Android Lollipop update guide – Samsung, HTC, LG, Motorola and more
Wondering when your smartphone will get Android 5.0 Lollipop? We round up all of the information from the major manufacturers
Android 5.0 Lollipop (now on version 5.1) is one the biggest changes to Google’s mobile operating system since launch, introducing the new Material design and a raft of new features. As is usual for this kind of update, it arrived first on Google’s own hardware, the Nexus 6 smartphone and Nexus 9 tablet.
For everyone else it has been a waiting game, as manufacturers are responsible for managing their own roll-outs. Depending on how much they’ve customised the interface, getting Android ready isn’t always that straightforward. Complicating things further is that mobile networks often request further customisation. As a result, Android users can often be left waiting for months before they get an official update.
Assuming that you don’t want to root your phone and install a custom Android Lollipop ROM, you may be wondering when your phone will get an update. In this article, we’ve put together everything that we know about the Lollipop rollout. We’ve started on this page with information about Google’s own devices, but you can use the navigation (top and bottom for the article) to jump to the manufacturer-specific pages: HTC, Samsung, Motorola, LG, Sony, Nvidia and Asus.
If you can’t get Android Lollipop for your smartphone yet, you can always check out our guide on how to get the Lollipop look on your existing phone, as a stop-gap until the official update is rolled out.
Google Nexus Android Lollipop Updates
It should come as no surprise that Google’s Nexus smartphones and tablets are going to be the first to get Android 5.0 Lollipop. The Nexus 5 and Nexus 4 updates are now available OTA (over the air) now and you should be able to download and install it, if you haven’t already, via Settings/About phone/System Updates.
Nexus 7 (2012) and Nexus 7 (2013) (Wi-Fi) models have also received OTA updates, so you should be able to update now if you haven’t done so already. Unfortunately, the 3G versions of both tablets haven’t yet received their OTA updates, although they have been promised, so you’ll have to hold tight for a bit longer.
The Nexus 10 is also waiting for an official OTA release date. There has been some criticism that Android 5.0 isn’t particularly well suited to 10in and larger screens, so it’s possible Google is waiting for the buzz around Lollipop to die down a little before releasing the update, in case of customer backlash.
The 3G Nexus 7s and Nexus 10 have Google Factory Images available for download, so that you can manually flash your tablet; however, it requires a bit of technical skill and you may be better off waiting for the official OTA updates.
