Samsung has confirmed that it had dropped the Android KitKat update rollout plan for the flagship phones Galaxy S3 (GT-I9300) and S3 Mini (3G).
The South Korean giant said that the devices will not be receiving the KitKat update, as the 1GB of RAM isn’t enough for users to have a quality experience.
SamMobile reports that Samsung has officially explained the reason for why the company had decided not to roll out the update for Galaxy S3 and S3 Mini.
“In order to facilitate an effective upgrade on the Google platform, various hardware performances such as the memory (RAM, ROM, etc.), multi-tasking capabilities, and display must meet certain technical expectations. The Galaxy S3 and S3 mini 3G versions come equipped with 1GB RAM, which does not allow them to effectively support the platform upgrade,” Samsung said.
“As a result of the Galaxy S3 and S3 mini 3G versions’ hardware limitation, they cannot effectively support the platform upgrade while continuing to provide the best consumer experience. Samsung has decided not to roll-out the KitKat upgrade to Galaxy S3 and S3 mini 3G versions, and the KitKat upgrade will be available to the Galaxy S3 LTE version as the device’s 2GB RAM is enough to support the platform upgrade.”
The limitation of 1GB RAM, in Samsung Galaxy S3 and S3 Mini, is said to be the primary reason for the drop in software plan. It is worth noting that Android KitKat is compatible even with devices packing 512MB RAM and devices with less custom UI can be easily upgraded to the latest version of operating system. Since Samsung Galaxy S3 and Galaxy S3 Mini come with TouchWiz UI, the devices can’t be apparently upgraded to the latest version.
The company has already released Android v4.4.2 KitKat OS to Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy S4, Note 2, Galaxy S3 Mini (LTE), Galaxy S4 Active (USA), tablet Galaxy Note 10.1 (2014 Edition). Other devices including Galaxy S4 Mini, S4 Zoom, Galaxy Note 2, Galaxy Mega, Galaxy Light, and tablets such as Galaxy Note 8.0, Note 10.1 and Galaxy Tab 3, are slated to receive the update.
