FX7500 Firmware

[rprout]

Help, I have tried in vain to get any firmware from Motorola for the FX7500. What I see is something that mentions The software you have attempted to download requires entitlement when I go through the process they are asking for $2500 and I will be able to download the firmware. So you buy their $900 device and charge you $2500 to refresh or upgrade the firmware. I just want to at least reflash it. I find this very unsettling about Motorola, product support, what a joke. If I have totally lost my mind and there is another way to get this or do this please share. FX7500-1-2-9-release.zip or FX7500-build-1-2-11.zip are the files I need, I have 2 FX7500 that are not functioning properly and want to try and salvage them. I have spent quite some time in this forum trying to solve the ethernet problems with these devices, the third one I have works perfectly just like the FX7400 I personally use. Help

[hubbard47630]

You have already entered your serial number to request the download?

[rprout]

Yes, it has rejected or not recognized either.

[rprout]

When I was on the phone with them yesterday he checked both serial #'s and wnet to transfer me and I lost the call.

[Scovel Racing]

Try contacting an authorized dealer, they might have access to the files.

Aaron

[Ohio Race Day]

rprout,

I can't begin to tell you the problems I had when myself & Eric Sondag (in this group) tried to update the firmware on the older style Motorola XR 400 readers.  I must have dealt with 7 different departments at Motorola and lost count at 40 emails and countless phone calls.  I bet I worked on it for an hour each night for several weeks.  It was one of the most maddening experiences I've ever had with a company.  I started to go ballistic (and it takes me a while to get there) and began emailing anybody involved.  Here are the email addresses I used:

supportcentr...@motorolasolutions.com
entitleme...@motorolasolutions.com
ord...@mycommerce.com
mis.supp...@motorolasolutions.com
Sym...@motorolasolutions.com
contract...@motorola.com
Motorola....@digitalriver.com
ems.s...@motorolasolutions.com
no-r...@symbol.com
Motorola Solutions, Inc.
One Motorola Plaza
Holtsville, NY 11742-1300
Phone: 1.800.722.6234
Fax: 631.738.5990
http://www.motorolasolutions.com

I was getting the same message via Motorola Solutions even after I paid for their "entitlement."  Thank goodness my charge, as administered by MyCommerce, was only $40.  What ended up happening was I got a rep from Holtville NY to call me after I filled out a survey about my experience.  He gave me access to the zip file and I extracted it an between Eric and I we worked on the firmware upgrade for another couple of weeks.  We were unable to get the units upgraded so the rep in Holtsville offered to upgrade them at no charge.  I shipped one unit out and in the end, the two readers did not work with ART and I sold them on Ebay to a guy in Texas.  Eric's reader died in the process and he was out ~ $300 or so.  If you want I can try to locate the rep's name that helped me.  It is buried in my email someplace.  I have nothing good to say about Motorola support.  A supervisor from the Holtsville office called me out of the blue one day to discuss the entire matter.  I sent him screen shots and email copies of most of what had taken place.  He said he would review it all and bounce it up the chain. 

What I couldn't understand was why they couldn't just sell me the small piece of firmware like any other vendor sells software.  For God's sake create a way to allow a user to place the software in a shopping cart and then checkout with a credit card.  Transaction complete!  But no, they act like they're giving you the keys to Fort Knox or something.  The difficulty and red tape and bureaucracy and overseas call centers and repetitive emails that I received.  You got me going now!  LOL.  It was a bad experience all around.

[rprout]

I know of one fx9500 experience that went back to Motorola they flashed it with the wrong firmware sent it back, it got sent back again to get fixed and was sent back was still not working and it has finally been returned to the seller. I don't trust them, I just want to get my hands on the software. MY problem is these were purchased from Ebay and not a  Motorola dealer so I am SOL when it comes to an invoice # that Motorola needs for me to get the software. The other thing that doesn't make any sense to me is when I submit the Serial # off of the units it doesn't check out with Motorola's database. Maybe I have latched on to some black market clones of their hardware. LOL I have a computer repair business and I have never run into this kinda of crap. Authorized dealer???? it's your equipment. Do you think I could send them a picture of it and the original box, maybe if I do it official Motorola stationary they might help me. If anyone has a letterhead let me know and I'll clone it. LOL

[Brian Agee]

I just emailed my Motorola rep and asked for the newest firmware for the FX7500, XR Series reader, and anything else he can give me. I'll let the group know as soon as I hear anything.

In case anyone ever needs it, I did get a link to download the v1.5.5 firmware for the FX9500 reader:

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/8402132/FX9500_8_1.5.5.323.esir

[rprout]

Brian Thanks for your help
Bob

[Ohio Race Day]

Here are the two that finally helped me ...

The worker:

Justin Salvage

Technical Support Specialist III

Motorola Solutions, Inc

1-800-653-5350


The boss:

Reggie Corpuz

 Team Lead - Sr. Specialist Technical Support III

Global Customer Support - North America

Motorola Solutions Services
Office Phone: +001.800.653.5350

Fax Number  : +001.631.738.5410

Website: www.motorolasolutions.com

 One Motorola Plaza, MS A-27 Holtsville, NY 11742

 

[Peak Performance Timing]

This is kinda off you subject thread, but today I finally got around to "exploring" the CD I recieved with a brand new Motorola reader.......IT WAS A BLANK UNFORMATTED DISK!!! Looks real, was in a sealed CD envelope, but nothing on it.....tried it on 5 different computers because I just couldn't believe it was blank and unformatted. LOL

[Brian Agee]

You probably bought a reader from "dcodessa2010". I found the same thing when I tried to get support for one of the readers I bought from him. Most of the readers I bought from him worked just fine, however I bought one FX9500 8-port reader (which I still have at my house) that would constantly reboot itself and was unusable. Based on our conversations I'm assuming he's not from the US. He was always fairly friendly to me, but he didn't provide much (if any) support with this reader and when I ask him about getting a replacement (because that reader was DOA) he said that he only offers a 30-day warranty. Of course it was just over 30 days from the purchase that I contacted him, so I don't know really if he really offers any warranty at all.

So I contacted Motorola and when I read them the serial number they said it doesn't appear in their records. This seemed to really surprise them and they tried to ask me where I bought the equipment. I told them "online" however I started to wonder if I could somehow get in trouble if the seller I purchased from was selling some kind of smuggled readers from the factory in Mexico. So I didn't provide any other info. They did tell me that it appears that the reader has bad memory (their best guess). So of course that's when I decided to become an official Motorola partner right then. Most of us are part-time timers and spending over $1,000 on something is a signficant investment, so I didn't like the idea of selling equipment this expensive with no guarantee that it was going to work (and that it would be fixed if it didn't). Of course in the beginning I didn't think anything unethical was going on with this seller. I simply did what anyone would do - search around for the best deals for the equipment I needed. 

When I was speaking with Motorola they were intrigued at my business and they asked where I was buying equipment before and how much I was spending on the readers. They made it clear to me that something isn't right (implying 'legal') about the seller I was buying from since he was selling readers for less than what official Motorola resellers get them at.

[Scovel Racing]

Interesting, same guy I bought my FX9500. Thank you for the information.

[Peak Performance Timing]

Brian thanks for the heads up on dcodessa2010.....I have bid on things from him, but never actually bought anything. The reader I was referring to was from tekbuy amazon.com.....I have seen tekbuy on ebay also.

[hubbard47630]

Me and rprout emailed back and forth last night about this. When I spoke with Motorola they could not have been more useless or condescending. Thanks for the help Brian! The other thing I found odd was after I set up an Enterprise account with Motorola I could access the newest firmware for the FX7400 but not for the XR450. If anyone needs the 2.2 software for the FX7400, here's a link- 

http://1drv.ms/1BTVBnJ 

[Ohio Race Day]

My four port Motorola FX9500 was purchased via Ebay from dcodessa2010.  His Paypal email is dan...@hotmail.com according to my records.  His prior user name was dbelik. He was decent & business-like with me and the reader has worked for almost two years now without an issue.  Our one FX7400 reader was purchased from Tekbuy.  On Paypal they are pay...@tekovery.com and have the website Tekovery.com in Yonkers, NY.  The FX7400 reader had a cocked LAN port and I sent it back.  After reviewing the photos it was evident that they sent me a reader that was different from the listed one.  See the attached photo. 

Back to dcodessa2010.   If memory serves me correctly ... he also was from NY.  He seemed to not speak English perfectly and Odessa is a city in the Ukraine.    hmmm.

[John Kirby]

I recently saw ( in the last month) FX 7400 readers for sale by Tekbuy at a very good price, I believe a 4 port for $700. I submitted 4 questions to the seller through Amazon on weather the readers were new and a reply was never posted by the seller, which was a red flag for me. If you can't answer a question to make a sale... what can you expect afterwards.

[esondag]

This is a good place to mention that I still have a four-port fx7400 for sale. It has been updated to the latest firmware, and has worked great for several races. It's a great, affordable reader. Make me an offer if interested. I am not shady or sketchy in any way, comrades! :)

[John Kirby]

Well, what's the opinions on the best alternative reader to purchase that is not Motorola and works with ART?

Impinj or Alien? Model(s) ?

[hubbard47630]

Motorola's have served most us extremely well and had the above listed readers been bought through a licensed reseller, there would be no issue. Buying any used electronics runs a risk. I've emailed with several guys using Impinj and Alien readers with no issues. I also know people that have had trouble with Jaguar (Alien) and Chronotrack (Impinj) readers. 

[Tim Irvine]

John I use an Imping Speedway Revolution 4 port. Works like a champ. But the next reader I get may be the FX9500

[Brian Agee]

For those that are curious what the inside of the FX9500 looks like.

This is the one I bought from ebay a couple of years ago. It was basically DOA, I was hoping there was a fuse or something easy to replace that would get it working again. No such luck.

[Brian Agee]

Alien and Impinj work just fine, however I encourage people to stick with Motorola for the following reasons:

1. Typically less expensive

2. Well tested with proven performance and reliablity

3. The FX9500 offers an 8-port model

(the biggest reasons)

4. If anything happens to your Motorola reader there is a greater chance I can help you fix it since that is what I'm most familiar with. Currently I don't have an Impinj or Alien reader at my house. So it would be difficult to troubleshoot other brands.

5. I'm a Motorola "Partner", so if you purchased a reader through my company and I can't resolve the issue then I can pass the issue up to Motorola and they will work on it. If you purchase another brand then you'll have to deal with whomever you purchased through and hope they care about providing good support for their products.

[Brian Agee]

I got an email back from my Motorola rep and he simply pointed me to the website that you included in the original post. Unfortunately I don't have my FX7500 at my house, or I would use my serial number to see if I can get the file on my computer and then make it available on my FTP server for you. The only problem is I'm not sure if that installer would somehow be specific to my reader, and therefor not work for you. It's worth a shot though. I'm not sure when I'll get my hands on my FX7500 again, it's at one of my timer's house. I'll let you know when I have it ready to download.

[Crystal McCullough]

Editing my post, since I got my FX7500 to work without the firmware update. But still curious if anyone ever successfully updated the firmware and whether or not it made a difference. I didn't have any issues downloading it once I registered on the Zebra web site.