#1.0. There can be no doubt that one area that Samsung excel at is their policy of continual improvement and updates to their firmwares.
With the initial rollout of the KitKat, Android 4.4.2, coming to an end we are starting to see the release of the first Samsung TouchWiz, KitKat, improvement and enhancement, (sometimes called, "bugfix"), updates.
#1.1. Over half of Samsung Galaxy S4 firmware releases, 250+, worldwide are for non carrier branded models, e.g. those that do not have any carrier bloatware, and these can be updated by Samsung and released from their servers, at will. Bearing in mind that the Galaxy S4 has now covered 3 Android platforms, Android 4.2.2, 4.3 and 4.4.2, then S4 models released 11 months ago will have had, at least, the initial 4.2.2 release plus the 4.3 and 4.4.2 updates, making a total of 3 firmware releases at least. However, as we have seen, between these releases have been numerous updates for improvements/bugfixes.
#1.2. Here is an example of non carrier branded firmware for the GT-i9505 for Germany, CSC code OXA and Product code DBT. To-date, this model has received no less than 11 firmware releases, roughly 1 a month. If we discount the original release and the further 2 platform updates, this leaves 8 other improvement/bugfix updates in less than a year by Samsung.
#1.3. Of course, Samsung pass all these updates on to carriers who can then choose whether to spend the time, effort and money on adding their, "bloatware", to these improvement updates and return them to Samsung for release either OTA or via Kies. (N.B. U.S. carriers, AT&T and Verizon, do not use Samsung servers for firmware releases.)
Thankfully, because competition is so hot on the worldwide market, these carriers are, by-and-large, usually keen to update their firmware as they do not want to be seen as lagging too far behind the non carrier branded models in case customers opt for these in future. Also, providing that users do not mind potentially voiding their warranty, they can, on the International models, flash via Odin, the latest firmware available worldwide for their model of phone, anyway.
If we stay with Germany and look at a carrier branded version of the above firmware for the carrier E-Plus, CSC/Product code EPL, they have so far had 9 firmware releases of which, 6 were improvement/bugfix updates that they chose to pass on to their customers.
Make no mistake, it is not just the large countries and customer bases of the world that Samsung are supporting. Take tiny, little, Luxembourg, population about half a million, who have had 10 releases so far for the non carrier branded GT-i9505 on CSC code OXX, Product code LUX. This means that they have had 7 improvement/bugfix releases since launch to keep them up-to-date and problem free.
#1.4. These improvement/bugfix releases issued by Samsung are for enhancements to their own TouchWiz firmware and unlike the major platform updates, these releases can usually be integrated very quickly and easily.
Already, the GT-i9500, octa core models for India has received an improvement/bugfix update, (their 10th so far), for CSC codes YDD and ODD and product codes INS and INU, taking it from the initial KitKat build release of NB3, 13th FEB: 2014, changelist 699287 to the NC1 build, 5th MAR: 2014, on changelist 923538. Quite a sizeable changelist update would indicate a fair few improvements to this firmware and well worth updating to. Unfortunately, Samsung do not publish actual details of their changelists so I cannot say which specific items have been updated.
#1.5. So, if you are on unbranded firmware for the S4, the chances are that any problems you may experience could be rectified with an update in about 4 weeks or so. For those on carrier branded firmware, depending on your carrier, the update could be around 6-8 weeks.
#1.6. To see if there is an update for your model/CSC/Product code, check both Kies and OTA, (Over The Air). For more details on your model, CSC and Product codes as well as updating via Odin, see 28 Galaxy S4 models - know yours?
See, also...
International i9505 KitKat 4.4.2 releases
International i9500 KitKat 4.4.2 releases
International i9506 KitKat 4.4.2 releases
http://androidforums.com/samsung-galaxy-s4/847201-kitkat-4-4-2-release-fact-fiction.html
Update Problems - Dummies Guide
With the initial rollout of the KitKat, Android 4.4.2, coming to an end we are starting to see the release of the first Samsung TouchWiz, KitKat, improvement and enhancement, (sometimes called, "bugfix"), updates.
#1.1. Over half of Samsung Galaxy S4 firmware releases, 250+, worldwide are for non carrier branded models, e.g. those that do not have any carrier bloatware, and these can be updated by Samsung and released from their servers, at will. Bearing in mind that the Galaxy S4 has now covered 3 Android platforms, Android 4.2.2, 4.3 and 4.4.2, then S4 models released 11 months ago will have had, at least, the initial 4.2.2 release plus the 4.3 and 4.4.2 updates, making a total of 3 firmware releases at least. However, as we have seen, between these releases have been numerous updates for improvements/bugfixes.
#1.2. Here is an example of non carrier branded firmware for the GT-i9505 for Germany, CSC code OXA and Product code DBT. To-date, this model has received no less than 11 firmware releases, roughly 1 a month. If we discount the original release and the further 2 platform updates, this leaves 8 other improvement/bugfix updates in less than a year by Samsung.
#1.3. Of course, Samsung pass all these updates on to carriers who can then choose whether to spend the time, effort and money on adding their, "bloatware", to these improvement updates and return them to Samsung for release either OTA or via Kies. (N.B. U.S. carriers, AT&T and Verizon, do not use Samsung servers for firmware releases.)
Thankfully, because competition is so hot on the worldwide market, these carriers are, by-and-large, usually keen to update their firmware as they do not want to be seen as lagging too far behind the non carrier branded models in case customers opt for these in future. Also, providing that users do not mind potentially voiding their warranty, they can, on the International models, flash via Odin, the latest firmware available worldwide for their model of phone, anyway.
If we stay with Germany and look at a carrier branded version of the above firmware for the carrier E-Plus, CSC/Product code EPL, they have so far had 9 firmware releases of which, 6 were improvement/bugfix updates that they chose to pass on to their customers.
Make no mistake, it is not just the large countries and customer bases of the world that Samsung are supporting. Take tiny, little, Luxembourg, population about half a million, who have had 10 releases so far for the non carrier branded GT-i9505 on CSC code OXX, Product code LUX. This means that they have had 7 improvement/bugfix releases since launch to keep them up-to-date and problem free.
#1.4. These improvement/bugfix releases issued by Samsung are for enhancements to their own TouchWiz firmware and unlike the major platform updates, these releases can usually be integrated very quickly and easily.
Already, the GT-i9500, octa core models for India has received an improvement/bugfix update, (their 10th so far), for CSC codes YDD and ODD and product codes INS and INU, taking it from the initial KitKat build release of NB3, 13th FEB: 2014, changelist 699287 to the NC1 build, 5th MAR: 2014, on changelist 923538. Quite a sizeable changelist update would indicate a fair few improvements to this firmware and well worth updating to. Unfortunately, Samsung do not publish actual details of their changelists so I cannot say which specific items have been updated.
#1.5. So, if you are on unbranded firmware for the S4, the chances are that any problems you may experience could be rectified with an update in about 4 weeks or so. For those on carrier branded firmware, depending on your carrier, the update could be around 6-8 weeks.
#1.6. To see if there is an update for your model/CSC/Product code, check both Kies and OTA, (Over The Air). For more details on your model, CSC and Product codes as well as updating via Odin, see 28 Galaxy S4 models - know yours?
See, also...
International i9505 KitKat 4.4.2 releases
International i9500 KitKat 4.4.2 releases
International i9506 KitKat 4.4.2 releases
http://androidforums.com/samsung-galaxy-s4/847201-kitkat-4-4-2-release-fact-fiction.html
Update Problems - Dummies Guide
