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Nexus Android 5.0 Lollipop Update: What Not to Expect Now

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Google’s Nexus Android 5.0 Lollipop release continues to make progress but the roll out still isn’t complete. With Android 5.0 Lollipop problems swirling and select Nexus users looking for guidance, we want to take a look at what we do not expect now from the Android 5.0 Lollipop update and release for Google’s stable of Nexus devices.

In October, Google announced a slew of new products including a Nexus 6 smartphone, a Nexus 9 tablet, and an Android 5.0 Lollipop update for the Nexus 4, Nexus 7, Nexus 10, and Nexus 5. It also confirmed Android 5.0 Lollipop for its stable of Google Play Edition devices. While Google detailed its Android 5.0 Lollipop update for Nexus users, it did not go into detail about the release date.

Last month, Google’s Nexus Android 5.0 Lollipop release date finally arrived for select Nexus users including owners of the Nexus 5, Nexus 4, Nexus 10 and Nexus 7. The update, one of the biggest in the history of the Android operating system, takes Nexus users from Android 4.4.4 KitKat to Android 5.0 Lollipop and delivers a number of new features including the Lollipop update’s new Material Design.

Nexus5-Android5

The company’s made substantial progress over the past few weeks though there are still updates left to roll out and bugs left to squash. Google’s Nexus Android 5.0 Lollipop release is certainly slowing down which has left some Nexus users wondering about the future.

With that in mind, we want to make some bold predictions about the Nexus Android 5.0 Lollipop release going forward. Our goal is to help set expectations for those of you without the Android 5.0 Lollipop update and for those of you that are currently dealing with Android 5.0 Lollipop problems on the Nexus 4, Nexus 10, Nexus 7, Nexus 5, Nexus 6, and or Nexus 9.

Here’s what we do not expect now from Google’s Android 5.0 Lollipop release, a release that will almost certainly stretch into 2015 as the company works to get devices updated and problems resolved.

Nexus Android 5.0 Lollipop Updates to Drag Into 2015

Believe it or not, there are some Nexus users that have yet to receive Android 5.0 Lollipop. We’re currently starring at a Nexus 7 2013 that still hasn’t received the OTA (yes, it’s stock) and another Nexus 7 2012 in our possession is also still without the update. The Nexus 7 Lollipop release was one of the original roll outs which makes our situation a little puzzling.

Nexus 4 Android L System Image MIA

We haven’t heard anything about delays or updates being pulled so our guess right now is that Google is simply taking its time with these roll outs and that they will complete in the not-so-distant future. We don’t expect current Android 5.0 updates to drag on into 2015. We’d expect Google to work hard to get them delivered before the end of December. They’ve already been rolling out for a couple of weeks and we can’t see this stretching into a couple of months.

If you’re still on Android 4.4 KitKat, we advise you to check in your device’s settings a couple of times a day. You don’t need to check any more than that. It’s overkill.

Perfect Nexus 7 (Cellular) Android 5.0 Lollipop Updates

Google still owes Android 5.0 Lollipop updates to owners of the cellular versions of the Nexus 7. We don’t expect either update to roll out to take much longer but Nexus 7 users should not expect the extra time to make for a perfect pair of updates. We will almost certainly see both of these updates plagued by some of the issues that emerged with Google’s initial batch.

Nexus-7-LTE-Review-2013-Verizon-3

A longer testing process, at least in this case, doesn’t necessarily translate to a more stable update. Just look at the Nexus 7 LTE Android 4.4.3 KitKat and Android 4.4.4 KitKat updates. Both arrived late, both came with some of the same issues that plagued other Nexus users weeks earlier. In other words, there’s going to be reason for you Nexus 7 users to prepare. The more prepared you are for Android 5.0 and its bugs, the better.

Look for these missing updates to roll out sometime in the near future as Google works to complete its Nexus Android 5.0 Lollipop roll out, a roll out that started in mid-November.

No Fixes for Current Lollipop Problems

Do not expect a lack of fixes for these major Android 5.0 Lollipop problems that have popped up for Nexus users in the days and weeks since its initial release. Google may not fix everything with its updates but that doesn’t mean that there won’t be any fixes. Don’t expect the Nexus community or the Android community for that matter to sit by idly as problems ravage these smartphones and tablets.

Nexus6vsGS5-1

We’ve already tons of fixes pop up over the past couple of weeks and we’ve even outlined some fixes for some of the most common Android 5.0 Lollipop problems. Most issues can be solved, even if it’s with a factory reset. Don’t expect issues, particular major Android 5.0 Lollipop issues, to linger for long. Someone, be it Google or someone else, will find a fix.

Android 5.0.1 Lollipop Update That’s Months Away

We expect Google to release an Android 5.0 bug fix update and while it could be called Android 5.1, we’re going to assume that it’ll be called Android 5.0.1. Android 5.0.1 hasn’t been announced nor has it shown up in our site analytics. But if we had to guess, we’d say that Google’s first Android 5.0 Lollipop update will almost certainly arrive before the end of January. There’s precedent.

Nexus5-Android5-6

In the past, Google’s taken just a few short weeks to push out its initial bug fixer. Last year, for instance, Android 4.4.1 and Android 4.4.2 KitKat rolled out just weeks after the initial push. Before that, it was Android 4.2.1 and Android 4.2.2. Android 4.3 Jelly Bean saw just one bug fixer which rolled out several months after the release. Android 4.3 was a much smaller update than Android 5.0.

We’ve outlined a number of Android 5.0 Lollipop issues and we can’t see Google letting the big ones linger for too much longer. At the very worst, we expect the company to push out an update in the early part of next year. We don’t expect it to wait too long to deliver a crucial update to Nexus users.

Android 5.0.1 Lollipop to Fix Everything

We do not expect Android 5.0.1, or whatever Google calls it, to fix everything. Android 5.0 problems will linger which means that you’ll need to seek out temporary fixes or third-party fixes before, and after, its arrival. Even the almighty Android 4.4.3 KitKat and Android 4.4.4 KitKat updates, huge bug fixers, failed to fix every KitKat issue. They even brought some of their own.

Nexus-9

Point is, it would be wise to temper your expectations. Often times, we see Nexus users drum up unrealistic expectations when it comes to these bug fix updates. Yes, there will likely be an update that fixes some of the bigger problems. No, it won’t fix everything. Software updates never do. We have no doubt that a fix will arrive in the future but it’s impossible to say when Google plans to roll out it out.

We’d also be surprised if Google stuck with just one bug fix update. Android 5.0 is a massive change and it comes with a number of known issues. We imagine that Google will stick to its normal approach of two bug fix updates ahead of the next major release.

11 Comments

11 Comments

  1. Phillip Drawbridge

    12/02/2014 at 3:52 am

    Still waiting for my nexus 7 2013 update too, as is my wife, although son got it. nice to know I’m not alone.

  2. Pat

    12/02/2014 at 5:00 am

    Still waiting also,wonder what’s taking so long.

  3. fix this "update" you will be supplying me with a new tablet!!! It has pretty much turned mine into a paper weight!! NOTHING works right on it. EVERYTHING keeps freezing and becoming unresponsive!! It deleted my entire music library, all my photos I had,

    12/02/2014 at 8:51 am

    If you

  4. fix this "update" you will be supplying me with a new tablet!!! It has pretty much turned mine into a paper weight!! NOTHING works right on it. EVERYTHING keeps freezing and becoming unresponsive!! It deleted my entire music library, all my photos I had,

    12/02/2014 at 9:05 am

    Its even cupping up my keyboard so my messages look like crap and all errors!!! Example in my previously posted reply to you!! Either fix the mess you left me with after this “update”, or send me a new tablet!!! I didn’t buy the damn thing to have as an expensive paperweight!!

  5. Chas Kelvington

    12/02/2014 at 10:59 am

    Google told me the rollout should be completed by Friday Dec 5 and that users leaving an update after that day should call support

    • Julien Demassey

      12/02/2014 at 7:30 pm

      Thanks for that info! Still waiting for my Nexus 7 2013 WiFi to receive the update too.

  6. Steven

    12/02/2014 at 10:15 pm

    There seems to be a pretty even split on this update. Some people are reporting all kinds of problems, well others have been praising it. I don’t think it’s ready for showtime myself. Will be waiting with kit kat. So far is been nothing but good to me.

  7. Voldemort

    12/02/2014 at 11:03 pm

    The 5.0.1 update is out. Please read before posting absurd articles!

  8. N

    12/03/2014 at 3:53 pm

    Still not received lollipop on my Nexus 7 2013 WiFi only. Stock ROM.
    My Wife’s 2012 Nexus 7 was updated the day after the roll out began.

  9. rzak

    12/03/2014 at 6:08 pm

    Just why the hell is Google taking so long to even release the factory image for nexus 7 LTE? This is the one nexus device that’s always the last to receive an update, they should learn from Apple about rolling updates.

  10. Jim C.

    12/06/2014 at 8:12 am

    Lollipop 5.0.1 arrived on my Nexus 10 this morning replacing 5.0.0

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