Back in the day when Korean smartphone and tablet manufacturer Samsung first released details about its ICS update plans for the handsets in its stable, the company confirmed that the latest version of the Android operating system will first hit the Samsung Galaxy S II and the Samsung Galaxy Note, two of its most high-end devices.
We all know that the ICS update has already landed on the Galaxy S II a couple of months back but users of the Galaxy Note were rather disappointed when the manufacturer confirmed that the ICS update for the Galaxy Note has been pushed back to Q2. Samsung also announced that it will include a Premium Suite of applications in the ICS update for the phablet to make the wait worthwhile.
Buy the Samsung Galaxy Note starting at $199.
And now, the waiting game finally comes to an end as we see the international version of the Samsung Galaxy Note finally get its tasty treat of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. ICS, and true to its word the Premium Suite, is now finally being rolled out to the German version of the phablet. The whole ICS update weighs in at approximately 300MB and will crank up the version of the Samsung Galaxy Note to XXLPY. In addition to that, the update is being rolled out not just via OTA but is also being made available through the Samsung Kies desktop software. So if you happen to have an unlocked version of the Samsung Galaxy Note, you might want to hook up your device to your computer and fire up the Kies application or go the time-tested Settings > About phone > Software updates to check if Ice Cream Sandwich is already waiting on your phablet.
And as was shown at the current CTIA expo in New Orleans where we saw the AT&T version of the Samsung Galaxy Note running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, TouchWIZ is still very dominant in the user interface of the device despite getting the ICS refresh. If you are very familiar with the look and feel of Gingerbread, very minor visual changes are noticeable on ICS. However, it is a given fact that the latest Android version will bring a much-improved performance to the phablet while the Premium Suite of applications will usher in the actual software enhancements. If you are still waiting for ICS to finally hit your Samsung Galaxy Note, you might want to go through the specs sheet of the phablet below for the meantime.
The Samsung Galaxy Note packs a QualComm MS8660 SnapDragon chipset under the hood and this SoC gives the device a dual-core Scorpion processor clocked at 1.5 GHz which works in conjunction with a full gigabyte of RAM to deliver the computing power needed by the device. Storage space on the device comes up to 16GB but this is still expandable up to 32GB while the standout feature of the phablet is its gigantic 5.3-inch SuperAMOLED display with its resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels. It also comes with a very capable shooting department which equips the phablet with a main 8MP shooter at its back panel and a font-facing 2MP camera for video calls and self-portraits. Buy the Samsung Galaxy Note starting at $199.
