LONDON: The winter doldrums have arrived in Android update land. There were a few security updates, bug fixes, and KitKat delivery, but no Lollipop left under anyone’s Christmas tree.
Hopefully it’s the calm before the storm, as Lollipop has been out long enough for some of
the other hardware makers to get their act together. There are some rumblings about the HTC One M8 being next, so keep your fingers crossed.
Each week we gather up all the major software updates for the biggest devices; phones and tablets on U.S. carriers (and unlocked phones, of course), wearables, and round them all up so you don’t miss a thing.
Making sure your device installs the latest software is a good housekeeping practice, ensuring you have the latest features, close security holes, and squash those pesky bugs.
AT&T
Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.5: This big tablet gets a small update. It rearranges the icons on the default home screen launcher, most alarmingly replacing Chrome with the terrible Samsung-built browser. No Android update for you here: it leaves the tablet at 4.4.2. Get around Samsung’s nonsense by installing the Google Now Launcher.
Sprint
Galaxy Note II: It’s not Lollipop, but update L900VPUCNK2 includes two security fixes from Google. There aren’t any details about what specific loopholes they close, but that makes this an important update nonetheless. Given that this device is two generations back it may be a while, or never, before Lollipop arrives.
Sony
Xperia T3: No, it’s not Lollipop. But at least you’re finally getting updated to KitKat for your super-slim Xperia T3. Sony has previously promised its entire Xperia line is getting Lollipop, so hopefully this update will pave the way for that to happen sooner rather than later.
Oppo
Find 5: If you have this device with its impressive 441 ppi display, get ready for some KitKat. Yes, many of us have moved on to Lollipop, but take what you can get. It comes in the form of a 2.0 version to ColorOS, one of the many custom ROMs the phone can run. There has been a number of complaints about several bugs, so proceed with caution on this one.
