Category: Google Nexus 6P

There has been a lot of press today covering Android P and the first developer preview dropping.  That is certainly news worthy because, honestly, it came a week or two earlier than expected.  But what is not news is the fact that the Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P and Pixel C tablet will not be getting Android P, officially at least.  Google has made it very clear and very public when support for these devices would end, both in major releases and security updates.

While we can debate all day long if two years of software support is too short, it is the number that Google settled on and has published for support of devices.  The only exception, and likely the way going forward, is the Pixel 2 lineup which gets three years of major updates.  For the Nexus 5X and 6P, major build support ended in September 2017.  That means Android Oreo was the last major build.

As expected with it being the first Monday of the first full week of the month, Google has released the March 2018 Android Security Update patches for the Pixel lineup of phones as well as the Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P.  The full factory images for those who want to side load them are available as well as the OTA updates.  The automatic sending of the OTA updates should begin later this week for those that don’t want to bother with a side load.

As usual, there are two patches this month although there is also a second bulletin announcement regarding fixes specific to the Pixel 2 lineup.  In the March 1, 2018 dated patch, there are a total of 16 fixes, 8 of which are considered critical.  These fixes in the first patch deal with Android issues broadly and mostly have to do with media framework and system level issues that could allow for remote code execution.

Without any notification or explanation, Google has extended the security update support for the Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P an additional two months.  Both phones will now receive minor software patches until November 2018.

The change is reflected in an update to the Nexus Android version page on Google Support and appears to be the only changes to the schedule which the company adopted in 2016.

So here’s a concept:  A button that actually does something.  For years, the “Check for update” button in Android pretty much did nothing.  Sure you could hit it but the odds of you getting an update were pretty slim.  Why?  Because manufactures like Google, Samsung and others as well as carriers phase updates out to their customers.  The result?  The “Check for update” button was, by-and-large, useless.

That’s changing under Android Oreo, specifically for the Google Nexus and Pixel devices.  Now when you tap that button in Settings>System>System Updates, it actually, really goes out to Google’s servers and download the latest OTA update.  No waiting on phasing.

Google has once again updated their support matrix for the Nexus and Pixel lineup of devices.  Previously the company had outlined dates of when major updates and minor security updates would cease for the devices.  There is nothing new here in that regard.  What is new is the dates for the end of online and phone support for the devices.  The good news, or at least the non-confusing news, is that online & phone support ends when security updates end on the devices.

Take the Nexus 6 for example.  There are no guaranteed Android updates to the device since October 2016.  No, Android O is not coming to the Nexus 6.  Sorry, I loved it too.  In October 2017, guaranteed security updates end and that is also when online and phone support ends for the device.  Other devices follow this same timing.

Update 3: Google addressed the server-side issue late yesterday and it is no not looping from beta to stable back to beta.

Update 2:  Thanks to reader Aberr who is reporting that the looping is also happening on his Nexus 5X.

Update:  It appears that the beta build is the last beta build so devices are looping from beta to stable to beta.  Sigh….

For those of you who participate in the Android Beta program and have a Nexus 6P, the GA build of Android Nougat 7.1.2 is now rolling out to devices.  The update is just a touch over 25MB in size, indicating that the last beta and this final build were pretty much identical.  You are looking for build N2G47H and so far, only the Nexus 6P seems to be updating to this new build.  Those of you who texted on the Nexus 5X or Pixel C are still having to wait for the official build to hit your devices.

If you are looking to get out of the beta, this is the time to do it.  Once you have N2G47H installed on your Nexus 6P, you can then opt out of the Beta program and you won’t get a reset of your phone.  If you move from the beta build out of the program, you will get a reset of your phone.  And this little tidbit is important because there is already another beta build out.