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Samsung has been hard at work preparing Android 4.1.2 updates for a number of its Galaxy smartphones, and it seems the first device to get the upgrade will be the international 4GLTE version of the Galaxy Note 2 (GT-N7105). That's the version that supports LTE on Euro-friendly 800, 1800 and 2600 MHz bands, not to be confused with the 3G/HSPA-only version we reviewed back in October.

Today's firmware package comes via unofficial Samsung update archive Samsung-Updates.com, which shows it has the build numberN7105XXDLK7. The version available right now has Vodafone South Africa branding, but that shouldn't stop it working on other carriers' Note 2 LTE devices, assuming they carry the model number GT-N7105.We imagine we'll begin to see Android 4.1.2 rolling out over-the-air for various Samsung devices soon. Earlier rumors had suggested the first Samsung 4.1.2 updates were due to begin in December.

Android 4.1.2 is a minor update to the OS, introduced in October, shortly before Android 4.2 hit. Aside from the usual bug fixes and tweaks, the most visible changes include subtle alterations to the way the notification shade works -- in 4.1.2, notifications can be expanded with a single finger swipe down.

Fingers crossed for more Samsung updates later in the month. The Galaxy S3's4.1.2 update is rumored to include a particularly tasty festive treat, in the form of the multi-window feature from the Galaxy Note 2.

Source: Samsung-Updates

While we wind down and get ready for the start of another work week, let's have a look and see what we might have missed in the Android world. As usual, there's always something going on and it's usually pretty awesome. Read on!

The hardware we love

• Nexus 7 docking station coming in early December
• ASUSQubeshows up at the FCC
• AcerIconiaTabA110for $178 in Canada
• Verizon's Note 2 rooted

The software it runs

• Falcon Pro review
• Android app debugging from the pros
• XBMC for Android now officially in beta
• Canadian GalaxyS3phones get Jelly Bean

The editorial content you won't want to miss

• Phil's weekly dose of wisdom
• AC 2012 holiday gift guide: Jerry's list
• AC can help you stuff those stockings
• Apps of the week

The Verizon edition of the Galaxy Note 2 now has a root method. As is par for the course with Samsung phones, you'll need to use ODIN and flash a rooted image file, but that's not nearly as difficult as it sounds.

It's worth noting that this method introduces a couple bugs, namely a broken signal indicator (data still works, just the indicator is broken) and some folks say the phone isn't as smooth as it was with the factory image.

These issues are both being worked on, and we imagine a rooted factory image will soon be available that keeps everything as it should be while just adding files needed for root.

It's also worth mentioning that this is just root, not a custom recovery or a full bootloader unlock. Chances are someone with access will show up with files needed to rectify this, but in the meantime know that you won't be able to flash ROMs and kernels until some work-arounds are figured out.

In our own forums, DroidXconis back and will soon have the newbie friendly version ready if you're a bit lost on some of the methods and commands used.

We'll keep a close eye on this one, and let you know as things progress.

Source: XDA; via Android Central forums

It's the first day of December, and for some of us that means terrible, cold weather. When it's nasty outside, you're probably just better off staying in and downloading some great apps instead. We're here to help you out with that with this week's app picks.

Stick around after the break and see if we can give you another reason to stay in out of the cold.

Anndrew Vacca- Color Blindness Test

This weeks app pick is intended for a select few out theremy fellow color blind brothers. Weve all been made fun of for how our clothes dont match, or for running a red light because we thought it was green, but do you know just how color blind you really are? California-based EnChroma, which produces eyeglasses intended to correct color blindness, has released its own color blindness test, which differs a bit from the standard you remember from elementary school. Here, youll be presented with a seemingly endless series of images, each containing either a circle, square, triangle, or simply a spattering of dots. Based on your answers, your vision will be ranked anywhere between normal eyesight and a severe protanomaly (also known as totally colorblind). Its free, easy to use, and a different way of measuring your visionat least youll be able to prove to your friends that your monochrome outfit is a symptom and not a bizarre style choice.

Download: Color Blindness Test (Free)

Sean Brunett - Hootsuite

I use Twitter a lot and have tried a lot of the various clients for the Android platform. Some are good, many are not so good, but Im very particular about what Im looking for. Out of a Twitter app, I need it to be fast, opening Tweets and profiles as well. I need it to be able to handle Twitter Lists well as well as have a UI that I enjoy looking at. I used Tweetdeck for the longest time and was sad to see the lack of updates once it got acquired. I transitioned over to Seesmic for a while, until I just couldnt take the slowness that it became (also after being acquired). I dont know why resisted trying Hootsuite for so long, but I just never had the urge to try it out. Finally, I reluctantly downloaded it and have been very impressed by it. It is now my default Twitter client (for now), as it offers most of what Im looking for. Lists are handled very well and the client is incredibly fast. If youre a big Twitter user and havent checked out Hootsuite yet, I highly recommend it, particularly if youre coming from Tweetdeck or Seesmic.

Download: Hootsuite (Free)

Jerry Hildenbrand - Clock Plus DayDream

One of the cool features that comes with 4.2 is the DayDreams screen saver. I keep my phone on my nightstand charging every night, and having it do something cool while it's sitting there charging is something I've been wanting. The default "scenes" for DayDreams are OK, but as usual we'll get the really good stuff from independent developers. Enter Clock Plus.

It's the standard Clock screensaver with that little bit of extra pitched in. Besides your choice of digital or analog clock styles, you can have it show alert icons for unread messages, mail, and missed calls.Pretty handy to glance over and have a look when you wake up, or anytime you have your phone charging. Because it works with the DayDreams mode, it's a perfect night clock. It even works with Ice Cream Sandwich by way of a manual start intent. Attach this to something like Tasker and you've just replicated the DayDream function in your phone or tablet. It's free, and well worth a look.

Download: Clock Plus DayDream (Free)

Chris Parsons - Stickmount

If your device supports USB OTG then Stickmount is pretty much a must for rooted users. Given the fact devices don't auto-mount the additional storage, Stickmount can mount that storage for you automatically and thus, allow access to any files you have there. A small app, that does big things. There is two versions available, a free one and a paid version. Although the free version works fine, the pro version can kill apps that are preventing the USB host / OTG cable from mounting plus, it also offers media scanning to help with finding you media content faster.

Download: Stickmount (Free); Paid Version ($2.49)

Richard Devine - Pattrn

Part of customizing our Android devices is finding ourselves a killer wallpaper, right? Personally, I'm a fan of patterns over pictures, but it's always so hard to find one I'm happy with. With the discovery of Pattrn -- still in beta, apparently -- the hard part is settling on just one. It's a wallpaper app, nothing more, but the designs contained within are some of the best looking wallpapers I've ever come across. You get the features you'd expect, like saving to your device, keeping track on what you've previously picked, but there's a couple extra features that add a nice touch.

Pattrn takes advantage of Android Beam, so you can share with your friends by holding your devices back to back. It also gives you the opportunity to change your wallpaper automatically at certain time intervals designated by you. So, you don't really need to settle on just one. Settle on all of the wallpapers!

Download: Pattrn (Free)

Andrew Martonik - Zen Pinball THD

If you ever have the opportunity to try out a Tegra device, you really need to take advantage of the Tegra-optimized apps and games available. It sounds like a gimmick at first (I was skeptical) but there really is a big difference between regular and Tegra games on a Tegra device. Zen Pinball THD is a good showcase of what these devices can do, with awesome colors, animations and gameplay. Its hard to explain, but easy to tell when you're playing it for yourself.

You dont have to be a pinball enthusiast to enjoy what this game has to offer.

Download: Zen Pinball THD (Free)

Christmas. Chanukah. Kwanza. Festivus. No matter what you celebrate, December tends to be the month for giving. That goes for us, too, believe it or not. We might occasionally seem like Grinches on the outside, but come the end of the year we come down from Mount Crumpit and descend into Whoville with nothing but the best of intentions to spread Android joy and cheer amongst all the good little boys and girls.

And that brings us to our little helper here on the left. See what she's holding? That'd be a $10 Google Play Gift Card. We've got a stack full of these guys, and every last one is for you. Now doesn't that sound special?

Here's how it's going to work: We're going to give away one card every day this month. We're not stopping at Christmas, oh, no. We're gonna keep going, straight on through Phil's birthday (there's a not so subtle hint) and into New Year's Eve the following day. That's one $10 Google Play Gift Card each day this month.

Plus, each daily winner is going to be eligible to win a free Nexus 4 from us.

Wanna know how to enter?

Here's how we're going to work it. Let's split things up week by week.

• Dec. 1-8: Leave a post in the appropriate thread in the Android Central Forums.
• Dec. 9-15: Subscribe to our YouTube Channel. (You can subscribe now if you want, but only subscriptions during that time frame will count as an entry.)
• Dec. 16-22: Comment on that day's giveaway blog post. (Look for our hatted friend above.)
• Dec. 23-31: To be announced. It'll be fun one way or another.

Winners will be notified by e-mail, and we'll announce 'em each week on the blog. We'll pick the grand-prize winner on Jan. 1, 2013.

Now, the semi-bad news: Gift cards are still pretty limited in where they can be used. In other words, this one's pretty much U.S.-only, as far as redeeming the gift cards is concerned. We hate that as much as you do. If that stops our non-U.S. friends from entering, we understand. But we won't let that keep you from being eligible for the grand-prize drawing. So if you win a daily contest, you're entered for the phone, no matter where you live.

And with that, good luck, everybody!

An ASUS built wireless device has appeared at the FCC, and it's got the words Google TV all over it. The official FCC docs have it listed as the QubeWITH Google TV Dongle (opposed to the Qube WITHOUT Google TV Dongle I suppose) and show a device with no CPU or GPU, but wireless connectivity. It's pretty clear that this will plug into a TV or monitor and provide a wireless attachment point for another device.

Speculation around the Internet this evening covers everything from the Nexus Q revamp to an ASUS branded Google TV device, but that fact is we really don't know what this will turn out to be. If I had to take a guess (and I reckon I had better) I'd say this just might turn out to be a Miracastdongle that connects any number of devices to a big screen -- including a yet to be released ASUS Google TV product. as the O!Mobile Remote app in Google Play suggests.We'll know more soon, hopefully.

Source: FCC; via Engadget

Falcon Pro (Beta) was my weekly app pick last week, and for good reason. Twitter clients aren't in short supply, but with Twitter's new rules, some of the better ones seen recently are starting to wind down development before being fully complete. Not so with Falcon Pro though, as work is now complete, the beta process is over and the app is available for download from the Google Play Store.

The key differences between the finished article and the beta version will be features. In the beta, several of the key functionalities such as lists and search were disabled. Naturally, those are now turned on, and a couple of other goodies are packed in there too. One such addition is Tweetmarker support. This comes with a slight warning that it slows down refresh a little, but it's a nice addition to have all the same.

And, let's not forget the UI. Falcon Pro is great to look at, scrolling is smooth, and the inclusion of an in-app web browser for viewing web links is well executed. We're going to spend a little time with the finished build, so look out for a full review in the coming days. But, if you're eager to take a look, head on over to the Play Store and grab a copy. It is a paid app, and pricing is set at 0.64/$1.03.