Samsung has released the May 2023 Android security patch for the Galaxy Tab S7 series in the US. The latest security update is currently available for carrier-locked variants of the 2020 flagship tablets. It should soon reach factory-unlocked units as well. The May SMR (Security Maintenance Release) has already been pushed to the two tablets in most international markets.
The Galaxy Tab S7 series was one of the first Samsung devices to receive the latest security update. The Korean firm began the rollout in Europe almost three weeks back. It has since expanded the release to several other markets while also covering the FE model, which debuted in 2021. While the latter model has yet to pick up the May SMR in the US, the new security patch is now available for the Galaxy Tab S7 and Galaxy Tab S7+ stateside, at least for carrier-locked units.
The latest update for these two tablets comes with the firmware build number T*78USQU3DWE3. Samsung’s official changelog states that the update brings some device stability and reliability improvements along with this month’s security fixes. It doesn’t detail those improvements, but you shouldn’t expect any major new features here. The company may be pushing some system optimizations to the Galaxy Tab S7 and Galaxy Tab S7+.
But on the security side of things, the May SMR contains plenty. Samsung’s updated security bulletin reveals that the latest patch fixes more than 70 vulnerabilities across the Galaxy ecosystem. Only about 20 of those are Galaxy-specific fixes, though. The remaining 50-odd patches concern issues found in Android OS and other partner components that make up Android devices. Those fixes come directly from the vendor of the respective components. At least six vulnerabilities patched this month were critical issues, while most of the remaining were high-severity security flaws.
The Galaxy Tab S7 series will not get the Android 14 update
Samsung launched the Galaxy Tab S7 series in August 2020. The tablets came running Android 10 out of the box and have since received updates to Android 11, Android 12, and Android 13. Unfortunately, that’s all they will ever get. The devices aren’t eligible for Android 14. They aren’t covered under Samsung’s extended policy of four major Android updates, something the Galaxy Tab S8 series is eligible for.
Nonetheless, if you’re using the Galaxy Tab S7 or Galaxy Tab S7+ in the US, a new update should be available to you anytime now. As said before, the update is currently listed to carrier-locked units but Samsung should soon cover unlocked units as well. You can manually check for updates from the Software update section in the Settings app.
2023-05-31 15:07:57