite new features. After only one year, it’s gone. One could speculate why water resistance was removed, make various comparisons to Apple, and discuss the technological difficulties in engineering such a product, but for the sake of this article- let’s not.
Maybe, just maybe, Samsung didn’t make the Galaxy S6 waterproof because they expect another product will eventually fill those shoes… the Samsung Galaxy S6 Active.
The device slightly dumbed down the specs; for example, in exchange for getting an IP67 water resistant device you also get a chunkier, heavier phone with hardware buttons and an 8MP camera instead of a 13MP camera.
Whatever the case may be it seems the Active brand performed well enough to live on as Samsung released its sequel the following year.
Galaxy S5
Things got a bit more awkward when Samsung announced the Samsung Galaxy S5 Active. You see, they already had the Samsung Galaxy S5 and had accomplished the feat of making it IP67 water resistant.
We reviewed the S5 and found water resistance to be one of the best new additions. There wouldn’t be any need for the S5 Active now because Samsung had solved the problem by making its flagship phone waterproof! Right!? Right? Wrong…
Galaxy S5 Active
Despite having a IP67 water resistant flagship in the Galaxy S5, Samsung pushed forward and announced the Samsung Galaxy S5 Active.
Once again, they slightly dumbed down the specs, made it chunkier with more rugged material, and added some extra Ingress protection. Both the S5 and S5 Active were IP67 water resistant, but only the S5 Active enjoyed drop resistance (up to 4 feet), dust, temperature, and humidity resistance. Oh… and it looked a lot crazier.
Speaking of crazy designs, Samsung’s newest generation of flagship devices is quite the divergence from their typical hardware.
Galaxy S6
It wouldn’t be wrong to call the Galaxy S6 a fish out of water. The S4 was not water resistant. The S5 was water resistant. The S6 is not water resistant. Flip. Flop. Flip.
It seems Samsung focused their time and energy making the Galaxy S6 the most premium feeling device possible. No removable battery. No external storage. No problem. Because one look at the S6 and S6 Edge and you’d fall in love. At least that’s how I assume Samsung’s internal team approached the matter.
Some people are freaking out over the lack of water resistance but Samsung made a clear decision to focus more on being premium. And let’s not forget the added accuracy of the fingerprint sensor which probably wouldn’t do so well underwater.
But maybe, just maybe, there is more to the madness than meets the eye.
Galaxy S6 Active?
Samsung has not confirmed or denied the future existence of a new phone in their “Active” series, but considering they released a ruggedized version of an already waterproof phone (the S5), it seems the company is hellbent on making “Active” devices. To see a Galaxy S6 Active would not be a surprise and to the contrary, it’s something you should expect.
If you’re one of the people “freaking out” consider this the part where we shake some sense into you: if you want a waterproof Galaxy S6, simply wait for the company to announce the S6 Active… we’re pretty sure it’ll come eventually.
However, I believe the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Active will have more difference between them than their sibling counterparts. Whereas in the past the S4 Active and S5 Active were merely ruggedized version of almost the same device, Samsung now has the opportunity to let the S5 Active stand out.
Let’s get one thing out of the way: there is no way Samsung will create a Galaxy S6 Edge Active. The engineering would be impossible and the final product would be too expensive. Don’t get your hopes up. It isn’t happening.
Whatever the case may be, Samsung may have created a golden sales opportunity by making this decision. It makes the features/benefits much more clear to consumers and sales people, giving the marketing team specific issues to target when reaching their target market with the (one) perfect product that fits their needs.
So what is that one perfect product…
What will the S6 Active be?
This is purely speculation and I invite you to voice your opinion in the poll below, but I think this is the perfect opportunity for Samsung to please two different parties:
Galaxy S6 Active gets plastic with removable battery.
Whereas in the past Samsung had two very similar products with one primary differentiating factor, the new Galaxy S6 Active would be a completely different product than the Galaxy S6 and offer an entirely different set of features and benefits from a hardware perspective.
I’d be really excited to see the Galaxy S6 Active simply be the natural progression of the previous Galaxy S5, sticking with the plastic and Ingress protection and continuing to add ruggedized features. Nobody knows for sure, but it’s always fun to speculate.
The bottom line is this: if you want a waterproof Galaxy S6 you don’t have to cry over spilled milk… the Galaxy S6 Active will likely be coming. Exactly what that means is anybody’s guess, but if you stay glued to Phandroid, we’ll let you know exactly what it means when the universe reveals to us these secrets.
The Samsung Galaxy S6 Active might look something like the recently announced Samsung Xcover 3 (above)
The Samsung Galaxy S6 is chock-full of amazing hardware features (wireless charging, fingerprint scanner, DDR4 RAM), but when we found out some of the Galaxy S5’s best features wouldn’t be making a return — water resistance, micro SD card, and removable battery — we have to admit, we were a little bummed out.
When it came to water resistance, we had a feeling that Samsung would bring this feature back for an all new Samsung Galaxy S6 Active. Not too long later, a few leaks started making the rounds, hinting to the S6 Active’s existence and we were excited to see what else the phone bring. Today, a Reddit user claims to have had a sit down meeting with Samsung rep out of Europe (along with picture proof). When asked about Samsung Galaxy S6 Active, the Samsung rep was willing to divulge a few details about the device. First off, Samsung could be ditching the fingerprint reader/heart rate sensor for the S6 Active. While that sounds like an odd move (given the S6 Active will likely be marketed towards those who are active), he mentioned the phone will feature an SD card slot.
He also went on to mention that the camera might be “less good” than the regular S6’s and that we can look forward to a mid-summer release date. We should note, he did mention the device was still under development and that any of these hardware features could change down the road, so there might still be hope for that fingerprint reader on the retail-ready version.
With a rumored 3,500mAh battery and now a micro SD card slot, anyone else thinking about picking up the Samsung Galaxy S6 Active over the regular version?
Unlike the Samsung Galaxy S5, the Samsung Galaxy S6 is not waterproof. While we wait for the Galaxy S6 Active to (hopefully) arrive Samsung has a rugged phone to tide us over. Today Samsung announced the Galaxy Xcover 3, a phone that can take a beating and keep on kicking.
The Xcover 3 adheres to the MIL-STD 810G specification that allows the phone to withstand falls up to 4 feet. It’s also rated IP67 dustproof and waterproof for up to 30 minutes under 3 feet of water. The Xcover 3 also has dedicated key to turn on the flashlight or double-tap to quickly launch the camera.
In terms of specs we’re looking at a mid-range device. It has a 4.5-inch WVGA display, 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 1.5GB of RAM, 8GB of storage, microSD card slot, 5MP camera, and a 2200mAh battery. The Xcover 3 will be released in April for 275 Euros. Here in the U.S. we’ll have to keep waiting for the Galaxy S6 Active.
Yesterday photos of the Samsung Galaxy S6 Activewere leaked out onto the webs. The photos were fairly good quality and gave us a good idea of what the device looks like in the wild. If those were still a little too grainy for you, famed tipster @evleaks is now showing off the device in a pair of leaked press renders.
There’s no question the phone certainly looks rugged enough and in attempt to attract more outdoorsy types, features a camouflage paint job in both black (blue-ish), and white (with silver accents). We have to admit, we kinda liked yesterday’s all black model a little better than these, but to each his own. No word if AT&T will throw in a free can of Monster energy drink every device sold.
There is a vocal collective of folks out there refusing to buy a Samsung Galaxy S6 or S6 Edge because it isn’t waterproof. But what about an “Active” variant? We’re all patiently waiting and hoping for Samsung to announce it, and we may have just gotten our first indication that it’s being readied.
A trusted source of ours revealed that a “Samsung Zenzero” device has been spotted in the visitor logs of a wide-known Android app. The details on the device are scarce, though the hit did reveal that it was running Android 5.1, has a screen resolution of 2560 x 1440, and a pixel density of 560. That would figure to be around 5.2 inches of display if our math is right, which is not quite large enough to be the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 that’s been spotted as the Samsung “Zen” in separate leaks.
Another interesting fact to consider is that the device has “zero” in its codename. If you don’t remember, Samsung’s plans to revamp the design and build of their smartphones starting with the Samsung Galaxy S6 was internally referred to as “Project Zero.” Could be a mere coincidence, though it could be evidence of a new variant of the original “Project Zero” device hiding in plain sight.
The timing is also interesting considering we have recently seen supposedly official renders of an AT&T-branded Samsung Galaxy S6 Active from a separate trustworthy source. The device we were shown looks like your typical rugged Samsung smartphone, complete with bolts on the rear and physical navigation buttons. Our source also tells us it’s a bit underwhelming to be a Galaxy S6 variant, noting that it’s more like an improved Samsung Galaxy S5.
It’s not out of the question to suggest Samsung is quietly working to introduce this thing in the near future, and it’s not strange that we haven’t heard anything official about it. Samsung has kept quiet on plans to make “Active” variants of previous models up until weeks before availability, so there’s no reason to believe they aren’t going to do the same thing this time around.
That’s the extent of our knowledge for now, but we’ll certainly be digging for more. Let us know if you’ve been holding out on buying the Samsung Galaxy S6 in hopes that Samsung is working on something that can take a beating or two.
The company’s website for Samsung Plus — their advanced support, rewards and warranty program — is now showing support for the Samsung Galaxy S6 Active. There isn’t any meaningful information tied to the listing except for the fact that it rewards you the same amount of points as if you were to purchase the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge.
Curiously enough, the site lists the S6 Active’s release date as April 10th, which we know was the release date for the original models. It seems like an honest mistake by whoever mans these pages within Samsung’s ranks, but for better or worse we know that there’s a Samsung Galaxy S6 Active on the horizon. Let’s hope it won’t take too long for the official details to come to light.
We’ve been following rumors of a Samsung Galaxy S6 Activeever since we dreamt up the device back when the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge were first announced. We’ve seen hints and tips of the device for weeks now, with the latest details provided to us only earlier today. Even though we weren’t allowed to publish images, it didn’t take long for the device to finally pop up online courtesy of GSMArena. We can confirm, this is the same Galaxy S6 Active (SM-G890A) design we saw from our own tipster.
The design is definitely super rugged, with physical buttons on the front and thick plastic on the back. You’ll notice the speaker has been moved from the bottom (where it was on the Galaxy S6) to the back, and the camera no longer protrudes. This could have something to do with the device’s reported 3,500mAh battery requiring a little extra space.
Other specs supposedly fall in line with current Galaxy S6 models, with a 5.1 QHD display, 16MP shooter, and heart rate sensor on the back. Still up in the air is the fingerprint sensor, which may have been ditched in favor of more ruggedness. The only thing left now is for AT&T and Samsung to make this thing official.
The Samsung Galaxy S6 Active has been leaked so many times, it’s pretty much a sure thing at this point. What we don’t know, is when the phone will actually become available for purchase. If AT&T’s recent tweet is any indication, we can expect the phone to arrive any day now.
Only one thing is missing from your workout. It’s almost time to activate your full power. pic.twitter.com/PzgOS6SATJ
AT&T began teasing the phone on Twitter but kept it hidden for whatever reason. The fitness angle is obvious (hence the Active in the title) with the phone featuring an extra rugged outer casing. Of course, you can just slap an Otterbox case over the current S6 and call it day, but we do expect the S6 Active to feature some kind of higher than usual water resistance rating. Here are the full leaked specs, straight from Samsung:
5.1-inch 2560 x 1440 Super AMOLED display
Octa-Core Exynos 7420 chipset (2.1GHz and 1.5GHz cores)
32GB of UFS 2.0 storage (and we’re also hearing there will be a microSD slot, though the site doesn’t mention it)
16MP rear camera with 4K video recording, 5MP front camera
Bluetooth 4.1, WiFi ac Dual-Band MIMO, GPS, NFC, Heart Rate Sensor, Infrared Blaster
5.65 x 2.78 x 0.27 inches , 138g
2,550mAh battery
Android 5.0 Lollipop
So far the phone has been leaked in a few different colors, showing a black/grey version, and camo version in both dark and light varieties. Is anyone out there thinking about picking one of these up?
Samsung’s website was a fountain of information earlier. Not only did they unleash official specs for the Samsung Galaxy S6 Active, we’re even getting a full user manual to go along with it.
This 108 page document will tell you everything you need to know about using the Samsung Galaxy S6 Active, including some of the more unique features like customizing the extra “Active” button you’ll find on the side of the device. It also takes you through using Samsung’s user interface on top of Lollipop, and showing you how to do stuff like hard resetting the device (there’s no removable battery) and changing the SIM card.
One thing we should note is that this manual specifically covers the AT&T variant, which — to our knowledge — will be the only variant of the phone available at launch (as AT&T has historically been the exclusive launch partner for the Active series).
We’re still digging through the manual ourselves to see what other interesting bits lie inside, and we’ll definitely be sure to share whatever we might find. Rather give it a look yourself? You can view the full thing over at AndroidForums.com.
Heads-up: the Samsung Galaxy S6 Active is now available from AT&T both online and in-store. It’s a rugged version of Samsung’s 2015 Samsung Galaxy S6, if you haven’t caught on by now.
The Samsung Galaxy S6 Active has much of the same specs as the base model — including a 5.2-inch Quad HD display, a 16 megapixel camera and the Exynos 7420 Octa-Core 64-bit chipset — only it does so with a rugged IP68 military-grade chassis.
As such, it won’t have a fingerprint scanner, but that’s the only sacrifice that had to be made for a tank of a phone. It also has an improved battery at 3,500mAh.
You can grab one for 4 off-contract, 0 on a two-year deal, or as little as .17 per month for 30 months on AT&T Next 24. Be sure to head to AT&T and check out all your options if you’re interested.
So what are we getting? Basically everything we’ve already heard about. The specs list should be the same as the one Samsung had on their website, but AT&T’s promo page has an updated listing for battery: it’s 3,500mAh instead of the 2,550mAh Samsung accidentally listed. This should assuage fears by many that the Galaxy S6 Active won’t have enough juice to truly last you an entire day (and then some).
Everything else is still accurate:
5.1-inch 2560 x 1440 Super AMOLED display
Octa-Core Exynos 7420 chipset (2.1GHz and 1.5GHz cores)
32GB of UFS 2.0 storage
16MP rear camera with 4K video recording, 5MP front camera
Bluetooth 4.1, WiFi ac Dual-Band MIMO, GPS, NFC, Heart Rate Sensor, Infrared Blaster
5.65 x 2.78 x 0.27 inches , 138g
3,500mAh battery
Android 5.0.2 Lollipop
Activity Zone app that brings together Weather, Barometer, S Health and more
We also now know that the Samsung Galaxy S6 Active has been rated MIL-STD-810G, which is military-grade protection from drops, resistance to water and dustproof (all of which combine for a top-tier IP68 certification).
So, you’ll be able to grab one for down on AT&T Next for .17 with 30 device payments on Next 24, .96 per month at 24 payments on Next 18, or .75 per month at 20 payments on Next 12.
Unfortunately AT&T still didn’t have anything to share in regards to availability, but with the phone officially out for the world to see we reckon it won’t take long to get those details. In the meantime let us know if the improved battery has restored your interest in grabbing one of these.
[Update]: AT&T has reached out to confirm that the device will be available starting June 12th.
This thing has all the same internals as the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge we’ve reviewed, except it houses all of them in a rugged case that can take a beating. Unfortunately it does lack a fingerprint sensor, but we imagine that sacrifice was necessary for a device that can potentially find itself submerged in water for long periods of time.
Otherwise, here’s the phone you can expect to get once it’s finally made official:
5.1-inch 2560 x 1440 Super AMOLED display
Octa-Core Exynos 7420 chipset (2.1GHz and 1.5GHz cores)
32GB of UFS 2.0 storage (and we’re also hearing there will be a microSD slot, though the site doesn’t mention it)
16MP rear camera with 4K video recording, 5MP front camera
Bluetooth 4.1, WiFi ac Dual-Band MIMO, GPS, NFC, Heart Rate Sensor, Infrared Blaster
5.65 x 2.78 x 0.27 inches , 138g
2,550mAh battery
Android 5.0 Lollipop
With it appearing on Samsung’s own support site it’s only a matter of time before we see some official details. In the meantime let us know if you’ll be saving some coin to grab this one over the more stylish (yet less durable) originals.
[Update]: Someone must be in trouble. The Samsung Galaxy S6 Active page is no longer available for viewing.
AT&T Galaxy S5 Active SM-G870A users will receive another Android 4.4.2 OTA software update dubbed with build number G870AUCU1ANG3. The G870AUCU1ANG3 will replace the previous 4.4.2 firmware G870AUCU1ANE4 and it brings several enhancements and fixes on some issues. The update has the file size of 57.65MB and rolled out via over-the-air.
Changelog of the G870AUCU1ANG3 OTA update:
· Visual Voice Mail (VVM) enhancements · Security updates and patches · Application installation enhancements · Accidental emergency dial fixed on the lock screen · Several lower layer modem crashes and sluggishness improvement enhancements · E-mail UX enhancements · Re-activation lock improvements
Again, the roll out might be in stages, just make sure to do some tweaking if you ain’t receive the OTA update notification on your Galaxy S5 by hitting Settings>>About Device>>Check for Software Update. To check for more info make sure to hit the source below or follow are simple guide.
How to Upgrade the Galaxy S5 Active to the latest Software Update
Samsung always advises us to prepare the following important notes to consider before performing the software update. I have also added some useful insights why you should follow this procedures to keep your phone in safe.
Recharge the phone’s battery – You should make sure your device is fully recharged before performing the software update. Do not also remove the battery during the software update is in progress. A power failures may cause damaged to your device that might results as we so-called “soft-bricks”. If this happens your device may just stuck on Samsung logo or welcome screen and can’t reboot normally.
Backup important data – You should back-up your important files, including contacts, emails, messages, photos, videos, apps and other stuff. Like I said while during software update process is interrupted there is a possibility that your data stored from your device internal SD card may lose or deleted when a sudden unexpected failure happened and it forces you to perform a factory data reset which basically wipes your phone’s memory.Follow the guide here if you don’t yet on how to backup data on your Galaxy S5 Active.
Not Rooted Galaxy S5 Active – Your device should not been modified or rooted, there is a certain circumstances that a modified and rooted Galaxy S5 Active may not accept any official software update anymore or it can accept an update but it might harm your device once the update has made. Learn about the new Samsung KNOX security suite. Most known error that says ‘firmware upgrade encountered an issue, please select recovery mode in kies and try again‘ or “Your device has been modified Software update are not available” you should try to avoid that from happening.
Update via Over-The-Air (OTA)
Samsung Galaxy S5 Active OTA Update. This is usually how the carrier branded or locked Samsung Galaxy S5 Active, performs a software update. This method is Firmware Update through over the air or called as OTA update, which usually a notification message will directly sent to you from your network provider or Samsung and notifies you that there is a new update available for download. If you did not received any notification messages you can manually check fro the update instead. Doing this you may only tap on your AT&T Galaxy S5 SM-G870A Settings>>About Device, tap Software Update.
Find “Software update” Slide your finger down the display starting from the top edge of your mobile phone. Tap the settings icon. Tap About device. Tap Software update. It will automatically tells you that a new update is available or your software is up to date when there is none yet. You can simply tap install now when you want to perform an update or install later.
Do you need root on your AT&T Samsung Galaxy S5 Active? Here’s the simplest root method without even using a computer and you may then have a rooted phone in just a few minutes. This root method uses Geohot’s Towelroot that has already tested with Galaxy S5 flagship but also works on AT&T Galaxy S5 Active.
In addition, all you need is grab the towelroot.apk file and install it on your phone. You also need the latest SuperSU app so you can update the SU binary and so you a have a working root.
Note: Rooting your phone will void it’s service warranty. So if you care enough about your phone’s warranty don’t touch it. This guide is intended for advanced users only. Use this guide at your own risk.
How to Root G870AUCU1ANE4 4.4.2 KitKat on AT&T Galaxy S5 Active SM-G870A
The root may only work on the firmware build number 4.4.2 G870AUCU1ANE4, as there is a limitation to the Towelroot and it may or may not work on any latest software updates ahead from June 3rd 2014. This means that the towelroot was only build on firmware builds not exceeding to the said date. If you forcefully do so, then it’s up to you.
As I mentioned, this root method is so very easy, all you need is run your the browser app like Google Chrome on your AT&T Galaxy S5 Active SM-G870A then you can simply go to towelroot website and download the towelroot apk. Install it and decline what the warning message tells you. Once downloaded run the the towelroot.apk then hit the button called “Make It Rain”. From there you may then manually install the SuperSU so you can update the SU binary. Grab it from Chainfire or at Play Store. If you need more tweaks, you can also install Busybox and Xposed framework. If you want to confirm that the root was properly installed you may then use the Root checker app from Play Store.
Step by step guide:
1.) enable the “Allow to install apps from unknown sources” by going to Settings>>Security and then check the box next to Unknown Sources. 2.) Open your phone’s intenet browser, then type the website address towelroot.com. 3.) Tap the Lambda sign from the website to begin downloading the towelroot.apk 4.) Locate the towelroot.apk run it then then simply click the button called “make it rain”. Wait until it finishes and the phone reboot. 5.) Update the SuperSU app from chainfire website and lastly install it.
So that’s it! Just let us know if this root method perfectly worked on your AT&T Galaxy S5 Active SM-G870A running on Android 4.4.2 G870AUCU1ANE4 KitKat update. For further information if this root method truly worked then head-over to the
If you have doubt about this root method that might not truly worked then head-over to the source link below.
Here is the first Android 4.4.2 KitKat Stock Firmware for AT&T’s Samsung Galaxy S5 Active (SM-G870). The stock firmware will be useful just in-case when the time comes that you might want to return back your Samsung Galaxy S5 Active SM-G870 to it’s official firmware. The stock firmware can wipe root or any customization that you may wish to be completely remove from your phone.
Once your phone has been modified, it also proven essential to use the stock firmware if you cannot receive any OTA update anymore Some advanced user have had used the stock firmware if they have messed-up from customization and resulted into bricks, so the stock firmware is also best for fixing unwanted soft-bricks, bootloops or just stuck on a welcome screen logo.
So like I said, use of the stock firmware is for AT&T’s Galaxy S5 Active G870A advanced users only. This cannot be used and is not recommended by any of those who did not know how the stock firmware works.
G870AATT1ANE4 Firmware Info:
Here are the build info of the 4.4.2 Kitkat firmware version G870AATT1ANE4 Galaxy S5 G870A:
Important Note before Installing Galaxy S5 SM-G870A 4.4.2 G870AUCU1ANE4 Firmware
– The stock firmware will also get outdated once there is a new updates arrives and you may not be able to use this firmware build version. so make sure to check everything
– Make sure that your Galaxy S5 Active is fully recharge or at-least have 60% remaining battery power. – Stock ROM packages comes in two formats the ‘Full-Wipe’ (delete your stored data after flashing) and the ‘Non-Wipe’ (it doesn’t delete your phone’s stored data) but it is highly recommended to make a back up all important files stored from your phone’s internal memory – contacts, messages, etc. before flashing no-matter if it is Full-WIpe or Non-Wipe, just to be safe and ensure that your stored data are in safe if something went wrong during the flashing process. – Use a PC or laptop that runs in Windows OS, with a good and perfectly working USB serial port. Odin will not work on MAC OS. – Use the supplied USB cable for your Galaxy S5. – Enable USB debugging from your phone’s settings. Go to Settings > About device > Look for the build number, and tick that build number for 7-times until a pop-up message says‘Congratulations you are now a developer’ . – Do a “Hard Reset” if you have a lot of 3rd party applications installed from your phone, this is useful to gain a smooth flashing. Just make sure that you already back up all your important files before resetting your device as this step will wipe your data. – Ensure that KIES is closed and not running in the system tray! Kies will interrupt and doesn’t like Odin, it will block you from flashing.
Download the necessary tools to install the G870AUCU1ANE4 Firmware
Odin Flasher Tools that will work on Galaxy S5 Active G870A Odin3_v3.07 download Odin3_v3.09 download Galaxy S5 USB Driver – install Kies 3 or download
Extract the downloaded G870AUCU1ANE4 stock firmware
You need to extract the downloaded file which is packed in zip or rar files, so that you’ll get the tar.md5 file.
Run and Configure Odin
Run Odin downloader Odin3_v3.09 on your PC desktop. Watch out the check-boxes options on the right top of Odin, ensure that the ‘RE-PARTITION’ is unchecked, only the ‘AUTO-REBOOT and ‘F.RESET TIME’ checkboxes are both remained checked.
Reboot your Galaxy S5 Active into Download Mode
To reboot the Galaxy S5 into download mode , you need to turn the power off. After it completely shut off, just press and hold the Volume Down key, Home button and the PowerON/OFF button simultaneously.
You should then prompted into a warning screen and asking you to press volume up if you want to continue or volume down to cancel, just simply press volume up to get into download mode. The download mode then displays an Android robot and say’s “Downloading.. Do not turn off target!!”
Connect your Phone to PC or Laptop
Once you already reboot the phone in download mode, simply connect the phone to your PC or laptop USB. In Odin window – the ID:COM box will turn to blue color and indicates the COM port number and a word “Added” on a log box will prompt you that the device is already detected or recognized by Odin.
Your COM port number might be different from mine. If you do not see a COM port number then there’s something missing or wrong. You may read again from the top of this post.
Load the G870AUCU1ANE4 tar.md5 file
If the stock ROM is pack in One .tar.md5 file only the PDA, CSC and Phone modem are already included to it. Now, you need to just simply click on the PDA button, then browse to the folder where the .tar or .tar.md5 you have previously extracted and then select and load it. ” G870AUCU1ANE4_G870AATT1ANE4_Home.tar.md5″.
Start Installing G870AUCU1ANE4 stock
Once if all set and ready to fire-up, hit the “START” button in Odin to begin flashing the stock ROM. Do not ever interrupt the phone while already in flashing progress, like disconnecting the cable or turning off the device. Just wait until it completely finish.
Wait until a word PASS!! appears
When the Stock ROM installation successfully completes, you will then see a word “PASS” in Odin. This indicates that the flashing was already finish, and on the log box it says “All threads completed. (succeed 1 / failed 0)”. The phone will just then automatically reboot, then it’s to remove it from PC or laptop USB connection.
Possible errors that you may encountered, this is based on my own experience while flashing stock ROM on Samsung Android devices. These are just a few hints on how to resolved it.
Q: I got an error message that says “Set-up connection Failed” ? A: Do the following steps:
1. Check your USB connection from the phone to PC, 2. Connect to another PC USB port 3. Check and try to another USB cable 4. Re-install the USB driver.
Q: Odin just suddenly stuck in the middle of nowhere while in flashing progress, It isn’t responding at all? A: Check for possible program that might interrupt the process, like disabling the anti-virus and closing any running programs. Try to use another PC or laptop,
Q: I experienced bootloop or the phone just stuck on Welcome Logo (phone always stop at bootanimation) and it won’t boot normally? A: You can fix it via recovery mode option, do this: Boot in recovery mode 1. Press and hold Volume Up, Home and Power button. 2. Use volume keys to select, Up and Down and Power or Home key to select the option 3. Select Wipe Data/Factory Reset using the Home button. 4. Next select the Wipe Cache Partition 5. Lastly, select Reboot System Now to reboot your Galaxy S5 in Normal mode.
That’s it! you have now learned how to install Samsung Galaxy S5 stock ROM. You can use this procedure again and again, using any future stock ROM that only match with your device. All other questions and suggestions are most welcome, just let me know by leaving a message on the comment form below. Enjoy!
