Motorola Droid Software Update Available

Various tech sites are reporting that the original Motorola Droid and the Motorola Droid X will soon begin receiving system updates.

The system updates to the Droid and Droid X will bring increased stability to the phones, along with various updates to integral features.

The Motorola Droid software update will include an update to Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync, a new Gmail interface, along with a Amazon widget, News & Weather widget, and an updated Twitter app.

The Motorola Droid X software update adds stability to Android 2.2 Froyo, enhancements to Flash Player, improvements to Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync, Visual Voice Mail, MP3 playback support, the Weather widget, video playback, along with other minor tweaks.

According to instructions provided by Verizon, your Droid’s battery needs to be charged to at least 40% of capacity.

The Motorola Droid will notify you when the system update is available. Press “Install Now” to begin installation.

The Motorola Droid will power off, turn back on, and the update will begin.

Check out Verizon’s complete instructions on updating the Motorola Droid here.

How to download and install the Droid X software update

You can choose to either find the update and install it now, or you will be automatically notified of the system update later.

Follow these easy steps to manually initiate the software upgrade on your Droid X:

1. Tap Menu from the main menu/homescreen
2. Tap on Settings
3. Tap About Phone
4. Tap System updates
5. Tap Download (downloading the system update could take 10-60 minutes)
6. Tap Install Now
7. Tap OK when the software installation has finished

If you’d prefer to wait to have the Droid X automatically update itself, tap Install when you’re informed the System Update is ready. Then click Install Now once the system update has downloaded.

To view Verizon’s instructions on updating your Motorola Droid X, read the PDF provided here.

The Android operating system running on the Motorola Droid, originally Android 2.0 at launch, is being updated to Android 2.0.1 on handsets as I write this.

Among the few complaints users have about the Droid, one of the most common was that the Droid’s camera was not functioning well. Autofocus wasn’t working well and the camera was just plain slow. These camera issues look to have been taken care of with Android 2.0.1.

There have been some other aesthetic changes made to Android. The lock screen is new, the widgets look polished, and the font displaying the time in the top-left corner of the screen is changed.

Voice reception is also improved. Next to improvements made to the camera, this is probably the best part of the update to Android 2.0.1.

Bluetooth functionality, a glitchy GPS, and battery life are all improved. There are myriad other improvements as well.

If you’d like to read the full list of improvements, head over to PCWorld.

Also, for anyone thinking of picking up a Droid or other new phone, you might think of doing this before midnight. Verizon is offering FREE ACTIVATION ($35-$135 savings) on new phones. For the best deals on the Droid go to either Amazon or Wirefly. If you’re looking for an HTC Droid Eris, visit Wirefly for the best deal available.

Verizon has begun to update Motorola Droid phones today.

The newest version of the software the Droid runs on is 2.0.1.

You will need your battery to have at least a 40% charge to update. If plugged into a power source, the battery will only need 20% of its charge.

The software update should take between 6 and 10 minutes. Your Droid will be inoperable during that time.

For more information, check out MobileCrunch‘s post.