It's been a long time coming, but Motorola today officially announced that the Android 4.1 (aka Jelly Bean) update for the DROID RAZR and RAZR MAXX will be rolling out in phases soon. The update brings all the Android 4.1 trimmings you may have already come to know and love, like Google Now, enhanced rich notifications, and more.
This update is also supposedly heavily de-bloated in terms of Moto's old don't-call-it-BLUR software suite, with many apps having been replaced with their Google-made counterparts. Here's Motorola's detailed changelog:
New User Interface
- Look and Feel: Updated colors, font, icons, and animations.
New Features
- Google Now: Added feature that generates real-time notifications throughout the day with relevant, contextual information such as weather, traffic, calendar. To access Google Now, press and hold the phone's search key.
Improved Features
- Voice Search: Enhanced Voice Search to recognize questions asked in colloquial language, such as "Do I need an umbrella today?" Some questions may receive a spoken answer, while others will trigger a Google Search.
- Camera: Improved image quality with better contrast and details, and more intuitive Panorama Mode.
- Keyboard: Enhanced dictionaries to be more accurate and relevant and added capability to predict next word in a sequence when typing. Improved text-to-speech capabilities that now work without a data connection.
- Gallery: Added capability to zoom out to filmstrip mode where photos can be deleted by swiping up and down.
- Notifications: Added actions to some notifications that can be taken directly from the notifications shade. Added capability to expand and collapse email and text notifications by pinching fingers, in order to view more or less information.
- Wi-Fi Hotspot: Added capability to support mobile hotspot for improved performance.
- Chrome Browser: New Chrome Browser provides multi-tabbed web surfing with the world's most popular browser.
Fixes
- Quick Office: Resolved random instances of Quick Office closing when reviewing a document.
- Outlook Sync:Faster updates to MS Outlook email & calendar
- 3G & 4G Connectivity: Improved voice and data connectivity quality, reducing instances of losing 3G and 4G services.
- Google Maps: Reduced time needed to access GPS signal.
- Audio Settings: Easier to find and edit Audio Effects settings through the music player.
- Music Playlists: More easily create a music playlist using on-device music player
- Contacts: Contacts will sync more often, eliminating the need to wait for manual or nighttime sync.
- Global Roaming: Improved GSM roaming connectivity for global use.
Changes
- Removed Applications: Social Location, MOTOACTV, MOTOPRINT, Alarm and Timer (replaced by Google Clock), Verizon Video on Demand
- Removed Widgets: My Gallery, My MOTOCAST, My Music, Picture Slideshow, Social Location, Sticky Note, Weather & World Clock
- MOTOCAST® 2.0: MOTOCAST is no longer integrated into MyMusic, Files, and Gallery, and is a stand alone app on the device. It has been enhanced with an easy to understand interface, faster speeds, higher performance and ability to support large content libraries. Will need to re-log into the app using your MOTOCAST ID to continue remote access.
- My Gallery: The My Gallery app has been removed and replaced with a standard Google Gallery app for viewing photos and videos.
- My Music: The My Music app has been removed and replaced with Google Play Music app. Specific setup information can be found in the Android PLAY store.
Manual update instructions will be coming down the pipe soon, but for now, you'll just have to keep hitting that check for update button.