Overnight Google announced the next version of Android, M, will stand for Marshmallow. There’s no fancy corporate associate on this one, like we had with KitKat, but with the food product now know, our attention turns to what will be included in the next release.
Version 6.0 of Android will build on top of the great visual work done with material design. With most of us thinking Mobile when we think Android, the platform also supports Auto and Wear(ables) as well as TVs.
In terms of when you’ll see Android 6.0 come to your device, that’s a difficult question right now. Historically hardware OEMs and carriers have gotten in the way of consumers receiving updates, some delayed by 6 months or more and plenty of devices never receiving the update. While Google works to make the OS itself better, ensuring updates reach end-user devices is perhaps an even bigger challenge.
If you’re running Google hardware, the Nexus 5, 6, 9, you’ll be on the short list. The HTC One M9 for example just got Android 5.1 in the last week, while the MotoX received it just a few weeks earlier. A jump from 5.1.1 to 6.0 does indicate a lot will change, but just how much is the question. Certainly dealing with increased streaming between devices, dealing with a whole range of new high resolution displays, a variety of fingerprint and facial recognition are just some of the challenges facing Android.
Google developer, Brandon Jones (@Tojiro) posted a photo of the latest Android statue at the Google campus, holding his delicious marshmallow.
And we have Marshmallow, folks! Repeat, we have marshmallow! pic.twitter.com/7ne07U86nG
— Brandon Jones (@Tojiro) August 17, 2015
