Android O will hit the stable channel and start rolling out to the Google Pixel and Pixel XL next week, known industry insider David Ruddock said on Wednesday, thus reiterating his claims from June when he stated that the next major iteration of Google’s ubiquitous mobile operating system will be officially released in the first two weeks of August. Provided that the information is accurate, compatible Nexus devices should also start receiving stable builds of Android O by the end of the month, though it’s still unclear how long Google will take to release the over-the-air (OTA) update to all supported units. Regardless, eager users will almost certainly have the option of manually flashing Android O onto their devices as soon as the update is released for their smartphones, as the Alphabet-owned company should make its final factory images available for download on the same day it starts distributing the new OS.
Android O is still nameless as of today, with a number of Google’s software engineers recently promising that the official name of the new revision of the operating system will be revealed at some point in August. While the rumored release schedule for Android O is somewhat ahead of those for Android Nougat and several older variants of the OS, the fact that Google has yet to announce its name is also unusual, with the Mountain View, California-based tech giant previously debuting the monikers of its OS builds weeks in advance of their official releases.
The Internet company released the fourth Developer Preview of Android O in late July, with its new software package containing near-final system images and finalized system behaviors, allowing developers to test their apps with the latest revision of the OS and make sure they are fully compatible with it prior to the global release of the mobile OS. Android O will debut a broad range of new features and improvements, from enhanced battery management functionalities and Notification Channels to Adaptive Icons, improved Bluetooth audio performance, and faster boot times, Google previously revealed. The OS should start hitting previously released third-party devices this fall, though it remains to be seen which smartphone or tablet ends up being the first to run Android O out of the box.