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Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4.2 KitKat Release Delivers Big Surprise

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In what many will consider a modern day miracle, the Verizon Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4 KitKat update appears to be rolling out ahead of the Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4 KitKat updates for AT&T, Sprint and U.S. Cellular.

In late April, Samsung started pushing out the Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4 KitKat update. The update, which started in France, has slowly started to roll out in other places around the corner including here in the United States. At the tail end of last month, Sprint became the first carrier to offer the Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4 KitKat update in the United States and up until today, it was the only carrier offering the update to U.S. Galaxy Note 2 owners.

While we’ve seen the AT&T and U.S. Cellular Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4 KitKat upgrades emerge on Samsung’s website, they have yet to roll out. And in what many will surely consider a big surprise, the Verizon Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4.2 KitKat update has beaten them and the T-Mobile Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4 KitKat upgrade to the punch it seems.

Verizon is not known for pushing its update out ahead of the curve. Typically, it pushes its updates out weeks after its fellow carriers. This is due in part to a grueling testing process. So when a Verizon Android update rolls out in a relatively quick manner, Android users from all over the United States take notice.

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Today, Verizon announced the Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4.2 KitKat upgrade and it appears that the OTA is ready to hit Galaxy Note 2 users across the country. Verizon’s next big KitKat upgrade will deliver a number of big time features to owners of Samsung’s aging former flagship. Verizon’s change log includes:

  • Support for Samsung KNOX 2.0
  • Dual Persona
  • TIMA Real Time Kernel Protection
  • Trust-Zone based ODE
  • Universal MDM Client and Samsung Enterprise Gateway
  • Knox Generic VPN Framework
  • Error code popups fixed in Backup Assistant
  • ‘Search’ icon has been removed within S Memo when there is no memo
  • Favorite ‘Contact’ information background is now more readable
  • Connectivity has been improved when streaming music
  • Stability has been improved for Samsung Gear Manager
  • Text alert improvements for select factory installed car kits
  • Galaxy Gear 2 compatibility

The update also changes these apps and widgets:

  • Google Drive
  • Photos
  • Play Newsstand
  • Emergency Alerts App Icon
  • S Suggest (has been removed)
  • Samsung Music (has been removed)

So, the Verizon Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4 update is a nice mix of Verizon tweaks and changes and the features from Google’s Android 4.4 KitKat software.

Verizon’s Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4 KitKat update is just the second Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4 KitKat update to land in the United States and it’s among the few that are available in the international community. Carriers outside of the United States are targeting June and July for a Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4 KitKat roll out though the dates are ETAs and not guarantees.

AT&T, T-Mobile and U.S. Cellular have yet to confirm their plans and users should expect them to announce the update at the start of the roll out, just like Verizon did with its update today.

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It’s clear that the Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.4 KitKat update will be landing for all Galaxy Note 2 owners but it’s not clear if Android 4.4.2 KitKat will be the Galaxy Note 2’s last upgrade.

Google recommends 18 months of software support while Samsung typically offers 24 months of support. The Galaxy Note 2 turns two years old in September which means that it’s walking a fine line. Google recently released Android 4.4.3 KitKat for a number of devices and rumors suggest that we could see an Android 4.5 update arrive in the summer alongside a new Nexus 8 tablet from HTC. Whether the Galaxy Note 2 gets either update remains to be seen.

1 Comment

1 Comment

  1. Candido

    06/11/2014 at 12:43 pm

    What I have noticed is that the Galaxy S3 KitKat updates the kernel to 3.4 (from 3.0) but for this Note II KitKat update, the kernel stays at 3.0.

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