Original firmware for VS2/VS3

[BuddyBontheNet]

I'm posting on the off chance someone reading this will turnout to be an and come to my rescue.

I have started using my old EB-VS2 again that was originally on the Vodafone network in the UK.

I've unlocked it without any problem, but I would also like to debrand it and have hit a brick wall - searched high and low for the original firmware without any success.

Apart from the age of the phone, I suspect part of the problem is that when Panasonic pulled out of the European market for a while, it didn't provide any legacy support apart from user guides.

All the links I find are dead now, so can anyone help me please with this?

[IonNuke]

I still got a VS2 kicking around the floor somewhere. But I don't think those firmwares were freely available back when those phones were new and rocking.

[BuddyBontheNet]

Thanks for your reply. That might explain my lousy search results!

It's a shame really because that old VS2 is good enough for my mobile usage.

It's in fab condition too, as I quickly stopped using it because of the poor the battery life - something I can live with now that I work from home.

It looks like I might have to live with the annoying Vodafone stuff until I can afford to buy another decent phone!

[IonNuke]

Some of the vodafone stuff wasn't too bad. I have a vodafone 770sh and 903. Well the 770sh is just outdated and old and 903 is still alive and kicking. VS2 is discarded since the battery died for it a long time ago.

A few of those used Sharps that are still available today are fair priced and battery lasts decently too.

[BuddyBontheNet]

TBH I came across my old VS2 by chance and the only reason I have one is because my Mum struggled to get into the habit of using a mobile.

She liked the idea of a mobile and hated to be thought of as behind the times, but even though she'd had a couple of phones (all carefully chosen for her), she never really bothered to learn how to use them (not even switch them on 99% of the time). That all began to get a bit because we live 400 miles apart and sometimes using her mobile was an important part of plans we'd made. So we agreed that to try and help her get used to using a mobile, I'd buy us each the same phone and bought two VS2s. Soon after I realised she wasn't that bothered about using a mobile and gave up! She's had a few phones since and is just as bad about having it with her or switching it on, but at least now she can make calls and texts when she wants. For her getting online was a different matter and that was driven by her desire to play more bridge by playing online, so when it suits her she will learn to use technology! From the start though, the battery life of the VS2 was a problem and I didn't really want to be on the Vodafone network, so when I realised I was wasting my time with my Mum I bought another phone.

Now though, when I do buy a new phone I'll keep the VS2 as my back up phone.

[PANDAKOPANDA]

I don't remember well cause it's been some years since then, btw I think that the branded versions didn't have much different contents &/or limitations, the only annoying thing may be the shortcuts to wap downloads (but you can surely avoid that by creating a fake wap profile or changing your carrier). I may be mistaken but I think that the available themes were the same as in the non-branded versions, so really the vodafone brand's clumsiness was quite minimal in the euro firmware.
Anyway there's no chance to get a non-brand firmware here in Europe, even if you find a non-branded version you cannot back-up the firmware and install it on another mobile (some did this in HK or mainland China but it's mainly ebayers who sell refurbished mobiles), same goes for all the panasonic-box contents that were free at that time but that are no-more available online. It's impossible to transfer drm encrypted files on another device...