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Refresh Roundup: week of April 16th, 2012

Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

Official Android updates

  • ZTE Optik: This budget tablet on Sprint received a minor update to include new versions of Google+ and Play Music, along with new DRM software and a fix for SimCity. [Talk Android]

  • Motorola RAZR: Both Fido and Rogers are delivering Android 2.3.6 for this svelte smartphone. In particular, it's said to bring performance and battery life improvements -- with a special emphasis on the camera and WiFi -- along with localization improvements and the ability to automatically upload pictures from the RAZR to the PC. [MobileSyrup]

  • HTC One X: Following the US release, HTC is now delivering its first update for the One X to those in Europe. Improvements to the battery life are at the core of this release. [Android Central]

  • T-Mobile G2x: The Magenta-branded handset from LG received a refresh to Android 2.3.4 during the week. Along with the new OS version, this package includes an updated baseband software and Google+. [Android Central]

  • HTC Sensation 4G: T-Mobile subscribers are no doubt anxious for the release of Android 4.0 for this handset, but sadly, they'll have a bit longer to wait. The Ice Cream Sandwich update has been in limbo for a while now, due to the carrier's quality control measures, and T-Mobile has now definitively confirmed that the upgrade won't arrive in April. Better luck next month, maybe? [TmoNews]

  • Droid RAZR and Droid RAZR Maxx: Both Moto's slim handset and its slightly bulkier brother are in line for an update from Verizon Wireless. The new software is said to bring enhanced stability, longer battery life and improved visual voicemail performance. It also introduces support for IPv6 and now properly displays 4G data connectivity. [Verizon Wireless (PDF)]

  • LG Spectrum: This update from Verizon Wireless brings Android 2.3.6 to the mix, improves web browser launch times and switches the default search engine to Google -- for Bing lovers, there's also an option to set the default search engine to one of your own choosing. The refresh also brings fixes for calendar reminders, improves visual voicemail and brings a heavy amount of updates to Verizon's bloatware apps. [Droid Life]

  • Casio G'zOne Commando: Verizon's rugged smartphone received new support for the Wireless Alerting System in an update that also brings GPS improvements and enhanced Push to Talk capabilities. The refresh also adds a factory reset option to the device, along with mass storage capabilities for Windows 7. [Android Police]

  • Samsung Galaxy S II: UK-based customers of Orange and T-Mobile will be glad to know that Ice Cream Sandwich is now available for Samsung's current premiere handset. [TechRadar]

Unofficial Android updates, custom ROMs and misc. hackery

  • Motorola Droid Bionic: A clever individual known as Dan Davis has managed to port the Smart Actions from the Droid RAZR over to the Bionic. Better yet, the app works just fine without root privileges. [Android Community]

  • HTC One V: The handset manufacturer released the kernel source code for its entry-level smartphone this week. [Android Central]

  • Samsung Galaxy Tab: The CyanogenMod team began delivering nightly builds of CM9 for Samsung's original Galaxy Tab. [Android Police]

  • HTC Thunderbolt: An update has leaked for the red-headed step-child of Verizon's 4G lineup. It delivers a new baseband, includes support for IPv6, improves device stability and is said to resolve issues with the mobile hotspot. [Android Police]

  • Motorola Droid Bionic: Verizon is gearing up for an update to its first handset that featured both LTE connectivity and a dual-core processor. It's said to bring improvements to the visual voicemail system, enable IPv6, reduce system lockups and address connectivity issues. [Droid Life]

Other platforms

BlackBerry PlayBook: RIM pushed out version 2.0.1 of the PlayBook OS, which comes with enhancements to the web browser, better support for Android apps and improvements to BlackBerry Bridge and video chat. [TechnoBuffalo]

Refreshes we covered this week