Table of Contents
Summary: In this guide, you will learn how to install the latest Samsung Android One UI update on Samsung S8, S9, S10, Note8, Note9, Note10, S20 and other J series Samsung devices. The guide also contains a few video guides that you can follow and update your Samsung phone to Android 10 One UI 2.0 and 2.1 (if available).
To update a Samsung Android device to One UI 2.0 or 2.1, you must check the update manually. For this,
- Go to Settings> Software update
- Tap on Download and Install
It will check and display any update available for your Samsung device. If it doesn’t, you can download and install the Samsung Smart Switch Software on your PC. Then,
- Connect your Samsung device using a USB cable to your PC
- Click on the down arrow button beside your device name
- Check if it displays any update for your device.
If it does, update it. If it still says up to date, then there is no other way but to update the Samsung firmware manually. And I am going to show you how trough this post and a video guide.
Steps to Update Samsung Phones to Android 10 One UI 2.1
Before proceeding with this manual update process, I want to put a disclaimer and a warning:
DISCLAIMER: This process is safe and can be executed successfully by following the steps described in this guide. However, updating and flashing firmware can cause severe problems such as bricked Android phone. So, I suggest you proceed with this guide at your own risk. I can’t be held responsible for any issue whatsoever.
Warning aside, this method is tried and tested by several users including me and it works for almost everyone, except a few who own a carrier locked Samsung device.
So to update Samsung device to Android 10 or latest available Android firmware, follow these steps.
Step 1: Find the Model no. of your Samsung Device
- For this, go to Settings>About Phone and there you will see the Model no. of your Samsung Device
- Note down the device model no.
Step 2: Search and Download Latest Android Update
- Go to SamMobile.com. Register using your email and other details. Verify your account and then login.
- After login, Click ‘Firmware’
- Then click Browse Firmware Archive
- In the box, enter the model no. of your device. You can also enter the device name such as S10 or S20 and it will show you all the models.
- Select the model no. that matches yours and click on the search icon or press Enter key
- This will take you to the list of firmware available for your device. Every country has a specific firmware, so choose the firmware that belongs to your country and carrier.
It’s important that you choose the right firmware. If your device is carrier locked and the firmware is not listed, you need to wait for it to arrive, or You may get in touch with your carrier for more information on when they will release the update.
If the firmware for your country is not available, you can either wait or choose a firmware that belongs to Germany, USA, or India and flash it.
- Once you find the firmware, click on it and this will take you to the download page
- Click ‘Wait and Download‘
- You will have to wait for 30 sec and then Download link will appear
- Click on Download. If you don’t see this link, disable Adblocker and retry
NOTE: The speed will be slow and I highly recommend you to use a File Downloader tool such as IDM or any free alternative so that you can download faster and resume the download if it breaks due to network issue. Otherwise, Web browser download will be really slow and annoying.
Step 3: Extract the Firmware Files and Install Samsung Drivers
- Once the firmware is downloaded, extract it to a folder. You can extract it anywhere but I suggest you create a folder and extract all files in that folder
- Now download the Samsung USB Drivers and install them after extracting.
- After installing the drivers, you have to restart the PC.
Step 4: Backup Your Data
- Connect your Samsung Device using the USB cable and backup all your data by using Samsung Smart Switch app available for both Windows ad Mac
- The tool helps backup all your data such as contacts, photos, videos, messages, etc. including the data on SD card
This is important as updating firmware may wipe your entire device based on the option you choose to update. And backup is critical to avoid any data loss.
Step 5: Download ODIN and Setup Samsung Device
- Download and extract the latest ODIN tool. Now you are almost ready to update your Samsung Galaxy device
- After taking the backup, start Odin tool and make sure your Samsung S8, S9, S10, S20, note 8, Note 9, Note 10 or whichever Samsung device you want to update is connected to the system.
- You will see a message that says, delete Google Samsung account from your Samsung device. So to do so, on your Samsung device go to Settings>Accounts and Backup
- Tap on Accounts and then tap on the Samsung Account
- Select Personal Info and then tap on these three dots.
- Tap on Sign Out. Now similarly you have to remove the Google Account from your device.
- Once done, go back to your PC and click ‘OK’.
- You will see a COM signal. This means your device is recognized and added.
- Now you have to choose firmware files that you extracted earlier.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Now here’s the thing. There are two ways to update firmware on your Samsung device. One will keep your data such as messages, contacts, photos, videos, intact. It’s more like an OTA update. However, The second way wipes the entire storage and does a clean install.
Step 6: Flash and Install Samsung Update
- Assuming you have a backup of your data, you can proceed and select the four files by click on appropriate buttons.
- So, click on BL, AP, CP, CSC buttons in ODIN tool and choose appropriate files that start with the same letter
Now there are two CSC files. If you select Home CSCS, the data will not be deleted but if you choose CSC, data will be wiped and your device will have a clean installation.
You may choose any based on your preference. The first method will work on Samsung devices which are one firmware level below the latest release that you have just Downloaded. But to avoid any error or issue, I highly suggest you to perform the clean firmware installation
- Click Start to begin flashing Samsung firmware update. Again, proceed only if you have already backup your data
- This will start uploading the firmware files to your device’s partitions and then your device will flash them internally.
- Once done, your device will restart. However, the first boot after firmware flash will take more time. So, keep patience.
- Once the device reboots successfully, setup your updated Samsung device
To Wrap Up
Restore the backup using the Samsung Smart Switch and start using the latest firmware on your device. And from now onwards, you will also receive all the updates as they arrive like everyone else.
If this guide helps, please share this and follow us. Also, subscribe to our YouTube channel for more videos on Samsung Galaxy devices. I will bring more videos on fixing various problems such as overheating, Battery Drainage in Samsung devices. So stay Tuned. And if you have any issue, let me know via comments.