topic Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated! in Electronics

Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

Mayfayre — Fri, 09 Aug 2019 22:52:48 GMT

I bought the Motorola TracFone E232911 here earlier this year. It came with Android OS 8. I haven't yet switched my phone number over to it, but I've already got it connected to the net and most of my apps and files have been copied over to it. Surprisingly, this past week the operating system updated from OS 8 to OS 9. I've had various TracFone phones for a few years now, and never has the entire operating system updated itself when a new Android OS was released. In fact, AFAIK TracFone does not normally update the OS. That's why I usually get a new TracFone instead just buying a 1500/1500/1500 renewal card.

I was wondering if others who had purchased this Motorola phone (it's the one with the 32GB storage) and who have already switched their number to it, also had their OS updated? Or did it occur because Motorola is still "in charge" of my phone?

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

gardenman — Fri, 09 Aug 2019 23:05:18 GMT

My LG Premiere Pro has done a full Android update several times since I got it last September. It just completed the latest one this week.

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

mayjak — Sat, 10 Aug 2019 00:44:17 GMT

Yes, my husband has the same Motorola TracFone, and his updated as well. He has been using it since receiving it months ago. I was shocked about the update. Pleased but shocked!

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

Mayfayre — Sat, 10 Aug 2019 07:37:26 GMT

My soon-to-be-previous TracFone is an LG Fiesta 2 and it's never had an OS update pushed to it and is still running OS 7. The last security update from LG is dated May 2017!

What I really like about the Android OSes above 7 is that they will automatically install on the SD card whatever apps are capable of being loaded onto it, thus saving space on the internal memory.

I love my Fiesta 2 because it has a beast of a battery that can run all day, but the bad part is that whenever an app that is installed on my SD card is updated, it reverts to internal storage and I have to shift it back to external. That has gotten old very fast.

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

Ainhisg — Sat, 10 Aug 2019 13:12:59 GMT

I personally wouldn't update the Motorola G6. Read this article dated July 29, 2019:

https://piunikaweb.com/2019/07/19/motorola-moto-g6-pin-patter-lock-issue-comes-to-light-after-android-pie-9-0-update/

The article states:

Moto G6 users are disappointed for how instead of fixing the problem which is now being reported for months, the OEM is continuing releasing the buggy update and is till date asking the affected users to factory reset their units.

In case you haven’t yet got the Pie update on your Moto G6 unit, we’d suggest you to disable PIN/pattern lock before installing the update, else you may also have to factory reset your unit. Sad but that’s how it currently stands.

NOTE: BTW Pie update on Moto G6 has also triggered a freezing/lag issue. You can find the complete coverage on the matter here. And for more LG-related news, bugs/issues and updates, interested readers may head here.

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

Nuttmeg — Sat, 10 Aug 2019 19:28:45 GMT

@Ainhisg

Thanks for the information. Do folks read reviews before buying a phone? Tracfone will not support any firmwire update.

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

Mayfayre — Wed, 14 Aug 2019 19:32:15 GMT

I read reviews and compare the specs before I get any phone. I even read the chipset comparison reviews, lol. I realize that the TracFones offered by the Q and HSN are not the top-of-the line models, but I try to make sure that each new one I get is a tech improvement on my previous one. The trade-off between the Moto G6 and the LG Fiesta 2 was that the G6 has twice the internal storage capacity but 1/4 less battery capacity. But the FastCharger that comes with the G6 basically negates that.

So far, I've never had to call TracFone for any tech support; if I have a rare problem I just google the solution.

I was just surprised that Moto pushed through the OS update to a TracFone, because LG never did.

I had already set up the fingerprint reader and a PIN before the Pie update, and thankfully I haven't had the problem mentioned in the article.

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

Moonlady — Thu, 15 Aug 2019 15:47:31 GMT

I have the LG Stylo 4, which I love, except for auto-updates which can no longer be stopped.

The most recent was just yesterday, when I noticed that mt text conversations were suddenly ALL pale blue, when I had chosen from among 30+ colors/shades to assign colors to contacts. And the "People and Options," which I accessed to assign colors, was missing from the Settings menu. A new option, to "Enable Dark Mode," was there, so I applied that (I like Dark Mode, and had applied it to the phone earlier, but messaging was one of the few apps which didn't change.

Anyway, to see the mischief which can ensue after updates, simply google, "After updating..." I prefer to OPT for updates, rather than have them occur automatically; sadly, this is no longer an option.

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

gardenman — Thu, 15 Aug 2019 16:18:56 GMT

Opting for updates complicates life for those supplying the updates. Very often new updates build on older ones and if the older update isn't there, the new update has nothing to build on, and chaos ensues. If you look at the Windows ecosystem for example, if users opt to only install some updates but not others, later updates might have to be compatible hundreds, thousands, or more variations of Windows depending on which previous updates users chose to install.

Windows 10 has been around four full years now. If every user was cherry picking which updates to install there might be ten thousand or more versions of Windows 10 floating around now. Let's say their first Windows 10 update had just two patches. You could have one version that was unpatched, one that was patched with the first patch, one that was patched with the second patch, and one more that used both patches. Instead of one version of Windows 10, there could now be four versions. With each new patch released the number of possible versions increases. Let's say just one more patch was released. You could have one fully unpatched, one only patched with the first patch, one with just the second patch, one with just the third patch, one fully patched, one patched with the first and third patch, one patched with just the second and third patch.

As you can see the complexity ramps up very quickly if you make updating optional. If future patches build on pre-existing patches but those patches weren't installed, things start to get absurdly complicated. I've always been of the belief that if the people who created to OS say "this needs to be done," I do it. If it messes something up, oh well, one of us will figure out a solution. Cherry picking which updates to install almost always leads to far more trouble than it prevents. If they say, "We think you should install this," I say, "Fine, happy to do so."

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

cowboy sam — Thu, 15 Aug 2019 17:04:44 GMT

@gardenman

i agree with you

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

Moonlady — Thu, 15 Aug 2019 18:34:58 GMT

Again, if you've not had mischief, as I have, with auto-updates, Google is your friend 😉. As for "them" saying, "We think you should install this," and the user saying, "Fine, happy to do so," if that's not *allowing* it (or *opting* to do it), then I saw Elvis, yesterday.

IOW, we *should* be given that choice, and there should STILL be an option to *not* allow auto-updates.

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

cowboy sam — Fri, 16 Aug 2019 17:13:24 GMT

@Moonlady

When i agreed with gardenman....it was was about Windows 10 updates...

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

gardenman — Sat, 17 Aug 2019 13:27:47 GMT

@cowboy sam wrote:
@Moonlady

When i agreed with gardenman....it was was about Windows 10 updates...

And my point is very simple and applies to just about anything with updates. If you don't install every update then the newer updates may assume something's there that's not there and it creates far more problems than you'd have had if you installed every update. Modern operating systems are so complex, for both phones and computers, that no one, not even their top programmers know every line of code in the OS. Anyone assuming they know more than the creators of the OS about which updates to install and which to skip is making a very bold assumption. You're much, much better off installing everything and not trying to cherry-pick which updates you want to install. At some point you will choose badly and then undoing the mess becomes much more complicated.

And yes, installing every update will eventually get you in trouble, but everyone installing every update will run into the same problem so the fix is typically easier to find than sorting through the mess of which updates have or haven't been installed.

I'm a pretty bright guy with computers, but I know for a fact that I don't know nearly enough to pick and choose which updates to install. Windows 10 reportedly has at least 27 million lines of executable code. (Some say as many as 50 million lines, maybe more.) Android phones have 12-15 million lines of executable code. MAC OS X Tiger (10.4) reportedly has 85 million lines of executable code. If you truly think you're capable of knowing exactly which updates to install and which to skip, then you're either a computer genius without equal, or you're making a foolish assumption.

You may think you should have a right to decide which update to install, but that's like saying you should have the right to take the controls of a jet mid-flight and fly it yourself. "Hey, I paid for my ticket, why should the pilot be the only one who gets to fly the plane?" Maybe you could complete the flight and land safely, but in all likelihood you'd crash and die. Not letting you have total control isn't taking away your rights, it's keeping you safe. You may not see it that way, and sure even planes flown by professionals sometimes crash, but your chances of getting someplace safely are far better if you leave things to the pros.

Letting users cherry-pick which updates to install is a recipe for disaster which is why pretty much no one lets that happen these days. They've seen the chaos that ensues. Install every update and trust the people who know what they're doing. If they get it wrong, they'll get it wrong for a whole lot of people and fix it. If you try to cherry-pick which updates to install, you will get it wrong and fixing it will be much, much harder.

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

chrystaltree — Sat, 17 Aug 2019 13:34:27 GMT

I don't why anyone would opt out of updates. Updates allow our devices to operate more efficiently and they often give us new features and options. Who wouldn't want that. Often the updates give us new security features. Even my wifi printer gives updates.

Re: Wow! My TracFone OS Updated!

software — Thu, 05 Sep 2019 12:38:46 GMT

I opt out for reasons given by @gardenman

If my device is working for me, I leave it alone.

I've never regretted NOT doing the updates.

I'm still running Win7, no problems whatsoever

@chrystaltree wrote:
I don't why anyone would opt out of updates. Updates allow our devices to operate more efficiently and they often give us new features and options. Who wouldn't want that. Often the updates give us new security features. Even my wifi printer gives updates.