It's been a long time coming, but it's finally here. Earlier this morning, Samsung started updating its former phablet flagship Galaxy Note II GT-N7100 to official Android 4.4.2 KitKat. While this update comes quite a bit after many of Samsung's other devices and nearly six months after KitKat's late October release, this is certainly another case of better late than never.

Today's update for the GT-N7100 comes as firmware version N7100XXUFND3. You may recall that earlier this month, a leaked 4.4.2 build emerged for the N7100, rocking a firmware version of N7100XXUFNC2, so this build is significantly newer.

Aside from bumping up the Android version to 4.4.2, today's update brings much of what we've seen in other KitKat updates on Samsung devices. This includes UI tweaks such as the white status bar icons atop a transparent status bar and a Nexus-like TV screen off animation, as well as more functional changes  such as NFC tap-to-pay support, a noticeable speed increase, and a camera shortcut from the lock screen

The update is currently making its way to devices in the form of a staged OTA rollout. That said, not every device will receive the update immediately. Luckily, XDA Senior Member robalm was kind enough to mirror the OTA on Google Drive for your sideloading pleasure. Then once updated, XDA Senior Member smeet.somaiya created a quick guide on obtaining root on your newly updated device.

Have you already updated your Note II? Have you noticed any other significant changes? If so, feel free to post your thoughts in the comments below, and be sure to check out the N7100XXUFND3 Firmware discussion thread to get in on the discussion, as well as the links above to sideload the update and obtain root.

[Many thanks to XDA Portal Supporter Titokhan for the tip!]