Android 4.3 Jelly Bean Release Date Arrives: Verizon Galaxy S4 Receives New OS, Sprint May Be Next

The Android 4.3 Jelly Bean update for the Samsung Galaxy S4 has finally begun making its way stateside. Verizon announced via Twitter Tuesday morning that the update is official and is being pushed out in phases. Verizon users have also begun to report receiving the OTA update on their handsets.

Android 4.3 for the Verizon Galaxy S4 essentially came right on time, according to a recent leak of the operating system’s roll out schedule and a press statement from Samsung. Samsung published the Verizon Galaxy S4 changelog on Monday and the update appears to have gone live Tuesday.

The Verizon Galaxy S4 is notably the first U.S. carrier model of the S4 to update to Android 4.3, something that has surprised fans and pundits alike as Verizon is usually among the last to receive the latest devices and updates. Weeks prior, the HTC One received the Android 4.3 update on Sprint, AT&T, and T-Mobile, while the Verizon model of the rival decide has yet to roll out the system. The Verizon HTC One update is now reportedly delayed.

Currently, the Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Play edition is the only other U.S. model to run Android 4.3; however, as per the leaked timeline the next U.S. model to update to will be Sprint Galaxy S4 on Oct. 30. The AT&T Galaxy S4 is expected to update on Nov. 13, and the T-Mobile Galaxy S4 is expected to update on Nov. 18. Other Samsung Galaxy models including the Galaxy S3 and the Galaxy Note 2 are also set to update soon, while the Galaxy S4 mini and Samsung Galaxy Mega will update within a few months, according to Samsung. The GT-I9505 and GT-I9500 Samsung Galaxy S4 international models as well as foreign regional models were among the first to update in mid-October.

The Korean manufacturer has detailed that the U.S. models of the Galaxy S4 (and others) will receive a Premium Suite software update, which includes Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, Galaxy Gear support and Samsung KNOX security, among many other features.

As said, the I545VRUEMJ7 build firmware is currently available over-the-air, and will roll out onto Verizon Galaxy S4 handsets in phases. The Android 4.3 Jelly Bean update comes with such improvements as Group Play version 2.5 and activates LTE Band 4, which allows the Galaxy S4 to connect to Verizon’s recently deployed AWS LTE spectrum. There is reportedly no OpenGL 3.0 support on the Verizon Galaxy S4 model.

Head over to Verizon’s support page for more information. Users can also check for the update manually by accessing Settings > About phone> Software update menu.

Are you excited that Android 4.3 Jelly Bean is finally rolling out on the Verizon Samsung Galaxy S4? Let us know in the comments below.

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