I'm currently using a mix of Zebra TC26, TC27, and TC25 barcode scanners for Access Control at events. The TC25 models, which are from 2018, are still performing well, but some of them are stuck on Android 7.1.2 and haven't been upgraded to 8.1.0. Since Zebra has dropped support for the TC25 and states that 'Operating System files are no longer available for download', I'm wondering if anyone has found a way to get the 8.1.0 upgrade images for these scanners. I know they'll never reach the latest Android versions like the TC26 and TC27, but upgrading from Android 7 would be beneficial. Also, we developed our own Flutter-based scanning app that works well with regular Android/iOS devices and integrates with DataWedge if it's installed. It turned out better than I anticipated!
3 Answers
Honestly, both Android versions 7 and 8 are no longer supported. If it works fine as is, I’d say leave it alone! No need to mess with it if it’s running well.
About your custom Flutter app, are you planning to share it somewhere like GitLab or GitHub?
You might still be able to get the upgrade files even if it says they're not available. Just hit the download button on Zebra's support page for the TC25. It seems to work if you try it out!
If only it were that easy. They require a login, and the updates are only accessible during the warranty period or with a Zebra OneCare contract. Since we don't have that for the TC25s, we're stuck.
I can't make it fully Open Source due to certain reasons, but I did manage to upload a tweaked version of the DataWedge Flutter Demo to GitHub. It should be a good starting point for others looking to create apps with Zebra DataWedge.