How To Upgrade Your Samsung Galaxy S4 To Android 4.4.2 KitKat
If you’re an owner of Samsung’s Galaxy S4, you’re in luck. The South Korean tech giant has begun pushing out an update to Android 4.4.2 to the Galaxy S4, and we’ve got the details on how you can get your phone running on the newest available software from Samsung.
Last week, Samsung started rolling out the Android 4.4.2 KitKat update for Galaxy S4 owners in the United States, as well as for owners of the Galaxy S4’s numerous variants. The update itself is a bit old, as Samsung typically takes quite a while to get its Galaxy owners up to date on the latest versions of Android. Truth told, Galaxy S4 owners might not even get updates such as Android 4.4.3 and 4.4.4, as Google is expected to roll out Android 5.0 – alongside a new Nexus phone – later this year. Samsung, then, may decide to skip the Galaxy S4’s KitKat updates and move straight on to the next big Android version.
That said, the process to check if your Galaxy S4 is ready for an update is easy. Head into your Settings menu, which is accessible through your Applications drawer. Once there, find the About Phone setting and tap that. From there, tap Software Update and then Check for Update.
If an update has been pushed out to your Galaxy S4 from Samsung, your phone will then guide you through a process to download that update and apply it. It is also possible that your phone has already downloaded the update, and all that will remain is for you to give the OK to install it.
You’ll want to back up the data on your Galaxy S4 before you click install. It’s rare for these things to go belly up midway through a software update, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.
The upgrade to Android 4.4.2 KitKat means that Galaxy S4 owners will be able to take advantage of a number of new features from Google. Users can select a default messaging app and a default launcher from the settings menu, and the location menu is more integrated. There have also been changes to the keyboard, and Android now has wireless printing built into the OS. The system also has a number of tweaks enabling a Galaxy S4 to communicate with wearable technology like smartwatches.
