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Help Downgrading Galaxy s4

K

killrqueen

Newbie
I just got a galaxy s4. I upgraded from a s3 after the screen stopped working from water damage. The phones great! However the battery drain is a major pain due to lolipop. I want to downgrade the firmware to kitkat or jellybean however when i look online i cant seem to find the firmware for any of them with my model. My model is SGH-i337. Can someone please help find the firmware for this so i can downgrade it?
 
You can try completely resetting the device to factory settings and see. If not, go see the Samsung guys at Best Buy they should be able to help you out.

Settings
--->Back up and reset
---->Factory data reset

NOTE: This will completely delete everything on the phone, so make sure you do some sort of back up on it before performing this action.

Good luck!!!!!
 
Thanks for the answers! The factory reset didn't work for me but I did get far on odin. Now the screen is stuck on "firmware upgrade encountered an issue. Please select recovery mode in Kiev & try again" I've tried lies but it said the s/n number didn't match. I really want to get this working again now that it won't even turn on properly. I'm really bad at this stuff, can anyone help with this problem?
 
Just bringing up some random suggestions
-- Depending on which version of Odin you're using, maybe try an earlier one. Some people have mentioned compatibility issues with the newer versions when working with more dated hardware.
http://odindownload.com/
-- Some have also mentioned running into conflict issues with Kies and Odin. Try uninstalling Kies (leave the Samsung phone drivers as is).

http://rootmyandroid.org/flash-stock-rom-galaxy-s4.html/

http://forums.androidcentral.com/am...w-flash-stock-rom-via-odin-new-interface.html
 
Which firmware did you try with Odin?
You should have been able to flash back to NB1
Without a problem.
 
I think i may have used a different one then the one you showed me. I had 3 different roms on my computer. Flashing the rom should fix the phone correct?
 
Hopefully it will get you back up and running.
From what I've read, you should be able to flash this from any build.
 
Thanks JFalls! after using that nb1 stock and Odin3.10 it started working. Now its using KitKat. Thanks for the help, needed it alot. Il let you know if any other problems arise
 
Glad to help. If you are using the AT&T network, you might get prompted for the 5.0 update again.
Only way I know of to prevent the update being forced to you, would be to root and disable a few system apps.
 
You should be safe with a T-Mobile Sim.
AT&T doesn't like to make updates available if you are not on their network.
 
Ok I have a slight problem, the battery drain issue has gotten better. From losing 4% in under a minute to 1% per minute. My galaxy s3 could out live this and I want to know is this normal for the s4. The battery drain is still kind of fast for my taste
 
Other than the usual things you probably did with the S3, not much stands out as different with the S4.
I'm pretty much a minimalist with how I set up my phones. If I don't need it and can't delete it, I will disable/ switch off everything I can.
 
killrqueen said:
Ok I have a slight problem, the battery drain issue has gotten better. From losing 4% in under a minute to 1% per minute. My galaxy s3 could out live this and I want to know is this normal for the s4. The battery drain is still kind of fast for my taste
Click to expand...

The battery drain and overheating issues of my S4 are the driving force behind my working knowledge of Android today. The update to Lollipop pretty much caused all of it. As I looked for solutions I discovered a lot of these problems could be fixed by rooting the device. Thus began my love/hate relationship.
Keeping in mind that mine was Verizon branded. With a locked bootloader. You have a better outlook.
 
killrqueen said:
Ok, know what kind of roots I should use to help the battery?
Click to expand...

I can tell from your question that it is probably not something that you're going to want to do.
It is risky. There is a chance that your phone could brick.
I don't like to walk people through this process because they need to understand it and not just follow directions. This is also why I discourage YouTube Videos for such things.
Jfalls63 linked you to the "everything you need to know" thread. I found this there as well.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s4-att/general/guide-odin-to-stock-updating-rooting-t2926642

Sounds like you can use Odin, which is a good start. Now I suggest you do some reading. So you can understand what root access is, what it can do, and what can go wrong. I'll be happy to answer questions if you have any.
 
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