Update 2: SMS send and receive and mobile hotspot are non-working. Do not download this file (the link has been removed) - wait until a more stable release is available. If you need to flash back to Froyo, please check out this thread on MyDroidWorld.

Update: HDMI-out functionality appears to be non-functional in this update build.

Disclaimer: This article contains very device-specific flashing instructions. Read them carefully. We are not responsible for any damage, bricking, loss of data, or inadvertent explosions resulting from your attempts to flash this update onto your DROID Charge. Proceed 100% at your own risk.

Additionally, this is a leak of a build that is still in progress - not a ready-for-primetime OTA. It probably has some bugs. It might break things (like apps or settings). It may give you gas. So please - think about this before voicing any complaints. And remember - someone (namely, r2doesinc) was kind enough to put it out there in first place.

Alright, so there's a leaked version of an official Gingerbread ROM floating around for the DROID Charge. And you can get it right now. And you can watch Netflix (yay!) on it. But there's a catch - you have to be able to follow these instructions to make it work. Here's our optimized translation:

DROID Charge Gingerbread Leak Flashing Instructions [WINDOWS ONLY]

Download Instructions:

  1. Download the ROM and Flashing Utility from this page.
  2. Extract the large ROM file (it's the 300+MB .7z file) using 7-Zip. Do not place it on your SD card.
  3. Next, you'll need to install Odin.

Installing Odin (a custom Samsung software flashing utility):

  • To install Odin, extract the SamsungFlashingUtility.7z file using 7-Zip
  • Install all four utilities, this includes:

        • Samsung_USB_Driver_For_Mobile_Phones
        • VIA USB Drivers 2.3.5.WithMux
        • SamsungPST SCH-I510 For Verizon (extract again to get the MSI)
        • SamsungPSTLite FW Setup (extract again and run setup.exe)

  • To actually run Odin, run "Samsung PST [Lite]," which should appear as a newly installed program.

Flashing Process:

  1. Put your phone into download mode, to do this:
    1. Power down your phone.
    2. Remove the battery.
    3. Plug your phone via USB into your computer.
    4. Hold the Volume Down button
    5. While holding Volume Down, reinsert the battery and wait for the phone to display a boot screen saying "Downloading" or something similar.
    6. If no boot screen displays, while still holding Volume Down, press and release the Power button.
  2. In Odin, un-check 'F-Reset Time' and 'Auto-Reboot' (on the left).
  3. Also in Odin, click the PDA button and select the .tar.md5 file that you downloaded and extracted.
  4. Make sure that your phone is recognized by Odin (a yellow COM# will be shown in the box).
  5. Press Start, and allow the flashing process to finish. If it fails, retry using the same procedure outlined above. If it passes, unplug the USB cable, remove the battery and reinsert it, and power on your phone.
  6. Get the Netflix apk here and install it (you'll have to enable non-Market apps in the 'Application' settings menu.)

We know. It's a lot. And it's kind of a royal pain-in-the-you-know-what. But hey, if you want Gingerbread on your DROID Charge, you don't have a lot of other options at the moment (and by that I mean none).

The original leak was released by p3droid of MyDroidWorld privately, with the intent for it to remain a TeamBlackHat "exclusive release" for 48 hours (requiring a purchase of the TBH app), but we don't exactly think that's fair play. Neither did r2doesinc and another anonymous party, and we're glad they decided to publish this for the public at large.

Let us know if everything works out in the comments!

via RootzWiki (original leak by P3droid)