T-mobile Samsung Galaxy S2: Update to Jelly Bean 4.1.2

For those of you who have been ever so patiently awaiting the arrival of the Jelly Bean update on the Samsung Galaxy S2 from T-Mobile, your wait is over.  Granted this update is manual, so you will still need to wait until you've installed it.

Using the Samsung Kies application for Windows you can download the update and install it.  It is a rather hefty update at 3/4 of a GB.  Improvements include updates to the stock keyboard, a new speech recognition system via Google Now.  Widgets now have more mobility on the home screen and existing icons will adapt the changes automatically. Music applications will now be operable through the notifications screen and notifications in general should be more easy to use.

This post is inspired by T-Mo News and brought to you by T-Mobile

Tablets: Trading Down

I started out, back in November of 2010 with the  Samsung Galaxy Tab, the first Android tablet to hit the market.  I appreciated it so much that I started a blog (deleted) called Galaxy Tab D2D (Day-to-Day). I kept the tablet until June 2012 when I gave it to a friend, as I had only recently purchased the ASUS Transformer.

After 5 months of ownership I came to the realization that I almost never use the ASUS.  It's quite large at 10-inches and noticeably heavy, by comparison to the Tab.  I would begin to use it and my arm would get tired or I would find myself constantly switching between landscape and portrait mode to get the best keyboard layout.  I've used Swype (and clones of Swype), but on a screen of that size it's better to just use two hands.

I used the ASUS until about a month ago when I accidentally pulled it off my desk, when the wheel of my chair snagged the power cable. It landed on the charging interface and broke the connector off inside the case.  Needless to say its a tough fix.

Although I have yet to purchase the Nexus 7, (and the bonus deal for $50 of free media ends with September) I am quite sure that it is the right idea, right size, and best all-around for my uses and needs.  The Galaxy Tab was great and I look forward to exploring the Nexus 7

Systems Recovery

I started in late 2011 dabbling in alternate Android Operating System modifications.  Not long after I purchased the Samsung Galaxy S2, I decided to attempt to install CyanogenMod 7 on my old Galaxy S.  Fortunately there is a plethora of help both on the XDA-Developers site and various other Android sites, as well as copious videos on YouTube.  (Note: Literally, just search Google for your problem and you'll likely find 5+ examples of the solution)

Sadly after much toil over my attempts to install CM7, I accidentally bricked the phone by resetting it during a nightly update installation.  My many attempts to find a solution to this problem were overshadowed by a more pressing issue and with that I abandoned the project. 

Nine months later, literally two weeks ago, I decided that it was time to revisit and rebuild.  The flow of self-help videos has not decreased in the last 3/4 of a year and the build enthusiasm has only increased.  I'd estimate that I spent a whopping 90 minutes un-bricking and then loading CM9 onto my SGS.  

This is the definitely the best thing that's ever happened to my SGS, it does things that the Samsung UI never did (e.g.  the 4 buttons across the base of the phone flash for notifications).

"To seek out new [apps] and new [modifications] to boldly go where [few phones have] gone before."

To find out more about how you can get CyanogenMod for your Android phone, check out these links

Devices the work with CyanongenMod

CyanogenMod site