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There are plenty of reasons to root an Android device (e.g., custom ROMs, skinning, getting rid of bloatware, etc.). But it can be a scary road to travel if you have no clue what you’re doing. Especially if you want to return your phone back to the way it was when you bought it or it can be irritating when you can’t get updates on your phone because it is rooted.
I’m sure, like most of us, you must have tried to install an over-the-air (OTA) update using the system update option under settings on your International Galaxy Note 2 but were disappointed to see the ‘Update Failed” error. This error occur because you have a custom recovery or insecure boot image installed on your device or simply because your device is rooted.
There are two possible fixes to the software update failed error on your International Galaxy Note 2, let’s take a look:
Install stock recovery/kernel: If you’ve a custom recovery/kernel installed on your device then that’s easily one of the first reason you’re not able to update your International Galaxy Note 2. However, finding the stock recovery or kernel compatible to your current firmware can be tricky, so we recommend flashing the full stock firmware on your device (the guide is for that below)
Unroot your device: Although chances are slim, but removing root might solve the “update failed” issue on your International Galaxy Note 2. While there are many ways to unroot your phone, doing it using SuperSU app is the easiest. If you’re not already using the SuperSU app as your root manager app, then download it from Play store (link →).
Installing the stock recovery/kernel and un-rooting your device will solve the update failed issue, but it’s not that simple, it can be tricky to get both these things done, given the fact that there are quite many Samsung firmwares out there for the International Galaxy Note 2, finding stuff compatible for your firmware will be, well, “not simple”.
So we recommend you to flash the full stock firmware back on your International Galaxy Note 2. And that’s easier too, follow the guide below:
WARNING!
Warranty may be void of your device if you follow the procedures given on this page.
You only are responsible for your device. We won’t be liable if any damage occurs to your device and/or its components.
International Galaxy Note 2 GT-N7105 STOCK FIRMWARE KITKAT 4.4.2
Before you begin with guide instructions below, make sure your android device is adequately charged — at least 50% battery of the device.
STEP 0: CHECK DEVICE MODEL NO.
To make sure your device is eligible with this, you must first confirm its model no. in ‘About device’ option under Settings. Another way to confirm model no. is by looking for it on the packaging box of your device. It must be GT-N7105 !
Do not use the procedures discussed here on any other Galaxy Note 2 (including the Galaxy Note 2 variant at AT&T, T-Mobile and US Cellular) or any other device of Samsung or any other company. You have been warned!
STEP 1: BACKUP YOUR DEVICE
Back up important data and stuff before you start playing around here as there are chances you might lose your apps and app-data (app settings, game progress, etc.), and in rare case, files on the internal memory, too.
For help on Backup and Restore, check out our exclusive page on that linked right below.
► ANDROID BACK UP AND RESTORE GUIDE: APPS AND TIPS
STEP 2: INSTALL LATEST DRIVER
You must have proper and working driver installed on your windows computer to be able to successfully flash stock firmware on your International Galaxy Note 2. In case you’re not sure, follow the link below for a definitive guide for installing driver for your Galaxy Note 2 on your computer.
► SAMSUNG GALAXY NOTE 2 DRIVERS INSTALLATION GUIDE
STEP 3: INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS
DOWNLOADSDownload the Odin zip file and firmware file given below. Transfer both Odin and firmware file to a separate folder on your computer just to keep things tidy.
ODIN ZIP FILE FIRMWARE ZIP FILE STEP-BY-STEP GUIDEImportant Note: Backup important files stored on internal SD card of your device, so that in case a situation arises requiring you to do a factory reset after flashing stock firmware, which might format internal sd card too, your files will remain safe on PC.
Extract/Unzip the Odin zip file, Latest Odin3 v3.09.zip on your computer (using 7-zip free software, preferably) to get this file: Odin3 v3.09.exe
Extract/Unzip the Firmware zip file, HTS-N7105XXUFNE3-20140811172355.zip on your computer (using 7-zip free software, preferably) to get this file: N7105XXUFNE3_N7105HTSFNF1_N7105NEUFNE1_HOME.tar.md5
Move the firmware file, N7105XXUFNE3_N7105HTSFNF1_N7105NEUFNE1_HOME.tar.md5, in the same folder in which you extracted Latest Odin3 v3.09.zip (Just for your convenience, that is). So, now you’ll have the following files in that folder:
Odin3 v3.09.exe
N7105XXUFNE3_N7105HTSFNF1_N7105NEUFNE1_HOME.tar.md5
Disconnect the International Galaxy Note 2 from PC if it is connected.
Boot your International Galaxy Note 2 into Download Mode:
Power off your phone first and wait for 6-7 seconds after display is off
Press and hold these 3 buttons together until you see Warning! screen: Volume Down + Power + Home
If you don’t get the Added! message, here are some troubleshooting tips:
Make sure you have installed driver for Galaxy Note 2 as said above.
If you have already installed driver, then uninstall them and re-install back.
Connect using a different USB port on your PC.
Try a different USB cable. The original cable that came with your phone should work best, if not, try any other cable that’s new and of good quality.
Reboot phone and PC and then try again.
Load the firmware file (extracted in Step 2) into Odin as instructed below:
Now in the Option section of Odin, make sure that Re-Partition box is unchecked. (Auto Reboot and F. Reset Time boxes remain checked, while all other boxes remain unchecked.)
Double check the above two steps.
If you see FAIL message instead of the PASS in Odin’s top left box, that’s a problem. Try this now: disconnect your Galaxy Note 2 from PC, close Odin, remove phone’s battery and put it back inside in 3-4 seconds, open Odin and then repeat from Step 6 of this guide again.
Also, If device is Stuck at setup connection or on any other process, then too, try this: disconnect your Note 2 from PC, close Odin, remove phone’s battery and put it back inside in 3-4 seconds, open Odin and then repeat from Step 6 of this guide again.
FEEDBACK US!
It was easy to flash stock KitKat 4.4.2 firmware on your International Galaxy Note 2, right? Now, go to “Settings » About phone » Software update” to check/download the latest OTA update available for your device, it should install fine without any errors now.
Your suggestions and queries, if any, are most welcomed!
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Samsung Galaxy Note Gets Another Jelly Bean Firmware Leaked — Xxlsa
Here we go again. As we move towards the end of this rather eventful year, we get closer and closer to the imminent release of the Android 4.1 update for the Galaxy Note, something which Samsung has promised before the next year begins. A couple of Android 4.1 firmware have leaked for the Note before, and now an Android 4.1.2 firmware is out in the wild, which we already glimpsed in a video a few days back.
The new firmware has the build number XXLSA and brings quite a lot of new features and changes. The most important of those is the multi-window multitasking feature from the Galaxy Note 2, and also the ability to customize the toggles in the notifications menu (another Note 2 feature), showing that Samsung is working hard on making sure that newer software features get ported back to older devices as well.
The following changes have been noticed in the firmware till now:
All in all much faster and smoother
New menu when plugging in headphone
Telephone-App and Contacts-App now open much faster then ever before!
Scrolling in browser much better and faster
XXLSA is looking to be quite a stable and much improved firmware compared to the previous one, and XDA Recognized Contributor eybee1970 has released a rooted version of the firmware that can be flashed from a custom recovery, so that all the flashaholics can try out the official Android 4.1.2 build on their Galaxy Note 2.
Do remember that this is a leaked firmware, and hence may not be fully stable and good enough for daily usage, and if you don’t want to test out beta software, you should wait for the official update to start rolling out.
A full step-by-step guide on how the ROM can be installed is waiting below.
Compatibility
The procedure described below is only for the Samsung Galaxy Note, model number N7000. Do not try it on any other device, not even on another model of the same device.
Warning!
The methods and procedures discussed here are considered risky, so try them out at your own risk, and make sure to read each step carefully before attempting anything. We will not be held responsible if anything goes wrong.
How to Install XXLSA Android 4.1.2 Firmware on Galaxy Note
Part I: Download ROM
Copy the ROM’s file to the internal storage on the phone, without extracting it.
PART II: Flashing Safe Kernel
There is a chance of bricking the phone while flashing a ROM if you are on a stock Android 4.0 kernel, so in this part of the guide we’ll flash a safe kernel so that there is no danger of bricking the phone.
Filename: CF-Root-SGN_XX_OXA_LC1-v5.3-CWM5.zip
DO NOT extract the .tar file (this might show up as a zip file as well, but do not extract it). You need to flash the .tar file using Odin to gain root access and install ClockWorkMod Recovery (CWM) alongside. (If you’re getting a zImage file, it means you’ve extracted the .tar file too! — and that’s not a right thing to do. Use 7-zip to extract.)
Extract the contents of the Odin 1.85.zip file to a folder.
Disconnect your phone if it’s connected to PC, then switch it off.
Now, put the Galaxy Note in Download Mode — press and hold these keys together: Volume Down + Home + Power. A Warning! screen will come up; press Volume Up key to continue to enter Download Mode.
Important! Do not make any other changes in Odin except selecting the required file as given in step 9. Leave all other options as they are.
Connect the camera to PC now. You should get the message “Added !!” under Odin’s message box in the bottom left.
If you don’t get this message, make sure you installed drivers correctly (using Kies or directly) as given in step 1. If it still doesn’t work, try changing to another USB port on the computer and also use the USB ports on the back if you have a desktop PC.
Now, hit the START button to start flashing of CF-Root kernel on your Galaxy Note. When the flashing is complete, your phone will automatically reboot — and when you see the Samsung logo, you can safely unplug the cable. Plus, you’ll get a PASS (with green background) message in the left-most box at the very top of the Odin. What to do if Odin gets stuck: If ODIN gets stuck and doesn’t seem to be doing anything, or you get a FAIL message (with red background) in ODIN, disconnect the phone from the PC, close ODIN, remove battery, re-insert it, turn phone on in Download mode again, and do the procedure again from Step 8.
[Important] When the phone is rebooting after the kernel flashing is complete, remove the battery on the Note, re-insert it, but DO NOT turn it on yet. Go to the next part of the guide.
Part III: Installing the ROM
In recovery, use the Volume buttons to navigate and the power button to select items.
Select wipe data/factory reset, then select Yes on next screen to confirm. Wait a while till the data wipe is complete.
Select install zip from sdcard, then select choose zip from sdcard. Scroll to the ROM’s file and select it. Confirm installation by selecting Yes on the next screen.
After the installation is complete, select Go back then select reboot system now to reboot the phone and boot up into the XXLSA Android 4.1.2 firmware.
The XXLSA Android 4.1.2 firmware is now installed on your Galaxy Note. Try it out, and if you ever feel the need to go back to a stable Android 4.0 ROM later, follow the guide → here to do that. Do let us know how the new leaked firmware works!
At&T Samsung Galaxy Note Premium Suite Software Upgrade Hands
Starting with the app S-Note’s new Productivity Tools, Samsung’s suite of note and memo-taking apps has just gotten a bit sweeter. In the Productivity Tools you’ve now got, you can work with Formula Match, Shape Match, Handwriting-to-text, and Knowledge Search. You’ll be using Wolfram Alpha for both formula and knowledge.
With Formula Match, you’ve got handwriting recognition that works undeniably well to turn a scribbled down equation into something perfectly legible, first of all. Then once you’ve got that equation – however complicated or simple it may be – sent to Wolfram Alpha to either give you the answer or graph out the system’s findings.
In Shape Match you can now draw simple shapes and they’ll be corrected for you. This means that if you draw a wobbly circle, it’ll be turned into a perfect circle. If you draw a three-sided shape that looks kind of like a triangle, it’ll be a perfect straight-edged triangle. You can also make lines.
You’ll have Handwriting-to-text working for you, but it’ll take a bit more getting used to than the other features when you use it straight up. Write one word, it’ll be translated into whatever the system thinks it is essentially instantly. After one word, you’ve got to tap the space bar or the next word will be entered right after the first, and so on. It’s a good start, and it’s extremely smart!
Then there’s Knowledge Search for when you just don’t want to speak your questions out loud. Here you’ll also be working with handwriting to text (if you want to) or you can straight up type into the app, but in the end you’ve got a sentence and you’ll be entering it into Wolfram Alpha again.
Have a peek at each of these four in the hands-on video here:
You may now also add a collection of items to a new note in S-Note, including:
• Photos from your gallery or a brand new photo
• Objects you’ve clipped using your S-Pen
• S-Memos
• A map of your current location or a map of a location of your choosing
You’ll find that PDF Annotations are also now activated inside S-Note. Here you’ll be able to insert and annotate PDF documents to your heart’s delight, share or save a PDF, or print straight from the app. You’ll have to import a PDF before you begin to annotate, and you’ll find your annotated files in the Galaxy Note file directory if you need to access them later from outside the app.
There’s an S-Memo Widget that’s brand new as well, here allowing you instant access to the S-Memo app in general as well as shooting you straight to Type, Write/Draw, Add Picture, Voice Recording, or Search.
As a bit of a bonus it seems, both the Galaxy S III and the Galaxy Note have gotten access to a Samsung-promoted app that only works thus far on the two devices themselves. This app is called Samsung’s My Story and it allows you to make greeting cards that can be shared to and from the app to other users also using the app. Inside the app you’re able to add photos, change titles, and generally have an entertaining time fiddling around until you’re ready to send it off to a friend whose also got a Galaxy S III or Galaxy Note. Samsung continues to build a vertically integrated system, piece by piece.
How To Unbrick Or Restore At&T Galaxy Note Sgh
Well, what we can do now is try to restore your Galaxy Note back to stock using a firmware so that all bad partitions on the device are fixed and it doesn’t bootloops and restarts normally.
And well, depending on what you were trying to do, and more importantly how, it could either be soft-bricked or hard-bricked — in latter case, as sad as it is, you maybe out of luck, man!
What’s Hard-brick and Soft-brick?
Even though rare, and when you are like set to be doomed, your Galaxy Note might get hard-bricked. In which case, the Galaxy Note won’t boot into download mode — it won’t respond to key combinations you are trying to make it to boot normally or to download or recovery mode.
Hard-brick results in one dead Android device. Yes, it’s sick, and worrying. You may have to look for a JTAG service locally; the person with good knowledge of that may be able to revive it. Oh, you can also try using USB Jig (look on ebay, perhaps!) to reboot the Galaxy Note into download mode, but it may or may not work!
Hard-brick is rare, it may happen only when power supply gets disturbed of computer and/or Android device when something is being installed/updated on the device. Or, when you totally mis-do things totally recklessly. That’s why you have to be very careful with even the easiest steps.
Let’s see soft-brick now. Normally, a brick is a soft-brick, which means your device isn’t completely dead, that it is just not able to boot normally and gets stuck somewhere. And, download mode is working.
How to identify bricked Galaxy Note?
If your Android device can boot into download mode, then it means it’s a soft-brick. If it cannot, then it’s hard-bricked.
Cases of soft-brick:
Bootloop: Your Galaxy Note is not restarting properly and gets stuck at logo, and reboots again and again on it. Mostly occurs when you flash something bad.
Corrupted but working: Your Galaxy Note can’t power On, but is entering the Download mode and/or Recovery mode on pressing the key combinations. That is, it’s responding to key combos, at the least.
Any other case: As it doesn’t matter what happened, as long as you can access Download mode using the key combos specified in the unbrick Galaxy Note guide below, you’re good — no reasons to worry!
Solution?
Just install the firmware using the guide below and your Galaxy Note shall be up and running coolly soon enough! you must be able to enter download using the key combinations specified in the guide below.
Cases of Hard-brick:
Well, if you can’t enter download mode using the key combinations specified in the guide below, you got a worry — your device is hard-bricked. You can’t repair it yourself unless you are able to reboot it into download mode.
Solution?
You can try USB Jig to enter Download mode but there is no guarantee it would work. Your last hope is JTAG: find a local service provider who can us the JTAG for you and revive your dead hard bricked Galaxy Note. You can use Google to buy JTAG and try it yourself but we don’t recommend it at all, at it requires the skills of a knowledgeable person in Electronics.
Let’s see now how to unbrick or restore or fix a bricked Galaxy Note.
How to Restore AT&T Galaxy Note to Unbrick and Fix it
WARNING!
Warranty may be void of your device if you follow the procedures given on this page.
You only are responsible for your device. We won’t be liable if any damage occurs to your device and/or its components.
AT&T GALAXY NOTE SGH-I717 OFFICIAL JELLY BEAN 4.1.2 FIRMWARE
Before you begin with guide instructions below, make sure your android device is adequately charged — at least 50% battery of the device.
STEP 0: CHECK DEVICE MODEL NO.
To make sure your device is eligible with this, you must first confirm its model no. in ‘About device’ option under Settings. Another way to confirm model no. is by looking for it on the packaging box of your device. It must be SGH-I717!
Do not use the procedures discussed here on any other Galaxy Note (including the Galaxy Note variant at T-Mobile and other International variants) or any other device of Samsung or any other company. You have been warned!
STEP 1: BACKUP YOUR DEVICE
Back up important data and stuff before you start playing around here as there are chances you might lose your apps and app-data (app settings, game progress, etc.), and in rare case, files on the internal memory, too.
For help on Backup and Restore, check out our exclusive page on that linked right below.
► ANDROID BACK UP AND RESTORE GUIDE: APPS AND TIPS
STEP 2: INSTALL LATEST DRIVER
You must have proper and working driver installed on your windows computer to be able to successfully flash stock firmware on your AT&T Galaxy Note. In case you’re not sure, follow the link below for a definitive guide for installing driver for your Galaxy Note on your computer.
► SAMSUNG GALAXY Note DRIVERS INSTALLATION GUIDE
STEP 3: INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS
DOWNLOADSDownload the Odin zip file and firmware file given below. Transfer both Odin and firmware file to a separate folder on your computer just to keep things tidy.
ODIN ZIP FILE FIRMWARE ZIP FILE STEP-BY-STEP GUIDEImportant Note: Backup important files stored on internal SD card of your device, so that in case a situation arises requiring you to do a factory reset after flashing stock firmware, which might delete internal sd card too, your files will remain safe on PC.
Extract/Unzip the Odin zip file, Latest Odin3 v3.09.zip on your computer (using 7-zip free software, preferably) to get this file: Odin3 v3.09.exe
Extract/Unzip the Firmware zip file, I717UCMD3_I717ATTMD3_ATT.zip on your computer (using 7-zip free software, preferably) to get this file: I717UCMD3_I717ATTMD3_I717UCMD3_HOME.tar.md5
Move the firmware file, I717UCMD3_I717ATTMD3_I717UCMD3_HOME.tar.md5, in the same folder in which you extracted Latest Odin3 v3.09.zip (Just for your convenience, that is). So, now you’ll have the following files in that folder:
Odin3 v3.09.exe
I717UCMD3_I717ATTMD3_I717UCMD3_HOME.tar.md5
Disconnect the AT&T Galaxy Note from PC if it is connected.
Boot your AT&T Galaxy Note into Download Mode:
Power off your phone first and wait for 6-7 seconds after display is off
Press and hold these 3 buttons together until you see Warning! screen: Volume Down + Power + Home
If you don’t get the Added! message, here are some troubleshooting tips:
Make sure you have installed driver for Galaxy Note as said above in ‘Before you begin..’ section.
If you have already installed driver, then uninstall them and re-install back.
Connect using a different USB port on your PC.
Try a different USB cable. The original cable that came with your phone should work best, if not, try any other cable that’s new and of good quality.
Reboot phone and PC and then try again.
Load the firmware file (extracted in Step 1) into Odin as instructed below:
Now in the Option section of Odin, make sure that Re-Partition box is unchecked. (Auto Reboot and F. Reset Time boxes remain checked, while all other boxes remain unchecked.)
Double check the above two steps.
If you see FAIL message instead of the PASS in Odin’s top left box, that’s a problem. Try this now: disconnect your Galaxy Note from PC, close Odin, remove phone’s battery and put it back inside in 3-4 seconds, open Odin and then repeat from Step 3 of this guide again.
Also, If device is Stuck at setup connection or on any other process, then too, try this: disconnect your Note from PC, close Odin, remove phone’s battery and put it back inside in 3-4 seconds, open Odin and then repeat from Step 3 of this guide again.
FEEDBACK US!
Your suggestions and queries, if any, are most welcomed!
6 Things Samsung Should Have Done To Improve The Galaxy Note 9
Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is among us, the company’s ultimate smartphone of 2023. This is the device that is supposed to show the world why Samsung is the leading smartphone vendor and is here to compete with other top phones from the likes of Apple, Google, Huawei, LG, Sony, and so on.
Does the Note 9 have what it takes to go against the best in the market? Definitely. Is it the best device on the market? It’s definitely up there. But is it the perfect phone or rather the perfect upgrade, especially for anyone coming from the Galaxy Note 8? Probably not!
Samsung could have done more and considering it has the resources and finances to do so. With this in mind, here’s what we think Samsung could have done to make the Galaxy Note 9 even more exciting.
Related: Galaxy Note 9: List of new, first time ever features
Android Pie out of the box
Related: Will we see Android Pie updates roll out as easy as pie?
Better super slow-mo video recording
One of the major USPs of the Galaxy S9 is the ability to record super slow-motion videos. While this is definitely a nifty addition to what is already an amazing camera, it’s not the best the market has. Where Sony’s Xperia XZ2 can record 1080p videos at 960fps, the S9 can only manage the same frame rate with 720p videos. However, the latter manages to capture double the amount of time the former captures, which is just 0.1 seconds.
With the Galaxy Note 9, Samsung had the opportunity to better these figures from both the Galaxy S9 and Sony Xperia XZ2, but it didn’t. Instead, the Note 9 is getting the same slow-mo video recording capabilities as the S9, albeit with twice the recording time on the S9, which is kinda disappointing from Samsung.
Related: Smartphones that support 960fps video recording
Huawei P20 Pro-like colors
Smartphone vendors have often used unique color variants to spur sales and we saw it with the Huawei P20 Pro, especially the Twilight color variant that gives different shades depending on the type of lighting you are in. Samsung Galaxy Note 9 has new color variants in Ocean Blue and Lavender Purple, but there’s nothing pretty much interesting about them other than them being, well, new color variants. The Note 9 could have done with a Twilight-like color finish if you ask us.
Three camera lenses like the P20 Pro
We know that the number of lenses or even megapixel count doesn’t necessarily affect the quality of photography, but the implementation. However, we saw all the hype that the Huawei P20 Pro got all because of donning three camera lenses on the back. In practice, the P20 Pro is a great photography companion, which also means that having three lenses can be a good thing.
With the Note 9, Samsung has definitely missed out on the hype by sticking to the mainstream dual-lens camera setup that we see everywhere, including on the Galaxy Note 8, the phone it’s supposed to upgrade. Heck, it would have been even more interesting if the selfie camera got a second lens or even bumping it up to close to the 24MP used on the front of the Huawei P20 Pro.
120Hz display for better gaming
Although keeping it low-key, Samsung is also pushing the Galaxy Note 9 as a gaming device and given its massive 6.4-inch Super AMOLED display with a QHD+ resolution, a 4000mAh battery and up to 8 gigs of RAM, why not? The company says the Note 9 has a water-carbon cooling system meant to keep the device cool and in optimal performance during intensive gaming, but one thing that would have transformed the Note 9 into a deserved ROG Phone or Razer Phone alternative is the inclusion of a 120Hz refresh rate. Maybe we’ll see this in the next Note.
Related: These Android games are optimized for 120Hz display screens
Lower price point
The Galaxy Note 9 is a good phone, but is it worth 1000 bucks? That’s up for debate and from this side of the table, the debate rages on. Anyone coming from the Galaxy Note 8 will probably feel cheated upon spending this amount on the Note 9 only to get the same design, just about the same display screen, a bigger battery, powered S Pen, variable aperture, super slow-motion video recording, USB-C DeX support alongside camera tricks and a Bixby upgrade that will eventually end up on the Note 8 via software updates. If anything, it would have been a welcome idea if Samsung repeated what it did with the Galaxy S9 vs S8 by sticking to the same price tag as the Note 8, which came valued at $929.
Related: Where to buy the Galaxy Note 9 (India, USA, UK, and Europe)
Despite all the rants, we’ll at some point have to agree the Galaxy Note 9 is a great phone. In fact, it’s easily the best there is on the market right now. However, the decision of buying one will eventually rest with you, depending on how deep you are willing and able to dig into your pockets.
What do you think?
4 Hidden Hreflang Challenges For International Seo
In the world of international SEO, the hreflang element is one of the most impactful tools for SEO professionals and website owners.
Having the wrong language or country pages showing up in the search results is a fairly common problem among global websites, even when there are no duplicate language sites. It may not be a site-wide issue and only happens with certain search queries.
In the old days, we had to create target country signals for every market to designate its location by distinct differences, such as ccTLDs and server locations, but that didn’t solve all of the geotargeting problems.
So, when Google announced the hreflang in 2013, you can imagine how high many international SEO professionals jumped in joy.
However, six years later, many are still struggling to benefit from the hreflang.
This post is not about how to use the hreflang or whether you should go with the hreflang in the header or the XML sitemap format.
It’s also not about how people still use EN-UK instead of EN-GB or JP for Japanese instead of JA. You can learn from Google’s help pages and YouTube videos.
Instead, I’d like to talk about the hidden challenges that often happen during hreflang implementation. Below are three of the common challenges that I repeatedly find.
1. Not All Sites Have the Same ContentThe hreflang works by listing the URLs of pages that have the same or similar content on each language/country site.
The mapping or grouping of the same content pages is not so difficult when all site has the same content in the same content structure, but this is often not the case. There is a variety of reasons for this to happen.
It could be business reasons such as some items not available in certain countries.
It may be more of the external reasons such as content is limited by the regulations of certain countries.
Why is this a challenge?
It is because no one really has a grasp of content availability and unique content from site to site.
Oftentimes, the person who is responsible for the hreflang sitemap takes the main site that he or she is familiar with to multiply the URLs by replacing the language-country directory in the URLs assuming there is complete coverage.
When you have missing pages on some language/country site, you need to decide if you want to place replacement pages in the URL group or default it to the global URL.
2. False Positive by the Hreflang Validation ToolsThe URL structure variations cause some headaches, too.
You hope that everyone just uses the same URL structures as the main site, but the reality is that many sites get creative on their own and use different URL structures.
This happens frequently on the same domain sites, so you can imagine the difficulty level of trying to group pages correctly from different domain sites.
The difference in URL structures doesn’t just happen between the sites, but also happen within the site.
Irregular URL structure examples:
example.co.uk/category1-page1/index.html
Most validation tools don’t crawl the site to confirm the URLs on-site or the existence of the listed URLs.
They don’t check if any of the URLs are redirected or the page has a different URL in the canonical tag. It just reviews what you entered against the alternate page logic of Hreflang.
If it makes sense, it returns as no issues found. These tools work only when you are absolutely sure that the URLs used are all correct and live.
3. Business CannibalizationOne of the most important goals for using the hreflang is to ensure a correct language/country page appears in the search results based on the search users’ location.
It is to provide the right content to the search users based on the location of the search is conducted. It is also to have business conversions at the right location so that the local team will benefit from the conversions.
If a wrong language/country page appears in the search results, the conversion is counted under wrong local offices, or the worst case, it doesn’t convert at all.
In this case, you just lost potential business. A U.S. page could appear in the results in Japan especially when a product name is in English letters or the product number is a combination of letters and numbers, and there is nothing uniquely Japanese about it.
This becomes even trickier when you have multiple websites in the same language targeting different countries.
An example of this case would be when a person searches in Spanish in Costa Rica, but a page designed for Mexico shows up in the search results.
Since it’s in Spanish, a site visitor may fill out the form with a question or request about the product. But since the address on the form is not in Mexico, the Costa Rica office will never get that information. A possible lead is forgotten or deleted by the Mexico office.
A key contributor to this cannibalization is incomplete implementations of hreflang.
HREFLangBuilder’s 2023 research found 42% of global sites only implemented hreflang on the home page and key category pages leaving product pages to the decision of Google and the potential for significant missed opportunities.
4. No One Is Reviewing or Updating HreflangSadly, it is a common problem that the hreflang list is not double-checked before it goes live. It happens with regular XML sitemap files, too.
I’m sure many readers have seen “submitted URLs sending 404 error” in the Google Search Console report.
The problem doesn’t always happen from the beginning. The website grows over time adding new content.
New pages are added or removed from the site but rarely is there any automated method to update hreflang.
There may be more unique content on certain language/country websites.
If you are using the hreflang sitemap files and not updating them frequently, it is likely that many URLs are giving 3xx and 4xx.
RecommendationsWhen implementing the hreflang for your website, take the time to have a good grasp of the website URL structures and the content architecture of all websites you want to list.
Do not assume that everyone has the same content using the same URL structure.
Once you have that, create a list of mapped URLs, and use a crawler to make sure that all URLs on the list are live, and not redirected or have a different URL in the canonical tag. If you find any errors, update the list.
Even a small site changes frequently by adding or removing pages. Put the hreflang XML sitemap update on your review schedule to guarantee to feed up-to-date URLs to the search engines.
Hopefully, these will prevent the business cannibalization due to the wrong language or country pages showing up.
If you are not sure if you have a cannibalization problem, you can review pages in Google Search Console to see if the majority of the impressions are from other markets.
This quick and easy check can help you find new opportunities to improve local market performance.
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