Guys, there's a problem with the way the Galaxy S3 handles the external SD card which is currently preventing users from moving apps to the external SD. This has been discussed at length over at the XDA forums here.

My question is, how are you guys handling this particular defect? Doesn't it bother you? Are you using custom ROMs to get around this problem?

p.s. My apologies if this has been discussed in the earlier version of the S3 official threads. I blink and it's now version v14 from v8 or so.
p.p.s. I've not rooted my phone, and don't really see the need to right at this moment. Will do so later, I suppose.

But you have the external SD card too? I have Comixology and TED videos and stuff, and when I download stuff from these apps the internal SD fills up quick (although I haven't yet reached the limit).

Strange - no one else feels this is a problem enough to take action on?

Actually, it really isn't an ICS problem per se, but something that's affecting S3s. There are people using ICS who are not affected with this issue (i.e. Note users running ICS ROMs are able to move apps without issues). RedDevil, how did you move it - using directory bind? CM9?

Just a recap, applications like Apps2SD and the like doesn't work for S3, because although the function is there, it will complain about how the SD is emulated and a move is not possible. Apps like Elixir2 for instance will give you the impression that App move to SD worked, but if you check you'll realize that it in fact didn't.

I would rather not use directory bind, because that really isn't a solution. I'm hoping for it to work as it is intended.

The reason this is a problem is because some of my apps, like Comixology, TED, Audible, Evernote, CamCard all store data within the internal SD, and the data from these apps are humongous. And I'm not even talking about games. So having the option to move is actually a very important function, and the reason I bought the S3 in the first place over the One X - the option to have external SD.

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Added on July 19, 2012, 4:27 pm
Uhm, ini I tak faham. What do you mean?


This post has been edited by duke garland: Jul 19 2012, 04:27 PM

[post deleted]

This post has been edited by duke garland: Jul 19 2012, 04:28 PM

I'm thinking of lodging a support ticket. Maybe if enough of us make noise they will take note. Or not.

I'm a new Android user, so it did take a lot of reading to understand the file structure and the relationship between internal RAM, internal SD and external SD, and why it has evolved the way it did. But from a strictly new user's perspective, the fact that I had to find out all these things is a little unnerving, not to mention unfriendly.

All of that doesn't matter. The most important point is this: S3 is only one of few devices with ICS that doesn't support moving of apps to SD in the standard way because of this extSD thing. Other ICS devices with external SDs *do not* have this problem!

Dude, you are awesome! It requires root, which is not ideal, but I may just do it just to get this functionality. Thanks a million!

Are you using this yourself? How do you like it?

1. When I root the phone (using CF-Root), will I still be able to get OTA updates from Samsung? Or can I get it through flashing via Odin?

2. My S3 seems to be using XXBLG1, and I can't get the stock ROM for this build either from XDA or from SamMobile. Do any of you know where I can get this? Or maybe I don't need it, and I can flash some other stock ROM ala XXALE8?

Thanks a bunch guys!