Samsung offers upgrade to Android 2.2

Samsung Galaxy S series to receive new Android 2.2 software

MISSISSAUGA, ON, Dec. 13 /CNW/ - Samsung Mobile Canada, the leading mobile phone brand in Canada¹, today announced that a free upgrade to Android 2.2 (Froyo) is now available for the Samsung Galaxy S Vibrant, and will soon be available for all Samsung Galaxy S smartphones. The upgrade provides new features, an enhanced user experience, improved support for business clients and better performance.

"Samsung is committed to offering customers the hottest new smartphones and operating systems available," said Paul Brannen, vice-president of Samsung Mobile Canada. "We are the world leader in delivering Android-powered devices, and by making the platform's rapidly evolving upgrades available to our customers, we are able to satisfy our users' desire for the most advanced functionality and options."

The Android 2.2 upgrade provides the following functionality improvements for the Samsung Galaxy S series of smartphones:

New user features:

• Adobe^® Flash^® Player 10.1 for full use of websites and improved video viewing
• Press reader that enables users to read multi-channel newspapers and magazines
• Google Maps Navigation with voice guidance, and Google Places to view the location of friends or perform local searches for restaurants, businesses, attractions, bank machines and more
• Home Screen Tips and Setup Wizard to help new users configure the device and home screen

Enhanced user experience:

• Search in Browser enables users to use services such as Google, Translate, Wikipedia or Dictionary without navigating away from their original webpage
• Increased user control and ability to preview the homescreen, menu and camera with Pinch Zoom
• Optimized Quick Panel for easy access to useful functions such as screen rotation lock
• Dedicated Voice Search button
• Horizontal UI support for use in a cradle

Improved support for business clients:

• Enhanced Microsoft Exchange integration including the ability for Exchange administrators to remotely reset the device to factory defaults, support for Exchange Calendars and auto complete for email recipient names if the contact is in the user's directory
• New security features, including the addition of numeric pin or alpha-numeric password to ensure sensitive business information is safeguarded

In addition, the Android 2.2 offers improved performance with faster loading of large web pages through V8 Javascript, faster performance with the Dalvik JIT (Just in Time) compiler and faster app switching with Kernel memory management.

The Android 2.2 upgrade is available via Kies, Samsung's software upgrade program that can be downloaded at the Samsung mobile website (http://www.samsungmobile.com). The upgrade is now available for the Samsung Galaxy S Vibrant and will be available later this month for the Samsung Galaxy S Captivate as well as the Samsung Galaxy S Fascinate 3G+.

About Samsung Electronics Canada Inc. 

Samsung Electronics Canada, Inc. (SECA), a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., markets a broad range of award-winning digital consumer electronics, information systems, telecommunications and home appliance products. SECA upholds Samsung's mission to provide consumers with innovative digital convergence products that possess exceptional technology, quality, features, performance and value. 

Samsung has been a global TOP sponsor of the Olympic Games since 1998 and has been a presenting sponsor of the Olympic Torch Relay from 2004 to 2008. Also, through Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope charity, Samsung helps athletes and celebrities raise funds for their respective charities, including the Wayne Gretzky Foundation in Canada. Samsung is also a proud sponsor of Hockey Canada. 

For customer service inquiries, please call 1-800-Samsung (1-800-726-7864), and for more information, please visit www.samsung.com. 

¹ According to IDC Canada's Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker 2010

Contact: Julie Smithers
APEX Public Relations
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