And it's official. Samsung will not, despite prior speculation to the contrary, be releasing Android 4.2.2 for the popular Galaxy Note 2 phablet.
Australian carrier Telstra, the very same one that had earlier said the Galaxy Note 2 Android 4.2.2 update would arrive in August, updated its Handset Updates page Thursday, July 18, to reflect a change of plans.
"Samsung have elected globally to skip the 4.2.2 update for this device and will instead go to a newer version of Android. No schedule has been provided for this update," the carrier states.
While this may come as a blow to the millions of Galaxy Note 2 owners out there who were waiting for a new version of Android to tinker with, this isn't the first we're hearing of this. It was not too long ago that a report from website Temefy revealed that both the Galaxy S3 and the Galaxy Note 2 would not be receiving Android 4.2.2. Instead, it seems Samsung will wait until November to release Android 4.3 for the two phones.
Samsung has not yet commented on the matter, and there are a number of reasons why this could have happened. Word around town is that Samsung is holding off on Android 4.2.2 for the two older flagship handsets because Galaxy S4 sales are slowing down. Android 5.0 is rumored to release around October or November, and Samsung might be waiting to upgrade the Galaxy S4 to Android 5.0 before giving the Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note 2 a new Android. This way, customers would be forced to buy a newer Samsung Galaxy S4 instead of the cheaper Galaxy S3 or galaxy Note 2 if they want the latest TouchWiz and Android experience.
Of course, it could all be chalked up to kinks in the software development process.
Let us know your thoughts on having to wait until November for Android 4.3 in the comments section below.