Connect with us

Editorials

Don’t Expect a Galaxy S III Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Update in the U.S. Soon

Published

on

Earlier today, a rumor surfaced stating that the Samsung Galaxy S III Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update, while not officially announced, is in the works. And while the device is rumored to be getting the update at some point during August or September, owners of the Galaxy S III with U.S. carrier branding on board should start tempering their expectations now.

Samsung is apparently already preparing for the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean roll out of the Galaxy S III. The fact that the update is in the works shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise to owners of Samsung’s latest smartphone as it boasts top-of-the-line hardware and only recently became available on U.S. carriers. In fact, it launched on several earlier this month.

So yes, the Samsung Galaxy S III will be getting the upgrade to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. That’s clear. What isn’t clear is when the update is going to be rolling out.

Don’t expect the Galaxy III Android 4.1 update to hit the U.S. soon.

Samsung is shooting for either August or September for the roll out date. That’s a fairly aggressive window. However, because Google provided certain manufacturers with the new Android Platform Development Kit, it’s not surprising to see the update process starting so soon after launch.

Read: Verizon Galaxy S III Review: From an iPhone Owner.

Still, this doesn’t guarantee that the U.S. versions of the Galaxy S III will be getting the upgrade in this still rumored window.

U.S. carriers generally push major Android updates out months after unlocked and international devices get the update and we don’t expect anything different from the Galaxy S III.

So, assuming the Galaxy S III Android 4.1 Jelly Bean roll out does begin in either August or September, Galaxy S III owners in the United States probably shouldn’t expect the software to roll out until Q4 at the earliest.

And even then, that might be a little generous.

Samsung should be rolling out some sort of official Android 4.1 Jelly Bean roll out window for some of its devices in the near future so we should get a clearer picture of what its thinking.

It’s a shame that a new piece of software rolled out so close to the Galaxy S III’s launch but owners will just have to make do.

So what do you think? 2012 or 2013 for Android 4.1, Galaxy S III owners?

3 Comments

3 Comments

  1. Stan S.

    07/20/2012 at 3:09 pm

    IMHO it really depends if Samsung can get fixes for the modem problems as well as the headphone/bluetooth connected-but-still-rings-on-speaker problem and the LED notifications light issues independently of JB through the carriers. It appears that CM10 doesn’t have modem wifi connectivity issues like the stock GSIII in the US. IF the reason is due to core kernel differences Samsung will have a good case to push for early release in the US.

  2. cmw

    07/22/2012 at 6:14 am

    >>So what do you think? 2012 or 2013 for Android 4.1, Galaxy S III owners?<<

    I'm thinking, "ROOT."

  3. Stan S.

    07/22/2012 at 7:02 am

    Now, a few days later, here’s my current opinion:

    A) Samsung will not release a unlocked SIII with the dual core LTE in the US. That means that JB with TouchWiz framework which quite a number of people like on the GSIII will not be easily available and not make it easy for people to switch to an official generic SIII firmware from Samsung from the annoying bloatware and missing features that the carriers have placed on the phone.

    B) Cyanagen himself has one of these phones- after all he works for Samsung. Last Friday night ET he made multiple compiles of CM10 fixing bugs, just before he was leaving for a weekend away in the woods. A number of people claim that the preview is ‘good enough for everyday use’ and the interest and speed of development has been strong. A official CM10 will certainly be available ‘shortly’ in anyone’s time-frame, certainly 2012.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.