BlackBerry Storm OS Leaks: 4.7.0.173 for 9500 and 4.7.0.167 for 9530

by Robb Dunewood on September 3, 2009 · 17 comments

BlackBerry Storm Leaked OS Updates

Have a BlackBerry Storm 9500 or 9530 and want to update your OS beyond what is currently available?  Well, you are in luck.  OS 4.7.0.173 for the BlackBerry Storm 9500 and OS 4.7.0.167 for the BlackBerry Storm 9530 have been leaked and can be found online at via the links below.

We know that there are OS 5 leaks that have come out for both devices, however, they both definitely have some quirks that still need to be worked out.   We haven’t installed 4.7.0.167 on our BlackBerry Storm 9530, so, we cannot personally vouch for this leak, but we can say that we haven’t heard anything negative about it.

If you decide to try out one of these leaked Storm OS updates, come back and let us know how it works for you on your device.

Download Links:

[Via CrackBerry]

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{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }

Sparky September 4, 2009 at 12:53 pm

Don’t everyone jump in on this at once now…

I just rebuilt my storm with verizon’s last official release and like reformatting a Windows box, the phone runs like new and have plenty of free memory (unlike the 500kb I had before). I’d like to try this one only if it’s worth it, but don’t want to keep bugging my enterprise admins for activation twice in one or two weeks. Someone post updates if its worth it!!! :)

Question…what are the RIM tools and why are they removed?

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Brandon N September 5, 2009 at 6:51 pm

@Sparky… in short, the tools send bug reports back to RIM. They are not necessary to load this leaked OS onto your device, and it would be beneficial for the sake of not having extra files on your handset that you delete the RIM tools before installation. The files can easily be removed by going to Control Panel>Uninstall A Program>Blackberry Internal Apps for RIM (Windows Vista Premium). The files must be uninstalled before loading the new OS onto your handset. I have loaded the 167 leak and find it to be faster in quite a few areas. The applications seem to play nice with this leak. My memory on 167 does not seem to be a dramatic improvement over 151, and like 151 the memory does not seem to be leaking down at a noticeable rate. Scrolling through pictures in the media file is a lot smoother. The browser does seem to load pages faster than 151. My browser also seems to refresh and load images and text a lot faster while scrolling. Overall, 167 is an improvement over 151, but it is not dramatically better. That statement is made with the understanding that 151 is still a very solid build if you choose not to move forward to the latest OS. I hope I was able to answer most of your questions.

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Sparky September 6, 2009 at 10:05 am

The perks you speak of seem to be what I am looking for. Thank you for your time posting.

You compare this one to 151…I am running 148, which was Verizon’s last official release.

I’ve had some odd occurances with leak and official OS installations. Some require reactivation of enterprise account and some didn’t. If I wanted to go from .148 to this 167, any idea if it would require re-activation? Thats normally my biggest concern since it is the only thing out of my control.

Lastly, it seems like a version 5 may be out soon…maybe 148 is good enough to keep around until then? Or maybe if I had 151, I could wait? But since I only have 148, it’s a definite thing to go to?

Hopefully that makes since. Thanks for your help!

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tonting September 6, 2009 at 3:37 pm

i downloaded the 4.7.0.173 for storm 9500 and im supprised for the performance its really works fantastic and its double the speed of my unit..thanks

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Brandon N September 7, 2009 at 11:29 am

@Sparky… My understanding of BES is limited. My Storm is a personal handset, and I would not want to encourage you to download an OS that may cause problems with work (especially on my incomplete info of BES). I am not sure whether or not this leak would require reactivation. A quick search on google or yahoo may yield you a better answer than I can provide.

As for the question concerning .148 and 5.0…
As you probably already know, 148 is a dramatic improvement over .75 (or .65 if you were an early adopter). It is only mediocre when compared to 151, 167, or the 5.o builds. It is still a reliable and safe OS build. When looking back on the speculation of release dates for the 148 update, there was a huge window of when it should have been released and when it actually was released. It is possible that we may be waiting on the official 5.0 builds for a couple more months. It is also very possible that an official 5.0 build may be available in 4-6 weeks. In short, not one person knows when the next official OS will be released.

In summary, it is a gamble when updating to these leaks, but the risks can be reduced greatly by acquiring as much information as possible. Good luck in your endeavors.

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Sparky September 7, 2009 at 11:54 am

I’m not worried about BES…it’s just bugging the admins to give me enterprise re-activation. I guess my question is…I’m at 148. You said there isn’t much difference from 151 to 167. What about 148 to 151 or 148 to 167? I’d assume since there are decent improvements from 151 to 167, it would be a world of difference from 148 to 167 which is my plan. I am not going to 5.xxx just because of the application compatibilities. However, I have huge problems with memory leaks/crashes and will definitely get up to 167 just for that.

Again, my question is 148 to 151 or 148 to 167…well worth it?

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Brandon N September 7, 2009 at 3:20 pm

@Sparky… My apologies, I misunderstood your question. I think you would be very satisfied if you decided to upgrade to 167 from 148. The 151 build is an official build that was released by a carrier south of the border. I had been running 151 with little to no issues for quite a while now. I was very satisfied with it, and would have been content running 151 until the 5.0 build is released. 151 is a very solid build, but I would recommend going to 167 if you are willing to move forward. You will definitely notice an improvement over your current OS. Upon upgrading, your memory leak issues should no longer be a problem. I still use QuickPull with the automatic daily schedule as an added measure to ensure my device is running in great shape. I have not experienced any crashes so far with 167, but only time will tell. I am also not hearing of any issues among my colleagues. I think you would be very happy with upgrading to 167 from where you are right now. The improvements you are looking for should be found in both the 151 and 167 builds, but I would personally recommend the 167 build.

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Sparky September 10, 2009 at 12:48 pm

I can definitely tell the difference with this new build. I had many problems getting it rebuilt after the upgrade. Had some flaky null pointer exceptions so I wanted to wipe and restart. Still buggy with SMS/MMS and inbox. Deleting multiple messages at one time hangs, sometimes deleting goes through, but the message is still there. General options of SMS and Email combined, seperated or Theme controlled results in SMS either showing up or not , even though it says new ones there. I feel like I need to wipe and start over to see if it fixes the problem. I guess it could be the theme being used, but errors with messaging are enough to try a downgrade, and upgrade again. Other htan that, the system is awesome for memory, speed and everything else you can wish for.

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SiBannister September 16, 2009 at 8:38 am

I have just upgraded the OS on my Storm 9500 to 4.7.0.173 in an attempt to fix an ongoing poor signal issue and it seemed to be working fine except for on small issue – during the upgrade, it actually downgraded the versions of Facebook and Flickr on the phone. No problem, I thought, I ‘ll just upgrade them again individually after the .173 finishes installing.

Tthe phone seemed to work fine, although to be honest in the 5 mins or so that it was working, I didn’t make any calls, but the signal strength seemed much improved. Then I tried to upgrade Facebook back to where it was before, via the Blackberry App World. The BB now just keeps on re-booting without ever getting to the PIN entry screen. It’s on about its 10th go right now. I don’t know what to try next as I can’t connect it to the PC to change anything because it won’t turn on.

Can anyone suggest what I should do next?

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SiBannister September 16, 2009 at 9:02 am

Update – before starting the boot sequence again, a message flashes up on the screen, and it’s only there for a fraction of a second. It says something like ‘jump fault. disconnect’ Not sure if that helps or is of any relevance…

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Frank September 19, 2009 at 1:10 pm

Hello, Ive been battling for some time with the blackberry os for my Storm. Im with Telus and have a BB9530. As a current official os telus has been using v4.7.0.122 and its driven me crazy with the memory leaks, crashes and battery pulls. I have read about .167 and am wondering if someone had any insight of how the .122 vs .167 compare?

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Suwito Oepojo September 20, 2009 at 4:02 am

After I installed 4.7.0.173 into my storm I have some trouble … one of them is that my storm doesn’t produce any sound when I get SMS. I’ve tried to set the ring tone again but it’s just doesn’t work…. any comment ?

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Tim Mosley September 23, 2009 at 6:59 pm

I have been experiencing the same issue since adding version .167. But mine extends beyond just SMS. Anytime someone calls there is no sound, anytime someone sends an SMS, MMS, email or BBM, I get no notification (sound or vibration) other than the visual image on the screen. Has anyone gotten back to you with a fix?

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Fernando Moreira October 16, 2009 at 11:59 am

I’ve exact the same problem (also with 4.7.0.173). No sound or vibration when receiving sms.

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Leon September 21, 2009 at 11:07 am

I have tried to follow the links to download the firmware update for my Storm 9500 but it doesn’t exist. Does anyone have an alternate file location?

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Sparky September 24, 2009 at 7:25 pm

I have had all issues you guys have had. I found that when the restoration came, it flaked out my BB. I finally said screw it and did not do a backup. I started fresh. No external applications loaded. I did that on my own later. Bingo…without have a ‘corrupted’ backup restored to my phone it works like a well oiled machine. If you’re having problems, give it a go. Just make sure you back up your contacts.

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justin November 4, 2009 at 12:36 am

i want to bbm but it show my bbm pin in my status info but when i go to my bbm info my bb pin say null . how do i fix this . i want to use my bbm

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