Continuing the long string of updates being released today, the HTC EVO Design 4G, one of Sprint's mid-level EVO devices, is getting bumped up to Ice Cream Sandwich. The notes don't specify which version of Sense the device will be updated to. One might expect Sense 4.0, though we have seen some devices running Android 4.0, yet still carrying Sense 3.6. So, we'll see.
We had previously heard that both the EVO Design 4G and the EVO 3D would be on schedule to receive ICS by "early August," so it looks like Sprint is actually just a smidge ahead of schedule.
If you bought a pre-LTE Evo phone in the last year and you've been feeling left out in the cold, worry not. Sprint and HTC are in the process of bringing Ice Cream Sandwich to your device. If your device happens to be an Evo 3D or Evo Design, that is. The older flagship Evo and this year's midrange phone are slated to reach Android 4.0 sometime in August.
Yes, we know that once again, it's not Jelly Bean. Of course, Ice Cream Sandwich is a huge departure from Gingerbread and apparently it's not unusual for updates to take a while.
After a little bit of a false start several days ago, it looks like the much-anticipated Android 4.0.3 update is rolling out for the AT&T flavor of the Samsung Galaxy S II. The update was available briefly a few days ago via the Samsung Kies update software, but Samsung pulled the file saying it was merely a "test."
Users from XDA have now successfully installed the update through Kies on stock devices. It's looking like the update is not going to go out over-the-air, but will be restricted to Samsung's old-fashioned desktop software. That means you'll have to plug your phone in with a cable to run the update, like it's the middle-ages or something.
As the person that reviewed both of these devices, the Thrive and Thrive 7, here at Android Police, I felt something of a responsibility to post on this matter. On its community forums, a Toshiba rep issued the following statement on the status of the Ice Cream Sandwich update for its Thrive tablets:
We are working hard to bring Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich to our Thrive tablets. While we originally estimated it would be ready this spring, we now estimate the update will be delivered to all Thrive 10” and 7” tablets by early fall. Apologies for any inconvenience and thank you for your patience.
Say what you will about Sony and its mobile products, but the complete transparency regarding ICS updates on the 2011 Xperia line has been nothing short of impressive. In their most recent blog post, Sony has detailed the ICS update for the Xperia S, which is rolling out now.
The update features a new features a new suite of entertainment apps: Walkman, Album, and, Movies. According to Sony:
The “WALKMAN” application blends the best of signature Sony audio technology with social features; to discover the music your friends like and share personal favorites. Facebook integration gives you a visual way to interact with content – accessing album art, artist images and information, directly from Gracenote®
The “Album” application brings new intuitive ways to sort and browse high quality photos and videos in blazing speed, as well as providing instant viewing, commenting and sharing of photos on Facebook and other online albums, leveraging the great camera capabilities of Xperia S
The “Movies” application streamlines the playback and viewing of movies in high quality audio and video, whilst using intelligent database search to grab movie posters and information for a richer experience
The update also brings all of the goodies that come along with ICS, like resizable widgets, improved lockscreen, mobile data usage control, and more.
Sony may have disappointed by backing out of bringing Ice Cream Sandwich to its PlayStation-certified Xperia Play, but there are still several other Xperia devices out there due an upgrade to Android 4.0. Having recently dealt with the Xperia Arc and Neo, next up is the pint-sized pocket slider, the Xperia Mini Pro. As you might expect, this will include Sony's usual UI customizations, but considering the Xperia Mini Pro's rather unique form factor such additions may be welcome in this case. With many of its QWERTY brethren such as the Droid 4 or Captivate Glide still awaiting Ice Cream Sandwich updates, this makes the Xperia Mini Pro a rare device indeed.
There are many cheap Android phones on the market today. Most of these devices will have a single core processor clocked at around 1GHz, and there won't be an awful lot of RAM to speak of either. This remains true of the HTC One V, but the latest budget phone to come out of the Taiwanese company has one key difference: it's running the latest version of Android.
That's right, you can finally own a budget device that doesn't ship with a version of Android that was released 2 years ago! Before you start celebrating too soon, though, you may want to take a look at some of the pros and cons that come with this phone and decide whether you want to take it on a 2-year contractual spin.
It's been a long time coming, particularly for the pioneer Android tablet, but the Ice Cream Sandwich update for Verizon's 4G Xoom is rolling out today as expected. The update brings the Xoom to the very latest version of Android available - 4.0.4.
An over-the-air rollout has started today, but if you are too impatient to wait for that, you have the option of installing the update manually (this method requires the use of a USB host cable):
Last week, HTC released a detailed timeline of when ICS updates to various devices are expected to roll out. Hitting almost dead-center in the middle of its projected update window, users in various parts of Europe with unlocked Sensation XLs are now receiving the update. According to user reports, customers of UK's Three network are also receiving the update. Unfortunately, there's no word when other carriers will begin pushing the update.
The 197MB package brings Android 4.0.3 and Sense 3.6 to the handset. You can see if it's available on your device by heading into Settings > About phone > Software updates > Check now.
The title should make this one obvious. HTC has published a brand-new list of its devices to get Android 4.0, but the difference between this one and previous lists is the level of detail. Most phones have a target OTA deployment range of 2 months, significantly more precise than the typical "quarterly" guestimates we see manufacturers publish generally. Here's the list:
DROID Incredible 2 by HTC: To be determined (by the end of August)
HTC Amaze 4G: May-June
HTC Desire S: June-July
HTC Desire HD: July-August
HTC EVO 3D: June-July
HTC EVO 4G+: May-June
HTC EVO Design 4G: June-July
HTC Incredible S: June-July
HTC Sensation: March-June
HTC Sensation 4G: March-June
HTC Sensation XE: March-June
HTC Sensation XL: April-Jun
HTC Rezound: June-July
HTC Rhyme: June-July
HTC Thunderbolt: July-August
HTC Velocity 4G: March-June
HTC Vivid: March-June
A few notable absentees include the Inspire 4G (which is a Desire HD variant), EVO 4G, EVO Shift 4G, myTouch 4G, Status, and Wildfire S - though most of those weren't expected to get the update in the first place.
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