Several months have passed since Google officially released Android Marshmallow, but OEMs, as usual, have been tardy at rolling out the latest and greatest version of the world’s most popular operating system to their respective Android-powered gadgets worldwide. While some of the premium devices from Samsung, LG and HTC are just starting to receive the new software, many more devices are still waiting for the Marshmallow update to finally come through. Now, however, reports indicate that the unlocked, SIM-free versions of HTC’s 2014 flagship smartphone, the One M8, has started receiving the much-awaited update in Asia.
Last month, it was the turn of the US version of the handset to get the latest software, so it was always going to be only a matter of time before it rolled out around the world, and by the looks of it, that time has now come. One thing to note, however, is that the carrier-locked versions of the device in the US is yet to be updated to Marshmallow. HTC’s VP of product management, Mr. Mo Versi, recently took to Twitter to confirm that the company will be doing so starting later this month for the One M8 on T-Mobile and Sprint. While there’s no specific news for users on AT&T or Verizon, Mr. Versi said that the company requires a “few more weeks” for the update to be ready for users on the two largest carriers in the country.
Coming to the some of the details regarding the incoming update for the Asian version, the ROM comes with the version number 6.14.707.1, which is different from build version 6.12.1540.4 that was rolled out to the US-spec One M8 last month, suggesting that the company has been hard at work, ironing out some of the issues and fixing up some of the bugs that might have escaped their attention, the last time around. The update weighs in at a hefty 1.14GB, and HTC says that the installation itself is estimated to take approximately an hour minutes to complete. According to the officially released changelog from HTC, the new software brings a new app permissions manager, Google Now on Tap, enhanced security and of course, the new battery saving feature called ‘Doze’.