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Android 4.4 KitKat is official


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Posted by Tsepz_GP


All that we've been hearing about Google's new Android version, 4.4 KitKat, panned out, as the new version is indeed weeded out so it can run on devices with as low as 512 MB of RAM comfortably. This is big news for affordable handsets, which are typically left out of subsequent updates due to the lowly hardware, and will make Android appear on much more devices, too, like smart watch wearables, for instance.

Other backroom improvements are the new sensor batching technology that cuts on sensor power consumption by grouping and prioritizing their requests, something that probably has to do with the keyword-evoked voice search, that Google claims is now 25% more accurate, and asks back for clarification. In addition, we get new wireless printing functionality with Android 4.4 KitKat, which supports HP gear for now.

We get a new lock screen with a camera shortcut and the ability to rearrange homescreens, plus the system is getting a new white/gray color scheme and fonts. The stock keyboard flaunts emoji support, and the People app has received a grand update, too, allowing you to search across contacts, different accounts and even local businesses, despite that you don't have them in the phone book. The Hangouts app is also updated to include threaded conversation that folds your text, IM and MMS messages with a single contact in one.



Last but not least of the big changes are happening with the Google Now voice operated assistant, which can be evoked at any time with a swipe from the new launcher's homescreen, and asked to do a bunch of things in a casual way, with a lot of new cards on the way to make the service even more useful, pitched Google. These include local shopping and attractions, as well as the ability to buy movie tickets via Fandango on the spot.

Android 4.4 KitKat is available right now if you manage to snatch a Nexus 5, and rolling in a few weeks to Nexus 4, 7, 10, Samsung Galaxy S4 and the HTC One Google Play edition. Stay tuned for our full roundup of all the new KitKat features, and enjoy some dev talk explaining them in the meantime in the video below.

PhoneArena



Posted by MusaD.Dragon
Nice

Posted by tranced
My Galaxy Nexus is not receiving it. They they the GN is +18mo. FU Google!

Posted by Tsepz_GP
Yep, Galaxy Nexus is not getting Android4.4 simply due to the 18month update policy being over, how stupid of them :/

Google confirms that the Galaxy Nexus will not get Android 4.4

PhoneArena

Posted by tranced
Do you know what I did? I am even running the stock JB 4.3. But I'll jump to CM when they release a KK version.

Posted by Tsepz_GP
That's good then bro, at least there's plenty of dev support
Really crap move by Google though, I hope they reconsider it.

Posted by Tsepz_GP
Now this is a great feature:

Android 4.4 brings support for low-power audio playback

PhoneArena

Posted by tranced
But...

Android 4.4 Being Pushed to AOSP Now, Nexus 5 Factory Image Later Today


On 2013-10-31 22:35:28, Tsepz_GP wrote:
That's good then bro, at least there's plenty of dev support
Really crap move by Google though, I hope they reconsider it.



Posted by Tsepz_GP
HTC bringing Android 4.4 to all the HTC One in the US in 90 days

http://is.gd/ivq8tl

Posted by rikken
Hopefully not long before it will be available on the awesome Note III

Posted by Tsepz_GP
I'm betting on a late January release or early Feb release of Android4.4 for our Samsungs, that's unless they are already working on it for GS4 and Note 3.

What I'm wondering is when will manufacturers that have not even released 4.3 for their phones get 4.4 out for them? This is going to be like the whole ICS to JB fiasco that played between late last year and early this year.

EDIT:
I really wish the update fragmentation would stop, it's so ridiculous that while most 2013 flagships are still on 4.1.2 and 4.2.2, with a select few having launched with 4.3 or received the 4.3 update as the 4.4 update arrives. I think it will be better for some OEMs if they skip 4.3 altogether and get 4.4 out, but it seems both LG and Sony are already far too deep in 4.3 development to just drop it and start afresh on 4.4 for their flagships.
[ This Message was edited by: Tsepz_GP on 2013-11-01 18:25 ]


Posted by tranced
This:




And this:




Posted by tranced
And today I finally managed to get it to my phone. Not OTA though.

Posted by pt020
Kit Kat sucks ... Tablet lags very bad (N7 2012) and Adobe Flash does not work anymore.
Thank you for this "great update",looks like my next Tablet will be iOS....
Anyone knows if I can go back to 4.3?

Posted by tranced
I've been happy with it. In case you want to go back to JB, download the images for your N7 and flash it to the tablet.

Posted by pt020

On 2013-11-26 13:02:57, tranced wrote:
I've been happy with it. In case you want to go back to JB, download the images for your N7 and flash it to the tablet.


Thank you and I'm happy for you that it works well there
"download the images for your N7 and flash it to the tablet"
I do not understand what you are talking about.... not all of us are good in those things.
I had perfectly working tablet and now it lags and all my tv stations do not work and I am so pissed that I won't buy KitKat anymore.
I always thought that updates were to make something better and not damage something working perfectly well ...
I gave a N7 to my grandma (93) do you think she will be able to fix it?

Posted by reeflotz
@pt020

Try doing a factory data reset, it might fix it, I believe there's always something a bit of a hit and miss in android, and it is when updating a major android version. There are times the update works fine and everything is smooth, but there are also times when updating suddenly gives a laggy software, I don't know the exact cause of this, but since then every time I update I always do a factory reset then just reinstall everything to make sure that I got a clean install and all other unneeded files which may cause conflicts are deleted.

Adobe flash support seems to be a problem though, unlike in jellybean you can sideload it, seems kitkat is written differently or the browsers might need an update. Some users on xda say it doesn't work even when sideloaded.

I know they are pushing things to move on to html5, but I also don't like the fact that google dropped flash support too early, there's still a whole lot of sites using it and it is still pretty much mainstream.

Posted by Tsepz_GP
HTC One unlocked and dev edition now getting Android 4.4 and Sense 5.5

PhoneArena

Incredible work by Htc.
[ This Message was edited by: Tsepz_GP on 2013-11-29 22:34 ]


Posted by Del
Now that is fast work by HTC

I've got kitkat on my nexus 7 2012 and it is very smooth but I think it's a bit power hungry compared to 4.3

Posted by Supa_Fly

On 2013-11-29 23:33:41, Tsepz_GP wrote:
HTC One unlocked and dev edition now getting Android 4.4 and Sense 5.5

PhoneArena

Incredible work by Htc.
[ This Message was edited by: Tsepz_GP on 2013-11-29 22:34 ]



This bad boy will be my next phone that I'll keep for a year, maybe even get the vivid blue edition!!


Posted by hihihans
It really is a good phone. no 4.4 for me yet.

Posted by tranced
4.4.2 announced and rolling

Posted by Tsepz_GP
Seems Samsung had begun rolling out Android4.4.2 for the Galaxy Note 3 earlier than expected

Android 4.4.2 KitKat rolling out to Galaxy Note 3
"Surprise, surprise! It looks like Samsung has begun rolling out the Android 4.4.2 update for the Galaxy Note 3 earlier than expected! The update seems to have begun rolling out in Poland via Kies for the Snapdragon (quad-core variant), and while we haven’t received confirmation yet, it should be making its way to devices over the air as well. The build number of the update N9005XXUENA6, same as the firmware that we leaked over the weekend, so it looks like Samsung deemed it stable enough to make it official.

As always, it will be a few days or weeks before the update reaches all regions and users. "

SamMobile


Galaxy S4 already has a leaked 4.4.2, so official build shouldn't be far off either

Posted by Tsepz_GP
Samsung Galaxy S3 and Note 2 KitKat updates coming late March

Source
[ This Message was edited by: Tsepz_GP on 2014-01-22 09:25 ]


Posted by etaab
My S3 is still stuck on 4.1.2 courtesy of branded firmware. Seriously thinking of flashing it.

Posted by Tsepz_GP

On 2014-01-26 18:45:01, etaab wrote:
My S3 is still stuck on 4.1.2 courtesy of branded firmware. Seriously thinking of flashing it.



Very odd, is it branded? Almost everyday on SamMobiles Firmware live feed I see multiple GS3 Android4.3 FWs for both I9300 and I9305, they've had around two to three Android4.3 revisions and are expected to get 4.4.2 KitKat around March.


EDIT:

Have you tried both OTA and Samsung Kies on PC or MAC?
To get the MK9 FW on my GS4 I had to use Kies on my iMac as the OTA rollout clogged up Samsung servers.
[ This Message was edited by: Tsepz_GP on 2014-01-26 18:23 ]



Posted by etaab
Yeah I tried both.

My S3 has a Three branded start up screen and a Three app I cannot uninstall. It also has a different firmware label to my girlfriends unbranded S3.

I would probably just install an unbranded firmware, but I have too many apps, settings and files on the phone to have time to back them up and flash the phone. I'll be upgrading this year to a new phone at some point im sure so im not too bothered. Plus my S3 is very stable with little to no issues, so I don't feel im missing out on much.

Posted by Tsepz_GP
Sony ends support for 2012 Xperia phones but Xperia T, TX and V
"Sony has begun updating its support pages for the Xperia smartphones released in the year 2012. All of those pages list Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich or Android 4.1 Jelly Bean as the smartphones "latest and final version".
There are only three droids from this lineup, which fate is still uncertain - the Xperia T, Xperia TX and Xperia V. Sony says their KitKat update is "under investigation". So there is still hope for those three, but given the fate of their siblings chances aren't too great.


The 2012 Xperia phones to be left stuck forever on Ice Cream Sandwich are: Xperia U, Xperia tipo (and tipo dual), Xperia sola, Xperia miro, and Xperia arc S. Android 4.1 Jelly Bean will be the last for Xperia SL, Xperia ion, Xperia acro S, Xperia J, Xperia go, Xperia S, and Xperia P.


We'll be keeping our fingers crossed for all Xperia T, TX and V owners. We guess the rest should turn to some third-party developers for newer Android releases."

http://is.gd/zofCGl


EDIT:

I just realised the Xperia S and Acro S, both 2012 flagships (released in the Galaxy S3 and Note 2 era) only got as far as Android4.1 Jellybean, that is just as far as the 2011 Galaxy S2 and Galaxy Note got, despite the GS2 and Note being a year older they got just as far
[ This Message was edited by: Tsepz_GP on 2014-02-05 09:06 ]


Posted by randomuser
What's so surprising ?

Xperia S and Acro S were 1 year late to the market and competed against GS2 in reality and not GS3

And the only reason why Xperia S/Ion/Acro S/ any other device running Qualcomm S3 from any brand didn't go beyond 4.1 is Qualcomm stopped driver support for S3 chipset beyond Android 4.1

Posted by Tsepz_GP
Lol, so that admission comes ONLY now? I said it many times in 2012 that the Xperia S was more a GS2 competitor yet many of you labeled me a troll for that gotta love this forum!

Well I hope for the sake of many that the Xperia T, TX and V go to 4.4.

Posted by Away
No one ever claimed the S had good hardware 1h 2012. What was not just good but great was the overall package.

What we did say back then was that Sony would be unstoppable if they caught up in hardware. They have.

Posted by Tsepz_GP
Some heavy back paddling been done here, I look forward to a similar convo. WRT Z, Z1 and Z Ultra in a year or twos time.

Cheers!

On topic:

LG Optimus G Pro to get Android 4.4 KitKat in Q2

http://is.gd/Bsy4Ix
[ This Message was edited by: Tsepz_GP on 2014-02-05 10:45 ]


Posted by Lunion
I'm just hoping that the full set of Emoji's can be used on the Google Keyboard like on the Nexus 7.

Oh and everything else, obviously!

Hurry up KitKat!

Posted by brys182
Hopefully KitKat won't eat too much battery power on S3

Posted by hihihans
KitKat can run on 512 ram, that should be a sign that it's a light OS. Therefore battery consumption should be low also.

Posted by Tsepz_GP
Android 4.4 KitKat now seeding to Korean Galaxy S4 LTE-A

http://is.gd/Spfd74

Posted by Tsepz_GP
Samsung unveils Android 4.4 KitKatupdate plans and devices, roll out starts today in the US

Galaxy Note 3
Galaxy Note II
Galaxy S4
Galaxy S4 mini
Galaxy S4 Active
Galaxy S4 Zoom
Galaxy S III
Galaxy S III mini
Galaxy Mega
Galaxy Light
Galaxy Note 8.0
Galaxy Tab 3 (7-inch, 8-inch and 10-inch editions)
Galaxy Note 10.1
Galaxy Note 10.1 (2014 Edition)

PhoneArena

...and yet I was told by the experts of nothing that Samsung only update flagships, LOL.

Posted by Gitaroo

On 2014-02-18 19:34:10, Tsepz_GP wrote:

...and yet I was told by the experts of nothing that Samsung only update flagships, LOL.



to be fair, most of those are flagship that in their class or variants that use the same SoC/drivers.

Posted by Tsepz_GP

On 2014-02-19 08:20:31, Gitaroo wrote:

On 2014-02-18 19:34:10, Tsepz_GP wrote:

...and yet I was told by the experts of nothing that Samsung only update flagships, LOL.



to be fair, most of those are flagship that in their class or variants that use the same SoC/drivers.


The point is NOT ALL are flagships and this is the Update List just for the USA alone.

The SoCs in that list vary greatly actually, from Exynos 4 Quad, Intel, Qualcomm S400, S600 and S800.

Posted by Gitaroo
aren't those S4 pretty much all the same, either snapdragon or their own exynos, rest are all flag ship when they came out in their class. Even S3 mini was marketed as their flagship small smartphone. They might be low spec even the Mega but they were advertise as flagship, basically anything that carry the galaxy brand.

Posted by Tsepz_GP

On 2014-02-19 17:14:43, Gitaroo wrote:
aren't those S4 pretty much all the same, either snapdragon or their own exynos, rest are all flag ship when they came out in their class. Even S3 mini was marketed as their flagship small smartphone. They might be low spec even the Mega but they were advertise as flagship, basically anything that carry the galaxy brand.


What are you on about? The entire Samsung Android line up is under the Galaxy brand.

Where exactly were they all marketed as flagships??? The Mega brand was SPECIFICALLY aimed at mid end, to fend off the onslaught of low price Chinese phablets, the Galaxy Light is a low end phone, the S3 and Note 2 are now old and fall under mid end, then there's the tablets, from the low end Tab 3 7inch to the flagship Note10.1 2014.

Posted by Gitaroo
Yes but how old? low end can be less than 6 months old. Then it should be supported, its not like 3 years ago where low end can barely even run whatever it was shipped with, any new update is pretty pointless as they probably make the phone runs even worse. phones like note 2 getting support sounds pretty reasonable consider it was one of Sammy best seller S3 being supported to shows some respect to the costumers speaking as an ex S3 owners. Im probably out of touch on the low end, thought there were some low end android that from Sammy, not sure if they carry the galaxy brand, though it was very very low end. Never heard of Galaxy Light until today lol

Posted by Tsepz_GP
The low end Galaxys used to be Galaxy Ace, the Galaxy Light seems to be the T Mobile variant of the Galaxy Star Pro which is a low end.

Posted by Gitaroo
lol their naming convention has totally lost me, worse than sony with alphabet.

Posted by Tsepz_GP
Samsung rolls out Android 4.4.2 KitKat update to the Galaxy S4 (GT-I9500)

SamMobile


EDIT:

Global KitKat update list for multiple devices confirmed by Samsung Poland
Here are the international models that will be making the switch to Android 4.4 KitKat:
Galaxy Note 3
Galaxy Note 2
Galaxy S4
Galaxy S4 Active
Galaxy S4 Zoom
Galaxy Mega 6.3
Galaxy Mega 5.8
Galaxy Grand
Galaxy Express
Galaxy Note 8.0
Galaxy Note 10.1
Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition
Galaxy Tab 3 7.0
Galaxy Tab 3 8.0
Galaxy Tab 3 10.1
SamMobile
[ This Message was edited by: Tsepz_GP on 2014-02-20 14:08 ]


Posted by Tsepz_GP

Samsung Galaxy S4 LTE (GT-I9505) receives official Android 4.4.2 KitKat update

SamMobile

Posted by Tsepz_GP
While some 2013 flagships continue to wait...

Samsung rolling out Android 4 .4 KitKat update for Galaxy Note II

SamMobile
[ This Message was edited by: Tsepz_GP on 2014-04-25 08:32 ]


Posted by rikken
That is great support

Posted by Bonovox


Posted by Tsepz_GP

HTC DROID DNA gets its Android 4.4.2 update along with Sense 5.5

PhoneArena
[ This Message was edited by: Tsepz_GP on 2014-04-28 09:14 ]



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