Handsets

Leak claims Samsung Galaxy S4, Note 3 to receive Android 4.4 KitKat in January

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android-kitkat

As Android 4.4 starts to arrive on handsets outside of the Nexus 5, it’s only a matter of time before the major players on the market start to see their update to KitKat. This include the Samsung Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3, and we may have our first indication of when users of those handsets can expect Google’s latest vision. According to an image that is purported to show Samsung’s release schedule for KitKat, both handsets should see the update in January.

While a January delivery is not unbelievable (several more handsets are expected to receive Android 4.4 in the same month), we wouldn’t write the date down in pen until we get official confirmation from Samsung. Assuming that this leak is legit (and there is always the chance it is not), past updates have proven that we can never really count a software update release date as official until the OTA update begins arriving. Even if Samsung begins pushing KitKat in January, carrier-specific versions of the GS4 and Note 3 could still see further delays

When Android 4.4 KitKat does finally arrive, you can expect Samsung to wrap it in the now-familiar TouchWiz interface. Outwardly, users shouldn’t expect a huge change from the current Jelly Bean builds installed on these devices. Under the hood, however, the KitKat update should make for a smoother device experience overall.

[iTechAddict via GSMArena]

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38 Comments

  1. Come on US carriers, get on this!

  2. I just got it for my new nexus 7 today!! woot woot

    1. Congrats! I got the OTA on my Nexus4 today :)

  3. This was a leak? I thought Samsung themselves said S4 and Note 3 (along with other models) would see KitKat within 90 days of Google announcing 4.4

    1. Your thinking of HTC.

  4. Now now Samsung & HTC have announced a date LG needs to come out

  5. Don’t care. I already have 4.4 on my Note2. I no longer wait for US carriers to do their anchor dragging.

    1. howww?

      1. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=47644355#post47644355

        It’s still an unofficial build with some issues. But the issues are small enough to allow this ROM to be my daily driver.

      2. SlimKat on the N2 as well!

  6. Samsung will release the update, then verizon will take until march to approve it. :(

  7. 4 Months AFTER the N3 was released – Yawn…..

    1. And? It has more out of the box on 4.3 than any phone officially on 4.4.

      What do you expect, That Samsung would release a software update the day they get it that is incompatible with their chipsets, socs, radios, tw enhamcents, screen sizes etc and wouldn’t take the chance to optimize the tw tweaks and add more features etc?
      Do you think that can be done over night?
      Do you think that can be done for free?

      You get free updates for 2 years at least plus dev support after, meaning the device will be able to do many more things down the line that it couldn’t do when you bought it but still does all the things you bought it to do…

      I dont know what people expect lol

      1. Thank you. It’s them first world problems, though. People expect their phones to be getting updates the moment it’s announced. LoL!!

      2. I agree. My Note 3 came featured pack out the box and running 4.3. These Nexus devises, although cool to be able to tinker with the latest and greatest software update first, does not pack half the features of the GS4 or Note 3. I gave my Nexus 7 tablet to my brother and Nexus 4 to my mother. I rather have the specs. I also noticed that I found myself having to explain these devices to people who would usually reply with, “oh”, and seem uninterested. Nexus devises are for us Android geeks but the main consumer does not seem to care much.

      3. My Nexus 7 2013 received the 4.4 OTA yesterday, after some 3 weeks that the Nexus 5 was announced. Guess what? 4.4 is not very different than 4.3. Most Nexus 5 new features (like the GEL launcher with google now) are not included. Speed wise its the same, not better (fast as always)…
        I chose to use my Note 3 when I have the chance. Its better in every way from the Nexus devices. And I´m a huge fan of XDA, rooting, AOSP, etc. Samsung must work with TW to make it more polished and fresh. I dont understand how xposed app + wanam can do better than Samsung…

  8. Yeah good luck! It’s already taking this long for them to officially come out with 4.3. Why would we dare bother to think that they would come out with 4.4 within a three month time span? Oh these leaks….If only I got paid for the brown stuff that leaks from my anus every so often; if only…

  9. looks like my next phones a motorola

    1. Me too. I thought Motorola’s early KitKat debut would make Samsung and the other OEMs step their game up in providing their KitKat updates. Looks like they still didn’t get the message correctly.

      1. lucky for me i loki’d my bootloader else id be waiting like everyone else.

      2. Motorola is GOOGLE,

    2. LOL you would buy an inferior phone just because you get an update with almost nothing new a few days earlier? You serious?

      1. a) its not inferior. only someone who hasn’t used a moto x would call it inferior. specs aside, there is little to no difference in the performance of a galaxy s4, and moto x in day to day usage.
        b) It’s not a matter of a few days. Samsung’s shitty touchwiz is buggy, slow, and delays every single update. They had to pull 4.3 for the s4 at least twice due to bugs. For a phone that costs nearly 700+ full retail that’s really not acceptable.
        c)obviously I will be watching moto for the life of my S4, but if these speedy updates are a sign of google’s influence on motorola that’s definitely a step in the right direction. Having a developer edition with free financing on verizon with an unlocked bootloader for a reasonable $550 is also really nice
        d) starting with “LOL” and ending with “You serious” is kind of douchey and tends to invalidate anything you have to say in between the two.

      2. Inferior to you perhaps, but to others? Not so much. It’s a tiny little thing called an “opinion”.

      3. Not inferior. I sold IMHO my pos s4 for the moto x and it’s been better in every single way, especially battery life, the screen seems sharper with its smaller rgb stripe matrix instead of the pentile on the s4, and active notifications are amazing. I love android and I’m happy when anyone chooses android over another mobile os but to say the moto x is inferior to other top androids is wrong in many aspects

  10. Don’t forget the Note 2014 Edition Samsung!!!

  11. 4.4 IS a big deal, and its because its the first version equipped with ART. go to your developer options and change the runtime from the Dalvik JIT, to the ART runtime. your phone will be slow for a little while, maybe a few days until it gets all your apps you use updated to the new run time, but after that it will be much snappier and much better on battery (since it doesnt have to waste processor power compiling code for your device) this is not enabled by default.. give it a shot!

    1. 1) ART isn’t ready for primetime by a longshot (many bigname games, and apps like TitaniumBackup crash). It’ll probably be ready by Android 5.0 next year though.
      2) The phone isn’t slow for days; it’s only slow on the first loonnnng bootup while the conversion takes place.

      1. mine was slow for a couple days on the first run of new apps.. maybe it was just my imagination. but yes your right, the first boot is long and helllll

  12. Android sucks ios have premium looking apps that actually work when it comes down to it the only reason I have a galaxy note 3 is the little extra things I can do like download movies and music for free but when it comes down to apps ios hands down dominates suckdroid I mean cmon this phandroid app has had the apps section coming soon for a long as I could remember why isn’t it up oh that’s right the apps suck for android even Windows Phone 8 apps look and feel cleaner than this crap sorry phandroid but suckdroid is garbage

    1. Then why come to an Android webpage if you don’t like the operating system?

    2. Your troll-fu is weak

  13. check out http://amzn.to/18bZR1K for good prices

  14. I love my sg note3.

    1. Yes now we need the kit kat 4.4 update

  15. Really all I care about is when is the Google Edition ROMs for the S4 coming out.

    1. It blows my mind that Motorola got the rollout started before HTC and Samsung’s gpe editions.

      1. Because Google owns Motorola

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