** GUIDE To FIRMWARE and FLASHING Your A1200 **

[Alpha43]

Guide to Flashing your A1200

Last Updated: April 2009

This write-up explains:
• what is firmware and how to tell what version you have
• which firmwares can be flashed to which other versions
• how to change the firmware (flash) on your phone.
• problem solving steps if the flash fails
• complete list of all firmware versions - with a review of the advantages/disadvantages of each. This list is up-to-date as of April 2009.

The information provided here was created by combining and summarizing the information from dozens of threads on this forum and then rewriting it as easy-to-understand steps that new users can print off and have all the information that they need in one place to (hopefully) easily and successfully flash their phones.

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WARNINGS


Flashing your phone to a different version of firmware should be fairly straightforward, however, please read the following cautions before you start:

• Always find out what your current version of firmware is before you start (instructions below) and write it down! - so if issues then you will know what you started with..
  .
• The A1200 has 4 firmware tracks. You can flash between any firmware versions on the same track - but there can be problems if you flash between tracks - in worst case, the flash may fail making the phone unusable. The different tracks are explained below as well a whole section devoted to which tracks can be flashed to which other tracks. Please read before flashing. Be especially careful if you have the A1200I (International) or any of the new A1200E edge series.....
  .
• At this time there is no way to extract/copy/backup a complete firmware version directly from a phone (see FAQ's for more detailed explanation why this is not possible). This means that you can not backup your firmware before flashing. In addition, many of the versions do not have firmware files available (eg 53p, 12p) so if you flash to a different version then there is no means for you to be able to flash back. (Check the list of firmware below to find out whether yours has a firmware file available).....
  .
• Flashing completely replaces your phone's operating system so there is always a small chance that the flash could fail and you could end up with an unusable "bricked" phone (the forum is full of posts of people who had their flash fail. Some were able to recover, while others were not!). Depending on your carrier you may also void the warranty - so you would have to pay to get Motorola to fix it. So make sure that you consider that risk before attempting to flash your phone and read ALL the instructions in this sticky before starting. That said most people perform their flashes with no issues.

Also:

• Make sure your battery is fully charged before beginning a flash

• Back up your contacts and files using Motorola Phone Tools or Superman before doing any flashing as flashing will delete all of these and return your phone to a "vanilla" state. Data on your SD card is not touched.

• Give yourself plenty of time to complete the flashing and BE PATIENT. Sometimes it appears as nothing is happening and it is stuck at a certain % - but sometimes it can take up to 5 min before the % value changes. Never disconnect your phone or turn off your PC until the flashing is finished or you may make it unusable (i.e. "brick" it!!). There are ways to recover using a tool called radiocom (described in the threads) - but they are fairly complex.

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1. What is Firmware

The A1200 runs using a special Motorola version of the Linux operating system (MONTAVISTA Linux CONSUMER ELECTRONICS 3.1). This is known as the "firmware". There are several different versions of "firmware" that will run successfully on the A1200. Think of firmware as being equivalent to different versions of the operating system (just as there is Windows 98 versus Windows 2000). Every so often Motorola releases a new version of firmware with new features and enhancements. All firmwares come with both English and Chinese languages (except for the International version released in Latin America - up until now it's the only firmware that doesn't come with Chinese language).

Firmware consists of two parts - the Flex and the Flash.

The Flex: is the files and branding of the phone. It contains all the carrier specific menus and images, like T-Zones for T-Mobile, or whichever graphic branding and text links your carrier puts in the phone.

The Flash: is the part we change most often. Basically, the flash is the software of the phone. When you change the flash, it adjusts features, menus, the way your phone handles reception, menu speed, etc.


2. Firmware Versions

It can be confusing to decipher the firmware versions as the higher the number does NOT mean the later the version. In addition, there are 4 different "models" of the A1200 with different firmware "tracks" or paths:

A1200 (Released: Jan 2006) - this was the first model. It was released in 2006. Many of the generic firmwares that come with the A1200 have issues with low speaker volume that makes it hard to listen to voice calls and media from within the handset.

A1200I (Released: June 2006) - shortly after the release of the A1200 in east Asia, the A200I was released in Latin America. It came with an International version of firmware that included Spanish, Portuguese and French language support.

A1200R (Released: Dec 2006) - in response to the volume issue with the A1200, Motorola released the A1200R (Refresh) whose firmware is considered to be the most stable. Motherboard components have changed, runs different software, small change to the battery cover to permit a lanyard strap to be attached.

A1200E (Released: Jan 2007)- this is the latest model and comes with firmware that includes EDGE. (EDGE stands for Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution or just Ehanced GPRS for short. It is sometimes referred to as EGPRS. EDGE allows for a higher bandwidth data transfer over a GSM network). Aside from its EDGE capabilities, this phone is not very different from its predecessors. Its firmware's have the audio issues resolved and supposedly better Voice Recognition. However it has one big disadvantage - is only tri-band rather than quad.

It is almost impossible to tell what model you have just by looking at it as the only physical difference between them that has been reported is that the A1200R has a small slot for attaching a hand-strap on the top left corner of the handset (opposite the stylus) - the other models lack this. (Dec 2007 - some of the newer A1200E models also now have this slot for a strap)

The only reliable way to tell which "model" you have is to remove the battery and looking at the IMEI label inside the phone. At the top of the label it should have A1200 then either an R, E, or I (if it just has "A1200" then it is likely you have the generic A1200).

An easier way is to check which version of firmware it is running (see next section) as each model can only run certain firmwares. The 4 "models" and the firmware tracks that they can run are as follows:

R532 or R532H2 : Original A1200 : It has 2 supported firmware tracks - standard and H2 (both referred to in this sticky as the H2 tracks):
- R532_G_11.00.30p-->40p-->50p track (eg 34p, 43p, 46p, 59p)
- R532H2_G_11.20.01p-->06p-->08p-->12p track

R532C2 - A1200R : newer version (released Feb 2007). Hardware is exactly the same, but runs different firmware than the original A1200. It has a newer bootloader so can only support 1 firmware track (called the C2 track):
- R532C2_G_11.19p-->24p-->25p-->30p-->31p-->32p track

R532L4 - A1200I : the international language version (L4 track) - which is only available in Latin America. Comes with Spanish/Portuguese/French/English language support. Be careful if you decide to flash this phone - see section on "Spanish/Portuguese/French Language" below for more detail.

R541 - A1200E : newer A1200 Edge Series (released Jan 07). This firmware already has Edge enabled (For all other firmwares you have to do a radiocom mod to turn on Edge). Downside is that A1200E is only a tri-band phone rather than Quad-band. As of Dec 2007, 6 versions of firmware available:
- R541_G_11.51.01P --> 29P --> 34P --> 04R --> 08R --> 09R

Monsterpacks: You will also see lots of discussions in the forums about firmwares like Bints 59p, Bints 24xp30 hybrid, Mischka's 24xp30 EMEA hybrid, etc. These are modified versions of the vanilla firmware (aka "monsterpacks") with certain mods and bug fixes already incorporated. There is a whole section devoted to reviewing Monsterpacks further down.

A1200/A1600 Hybrids: these hybrid firmwares with a combination of code from the A1200R and the new A1600 phone started to appear in late 2008. These hybrids can run on A1200, A1200R, A1200I and A1200E.


3. What Version of Firmware does my Phone Have?

To determine what version your phone is currently running do the following:

• Go to your Dial Pad and dial: WWW008W. To make the W tap the menu button at bottom left while in the dial pad, then select insert-->insert wait to make the W .

You should see something like:
R532H2_G_11.20.08P
BP: R532H2_G_11.20.08PPB
PFlex: GSZHNANT677JF014D
SP: 631F1F00

Look at the numbers at the end of the second line for the version. The version shown here is .08P from the H2 track.

• A1200 - will have something like "R532_G_11.00.xxx" or"R532H2_G_11.20.xxx" (eg: R532_G_11.00.53P, R532H2_G_11.20.06P)

• A1200R - will have something like "R532C2_G_11.31.xxx" (eg: R532C2_G_11.31.25P).

• A1200I - will have something similar to "R532L4_G_11.40.xxx" (eg: R532L4_G_11.40.0FR, R532L4_G_11.40.19FR, etc.)

• A1200E - will have something like "R541_G_11.51.xxx" (eg: R541_G_11.51.01P, R541_G_11.50.34P, etc.).

ØIf you see different firmware numbers on line 1 and 2, this means you do not have an original firmware from Motorola, but some form of modified firmware (monsterpack). A common one is:
R532_G_11.00.59P
BP:R532C2_G_11.30.24PBP
which is one of the 24p (C2 track) monsterpacks (See section on Monsterpacks further down).

• A1200/A1600 Hybrids - These new hybrid monsterpacks - that combine the BP from one of the A1200R fws (eg 24P) and the AP from new A1600 (16R) - started to appear in mid 2008. These new hybrids are feature packed and have become popular - as they combine the best features of the A1200 with new icons, ringtones, skins and applications from the A1600. These have something like:
R541L7_G_11.00.16R
BP: R532C2_G_11.30.24P
BPFlex: GSZA120T678PV00A
DSP: 63343400

4. Spanish/Portuguese/French Language Support (L4 track)

The only original firmware with Spanish/Portuguese/French language support is on the A1200I released in Latin America. There are numerous versions - but they are all indicated with the L4 next to the R532:
R532L4_G_11.40.0FR
R532L4_G_11.40.1AR
R532L4_G_11.40.14RB
R532L4_G_11.40.19FR

Unless you had one of these firmwares on your phone when you bought there is no other way to get them as they are not available for download. Not much has been posted about the pros and cons of each of these versions - just a little about 19R:

R532L4_G_11.40.19R
Advantages:
• Better volume than 0FR
• Better camera
• Realplayer can hold more than 200 songs
• Reads 2GB card

Can I Flash my A1200I to Other Firmwares?

Originally you could not flash your A1200I to other firmware - people who tried it ended up making their phones unworkable. [You should still never flash your phone to any of the Standard or H2 track firmwares].

With the release of the C2 firmware track (24p, 25p, etc), however, the A1200I can now be successfully flashed to these new C2 versions. Even people with bricked A1200I's, have been able to flash to these to get the phone working again. But once on the C2 track you can not flash back to the A1200I firmware.

June 2007 - Mischka and eduprogramador have also developed C2 track 24p and 30p EMEA versions with Spanish/Portuguese/French language support added (eg Mischka's 24xp30 EMEA monsterpack). These versions have keyboard, GUI, VR and word prediction support for these languages (only for french there's no VR). Many users have reported flashing their A1200I's to the 24xp30 EMEA version and find it faster, better battery life, speaker is louder, has superman included, support for startup1.txt, and better camera support. See the section on Monsterpacks further down this sticky for more information on these.

Dec 2008 - the new A1200/A1600 hybrid fw also supports the A1200I.


5. China Mobile versus Generic (Unbranded) Firmware

Some of the firmware versions are generic (straight from Motorola) while others are China Mobile branded. This means that the Chinese mobile operator "China Mobile" has added their stuff to that firmware, like modified icons, wallpapers, startup and shutdown animation of their own brand. Some of the main differences are:
• Startup screen is a red China Mobile one.
• Web browser is called Monternet
• Additional icons for a customer service program and 'China Mobile In" (whatever that is!)
• Additional icon for kodak app in Chinese (removable) and a bowling game
• No MSN
• File Explorer is called "My Favorites" which includes a bunch of MMS cards and the folders are named a bit differently. There are a lot of Chinese settings for e-mail, internet etc. Some can be removed, some cannot.

You can also tell if your phone was originally China Mobile branded if has a "CM" printed on the back of the battery cover.


6. Advantages/Disadvantages of each A1200 Firmware Version

This section got so large that it has been moved to its own post!! See the second post at the bottom of this sticky.


7. What is the "Best" Firmware?

"What is the Best Firmware...?"
"What Firmware should I Use...?"

People ask this over and over - but, unfortunately there is no "best" firmware for everyone! Each fw has certain strengths and weaknesses especially in the area of battery life and Voice Response (VR). So what is great for one person, another person may hate - it all depends on how you use your phone and what is important to you - do you want a phone with good speed for playing games or is a good battery life or a good camera more important.

The best thing to do is to read the posts at the bottom of this sticky which lists each firmware and summarizes the Advantages and Disadvantages of each - and decide which firmware best suits your needs.

But here are some recommendations:

If you are on one of the H2 or A1200I L4 firmwares, then probably the hardest decision is to decide whether you want to stay on the H2 track or flash to one of the many C2 fw's (24p, 25p, 30p, etc) or the new A1200/A1600 hybrids - as once you are on these you can not go back to any of the H2 versions.

However, the H2 firmware is no longer being developed - so all of the current H2 fw's are at least 2 years old now. The C2 fw's offer a lot of new features such as being able to run multiple java apps at the same time and using the radio without headphones, etc. so recommend you read the features of each and decide for yourself. [I was on 59P for 2 years and recently flashed to Hybrid e16Xr_a1200ER- and am very happy with it]

H2 track (= Standard & H2)

- If you do a lot of web browsing then currently probably 53P is the best as it has a fast internet speed and an excellent battery life. However, no source file is available for the vanilla 53p fw (so if you have this on your phone, then recommend you stay with it). You are able to flash to Bint's 53p plus.
- Most other H2 track users indicate that they like .08p or Bints 08p plus (.08p is what Alpha43 uses)
- You can also try Mischka's 30p/46p hybrid. This H2 hybrid is feature packed and fast and comes with the EMEA language support. It also allows you to try some of the features of the C2 track firmwares and still be able to flash back. It biggest drawback is poor battery life.

C2 track

As of March 2009, probably the best firmware available for the C2 track is one of the new A1200/A1600 hybrids Hybrid e16Xr_a1200ER - released in Feb 2009. It has been getting rave reviews and I have just flashed my phone to it and really like all of its features including that it has English, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese language support!!! Get the source file and read all about HERE. This firmware works on both A1200, A1200R and A1200E firmwares.

Another recent monsterpack from Amin called Amin's Persian-Gulf El dorado LP is also very popular though has a number of bugs - most importantly a 3-5 lag from when you answer an incoming call phone until you are connected. Amin is working on a new version to fix this - but for the meantime, if you want to try this FW make sure you use the version posted by Rosyzara on Post #55 of this thread - which fixes the lag issue. This firmware works on both A1200, A1200R and A1200E firmwares.

A full list of the advantages/disadvantages of each of these firmwares is posted in the next post of this sticky so you can decide which is best for you.

- If you want to stick to generic, then between 24p, 25p and 30p, most people think 24p is the best.
- The latest firmware 32p has been getting a lot of good reviews also (see the 32P discussion thread - but there is disagreement on how good the VR is - for some people it works very well, while others think it sucks! Depends on how important VR is for you)

R541 Edge Series Track

- Hard decision here as none of the firmwares are fantastic. Probably best to go with the latest fw for this track. A lot of people have flashed to Yan0's 34P monster pack, 34_OENT_XP_v1 or if you want to stay with generic then go with R541_G_11.50.34P

You can also flash to the new monsterpacks Hybrid e16Xr_a1200ERor Amin's Persian-Gulf El dorado LP which works on both A1200, A1200R and R541 firmwares. See under the C2 discussion above for more information on this firmware.

8. What is Flashing?

Flashing is the process by which you can change the version of firmware running on your phone. (Just like you can upgrade your Windows software). The process takes about 10 minutes. Flashing to a different version of firmware should be fairly straightforward if you follow the directions carefully - but if you have any problems then there are many threads devoted to resolving flashing problems.

Generally you can flash from any version of firmware within a track to any other - and then flash back again if desired, but there are important restrictions flashing between the different tracks. Make sure you read the next section What Firmware Can I Flash To before trying to flash between tracks.

No harm will come to the phone from too much flashing, however, you are replacing the entire OS so there is always a small chance you could "brick" your phone if something goes seriously wrong - so the more you flash it, the more chances are that something might go wrong! Depending on your carrier you may also void the warranty! So do it at your own risk and print off and read ALL the instructions before starting. That said I have successfully flashed my phone 8 times now to try out different versions.


9. What Firmware Can I Flash To?

You can flash between any firmware versions on the same track - but there can be problems if you flash between tracks - in worst case, the flash may fail making the phone unusable. Check the following before flashing:

A1200 (H2 track )

(H2 includes Standard and H2 fw tracks)

H2 --> H2: YES - If you are on any of the H2 track fw's, then can flash to any other H2 fw (eg .8p-->59p, 43p->12p) or the H2 hybrids (Mischka's 24p/46p, Mischka's 30p/46p, etc)

H2 --> C2: YES - If you are on any of the H2 track fw's, you can also flash to any of the C2 track fw's (24p, 25p, 30p, etc) or C2 monsterpacks (eg 24xp30, Amin's Persian-Gulf El dorado LP, etc). BUT you can NOT flash from the C2 track back to any of the H2 track fw's as the C2 track has a newer bootloader that doesn't allow downgrade to older version. (i.e if you have one of the H2 track fw's and you do flash to a C2 - be certain about it as you will not be able to go back!)

H2 --> A1200/A1600 hybrid: YES - If you are on any of the H2 track fw's, you can also flash to one of the new A1200/A1600 hybrids (egt Hybrid e16Xr_a1200ER) . BUT you can NOT flash from the 1200/A1600 hybrids back to any of the H2 track fw's as these have a newer bootloader that doesn't allow downgrade to older version.

H2 --> A1200E: MAYBE! - If you are on any of the H2 track firmwares, you can also successfully flash to the A1200E firmwares - although users report that they can not get their internet connections working after doing this - so recommended that you do not try this unless you are experienced. See this thread for more information. If you flash from the A1200 H2 firmware to A1200E you can NOT flash back to the H2 again or you will brick your phone!

A1200R (C2 track)

C2 --> C2: YES - If you have any of the C2 fw's you can flash to any of the others C2 fw's (eg 30p --> 24p).

C2 --> A1200/A1600 hybrid: YES - If you are on any of the C2 track fw's, you can also flash to one of the new A1200/A1600 hybrids (eg Hybrid e16Xr_a1200ER). You can also flash from the hybrid back to C2.

C2 --> H2: NO - Do NOT try to flash to any of the H2 (R532 or R532H2) fw's if your phone has a C2 fw - the flash will fail. This includes flashing to the H2 hybrids (eg Mischka's 24p/46p or Mischka's 30p/46p)

C2 --> A1200E: MAYBE! - You are able to flash from a phone with C2 track fw to one of the fw's listed for the A1200E - but users report that the A1200E fw has different Edge settings and, as a result, they were unable to get internet connectivity working with 01P and 29p and many had issues with 34p. [ See here for discussion on this]. However, if you do flash from the C2 track to one of these, then it looks like it is fairly straightforward to flash back to C2 again.

A1200I (L4 track)

L4 --> L4: NO - Not possible as no source files exist for A1200I firmware

L4 --> H2: NO - You will brick your phone!

L4 --> C2: YES - If you are on any of the L4 track fw's, you can successfully flash to any of the C2 track fw's (24p, 25p, 30p, etc) or C2 monsterpacks (eg 24xp30).

L4 --> A1200/A1600 hybrid: YES - If you are on any of the L4 track fw's, you can successfully flash to one of the new A1200/A1600 hybrids (eg Hybrid e16Xr_a1200ER). It is not known if you can successfully flash from the hybrid back to L4 however.

L4 --> A1200E: NO
See the section on "Spanish/Portuguese/French Language Support" for more detail.

A1200E:

A1200E --> A1200E: YES If you have any of the A1200E fw's you can flash to any of the others A1200E fw's (eg 29p --> 34p).

A1200E --> A1200/A1600 hybrid: YES - If you are on any of the A1200E fw's, you can successfully flash to one of the new A1200/A1600 hybrids (eg Hybrid e16Xr_a1200ER). It is not known if you can successfully flash from the hybrid back to A1200E however.

A1200E --> H2 or C2: NO If your phone came with one of the A1200E fw's, it appears you may be able to flash it to one of the H2 and C2 track fw - but you do so at your own risk - as most users report not being able to complete the flash successfully and several have bricked their phones (See here and here for two sad examples).


10. How to Flash your Phone

[Thanks to MSmiles who wrote most of these instructions for Motorolafans]

Give yourself plenty of time to complete the flashing and BE PATIENT. Sometimes it appears as nothing is happening and the % completed indicator does not change - but in my experience it can sometimes take up to 5 min before the % value changes (especially around 97-99%) - so wait at least 30 minutes before deciding it is stuck. Never disconnect your phone or turn off your PC until the flashing is finished or you may make it unusable (i.e. "brick" it!!). There are ways to recover using a tool called radiocomm (described in the threads) - but they are fairly complex.

01. NECESSARY TOOLS

a. Software and Drivers


You will need to install the following software on your PC:

• Motorola Phone Tools (MPT): This is necessary for you to backup all your contacts, calendar appointments, ringtones, and other media in your phone. Also, installing MPT will also install the basic prerequisite USB drivers necessary for flashing (USB Modem / USB Mass Storage)
  .
• Motorola RSDLite: This is the software we will be using to update the firmware within the a1200 Handset. There are different versions of this software. For the most part, all versions of this software work with the a1200 - though many users prefer versions 2.7 or 2.8.
  - For trouble free installation, if you are running Windows XP, you should have Service Pack 2 installed.
  - If you are using Windows Vista or Windows XP64, you must use RSDLite version 4.1 or greater.
  .
  All the different versions of RSDLite can be downloaded from this thread.
  .
• Drivers: Aside from the USB Modem and USB Mass Storage driver, you will need to utilize additional drivers for the different connection states required for flashing. Many times these drivers already come with MPT. They are stored within the "Program Files\Common Files\Motorola Shared\MotPCSDrivers" directory.
  The drivers you will need are as follows:
  .
  - cdma1x.INF
  - motblan.INF
  - motcomp2k.INF
  - motcompXP.INF
  - p2k.INF
  - USBMOT2000.INF
  - W2KXPMDM.INF
  - motblan.SYS
  - motfilt.SYS
  - P2k.SYS
  .
  If you do not have these additional drivers, you can download MotPCSDrivers.RAR which can be found in can be obtained from this thread. To use this file, you must first 'unrar' it to your desktop so you can easily find it.

b. Firmware Operating System Track

This is one of the most important, if not THE most important thing you will need to pay attention to. You must select the proper firmware compatible with your a1200 Handset. (Do not try to flash from a C2 or A1200E firmware to any of the H2 firmwares or you will brick your phone!!). Links to all the firmware files can found in the Links to A1200 Firmwares sticky.

Once downloaded, you should have a file with the extension of ".SBF" This is the file we will be using in conjunction with MRL.

02. STEP BY STEP PROCEDURE


a. Preparation

1. Back up your contacts and files using Motorola Phone Tools as flashing will delete all of these and return your phone to a 'vanilla' state. Data on your SD card is not touched.
   .
2. Make sure your battery is fully charged. You want to do this for 2 reasons. One, running out of power during the flashing process will potentially render your phone unuseable. Two, should the flashing process fail, there is a possibility your phone will not be able to charge the battery. You want to have enough power in your battery for multiple retries.
   .
3. Go to your MotPCSDrivers directory and manually install every single driver .INF beforehand. To install the drivers manually, simply right click each .INF file and select Install from the pop-up menu.
   .
   With the .INFs pre-installed, RSDLite will automatically detect and load each driver accordingly during the flashing process when they are required.
   .
   This will avoid the hassle of having to install the drivers during the flashing process, mistaken mouse clicks, and failed installs due to time constraints of the flashing process and connection state switches. If you're not able to click fast enough and install the right .INF file before Motorola RSD Lite decides to switch states, you'll have a failed firmware flash. Wait until it's completely finished before disconnecting your phone.
   .
4. Launch the USB Modem connection state in your phone. (This is found in the Applications Browser under Setup --> USB Mode) Don't forget to check the box that says "Auto Launch" in your Modem application
   .
5. Close all other running software in your PC. Close all running apps in your phone.
   .
6. Turn power management settings and screensavers off on your PC.

b. Software Flashing


Breathe easily as this is the easiest step in the whole walkthrough.

1. Launch RSDLite in your PC. You should not be asked to install any drivers if you followed step 3 in the Preparation, but if you are then point it in the direction to the motpcsdrivers folder you unrared.
   .
2. Put your phone into Motorola Bootloader Mode (MBM):
   In order to flash your a1200 Handset, it must be in MBM Flash mode. This is an administrative tech mode and your handset screen will be red. There are three methods to enter this mode.
   .
   MBM Method #1: With your phone already in the USB Modem state, go ahead and connect it to your computer via USB mini cable. Close Motorola Phone Tools if it launches automatically. Go to RSDLite and click "Show Device." It should be able to detect your phone and switch it to MBM Mode automatically.
   .
   MBM Method #2: With your phone turned off, press and hold the "Center Joystick Button" on the face of the phone and the "Voice Command Button" on the right side of the phone. With these two buttons pressed down, press the red "Hang-Up / Power Button" once. Your phone will turn on and enter MBM Mode. At this time you can connect your phone via USB min cable to your PC. Go to RSDLite and click "Show Device."
   .
   MBM Method #3: With phone off, hold the Voice button (bottom button on right side) down. While still pressed down, connect to USB mini cable that is already plugged into PC. Phone should start in MBM mode
   .
3. Once your handset is connected, RSDLite should list the phone (this may take a minute or so. If it does not close down RSDLite and restart it. If still issues having RSDLite recognise your phone then see this troubleshooting thread). When it has recognized your phone, RSDLite will show "Connected" under the status column.
   .
4. Under "Filename:" locate the firmware track file you downloaded previously. (This is your ".SBF" file) Open the file and it will be loaded into MRL.
   .
5. Once the firmware track is loaded, MRL will display META Data about the firmware. (Filename, Creation Date, File Size, RAM DL Version, Bootloader Version, Platform: GSM, HAB Type, etc.)
   .
6. Double check to make sure your phone is in MBM Mode.
   .
7. Click "Start" and this will initialize the flashing process.

The process will take up to 10 minutes so be patient, the screen on you phone will turn off, but RSDLite will still show progress. BE PATIENT - sometime the % complete indicator may not change for up to 3-5 minutes. Do not disconnect your phone until MRL gives you a result.

[It should not ask you to install any additional drivers if your did step 3 in Preparation correctly. But if a "Found New Hardware" screen does pop up, select "NO" for "Can Windows connect to Windows Update?" then select "Y" for "Install Software from a specific location" and point it to the motpcsdrivers folder you unrared. Once the driver has installed, click on "Finish" on the "Found New Hardware wizard" to continue the process. A popup may also appear stating that Microsoft has not certified this software - just click on Continue]


c. Safety Precautions

1. Do not leave your PC. Watch each process finish under status to make sure they all cleared successfully.
2. This is the time where your PC will make the USB connection / disconnection sounds.
3. Power management and screensavers have the ability to turn off your hard-drive after your mouse idles for a certain amount of time.
4. Double check to make sure these settings are turned off as they may interfere with the flashing.

03. CLOSURE


a. Finished Firmware Update

1. It may ask you to manually restart the phone - if so, unplug the cable from PC, remove the battery for 5 seconds (make sure unplugged first!), put battery back in then turn phone back on (before plugging back into PC).
2. Once its fully on, go to Setup --> USB Mode and change mode from "Mass Storage" to "Modem".
3. Plug phone back into the PC using the cable. If flash was successful, then RSDLite should say "complete" or "PASS". If the flash update was successful it will say "PASS" or "Completed" otherwise you will see "ERROR" or "Flash Failed" (If the procedure fails. See next section).
4. Unplug the phone again, turn it off and on. All should be complete.

b. Clean Up

After installing all the additional drivers, Motorola Phone Tools may have problems detecting your phone. This happens because the PC cannot decide which of the 9 drivers to associate with MPT. The administrative device drivers are detected by the PC with priority over the USB Modem and USB Mass Storage drivers. Unless these are taken out or the load priorities are switched, your phone will not connect as a USB Modem.

Solution #1:


Switching driver priorities.

1. Connect your phone via USB mini to your PC using Mass Storage state.
2. At this time your PC will install generic Mass Storage drivers.
3. Run Motorola Phone Tools. It should be able to detect your phone.
4. MPT will say "Please wait while changing phone to USB Modem mode"
5. This will reinstall the USB Modem driver and overwrite the administrative driver priority.
6. After the USB Modem driver is installed. Disconnect your phone.
7. Run the phone detection on MPT and connect your phone.

• Don't forget to switch from Mass Storage to USB Modem when you do this.

• Make sure to check "Auto Launch" in the Modem application

If this fails then use Solution #2:


Uninstall ALL the Motorola related devices.

1. Connect your phone via USB mini to your PC using USB Modem state with the "Auto Launch" checked.
2. Open up Windows Hardware Device Manager.
3. There should be a branch that says "Motorola USB Devices"
4. Go down the list and uninstall each one.
5. Restart your computer

(Note: Your phone has to be connected to see this list of devices and to uninstall them. The device list is attached to this thread)

You can now restore all your contacts, calendar and tasks back to your phone using MPT. (Be sure to remove the SIM card before doing this as the recovery function from MPT deletes any contact on SIM for some reason!)


11. What to Do if Problems!!!

If you have any problems then don't panic - the best thing is to close RSDLite, unplug the phone, take out the battery, replace then try again from the start flashing to the SAME firmware as the first time

If you get any of the following error messages that have been reported by users, then it appears most have been resolved by starting the flash process from the start:
- The "secure_motorola_flash" interface could not be found the super-file is secure and for re-flash, the phone needs a super-file that is not secure and for reflash. (0x7066)
- "flashing couldn't be complete because of licensed data"
- "error jumping to RAM downloader"
- "error verifying subscriber unit info chipset type does not match "
- a red line across their battery after flashing

Most times it will go right through the second time - although some users have reported having to repeat the process up to 5 times before getting the "PASS".

If flash fails and you are unable to get it back into boot mode by pressing the 3 buttonns together - then take out the battery, wait 10 secs and try again - that usually seems to do the trick.

If you flash again several times and it is still unsuccessful:

1. Try a different USB port - a lot of users have stated that changing the USB port they have their phone plugged into helps, this is most likely because windows will reinstall all the drivers.

2. Try a different version of RSD Lite.

3. Make sure you put your phone in to USB MODEM MODE before plugging it back in. If you do not do this your system will not install all the devices correctly.

4. Try a different version of the firmware.

Postings indicate that if all else fails, then as a last resort you can flash your phone to one of the firmwares on the C2 firmware track and it will be successful (however you will be stuck with that firmware). Even users who attempted to flash their Spanish Language A1200I phone and ended up with a dead phone were able to flash to 24p successfully (though lost all of their Spanish language functions).

• Problem: Phone will not go into MBM Mode

If the phone will not turn on in MBM mode (ie with the red screen) by using the 3 button method described above, you can also force it doing the following (start off with the phone off and battery must be in it)
1. Hold Voice button (bottom button on right side) down
2. While still pressed down, connect data cable that is already plugged into PC
Phone should start in MBM mode

• Problem: Phone does not turn on after flashing

If after flashing, the phone does not appear to turn on then take out the battery, wait at least 10 seconds then put back in. If still does not turn on then put it down, plug it in to charger and leave it for at least 30 minutes. This has happened to me a couple of times. After coming back to it - it turned on fine.

• Problem: Phone can not read SIM card or has no signal after flashing

Some users experienced problems with the phone reading the SIM card or not getting a signal after flashing (ie it searches and finds nothing). If this happens to you then try the following:

1. Tap on status bar in home screen. Switch off antenna tap ok on the bottom. Then switch on antenna again. (You may need to repeat this a couple of times)

2. If that doesn't work, change the network band to 850/1900 [dial pad-->menu button (at bottom left)-->setup--> network setup--> menu button--> search setup--> band and put it on 850/1900. After that close all those things and you should have service again. Once you get your service back, repeat the steps and put it on automatic again.

• Problem: After Flash phone only has Turkish and French Keyboards

After installing certain firmwares (eg .08p) there is a known bug that thre is no English keyboard - the phone will only show French, Turkish, Numeric, Pinyin, Zhuyin and Handwriting.

To fix it, change the Default Language Setting (in Setup) from Automatic to English and restart the phone. This should correct the problem.

==============================================================================================

All of the information presented in this write-up was obtained from user's postings from the various threads on this forum. A best effort was made to ensure it is complete and accurate including performing all of the steps presented on my own phone - but there are no guarantees there are not errors!!

This Guide took many hours to research and put together. If you found the information useful, perhaps you would consider donating a few dollars to keep the Motorolafans site funded as it costs $60 each month in hosting fees. See the announcement at the top of the A1200 forum for details on how to do this or contact me (Alpha43 or Admin) for details on how to do so.

Thanks and happying Moto'ing & Good Luck to you all!

[kiwiguy]

List Of all A1200 Firmwares with Advantages and Disadvantages

Each version of the firmware has a number of advantages and disadvantages. Unfortunately at this time there is no version that has everything - so you have to pick which best suits your needs. The main enhancements/bugs that the various versions fix are:

• Voicemail bug - in some versions a blank text message is sent to your phone every time you check your voicemail or someone leaves you a voicemail.

• Network Time bug - the A1200 has a feature that permits it to receive a time signal from your carrier (eg t-mobile) to automatically set the time on your phone rather than you having to manually set it. (To turn this on click the your World Clock or Time icon and click on the bottom left menu button-->Network Time. Check this box to enable it). However, in some fw versions this network time function does not work.

• Daylight Savings Time (DST) bug - the DST calendar for the different timezones and cities is built into the phone. On all of the older versions of fw (like 08p up to 30p), it has the pre-2007 DST calendar which is wrong for some timezones (mainly USA and Canada which have recently changed their DST begin/end date) so phone will reset time to DST on wrong dates. Fixing the Network time bug and getting the time from the Network should fix this.

• Speakerphone fix - permits you to use the speakerphone with the flip shut

• Photo autosave fix - some versions of the firmware permit you to take photos continuously without being prompted to save each picture before making the next; while others make you select whether you want to Save or Delete each picture after you take it.

• Volume fix - many people find the volume of the speakerphone is too low. Some versions of the firmware increase the volume. There is also a fix posted that can fix this independently.

[If your version of firmware has one of these bugs, most of them can be fixed by performing a SEEM edit using a tool called Radiocom. See the section at the bottom of the "Guide to Modding your A1200" for instructions on how to do this].

Firmware Versions

There are constantly new versions of firmware being released so you should check the threads for the latest. However following is a summary of the main versions that were available as of May 2008 - along with their advantages and disadvantages gathered from user's posts - so you can see where you stand with your current version.

Most popular versions marked with this symbol ==>

30p --> 40p --> 50p "Standard" Track

** All the Standard firmwares are Quadband **

30p - R532_G_11.00.30P - outdated version

32p - R532_G_11.00.32P - outdated version
34p - R532_G_11.00.34P - outdated version
35p - R532_G_11.00.35P - outdated version
37p - R532_G_11.00.37P - outdated version
38p - R532_G_11.00.38P - "China mobile" branded - outdated version
40p - R532_G_11.00.40P - "China mobile" branded - outdated version
41p - R532_G_11.00.41P - "China mobile" branded - outdated version
43p - R532_G_11.00.43P - "China mobile" branded - outdated version

44p - Released March 2006. Comes in both generic and "China mobile" branded versions (R532_G_11.00.44P).

46p - generic version (R532_G_11.00.46P) released May 2006.
Summary
• 3 USB Modes - Modem, Mass Storage, USB Net
• Battery Life - good
• Speed - average
• Camera Quality - average. (Has additional low light option for taking pictures at night.)
• Camera Photo Autosave option - Yes
• Voice Response accuracy - good
• Volume - Poor. Volume fix needs to be applied
• Internet connectivity speed - Unknown
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
• Voicemail bug fixed - no need for SEEM edit
• First time that calendar dispalyed on main screen (all later fw's have this)
• Battery indicator works better than previous fw's
Disadvantages:
• Takes a long time to find cellular signal when switched on

46p with EMEA language support - generic 46p, but modified by Mischka to include the Spanish/Portuguese/French language pack which adds Spanish/Portuguese/French keyboards and Voice Recognition
• Exactly same features as 46p - but with the added language support and removes Chinese.
• Users who have tried both this and Mischka's .08p with EMEA language pack prefer the .08p as it is faster and better camera quality.

48p - comes in both generic and "China mobile" branded versions (R532_G_11.00.48P). Generic 48P is not available for download. Appears very similar to 44p. Not much posted about it.

50p - R532_G_11.00.50P.

53P - popular version (R532_G_11.00.53P) released Sept 2006. Comes in both generic and "China mobile" branded versions, however only the "China mobile" version is available for download so if your phone came with generic 53P, it is recommended that you do NOT flash it unless you are really sure you want to go to a new version - as you can not go back! [A good modded version also (Bint's 53P plus) - see under Monsterpacks.
Summary
• 2 USB Modes - Modem , Mass Storage (does not have the option "USB net" under USB Mode in setup. This permits your phone to communicate through the cable as a tcp device, i.e. telnet, samba etc)
• Battery Life - EXCELLENT (3+ days)
• Speed - average
• Camera Quality - good. (Has additional low light option for taking pictures at night.)
• Camera Photo Autosave option - Yes
• Voice Response accuracy - average
• Volume - Poor. Volume fix needs to be applied
• Internet connectivity speed - FAST
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
• Carrier logo/date are displayed further down on Home screen which many users think looks better.
• More ringtones
Disadvantages:
• Voicemail bug issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Network time issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Video - Poor video quality
• Has limit on size of MMS attachments
• Superman app can be installed - but only backup/restore works - not MPKG or Linloader - these have to be installed separately. SmartAsst does work however.

57P - very buggy version (R532_G_11.00.57P). Known bugs include phone hangs when battery low. Not much else is posted about it.

59P - released Nov 2006 (R532_G_11.00.59P). Comes in both generic and "China mobile" branded versions but generic 59P is not available for download. [A good modded version also exists (Bint's 59xpV2) - see under Monsterpacks].
Summary
• 2 USB Modes - Modem, Mass Storage (does not have the option "USB net" under USB Mode in setup. This permits your phone to communicate through the cable as a tcp device, i.e. telnet, samba etc)
• Battery Life - POOR
• Speed - good
• Camera Quality - good.
• Camera Photo Autosave option - Unknown
• Voice Response accuracy - average
• Volume - Poor. Volume fix needs to be applied
• Internet connectivity speed - average
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
• Full list of advantages not posted, but seems very responsive with good picture quality.
Disadvantages:
• Voicemail bug issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Network time issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Speakerphone function does not work (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Turning on the tower information causes a SMS msg to be sent to phone every minute containing the name of the tower - rather than displaying it on the screen

[kiwiguy]

01p --> 06p --> 08p --> 12p --> 13P "H2" Track

** All the H2 firmwares are Quadband **

Note: Development of H2 track firmwares seems to be at an end. No new H2 firmwares have been released for over a year.

Most popular versions marked with this symbol ==>

01p - R532H2_G_11.20.01P - outdated version
02p - R532H2_G_11.20.02P - outdated version
03p - R532H2_G_11.20.03P - outdated version
04p - R532H2_G_11.20.04P - outdated version
05p - R532H2_G_11.20.05P - outdated version

06p - R532H2_G_11.20.06P - outdated version: poor battery life, low volume and blurry camera, however speakerphone function works with flip close. Missing USB-Net. Not recommended.

07p - R532H2_G_11.20.07P - outdated version

08p - popular generic version (R532H2_G_11.20.08P) released Oct 2006. [A good modded version also exists (Bint's 08P plus) - see under Monsterpacks].
Summary
• 2 USB Modes - Modem , Mass Storage (does not have the option "USB net" under USB Mode in setup. This permits your phone to communicate through the cable as a tcp device, i.e. telnet, samba etc)
• Battery Life - AVERAGE (~2 days)
• Speed - good
• Camera Quality - good. Best of this track.
• Camera Photo Autosave option - No. Photos ask you whether to save each one
• Voice Response accuracy - average
• Volume - Poor. Volume fix needs to be applied
• Internet Connectivity speed - average. Has slower internet connection than 53Pv3
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards) - but also includes French and Turkish keyboards.
Advantages:
• Speakerphone function works with flip close.
• Able to transfer large files with bluetooth to your SD card
• Reception - generally seems better than the .06p, and .43p
Disadvantages:
• Voicemail bug issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Network time issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Some users report menu touch response is slightly slower and while playing games.
• Has a small bug that if language setting is on "automatic" then English keyboard is replaced by nonworking "Turkish Board" . This is easily fixed by changing language from Automatic to English.

08p with EMEA language support - generic 08p, but modified by Mischka to include the Spanish/Portuguese/French language pack which adds Spanish/Portuguese/French keyboards and Voice Recognition.
• Exactly same features as 08p - but with the added language support and removes Chinese.

09p - R532H2_G_11.20.09P - Few people report having this. Nothing known about it.

12p - generic version (R532H2_G_11.20.12p) released Dec 2006. Appears to be the main fw installed on phones currently being bought in India. No source file available.
Summary:
• 2 USB Modes - Modem , Mass Storage
• Battery Life - POOR to AVERAGE
• Speed - good
• Camera Quality - good (Has additional low light option for taking pictures at night)
• Camera Photo Autosave option - No. Photos asks you to save each one
• Video Quality - Avg (max res 176x144) (has NIGHT MODE)
• Voice Response accuracy - Good
• Volume - Poor. Volume fix needs to be applied
• Internet Connectivity speed - Poor (1 user's opinion)
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
• Speakerphone function works with flip close
• Able to transfer large files with bluetooth to your SD card
• Reception - Good
• Installed java apps are able to access network without requiring permissions change.
Disadvantages:
• Voicemail bug issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Network time issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Has bug in that it does not show the categories User1 and User2 in App Manager, even though you can assign an app to these when you do the install.
• Has bug with missed call alerts. Every few (~3) days the phone needs to be rebooted otherwise the missed call alert function stops working.

13p - generic version (R532H2_G_11.20.13P) first reported Dec 2007. Nothing currently known about it.

[kiwiguy]

19p --> 24p --> 25p --> 30p --> 31p --> 32p "C2" Track

IMPORTANT: Once you flash to one of the firmwares on the C2 track, you must stay on this track. You can not flash back to any other version of firmware (eg .8p, 59p, etc).

** All the C2 firmwares are Quadband **

Most popular versions marked with this symbol ==>

19p - C2 track generic version (R532C2_G_11.30.19P) released Feb 2007. Little known about it. No source file available.
Summary
• 4 USB Modes - Modem , Mass Storage, Media Sync & USB Lan
• Battery Life - unknown
• Speed - unknown
• Camera Quality - good
• Camera Photo Autosave option - Yes
• Voice Response accuracy - unknown
• Volume - volume fix applied
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Unknown
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
• Real Player - can hold 500 songs

24p - released March 2007 (R532C2_G_11.30.24P) - at the moment only a ChinaMobile branded generic version available for download. [Very good monsterpack version of this fw also available (see Monsterpack section)]
Summary
• 4 USB Modes - Modem , Mass Storage, Media Sync & USB Lan
• Battery Life - AVERAGE (~2 days)
• Speed - Faster, especially menu response & mass storage USB mode loading
• Camera Quality - good
• Camera Photo Autosave option - Yes
• Voice Response accuracy - GOOD. Has the best VR of all C2 track (VR is very poor on 25p and 30p)
• Volume - good; volume fix applied
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Unknown
• Languages - English, Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
• Video - up to 320x240 and 355x288. However fps decrease to 8 with 255 and 9-10 with 320.
• QR barcode reader - see Bint's 59XP below for more info on this app.
• Realplayer - new version with equalizer & higher resolution and can hold 500 songs
• Faster Bluetooth connection
• Google Mobile Search launch
• Superman - installed
• Edge - no, but can be enabled with seem edit
Disadvantages:
• MPKG and Linloader - can not install (however, "Superman" already installed)
• Run multiple java apps at same time - No (30p can run multiple)
• Network time issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• File Explorer is called "My Favorites"
• Skin - Ugly red CM icons. Animated icons
• Turning on the tower information causes a text msg to be sent to you every minute containing the name of the tower - rather than displaying it on the screen

25p - released April 2007 (R532C2_G_11.31.25P). Both ChinaMobile and generic versions (A1200R_HK_R532C2_G_11.31.25P.sbf) available - but I would probably skip this for the newer 32p. Following are pros/cons of generic version:
Summary
• 3 USB Modes - Modem , Mass Storage, and Media Sync**
• Battery Life - AVERAGE - reported to be better than 24p and 30p
• Speed - Faster than 24p
• Camera Quality - average. (Has additional low light option for taking pictures at night.)
• Camera Photo Autosave option - Yes
• Voice Response accuracy - POOR; does not work very well.
• Volume - good; volume fix applied
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
Has all the advantages of 24p plus:
• Skin - "Windows XP" skin.
• Realplayer - new version with equalizer & higher resolution and can hold 500 songs
• Superman - can install and works fine -but needs special install - see Guide to Modding for instructions.
• MPKG - can install - but have to use special yan0's 25p MPKG Installer - see Guide to Modding for instructions.
• SmartAssistant - can install and works fine - but needs special install - see Guide to Modding for instructions.
• FM Radio without headphones app (from FAQs) works
• Media Sync has Exchange ActiveSync and OTA
• Edge - no, but can be enabled with seem edit
Disadvantages:
• Some users have reported not very stable
• Camera - does not have "silent" option
• Run multiple java apps at same time? - No (30p can run multiple)
• Can not use speakerphone with flip shut (can be fixed)
• Turning on the tower information causes a text msg to be sent to you every minute containing the name of the tower - rather than displaying it on the screen

** After you do the 25P partial flash to allow MPKG to be installed then there will be 4 USB modes, USB Net will be added.

30p - released May 2007 (R532C2_g_11.30.30P). Both ChinaMobile branded and debranded XP (A1200r_R532C2_G_11.30.30P_OENT_XP.sbf) versions available to download. Following are pros/cons of OENT XP version:
Summary
• 5 USB modes - Modem, Mass Storage, USB Net, Media Sync and Web Camera
• Battery Life - AVERAGE (~2 days)
• Speed - Faster boot speed
• Camera Quality - average. (Has additional low light option for taking pictures at night.)
• Camera Photo Autosave option - Yes
• Voice Response accuracy - POOR; does not work very well.
• Volume - good; volume fix applied; also improved sound quality
• Camera Quality - improved over the 24xp; Has additional low light option for taking pictures at night.
• Internet Connectivity speed - faster WAP speed
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
Has all the advantages of 25p - but appears to be more stable.
• Camera - has "silent" option
• Skin - "Windows XP" skin (oent xp version only)
• Run multiple java apps at same time - Yes (only fw on C2 track that can do this)
• Superman - installed (oent xp version only)
• MPKG - can install
• Edge - no, but can be enabled with seem edit
Disadvantages:
• Realplayer - no equalizer
• Turning on the tower information causes a text msg to be sent to you every minute containing the name of the tower - rather than displaying it on the screen

31p - released July 2007. Only a Yan0 modified monsterpack version is available - see Monsterpacks section below.

32p - released Aug 2007. Only a Yan0 modified monsterpack version is available - see Monsterpacks section below.

[kiwiguy]

R541 Edge Series Track

A relatively new firmware track that was released for the new A1200 Edge Series A1200's. This firmware already has Edge enabled (For all other firmwares you have to do a radiocom mod to turn on Edge). Downside is that these fw's are all only Tri-band rather than Quad-band - though there is a SEEM edit that can be done to make them Quadband. The other issue is that the normal versions of Superman, MPKG and LINLoader do not work on this series of firmware. You have to use a special version of MPKG released by Yan0. There have also been many monsterpacks of this track released on the Chinese ccmove site. The main ones that users have tried are described in the Monsterpack section below.

Warning: There seem to be issues flashing to or from the A1200E fw's from other tracks. Read section 4 "Which Firmware can I Flash To" before flashing any A1200E firmwares.

Note: It is a little hard to determine which is the most advanced firmware in this track. It appears that there is a "P" series: 01P --> 29P-->34P followed by the newer "R" series: 04R-->08R-->09R.

R541_G_11.51.01P - released Jan 2007. Both China Mobile and generic (A1200E_CMCC_No_lock_R541_G_11.51.01P.sbf) versions available.
Summary
• Edge - enabled by default
• 3 USB modes - Modem, Mass Storage, Media Sync (No USB Net)
• Battery Life - UNKNOWN
• Speed - unknown
• Camera Quality - unknown
• Camera Photo Autosave option - Yes
• Voice Response accuracy - unknown
• Volume - unknown
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
• Video - up to 352x288
• Real Player - new version with intro and better GUI
• Skin - ugly red CM icons
Disadvantages:
• Realplayer - no equalizer
• Network time issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• MPKG - does not work (although a couple of users did report they got Superman to work)
Discussion and download link for the 01P firmware is available here.

R541_G_11.50.29P - released May 2007. Generic debranded XP version available for download. Users not able to get internet connectivity working. One user has also reported a 29P with an Italian language pack (sold in Italy)
Summary
• Edge - enabled by default
• 3 USB modes - Modem, Mass Storage, Media Sync (No USB Net)
• Battery Life - UNKNOWN
• Speed - OS is faster
• Camera Quality - on par with 8P if not better
• Camera Photo Autosave option - Yes
• Voice Response accuracy - aveage
• Volume - unknown
• Internet Connectivity speed - Users report issues getting web browsing and mms working
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
• Video - up to 352x288
• Real Player - with intro and better GUI
• Comes with MSN, Snowboard Game and longmans dictionary.
Disadvantages:
• Realplayer - no equalizer
• Network time issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Superman/MPKG/SmartAsst - none of these work on this fw!
Discussion and download link for the 29P firmware is available here.


R541_G_11.50.34P - released June 2007. Both ChinaMobile branded and (a more recent) debranded XP version (R541_G_11.50.34P_OENT_XP_v1) available. Most users who flashed to this fw from C2 track unable to get internet connections working. Many people with generic 34P have had a hard time getting MPKG or Superman installed. SmartAssistant seems to install ok.
Following is features of 34P OENT_XP_V1:
Summary
• Edge - enabled by default
• 4 USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, USB net, Webcamera (not working)
• Battery Life - AVERAGE (same as 30p)
• Speed - same as 30p
• Camera Quality - same as 24p and 30p
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes, enabled by default w/o sound... with flip open and close
• Voice Response accuracy - decent, reported has better VR than 25P and 30P (about as good as 24P)
• Volume - same as 30p
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
• Similar to 30p
• Skin - "Windows XP" (default black theme has CM icons)
• Video - up to 352*288
• Superman - already installed (34P_OENT_XP_v1 version only, generic version - no)
• Screen 3 - working - in Chinese
• Run multiple java apps at same time - Yes
Disadvantages:
• Realplayer - no equalizer
• Push email - not installed
Discussion and download link for the 34P firmware is available here.
[If you are thinking of moving to this firmware, you should consider using Yan0's 34p monsterpack version (see at bottom of Monsterpack section)]
.
R541_G_11.52.04R - first reported Jul 10th 2007 - only reported by 1 user in Italy so not much is known about it. It may be a special Edge fw for the Italian market as has Italian language support? No download file is available
.
R541_G_11.52.08R - first reported Aug 6th 2007 - this firmware is installed by default in all Russian A1200E's. Not much is known about it. No download file is available.
Summary/Advantages:
• Edge - enabled by default
• Quad-band
• Russian language support (interface and inputs)

R541_G_11.52.12R - updated verison of the Russian language 08R. Only sold in Russian market. Superman/MPKG/SmartAsst do not work on this fw.

R541_G_11.52.13R - latest Russian language firmware. Superman/MPKG/SmartAsst do not work on this fw.

R541L7_G_11.00.16R - reported in March 2008. A1200E firmware sold in Brazil.

R541_G_11.53.04R - first reported Jan 2008 - not much is known about it yet. Appears developed for the international market as has English, Spanish, French and Portuguese languages. No download file is available.
Summary/Advantages:
• Edge - enabled by default
• Quad-band
• Languages - English, Spanish, French and Portuguese
Disadvantages:
• Superman/MPKG/SmartAsst - none of these work on this fw!

R541_G_11.56.09R - first reported Dec 2007 by a few users in the USA and Canada. See this thread. Phones with this fw are also reported to have a small slot for attaching a handstrap on the top left corner of the handset (opposite the stylus).
Summary
• Edge - enabled by default
• USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, Media Sync
• Battery Life - OK
• Speed - Good
• Camera Quality - 2.0 Megapixel camera, up to 1200x1600 pixels (includes macro)
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes
• Voice Response accuracy - unknown
• Volume - Good
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Chinese (Handwriting, Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
• Skin - 3 themes, theme name1(grey scale), theme name2(white, grey, blue), theme name3(electric blue and grey)
• Video - up to 352x288
• Screen 3 - unknown
• Run multiple java apps at same time - Yes
• Reported as being Quad-band.
Disadvantages:
• Realplayer - no equalizer
• Superman/MPKG/SmartAsst - none of these work on this fw!

R541_G_11.56.11R - first reported April 2007 by users in the USA and Canada. See this thread.
Summary
• Pretty stable and quick.
• Edge - enabled by default
• USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, Media Sync
• Battery Life average (1+ day so far)
• Volume is good.
• 3 video modes.
• Quad band already enabled.
• All four shortcuts changeable.
• Camera autosave with flip closed.
• VR is pretty good
• Talking Phone enabled.
Disadvantages:
• No FM Radio with flip closed.
• No silent camera/recorder.
• No Screen 3.
• Superman/MPKG/SmartAsst - none of these work on this fw!


Also see R541 Monsterpacks at bottom of next post

[kiwiguy]

MONSTERPACKS

There have also been a number of modified versions of the firmware (aka "monsterpacks") posted to the forum. The latest and most feature packed are hybrid monsterpacks that combine the BP from one of the A1200R fws (eg 14R) and the AP from new A1600 (16R) - these started to appear in mid 2008. See at the bottom for information on these.

Most popular versions marked with this symbol ==>

"Standard" & "H2" Track Monsterpacks

Bint's 53p Plus
** A1200
Modification of the 53p "China Mobile" version with the volume increase and speaker phone fix incorporated among other improvements. Released in Sept 2006, there are 3 Versions - Plus 1 (which is still CM branded), Plus 2 (debranded - but not recommended as camera blurry) and Plus 3 (debranded). Plus 3 is the latest and greatest (Voice Response does not work on Versions 1 and 2). Users who were on .08p report that this fw is much better than .08p
Summary
• Same as 53p except for following:
Advantages:
All advantages of 53p plus:
• 3 USB Modes - Modem , Mass Storage plus USB Net mode added
• Volume - volume fix applied
• MPKG and linloader already installed
• MSN messager and Longman dictionary preinstalled
• Video - compared to 08p, videos run much more smoothly
• Speakerphone function works - though some report not very well (does not work at all on generic 53p)
• Camera has "silent shutter" option already built in
Disadvantages:
• Voice Response does NOT work on Versions 1 and 2 - when you press button nothing happens. Users report works fine on Version 3.
• Voicemail bug issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Network time issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
Other
• Not sure if pro or con - but if you install the exmms winamp player this makes makes the system volume become set permanently high (even if you reboot). Only solution is to set the ringer volume low in the setup.

Bint's 59p
** A1200
Debranded version of 59P with a number of improvements. Released in Oct 2006, so far there are 3 versions with version 2 (59xpV2_bint_EMEA_L4_debr_mis.rar) being fastest and most stable. (Per some users V3 appears to be a downgrade!). Bint had debranded nearly all of it except for some Chinese menus and the red CM startup theme. Mischka did additional debranding, deleting some chinese stuff and changed startup animation, themes and icons to 08p version and changed language and keyboard to L4 version with english/french/portuguese/spanish GUI and EMEA keyboards. VR is North American version (not British) with L4 language - which should work better for Americans/Canadians. See this thread for details.
Same as 59p with these enhancements:
Summary
• 4 USB Modes - Modem, Mass Storage, Media Sync (added), USB Net (added)
• Battery Life - Poor
• Speed - Good. Bint 59xp V1 is a bit slow but Version 2 is faster. Rated faster than 08p and 12p.
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes (you can choose whether or not to auto save photos or not)
• Volume - volume fix applied
• Voice Response accuracy - average to good. With VR turned on, new enhancement that the numbers on the dial pad and the names in your address book are read out loud to you as you select them.
• Internet speed - average
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English, French, Spanish and Portuguese and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
Advantages:
• Video Camera - supports 2 new resolutions:
- 352*288 at 7fps max
- 320*240 at 8fps
- 176*144 at 15fps
• Bluetooth - You can choose whether or not to save on the SD Card or not.
• Modem - new Bluetooth modem option.
• Realplayer - new RP with equalizer with 5 presets - bass boost preset works amazing for those who like more bass in the A1200's output. Next 4 presets are practically useless. Every time you open and close the player the next time you open it you have to reset the preset (off the equalizer and then set it to preset again). While playing MP3's the tracks skip or jerk a bit like in the ROKR E2 but this problem wasn't present with aac format. The Music is better arranged in Real Player with a brand new start up animation for real player.
• QR barcode Code Reader - does not read traditional product barcodes, but new square QR-codes that point you to a product's webpage. This barcode reader is very popular in Japan. When you start the app it shows you an example of this barcode (At the moment the only way to get this app for the A1200 is bundled in 59XP or 24p. It can not be downloaded separately).
• Superman - installed
• Media Sync has Exchange ActiveSync and OTA
• Some users report predictive text is better
Disadvantages:
• Reported to be quite "buggy" and not very stable
• Probably most important, Call Divert (to divert your calls to other numbers or to voicemail) does not work
• Skin - Windows animation and Red Chinese themed icons (Mischka�s EMEA version fixes this)
• File Structure - is different from the normal A1200 (minor)
• No "Update software" application (not very important)
• Can not use joystick while playing videos.

Bint's .08p plus
** A1200
08p generic version that is popular with many users. Has all advantages of .08p plus following bug fixes:
• Voicemail bug fixed
• Volume - volume fix applied
• Also seems to fix slow response issue.
• Just like 08p it also includes French and Turkish keyboards.

Eakrin's R532H2 11.20.09P Lamborghini
** A1200
Released Feb 17th 2008, this 09P monsterpack was created by Motorolafans moderator, Earkrin from Thailand and has a very distinctive Lamborghini design. see this thread for discussion, links and screenshots
Summary
• Based on R532H2_11.20.09P Thai-English firmware.
• Edge - enabled by default
• 4 USB Modes - Modem, Mass Storage, Media Sync, USB Net
• Battery Life - OK (same as 09P)
• Speed - Good (same as 09P)
• Camera Quality - 2.0 Megapixel camera, up to 1200x1600 pixels (includes macro)
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes (same as 09P)
• Voice Response accuracy - unknown
• Volume - Good (same as 09P)
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Thai
Advantages:
• Run multiple java apps at same time - Yes
• Reported as being Quad-band.
• Default skin, wallpaper and bootimage is Lamborghini
• Startup sound is Lamborghini Engine.
• Thai language Quick text.
• Intregated ringtones from A1200/E6.
• Addressbook now display in thumbnail.
• Bluetooth device name is Lamborghini-Gallardo.
• 3 mailboxes have been preset: gmail, mailmoto (www.mailmoto.com webmail for motorola user from Motorola Thailand), and yahoo.co.th
• Opera bookmarks ThaiLinuxPDA.com, E680.pantown.com and MotorolaFans.com
• default font size adjusted to same as used on E6.
• Application categories increased from 7 to 9 (All, Office, Multimedia, Extra, Games, ...)
• Category "User1" changed to "Toys"; "User2" to "Applications"
• Can use SD that have 1-4 FAT partition.
• Startup .lin script runs when power on phone
• Easy font switching
• Can change to USBNet mode by echo at+mode=13 command. (for recovery from phone freezing)
• More samba mounting points
• loop.o, ext2.o, ext3.o modules added
• 2 Application menu categories (Favorite and Utilities) added
• Threesearch truetype font supports many many language.
• Ezx Mpkg and Yan0's MPKG works
Disadvantages:
• Realplayer - no equalizer
• Superman/SmartAsst - these do not work on this fw!


"C2" Track Monsterpacks

24p Monsterpacks - There are currently 4 different 24p monsterpack fw's available:
• Bint's 24p plus
• Bint's 24xp30
• Eduprogramador's 24xpp
• 59p/24p (unknown author)

Bint's 24p plus
** A1200, A1200R
3 different versions of this : "Crack 1" (released Dec 2006) which is CM branded; "New Year" version (released Jan 2007) which is also CM branded; and "24xp" (released Jan 2007) which has been debranded and has "Windows XP" startup/shutdown animation. However, most users skip this version in favor of Mischka's 24xp30. Following are pros/cons that users have posted of XP version:
Summary
• Exactly same as 24p - but with following enhancements:
Advantages:
• Video quality - good. Has 355*288 and 340*220
• Realplayer - has equalizer
• Skin - CM branding and icons removed . "Windows XP" skin added.
• Superman - installed. MPKG works.

Mischka's 24xp30 EMEA version (24xp30_c2_bint_emea_l4_debr_01_mis)
** A1200, A1200R
Created May 2007, this fw (sometimes called Bint's 24xp30 and sometimes called Mischka's 24xp30 in the threads) is Bint's 24xp fw that has been enhanced by Mishka by adding some features from 30p. Mischka did additional debranding of the fw to remove CM icons and XP skin/theme (added generic blue skin instead); added the application manager and cam from 30p; and, probably most importantly, added EMEA (Spanish/Portuguese/French) language support. Many users say this is the best firmware available on the C2 track - especially as it appears to have a good battery life - unlike most of the C2 tracks fwï's.
Summary
• 5 USB modes - Modem, Mass Storage, USB Net, Media Sync and Web Camera
• Battery Life - GREAT.
• Speed - good
• Camera Quality - Good. (Has additional low light option for taking pictures at night.)
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes (you can choose whether or not to auto save photos or not)
• Voice Response accuracy - GOOD. 24p has best VR of this track and this hybrid has the same. In addition talking phone works
• Volume - poor. Volume fix needs to be applied
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English, French, Spanish and Portuguese (Chinese language removed)
Advantages:
• Camera - has "silent" option from 30p
• Video - same as 24p. Can record at 3 resolutions: S(176.144) M(320x240) L(352x28 - though frame rates are pretty poor for M and L.
• Daylight Savings Time (DST) update - applied
• Run multiple apps - Yes (App Manager from 30p allows you to run multiple java apps at same time)
• Reintegrated files from bint (binaries in /bin incl. bash2) that where missing in former version
• 3 of 7 folders in "My Favorites" made deletable
• Edge - no, but can be enabled with seem edit
• Superman - already installed; you can install MPKG.
• Media Sync has Exchange ActiveSync and OTA
• Has Call barring feature built in
Disadvantages
• Talking Phone can not read messages
• Network time issue (can be fixed with seem edit)
• Issues getting Opera Mini Beta 4 to work. It won't recognize the font (Can be fixed by installing ApplyFont app and pick a .ttf file for the font)
• Turning on the tower information causes a text msg to be sent to you every minute containing the name of the tower - rather than displaying it on the screen (same as 30p)
See here for more information and download file.

Eduprogramador's 24xpp
** A1200, A1200R
24xp with with spanish and portuguese language support added by Eduprogramador. Many folks with A1200I have moved to this fw and like it.
Summary/Advantages:
• Exactly the same as Bint's xp version, but with French, Spanish and Portuguese language supported added
Disadvantages:
• Exactly the same as Bint's xp version
Get 24xpp source file from here

• 59p/24p
** A1200, A1200R
First reported in November 2007 as being installed on some newly purchased phones. The author of this monsterpack is unknown and little is known about this 24p hybrid except that (1) it is on the C2 track and (2) it has a bug on its English keyboard in that the 'y' and the 'z' keys are swapped (See here for more details on this). No source file for this fw is yet available.
Summary/Advantages:
• Users generally satisfied with this firmware
• Battery Life - GREAT.
• Superman - installed, but in Chinese
• Languages - English and Chinese (Handwriting, Pinyin and Zhuyin boards)
• Voice Response accuracy - Poor

30p, 31p, and 32p Monsterpacks

Mischka's 30xp-oent with L4 EMEA (30p-c2_oent_emea_l4_00_mis)
** A1200, A1200R
30p debranded version with language support and lots of other improvements:
Summary
• 4 USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, Media Sync and USB net. Default USB setting changed to modem (so RSDLite can recognize it at first boot).
• Battery Life - AVERAGE (same as 30p)
• Speed - faster - especially menu response & mass storage USB mode loading
• Camera Quality - good. Has "silent" mode option
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes (you can choose whether or not to auto save photos or not).
• Voice Response accuracy - POOR - fails to recognize even simple commands.
• Volume - Good (no need for volume increase patch)
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English, French, Spanish and Portuguese (Chinese language removed)
Advantages:
• Run multiple apps - Yes (App Manager from 30p allows you to run multiple java apps at same time)
• Don't have to turn off phone after each install
• Skin - CM branding and icons removed - changed to animated Moto. Made dark Moto skin the default.
• Ringtones changed to English
• FM Radio without headphones app (from FAQs) works
• Superman - installed so no messing round trying to get MPKG and LINLOADER working as already available.
• Bootup.cfg edited to make usage of startup.txt script
• 3 of 7 folders in "My Favorites" made deletable
Disadvantages
• Realplayer - no equalizer
• VR and Talking Phone features only work when English language selected.
• Turning on the tower information causes a text msg to be sent to you every minute containing the name of the tower - rather than displaying it on the screen.
See this thread to get the source files for Mischka's monsterpacks.

The next two monsterpacks are minor releases by Yan0 that appear to only have slight improvements over 30p. Most people who have tried these have flashed back to one of the 24xp30 monsterpacks. However 32p seems to have very good Voice Response.

Yan0's 31p
** A1200, A1200R
Released July 2007. Two versions - A1200R_31P_yan0_AP.sbf and A1200R_31P_yan0_APBP.sbf (The AP just changes the user interface while the AP+BP version changes the interface and the underlying OS).
Summary
• 4 USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, Media Sync and USB net. (No Webcam USB Mode)
• Battery Life - POOR to AVERAGE (same as 30p)
• Speed - same as 24xp30p and 30p
• Camera Quality - worse than 24xp30p
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes
• Voice Response accuracy - POOR
• Volume - same as 30p
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards);
Advantages:
• Camera - has "silent" option
• MPKG and Linloader can be installed ok.
Disadvantages:
• Realplayer - no equalizer
• Edge - not enabled (Can perform seem edit to enable Edge)
• Superman - not installed (can easily install)
• Skin - Ugly red CM icons
• No S3 present

Yan0's 32p
** A1200, A1200R
Released Aug 4th 2007. Only CM branded version available (A1200R_32P_yan0_APBP.sbf). Users report fw very similar to 30p - but its two big advantages are extremely good Voice Response accuracy (for American English speakers) and slightly better battery life. See this thread for download file.
Summary
• 4 USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, Media Sync and USB net. (No Webcam USB Mode)
• Battery Life - POOR - only about a day
• Speed - good
• Camera Quality - about the same as 30p
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes.
• Voice Response accuracy - EXCELLENT (for AMERICAN English speakers; other nationalities have reported issues)
• Volume - good; volume fix applied; also improved sound quality
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards);
Advantages:
• Camera - has "silent" option
Disadvantages:
• Edge - not enabled (Can perform seem edit to enable Edge)
• Realplayer - no equalizer
• Superman - not installed (can easily install)
• Skin - Ugly red CM icons
• Turning on the tower information causes a text msg to be sent to you every minute containing the name of the tower - rather than displaying it on the screen.

32P-OENT "XP Windows" monsterpack (A1200R_CMCC_Nolock_R532C2_G_11.30.32P_OENT_XP_V1).
** A1200, A1200R
Released Sept 1st 2007 Slight improvement over Yan0's versiom. CM icons replaced by XP icons. Latest version is V1 - that fixes a bug with the alarm clock (Alarm 1 does not work).
Summary
• 5 USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, Media Sync USB net and Webcam (but not working)
• Battery Life - POOR - only about a day
• Speed - good
• Camera Quality - better than 30p
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes.
• Voice Response accuracy - EXCELLENT (for AMERICAN English speakers; other nationalities have reported issues)
• Volume - good; volume fix applied; also improved sound quality
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards);
Advantages:
• Superman - installed
• MPKG can be installed
• SmartAssist can be installed
• Barcode reader installed
• Screen 3 installed (but in chinese)
• Skin - windows xp
Disadvantages:
• Realplayer - no equalizer
• Camera - does not have "silent" option (can be fixed with A1200_nosound pkg)
• Edge - not enabled (Can perform seem edit to enable Edge)
• Turning on the tower information causes a text msg to be sent to you every minute containing the name of the tower - rather than displaying it on the screen.

Amins 24Xx 32P Monsterpack
** A1200, A1200R
Released Aug 2007. Written by Amin - a very clever and dedicated Motorolafans member from Iran. Similar to 24xp30 but includes a number of bug fixes and new features. Only has English/Chinese language support. Probably the best advantage of this firmware is that is has great sound volume and sound quality. Get link and more information from this thread.
Summary
• 5 USB modes - Modem, Mass Storage, USB Net, Media Sync and Web Camera
• Battery Life - GREAT(as same as Mischka's 24xp30)
• Speed - good
• Camera Quality - Good. (Has additional low light option for taking pictures at night.)
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes (you can choose whether or not to auto save photos or not)
• Voice Response accuracy - EXCELLENT (for AMERICAN English speakers; other nationalities have reported issues)
• Volume -EXCELLENT; No needs volume fix; also improved sound quality
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards);
Advantages:
• Realplayer - new version with equalizer & higher resolution and improved codecs(From ROKR E6) and also faster load.
• Message Delivery Report enabled by default
• Persia skin pre installed(minor low-weight version)
• Default Skins reduced from 3 to 2, so there is more free space available in the directory and therefore the probability of freezing phone because of improper skin installing will be reduced.
• Some new ringtones and wallpapers added.
• Skins Transparency increased(for whom that prefer former transparency setting can easily use dark wallpapers!)
• Screen 3 working with no Chinese.
• Talking Phone, now can read SMS.
• Camera - has "silent" option from 30p
• Video - same as 24p. Can record at 3 resolutions: S(176.144) M(320x240) L(352x28 - though frame rates are pretty poor for M and L.
• Daylight Savings Time (DST) update - applied
• Run multiple apps - Yes (App Manager from 30p allows you to run multiple java apps at same time)
• Reintegrated files from bint (binaries in /bin incl. bash2 & also working version of VIM)
• 3 of 7 folders in "My Favorites" made deletable
• Edge - no, but can be enabled with seem edit
• Superman - already installed; you can install MPKG.
• Media Sync has Exchange ActiveSync and OTA
• Has Call barring feature built in
Disadvantages:
• Edge - not enabled (Can perform seem edit to enable Edge)
• Realplayer crashing while trying to create playlists, (but you can easily use your existing playlists or create it with other programs)
• Turning on the tower information causes a text msg to be sent to you every minute containing the name of the tower - rather than displaying it on the screen.

Amins Extreme Elite monsterpack
** A1200, A1200R
Released March 12th 2008. Another great monsterpack produced by Motorolafans member, Amin, from Iran. It is reported to be the best C2 track monsterpack yet with a huge number of added functions. Good battery life, speed and stability. Two versions - an international version (English, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Thai and Chinese language support) and an Enlish/Chinese verson. Get both from this thread.
Summary
• 5 USB modes - Modem, Mass Storage, USB Net, Media Sync and Web Camera
• Battery Life - GREAT(as same as Mischka's 24xp30)
• Speed - good
• Camera Quality - Good. (Has additional low light option for taking pictures at night.)
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes (you can choose whether or not to auto save photos or not)
• Voice Response accuracy - EXCELLENT (for AMERICAN English speakers; other nationalities have reported issues)
• Volume - EXCELLENT; No needs volume fix; also improved sound quality
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages English, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Thai and Chinese
Advantages:
• Realplayer - new version with equalizer & higher resolution and improved codecs
• Message Delivery Report enabled by default
• Screen 3 working
• Talking Phone can read SMS's
• Camera - has "silent" option from 30p
• Video - same as 32p. Can record at 3 resolutions: S(176x144) M(320x240) L(352x2)
• Daylight Savings Time (DST) update - applied
• Run multiple apps - Yes (App Manager from 32p allows you to run multiple java apps at same time)
• Reintegrated files from bint (binaries in /bin incl. bash2 & also working version of VIM)
• 3 of 7 folders in "My Favorites" made deletable
• Amin's Super assistant - already installed; you can also install MPKG and Superman.
• Applications can be installed without need to restart phone
• Media Sync has Exchange ActiveSync and OTA
• Has Call barring feature built in
• Supports startup1.txt
• Midnight pool & platinum Sudoku games preInstalled
• Default font is iphone's with full Unicode support
• Radio works without need for headset
• New ON and OFF animation
• Some new ringtones and wallpapers added
• Skins Transparency increased
• Better menu organization.
• New animate Icons (without ugly black background)
Disadvantages:
• Edge - not enabled (Can perform seem edit to enable Edge)
• Turning on the tower information causes a text msg to be sent to you every minute containing the name of the tower - rather than displaying it on the screen.
• A number of bugs in certain applications. See the fw discussion thread for details on these - as Amin is constantly fixing these.

Amin's Persian-Gulf El dorado LP monsterpack
** A1200, A1200R, A1200E
Released May 28 2008. Based on R541_G_11.52.14R. Both A1200R and A1200E fw's can be successfully flashed to this monsterpack.
Summary
Another great monsterpack produced by Motorolafans member, Amin, from Iran. Good battery life, speed and stability. But quite a few bugs at the moment. Advise wait to next release before flashing to this FW (or flash to the Rozysara version where a lot of the bugs have been fixed. See this thread for more information.
Advantages:
• Realplayer - newest version with equalizer & higher resolution and improved codecs (All equalizer presets working!) - NEW
• Integrated pkg installation! - just tap on pkg file and it'll install! - NEW
• Integrated lin, sh, rar, zip, tar, ace detection! (works like above) - NEW
• preload region - just put your desired font, on/ off animation, volume table, startup sound on automaticaly created preload folder(/mmc/mmca1/Amin.FW/preload) and it will be your default! - NEW
• VR working when flip is closed! - NEW
• Managing Bluetooth, Contacts, Recent calls,with CLOSE FLIP! - NEW
• Fixed Tower Information - displaying on the screen. - NEW
• Message Delivery Report enabled by default
• New ON and OFF animation
• Some new ringtones and wallpapers added.
• New official motorola skins! - NEW
• Talking Phone can read SMSs.
• Camera - has "silent" option
• Video - Can record at 3 resolutions: S(176.144) M(320x240) L(352x28
• 4 USB modes - Modem, Mass Storage, USB Net and Web Camera
• Battery Life - GOOD
• Speed - good
• Camera Quality - Good. (Has additional low light option for taking pictures at night.)
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes (you can choose whether or not to auto save photos or not)
• Voice Response accuracy - NEW VR, EXCELLENT (AMERICAN ACCENT) - NEW
• Daylight Savings Time (DST) update - applied
• Run multiple apps - Yes
• Lina 2.0 - already installed (newer version of super assistant)- NEW
• Media Sync has Exchange ActiveSync and OTA
• Language: English, French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese with English, Spanish, Portuguese VR
• Has Call barring feature built in
• Supports startup1.txt
• Net control application preinstalled- Managing samba, fake DSM,... - NEW
Disadvantages:
• Edge - no, but can be enabled with seem edit
• As of Aug 1 2008, this fw is a little unstable as the following bugs have been reported with it:
• There is a long delay between when you pick up phone and you are connected to a caller.
• Not able to turn off Bluetooth on the Device status screen (or make discoverable). Can only turn on BT.
• Turning off the antenna turns off BT if its already on and turning it on again turns on BT, only if it was turned off by the antenna selection.
• Date and time settings gets reset automatically.
• The calender on the home screen shows appointments one day in advance. As in an appointment for tomorrow is shown on screen today itself. But the alarm goes off only during the preset time.
• If there is an appointment shown on the home screen then clicking on it takes the control only to the appointment page. The only way to launch the calender is to use the app launcher, if an appointment is shown on the home screen, that is.
• Lina is listed under multiple multiple menu groups. Barcode reader is not listed under any of the app groups (its available only under all).
• USB Webcam mode is not available.

See the fw discussion thread for information on bugs, fixes and updates - as Amin is constantly fixing these.

Captivus C2 (R532C2_G_11.30.24p)
** A1200, A1200R, A1200E
Released Sept 12 2008. Created from Amin's Persian-Gulf El dorado LP monsterpack with the Rozysara fix, this firmware includes the all new Motorola skins, icons and boot logo with new wallpapers and ringtones. Probably one of the top firmwares available as of Jan 2009 (though also see Hibrida e16Xr below).
Summary
• 3 USB modes - Modem, Mass Storage, USB Net
• Battery Life – Good
• Speed - Good
• Camera Quality - Good. (Has additional low light option for taking pictures at night.)
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes (you can choose whether or not to auto save photos or not)
• Voice Response accuracy - Good (American (read messages), Spanish, French, Portuguese, Italian (NEW))
• Volume - Latest version has volume fix already installed.
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, French
Advantages:
• Boot logo is great official moto
• Icon clarity is superb. with animated menu icon (all new like a1600)
• Can answer calls with flip closed (speaker will auto activated and you can use it)
• Realplayer - new version with equalizer & higher resolution and improved codecs. Looks great when flip is closed.
• Message Delivery Report - enabled by default
• Talking Phone can read SMS's - Yes
• Camera - Silent operation enabled - Yes
• Video resolutions- S(176x144) M(320x240) L(352x280 )
• Daylight Savings Time (DST) update - Yes
• Run multiple apps at same time - Yes
• 3 folders in "My Favorites" are deletable
• Super Utilities installed – Lina 2.0, NetCTRL, Console
• Can Applications be installed without need to restart phone - Yes
• Sync mode - Exchange ActiveSync, OTA
• Call barring feature built in - Yes
• Supports autorun.txt – Yes
• Pre-Installed games - Platinum Sudoku, Midnight pool, Asphalt 2
• Radio works without need for headset - Yes
• New ringtones and wallpapers added – Yes
• Mouse Press and hold (= right click) delay speed can be varied – Yes
• My number option now working
• Info Service bugs solved
• Barcode reader working
• Three skins: Atlantic (blue), Onyx black and Onyx white
• 3 second delay when answering phone bug - fixed
Disadvantages:
All very minor:
• Edge - not enabled but you can enable it with seem edit
• Default font is the Motorola default which is not the greatest.
• Bug in calendar in that on day view the times are black text on black surround so can not read them.
• Keyboard is white letters on black surround which some uses find hard to read.
• Phone freezes when selecting a new sound. You have to wait ~3 secs every time you select a new ring tone.
• Screen 3 working - No
• FW comes with an Internet Profile called Nenhum that you can not edit or delete. This means that every time you connect to the internet you have to select which profile you want to use - which is tiresome.
• Others - Users report comments and bugs in this thread



A1200E "R541" Track Monsterpacks

Eduprogramador's A1200E24P
** A1200E
Released April 2007. R541 fw with 24P code mixed in. Edge enabled. Not much known about it. Brief discussion and download link available here.

R541_iPhone_John_V1_3S
** A1200E
R541 fw with 24P code mixed in available on ccmove (A1200e_24iPhone_John3.sbf ) though very little has been posted about it. It has the iphone theme built into it.
Summary
• Edge enabled
• 4 USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, USB net, Webcamera (but not working)
• Battery Life - unknown
• Speed - unknown
• Camera Quality - unknown
• Camera Photo Autosave - unknown
• Voice Response accuracy - unknown
• Volume - unknown
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• Language: Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards) and English
Advantages:
• Telnet is enabled
• Auto-on is enabled ??
• Nolock wap configure file
Disadvantages:
• Superman - not installed (can easily install)
• Skin - Ugly red CM icons

Yan0's 34p
** A1200R, A1200E
Released July 29th 2007. 34p is for the A1200E - but users have reported successfully flashing their A1200R to this fw. Three versions - the more recent, "XP Windows" CM-debranded version, R541_G_11.50.34P_OENT_XP_v1 and the slightly older A1200E_34P AP+BP and A1200E_34P AP. (The AP just changes the user interface while the AP+BP version changes the interface and the underlying OS). Very similar to 30p. Following is for the XP V1 version:
Summary
• Edge enabled
• 4 USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, USB net, Webcamera (not working)
• Battery Life - POOR to AVERAGE (same as 30p)
• Speed - same as 24xp30p / 30p
• Camera Quality - unknown
• Camera Photo Autosave - unknown
• Voice Response accuracy - POOR
• Volume - unknown
• Internet Connectivity speed - unknown
• Language: Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards) and English
Advantages:
• Skin - "Windows XP" skin as default. Boot screen is standard Motorola
• Number of unneeded folders removed
• Superman already installed
Disadvantages:
• Realplayer - no Equalizer
• Camera Quality - worse than 24xp30p
• Only tri-band (Can perform seem edit to enable Quad)
• No S3 present
Discussion and download link for the Yan0's 34P monsterpack is available here.

1200E_541 34p_grass_beta3
** A1200E
Released Aug 20th 2007. Seems no advantages to flashing to this version.
Summary
• Edge enabled
• 4 USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, USB net, Webcamera (not working)
• Battery Life - better then 24p & 30p
• Speed - good
• Camera Quality - very good
• Camera Photo Autosave - yes
• Voice Response accuracy - average
• Volume - good, no need for volume up
• Internet Connectivity speed - good
• Language: Chinese (Pinyin and Zhuyin boards) and English
Advantages:
• None over Yan0's 34p. Seems no new features.
Disadvantages:
• No equalizer in RealPlayer.
• Superman - not installed (can easily install)
• SmartAssistant can be installed (and works) - but has yellow exclamation mark as icon - which indicates something not 100% correct.
• Skin - Ugly red CM icons

R541_G_11.52.13R + R541L7_G_11.00.16R = A1200E BlackMing x16
** A1200R, A1200E
First reported May 2008 by user Stabbicus w/help from motofan.ru member Cynique. A combination of Russian Firmware R541_G_11.52.13R and Brazilian Firmware R541L7_G_11.00.16R.
Summary
• Quad-Band - Yes
• Edge - enabled by default
• 4 USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, USB net, Webcamera
• Battery Life - Average (1-1.5 days)
• Speed - Average
• Camera Quality - OK
• Camera Photo Autosave - Yes (Flip open only.)
• Voice Response accuracy - Decent. (From American viewpoint)
• Volume - Needs volume fix.
• Internet Connectivity speed - Edge!
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages - English and Russian
• Screen 3 - Yes
• Video - up to 352*288
• Run multiple java apps at same time - Yes
• Can install MPKG, Superman, etc.
• Realplayer - All equalizer presets WORKING!
Advantages:
• R541 Edge track firmware with ability to install Native programs (MPKG!)
• Run Multiple Java Apps
• Telnet and Samba start automatically
• 5 Skins (Black Ming, Classic Black, Atlantic, Onyx Black, Onyx White)
• Realplayer with equalizer presets working
• Daylight Savings Configuration
• Contacts, Recent Calls, RealPlayer, Camera, and Bluetooth without opening flip.
• Speakerphone works with flip closed
• Configurable time for holding the stylus
• New wallpapers
• New ringtones
Disadvantages:
• Volume Fix needs to be applied.
• Bug that happens when you try to view the list of Voice Commands, it does nothing, and kicks you back to the Home Screen.
• I had to do a Master Clear to get the World Time to work out of the box.
• The Ringer Styles Menu in Setup, once you get to where you choose which ringtone you want, the ringtones load slowly.

See the original Russian translation HERE and HERE for Discussion.

Novin's 11.56.11R V1.0 NEW!
** A1200, A1200R, A1200E
Released April 2009. Based on a mixture of R541_G_11.56.11R plus Amin's Persian-Gulf R541_G_11.52.14R this monsterpack was written by Motorolafans Member Novin from Iran. You can flash to this firmware from A1200R, A1200 and A1200E. A full writeup will be provided shortly - but it looks very exciting. See this thread for discussion and link.
Advantages:
• EDGE Enabled
• Inbuilt MPKG Installer via Files Manager
• Quick media buffering (no lag in real player, ring style, etc)
• Startup scripts (startup0.sh, startup1.sh, startup.txt, startup0.txt, etc)
• Startup Folders (fonts, scripts, sounds, skins, cpu clock, animations, etc)
• External Storage Partitioning (mmca1, mmca2, etc)
• Engineering Enabled
• Color modified icons (battery, signal, EDGE, bluetooth indicator, etc)
• Has following apps preinstalled:

- Opera Browser (3172-A1600)
- Picsel Viewer (A1600)
- Real Player (Equalizer enabled)
- Assistant
- eKonsole Advanced (based on bash2)
- System Information (Processes, Modules, Memory, CPU, Version, etc)
- Help
- Explorer (File Manager based on EZX QT based File Manager)
- Themes (insTheme - install skins)
- Swap Manager (Create and enable swap)
- Processor Clock Manager (612, 312, 166 MHz)
- Flip Sensitivity Manager
- Finger Pad Manager
- Backlight Manager
- FTP Service (via networks such as USB network)
- Network Sharing (Sharing Computer Internet with mobile)
- USB Network Manager (Enabling daemon, telnet, network, etc)
- Power Manager (Shutdown, Restart)

Disadvantages:
TBD


H2 Track with C2 features (Hybrid) Monsterpacks

These are H2 track firmwares that have been modified to include some of the enhancements from the 24p or 30p firmwares. The advantage of these is that you can try out many of 24p's C2 track features - but can flash back to other H2 versions if you need to.

Eduprogramador's 24p/08p hybrid
** A1200
Made by mixing code groups of 08p with 24p. Some cons are that Real Player has lost its icon and call divert does not work. See this thread for full discussion and download link.
Summary
Same features as 08p plus:
• 4 USB modes: Modem, Mass Storage, USB net, Media Sync
• Speed - faster than 08p
• Volume - good
• Camera Picture Autosave option - Yes
Advantages:
• Video - 2 new options 320x240 at 10fps & 352X288 at 8fps.
• Google Mobile Search launch icon.
Disadvantages:
• Realplayer - no Equalizer
• Call divert does not work

Mischka's 24p/46p hybrid EMEA version (24xp46p30_bint_emea_l4_debr_01_mis)
** A1200
Made by mixing code groups of 46p with 24p. It is reported to not have a very good battery life. Has Spanish/Portuguese/French language support. See page 8 of this thread for discussion on this fw and download link.

Mischka's 30p/46p hybrid (30p46p_oent_emea_l4_00_mis)
** A1200
Excellent firmware made by mixing code groups of 46p with 30p. Almost identical to the 30xp-oent monsterpack - but its advantage is that you can try out many of 30p's features - but can flash back to other H2 versions if you need to.
Advantages:
• All the advantages listed under Mischka's 30xp-oent
Disadvantages
• Exactly the same weaknesses as Mischka's 30xp-oent including poor battery life.

[nodramachicks]

A1600 Hybrid Firmwares

These new hybrid monsterpacks - that combine the BP from one of the A1200R fws (eg 14R) and the AP from new A1600 (16R) - started to appear in mid 2008.

These new hybrids are feature packed and have become popular - as they combine the best features of the A1200 with new icons, ringtones, skins and applications from the A1600.

As far as is known, these Firmwares can be successfully flashed from all previous Firmware Tracks. [You are also able to flash from these hybrids back to the C2 Track, but not to the H2 fw's. It is not currently known if you can flash back to the 1200E Track. As more information becomes available it will be added to this Sticky].

Most popular versions marked with this symbol ==>

WhiteMING
** A1200, A1200R, A1200E
Released Aug 2008. This Firmware based on R541L7_G_11.00.16R AP and 14R BP was written by Motorolafans Member tmp-do and is fully ported to the A1200. (Be aware that it is STILL UNDER DEVELOPMENT and may still have a few unreported bugs).
Summary
• 4 USB modes - usbnet, modem, mass-storage, webcam
• Battery Life - excellent
• Speed - fast
• Camera Quality - excellent (low light option for taking pictures at night)
• Camera Photo Autosave - with open flip-yes, with closed-no (can choose whether to auto save photos)
• Voice Response accuracy -excellent (AMERICAN English and Russian)
• Volume - excellent
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Languages- English, Russian. (Default - Russian)
Advantages:
• Realplayer - new version with equalizer & higher resolution and improved codecs
• Message Delivery Report- enabled by default
• Screen 3 working- Not tested
• Talking Phone can read SMS's- yes
• Camera -Silent operation enabled? Yes
• Video resolutions- S(176x144) M(320x240) L(352x2
• Daylight Savings Time (DST) update - applied
• Run multiple apps - Yes
• # of folders in "My Favorites" deletable - unknown
• Super Utilities installed- Super Assistant
• Can Applications be installed without need to restart phone- yes
• Media Sync, Exchange ActiveSync, OTA: yes
• Call barring feature built in- yes
• Supports autorun.txt- yes, on sd-card
• pre-Installed games -platinum sudoku, jimm-app
• Radio works without need for headset-yes
• new ringtones and wallpapers added- yes
• any other unique features: quick access to bluetooth, calls, phonebook, player with flip closed, rw rootfs, very fast and stable. does not freeze on when incoming call. many console apps included
Disadvantages:
• Edge - NO (can seem edit to enable)
• known bugs - modem app doesn't start automatically. (start manually with /usr/SYSqtapp/modem/modemlauncher)

Discussion thread on this firmware can be found HERE



Hybrid e16Xr_a1200ER NEW!
** A1200, A1200R, A1200E
Released Feb 2009. This Firmware based on monsterpack_e16xr of ger86 v1.1 was written by an Italian Motorolafans Member Marcolnx and is fully ported to the A1200. It is very similar to the Captivus C2 firmware, but I think it is slightly better for the following reasons:

• Better battery life
• Stronger signal
• Keyboard is black lettering on white background which is easier to see (Captivus has white lettering on black)
• There is no default Internet Profile called Nenhum that you can not edit or delete, so you do not have to choose your profile every time you go online (which is a pain)
• Better default font which is easier to read
• Calendar bug is fixed
• Home screen shows the next calendar event up to a day away (24 hours) - not just for current day
• Phone does not freeze for 5 seconds every time you select a new ringtone
• Even though you can not edit the Vibrate and Silent ringer styles on either, on Hybrid e16Xr the key and screen clicks are off for both Vibrate/Silent, while Captivus they are on for Vibrate (so not really silent!)
• Has Moto-ID song identifier app installed.

Other differences between the 2 are:

• Captivus appears to have better sound quality when playing music - though that is very subjective.
• Captivus has following super utilities installed – Lina 2.0, NetCTRL, Console, while Hybrid e16Xr has Amin's Super Assistant Utility instead (installer pkg, swap manager, screenshot, reboot, hide folder, java hacker, etc.)
• Captivus has bar code reader app; Hybrid e16Xr does not
• Captivus makes a startup sound when phone turned on; Hybrid e16Xr does not.
• Hybrid e16Xr has Busybox, Bash2, strace, and some other libraries (libncurses etc.) installed

Summary
• 4 USB modes - usbnet, modem, mass-storage, webcam
• Battery Life - good
• Speed - fast
• Camera Quality - good
• Camera Photo Autosave - yes
• Camera -Silent operation - yes
• Record video in three resolutions: S (176x144) M (320x240) L (352x280 )
• Good audio quality
• Volume - excellent
• All 4 shortcuts changeable on home screen - Yes
• Language: English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese (vr removed to add the Italian one)
Advantages:
• Great signal strength
• Preinstalled MotoID (obtains names of songs)
• Realplayer - new version with equalizer & higher resolution and improved codecs. Looks great when flip is closed.
• Boot logo is great official moto
• Icon clarity is superb with animated menu icon (all new like a1600)
• Can answer calls with flip closed (speaker will auto activated and you can use it)
• Talking Phone can read SMS's - Yes
• Run multiple apps - Yes
• Preinstalled Amin's Super assistant Utility (installer pkg, swap manager, screenshot, reboot, hide folder, java hacker, etc.)
• Applications can be installed without need to restart phone - Yes
• Radio works without need for headset - Yes
• With the flip closed you can: (1) enable/disable bluetooth, (2) open the address book, (3) access the call register, (4) make a call and (5) use the real player
• VR works in flip closed
• Home screen shows the next calendar event up to a day away (24 hours) - not just for current day.
• Can select VR language from English, Italian or Spanish
• Three skins: Atlantic (blue), Onyx black and Onyx white
• Telnet starts in automatic from modem to usb net (under win telnet 192.168.16.2)
• 3 pre-installed games: Block Breaker; Midnight Pool and Platinum Sudoku
• Mouse Press and hold (= right click) delay speed can be varied – Yes
• Busybox, Bash2, strace, and some libraries (libncurses etc.) preinstalled
• No sound when the phone starts
• New fonts (support for all languages)
• New ringtones and wallpapers
• Supports startup1.txt
• 3 second delay when answering calls bug - fixed.
Disadvantages:
• Edge - NO (can seem edit to enable)
• On Silent ringer style - phone still makes a Missed Call or SMS "chirp" noise every 5 minutes

Discussion thread on this firmware can be found HERE