Hi xdaforum users,
I'm a newbie here so apologies in advance as I'm not into modding phones or have done rooting before, so my knowledge is limited. I am looking to get an overall understanding about getting a device from another region.
So currently I'm interested in the 7x and have a few questions in regards to the device as it is not released in my country, nor will it ever. Only Huawei is available and not its Honor brand in my country.
So here are the questions:
- If I can use it in my country, will I be able to receive OTA updates, security patches, etc even though I wont be in India and in another region?
- As the device is setup for India market, Google Play store be set by default to India region. How can it be changed to support my country upon first set up of the device?
- The Indian model is BND-L22 which was rebranded from the BND-AL10 version. Research online have some retailers selling a Global version of the phone which receives OTA updates, etc, now which model version of the 7x is this?
Thanks in advance for the knowledge sharing, it's much appreciated.
BND AL10C675 is the Indian variant.
antares* said:
Hi xdaforum users,
I'm a newbie here so apologies in advance as I'm not into modding phones or have done rooting before, so my knowledge is limited. I am looking to get an overall understanding about getting a device from another region.
So currently I'm interested in the 7x and have a few questions in regards to the device as it is not released in my country, nor will it ever. Only Huawei is available and not its Honor brand in my country.
So here are the questions:
- If I can use it in my country, will I be able to receive OTA updates, security patches, etc even though I wont be in India and in another region?
- As the device is setup for India market, Google Play store be set by default to India region. How can it be changed to support my country upon first set up of the device?
- The Indian model is BND-L22 which was rebranded from the BND-AL10 version. Research online have some retailers selling a Global version of the phone which receives OTA updates, etc, now which model version of the 7x is this?
Thanks in advance for the knowledge sharing, it's much appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you are looking for budget midrange devices, Honor 7x is very good. However for a person interested in rooting and flashing custom roms, this phone is a strict NO NO as of now.
The main reasons are so many variants with different firmware which can brick if flashed on another variant (which I did on my honor7x and had to get motherboard replaced before service centre could flash original stock) and lack of stock roms on all the variants.
Lack of any service centre in your country is another disadvantage if you are into flashing etc.
Now coming to your questions:
1. The indian variant is not BND-L22 but BND-AL10C675 which currently has zero firmware support or downloads from honor although two OTAs have come so far. No faceunlock yet. Only gyroscope was enabled etc..
2. Google play store should work anywhere if you buy the Indian version. I guess the Chinese version lack playstore. Indianversion and International versions have it.
If you are into flashing roms etc. and would like to get a device from India, I would suggest two phones in similar price range which has plenty of ROMs to try and excellent hardware.
1. Oneplus X
2. Lenovo Zuk Z2 plus
I have personally used both and have flashed innumerable ROMS on both. In fact, the OnepusX stock firmware had a kernel issue, it randomly rebooted, which I could fix usinga boeffla kernel and AOSP rom.
Both come with topend snapdragon 800 series (801 and 820 respectively) and blazing speeds.
I gave away both (still near me, used by my brothers) and went to Honor only because of 18:9 aspect ratio. The fingerprint reader too is the fastest in Honor7x. Far accurate and faster than Mi A1.
Infact most the features we get only after rooting and custom rom are pre-built into the honor stock firmware. 90% of the bloatware that came can be uninstalled too like games etc.
You may ask then why I tried custom ROM on honor 7x, that's because I am an enthusiast. I love these developers who try to bring future into the present (For eg. last dec itself, I was using oreo 8.1 on oneplus X).
All the best!:good:
Thanks for response, yes the Honor brand has caught my attention, more so over the others. Sorry to hear about your 7x, atleast its all working again
I e-mailed honor support and got this information in regards to some of the questions to get an idea. I'll summarize.
As quoted by Honor support in italics:
7X Model Version for India:
- Honor 7x >> Bond-L22B (32GB), Bond-L22C (64GB)
(I believe it says BND-AL10 on the box, what does your device box and phone say?)
OTA Updates: and Google Playstore:
- we are sorry to inform you that you will not get OTA software update of Indian devices in out of India
- you may contact to respective country support for information regarding load Google play store.
- we are unable to provide any software updates from India to South Africa and Google Play Store would be set on by default to India.
(Yes Playstore is international, however as above they say its set to India, then in my country I will not be able to get apps native to me. Is there any way of changing region on the playstore for my region?)
For me, I'd prefer to keep the original firmware all be it of a region that the device will be kept up to date with, no matter where in the world I am as well the correct region playstore.
Thanks for the other suggestions of devices, however if I was to decide on another device it would have been the honor 9 lite. lol of which I would be left with the above questions still.
ROMystic said:
If you are looking for budget midrange devices, Honor 7x is very good. However for a person interested in rooting and flashing custom roms, this phone is a strict NO NO as of now.
The main reasons are so many variants with different firmware which can brick if flashed on another variant (which I did on my honor7x and had to get motherboard replaced before service centre could flash original stock) and lack of stock roms on all the variants.
Lack of any service centre in your country is another disadvantage if you are into flashing etc.
Now coming to your questions:
1. The indian variant is not BND-L22 but BND-AL10C675 which currently has zero firmware support or downloads from honor although two OTAs have come so far. No faceunlock yet. Only gyroscope was enabled etc..
2. Google play store should work anywhere if you buy the Indian version. I guess the Chinese version lack playstore. Indianversion and International versions have it.
If you are into flashing roms etc. and would like to get a device from India, I would suggest two phones in similar price range which has plenty of ROMs to try and excellent hardware.
1. Oneplus X
2. Lenovo Zuk Z2 plus
I have personally used both and have flashed innumerable ROMS on both. In fact, the OnepusX stock firmware had a kernel issue, it randomly rebooted, which I could fix usinga boeffla kernel and AOSP rom.
Both come with topend snapdragon 800 series (801 and 820 respectively) and blazing speeds.
I gave away both (still near me, used by my brothers) and went to Honor only because of 18:9 aspect ratio. The fingerprint reader too is the fastest in Honor7x. Far accurate and faster than Mi A1.
Infact most the features we get only after rooting and custom rom are pre-built into the honor stock firmware. 90% of the bloatware that came can be uninstalled too like games etc.
You may ask then why I tried custom ROM on honor 7x, that's because I am an enthusiast. I love these developers who try to bring future into the present (For eg. last dec itself, I was using oreo 8.1 on oneplus X).
All the best!:good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey Rom,
Any thoughts on the responses I received and pasted in the above thread from Honor India?
Thanks
Hi
I bought new phone Xiaomi Note 5 Pro (in UK via AliExpress). It has unlocked Bootloader, I guess seller did unlock it.
I dont see any real problems as problems.
I am looking for this ROM version 9.5.5.0 OEIMIFA
I cannot find it anywhere on the internet and also not on Xiaomi website at all.
You sure you have that right?
I was on 9.5.6.0 before the latest update. Lots of people have mentioned that but not 9.5.5.0.
If it's not on the miui download page (their download page is down ATM) then I'd say you're better off using one of the more up to date roms if you can.
So my friend said he wanted a redmi note 5 pro so i said its a great phone however not thinking he would order 1 in an instant 3 days later i told him dont forget to buy the global version but it was already to late the phone was on shipped so im getting his login details to contact the seller to see if its not to late to cancel but i have a few questions.
So i know the only difference is the frequency bands but that shouldnt be an issue i live in holland and here the operators use 3 and 7 and some operators use 3 , 7 and 20 so with some operators he would only miss band 20 so that wouldnt be a huge problem.
But the phone has chinese firmware no multilanguage and nno google playstore or at least it says so in the description do i need a custom rom or could i flash miui global rom and gapps without the need of a custom rom because my friend is not very techie and i think for him it would be best to keep on to a original rom. (he doesnt know what a rom is).
Thanks in advance.
NLS4 said:
So my friend said he wanted a redmi note 5 pro so i said its a great phone however not thinking he would order 1 in an instant 3 days later i told him dont forget to buy the global version but it was already to late the phone was on shipped so im getting his login details to contact the seller to see if its not to late to cancel but i have a few questions.
So i know the only difference is the frequency bands but that shouldnt be an issue i live in holland and here the operators use 3 and 7 and some operators use 3 , 7 and 20 so with some operators he would only miss band 20 so that wouldnt be a huge problem.
But the phone has chinese firmware no multilanguage and nno google playstore or at least it says so in the description do i need a custom rom or could i flash miui global rom and gapps without the need of a custom rom because my friend is not very techie and i think for him it would be best to keep on to a original rom. (he doesnt know what a rom is).
Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just help your friend and unlock the bootloader. Flash the global rom afterwards and it will be fine.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/re...dmi-note-5-china-ai-to-leaked-global-t3782175
I have the chinese version and I live in the EU too. There is a way to install play store and google play services on the chinese rom. Here is a very nice tutorial on how to do that. Also, you can delete most of the chinese bloatware, but not all.
I am currently running LineageOS and thanks to the great developers it's pretty stable and working well, but if your friend is not very techie, as you say, it would be best to skip the bootloader unlocking and stick to the chinese ROM. I don't think that it will make much of a difference.
Is the 6GB 128GB version exclusive to China?
All the Xiaomi websites that started revealing the Mi MAX 3 on their front page (which should be the international version) list the phone's spec with 4GB 64GB only.
If it's China exclusive will we be able to install the Global ROM when officially released on it as it will be specific to the 4GB 64GB version?
Thanks in advance.
samkatta said:
Is the 6GB 128GB version exclusive to China?
All the Xiaomi websites that started revealing the Mi MAX 3 on their front page (which should be the international version) list the phone's spec with 4GB 64GB only.
If it's China exclusive will we be able to install the Global ROM when officially released on it as it will be specific to the 4GB 64GB version?
Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a 6/128gb model here in the U.S. - the hardware should actually be identical aside from storage sizes, and I've had no trouble flashing anything. I can't imagine there would be any reason you couldn't flash to your firmware of choice as long as your bootloader is unlocked.
Thank you very much for your reply.
However, that is the case now as there is no Global Firmware officially available, but how if when this Global Firmware was released and intended only for the 4GB 64GB it might cause problems if it was installed on the 6GB 128GB if it was going to address the phone's memory sectors differently than the 4GB 64GB memory sectors.
The main question here is: are there two different firmwares for both versions or it's only one universal firmware that is used for both versions with different memory capacity?
Same SoC, same code name, RAM and storage size doesn't mather so same firmware/rom for both...
Have you seen different roms listed for both versions anywhere?
We can actually take this a step further. Since the redmi note 5/pro has basically the same internals as the mi max 3(less USB type c, larger screen), how hard is it to modify the Note 5 pros global stable rom to accommodate the mi max 3? The only reason for not going this route is to go directly to Android 9(Pie) development. My two cents.
samkatta said:
Thank you very much for your reply.
However, that is the case now as there is no Global Firmware officially available, but how if when this Global Firmware was released and intended only for the 4GB 64GB it might cause problems if it was installed on the 6GB 128GB if it was going to address the phone's memory sectors differently than the 4GB 64GB memory sectors.
The main question here is: are there two different firmwares for both versions or it's only one universal firmware that is used for both versions with different memory capacity?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If the two versions of the phone were different enough to require different firmwares, then they would have different code names - signifying what firmware to use for a device is one of the functions of a code name. Since they are both simply "nitrogen," this means they should take identical firmware. I've had a lot of phones and modded them all, and spend quite a bit of time reading forums for devices I don't own but am interested in, and if the two versions take different firmwares despite having the same code name then this will be the very first time I've heard of it happening. I am 99.9% sure that both phones will take the same firmware.
Yes, 6gb/128gb is a China exclusive and won't be released globally. same goes for blue variant. Any 6/128 "global" edition is likely to be a fake rom with forced unlocked bootloader. So u guys should beware.
rathian said:
Yes, 6gb/128gb is a China exclusive and won't be released globally. same goes for blue variant. Any 6/128 "global" edition is likely to be a fake rom with forced unlocked bootloader. So u guys should beware.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So, the important question now, can we re-lock the bootloader on the 6GB/128GB China version after installing the official global firmware on it? because some have mentioned that the phone returns itself to unlocked state again after doing this.
rathian said:
Yes, 6gb/128gb is a China exclusive and won't be released globally. same goes for blue variant. Any 6/128 "global" edition is likely to be a fake rom with forced unlocked bootloader. So u guys should beware.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Could you please tell us where we can find official source or confirmation for this claim?
Thank you.
I have waited so long for the 128GB Global Version and am starting to warder if it will truly come.
Please would you advise me to buy the Global ROM or still wait for the Global version as am not sure it will Come?
Coming from a 6gb/128gb owner: just buy the damn thing if you want it.
I personally don't regret it, saved myself the wait for the bootloader unlock, and would have installed Xiaomi.eu anyway, even if I had went for the "global" version.
Last but not least: there are no modem differences between the global and chinese model, so why wait if you end up getting the same band support anyway?
MrColdbird said:
Coming from a 6gb/128gb owner: just buy the damn thing if you want it.
I personally don't regret it, saved myself the wait for the bootloader unlock, and would have installed Xiaomi.eu anyway, even if I had went for the "global" version.
Last but not least: there are no modem differences between the global and chinese model, so why wait if you end up getting the same band support anyway?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed 100 % from a 6gb/128gb owner on 8.8.9 xiaomi.eu.
6/128 Gb Gold version here as well, on the so called unofficial unlocked 9.6.4.0 dodgy global rom. Been using it , giving it a hammering over the last couple of weeks.Fast and stable...no bugs to report.Not bothered in trying to update it.Everything seems to be doing what i want of it.
There will not be a Global Version of the 6GB/128GB variant as the phone is already available on the Xiaomi Global website and on the spec only listed is the 4GB/64GB variant.
It's all up to you to decide on which version you want, keeping in mind a couple of things:
First, no need to wait for a Global Version of the 6GB/128GB variant as it's not coming ever.
Second, there is no difference between both variants except for the memory difference (obviously) and how would you like your bootloader be locked or unlocked (with the Chinese version to stay on locked bootloader you'll have to remain on the Chinese Firmware pathway but if you want to go the EUMIUI or IMUI Global you have to unlock the bootloader, however, with the Global Version you can have the bootloader locked while you are on the official Global ROM with OTA updates working normally)
samkatta said:
There will not be a Global Version of the 6GB/128GB variant as the phone is already available on the Xiaomi Global website and on the spec only listed is the 4GB/64GB variant.
It's all up to you to decide on which version you want, keeping in mind a couple of things:
First, no need to wait for a Global Version of the 6GB/128GB variant as it's not coming ever.
Second, there is no difference between both variants except for the memory difference (obviously) and how would you like your bootloader be locked or unlocked (with the Chinese version to stay on locked bootloader you'll have to remain on the Chinese Firmware pathway but if you want to go the EUMIUI or IMUI Global you have to unlock the bootloader, however, with the Global Version you can have the bootloader locked while you are on the official Global ROM with OTA updates working normally)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi
Good day sir
Please I need to understand you properly on this, am a novice here and am sorry for the way I will put my questions as below.
If I buy the Chinese version from aliexpress 6gb/128gb,would I get regular MIUI update from xiaomi and also newer android update without any tweak on the ROM?
The thing there is am not familiar with locked and unlocked bootloader as am scared of bricking the device at any attempt.
I just want to buy and enjoy my device without any tweak on rom
Also, I do read that the Chinese version, has mix up of language when tunned to English (has English and Chinese writing). How true is it?
Please I need answers before I make an order.
Thanks
uche715 said:
Hi
Good day sir
Please I need to understand you properly on this, am a novice here and am sorry for the way I will put my questions as below.
If I buy the Chinese version from aliexpress 6gb/128gb,would I get regular MIUI update from xiaomi and also newer android update without any tweak on the ROM?
The thing there is am not familiar with locked and unlocked bootloader as am scared of bricking the device at any attempt.
I just want to buy and enjoy my device without any tweak on rom
Also, I do read that the Chinese version, has mix up of language when tunned to English (has English and Chinese writing). How true is it?
Please I need answers before I make an order.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you are not going to modify your phones' firmware and stay on the original firmware then you'll be good to go and you will get regular OTA updates from the official Xiaomi servers but keep in mind that this would be the Chinese firmware pathway all the time for you.
The Chinese firmware has English language but as you said there are some here and there mix up but it will not interfere with your daily use of the device but it's there (you'll find some naming in the menu in Chinese)
The other thing, is that the Chinese version doesn't have Google Play or any other Google services but you can install these easily from an app that is available on a Chinese app store pre-installed on the Chinese version.
So, if you are ok with all of the above you can get the 6GB/128GB version but if you are not feeling much comfortable of Chinese lettering here and there and some Chinese apps on your device then go with the 4GB/64GB version.
By the way, there will not be much difference of performance between the 2 devices (if any at all) if you are wondering about that and for the storage the device has a Micro SD slot and you can have all the storage that you want with that.
Hi,
I will try to make things more clear : ....
I have ordered and received from a known Chinese internet site
(not my first order with them)
"[Official Global ROM]Xiaomi Mi Max 3 6.9 Inch 4G LTE Smartphone Snapdragon 636 6GB 128GB 12.0MP+5.0MP Dual Rear Cameras Android 8.1 5500mAh Type-C OTG Touch ID - Black:"
Before shipping i have inquired :
" Is the "official Global Rom" genuine by Xiaomi or flashed by ********* ??? is the box original sealed or open ???"
The answer was :
"Dear friend,
Thanks for your inquiry
Sorry for the late reply
this item is Official Global ROM by xiaomi
it is packed by original sealed box
please do not worry
Hope you enjoy your shipping!
Best regards
The Phone was received relatively fast @ 9th. October very nice Mi Max 3 very responsive with "MIUI Global 9.x.x.x....."
Few days later got an OTA "UPDATE Alert" to MIUI Global 10.0.1.0 Stable (OEDMIFH)
The update performed in few minutes all looks good up to i found on the XDA site
The link to "Mi Product Authentication" :
https://www.mi.com/en/verify/#/en/tab/imei
I have clicked the IMEI and found this :
小米Max3 全网通版 6GB内存 黑色 128GB
Thank you for choosing Xiaomi!
However, the device you purchased is not an official global version and user experience may be affected. Next time, please purchase the official global version of the device through officially authorized channels.
(could not upload a pic.)
Started searching 6/128 Global found out there no such version on the market ....
Opened a dispute on Pay Pal
Waiting for Answers ......
You should never listen to a vendor regarding this information without thorough research. That's why Xiaomi implemented the new 720 hour official bootloader unlock.
mmarcus10 said:
Hi,
I will try to make things more clear : ....
I have ordered and received from a known Chinese internet site
(not my first order with them)
"[Official Global ROM]Xiaomi Mi Max 3 6.9 Inch 4G LTE Smartphone Snapdragon 636 6GB 128GB 12.0MP+5.0MP Dual Rear Cameras Android 8.1 5500mAh Type-C OTG Touch ID - Black:"
Before shipping i have inquired :
" Is the "official Global Rom" genuine by Xiaomi or flashed by ********* ??? is the box original sealed or open ???"
The answer was :
"Dear friend,
Thanks for your inquiry
Sorry for the late reply
this item is Official Global ROM by xiaomi
it is packed by original sealed box
please do not worry
Hope you enjoy your shipping!
Best regards
The Phone was received relatively fast @ 9th. October very nice Mi Max 3 very responsive with "MIUI Global 9.x.x.x....."
Few days later got an OTA "UPDATE Alert" to MIUI Global 10.0.1.0 Stable (OEDMIFH)
The update performed in few minutes all looks good up to i found on the XDA site
The link to "Mi Product Authentication" :
https://www.mi.com/en/verify/#/en/tab/imei
I have clicked the IMEI and found this :
小米Max3 全网通版 6GB内存 黑色 128GB
Thank you for choosing Xiaomi!
However, the device you purchased is not an official global version and user experience may be affected. Next time, please purchase the official global version of the device through officially authorized channels.
(could not upload a pic.)
Started searching 6/128 Global found out there no such version on the market ....
Opened a dispute on Pay Pal
Waiting for Answers ......
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Rom , like mine is official.The method they used was unofficial.As there is no 128gb International version phone in existence. You will always get a Chinese version 128gb phone, as seen when you check the IMEI software link. With the "Official rom" loaded by the person you purchased it from.
To do that, they had to unwrap the Chinese version phone, Install the "Official rom" and then send it to you.What they did wrong was state to you that the phone was in a sealed box.If you are concerned with having a Chinese version of the phone, i would suggest you try to return it and downgrade to the Official 64gb International version phone in a sealed box with the same software on board.
I Personally more than happy with my 128GB Chinese phone with the International Rom loaded.
I wouldn't have opened that dispute TBH.
The Chinese 6gb / 128gb model is still the best one on the market, and let's face it: you would have installed the Xiaomi.eu ROM on the "official" global version anyway, just to get theme support and rid of the ads.