Android Lollipop is now out in
the open and it includes a hat full of new features, a visual overhaul and
numerous under-the-hood improvements to make if faster, more efficient and
lighter on your battery, but while we know all about it, it's not yet available
for public consumption. Even once it does launch it will be down to individual
manufacturers to port it to their devices, so chances are you'll still be
waiting a while to get it on your phone and tablet (unless you've gone full
Nexus already) and most companies haven't yet been all that forthcoming with
details of when they'll bring it to their phones and tablets. But we do know
some things and we can take educated guesses at others, so read on for all the
information and theories on when you might see Android Lollipop on your device.
HTC
HTC has been more forthcoming
with its update plans than most manufacturers and it's no surprise given how
quickly it plans to bring the update to users. In a statement the company said:
"HTC is excited about the new features in Android Lollipop and we can't
wait to share them with our customers. We are committed to updating our
flagship HTC One family as fast as possible. "We will begin rolling out
updates to the HTC One (M8) and HTC One (M7) in regions worldwide within 90
days of receiving final software from Google, followed shortly thereafter by
other One family members and select devices." Doing the mathematics that
means the company's most recent two flagships should get Android Lollipop
either at the end of the year or possibly in January of next year. We're going
to go ahead and assume that most other HTC handsets released in the last year
or so will also get the update at some point. As a general rule the more recent
and high profile a device is the more likely it is to get an update, so the HTC
Desire Eye will almost certainly be near the front of the line. The HTC One
Mini 2, the HTC One Mini and perhaps the HTC One Max and some of the other
recent Desire handsets are likely to get the update too, though probably not
until sometime after the One M7 and the One M8. According to one leak, the One
Mini 2 and Desire 816 will get Lollipop sometime in March/April, while the One
Max, One Mini and Butterfly S have an expected Android 5.0 rollout of
March-May.
Samsung
Samsung is yet to officially shed
any light on when it will be bringing Android Lollipop to its phones, but there
are sources saying its sooner rather than later. According to Sam Mobile, the
Samsung Galaxy S5 could be in for an Android Lollipop release in December 2014.
Given that networks can delay the rollout, there is always the possibility it
won't reach devices until January 2015. The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 arrived too
early to launch with Android Lollipop, but it will likely be updated quickly,
although there's been no word - official or otherwise - on this so far. The
Galaxy Alpha and Galaxy Note 3 are also likely to get the update very shortly
after it launches, probably within the same sort of several month timeframe as
HTC is operating under. Other Samsung handsets may have to wait a little
longer, however we'd expect that most high profile devices released in the last
18 months to 2 years will get the update, including the Samsung Galaxy S4, the
Galaxy S4 Mini and the Galaxy S5 Mini. We doubt that the Samsung Galaxy S3 or
anything older will get Android Lollipop. It's a device that's already over two
years old and some versions of it didn't even get Android 4.4. Samsung doesn't
seem great at updating its tablets either. There's a good chance recent slates
like its Note Pro and Tab S ranges and even the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014
will get Android Lollipop but anything older or low end is iffy.
Google
Whilst Android Lollipop was
announced at Google's IO event, it was simply known as Android L. Since then
there were a lot of rumors swirling about that sweet-themed name Google would
go for. These rumors were finally put to rest during Google's launch of the
Nexus 6, where Android Lollipop was officially confirmed as the name for
Android 5.0. The Nexus 6 and Nexus 9 will be Google's first devices to come
with Android Lollipop, but these aren't the only Nexus products which will get
the latest sweet treat. Android 5.0 Lollipop will also be available on the
Nexus 4, 5, 7, 10 and Google Play edition devices in the coming weeks. This
week, two software updates for Asus-made tablets have been certified by
Bluetooth, indicating that Lollipop isn't far away. The two tablets are the
Asus K008 and the Asus ME370T or, the Nexus 7 (2013) and the Asus MEMO tablet
that went on to become the first Nexus 7 back in 2012. While Bluetooth
certification doesn't give us an exact date, a source speaking to Android
Police, seems to believe the OTA update will arrive on November 3. There seems
to be some suggestion that the Nexus 10 tablet will also receive its OTA update
on November 3. Any Nexus devices older than these are all but guaranteed not to
get it, meaning that Galaxy Nexus and Nexus S owners are plum out of luck.
Sony
Sony has openly declared that it
will be "bringing Android 5.0 Lollipop to the entire Xperia Z
Series." It's even published a full list of handsets which are in line for
Android Lollipop, so here we go...Xperia Z, Xperia ZL, Xperia ZR, Xperia Tablet
Z, Xperia Z1, Xperia Z1S, Xperia Z Ultra, Xperia Z1 Compact, Xperia Z2, Xperia
Z2 Tablet, Xperia Z3, Xperia Z3v, Xperia Z3 Compact and Xperia Z3 Tablet
Compact. It's worth noting that the Sony Z Ultra Google Play edition will be
first in line, but Sony is yet to reveal an exact date for the update. As to
when Sony will start rolling out the update to its main line of devices, the
manufacturer has said "We'll start the upgrade at the beginning of 2015
for the core Xperia Z3 and Xperia Z2 series – continuing thereafter for all
remaining devices above."
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