Verizon is delivering updates for no fewer than three Samsung devices, beginning today, including the Samsung Galaxy S8, Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus, and Samsung Galaxy Note 8. Unfortunately, for those who may be hoping for larger updates with new, user-facing features, there may be some disappointment. However, those users who want the latest software optimizations and security features will be happy to hear that is exactly what the updates are bringing with them.
Primarily, the update consists of the latest Android security patch level, December 2017. As is always the case with such updates, that should bring an end to concerns for several bugs, vulnerabilities, and security holes. In fact, it patches a dozen or so problems, including several which were marked as critical in the most recent patch notes for the OS from Google. Aside from that, though, Verizon’s update page, accessible via the source link below, says that the update will accomplish a few other vaguely specified tasks. Namely, the carrier says the updates have been “tested” to bring optimizations to overall device performance and to resolve known issues. Whether that applies to lesser issues specific to the carrier – as there haven’t been any major or widespread issues reported with the listed devices- or to those affecting Samsung devices on a larger scale has not been indicated. Since no real details were provided either, there’s really no way of telling exactly what has been tweaked. That being said, there’s not a lot to complain about when it comes to getting a smoother experience or negating security or privacy risks present on a mobile device. Prior updates from the company, according to some sources, seemed to have indicated that the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, in particular, would also see support for Verizon’s Gigabit LTE network by the end of the year. So it’s possible that has been included with this update, though there really is no way of telling on that front either, at this point, and the company didn’t include it in its release notes.
Meanwhile, the version numbers for each device will be moved forward as well. The Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus will be moved to versions G950USQS2BQL1 and G955USQS2BQL1, respectively. On the other hand, the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 will see its software version bumped to N950USQS2BQL5. As is always the case with these kinds of updates, users shouldn’t be too concerned if the notification for the update takes some time to hit their devices. For those users with a bit less patience, checking for software updates is as easy as navigating to a device’s settings menu app, scrolling down, and then clicking on “Software Updates.”