Motorola Android 5.1 Lollipop Update Breakdown [June]

Recently carriers and manufacturers around the globe have been busy pushing out updates to Google’s latest Android 5.1 Lollipop release, and this weekend Motorola revealed the biggest set of details yet. On Friday one of Motorola’s own employees shared tons of details and revealed everything we need to know about Moto Android 5.1 Lollipop updates.

Over the past month we’ve seen a few updates arrive for Motorola smartphones, all while Samsung and LG have been busy pushing Android 5.1 or Android 5.1.1 Lollipop to most devices. Sadly Motorola is running behind when it comes to the Android 5.1 Lollipop update, but that’s about to change as we’re seeing huge developments for multiple devices.

Read: Android 5.1 vs Android 5.0 Lollipop: What’s New

Thanks to Google quickly releasing Android 5.1 and then another Android 5.1.1 Lollipop update, and now Android M has been revealed, manufacturers have been slower than usual to deliver updates. That said, Android 5.1 Lollipop is coming soon to a slew of Motorola devices, and below is a breakdown of what owners need to know.

Android 5.0 Lollipop was officially released on November 3rd when Google sent the code to manufacturers, and when the Nexus 9 tablet was released to the public. It only took a week for Motorola to get started, and they kicked things off by updating the Moto X 2014 Pure edition to Android 5.0 on November 10th.

Since then we’ve seen almost all Motorola smartphones receive Android 5.0 Lollipop, but the update to Android 5.1 aimed at fixing tons of initial problems has yet to surface. Android 5.0 was filled with little issues and bugs that Google eventually fixed, and Motorola smartphone owners are anxiously waiting for it to arrive so it can fix many issues they’ve been dealing with.

Motorola Updates

Late last year Motorola promised to share more details about updates by launching a new updates webpage with details regarding which devices will see Android 5.0, and when. And while there aren’t exact dates, each device will be updated accordingly and the details will evolve and be refreshed once said handsets get updated.

Motorola has confirmed these devices will all receive Android 5.0 Lollipop soon. And most of the ones that have are now waiting on Android 5.1 Lollipop, with an exception being the DROID Ultra, Max and Mini. They’ll probably only get one more update right to Android 5.1 later this year.

• Moto X (1st & 2nd Gen)
• Moto G (1st and 2nd Gen)
• Moto G 4G LTE
• DROID Turbo
• Moto E
• DROID Ultra
• DROID Maxx
• DROID Mini

So when will all these devices be updated, and what can owners expect? Here’s everything we know so far thanks to a slew of comments made over on Google+ by Motorola employee David Schuster. While we’ve already reported on many of these updates individually, below is a breakdown of multiple Moto smartphones getting an update in the near future.

Moto Android 5.1 Lollipop Updates

This weekend Motorola’s David Schuster confirmed Android 5.1 Lollipop is headed to a slew of Motorola smartphones soon, possibly as early as later this week. The most important device being the Moto X, and the Moto G from 2013.

Motorola typically does what’s called a soak test. This is a final round of testing by actual smartphone owners who are a part of the Motorola Feedback Network. The company then hand picks select few owners to test the latest software, the over the air update process and more, to ensure it’s ready for delivery for all owners. This usually takes 2-5 days to complete, and if all goes well, the main update rolls out by Motorola and partnering carriers.

David confirmed the Moto X 2014 on Verizon and AT&T both have started the Android 5.1 Lollipop soak test over the weekend, and those updates should begin rolling out to all owners in the next week. He also confirmed the Android 5.1 Lollipop update for the 2013 Moto G has started in the United States, and soak tests for the Moto E are under way in Brazil and a few other regions, with the US being up next.

If all of these soak tests go according to plan, which they usually do from Motorola, actual updates for carriers in the United States could begin later this week, or on Friday. That means those with the 2014 Moto X on Verizon and AT&T should see it soon, not to mention those with a Moto G. We’ve yet to hear anything on the 2014 Moto G, but it’s expected to be up next.

Then of course we can’t forget about the Verizon DROID Turbo. Last week we confirmed the DROID Turbo Android 5.1 Lollipop update soak test started as well, which has been rumored for months. And that’s on track to finally arrive later this week. The Turbo is still on Android 4.4 KitKat, so this is a huge update millions of owners are waiting for.

Read: DROID Turbo Android 5.1 Update: what You Need to Know

Over the past few weeks we’ve seen Samsung push out the latest Android 5.1.1 Lollipop to multiple devices, including the Galaxy S6, S6 Edge and even the older Galaxy S5, so Motorola really needs to get these updates out as soon as possible.

Again, if these soak tests all go smoothly, we can expect Android 5.1 Lollipop updates to arrive within the next week for the Moto X, Moto G, Moto E in some regions, the DROID Turbo, and possibly even other handsets. We’ll keep an eye out for more details from Motorola, and update once we know more. There’s yet to be any announcements for the DROID Ultra, Maxx or Mini, but expect those to be last on the list.