Last Updated on September 1, 2024 by Mathew Diekhake

This guide will show you how you can update the Galaxy S3 I9300 to the XXEMD2 official firmware. Once you have this, your device will be running Android Jelly Bean 4.2.1.

After running through this new build with the two in front of the one several times already this week, there’s no shortage of information about it floating around this site. We love to mention the new game you can play called the bean flicker app. To get secret access to this, you need to enter the settings and then go to the about phone section and then click on the number. That number should read the same one that you have updated to. Don’t try this course until after you have done this installation otherwise it isn’t there. As I have said many times before, it won’t win medals when put up against the game GTA four or anything like that, but it serves as an excellent introduction to this software and how smooth it is. The performance is excellent, and you can see this as soon as you open it up.

The lock screen will look different because Google Now is no longer there. Don’t worry though because it still does exist, just not as a widget from this area. What it will have is its own dedicated app in the typical application section which you access after it unlocks.

The S3 is no longer the flagship at present, but it is still new enough to reap the majority of the benefits of this operating system. The one thing you should be keen to work is the multi-window where you can have two apps open at once. It won’t serve as useful or everybody, but there is a fair amount of you that could see this as being handy. One thing that comes to mind is having statistics on the one-page pen while you watch the game footage on the other. I observe the screen as a little small to get the full experience, but the S3 is one of the bigger sized phones to enjoy this from, so it’s hard to complain.

Prerequisites

  • Make sure you backup to the devices internal storage before starting the guide. This way you wouldn’t lose any of your valuable data if anything happened unexpectedly during the procedure. There’s also different applications available from the Google Play Store that can help you with this if you want to try to do it another way.
  • If there is a Recovery image such as TWRP or ClockworkMod, then you can do a Nandroid backup instead. It is very easy to do, and many people prefer it. Keep in mind, however, that this is stock firmware, and the root cancels itself out if you continue and install it.
  • Download and install the recommended Samsung USB drivers from here. This will make sure a proper and safe connection to the computer.
  • When the handset is connected to the computer by USB, it will automatically be charging the device battery. Therefore, there is no need to worry about having enough battery power before starting. As long as it turns on it will be fine. The phone is plugged into the computer all the time for this task.
  • If you are only trying to update manually because you don’t think it has arrived OTA for you yet, then head over to Settings > About Phone > Software Update and double check before you start. Sometimes it can be there, and you didn’t realize. If it is there, simply confirm the automatic installation instead!

How to Install XXEMD2 Android 4.1.2 on Galaxy S3 I9300

1. Go ahead and download the Android 4.1.2 I9300XXEMD2 zip file and extract it. We always recommend doing this to the Windows PC desktop for easy access. Now download ODIN v3.07.

I have received several queries about this ODIN inclusion. I can assure you that you will indeed need it to complete this task.2. Power down the device and boot it back up into download mode. Keep the device in download mode and connect it to the Windows PC with a USB cable supplied.

3. Open up ODIN. You should notice inside Odin it says, “added” or else look for a box to turn yellow.It means your device connects successfully, and you can continue.

4. From the file, you extracted in step 1 you will need to find and place the code file on the PDA.

5. If you did find the pit file and selected it, you now need to check these two options Auto Reboot and F. Reset Time options. As for the Re-Partition option, if you did not use a pit file then do not do this. Just skip ahead.

6. The start button is in the middle of Odin. Press this to begin the flashing the mobile. Wait patiently for it to complete. We recommend grabbing yourself a cuppa while you wait!

7. Remember to always right-click the USB symbol in the Windows taskbar and click on the green arrow that says ‘safely remove hardware’ when you hover the cursor over it. Now right-click > select the grey area >USB Mass Storage Device > stop button > select the flash drive in the ‘stop a hardware device’ section and click OK. It will now say ‘safe to remove hardware’ in a bubble that’s popped up on the taskbar