GDR3 or Lumia Black Update

[Chandan Hati]

Hi,
We have seen almost every 9X series phones receiving the Lumia Black Update. When do we expect the same for Nokia Lumia 920. Its been ages since the GDR3 or the Lumia Black update has been released. Any news on that front yet?

 

[dznk]

Welcome Chandan. The Lumia Black Update, which is a firmware update, has not been released to any current phones yet. The newly released 1520 has it preinstalled, so does the 1320 when that gets released, but current phones such as the 920 will be receiving it early next year.

If you wish to install the GDR3 update (also called Update 3), you can do so manually if you wish to, by following these instructions.

 

[AMRooke]

There may be a "beta" testing version of the Black update available for users of some of the low end devices (Lumia 520/521) via the Feedback to Nokia app.

Nokia prepping Lumia Black software update, asking users for help in testing | Windows Phone Central

I have just completed a feedback to Nokia on my Lumia 920 (unbranded, running GDR3 via the MS Developer option), in hopes of being contacted by Nokia that I can participate in the testing program for the Black update too . . .

 

[fieldbaker]

Is there a changelog available for Black update?

 

[MrWhiteman]

Hi,
We have seen almost every 9X series phones receiving the Lumia Black Update. When do we expect the same for Nokia Lumia 920. Its been ages since the GDR3 or the Lumia Black update has been released. Any news on that front yet?

You ain't got a clue what you're talking about

 

[anony_mouse]

You ain't got a clue what you're talking about

Thanks for your informative and respectful post.

 

[Martsicky]

Is there a changelog available for Black update?

actually yes, known improvements:

Lumia Black

?Glance Screen ? green, blue, and red colors

?Glance Screen ? notifications

?RAW Camera support (Lumia 1020, Lumia 1520)

?Bluetooth 4.0 LE

?New camera algorithms

GDR3

?Accessibility. We've made several improvements for customers who are visually impaired.

?Storage. Now you can easily free up storage space on your phone and manage temporary files. New categories show what's taking up space.

?Driving Mode. Feeling distracted behind the wheel? Driving Mode allows you to minimize incoming calls and text messages to help you focus on the road.

?Screen. Reading emails in bed? You can lock your screen orientation so it doesn't shift when you move your phone around.

?Wi-Fi. Start preserving cellular data on your phone right out of the box?you can now connect to Wi-Fi during set up.

?Internet sharing. Now you can use your phone?s cellular data connection from your Microsoft Windows 8.1 devices by pairing them over Bluetooth.

?Bluetooth. Several fixes were made to address known issues, and improvements were made to connection quality for Bluetooth accessories.

?Ringtones. Do more with ringtones now. Assign ringtones for text messages, so you'll know who's texting you without even looking. Use your custom ringtones for more things?text messages, instant messages, emails, voicemail, and reminders.

?App switcher. Don't look back. Now you can use the App switcher to quickly close apps when you're finished with them.

?Other improvements. Includes many other improvements to Windows Phone.

 

[kristalsoldier]

That sounds like a good set of updates. I can see a couple of things already to look forward to - such as the Internet Sharing and BT enhancements, the Storage stuff, the screen orientation etc. Also, was curious , will this Black update also get the much talked about centralized Notifications?

 

[Martsicky]

That sounds like a good set of updates. I can see a couple of things already to look forward to - such as the Internet Sharing and BT enhancements, the Storage stuff, the screen orientation etc. Also, was curious , will this Black update also get the much talked about centralized Notifications?

I'm afraid it won't but its said that Windows Phone 8.1 update will bring this.

 

[DalekSnare]

The best new feature of GDR3, and a much bigger deal than closing things from the multitasking menu (useful) or orientation lock (useless as implemented without a shortcut outside settings), is the automatic tethering with Windows 8.1. Once you pair the GDR3 phone to your laptop/tablet once with Bluetooth, whenever you go to the available Wi-Fi networks in Windows 8.1, it will tell your phone to turn on the mobile hotspot without you needing to go turn it on manually. If you tether from your phone, this is basically the best feature ever.

 

[jojoe42]

Is it worth upgrading to GDR3; is it worth updating for or should one wait till the Lumia Black update comes out? I've heard of some funny issues after updating to GDR3....

 

[fieldbaker]

Is it worth upgrading to GDR3; is it worth updating for or should one wait till the Lumia Black update comes out? I've heard of some funny issues after updating to GDR3....

Being able to close apps from the multitasking-menu alone makes it worth it IMO.

 

[dznk]

Being able to close apps from the multitasking-menu alone makes it worth it IMO.

Same here, since updating, I've used this feature every single day. It was also nice to set some customized tones as well. jojoe42, it depends on how eager you are for these new features. If you think you could wait another couple of months, then hold out for the OTA update, if not, just follow these instructions to get updated.

 

[jojoe42]

Same here, since updating, I've used this feature every single day. It was also nice to set some customized tones as well. jojoe42, it depends on how eager you are for these new features. If you think you could wait another couple of months, then hold out for the OTA update, if not, just follow these instructions to get updated.

Does the GDR3 preview have any bugs or issues, given it is a dev build? I've heard of some people getting the cogs, apps not opening after the update and others losing 10GB of system storage for reasons unknown...

 

[mike13ftw]

I don't have any problem . I use it for 1 month

Sent from my Lumia 820 using Tapatalk

 

[dznk]

Does the GDR3 preview have any bugs or issues, given it is a dev build? I've heard of some people getting the cogs, apps not opening after the update and others losing 10GB of system storage for reasons unknown...

Personally, I haven't experienced any problems at all. There is a sticky thread here where people can post any problems they have noticed with it. However, with any software or firmware update, there are always some issues, most are usually minor though. The update can take a while to complete, so if you do decide to upgrade, or whenever it appears OTA, just make sure your phone is well charged, as some people have reported long installation times. The cog screen on mine sat on approx 10% for about 20mins, then flew to the end on the last update I just did, so make sure you just leave the phone alone when it's updating, as it is normal for it to take some time and appear frozen from time to time.