Mobile

Verizon, AT&T add Samsung Galaxy S4 update with apps-to-SD card support, Samsung Knox & more

Alexandra Burlacu

Verizon and AT&T released their respective updates for the Samsung Galaxy S4, bringing apps-to-SD card support, the Samsung Knox security suite and more.

After Sprint rolled out the update earlier in the week, it was only a matter of time before other carriers followed suit. The two largest mobile carriers, AT&T and Verizon, are currently pushing out the update as well.

While no official change log is available yet, the biggest benefit of the new update is the ability to move apps to the external SD card in order to free up some internal storage. Samsung went under fire for its 16GB Galaxy S4, which offered only 9GB of storage actually available to users. Considering that apps, especially games, can be quite large, 9GB was not nearly enough and until now users could not move apps to the external memory card.

Another notable addition that will be available with this upgrade is Samsung Knox, the company's security suite. Knox allows users to separate their work and personal space on the smartphone. Businesses, for instance, could use this security suite to safeguard their sensitive information.

Even the U.S. Department of Defense has recently approved the Samsung Knox security suite for use on its information networks, and that should carry some weight. Knox may not be as eagerly awaited as the apps-to-SD support, but it's definitely a good addition for those concerned about their sensitive information. The bring-your-own-device to work policy has only strengthened the need to protect company secrets.

Other additions with the new update include a see-through status bar, Briefing and SPDclient apps, an HDR video option and more. The HDR option allows users to snap pictures with a high-degree of color contrast.

Samsung Galaxy S4 users on AT&T will receive their update over-the-air (OTA), which means they will not need to connect to a PC. The update weighs in at 350MB. Verizon users, meanwhile, will need to use the carrier's desktop application in order to update their Galaxy S4 smartphones, which means they will need a computer and a microUSB cable to connect. Find Verizon's step-by-step guide here (PDF) and follow the instructions accordingly. 

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