Tag: android 4.3

Samsung Galaxy S4 Android 4.3 Update Leaks, You Can Get It Now

A Samsung Galaxy S4 Android 4.3 update is seemingly on the cards with the software leaking ahead of an expected mass rollout in the coming weeks.

Although Android 4.4 KitKat is believed to be heading to the realms of reality later this month aboard the heavily rumoured Google Nexus 5, the Samsung Galaxy S4 is yet to be bestowed with the latest iteration of Jelly Bean. This looks set to change though with the Samsung Galaxy S4 Android 4.3 update having leaked once again.

S4 users can install the leaked software update by following the instructions over on Sammobile but be warned that you do so at your own risk and you could well end up wiping all your data and bricking your handset.

Android 4.3 Jelly Bean should offer blocking of apps for parental use, accessiblity tweaks for notifications sent via Bluetooth, easier text input, faster user-switching, dial pad autocomplete, background Wi-Fi location and support for Africaans, Amharic, Hindi, Swahili and Zulu.

The folks at SamMobile have already done a video preview of the Android 4.3 ROM running on the Galaxy S4 smartphone. Check it out below.

[youtube id=”8Z8kwAeJDqE” width=”100%” height=”300px”]

Anyone wants to give this particular update version a go? The download and install instructions can be found here.

October 14, 2013
HTC One Gets Android 4.3 Update Along With Improved Low-Light Camera Performance

The owners of the HTC One should now have access to an Android 4.3 update, the update is available globally throughout all HTC One phones. Not in India, but if anyone of you have a carrier-issued HTC One (on contract) the Android update will still be available but after 30th of September.

This update for the HTC One not only brought the device to the latest version of Android but also improved the camera performance, according to Android Highlights, improvements include a battery charging percentage indicator, improved low-light camera performance, Sense 5 enhancements and increased stability in the overall device.

You can check the update option to see if your device is eligible yet. However, the Android 4.3 update for Samsung’s S3 and Note 2 is still not in the picture.

September 28, 2013
Android 4.3 Update For Galaxy S3, Galaxy S4, Note 2 Coming Next Month

Samsung will be bringing Android 4.3 to some of its older devices in October, according to a company representative. The announcement was made during the unveiling of the Galaxy Gear smart watch, which is only compatible with the Android 4.3-based Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Note 10.1 (2014 Edition) at launch due to the requirements for Bluetooth 4.0 LE.

The original Galaxy Note was quite late in being updated to Android 4.1 from its shipping version of Ice Cream Sandwich, and doesn’t look to be receiving any future updates. So too will the Galaxy S2 remain on Jelly Bean 4.1, since both devices lack the hardware capable of being used with the Gear (among other resource-intensive reasons).

It was announced in July that the Galaxy S3 and Note II would skip Android 4.2 for a “future Android version,” and now that we know it is Android 4.3, we have to wait to see if Samsung follows through with its promise.

The Galaxy S4, which was launched earlier this year, shipped with Android 4.2.2 and the update to Android 4.3 should be hassle free considering that the Google Play Edition of the Galaxy S4 is already running the latest version.

Android 4.3 is still a variant of Android Jelly Bean (along with 4.1 and 4.2) but it does bring some interesting new features including restricted profiles (a much better way to handle multiple users on the same tablet), Bluetooth 4.0 low-energy support, OpenGL 3.0 support, a T9 dialer and improvements to the notification system.

September 5, 2013
Android 4.3 Will Keep WiFi Always On

The latest Google Android 4.3 upgrade brings all new features and also offers great performance. Google has also made a new change to the WiFi settings in Android 4.3.

To improve location accuracy and for other purposes, Google and other apps may scan for nearby networks, even when Wi-Fi is off ” – describes Google.

It has been seen that the new version of Android will keep the WiFi radio always on, even after the user has manually turned it off. This feature is probably designed to save one’s battery life instead of wasting it, given that the only other way for one’s smartphone to discern one’s location is to drain the battery using GPS.

To check and see whether your phone has this feature enabled by default (a number do not), you’ll have to navigate through the Android operating system’s settings. Here’s how:

Open up the Settings app and tap your finger on the Wireless and Networks option. Tap on the WiFi option, and then tap on the Menu button on your phone’s lower-right-hand corner. When the list pops up, tap your finger on the Advanced option. From there, you’ll want to make sure to check the “Scanning always available” option if you want to participate in the new Android 4.3 feature. Otherwise, if it’s checked, you need merely to uncheck it to ensure that “WiFi off” really means “WiFi off.”

However, many now expressed their concern that malicious applications might exploit this new functionality.

Various user reports indicate that this feature remains off by default when they’ve updated their devices to Android 4.3. That means, it’s more important that you know about this potentially useful setting than to freak out about it, but it’s also worth checking this, and many of Android’s other “Advanced” wireless configuration options, when you’ve upgraded your mobile OS.

Now will Google resolve this or add something to counter the issue is to be seen, but for the time being users must carefully read the application access and if they feel something suspicious they should avoid installing that application.

August 5, 2013
Google Play Edition Galaxy S4 And HTC One Now Receiving Android 4.3 Update

After updating all the Nexus devices this week, the two Nexus 7 tablets, the Nexus 4 and the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, search engine giant Google’s Android division on Friday rolled out the Android 4.3 Jelly Bean update for the two Google Play Edition smartphones, the HTC One and the Samsung Galaxy S4.

When Google announced the Google Play edition of the S4, they promised quick updated along with a stock Android experience. These are two of the main reasons to get these devices over their standard versions that come with OEM customizations and are bound to receive the 4.3 update much, much later.

These phones’ updates include most of Android 4.3’s key features—Bluetooth 4.0 and OpenGL ES 3.0 support among them—plus a few handset-specific enhancements. AnandTech reports, for example, that the Google Play edition HTC One’s IR blaster has now been enabled, as has Bluetooth pairing for the Galaxy S 4. Both phones were already using the new stock Camera app included with Android 4.3 on the Nexus devices, but they each come with a few minor cosmetic tweaks of their own.

Do you think Samsung and HTC will capitalize on this momentum to help them release the Android 4.3 update for their mainstream devices in a more timely manner? Let us know below!

[Via]

August 3, 2013
Android 4.3 Allows You To Tinker With App Permissions

Google Android 4.3 may be a minor update to Google’s mobile operating system, but it has some nice features including performance tweaks, Bluetooth improvements, support for limiting a user’s access to some apps or content on multi-user devices, and much more.

It also has a hidden feature. It’s called “App Ops” and it lets you selectively disable some permissions for your apps. Is some misbehaving app constantly pinging your location and draining your battery in a few hours? You can fix that now.

Once there, the user will see that all of their apps and permissions are broken down into four easily distinguishable categories: Personal, Location, Messaging, and Device. Simply choose an app, tape the on/off button, and voilà! The user’s app is still completely functional without annoyingly draining your device.

Another notable feature in Android 4.3 is improved Photo Spheres. Evan Rapoport, a Google Maps Product Manager, recently revealed on Google+ that the latest version of Jelly Bean offers better alignment and stitching while taking photos with Photo Sphere. The app also offers improved exposure compensation that’ll lead to fewer gray areas and inconsistent coloring in photos.

Other highlights of Android 4.3 Jelly Bean include multi-user restricted profiles which limits access to specified content, a sound for aspect of sale systems and kiosks, for example. Security is in play here as it works for parental controls too. Bluetooth Low-Energy support will easily pair Android 4.3 with a fitness sensor for the workout-aholics out there.

[Via]

July 26, 2013
Sony Announces Android 4.3 Update For Select Xperia Devices

Sony Mobile officially confirmed the upcoming availability of the Android 4.3 Jelly Bean operating system for some of its latest Xperia smartphones out there, including the Xperia Z and Xperia Z Ultra.

A post on the company’s blog says it is “already getting stuck in” and is working to develop updates for the Xperia Z, Xperia ZL, Xperia ZR, Xperia Tablet Z, Xperia SP and Xperia Z Ultra.

Some older Xperia phones running Android 4.1 are still under examination. There’s a possibility that at least some of them will be updated straight to Android 4.3, but no names have been confirmed yet.

Sony, however, is not known for being quick with Android rollouts so customers will probably need to be patient once again. Back in December 2012, the company promised Android 4.2 updates for 10 of its 2012 Xperia range, and that process was only completed last month.

It admits that the Android 4.1 upgrade “process hasn’t been as succinct or as timely as you might’ve expected”, which leads us to believe that this may happen once again with the roll-out of the third Jelly Bean iteration.

With Android 4.3, many of the updates appear to be under the hood. Among the front-end changes is the addition of a Multi-User Restricted Profiles feature.

Sony posted a video of the Xperia Tablet Z already running the AOSP version of Android 4.3, as they previously did with 4.2.

[youtube id=”c8sVrFVXUTc” width=”100%” height=”300px”]

July 25, 2013
Google Announces The New Nexus 7

Google has announced the new Nexus 7 today, updating the look with a thinner, taller design and a 1920×1200 pixel IPS display.

The updated tablet is 2mm thinner and 50g lighter than its predecessor, but boasts a bunch of improved specs, such as a quad-core 1.5Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon APQ8064 SoC with Adreno 320 graphics and 2GB of RAM, a 5MP rear camera and 1.2MP front-facing shooter, a battery that lasts for 10 hours, and the brand new Android 4.3 software. There’s also dual speakers (on the back), NFC, HDMI, wireless charging and Bluetooth 4.0 on board, in case you needed more reasons to upgrade.

Three versions of the Nexus 7 tablet will be available: Wi-Fi only 16GB and 32GB models for $229 and $269 respectively, and the 4G LTE version launching in the coming weeks. Indian pricing and availability has not been announced yet.

Google has once again tapped Asus as the manufacturing partner for its own-branded tablet, and that’s great news for that OEM as the previous generation of the Nexus 7 was its best-selling tablet by most accounts.

Google’s latest foray into hardware arrives as competition in the tablet space continues to heat up, with options such as Apple’s iPad, Amazon’s Kindle Fire and Samsung’s Galaxy Tab series.

July 24, 2013
Android 4.3 Jelly Bean Announced

Google today announced the latest iteration of Android – Android 4.3 Jelly Bean during a press breakfast in San Francisco.

The long-awaited OS update will be coming to Android device users based on their devices. The Android 4.3 Jelly Bean update will start rolling out today to the Nexus 4, Nexus 7 and Nexus 10. The “Google Play Edition” versions of the HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S4 can expect it soon, most likely August or September.

As ArsTechnica reports, the new operating system will feature multi-user restricted profiles. This will let users control access to contents and apps per user—so parents, for example, can control which applications their kids can access. When accessed from restricted profiles, applications behave differently. On stage, Hugo Barra demonstrated this by showing a puzzle game whose in-app purchase functionality was automatically disabled when it was accessed on the kid’s restricted profile.

Other features include built-in OpenGL ES 3.0 support, DRM APIs for providing hardware-based encryption for protecting content, which will allow it to provide 1080p video to its tablets. The first partner is Netflix, which supports 1080p HD streaming. The Nexus 7 is the first device to support it.

Android 4.3 also introduces many other features, including support for Bluetooth Smart devices, background Wi-Fi location, more language support and “easier text input.”

We’ll bring you more on the new release as it comes. In the meantime, share your thoughts down in the comments.

July 24, 2013
Report : Some Samsung Galaxy Note 2 And S3 Variants To Skip Android 4.2.2 For 4.3

Samsung Galaxy Note II users, along with Galaxy S3 owners, have been waiting rather impatiently for their turn to upgrade to Android 4.2.2, which came pre-installed on the flagship GS4.

Now, it seems as though the company may be moving away from releasing a version of the eight month-old software in favour of waiting for Google’s inevitable Android 4.3 release, which is slated to come to AOSP next week.

Telstra, an Australian network provider released a statement on their upgrade page claiming, “Samsung have elected globally to skip the 4.2.2 update for this device and will instead go to a newer version of Android. No schedule has been provided for this update.”

In some ways, this is a good move. Android 4.3 brings OpenGL ES 3.0 support along with standardized Bluetooth LE functionality and a host of other small improvements. Considering some devices, like the Nexus 7, actually dropped in performance from Android 4.1 to 4.2, Samsung may be waiting for Google to fix some underlying code issues before pushing the upgrade trigger.

While this is in no way an official report, the same would seem likely for the Galaxy S3, which is only waiting in limbo for some sort of upgrade news.

[Via]

Related Products

July 20, 2013
Hello Moto: Moto X Press Render Leaked

If you are actively following the news around the Moto X you will know that earlier today the launch date for the elusive Moto X was finalized. Now @eveleaks the notorious tipster for the mobile world has leaked press renders for the hardware.

The Moto X is expected to be a Mid Range handset and expected to be priced around 300-400 US $. The hardware expectations are running anywhere from a 4.7 inch to 5 inch HD display which may only run up to 1280 x 720 p screen. An 8 MP main camera and a 2.1 MP front facing camera will finish off the optics, and a Quad Core chipset will handle the processing needs of the Android 4.3 capable handset.

If you closely inspect the render it appears to have a carbon fibre weave on the back which sort of resembles the design of the Blackberry Q10, and the interface appears to be running stock Android with no tweaks or overlays as earlier expected.

Update July 22nd : White Render also leaked :

The color will be known as Unicorn White, and will be available alongside the black Moto X at launch unlike the Nexus 4. Although rumors of many other colors exist, no real confirmations have come forward.

July 20, 2013