For the first time in Android history, the race to update a device to the latest version of the operating system has not been won by Google. Living has won this particular fight with the launch of the X Fold 3 Pro, a powerful folding mobile phone, who has launched Android 15 for the first time to market. This is because Google has taken too long to release this latest version of Android for its Google Pixels, the terminals that always receive this update first. I explain why Google has lost the lead by releasing Android 15.
Android 15 before Vivo than Google
This year, Google has delayed the stable update for the Pixel range until October 15, which has allowed Vivo to get ahead with the launch of Android 15 on its X Fold 3 Pro model.
Unlike other times, Google's launch of Android 15 has been quite unusual. This year Google has released the Android open source code 40 days before the planned Android 15 date. This has ended up allowing any brand to get Android 15 and integrate it into their phones. But Why did Google act like this?
Well, everything points to this delay having to do with the launch of the Google Pixel 9. According to analysts and other sources close to Google, the early launch of the Google Pixel 9 (August 2024) threw Google's release schedule out of whack arriving while Android 15 was not fully finishedAnd Google did not want to launch its top of the range with an incomplete operating system.
This is what is assumed since, at the moment, we do not have an official confirmation of what happened and the reason for this delay. But, Can Vivo launch a competing operating system ahead of time? In any case, Vivo X Fold 3 Pro users are already enjoying the Advantages of Android 15.
Is it legal for Android 15 to be released early on a Vivo phone?
Well, even though your intuition tells you otherwise, yes, It is legal for Android 15 to come out before Vivo than GoogleLet me explain. Android is an open source operating system, which allows any mobile device manufacturer to use it and customize it for their customers from the moment it is released. And the place where the Android 15 code is released is the AOSP (Android Open Source Project), where Google developers upload these files.
And here is the crux of the matter, Google uploaded Android 15 to AOSP on September 4th, so it's been almost a month since any company can present a device with this operating system. The fact that Google has released the Android 15 source code ahead of time means that other companies can use it in their mobile phones.
Calendar problems for Google
But then, How come Android 15 has reached Vivo and not other manufacturers? Well, for a simple reason and it is the release scheduleIt seems that Google has been the only note that has sounded bad in this whole song by taking too long to release the Android 15 update to Pixel phones.
The fact that Samsung, Xiaomi, or other better-known manufacturers have not yet released their versions of Android 15 is simply a a matter of development and release schedules. Simply that Vivo has proven to be one step ahead this time, which has allowed them to get ahead of even Google.
It is certainly strange news, that Android comes out first on another mobile phone that is not from Google can serve as proof that Chinese brands are no longer secondary, are here to compete closely with the biggest ones. Android 15 is yet to arrive on Pixel phones, when it arrives mid-October we will be able to check the customization differences that both operating systems bring. We'll see if Vivo isn't the only manufacturer that is ahead of Google..