While those running various Nexus devices have seen or are starting to see the Android Marshmallow update come to their devices, the bigger question has always been when other manufactures would have the latest version of Android available for their devices. Apparently, sooner rather than later. LG announced in a press release last night that the LG G4 will be seeing Android Marshmallow starting this week in Poland and then rolling out to the rest of Europe and the Americas later. The news is great to hear frankly as updates to devices is always a point of pain/contention for Android users. LG at least wants to get it done and get it done quickly.
Here is the full Press Release from LG
LG G4
SEOUL, Oct. 15, 2015 — Owners of LG Electronics’ (LG) G4 smartphone will be the first in the world to receive the Android 6.0 Marshmallow OS. LG G4 owners in Poland will begin receiving their M upgrade beginning next week with other markets in Europe, Asia and the Americas to follow.
The latest update to the Android operating system offers a number of features designed to enhance the user experience, such as:
- Permissions have been simplified with greater control of the information applications can access, not only at the installation stage but any time
- Silent feature for sound and vibrate mode as well as a Do Not Disturb mode to block all sounds or only alarms and notifications
- Doze Mode which shuts down background processing of certain apps when the phone is not in use, to significantly prolong battery life
“By working closely with Google, LG has been able to bring Android 6.0 to the G4 ahead of any of our competitors,” said Chris Yie, vice president and head of marketing communications for LG Mobile Communications Company. “While speed alone isn’t an indicator of great service, it does go a long way toward giving consumers the confidence that LG is committed to its existing customers first.”
Details of the Android M upgrade schedule and affected models will be announced in individual markets.
With LG making such an early release of Android Marshmallow, I truly hope this puts the pressure on the likes of Samsung, Motorola, Sony and HTC to follow through and get their updates out as quickly as possible on their devices. Given the security and feature benefits of Marshmallow (I think Doze may well be the killer feature), having it on more devices is as important as ever.
