Android 13 has been in preview for just a little longer than six months after the first developer preview hit in early February, much sooner than other years before it. This also means that we’re looking at a bit of an earlier stable release than usually. And as such, Google has announced that Android 13 is finally coming to all Pixel phones today, about a month earlier than usual and anticipated.

The new Android version is starting to roll out to all recent Pixel phones as we speak. Be sure to check if the update is already downloadable on your Pixel in your system settings. Only the Pixels released starting from the end of 2019 will get the update, which means we’re looking at the following list:

  • Pixel 4
  • Pixel 4 XL
  • Pixel 4a
  • Pixel 4a (5G)
  • Pixel 5
  • Pixel 5a
  • Pixel 6
  • Pixel 6 Pro
  • Pixel 6a

Older devices like the Pixel 3 and the 3a got their last update to Android 12 earlier this year, and they have stopped receiving any and all updates. For people still using them, it’s probably time to look into upgrading into a more secure and more current smartphone, like one from our best smartphones roundup.

The timing of the launch is also interesting. Google's Android 13 security bulletin stated that stable Android 13 would launch with the September security patch. That pointed to a September launch, but it looks like Google decided to pull the trigger in August already. We still need to check which security patch the stable Android 13 launches on and will report back on this.

As for features, we’ve already covered Android 13 extensively while it was in beta, but as a refresher, the new update is mostly a cleanup. Android 12 was the biggest release with the most significant changes to how Google's OS looks and feels in years, so Android 13 is more concerned with tying together loose ends. Nevertheless, there are many exciting features to look forward to, particularly for Pixel users.

Android-13-themed-icons-google-mockup
Source: Google

Google's mockup of how your home screen could look like if all apps supported themed icons

Android 13 will give you access to more Material You theming options, allowing you to pick more granularly which colors will be pulled from your wallpaper. There is now even an almost monochrome-looking option if that’s your vibe. Third-party developers can also finally add themed icons to their apps, so you might finally get a beautiful monocolor home screen soon.

Then there is a new media player with a progress bar that squiggles along as you listen to music, complete with beautifully showcased album covers, and of course the new big and bold navigation bar. The new software additionally introduces per-app languages, which allows you to set your phone language to one but use select apps in whatever language you prefer.

Beyond new features, today's software includes fixes galore. The last few Android 13 betas were followed by multiple point releases stomping out bug after bug, so it's little surprise to see this milestone release make an effort to include as many as possible. We're still going over them all, and with 150-some listed, that's a of bugs that should no longer be contributing to problems.

There is a lot more than meets the eye here, so be sure to read our full Android 13 review for a deep dive.