Two more of AT&T’s phones will get Google’s big 4.0 operating system refresh today, the Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket (at long last) and the Samsung Galaxy Note.
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- Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket review
- Samsung Galaxy Note review
- ICS on the Galaxy Note: Subtle, useful
The Skyrocket, which boasts a 4.5-inch screen, a dual-core processor, and an 8-megapixel camera, was one of AT&T’s first LTE-ready handsets. The even larger Galaxy Note, a 5.3-inch behemoth with a stylus, is a more recent, yet somewhat quirky, addition to the Galaxy S II line.
Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich is a pretty major reboot that remakes the interface and enables unique features as well, like Android Beam, a sharing protocol for phones with NFC. And that just scratches the surface.
I’ve had the Samsung Galaxy Note with Android 4.0 for about a week now, and am happy to report that the OS, though subtle, works smoothly. I am, however, a little disappointed that ICS on this phone looks and acts just like Gingerbread, and not like stock Android or even like Ice Cream Sandwich on the Samsung Galaxy S III. Samsung has also added addition productivity apps on the Note, which help take the stylus to a slightly more exalted level.
AT&T starts updating phones today. The next question is, when are these phones going to get Android 4.1 Jelly Bean?