Bionic build 5.9.901....Initial impressions......and what we know so far

[nateohio]

Since the other threads are growing to a size that's hard to navigate, I figured I'd start a thread for specifically addressing the initial impressions from those of us that have installed it and to also address what we know already.

My initial impressions are:

-This build finally brings the bionic to a point where it lives up to all the hype
-Improved signal strength, on average about 5dbm improvement from 893
-Holds onto a 4G signal more reliably (haven't had a data drop yet)
-Improved 3G/4G/Wifi handoff (almost seamless for me)
-Stable and smooth
-Battery life is outstanding!

Now for what we know about the build:

-It's a pretty extensive update that overhauls most of the components
-It installs some more unnecessary bloatware, easily taken care of by freezing
-Moto has officially acknowledged that they "accidentally" pushed this to a few users
-This is the upcoming update that will be released when testing is complete
-If you are 4ever rooted, you will retain root through the upgrade

**For those of you that are all about the custom roms, there are working copies of Eclipse and Kinetix in the wild. If you are interested head over to Rootzwiki and check it out over there** Will continue to update as news comes available**

Those of you that have applied this update, please feel free to add your impressions and if we find anything else out for sure, please add that also.

I don't know why I didn't think of adding this stuff before, but here it is:

Link for 4ever rooting:
http://www.droidforums.net/forum/dr...70-r3l3as3droot-43v3r-root-bionic-v2-1-a.html

Link for the 5.9.901 update:
http://www.droid-life.com/2011/12/20/droid-bionic-receiving-mysterious-5-9-901-update/ (If the primary link isn't working, click on the mirror)

Disclaimer: As always, neither droidforums or myself take any responsibility for anything that may happen to your phone when utilizing the tools provided. Albeit very unlikely, due to the fact that Moto accidentally released the 901 update to a small number of users, there is a very small chance this could remove you from the upgrade path.

That being said, after applying this update, I could really care less if I ever get another OTA update. It's that damn good!

There have been rumblings that the community figured out a way to get everybody back on the upgrade path. I don't know if anyone has tried rolling back from build 901 but either way, the limitless ingenuity of the android community has once again been demonstrated!!!!!!!



This is with 4Glte and bluetooth left on for the duration.
2-3 hours streaming music via bluetooth
3 data intensive widgets on homescreens
1 hour of voice calls
Probably about an hour total of surfing droidforums
A few texts and emails

Pretty fricking impressive considering that I wasn't trying to conserve battery at all. I can't wait to see how long this thing will run with battery saving in mind.

One thing I still can't figure out with the bionic, is how much battery the bluetooth eats up. Out of all the other android phone that I've had, the bionic is the worst in this category by far.

 

[Laurence5905]

Do you have a link to the official announcement that Moto supposedly made, saying that this is the actual future release, and that it was indeed pushed by them accidentally to some users?

If it is the official release, any word on the date when it will be released to everyone?

Do you have a link to where we might download this?

Thanks,

 

[LoneWolf15]

I have only had a limited time with 5.5.893 before getting 5.9.901. I cannot speak to the previous .886 release, as I got my phone the day of the .893 patch, bypassed activation (I had to port my number, which took 24 hours), and installed via WiFi before even activating my phone. That was last Wednesday (activated on Thursday), and I was one of the first to get the .901 update.

My usage pattern usually leaves 4G-LTE turned off, not because I don't have access to it, but because of battery life. However, my limited usage of it has been problem free. On the other hand, I do a lot of 3G-Wifi switching. This has been flawless.

3G performance was good prior to updating. It seems better now. I have been surfing most of the day today on 3G, and had performance that blows my former Droid 2 (also running Gingerbread) into the weeds on the stock browser, and it is clear to me that this isn't just because of an improved processor.

Call clarity has remained good throughout; I might wish for a couple notches higher on the volume scale for when I'm in a noisy car, but it's minor, and I blame this more on the road noise of my car. I am having no issues with dropped calls.

Bluetooth, no issues there. I use the free CurveFish widgets (WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth, and Brightness) with no issues.

I have had no app issues, and I've been playing with a lot of apps, and switching back and forth. No stability problems at all.

The only thing I haven't played with much is GPS on/off, so I can't give an indicator of speed in activation.

Several apps have been added; like many others, I use Launcher Pro, and have hidden most of them so they don't appear on my App screen.

All of this makes me feel bad for the people who got the Droid Bionic prior to these updates, as this phone has been perfect for me. I think I have the phone that everyone wanted from Day One.

 

[sos567656765]

Really glad I found and read this..I was planning on flashing it tonight but would hate to lose my ability to ROM

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk

 

[lykofos]

Do you have a link to the official announcement that Moto supposedly made, saying that this is the actual future release, and that it was indeed pushed by them accidentally to some users?

If it is the official release, any word on the date when it will be released to everyone?

Do you have a link to where we might download this?

Thanks,

Yes this 5.9.901 is officially from motorola OTA, and will be an official release eventually but is still in the testing phase. It accidentally got pushed out early when it shouldn't have. This is from an official motorola spokesperson on the motorola forums: https://supportforums.motorola.com/thread/64091?start=60&tstart=0

"Anyway, as you know we are always working on improving software for our devices. There is an update for the Droid Bionic in process and it was inadvertently sent early to a small number of users on Dec. 19. We're continuing to test the software and once the software completes the testing cycle, it will be distributed to all Bionic users."

 

[Stelv]

I manually installed the 901 update. I am rooted with 43v3r root and kept root. So far I don't really notice much difference. Most of my issues were fixed with the 893 update. Headphone whine was still present after 893. Haven't check it with 901 yet. I will post more findings if I have any.

 

[tjk629]

-This build finally brings the bionic to a point where it lives up to all the hype

Really?

Hmm might have to give this a go then.

 

[nateohio]

For me, it did. And I have yet to hear anything negative about it.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using DroidForums

 

[rdgxray]

I always get -90 signal at home and now with 9.01 I am getting -86 signal. Small improvement but noticeable in everyday use. 9.01 for the win!

 

[Scribble]

I manually installed the 901 update. I am rooted with 43v3r root and kept root. So far I don't really notice much difference. Most of my issues were fixed with the 893 update. Headphone whine was still present after 893. Haven't check it with 901 yet. I will post more findings if I have any.

I both have and don't have the headphone whine after the update... I don't notice it like I used to until it stops then there is an audible click and I feel like something is no longer there, but not a sound I can hear... Sounds odd but that's the only way I can explain it.

 

[Stelv]

I both have and don't have the headphone whine after the update... I don't notice it like I used to until it stops then there is an audible click and I feel like something is no longer there, but not a sound I can hear... Sounds odd but that's the only way I can explain it.

I'll give it a test when I get home. I was getting a constant high pitch whine when playing my Bionic through FM transmitter. Could be the transmitter too, i'll try with a pair of headphones.

 

[Captain Crypto]

As others have mentioned before, my Bionic is now the phone I had hoped it would be.

1. Increased signal strength in 4G and 3G. I live in a 3G-4G edge location and it actually sticks to 4G whereas before it would drop everything all together. I use a network extender and WiFi at home so this is usually not an issue for me anyway unless I'm outside in the yard. The phone now switches relatively smoothly between 4G and 3G without data drops. GPS activates quicker than before. WiFi locks on to my AP still a bit sluggishly, but nothing to really complain about.

2. The camera is faster, focuses better in daylight (haven't tested it in low light yet), and exposure and color saturation look pretty good.

3. The phone overall is faster. Response time in opening apps and web pages (using Boat Browser) seems faster.

4. I never had a whine problem with the audio, and I continue not to.

5. I retained root. Yay!

6. Call clarity appears to be the same. I'm partially deaf so it all sounds too low to me anyway.

I haven't really beat this thing up that much yet. Next week I'm going on a long road trip so we'll see. Overall, though, this phone rocks. I knew going in that the Bionic had its problems but it was still more attractive to me than what I had read (at the time) about the RAZR and GNex. I'm glad I stuck with it.

 

[ZimmTheSeries]

The New Apps

For those that want to know what new or changed apps they put on the phone in 5.9.901 and want something more specific than hearing "bloatware," here is what I've noticed different in the App drawer:

1.) Apps - V Cast Apps
2.) Emergency Alerts
3.) Latitude - The updated the logo
4.) MOG Music - Pandora competitor
5.) Places - The updated the logo
6.) Slingbox
7.) Verizon Video - V Cast Video is gone and replaced by this
8.) Videos - Looks like a movie rental service to compete with Netflix

View attachment 44459


ZimmTheSeries

 

[xmguy]

I manually installed the 901 update. I am rooted with 43v3r root and kept root. So far I don't really notice much difference. Most of my issues were fixed with the 893 update. Headphone whine was still present after 893. Haven't check it with 901 yet. I will post more findings if I have any.

I too manually added the 3 lines of code needed to forever root the phone. I just hope it works. I never got the pc app to work right. Right now I'm seeking 2 files to restore my bionic to stock for the ota. That's for another thread though.

Sent from my BIONIC out in the boonies of TN while picking a guitar!

 

[nateohio]

For those that want to know what new or changed apps they put on the phone in 5.9.901 and want something more specific than hearing "bloatware," here is what I've noticed different in the App drawer:

1.) Apps - V Cast Apps
2.) Emergency Alerts
3.) Latitude - The updated the logo
4.) MOG Music - Pandora competitor
5.) Places - The updated the logo
6.) Slingbox
7.) Verizon Video - V Cast Video is gone and replaced by this
8.) Videos - Looks like a movie rental service to compete with Netflix

View attachment 44459


ZimmTheSeries

Thank you, I didn't even think about listing the stuff. Mostly because it was backed up and deleted within 5 mins of my activation.