The highly popular Samsung Galaxy S3 is now getting the anticipated Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update, straight from the manufacturer. While the device was scheduled to receive the update sometime in October, recent reports state that some S3s are already getting the new Android platform.
Reports indicate that countries like Poland, Romania, and the UK are the first regions in line to get Google's latest platform upgrade. Additionally, unlocked Polish S3 smartphones have a firmware version - I9300XXDLIB - and started receiving the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update on Sept. 24.
XDA Developers forum member "victorator" spotted the update and published screenshots of Jelly Bean running on the Galaxy S3. The software update is said to include fixes and improvements, apart from the latest version of Android (including Project Butter and Google Now). The improvements imply that users will now receive a new settings menu, two homescreen modes, a new Notification Tray, along with a resizable Pop-up Play.
Moreover, the Jelly Bean update brings with it a new 'Easy Mode' that offers easy-to-use widgets for favorites and recently-used applications. It also has a 'blocking mode' that acts similarly to Apple's 'Do Not Disturb' function.
In a statement, Korean tech giant Samsung confirmed the update roll out and said that Jelly Bean would be "gradually introduced to other markets."
"The availability and schedule of the software upgrade will vary by market and wireless carriers' requirements," disclaimed the statement.
Additionally, apart from revealing details for the Galaxy S3, Samsung has also released a full list of devices that are set to receive the Jelly Bean upgrade. The new list includes ten phones - the Galaxy S3, Galaxy Note, Galaxy S Advance, Galaxy S2 LTE, Galaxy Chat, Galaxy Ace 2, Galaxy Beam, Galaxy Ace Plus, Galaxy Mini 2, and Galaxy S Duos.
The four tablets that are also on the radar are: the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0, Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, Galaxy Tab 2 10.1, Galaxy Note 10.1, and an unknown device called the Galaxy Music.
Samsung is slated to launch its Galaxy Note 2 soon and the phablet will come pre-loaded with the latest Jelly Bean platform. Therefore, it would make sense for Samsung to get the Jelly Bean on board its flagship Galaxy S3.
