Dell Venue 7 Now Receiving Android 4.3 Update
Today, Dell started pushing out an unexpected over-the-air update to all its Venue 7 tablets currently located in the United States. According to the changelog, the upgrade brings the latest build of Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, together with a multitude of additional bug fixes, speed optimizations and stability improvements.
The Venue 7 was first announced back in October, 2013, and went on sale just two weeks later, packing a 7-inch IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen with a resolution of 800 x 1280 pixels, an Intel Atom Z2560 chipset powered by two 1.6GHz CPU’s, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of expandable internal memory, a 3.15-megapixel rear-facing camera, 3G HSDPA 900/2100 capabilities and a 4,100 mAh non-removable Li-Ion battery.
The full changelog for the Android 4.3 Jelly Bean update can be seen below:
Audio
- Virtual surround sound – enjoy movies from Google Play with surround sound on Nexus 7 (2013 edition) and other Nexus devices.
Dial pad
- Autocomplete – just start touching numbers or letters and the dial pad will suggest phone numbers or names. To turn on this feature, open your phone app settings and enable “Dial pad autocomplete.”
Graphics
- OpenGL ES 3.0 – Android now supports the latest version of the industry standard for high performance graphics.
- Wireless Display for Nexus 7 (2013 edition) and Nexus 10 – project from your tablet to a TV.
Internationalization and localization
- Additional language support – Android is now translated in Africaans, Amharic (አማርኛ), Hindi (हिंदी), Swahili (Kiswahili), and Zulu (IsiZulu).
- Hebrew, Arabic, and other RTL (right-to-left) – now supported in the home screen, settings, and Phone, People, and Keep apps.
Keyboard & input
- Easier text input – an improved algorithm for tap-typing recognition makes text input easier.
- Lower latency input for gamepad buttons and joysticks.
Location
- Location detection through Wi-Fi – use Wi-Fi to detect location without turning on Wi-Fi all the time.
Networking
- Bluetooth Smart support (a.k.a. Bluetooth Low-Energy) – devices like Nexus 4 and Nexus 7 (2013 edition) are now Bluetooth Smart Ready.
- Bluetooth AVRCP 1.3 support – display song names on a car stereo.
Settings
- Disabled apps tab – check which apps are disabled in Settings > Apps.
System
- Restricted profiles – put your tablet into a mode with limited access to apps and content.
- Setup wizard simplification – getting started on Android is easier thanks to the ability to correct previous input, and because of streamlined user agreements.
- Faster user switching – switching users from the lock screen is now faster.
- Enhanced photo daydream – navigate through interesting albums.
If you’re in the U.S. and have not yet received the OTA update, you can head into “Settings,” then “About Device,” and select “Check for Updates” to manually scan for the upgrade. Alternatively, you can wait until you receive a push notification on your handset, prompting you to download and install the update.