New Galaxy S5 Lollipop update brings back silent mode

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BY Unknown 00:30 0

New Galaxy S5 Lollipop update brings back silent mode

Here's some very good news for people who own a Galaxy S5 and hate Google's Interruptions system in Android 5.0 Lollipop. Samsung has just released a new software update for the S5 which makes Interruptions go away and brings back the trusty old Silent mode.

Interruptions was clearly thought of by Google's engineers as a superior alternative for the Silent mode that's been on every phone in the world for years. However, it turns out some people really hate the fact that the 'No Interruptions' setting silences alarms too. What's more, Interruptions isn't really easy to understand at first, which adds to the confusion.

Silent mode in new Lollipop firmware for Samsung Galaxy S5

Thankfully though, Samsung has been listening to its customers, and with the latest Lollipop firmware for the Galaxy S5 it's replaced Interruptions with Silent mode - as is obvious from the screenshots above.

They portray the Android 5.0 software for the G900F variant of the Galaxy S5, the main Snapdragon-based international model. The new build is G900FXXU1BOB7, and the underlying system is still Android 5.0.

For now, the new update is only out for unlocked devices meant for the UK, but it will surely spread throughout Europe pretty soon. If you are in the UK and have bought your handset SIM-free from an official source, make sure to check for the update in Settings - or, alternatively, use Samsung's Kies desktop software.

10 most trending phones of the week

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BY Unknown 01:27 0

10 most trending phones of the week

Major manufacturers are prepping for the MWC, finalizing the flagships that will shape the smartphone market for the rest of the year. As a result, the past week didn't witness major official launches but there was still plenty of movement in the charts.

The Top 10 trending phones chart is a list of the devices that gathered the most hits throughout the week. In other words, the chart represents the interests of the majority of people, and is an indication of what currently interests you.

Samsung claimed the top three again, but we have a new winner this week. The Galaxy A5 inched its way to first place, climbing from second position last week. Long-time favorite Galaxy Grand Prime surrendered the top spot but is still in the running. The Galaxy S5 retained its third position.

A fey new entries made it to the list this week. The yet-to-be-announced Samsung Galaxy S6 accumulated the most hits among the newcomers, driven by the bucket load of leaks. The Galaxy A3 was likely ushered in by its bigger brother, and the Tizen-powered Z1 completed the Koreans' strong performance. An unexpected Lumia 535 also managed to sneak in the chart, ending up in tenth position.

Samsung Galaxy A5

 

RANK: 1

WAS: 2

Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime

 

RANK: 2

WAS: 1

Samsung Galaxy S5

 

RANK: 3

WAS: 3

Asus Zenfone 5

 

RANK: 4

WAS: 5

Samsung Galaxy Note 4

 

RANK: 5

WAS: 4

Apple iPhone 6

 

RANK: 6

WAS: 6

Samsung Galaxy S6

 

RANK: 7

NEW IN

Samsung Z1

 

RANK: 8

NEW IN

Samsung Galaxy A3

 

RANK: 9

NEW IN

Microsoft Lumia 535

 

RANK: 10

NEW IN

Lollipop update coming to Sprint's Galaxy S5 today

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BY Unknown 20:00 0

Lollipop update coming to Sprint's Galaxy S5 today

Just a day after HTC confirmed that the Sprint HTC One (M7) will start receiving the Android 5.0 update today, it looks like the carrier's Galaxy S5 will get the update too.

According to Samsung's official support page, the S5 Lollipop update will roll out today, bumping the device to software version G900PVPU1AOA6, and will also include an enhanced Voice over Wi-Fi user interface, as well as the removal of the Lumen tool bar.

The news also comes just days after the Verizon Samsung Galaxy S5 started receiving the Android 5.0 update.

Samsung Galaxy S5 for AT&T gets Android 4.4.4

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BY Unknown 01:53 0

Samsung Galaxy S5 for AT&T gets Android 4.4.4

Android 4.4.4 KitKat is now seeding to Samsung Galaxy S5 for AT&T over-the-air. The new OS build brings a number of features to the SM-G900A headed by support for VoLTE.

Security updates, bug fixes, and other improvements are also part of the update. HD voice capability, AT&T service additions, and preinstalled Uber app round up all the highlights.

Considering that Samsung Galaxy S5 for Verizon Wireless began receiving Android 5.0 Lollipop yesterday, we find it it a tad surprising that its AT&T sibling lags so far behind with the OS updates. Here’s hoping that the SM-G900 won’t stay with Android 4.4.4 for too long.

Exynos-powered Samsung Galaxy S5 gets Lollipop too

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BY Unknown 01:43 0

Exynos-powered Samsung Galaxy S5 gets Lollipop too

Samsung begun seeding the Android 5.0 Lollipop update for the Galaxy S5 in December. Naturally the update was compatible with the Snapdragon 801-powered model and the first country to taste it was South Korea.

The update continued to roll out in stages through Poland, Spain, UK, among other countries. Verizon's Galaxy S5 users were the most recent to get the anticipated upgrade.

As of today Samsung has started to update the Exynos-powered G900H Galaxy S5 model too. The first market to get Lollipop is Kazakhstan, but we expect more countries to get the new firmware very soon.

In case the Kazakhstani ROM works for your device, you can grab it from the link below.

Android 5.0 brings a host of improvements to Samsung Galaxy S5. The OS is TouchWiz-ed with just a pinch of Material design, so the user experience will not be dramatically different from the one in version 4.4. However, thanks to the brand new ART runtime, you should feel a noticeable improvement in the responsiveness of the device

Verizon's Samsung Galaxy S5 is now receiving Android 5.0

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BY Unknown 23:42 0

Verizon's Samsung Galaxy S5 is now receiving Android 5.0

Surprising everyone, Verizon has today unveiled that it's the first US carrier to push the update to Android 5.0 Lollipop to the Samsung Galaxy S5. This smartphone has so far been updated to Lollipop in other parts of the world, and now the new software finally makes it to the US. Furthermore, it makes its debut at a carrier that really isn't known for swiftly releasing such updates.

The update seems to already be rolling out over-the-air to all Galaxy S5 units sold by Verizon. If your phone hasn't notified you about it yet, then it should do so within the next few hours or days. If you're running low on patience, you can manually check for the update from the Settings menu.

It looks like you'll first get a smaller update which will prepare your handset for the bigger one, which should follow immediately after the first one is installed. The Lollipop build is LRX21T.G900VVRU1BNLC.

As you might have expected, this means you'll get Material Design on your Galaxy S5, as well as a slightly improved iteraton of TouchWiz, Samsung's UI overlay. The new Recents menu is in too, as is the Interruptions feature that replaces Silent mode. The colors are bolder all-round, and the whole experience should be smoother thanks to the use of the new Android RunTime (ART) instead of the old Dalvik virtual machine.