Android OS automatic upgrade??

[garybeck]

I bought my kids these Galaxy 2 tabs for Christmas and so far so good.

today one of my kids got a popup that said there needs to be an upgrade. it didn't say what it was for --- the app he was using at the time (Kindle)? some other upgrade? no details were given whatsoever.

there was no cancel button. when I hit the back button to try to close it out, it forced me to pick a time to be reminded.

Having had my share of viruses on Windows, I was skeptical. I wanted to verify it was necessary and what it was for, but got no such info.

I decided to hit the update button.

What happened seemed pretty major. It took a few minutes to update and then it automatically rebooted the device. when it came back on, it was apparent that the OS had changed. the user interface on the home page was slightly different.

I concluded that the Android OS system was upgraded. I'm not really sure which version was on there before or which one we have now. But I suppose it was legit.

But this makes me wonder, where is the upgrade coming from? Samsung? Google? And how/why is it forcing me to do it? What if I liked the old OS for some reason? What if there are some apps that don't run on the new OS and I don't want to upgrade for that reason? I'm used to having some choice over things like this.

I suppose it will happen soon on my other son's identical device. I'd just like more info about what is exactly happening, who's controlling it, and how I'm supposed to know it's not a virus or an ad when things like this pop up.

thanks.
gary in vermont

 

[Frisco]

Must have received the ICS to Jelly Bean upgrade. Good stuff. You'll have to re-familiarize yourself with the menus and a few other things.

Keep in mind that Play Store has a lot of launchers that can change the interface, menus etc quite a bit, not to mention add features (I use Nova).

 

[garybeck]

Must have received the ICS to Jelly Bean upgrade. Good stuff. You'll have to re-familiarize yourself with the menus and a few other things.

Keep in mind that Play Store has a lot of launchers that can change the interface, menus etc quite a bit, not to mention add features (I use Nova).

Thanks, that's what I figured. But I still would like to know the control mechanism behind it. Upgrades of apps are voluntary but this seemed unavoidable. Who controls it -- Samsung? Google?

And again I think a generic popup with no details or signature is a red flag... it should be explained in the popup, what is being upgraded and where it's coming from.

 

[Frisco]

Do they have the 10.1 or 7 Tab 2s?

 

[garybeck]

Do they have the 10.1 or 7 Tab 2s?

galaxy tab 2 7.0

 

[Frisco]

galaxy tab 2 7.0

Oh good.. you posted your query in the right forum.

Anyway, Google is the culprit (or blessing, depending on your views and experiences with their updates/upgrades ).

They seek to improve performance, squash bugs, add bloatware and make up silly dessert names.

The reported/known bugs are the biggest reason, purportedly, along with demonstrating how premature the release was of the original software in a given Google based device.

 

[garybeck]

Oh good.. you posted your query in the right forum.

Anyway, Google is the culprit (or blessing, depending on your views and experiences with their updates/upgrades ).

They seek to improve performance, squash bugs, add bloatware and make up silly dessert names.

The reported/known bugs are the biggest reason, purportedly, along with demonstrating how premature the release was of the original software in a given Google based device.

thanks for the info. do you know, do they do this with EVERYONE who has ICS? Or just the devices that they deem have adequate memory and hardware?

 

[saptech]

I believe they are upgrading all the tabs that came with ICS by default. I bought mine in August and got the JB upgrade in January. In the settings area you can disable the automatic upgrade feature.

 

[jwither]

Upgrades are being pushed out by Samsung, not Google. Samsung had to add their Touchwiz UI to JB, as well as test and include their proprietary apps before releasing it.

My Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 (GT-P3113) with ICS had no option to disable the automatic upgrade. I checked. Several times.

You might search this and other forums for a method to disable automatic upgrading. Seems like I read that the instructions for doing so were available, as long as you're willing to root the device.

You can also find a method for returning the OS to ICS.

With JB, there is now an option to turn off automatic updates.

JB took some getting used to, but I'm ok with it.

 

[kbbru]

And how/why is it forcing me to do it? What if I liked the old OS for some reason? What if there are some apps that don't run on the new OS and I don't want to upgrade for that reason? I'm used to having some choice over things like this.

Welcome to Google's view on how things work. They assume that everyone likes what they do, and that things only get better with every upgrade.

At least with Microsoft you get to choose (up to a certain point). Imagine MS forcing an upgrade to Windows 8 upon all Windows 7 users, without warning and without any way of turning back to the previous version.

One day we will wish to be back in the days when Microsoft were the bad guys (instead of Google).

(Admittedly, in JB it is now possible to switch off automatic upgrades - as mentioned above).

 

[AnciusD]

I've had semi success by cancelling the Software Update when it starts to download. Seems to work for a few days before it randomly starts up again. If I clear the cache on my browser it seems to restart the download attempt again - I think.

Wonder if I can hold out until Key Lime?

 

[saptech]

My Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 (GT-P3113) with ICS had no option to disable the automatic upgrade. I checked. Several times.

I thought when my tablet was ready to upgrade to JB, it did start but I stopped it some kind of way, and then restarted it another day. If I did stop it, I can't remember how. A sign of getting old I guess. :smokingsomb: Maybe I wasn't able to stop it. I have the GT-P3113 SE version.

 

[kbbru]

I thought when my tablet was ready to upgrade to JB, it did start but I stopped it some kind of way, and then restarted it another day. If I did stop it, I can't remember how. A sign of getting old I guess. :smokingsomb: Maybe I wasn't able to stop it. I have the GT-P3113 SE version.

AFAIK, the only way to stop it is by never accepting the software update disclaimer when you start using the tablet. You'll have to cancel a few times over the next few weeks, but after a while it stops bugging you...

 

[CopaCC]

I don't know if it was this way for ICS, but after I upgraded to JB, mine told me I couldn't receive OTA updates anymore since my device had "been modified" (rooted).