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Samsung Lollipop Release: 7 Things to Know This Week

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Over the course of the past week or so, we’ve seen Samsung make substantial progress with its Galaxy Android 5.0 Lollipop update process. The Galaxy S4 Lollipop update is starting to pick up pace, the Galaxy S5 Android 5.0 update continues to roll out and the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 Lollipop update is rolling out for the first time. Today, we want to take a look at all of this new information and relay several bits of information that we think you should know about this week.

When Google re-announced its Android 5.0 Lollipop update back in November, several companies used the stage to make a few announcements of their own. Companies like HTC, Motorola and Sony all promised Android 5.0 Lollipop upgrades in the future with some passing along very specific information about their plans.

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Samsung did not take part in the festivities. Instead, the company opted to remain silent for several weeks before delivering its first piece of Galaxy Android 5.0 Lollipop update news. That news came in the form of a Samsung Galaxy S5 Android 5.0 Lollipop roll out. The update, which hit just one model in one region, delivered a wealth of new features including Google’s Material Design. Since then, Samsung’s been making moves and we’ve seen a number of new updates emerge in 2015.

Because Samsung has so many different phones and tablets on so many different carriers, information regarding its Android updates can be hard to track down, especially for those that don’t follow along on a day-to-day basis. That’s where we come in. We want to help make following Android 5.0 Lollipop’s journey to Samsung devices as painless as possible for you.

Today, we take a look at what we think you need to know this week about the Galaxy Android 5.0 Lollipop update from Samsung.

Galaxy S5 Android 5.0 Lollipop Release Making Progress

The international Samsung Galaxy S5 Android 5.0 Lollipop release continues to make substantial progress in the first half of February. The update, which has been rolling out since December, recently landed for France, Slovakia, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Romania, Montenegro, and more. The SM-G900F update has seen a strong push this month and it’s showing now signs of slowing down.

Samsung’s Galaxy S5 Lollipop update is set to hit the SFR variant in late February while Canadian carrier Rogers says that the update will emerge in February or March. This is a good sign for all Galaxy S5 users in Canada because Samsung typically rolls out all of its Canadian updates at the same time. That’s not confirmed but it’s possible.

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Here in the United States, the Galaxy S5 Lollipop update is only available on two carriers, Sprint and Verizon. We’ve taken a deep dive into both the Sprint Galaxy S5 Lollipop situation and the Verizon Galaxy S5 Lollipop situation. It’s still not clear when AT&T, U.S .Cellular and T-Mobile plan to roll out their versions of the software though typically, major carriers manage to release software just a few weeks apart.

Smaller carriers like MetroPCS have yet to make their plans known though we suspect that these smaller carriers will follow the roll outs from major U.S. carriers.

Galaxy S5 Lollipop Problems

This week, we outlined some of the initial Galaxy S5 Lollipop problems that owners in the United States, and elsewhere, are facing after replacing Android 4.4 KitKat.

Samsung Galaxy S5 users are reporting major problems with battery life after the Android 5.0 Lollipop update. It has gotten so bad for some users that they were forced to perform a factory reset on the phone in an effort to quell the problems. As we noted, Verizon’s forums are starting to fill up with complaints about abnormal battery drain. So are Sprint’s. And users on Android Central’s forums are filling up a lengthy thread with their Lollipop battery life problems. Comment sections on Android-centric websites are also loaded up with a wide range of battery life problems.

Battery life problems appear to be the most widespread Lollipop problems though they aren’t the only ones affecting the Galaxy S5 at this time.

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Verizon Galaxy S5 users are reporting problems with Bluetooth, various app crashes, issues where the device starts running extremely hot, GPS problems after installing Android 5.0, random freezing when using the home button, issues with logging in, abnormal lag, and a whole lot more. Those are just the tip of the iceberg.

Sprint Galaxy S5 users are also reporting various issues with the update as well. Users are complaining about broken Exchange and Wi-Fi issues, problems with Wi-Fi calling, lock screen problems, issues with spacing in text, and more. Most of the issues we’re seeing pertain to connectivity, the device running hot and Exchange.

In an effort to help those in need, we’ve put together a list of fixes for common Samsung Galaxy S5 problems. Many of these problems are popping up post-Lollipop update and these fixes should work for some people but not everyone. Mileage always varies when it comes to solutions for Android smartphone problems.

Galaxy Note 4 Lollipop Update Rolling Out Now

The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 was beaten to the punch by the Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy S4 Lollipop updates but it’s exploded onto the scene this week in a big way.

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Earlier this week, Samsung started rolling out its first Galaxy Note 4 Lollipop update to owners of the SM-N910C in Poland. Today, Samsung delivered yet another Galaxy Note 4 Android 5.0 upgrade.

Samsung’s latest Galaxy Note 4 update is now available for users on SK Telecom in South Korea. The fact that the update rolled out just a day after the initial release came as a surprise to us but it’s certainly a good sign for Galaxy Note 4 users. It likely means that more Samsung Galaxy Note 4 Lollipop updates are on their way.

More Galaxy Note 4 Updates on the Way

In fact, we know of a couple of updates that are confirmed for arrival. SFR’s Galaxy Note 4 Android 5.0 update will evidently roll out sometime this month though that’s a loose ETA rather than a concrete release window. Canadian carrier Rogers says that it plans to roll the update out though its release date is “To Be Determined.” Makes it seem like it’s a few weeks out or more.

U.S. carriers remain silent about the Galaxy Note 4 Lollipop release but it should only be a matter of time before we see one or two start pushing out the Galaxy Note 4’s first big upgrade.

Galaxy S4 Lollipop Release Picking Up Speed

The Samsung Galaxy S4 Lollipop release has gained a lot of ground in the past week or so. While it’s still very limited, the company’s managed to get the software out to two different models, the international version of the regular model and the Samsung Galaxy S4 LTE-A. The former is currently getting Android 5.0 in Russia and India while the latter is getting the update in Czech Republic, Germany and Slovakia.

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Samsung’s Galaxy S4 Lollipop update is massive, nearly 1GB in size, and it requires 3GB of free space to install Over-the-Air. This is the biggest Galaxy S4 update in years and there’s a chance, given the device’s age, that it will be its last.

Thus far, carriers remain silent about the Samsung Galaxy S4 Lollipop release though we suspect to start hearing more about its arrival as we push deeper into the year. Some carriers always confirm details in advance. They can’t help it.

Galaxy Note 2 Lollipop Update “Confirmed”

Samsung’s Galaxy Note 2 Lollipop update was “confirmed” this week by Samsung Poland. We’re using quotations because regional arms of Samsung have been wrong about update information in the past so until we hear it straight from the horses mouth in South Korea, we’re going to remain very skeptical of these details.

Other Incoming Updates

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Lollipop update has been fairly stagnant though it does look like Sprint is prepping an update for arrival. A release date is currently unknown.

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It’s also worth noting that Rogers says that it’s going to roll out a Galaxy S5 Active Android 5.0 Lollipop update in the future though its release date remains shrouded in mystery due to the testing process.

We know that Samsung plans to update the Galaxy S5 mini, Galaxy Alpha and Galaxy Note Edge though we haven’t seen any details emerge for any of these devices.

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