Samsung Galaxy S2 gets Ice Cream Sandwich on 19 March
The Samsung Galaxy S2 has begun to update to Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest version of Android -- and it's coming to the UK next week.
As the late, great Etta James famously sang: at last. The Samsung Galaxy S2 has begun to update to Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest version of Android -- and it's coming to the UK next week.
After an extended bout of to-ing and fro-ing, Samsung has confirmed the Android 4.0 update starts today for Samsung's hugely popular S2, the leading Android phone and closest challenger to the iPhone. The update starts today in Poland, Hungary, Sweden and Korea, and starts humming over British airwaves on Monday 19 March.
When you actually get Ice Cream Sandwich depends on whether you bought your phone via a network, as each network has to check that ICS works with the extras it's placed on your S2. We're chasing the networks for firm dates as you read this, so keep it CNET to find out when you'll be fully Ice Cream Sandwiched up.
The update brings to an end a shambolic period of mixed messages and broken promises from Samsung. Not that Samsung is alone in this regard, of course -- Android updating is fast becoming the biggest bone of contention between phone fans and mobile makers. Witness the spleen-venting among fans of the Asus Transformer tablet if you don't believe us.
In fact, m'learned colleague Luke Westaway believes the fragmentation of Android and its various updates and manufacturer skins is the biggest threat faced by Google's operating system.
To see what all the fuss is about, check out our 10 reasons why Ice Cream Sandwich beats Gingerbread. The update will give the S2 a new lease of life ahead of the feverishly expected launch of the hotly anticipated Samsung Galaxy S3, expected to bring Ice Cream Sandwich, a quad-core chip and a 1080p screen.
If an official update isn't enough for your tech-addled brain, here's how to root your Samsung Galaxy S2. For a more sedate afternoon, why not learn how to stream video from your Samsung Galaxy S2 to your PS3.
If you'd like to see how we installed Ice Cream Sandwich on our Samsung Galaxy S2, watch this video:
Have you received your update? Tell me your thoughts in the comments or on our Facebook page.