Late last month, Samsung UK has confirmed that one of their tablets, the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 won’t be getting an Android Lollipop nor a Marshmallow upgrade.
The confirmation came when a Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 user asked Samsung UK’s official Twitter account regarding a Lollipop or Marshmallow update for the device.
To the user’s dismay, Samsung UK replied that the tablet won’t be getting any OS update and will be stuck with Android 4.4 KitKat.
The device originally came running with the Android 4.4 KitKat upon its release but was able to update until Android 4.4.2 KitKat.
This news comes as a surprise as the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 was just released in January 2014. Apparently, the specific tablet was one of the gadgets that Samsung decided not to receive the latest mobile operating system.
However, after their response to the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 user, Samsung UK immediately clarified that their response only concerns the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 users in the United Kingdom region.
They said that the South Korean tech company has yet to make an official announcement if Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 users around the globe won’t be receiving the Lollipop or Marshmallow treatment too.
Samsung US nor the Korean headquarters has yet to give their word on the matter, but it looks like Samsung UK’s move spearheads the rest of the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4’s fate already
Ubergizmo notes that the fact that the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 is still under two years old means that it might still be eligible to get the Android 5.0 Lollipop at the very least.
Unfortunately, even that is a no-go so for users who still want the update, they will have to rely heavily on flashing Android 5.0 Lollipop-based custom ROMs instead.
Android Headlines notes that the Galaxy S Tablets, which was introduced six months after the Galaxy Tab Pro, as well as the Galaxy Note phablet, which was introduced earlier, are already running on Android 5.0 Lollipop. The Galaxy Note 3 was even the inspiration source of the Galaxy Tab Pro.
Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 back in January 2014 during the Consumers Electronic Show (CES) 2014 in Las Vegas and was released to the market a month later.
The device was among the lineup of the company’s newest tablets at that time dubbed as the Tab Pro series.
The line initially consisted of three devices: the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4, the Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1, and the Galaxy Tab Note Pro 12.2.
A fourth device also part of the Galaxy Tab Pro series came out in March of 2014, a budget-friendly version of the Galaxy Tab Note Pro, the Galaxy Tab Pro 12.2.
All four devices carry almost the same specs and functionality features, only having to differ in terms of size and tag price.
The Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 was priced as $399 while the Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 came out at $499. The Galaxy Tab Note Pro 12.2 came with a price tag of $749 while the Galaxy Tab Pro 12.2 cost $649 with its release.
Prices of the devices have since gone down due to the spawn of other higher-spec tablets.
The 8.4-inch gadget comes with a Super Clear LCD screen with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels and 359 ppi pixel density. It features an 8-megapixel AF rear camera with an LED flash and a 2-megapixel front snapper. The device is also able to record HD videos.
The device was made available in Wi-Fi-only, 3G + Wi-Fi, and 4G/LTE + Wi-Fi variants.
Internal storage of the device ranges from 16GB to 32GB depending on the model. It also features a microSD slot for storage expansion purposes.
Samsung has customized the interface of the device with its TouchWiz UX software. The device came with a standard suite of Google apps and Samsung apps and was specifically designed to compete against LG’s G Pad 8.3.
The device came out just a few months shy of Android 5.0 Lollipop’s release and as the top-of-the-line device during that time, owners expected that the new OS will be reaching their devices soon. To their dismay, it didn’t and probably won’t.
By the way, the Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 won’t be getting any lollipop update, as I have tweeted to Samsung and they said “we’re sorry to give you bad news, but the tab pro won’t be getting any further update.” How is that fair. I’m really angry with Samsung.