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Motorola DROID RAZR HD, MAXX HD Android 4.4.2 KitKat Update Arrives

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Earlier this month news arrived that Motorola and Verizon were finally prepping the Motorola DROID RAZR HD, MAXX HD, and DROID RAZR M Android 4.4.2 KitKat update for arrival, and now it has been officially approved.

Last week Motorola begun sending out invites to select members of its beta testing program to test a brand new software update for the Motorola DROID RAZR HD lineup, which has since been confirmed as Android 4.4.2 KitKat.

Read: Hands-on with the Moto X in Walnut Wood (Video)

Lately Motorola has been focused on the Moto X, or even the 2013 flagship Motorola DROID Ultra smartphone, but those with the impressive RAZR HD haven’t been forgotten. The update is late, but better now than never. Read on for more details regarding the DROID RAZR HD, MAXX HD, and M update to Android 4.4.2 KitKat.

Droid-RAZR-HD-Review-03-575x4741111

The Motorola DROID RAZR HD lineup has been forgotten for the better part of the year, but this is great news for consumers that still use the device daily. Sadly the DROID RAZR HD was stuck on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean, multiple updates behind, but this week should be getting the absolute latest and greatest software from Verizon, Motorola, and Google.

Last week news arrived that the update was in the final testing phases, but today Verizon confirmed it is indeed coming soon right on its own Verizon Support Page website. Posting the full Droid RAZR HD Android 4.4.2 KitKat update details ahead of arrival.

The soak test started last week and has apparently been a smooth rollout, as that usually happens first before Verizon posts the official details. What this means is the software update to Android 4.4.2 KitKat for the Verizon Motorola DROID RAZR HD, RAZR MAXX HD, and RAZR M is all set, and should start arriving sometime this week, or by the weekend at the latest.

Droid-RAZR-MAXX-HD-review-4-575x326

With past devices the updates start within 24-48 hours from the official support pages being updated on Verizon Wireless, but are a slow and staged rollout. This means that while some DROID RAZR HD owners could see the update to Android 4.4.2 KitKat as soon as tomorrow, others could be waiting as long as sometime next week for its arrival.

Read: Android 4.4 KitKat: What’s New in Simple Terms

While users can expect a load of changes and improvements across the board, we won’t know more until it officially starts arriving on more handsets. The changelog from Verizon doesn’t reveal too much, but we can clearly see most of the features from stock Android 4.4 KitKat have been included, which are detailed in the link above.

Owners can expect a much improved experience across the board. Android 4.4.2 KitKat delivers better performance to the operating system, better battery life, enhanced security, and a host of new features. There’s an improved gesture-based keyboard, emoji support, and Google Hangouts will now be the default application for text messaging.

Android 4.4.2 KitKat delivers a new fullscreen immersive mode which allows apps and featurs to use the full display, rather than keeping the on-screen keys and notification bar illuminated. Meaning you’ll get the most of the display on the RAZR HD.

Screen Shot 2014-05-13 at 11.28.00 AM

What to Expect

Until the Motorola DROID RAZR HD Android 4.4.2 KitKat update starts arriving for more users we won’t know exactly what’s new, as Verizon’s only detailed a few small changes. That being said, this takes users from Android 4.1.2 four updates forward to Android 4.4.2 KitKat, so there’s plenty of new things that should be included.

So when can you expect it to arrive? As mentioned above, most updates are slow and staged rollouts that gradually arrive for all users. This means that some RAZR HD or MAXX owners could see it as soon as today or tomorrow, while others could be waiting upwards of two weeks at the most.

With the RAZR HD being a few years old most likely all owners will have the update within the next week or so. Users can head to settings > about phone > and check for software updates, as it should be ready and waiting soon enough.

62 Comments

62 Comments

  1. Crystal

    05/13/2014 at 1:28 pm

    Hi! Does Verizon have any information about the swype keyboard yet? Several users no longer have this option for our keyboard.

    • Steven

      05/15/2014 at 1:50 pm

      download Google Keyboard from the play store to use swype

      • Dave Slomer

        05/21/2014 at 7:02 pm

        Thanks, Steven. Does anybody know where the “cursor triangles” have gone? I relied on them quite often. Tiny keyboard, fat fingertips, I guess.

      • tnt

        05/22/2014 at 1:09 pm

        Google keyboard is not the same, at all, hate it!

  2. Jobs29_dot_Com

    05/13/2014 at 3:56 pm

    ♙My last paycheck was $19863 wơrking 17 hours a week online. I’ve been doing this for almost two years now, and have made over $300k using this system. The potential with this is endless. It’s really user friendly, tasks simple and fun. Here’s what I do….

  3. Nathan Fulbright

    05/13/2014 at 9:18 pm

    I got my update yesterday. Some things I noticed were new:

    -Lock screen no longer has the quick launch apps on the unlock circle
    -Lock screen widgets! (has to be enabled in settings first)
    -Two finger swipe down from top of screen has the settings shade with the different settings squares
    -Stock android clock app which includes timer, stopwatch, and alarms
    -Vibration for notifications now has two longer buzzes
    -Default notification LED color is white instead of green
    -When you press recent apps when you are in an app, that app will show up in the list now
    -Google now launcher works if downloaded from xda
    -Droid zap or beam or whatever they call it
    -MUCH better performance. Before the update my phone was very sluggish, but now it’s buttery smooth, almost as smooth as my 2013 Nexus 7. It has definitely given this phone a second wind
    -Now when you listen to music the music doesn’t cut out momentarily like it used to

    Overall it’s an amazing update. If you haven’t done so already, I would strongly recommend downloading both google calendar, google camera, and the google now launcher. Here’s a link to the launcher download: https://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2506488 (you only need to install the googlehome.apk, the rest are unnecessary)

  4. Kadorhal

    05/15/2014 at 6:47 am

    Gesture-based typing is NOT improved. It’s barely even still here, and the only way to use it is with a keyboard that defaults to Chinese inputs.

    • Steven

      05/15/2014 at 1:50 pm

      download Google Keyboard from the play store to use swype

  5. ashleys

    05/16/2014 at 3:04 pm

    Battery life now sucks!! could go 2 days on a charge, now not even a day.

  6. tactup

    05/16/2014 at 5:10 pm

    4.4.2 happened last night for me. I have had nothing but problems all morning. (Droid Razr M).

    1) Bluetooth had to be set up twice to get it to work again (using motorola headset)

    2) Swipe is gone bye bye (Google swipe alternative is not as user friendly IMO. especially with the long hold for common punctuation)

    3) In dock mode (using the docking charger) the dial pad that is used in the middle of a call (not the phone dialer but the dial pad for use in making selections on an automated answering system) is completely jacked. The numbers are all stacked and unreadable.

    4) when in the horizontal charging mode, the pin (for lock screen) numbers on the right are partially covered

    5) Battery drained by 20% (started at 100%) after only an hour and a half off of the charger (no performance apps loaded as previously suggested on other forums)

    6) Certain apps keep “unfortunately stopping” (specifically the pre loaded amazon kindle app)

    7) Wifi Icon disappears randomly and shuts off causing data usage to go up (yet WIFI is turned on in settings)

    All of this and I have only had one day to experience the new upgrade and spent a least 2 hours trying to get everything to work again. I hope there are no more surprises! None of these problems above exsisted before the update :( HATE THE NEW UPGRADE IF YOU CAN’T TELL

    • azkarisma

      05/21/2014 at 1:13 am

      I’m experiencing issues 5-6-7 in your list as well since the update.

    • emilie

      06/06/2014 at 12:24 pm

      Yeah, no3-5 happen to me too… wanna go to the old version… sound booster does not work on this new version either…

  7. Rose

    05/17/2014 at 6:26 am

    Did the upgrade and my phone isn’t working. I keep getting “Unfortunately, Homescreen has stopped”. I can’t do anything. It just keeps coming up so I can’t do anything. I hit OK and it keeps coming back on the screen. Have shut the power off and on multiple times and it keeps doing the same thing. Very frustrated. Feel like chucking the phone.

    • Richard Lawson

      05/19/2014 at 2:39 pm

      I got that same problem. I found that if you swipe quickly to the left you can get to Settings.

      Further testing proved that, for me, the issue was with the LastPass service in Accessibility.

      Either uninstall LastPass or disable the LastPass service in Accessibility.

      If *that* doesn’t work, try uninstalling all your apps. Chances are one of them is causing this problem.

      • Eclipse

        05/21/2014 at 11:41 pm

        Thank you, yes – disabling LastPass seems to have done the trick. Will look to them for an update.

      • Brad B

        05/22/2014 at 7:49 am

        Force Stopping lastpass helped me too. I was getting the “Home screen not responding” message also. I did find in my frustration and Nova Launcher” did not have the problem MOST of the time and I like it to-boot.

      • Denise M

        05/23/2014 at 11:16 am

        I have this problem but don’t have LastPass. Anyone know of any other apps causing this?

      • Larry K. Mosely

        05/24/2014 at 12:45 pm

        Here is a quick way to get to Settings: Swipe down from the top of the Homescreen. Tap the square icon (with sun light) at top right of screen to open a quick status screen. Tap the gear icon (Settings) then scroll down and tap Accessibility. Under Services, I turned off my password manager Dashlane. Now I no longer get the “Unfortunately, Homescreen has Stopped – OK” dialog. I would not be too quick to fault either LastPass or Dashlane for the popup problem. Dashlane worked before upgrading to 4.4.2 KitKat.

      • Shawna

        05/25/2014 at 11:34 am

        Thank you, totally fixed this problem for me.

      • John

        05/29/2014 at 7:55 am

        Yup. Disabling LastPass seems to have fixed it.

    • Alan Atlanta

      05/30/2014 at 7:37 am

      For me, the issue was the Dashlane keyboard, which I disabled in Accessibility options. Richard, thanks pointing me in the right direction.

  8. Chaz

    05/18/2014 at 5:22 am

    Not only does the battery life suck. My MAXX won’t charge after the update.

    • emilie

      06/06/2014 at 12:31 pm

      Happend to me too… first it took 24 hours and it has only charged 25%… then i turn off the data, and it took 1hr to fully charge..??

  9. Marc

    05/18/2014 at 9:05 am

    I was getting fed up with the sluggish performance of this phone over the last 6 months, but the update has changed that. Great performance since the update! My faith in android is restored!

  10. John

    05/18/2014 at 2:36 pm

    I think the soak tests must have soaked someone’s brain. Battery disappears like beer on a sunny day… Love the phone still tough, looking forward to adjusted software. :-)

  11. Britni

    05/18/2014 at 10:16 pm

    For some reason my update has caused the circles widget to not refresh automatically with respect to text messages

  12. Chuck

    05/19/2014 at 9:12 pm

    It’s obvious you never used swipe : it’s all jacked now. Google keyboard isn’t as good and won’t enable for all apps.

  13. Tom

    05/19/2014 at 11:49 pm

    This update complete removed the Calendar app. Note sure what to do, but will be letting Verizon know. Other than that, I love the update. The speed increase alone is awesome, and I love some of the other changes, too. I do, however; need that Calendar app back.

    • Cory Gunther

      05/20/2014 at 9:22 am

      Google Calendar on the Play Store maybe.. good option

    • Livi

      05/27/2014 at 5:57 am

      Tom, did you ever find a way to get the calendar app back? I am devastated. I rely heavily on my calendar and now everything is gone. Thanks

  14. Marsha mcmullin

    05/22/2014 at 7:12 am

    Mobile hot spot no longer works.

    • genejg

      06/06/2014 at 12:04 am

      Recommend FoxFi app, free from Play. Lost Mobile Hotspot on data plan so now use FoxFi

  15. shoopdogg

    05/22/2014 at 1:58 pm

    I had same problem w/ LastPass, forced stopped it and OK now.

  16. Pete

    05/22/2014 at 8:54 pm

    No emoji in texting. “Insert smiley” no longer in the menu. Had to get the Swype keyboard from the Google store. No longer has curser arrows. Reception bar and 4g indicator always white now. I’m sure I’ll find more things they’ve changed.

    • genejg

      06/06/2014 at 12:06 am

      The white color is standard now. I prefer the 4.1.2 blue-white scheme, but my Nexus 7 has been on KitKat long enough that it shouldn’t be too much a bother for me. As long as your icons aren’t gray, you’re good

  17. pete

    05/23/2014 at 11:07 am

    Now the battery is dying in about quarter of the time WTF!

  18. Shawn

    05/23/2014 at 2:54 pm

    (DROID RAZR MAX HD) Txt doesn’t dissappear after being read, battery won’t hold charge like before, having problems connecting to Internet I type in the search engine nothing happens. Way to take a good thing and f*** it up! I’m posting this via my gf’s phone (Samsung galaxy s4) since I can’t do it from mine, maybe I made a mistake buying a motorla

  19. Joe

    05/23/2014 at 5:11 pm

    The 4.4.2 update hit my phone yesterday and I HATE it!! The swype keyboard is gone, as is the button on the lock screen to quickly get to silent mode. The new keyboard looks like my friend’s iPhone. If I’d wanted an iPhone, I would have bought one. How do I uninstall this update??

  20. Don

    05/24/2014 at 6:15 am

    Did the update this morning, now my messaging won’t work at all. When I click on the icon it states “Unfortunately, Messaging has Stopped”. Now I can’t receive or send any text messages. How do I resolve this issue?

  21. paul

    05/24/2014 at 7:05 am

    My version arrived yesterday too. Messaging no longer works so you need to use hangups … Smiley faces are now different. It is faster.

  22. paul

    05/24/2014 at 7:08 am

    My version arrived yesterday too. Messaging no longer works so you need to use hangouts … Smiley faces are now different. It is faster.

  23. ashley

    05/24/2014 at 9:21 pm

    This update is garbage. Trashed my picture gallery so I had to do a reset. Hate the text screen where you cannot see your whole message and the alphabete is gone on the phone list. Bettery life is cut in half. White notification light is not as easy to see. I am not a tech person at all and could barely work the phone and now all I want to do is put it in a vise and crush the life out of it. 4 months on contract and iPhone & att here I come.

  24. Stephanie

    05/24/2014 at 9:45 pm

    This is so annoying… “Messaging has stopped” can’t uninstall this update. Do I seriously have to start using “hangouts” simply to get my messages now. Updated Monday on my droid maxx and have no idea how many messages I haven’t received or sent for that matter…

  25. gmcelveen

    05/26/2014 at 5:28 am

    2 issues: (1) phone will not automatically connect to Bluetooth in my car. I have to manually sync and connect each time I get into car! (2) I can no longer save pictures from Facebook. I get an error message! Help!

  26. tshelton

    05/26/2014 at 12:43 pm

    I actually like most of the update. After finding google keyboard to replace swype, most changes improved my phone’s performance. However, I’m not able to view my videos or play vids from my gallery. Anyone have a fix for this @

  27. Gregory Piper

    05/26/2014 at 12:44 pm

    My Razr HD was working great before this update. Now, I’ve lost all of my bluetooth and wi-fi connections. I was able to re-establish automatic connection to my wife’s car, but not mine. I was able to re-connect my wife’s phone to my car though, (she has the same phone and got the same update). The power consumption is awful. It took us a couple of minutes just to figure out how to unlock the phone! I’m all for security enhancements, but I don’t see any other advantage to the user here. I’ve spent at least two hours of a holiday weekend trying to resolve my bluetooth issues to no avail. We are not happy!

  28. Katie Place

    05/26/2014 at 1:19 pm

    How do I get my LED light back for text message’s? It went away with the new update. I get the light for every notification but text messages. Someone please help!!!!!

  29. Cheri Gorski

    05/27/2014 at 7:54 am

    My Droid Razr M shuts down sporadically. I will be texting, in an app, or online, and the screen goes black and shuts down. Happened 6 times this weekend alone. Also the phone freezes up suddenly. That has happened about 4 times this weekend as well.
    I am not impressed!

    • dslomer64

      05/27/2014 at 11:29 am

      I guess I’m lucky since I’m just peeved that the new OS is so different; I haven’t had the massive problems so many of you others are, and I am sorry for your pain. Motorola really should be asking itself why it released something that CLEARLY hadn’t been thoroughly-enough tested. Oh, Microsoft does this from time to time… but usually a major fix comes about fairly quickly. (Is there a way to undo the upgrade to KitKat? Microsoft more or less provides a way to undo most “fixes” that break things.) I didn’t hesitate to acquire my Razr M since Motorola has always had the best hardware that Verizon sells cheap for a two-year hitch, but this is making me wonder about next phone.

  30. Glenn

    05/27/2014 at 3:20 pm

    Got the upgrade and lost the line feed or carriage return or whatever you want to call it. After two hours with Verizon and an hour with Motorola I was told they’d call me back this past Friday. Its now Tuesday afternoon and still no call. They want a hard reset on the phone and I said no so there sending me another phone since thete’ s no way to go back. Verizon you’ve failed regression testing 001 not even 101 and you should be ashamed to put crap like this out and let your customers who pay your wages and dividends do the regression testing for you.

    • dslomer64

      05/28/2014 at 3:58 pm

      Kudos, Glenn. You hit the nail on the head. I’m dismayed more every day. Phone still works, but is a big disappointment–a bunch of little things that add up. I’m not a heavy user so I’m not at the tipping point. We’ll see how it is going forward. So far, a step backward. I don’t get it. What did ANYBODY gain from the upgrade?? Just a bunch of very disappointed people.

    • Markus

      05/28/2014 at 4:05 pm

      I noticed the same problem with the lack of the carriage return, and it was really bugging me since I type fully formatted sentences and paragraphs in my texts. What I finally noticed is that the carriage return button is available but only when the keyboard is in Caps lock mode; at least when using the Android keyboard. If I click on the button to type a capital letter, then the emoticon button disappears and is replaced with the carriage return button.

  31. James

    05/28/2014 at 3:50 pm

    The worst upgrade experience ever… what a crock of $hit. Totally whacked my preferences, ringer turned off now by default. No swype (had to get google branded version). Bluetooth hosed and took 2 days to pair with mic. Phone freezes frequently. Indicator lights hosed. Battery life cut in half. The list goes on and on. It is truly amazing that this seemingly innocuous upgrade has virtually bricked my phone… all I want to do is make a phone call.

  32. Debbie Ausmus

    06/01/2014 at 10:15 am

    I also am having therewith the new upgrade. My screen randomly flickers. I have less than half of my battery life. That was my main reason for getting this phone was because I wanted the longer life. Now it won’t even take a charge. I am writing this on Mr kindle device which is charged. Is there anyway to go back to jelly bean without totally destroying . I have no WiFi which is awful. Why don’t the developers test on real devices then send them out. Who cares if you are first in the industry if you loose all of your costumers because your junk don’t work. Dja

  33. Jenny S

    06/02/2014 at 4:31 pm

    Got the update for my Droid Razr Maxx Hd, and at first I thought this is cool, kind of like having a new phone. But then I realized the new phone sucks royally. My phone no longer has a lag in it, now it just consistently drops calls and states that I have no network connection. I MISS SWYPE. I am not sure who’s bright idea it was to get rid of swype but they should be fired. I also miss my button on the lock screen to silence my phone. I can’t use the internet because every time i get on the net i suddenly lose network connection. I have to warn people on phone calls that my phone may drop them, this is a real pain as my son calls me from Korea and is limited on time for his calls. Oh and my phone randomly pop’s up and says no sd card installed. I have to take out the sim card in order to get to the sd card (another failed design in the phone) I have to repeatedly put it back in and take it out until it finally recognizes it. Oh and the battery that I used to brag about now sucks. I have to give it to Android they really know how to ruin a phone. Verizon offered me a free Iphone 5c to upgrade my account. I hate Iphones. Not sure what I am going to do yet but they better come up with a fix for this or I am going to commit Android homicide. Sad thing is this is not everything, just what I can think of now. I really hope others are not having as much trouble as I am. Android Please get a fix out quick.

  34. Andrea dykes

    06/08/2014 at 2:03 pm

    This is crazy….I keep getting ” messaging has stopped””” I’m missing texts and I use my phone for my business! I refused to go to switch to the Galaxy 5 because I liked my phone before the update but I think I’ll go tomorrow and get one. I can’t run a business on a phone that doesn’t work!! Ridiculous!

  35. Holland Kendall

    06/10/2014 at 3:40 pm

    I am seeing all the above problems. My WiFi doesn’t work right. I have a Sony Smartwatch and to get WiFi to work, I have to power down the SmartWatch which is using Blue tooth. The battery life is very poor. It has rebooted in the middle of a phone conversation. Amazon Kindle keeps stopping. Verizon’s only solution is to reset to Factory Default and I refuse to do that considering all the Apps I will have to reload.

  36. TDair1972

    06/18/2014 at 10:39 am

    Stumbled on here searching for an explanation on the whole “Amazon Kindle has stopped working” … BFD … I have never used Kindle; no interest (and I hate bundled apps, anyway, Mr. Verizon). But I am also seeing a lot of the things people mention above, like loss of green notification LED, “Circles” widget keeps reminding me about text messages I already have read, the phone app and contacts app not always playing well together, and here’s a new one I haven’t seen anyone mention: In the past, if you were looking at a string of text messages that were a part of an ongoing text conversation, you could selectively highlight multiple messages for deletion. Now you have to delete them one at a time. A single hold down gives you a dialog box only for that one message (forward, lock, delete, etc.) and a double tap brings up some worthless message info. Thanks, Google/Android and Verizon. Fix this shyte.

    • dslomer64

      06/18/2014 at 2:37 pm

      A week ago, my Razr M (recently “upgraded” to KitKat because I saw no reason not to) quit receiving text messages. Safe mode showed SIMM card not recognized. New SIMM card didn’t fix problems, so Verizon sent a new phone, which does NOT have KitKat “upgrade” (i.e., downgrade). I get notified twice a day that there is a new upgrade to install. I would like to NEVER upgrade. I don’t so much mind pressing “Install Later” twice a day, but I don’t want the upgrade since it did NOT help ME one bit and took away too much. Will the choice one day go away and I wind up with KitKat anyway by force? I hope not. Anybody know if I can avoid forever? Any way to make the twice-daily reminder go away? (Born again and unwilling to go through upgrade again.)

  37. TDair1972

    06/18/2014 at 4:22 pm

    dslomer64: They sent you a new phone, so I would take the chance that the upgrade might work on this one. It might have been an app installed on your old phone or some other bug. (But of course call them first to make sure you can undo it when you upgrade, i.e. that they will stand behind your test.) I bought a Nexus 7 (Verizon, KitKat) a couple months ago, basically mirrored what was on my Razr M, and within the first couple days thought for sure that something within the Android op system was causing it to display full-page ads every time it came back from sleep (and thought it was the op sys because the ads were mostly Amazon or Play Store, with the little Google “Ad Choices” icon). Customer service told me how to go back to factory default, and then I was careful what I installed. The same problem occurred when my Razr M was upgraded to KitKat from Jelly Bean; but, this time, I discovered which was the offending app by using the “app list” button. Someday they will come out with Android 10.0 “Tiramisu” (would you prefer 11.0 “Baklava”?) and all our troubles will go away. Right …

    • dslomer64

      06/19/2014 at 4:41 am

      Thanks, TDiar1972. I would indeed do as you’ve suggested if I could remember one thing that I actually liked about KitKat that the previous version couldn’t do. But as long as I can definitely “un-upgrade” after installing the upgrade, I might upgrade anyway. One thing I recall is that the phone keypad could too easily be accidentally enlarged (so all I can see are digits 1,2,4, and 5) with no apparent or unintentional way to make smaller other than exiting and re-entering phone keypad. And it definitely was a battery eater. I didn’t charge overnight and it’s still at 65%. It would have been dead under KitKat. I’m almost talking myself out of upgrading… I hope the next upgrade is “Pfeffeernusse” or “Blancmange”, unless they desert desserts, and then I’m sort of hoping for “Haggis” or “Chum”.

  38. John

    06/18/2014 at 9:48 pm

    Bluetooth disconnects every time I cycle the truck key. What good is Bluetooth!

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