It is now more than a week since Android 7.0 Nougat started rolling out to the Nexus 6, Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P, among other Nexus devices.
While there are no specifics as to why these devices are capable of handling the new Android 7.0 Nougat OS, the common notion is that such software updates will hit devices that are less than two years in the market. Indeed, the Nexus 6 was released towards the end of 2014, making it the oldest in the lineup to receive the updates. The Nexus 6P and 5X were obvious contenders thanks to the fact that they are only a year old.
Apparently, there are reports that devices powered by Snapdragon 800 or Snapdragon 801 will not be receiving Android 7.0 Nougat. This stems from the facts that Google has not included the Nexus 5 in the update while Sony dropped the Nougat tests for the Xperia Z3 at Developer Preview 4 for what it called “technical and legal” reasons. In Qualcomm’s view, it is the smartphone OEM that determines whether an operating system will come to devices or not.
One thing that you need to understand is that Android 7.0 Nougat has minimum system requirements, just like any other software. In this regards, the devices that are updated with the OS must pass the Google Compatibility Test Suite (CTS), something that is proving to be a problem for Snapdragon 800 and Snapdragon 801 devices.
As for OEMs, they usually take the easier way to explain this problem – that the devices are more than two years old. In short, those rocking the HTC One M8, Xperia Z3, 2nd-Gen Moto X, Nexus 5 2013, LG G3, Samsung Galaxy S5 and a bunch of many other devices that were mostly released in 2013 and 2014 will not be receiving this update. This news could send joy down the spines of Galaxy Note 4 owners, a device that comes with the Snapdragon 805. The Nexus 6, which is also receiving the Android 7.0 Nougat treat, is based on this same chipset.
Even though there are definitely other complications surrounding the release of software updates on devices that are considered older, the final decision, according to Qualcomm, rests with smartphone OEMs. The role played by Google in the same process cannot also be overlooked.