If you need another reason why Google should release its internal OEM and carrier rankings, look at AT&T’s rollout of Android Marshmallow for the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and S6 Edge+. The update is only now hitting customer devices after it’s been available on Verizon and Sprint for three months.
Last month, Google renamed its monthly advisories for Nexus devices to the Android Security Bulletin and began listing vulnerabilities that apply to the entire ecosystem. June’s patch includes 21 vulnerabilities rated from moderate to critical that apply to all Nexus devices.
Like last month’s, the May security patch for Nexus devices is full of fixes across the board. This month’s bulletin includes several procedural changes that expand the security bulletin to list vulnerabilities for all Android devices.
The Nextbit Robin is getting updated to Android 6.0.1 today and with it comes an overhauled camera app and better battery life, performance, and audio. Additionally, Nextbit has announced a collaboration to make high-end headphones and the Robin is now on sale at Amazon.
Update 5/12: Android 6.0.1 is now rolling out to the original NVIDIA Shield Tablet with the same fixes, features, and support for the Vulkan API.
Following the NVIDIA Shield Android TV receiving its Marshmallow update, the Tablet K1 is getting a smaller update to Android 6.0.1 today. The OTA includes bug fixes, several software tweaks, Android security patches, and support for the Vulkan API in games.
While last month’s security patch for Nexus devices also included performance and stability fixes for the Nexus 5X, April’s update is full of fixes across the board. A majority are rated critical or high and this update includes a fix for a Linux security issue that caused Google to issue a mid-cycle patch last month.
OnePlus promised last November that its first and second generation flagship devices would get Marshmallow by Q1 of 2016. Albeit slightly late, they have now made a near finalized version of OxygenOS 3.0 based on Android 6.0 available for consumers to flash.
Even though the Android N Developer Preview was released yesterday, Marshmallow is only on 2% of devices. The number should only increase as more OEMs release updates to last year’s flagship devices and starting today, Sprint is updating its Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge variants to Android 6.0.
Google has posted the new factory images featuring the March security patch for Nexus devices. The images are still based on Android 6.0.1, so it’s highly likely to just be security fixes. Like last month, there’s also a new factory image for the Pixel C.
The just announced Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge will launch with a host of new emoji. Emojipedia has full details on the 159 new emoji and countless changes to the current ones. Users of older Samsung phones will get the refreshed emoji as part of the Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow update that is rolling out now.
Marshmallow for Android Wear finally began rolling out last week after having been announced in November. While speaker support and new gestures are the marquee user facing features, the under-the-hood performance changes that Marshmallow brings are a huge deal. The update also brings some small tweaks and changes to Android Wear …
The Pixel C is likely the most baffling and bug riddled product that Google launched last year. During an AMA after the product’s launch, the Pixel team promised updates in line with Android’s monthly security patches. As part of this month’s updates, the keyboard accessory received a firmware update that hopefully address connectivity issues.
Even when the LG Watch Urbane 2nd Edition launched in November, Google’s guidance for when current watches would be updated to the latest version of Android Wear was a vague in the “coming months“. This morning, one Huawei Watch user in a beta tester program received a test build of Wear 1.4 running Android 6.0.1.
In addition to improving cut/copy/paste, the redesigned text selection pop-up in Android 6.0 Marshmallow allows developers to take advantage of the new contextual selection feature. The Wikipedia app has been updated so that when text is selected there is now an option to ‘Search Wikipedia’.
Affirming last week’s rumors, the Pixel C is now available for purchase. Android on tablets have had a varied history and unfortunately this one suffers from the same usual friction of putting what is essentially a phone OS on a large screen. However, the device is not completely without merit on the hardware side and accompanying software updates might change that in the future.
Update: Factory images are now available for all devices getting the update.
Android 6.0.1 will be rolling out via an OTA update starting today to current Nexus devices. It brings new emoji, brings back an old do not disturb mode from Android 5.1, and a new bottom bar for tablets that moves the onscreen buttons to the sides of the screen.
