Android 6.0 Marshmallow Update Release Date for LG G4, G3: LG May Skip the Android Lollipop Upgrade

Sep 05, 2015 02:13 AM EDT

LG will reportedly upgrade its current and previous year flagships, the LG G4 and LG G3, straight to the newly announced Android 6.0 Marshmallow operating system.

Until now, both LG G3 and LG G4 are only upgradable up to Android 5.1 Lollipop. Many users expected that the South Korean device maker will send out an update to the latest Android 5.1.1 version as other smartphone companies and carriers are done distributing Android 5.1.1 to their devices. The firmware has been rolled out to LG G4's main competitor, the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge.

The latest Lollipop OS contains performance improvements and delivers several new features such as device protection, which works by disabling the use of a phone if owner's Google password is not used and will function even if a factory reset is performed. The update also brings a fix to the dangerous Stagefright vulnerability.

Owners of last year's LG G3 flagship may also be disappointed with the company's alleged decision to skip the update. Many users have been complaining about a handful of issues they have encountered with the device including a laggy interface, slow charging, overheating, and intermittent Wi-Fi connectivity.

Even though the LG G4 shipped out with Android 5.0 running out of the box, it did not have similar problems with the said Lollipop version as its predecessor.

The speculations that LG will be skipping over 5.1.1 Lollipop are fueled by reports coming out of Greece which claim that the LG G3 and LG G4 models will not be treated with the current consumer version of the Android OS.

Nevertheless, this move may not be surprising as the company had already done a similar scheme in the past. LG passed over Android 4.4.4 KitKat and upgraded the LG G3 directly to Android 5.0 Lollipop.

The search giant is widely believed to send out the consumer version of the new Android 6.0 Marshmallow on late September or October. As usual, the first devices to offer the OS will be the 2015 editions of its co-branded LG Nexus 5 and Huawei Nexus 6. The former is recently rumored to be called "Nexus 5X" once released.

A few weeks or months after the Nexus handsets, other flagship models from various manufacturers are expected to follow suit. Aside from LG, other companies who are among the first to consistently roll out Android updates early include Samsung, Motorola, and HTC.