New Nexus 7 Android 5.0.2 Lollipop Update Imminent

New Nexus Android 5.0.2 Lollipop updates, including a new Nexus 7 Android 5.0.2 Lollipop update, are poised to start pushing out Over-the-Air now that the company has posted factory images in the Android Open Source Project.

In November, Google started pushing out its Android 5.0 Lollipop operating system to Nexus smartphones and tablets. The update landed for a number of different devices including the Nexus 5, Nexus 4, Nexus 7 2013 Wi-Fi, Nexus 7 2012 Wi-Fi, and the Nexus 10. Smaller Android 5.0 bug fixes also landed for the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9.

Soon after these updates landed, Nexus users began complaining about a series of Android 5.0 Lollipop problems plaguing their new operating system. Shortly after the complaints began, Google pushed out an Android 5.0.1 Lollipop update with bug fixes for Android 5.0 problems. The update landed for the Nexus 10, Nexus 9 and Nexus 7 2013 Wi-Fi before pushing out to the Nexus 4, Nexus 5, and Nexus 6. The update tackled a number of issues though it failed to fix every Android 5.0 problem.

In a surprising twist, Google also pushed out a single Android 5.0.2 Lollipop update to the Nexus 7 2012 Wi-Fi, an update that also delivered fixes including one for video playback issues. The company did not make it clear if it would roll out Android 5.0.2 to any of its other Nexus devices though those questions have been answered today in the form of new Nexus Android 5.0.2 Lollipop updates.

A short time ago, Google released Android 5.0.2 Lollipop factory images for the Nexus 7 2013 Wi-Fi and the Nexus 10. Factory images allow developers to get the software on board their devices ahead of the OTA and they also hint at upcoming OTAs to the public-at-large. Historically, OTAs have begun shortly after the arrival of Google’s factory images and so Nexus 7 2013 and Nexus 10 users should start to see the updates roll out in the near future.

Google rarely announces when its roll outs begin which means that users will simply need to check through the settings. Nexus users should not try and force the update through the Google Framework Services “trick” because it could cause permanent damage to the device. Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 users will be able to sideload the software once the OTA files are discovered lurking on Google’s servers.

It’s not clear if Google has any more Android 5.0.2 Lollipop updates up it sleeve though the cellular versions of the Nexus 7 2012 and 2013 remain on Android 4.4.4 KitKat, weeks after the initial release. It’s still not clear when those updates will roll out though they will almost certainly get upgraded to Android 5.0.1 or Android 5.0.2 when they do make the jump.

The Nexus 5, Nexus 4, Nexus 6, and Nexus 9 all remain on Android 5.0.1 though they too could get another update in the future. Google’s confirmed a fix for a serious memory leak issue in an upcoming version of Android. It’s not clear which Android update will be in possession of this fix though given the nature of the problem, it could arrive sooner rather than later.

The change logs for these new Android 5.0.2 Lollipop updates are not available yet and so it’s not clear if they are in possession of a fix for these issues. The change log will almost certainly emerge in the near future as developers get their hands on Google’s new Nexus 7 Android 5.0.2 Lollipop update and the brand new Nexus 10 Android 5.0.2 Lollipop update.

Rumors have pointed to the arrival of a massive Android 5.1 Lollipop update sometime this year though those rumors have died down in 2015. Google clearly still has a lot of work to do on Android 5.0 Lollipop so we should continue to see a steady stream of Lollipop updates arrive over the course of 2015.