Last Updated on September 1, 2024 by Mathew Diekhake

The Galaxy Note 2 LTE R950 received Android 4.2.1 Jelly Bean. This device is for the US cellular folks out there, that have been finally given a chance to catch up on some of the latest firmware Android has to offer. I think by now most are well aware of what this will bring, as it has been out for so many other devices already. What people might not be aware of just yet, is that Jelly Bean is now the most popular OS being used in the Droid community. This news only just broke within the last week or so.

Even though they can have the same numbers (4.1.2), they can be a different batch of things that have changed depending on the handset. For example, there will be some things one of your friends might have on the Galaxy S2 after upgrading to this increment that the owners of the Note series might not have. That same thing can be applied in reverse also. Making things even more confusing is the fact that this is just a specific build number on top of the three digits. The more we go down the line here, the less involved the upgrades tend to be. If it’s just a new build number, don’t be surprised if many of them are just based around fixes and improvements that the last one needed. It’s rare that you will see anything be released that is perfect. It’s just not realistic to expect that. So when users and developers themselves find faults these are then fixed, and we patch them up by issuing an update like the one we have here today.

One of the key reasons for an unhappy consumer is the applications don’t seem to work like they used to. This is something that will naturally take time to happen. When we see a firmware released the apps will then need to update on that new build. In the meantime, having some bugs inside of these is a very familiar thing. To help, you can suss out when a particular application has gone through the process of now being ready to use by keeping an eye on technology blogs such as ours.

The second most common complaint would be to do with battery performance. Because there are things that are not yet polished, this can take its toll on the power source, leaving you with a less than the satisfactory life span. Again, this is something that will be fixed in time. You can always visit the settings of your handset and do a factory reset. Often this can give relief, however, it may only be temporary. This will also cause you to lose anything that is on your phone if you do the “full wipe” to go along with it. Make sure you back everything up if you do that or else you will be left with nothing.

Details:

PDA: R950VXAME2
CSC: R950USCAME2
Version: 4.1.2
Date: May, 2013

Prerequisites:

– The Galaxy Note 2 LTE R950 USB drivers.

– Enable USB debugging mode from the Developer Options menu.

– Make sure you have at least 50% battery power by turning the phone on and looking at the battery icon in the status bar.

– A Windows PC ranging from Windows XP through to Windows 8.

Backing up your device is paramount before continuing so you don’t lose anything you wish you didn’t. Updates of this nature don’t automatically wipe data, however, should something go wrong you will be left wishing you followed this advice.

What you will lose automatically is any kind of customization you may have installed, including the likes of root access and custom recoveries.

The good news? For once, this is something you can install without voiding a warranty!

Install VXAME2 Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean Firmware On The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 LTE R950

1. Download Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean VXAME2, as well as Odin 3.07 to the desktop of a computer and extract the files.

2. Reboot the R950 into download mode.

3. Run the ODIN you installed, ensuring you have admin rights.

4. Plug the device into the computer via USB.

5. From the R950VXAME2 folder we extracted earlier, use them for this next part.

The second button inside ODIN should read PDA. Here you need to install the .tar.md5 file from the extracted contents in step 1.

The next button down the list should read “Phone”. Here is where you need to install the modem file.

Keep going down the list. Next is CSC. Bring the csc file to this place.

The very first one we skipped because it is a bit more difficult. It’s called the Pit button and it’s the top button. Here is where you want to use the pit file if you can find it. Please note that it is not always there.

Following on from the previous step, if you did manage to find the pit, you need to look over to the left where there are some smaller check boxes. Check mark the one called re-partition. If not, just leave it as default.

6. It’s a must that the Auto Reboot and F. Reset Time check boxes are checked.

7. Click the start button.

Wait for it to finish which may take a few minutes. It will reboot by itself, and the new firmware will be on.