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Motorola released the Moto X Pure two years ago, as the North American equivalent of the Moto X Style. It happened about a month before the release of Android 6.0 Marshmallow, and received the update about two months later. Motorola doesn't seem to care about fast updates these days, so it should be no surprise that the Moto X Pure is still waiting for Android 7.0/7.1 Nougat.
Android Nougat is still relatively new, and very few phones have officially been upgraded to it thus far. However, in the past few hours, we've been seeing reports by multiple tech sites that the mid-range Moto G4 and G4 Plus are now receiving Android 7.0 Nougat in various countries; this is completely false. While the G4 Plus has received a Nougat soak test, the software has not officially been released in any region yet.
OnePlus doesn't ship its phones with plain vanilla Android. They run OxygenOS. No matter. It's Android, and what people want from the over-the-air updates remain the latest version. Right now that's Marshmallow.
Since the DROID series remains a Verizon exclusive more than six years after the original QWERTY model hit shelves, the DROID Turbo 2 is Verizon's de facto flagship phone, in so much as no one else can use it. So those customers who have spent their money on the modified version of the Moto X will be glad to know that a Marshmallow update is fast approaching. For a lucky few, it's available now: the "soak test," a closed alpha for Motorola firmware, has begun.
Despite some recent controversy surrounding their upgrade policies, Motorola is still one of the fastest Android manufacturers on the draw when it comes to full version updates to their phones (at least the more expensive ones). The Moto X Pure Edition, the somewhat odd name for the unlocked version of the Moto X Style sold in the United States, is getting its first major bump since release soon. According to at least one of our readers, the soak test for Marshmallow is coming in hot after some initial testing back in October.
Motorola started to cultivate a reputation for reliable and quick Android updates after the company was acquired by Google... then began to shoot itself in the foot following the Marshmallow release. It looks like the company is still interested in timely updates for its flagship phones, at least: Motorola Senior Director David Schuster told his Google+ followers that engineers have already begun testing Android 6.0 on the Moto X Pure Edition (that's the new Moto X Style if you live outside the US).
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While many of us have been living the Lollipop life and looking forward to Marshmallow, life hasn't been so grand for owners of the first generation Moto X on Verizon. They've been languishing on Android 4.4.4 all this time, but it looks like that's finally changing. A soak test for Android 5.1 is starting to roll out, and that could soon mean a general release of Lollipop for this once proud device.
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- AT&T has posted its changelog as well. Here's what the carrier says you're getting.
The original Moto X launched in 2013, and while the device is approaching the two year mark, it's still new enough for people to reasonably expect an upgrade to the newest Android releases.
One day we will live in a world where the Droid Turbo has Android 5.1. We don't right now, but this brave new world is just over the horizon. Motorola is sending out a soak test right now to users who are part of the beta group, and it could come to everyone else later this week.
The DROID Turbo is the most powerful phone in Motorola's lineup (tied with the larger Nexus 6 for most of its specs), and it's Verizon's exclusive flagship in the United States. It's also running Android KitKat, as it has been since launch, well after all of the other manufacturers have upgraded their leading phones to Android 5.0 at the very least. Motorola executives promised an upgrade straight to Android 5.1... over two months ago.
US Cellular says Android 5.1.1 is now arriving on the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge phones on its network. This news comes just a week after T-Mobile started rolling out the same goods.
Motorola announced the Android 5.1 update for both Moto X devices a few weeks ago, but it started out as a very slow soak test. Motorola's David Schuster says that today that test is expanding to more countries with a full release coming as soon as next week.
Motorola posted the Android 5.1 changelog for the second gen Moto E earlier this month (along with the 1st and 2nd gen Moto X). A week later, we saw over-the-air updates go out. What about the older Moto E released a year before? As it turns out, Motorola isn't leaving the phone behind. The company is currently soak testing Android 5.1 on the device in India.
Motorola gained a lot of good will by updating its latter phones to the newest version of Android, starting with the Moto X. Even carrier-customized versions of that phone tended to get new incremental updates to KitKat long before other manufacturers' devices. But for some reason, the 2013 Moto X has lagged far behind for updates to Lollipop. Now, five months after Android 5.0 first started rolling out to Nexus devices, the OG Moto X is finally getting its Lollipop update. Well, sort of: it's getting a soak test.
Good news, Motorola owners! Your phone's maker is getting ready to give a taste of Lollipop to more devices, but before rolling it out to everyone, it wants to test it with select users to iron out any possible quirks.
Less than a week ago, we received word that Motorola had already started its soak test for an over-the-air update bringing Lollipop to the Moto X 2014 Pure Edition. With this news, there's a good chance the phone will get Android 5.0 before Nexus devices (not counting the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9, which ship with the software). Now a tipster has come to us saying that the company has begun a test for this year's Moto G as well.
Update: Good news! Looks like the 4.4.4 soak test is now underway on Sprint. If you're part of the Motorola Feedback Network, you maybe might possibly have access to it now. Hopefully everything runs smoothly so the full update will go out to all users soon.
Motorola's sale to Lenovo doesn't seem to have dampened its resolve for speedy Android updates. After upgrading the 2013 DROID line to the latest version of KitKat earlier this week, it looks like the Moto X and the Verizon-only version of the Moto G are getting ready for the same treatment. We've been sent alerts that some users are being invited to a "soak test" for Android 4.4.4, which means that a full rollout is probably a few weeks away at most.
Beta tests for new software releases aren't anything new for Android phones or tablets - they're often referred to as "soak tests," especially when manufacturers and carriers are involved. According to an anonymous tipster, Motorola is instituting a new confidential test program, giving at least some users access to much earlier updated builds for Android phones. Our source says that he or she was invited to test out a KitKat 4.4.2 build for the DROID RAZR M.
T-Mobile began its soak test of the Moto X running Android 4.4.2 earlier this month, a version of Kitkat that has already gone out to devices in Canada. It seems, though, that American carriers are largely taking their time with the release. Sprint placed its own soak test on hold just a half-hour after announcing it. Now, after roughly a week's wait, the process is back on. The issue has been addressed, and Android 4.4.2 is rolling out to those taking part in the testing process.