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Samsung Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat Updates Still MIA

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New Android update schedules fail to confirm new Samsung Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat updates leaving the Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat release date up in the air for a ton of users, weeks after the arrival of the device’s first Android 4.4.2 KitKat update.

Back in early May, Samsung started pushing out the Samsung Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat update. The update, which had been a flashpoint for many weeks, was initially pushed out to Sprint Galaxy S3 owners in the United States. The update, which Samsung says is rolling out to the Galaxy S3 LTE and not the Galaxy S3 GT-i9300 and its variants, has since rolled out for a number of other devices.

Several weeks ago, the Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat update landed for users on Boost Mobile, Virgin Mobile, AT&T, and carriers across Canada including Bell, TELUS, and Rogers. And while there are still Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat updates missing in North America, the T-Mobile Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat update being one of the few, things are much worse outside of the United States.

Unfortunately, many weeks after the initial roll out, Galaxy S3 users are still looking for answers in regard to Android 4.4 KitKat. And while we’ve seen several release Android update schedules aimed at deliver Android update information ahead of upcoming release dates, the Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat update has remained MIA at most carriers outside the U.S.

Samsung Galaxy S5 vs Galaxy S4 vs Galaxy S3 -  Display

In recent updates to their progress reports, French carrier SFR and Australian carrier Optus, two carriers that are usually at the tip of the spear when it comes to early Android update information, have not put forth any information regarding upcoming plans for the Galaxy S3.

SFR’s schedule offers information on updates through August with Android 4.4.2 KitKat updates for the Galaxy S4 mini and Galaxy Note 2 4G planned for that month. Optus, which typically announces updates months in advance, has announced updates for its Galaxy S4, Galaxy Note 2 and Galaxy S4 mini but the Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat update remains out of the picture.

This is unfortunately the case for most carriers outside of North America and it paints an unclear picture for Galaxy S3 LTE users who have been expecting an Android 4.4 KitKat roll out since May.

Samsung Galaxy S5 vs Galaxy S4 vs Galaxy S3 -  Build Quality

Adding to the mystery is the fact that Vodafone Australia, a rival carrier to Optus and another carrier that loves to announce updates early, claims that the Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat update will be rolling out but that it is “awaiting software for testing” and that the “ETA to be confirmed by Samsung.” This is the carrier’s latest update and it points to a Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat update down the road. It’s just not clear as to when.

At this point, in our estimation, there are three different scenarios here, none of which have been confirmed by Samsung, all of which remain in play as the weeks go on.

It could be that Samsung simply put a priority on the Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat updates in North America. The U.S. is a key battleground so Samsung may have made it a priority. Given Vodafone’s confirmation, there is a good chance that we’ll see Android 4.4 KitKat land for a number of carriers in the weeks and months ahead. Samsung could be taking its time with the update given that it could be its last.

With Android 4.4.3 KitKat and Android 4.4.4 KitKat now out, it’s possible that Samsung could have made the switch to either one of those. Both represent massive bug fix updates and correct Android 4.4.2 KitKat problems. Samsung still hasn’t confirmed Android 4.4.3 KitKat or Android 4.4.4 KitKat updates for any of its Galaxy devices.

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It’s also possible that Samsung will ultimately decide to pass on a great number of Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat updates. Whether it’s due to performance reasons or something else, there’s always a chance that the Vodafone Australia Galaxy S3 Android 4.4 KitKat update could get cancelled alongside the other missing updates.

Sadly, this is a situation that isn’t likely to get cleared up any time soon. Samsung remains mum about its Android 4.4 update plans and it’s possible that many users won’t know until much later in the year as we get closer to the Android L update, Google’s replacement for Android 4.4, and an update that the Galaxy S3 isn’t likely to get given its age.

At this point though, weeks after its release, there are still many unanswered questions regarding the Galaxy S3.

16 Comments

16 Comments

  1. Joey Smith

    07/22/2014 at 11:47 am

    Oh well Adams, many Samsung users feel very frustrated and dissapointed. We don’t receive quick support. That’s why I invite everybody to leave Samsung, they don’t respect their customers. When it comes to updates, they’re really very slow. I’ve had a very bad experience. My T Mobile S4 is a piece of crap after it was updated to kitkat 4.4.2, I hate the phone and I’m willing to update it to 4.4.3 or 4.4.4 in order to see if it improves, but that update never arrives. I wish I could downgrade it to the oldest android version it had when I bought it. We have to move to LG, Motorola, Nexus, HTC or whatever other phones, but believe me … Samsung SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!

  2. Michael Rodriguez

    07/22/2014 at 1:04 pm

    I totally agree with Mr Smith, because Samsung devises are too expensive but are the last ones to be updated.

  3. dee

    07/22/2014 at 9:05 pm

    Honestly I cant believe my gs3 still doesnt have kit kat & i have t mobile. Frustrated isnt even the word.

  4. Jonathan

    07/23/2014 at 1:45 am

    I’ll no longer buy another Samsung product. My next phone shall be a Nexus with fast updates.

  5. kamlesh

    07/23/2014 at 5:30 am

    for updating samsung galaxy s4 to android 4.4.4
    https://dexteroid.com/howto/update-samsung-galaxy-s4-android-4-4-4kitkat/

  6. Tommy Smith

    07/23/2014 at 11:01 am

    Indeed…Samsung has a very bad support although they are taking a huge share of the market. If I can afford to buy HTC or Nexus I would certainly will go to one of them but unfortunately my budget does not allow me…therefore i am stuck with Samsung! Samsung they do not even announce it officially we only here it from different websites like this ! which is 100% none pro from Samsung !

  7. Jim Roberts

    07/23/2014 at 12:46 pm

    It’s like Samsung just wants to give up the market… I will never trust the brand again.

  8. erin

    07/23/2014 at 5:50 pm

    I had an iphone and we got updates monthly..with cool new features. I decided to go with a galaxy s3 this was what was offered to me thru my plan..or a iphone 5s..I dont understand why samsung cant do an update. .how can Apple update so frequently but its such a huge deal for android? And I had a iPhone 4 and it still updated and they are saying some s3 might not even get an update due to its age..well thats crappy! Maybe I should have stayed with apple..and I always take up for Android and Samsung against the Apple supporters but how do I do this when they cant even do an update! ?

  9. gary

    07/23/2014 at 9:04 pm

    If you haven’t received the update for kitkat DON’T UPDATE YOUR PHONE! If you update it you will loose the ability to access the sd card, your sd card will get hot when playing 10-15 minutes of candy crush. Not to mention if you reboot your phone it takes forever to boot and you get an error of touchwiz has stopped working. This is important because all the phone are touch based. I’m using a galaxy s3. The best solution I found is use towelroot and it has stopped some of the issues.

    • Katie Weisz

      08/01/2014 at 12:33 pm

      Hi, I have Samsung s3 with virgin mobile. they updated my phone to kitkat. Since then my data network switches from 3g to 4gLTE (the LTE sucks! 3G? Are they kidding me? shouldnt kitkat have faster network? when my phone was 4g reception was terrific VM CS sucks even more with their stock responses). Do you know anything about this?

  10. Justina Wuebker (@StinaW2013)

    07/24/2014 at 10:19 am

    I have the Galaxy S3 and updated my phone to 4.4.2 on the 21st. The only thing that bothers me is that when I try to take a screenshot it usually decides to only register the home button being pushed unless I hold them both (home and power) down for a significant amount of time. This doesn’t always work. It wouldn’t be a big deal, but I get a lot of adorable baby pictures via SnapChat and I like to try to save them.
    When I got the update, it took about an hour and I couldn’t use my phone during that time (much as any operating system update) and it took several minutes for my phone to orient itself. The home button & camera were rather jumpy at first and still are sometimes.

  11. Justina Wuebker (@StinaW2013)

    07/24/2014 at 10:21 am

    Oh, I have US Cellular and live in an extremely rural area in the Midwest, USA

  12. kovenka james

    07/25/2014 at 5:11 am

    I saw the 4.4.2 and didnt update yesterdaty. How can I retrieve it? Please help!

  13. SoKalKyle

    07/25/2014 at 3:26 pm

    I used the Samsung Kies software (from the Samsung website) to update my Virgin Mobile s3 to the 4.4.2 release about a month ago. I had minor problems with the SMS client — wasn’t able to text to more than one person at a time and multimedia messages were causing a problem. I switched to a different sms client and don’t seem to be having any problems with the release….

  14. Kody

    07/29/2014 at 9:29 am

    I own a unlocked Samsung S3 and have gotten the update to Android 4.4.2 so far no troubles, but I didn’t receive any new features. Everything is still the same on my phone.

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