Samsung Galaxy S3 is undoubtedly the most powerful Android device in the world so far. It is coveted by all Android fans and also by those who are not. Well if are a proud owner of this powerhouse device and want to update it to the latest firmware manually, you are at the right spot now. In the present tutorial, I will try to explain how you can download the correct latest stock firmware on your Samsung Galaxy S3 and install it using the latest Odin3 tool.
First of all, you need to know the product code and current firmware version of your Galaxy S3. To know the product code of your device dial *2767*4387264636# on your phone’s dialer. To check the current firmware version of your S3, open Settings> About and you will see a screen like this:
Now, remember that the product code and firmware version differs from one device to another according to the region or country where it is sold. In most cases, you can find out the country or region of a device for which it has been made by referring to the firmware version. In the above screenshot, for example, look at the Baseband version that is: [highlight_orange]I9300XXALE8[/highlight_orange]. So, in this case:
- “I9300” is the device model number, that is Galaxy S3.
- “XX” denotes to the Country/Region/Network code, that is Österreich, Belgien, Frankreich, Deutschland, Ungarn, Italien, Spanien, United Kingdom (Western Europe).
- “LE” points to the date of release of this firmware (L is the 12th character of the alphabet and E is the 5th, so it is May 12).
- Finally “8” shows the Revision version of the firmware.
Now take a look at the following list of Country/Region/Network Codes for Samsung Android devices. It will help you select the correct latest firmware for your Samsung Galaxy S3:
OS Type PDA PHONE CSC
- 4.0.4 Unbranded ZSALED XXLEF OZSALED
- 4.0.4 Unbranded XXALEF DDLE9 ODDALE7
- 4.0.4 Unbranded XXALE9 XXLE8 OJVALE9
- 4.0.4 Branded BUALE6 BULE6 VFGALE6
- 4.0.4 Unbranded XXALE8 XXLE8 ITVLE7
- 4.0.4 Branded XXALE8 BWLE5 O3UALE5
- 4.0.4 Unbranded XXALE8 DXLE8 OLBALE5
- 4.0.4 Unbranded XXALE8 XXLE8 NEEALE3
- 4.0.4 Unbranded XXALE8 DDLE8 ODDALE5
- 4.0.4 Branded XXALE8 NELE4 3IEALE3
- 4.0.4 Unbranded XXALE8 XXLE8 LUXALE5
- 4.0.4 Unbranded XXALE8 XXLE8 DBTALE5
- 4.0.4 Branded XXALE8 NELE4 HTSALE2
- 4.0.4 Unbranded XXALE8 XXLE8 PHNALE4
- 4.0.4 Branded BVALE4 BVLE4 AMNALE4
- 4.0.4 Branded BVALE4 BVLE4 FTMALE4
- 4.0.4 Branded BVALE4 BVLE4 IDEALE4
- 4.0.4 Branded BVALE4 BVLE4 ONEALE4
- 4.0.4 Branded BVALE4 BVLE4 ORAALE4
- 4.0.4 Unbranded XXALE8 XXLE8 OXAALE8
- 4.0.4 Branded XXALE8 NELE4 H3GALE4
Country/Region Codes of Samsung Firmwares:
Code Country
AW → Hungary
AZ → France
BD → Cyprus, Greece
BY → Greece
CB → Poland
CE → Benelux
CP → Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden
DB → Vietnam
DC → Thailand
DD → India
DT → Australia
DX → Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam
DZ → Malaysia, Singapore
JA → South Africa
JC → Algeria, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa, Tunisia
JP → Arabic
JR → Arabic
JV → Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Morocco, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey
JW → West Africa
JX → Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Morocco, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey
KA → Turkey
ME → France
MK → Serbia
MS → France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Turkey, UK
MT → Switzerland
MY → Italy
NH → Latvia
PO → France
PU → Russia
UB → Brazil
XA → Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Switzerland, United Kingdom
XB → Denmark, Norway, Sweden
XC → Portugal, Spain
XD → Croatia, Czech, Hungary, Slovakia
XE → Bulgaria, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, Ukraine
XF → Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania
XP → UK, France, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Poland, Portuguese, Turkey
XX → Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom
XW → Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom
ZC → China, Hong Kong
ZH → Hong Kong
ZS → China, Hong Kong
ZT → Taiwan
How to Install Stock Firmware on Galaxy S3
Well, if you have downloaded the correct latest firmware for your device, your next move should be flash it on your device. You can do it using Odin3-v3.04. In the following tutorial, we shall explore both methods.
Basics of Flashing:
Here are a few essentials to keep in mind while flashing stock firmware on a Samsung Galaxy series phone.
PDA- refers to the build version of the software/firmware
Phone- refers to the baseband/modem version
CSC- is the Consumer Software Customisation and is specific to geographical region and carriers. It contains the software packages specific to that region, carrier branding and also APN settings for data connection, MMS, etc. for your service provider.
.PIT- refers to the partition information table you only need it if you screw up your partition table or if the firmware specifically requires it because of a change in the partition table layout. It’s very likely you may never have to use this.
Suppose the firmware you downloaded comprises of only one .tar file, it means that it contains and combines all required files, PDA+Phone+CSC, in the one file. In such a case, you need to select only the PDA button at Odin and then click on the Start button to initiate flashing.
In case the firmware package/archive contains multiple .tar files, you will have to add corresponding .tar files to specific areas on Odin:
1. Installing Firmware on Samsung Galaxy S3
Odin3-v3.04 is the latest version of the PC utility that is used to flash kernels and firmwares on Samsung Android devices. Here are the steps that you need to follow to do the same.
- Download the appropriate firmware file from Updato or Sammobile. If it is in zip, extract it to get .tar.md5 file. Do not extract it further.
- Download Odin3-v3.04.zip and extract it to the desktop of your PC.
- Download and install Samsung USB Drivers on your PC.
- Charge your device to at least 70% of battery level.
- Back up the data like contacts
- Turn on the USB Debugging Mode on your device: Settings> Developer Options> USB Debugging.
- Now Power off your device and boot it into Download Mode: Press and hold the Volume Down + Home keys simultaneously and then press the Power keys. Hold the three-button for some time and you will get a screen as shown below.
- Now press the Volume Up key to enter the download mode.
- Okay, now double click the “Odin3-v3.04.exe”. You will see a new pop-up window (see below).
- Connect your device to the PC using a USB cable and wait for the Odin3 to find your device. The ID:COM port at Odin3 will turn yellow to notify that it has found your device. It does not turn yellow, make sure that you have turned on the USB Debugging mode, and installed the USB drivers.
- Now click on the PDA button on the Odin3, browse to the .tar.md5 file (ROM file) and select it.
- Make sure that no other options except “Auto Reboot” and “F. Reset Time” are ticked on the Odin3.
- Make sure that everything looks as shown in the image above. If yes, hit on the Start button.
- Odin will now start flashing the firmware to your Galaxy S3 and on the completion of the installation, you will see a “PASS!” message and ID:COM port turned green.
- Now your device should reboot automatically and it will be updated to the latest firmware. To make sure, go to Settings> About and check the FW version there.
2. Installing Samsung Firmwares Using Mobile Odin
You can also install the firmware on your Samsung Galaxy S3 using the Mobile Odin utility app developed by Chainfire. Here are the steps:
- Download and install the Mobile Odin Pro app on your device. Note that to be able to use it, you will have to root your Galaxy S3 first. If you have not done that yet, read our rooting guide.
- Connect the device to the computer and copy the ROM file to the Internal or External storage of your device. Remember that the ROM file should be with .tar.md5 extension. If you downloaded a .zip or .rar file, extract it to get the .tar.md5 file. In my case, the name of the ROM file is “GT-I9300_H3G_I9300XXALE8_I9300H3GALE4.tar”. It might be different in your case.
- Now open the Mobile Odin. The app will ask you to download some additional data needed to make it work properly. So you need a fast internet connection with a data pack or a good Wi-Fi network. Do not worry, it is not a big file just 8-9 MB.
- When the download finishes, all features of the Mobile Odin will be unlocked.
- Now go to the “Open File” option and select the Internal or External SD Card, wherever you have copied the ROM.
- Select the ROM file and confirm the choice. Mobile Odin will start installing the firmware to your device.
- When the installation finishes, your device will reboot itself and the new firmware will be installed to it. Cheers!!!
If this tutorial has been helpful to you in any way, please share your experience with us and share it with your friends on social community sites.
I have up grated Samsung Galaxy S3 I9300 with
I9300XWUGML4_I9300ODDGML4_TML.zip over Mobile Odin from Bangladesh. This version is for Bangladesh but it has lost mobile network and Multi Window. How could I repair it….?