smartphones Samsung Galaxy A21s, A02s and A03s have started receiving android 12, the latest version of Google’s mobile operating system, along with the One UI 4.1 customization layer. The first two devices were launched in 2020, while the third was released last year with Android 11. This means that the Galaxy A21s and A02s could be near the end of their cycle.
Upgrading to Android 12 takes care of patch 65 vulnerabilities discovered in the system, in addition to improving a handful of the applications coming from Samsung. At the level of features, it incorporates a way to “remaster” old photos automatically, allowing the editions to be easily reversed.
As far as privacy is concerned, the ability to clear location and time data before sharing, which can come in handy if the services don’t do it automatically. Another small added privacy level is the indicator to show if the microphone and/or camera are in use, although it is possible to disable it at the system level. Of course, the best thing would be to leave it activated in order to deal with oversights or even some malicious actor that has sneaked in.
As a new widget is the ability to launch Samsung’s web browser in secret mode, making tracker blocking active. In addition, the Samsung keyboard now offers suggestions based on Grammarly technology and the Picture-in-Picture mode, widgets at general levels, the calendar application, the dark mode and more have been renewed. All three smartphone models have received the One UI customization layer version 4.1. Firmware versions are A217FXXU8DVF6 for Galaxy A21s, A025FXXU4CVF4 for Galaxy A02s, and A037FXXU1BVFB for Galaxy A03s.
Seeing that the Galaxy A21s and A02s are already two years old, it would be preferable for the user to start considering the installation of some custom ROM to continue receiving updates. This is not trying to “cure versionitis”, but to receive security patches that keep the user as safe as possible. On the other hand, using a custom ROM allows you to get out of the manufacturers’ programmed obsolescence policies, which are usually so aggressive that a smartphone rarely exceeds three years of maintenance, and that’s being optimistic.
