American PC maker, Dell has released the latest Android v4.4.2 KitKat to company's two tablets - Venue 7 and 8 in select markets.
The news was disclosed in the Dell's Venue 7 and Venue 8 official community forums. The firmware is little over 300 MB in size and is currently available via OTA (Over-The-Air) in the USA and few select regions.
Users can check for updates on the tablet by-
Going to Settings >> About Tablet >> Software update
As of now, there is no word if the company has released the update in India. Dell's Android tablets - Venue 7 and 8 made their debut in the subcontinent this January for ₹10,999 and ₹17,499 respectively.
[Note: Since the roll-out process is carried out in phases, it might take a while for some regions to receive the update].
Android's chocolate-wafer flavored update is expected to bring in refreshed UI, smarter caller ID, more organized message grouping (Hangouts), quick access to settings, colorful Emoji characters on keypad, Voice search (like seen in Moto X), Quickoffice word document app, wireless cloud printing (with select HP printers) and many more.
Description of Key Features of Android v4.4 KitKat OS Update:
Location Menu: This integrated location menu enable users to easily activate GPS, Wi-Fi and mobile networks, while simultaneously keeping a tab on the battery consumption by the location service based apps.
Enhanced Google Mobile Service (GMS) Apps: This application helps user to automatically back-up photos and video clips. He/she also can create, view, share or rename Google Docs and files.
Improved Caller-ID: If a user receives a call from an unknown number, the phone will look for matches on the Internet with local listings via Google Maps.
Priority Contacts: The new OS empowers the phone to automatically prioritize contact list for easy access, based on the frequency of the peoples' contacts to which users talk.
Immersive Display: To enhance the entertainment factor, the new OS comes with immersive mode, where the status bar and navigation buttons disappear in to the background while you play music, games and read e-books. Users can just swipe the edge of the screen to bring back the utility buttons.
Enhanced Message Grouping: Google has brought in some improvements to the new Hangouts app; now, users can find all their text SMSs and MMSs, audio and video call details all at one place. He/she can also share location and send animated GIFs.
Emoji Characters: Initially users had to install third party app to use colorful characters in their SMS. Now, with KitKat update, the keypad comes pre-loaded with native Japanese Emoji emotion icons.
NFC and Wireless Printing: Google's new OS comes with a new Quickoffice app, where-in people can create and store word documents in cloud storage as well as print files wirelessly on NFC-enabled HP printers.
Multi-tasking: With efficient memory management, users can multi-task by opening multiple applications; Listen to music while you can browse through the Internet.
Performance: Like all software updates, the new KitKat enhances smartphone's performance as well as efficient RAM management, leading to increase in battery life.
