Following last year, which was of Android Oreo, in 2018, it is the year of Android P release, a.k.a. Android Pie. We are still some time away from getting our hands on the final release. <Update> Released for Pixel users on August 6th! But beta versions are available for the Google Pixel devices along with few other Android P Phones. The OS as of now might have a lot of bugs but still promises a lot.
Are you wondering whether your smartphone will get the Android P upgrade or not? Down the post, you will see a list of phones from all major mobile manufacturers that might get Android P update. But first, let’s find out what the Android P has to offer to the users.
All About Android P or Android 9.0
It is clear from the third developer preview; Android P is Android 9. It means that Android P is going to be a significant upgrade over the Android 8.0 Oreo. So what has changed in the Android P?
New Android Navigation System
Back in 2011, Google introduces the three-button navigation system that you see at the bottom- Back, Home and Recent. This made it more comfortable and convenient to toggle around apps quickly. But these are being eliminated in Android P by introducing the gesture-based system. It is the first Android Version that heavily relies on the gestures to navigate through the UI, and it is fun and time saving to do this. So the whole thing works as follows:
- The home button is still there, and a tap will take you to the Home.
- You can swipe up to access the recently used apps.
- A long swipe or double swipe will open up the app drawer.
- The back button is still there but appears only in specific apps/menus when needed.
This whole scenario might be a bit confusing. Some of you must be angry at Google for doing this. But trust me, once you use the gesture-based navigation system for a while you will love it. Moreover, this is the future and Google wants you to use this.
New Look and Notifications
One of the best thing about Android upgrades is the fresh new look of the UI and notifications so you won’t feel bored with the same design layout, gestures and notification panel. Things have changed a bit over the Android 8.0 Oreo, like the colorful icons in Settings, circular Quick Settings icons, and rounded corners. Android P feels like alive. Android Oreo was smooth and buttery, but Android P seems like gliding underneath your fingertips. It feels like Android knows what you are going to do next.
Notch got Official Support
Bezels are getting smarter, and after the iPhone X notched display, Android manufacturers started following the same trend. In recent few months, we have seen plenty of phones featuring the notched display. Not only high-end smartphones but the notch is there even in mid-range and budget smartphones. Anticipating all that, Android P gives you a preview of what the notch will look like after you enable the Developer Mode.
Improved Battery Performance
It seems like Google is always trying to find out the ways to maximize your smartphone’s battery life. It has got an enhanced “Adaptive Battery” mode. It works in a similar way like the Adaptive Brightness automatically adjusts the brightness level by sensing the environment and usage. The Adaptive battery will examine your phone usage behavior and limits CPU usage to apps as per demand. Google says that this feature can lower the CPU usage by as much as 30%. This involves a lot of machine learning and your phone performance get better more you use it.
New Useful Tools and Features
Source: Google Blog
There are a lot of small tweaks and tools that you will get to see to enhance the experience of Android. Android 9 comes with a new screenshot edit feature that lets you edit the screenshot that you take and share it.
Now you can also monitor your daily activities through a new Dashboard section under Google’s “Digital Wellbeing” program. This will show how many times a phone is unlocked, the number of notifications and the time you spent on each app. Besides monitoring, users will also be able to set some limits and restrictions to curb the smartphone addiction.
Google is also taking the security seriously in Android P. Android 9 got a new feature that locks down your device with the push of a button when enabled. This prevents the phone unlocking via fingerprint and trusted voice unlock and reverts you to the PIN or Pattern unlock method. This feature might come handy when you are going to sleep and don’t want anyone to get access to your phone using your fingerprint while you are sleeping.
The next thing that you will notice in the Android P is the new Rotate button. It only appears when your phone detects orientation to force the screen rotation. Users won’t have to set the auto-rotate. This feature comes in handy when you have to use a particular app in the landscape mode.
In Android P, Google has also introduced a new standard biometric authentication API called “BiometricPrompt API.” Now the developers don’t have to create their dialog for using the biometric system with their apps. Google has also introduced 157 new emojis to keep your conversation more colorful and enjoyable.
Android App shortcuts are first seen in Android Nougat. If you hold an app icon, you can quickly access certain elements which prove useful and time-saving at sometimes. With Android P, Google has further enhanced App shortcuts with App Actions and Slices.
App Actions will try to determine what you are going to do next and will get some recommended shortcuts, while the Slices allows you to perform more complex actions via the Google Assistant or Search.
If you want to try out the Android P beta now, you can sign up on the google. Anyone with the Google Pixel phone will get the advantage to use the beta right now via OTA update. However, this year Google has opened the Android beta program for third-party OEMs for the first time which includes brands like Nokia, OnePlus, Sony, Vivo, Oppo, Xiaomi, Essential and others. We are expecting that the official build will be released by August 2018.
Android P Phones
Now coming to the phones list that is expected to get the Android 9 update. As usual, the Google Pixel devices are the first to get the Android P upgrade. If you are a Pixel user, you can opt for the beta version via OTA update. Then comes the devices that have got the Android P confirmation but no dates have been allocated as Android P is still in beta phase. Finally, the third category of the phones that might receive the Android P upgrade.
1. Google
Google Pixel devices will be the first one to get the Android P OTA update when the final version of Android 9 will be released. Now Pixels users can download the Developer Preview 3 of the Android P via OTA update.
| Google Pixel 2 | Yes, beta version available |
| Google Pixel 2 XL | Yes, beta version available |
| Google Pixel | Yes, beta version available |
| Google Pixel XL | Yes, beta version available |
2. Essential
| Essential PH-1 | Confirmed |
3. HTC
| HTC U11 | Planned |
| HTC U11 Life | Planned |
4. Moto
| Moto G6 | Planned |
| Moto G6 Plus | Planned |
| Moto G6 Play | Planned |
| Moto Z2 Play | Probable |
| Moto Z2 Force | Probable |
| Motorola Moto G5 Plus | Eligible |
| Motorola Moto G5S Plus | Eligible |
5. Nokia
| Nokia 1 | Expected |
| Nokia 2 | Expected |
| Nokia 5 | Expected |
| Nokia 6 | Expected |
| Nokia 6X | Expected |
| Nokia 6 (2018) | Expected |
| Nokia 7 | Expected |
| Nokia 7 Plus | beta version available, confirm |
| Nokia 8 | Eligible |
| Nokia 8 Sirocco | Planned |
6. Oppo
| Oppo R15 Pro | beta version available DP3, Planned |
| Oppo R15 | Expected |
7. OnePlus
| OnePlus 5 | confirmed |
| OnePlus 5T | confirmed |
| OnePlus 6 | beta version available, confirmed |
8. Vivo
| Vivo X21 | beta version available, Planned |
| Vivo X21 UD | Planned |
9. Honor
| Honor 9 Lite | Expected |
| Honor 8 Pro | Expected |
| Honor 9 | Expected |
| Honor V9 | Expected |
| Honor V10 | Expected |
10. Huawei
| Huawei Nova 2S | Expected |
| Huawei P10 | Expected |
| Huawei P10 Plus | Expected |
| Huawei P20 Lite | Eligible |
| Huawei P20 | Planned |
| Huawei P20 Pro | Planned |
| Huawei Mate 9 Pro | Eligible |
| Huawei Mate 9 Porsche Design | Eligible |
| Huawei Mate 10 | Eligible |
| Huawei Mate 10 Pro | Eligible |
| Huawei Mate 10 Porsche Design | Eligible |
11. LG
| LG G6 | Expected |
| LG V30 | Expected |
| LG V30+ | Expected |
12. Samsung
| Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) | Probable |
| Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) | Probable |
| Samsung Galaxy S8 | Eligible |
| Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus | Eligible |
| Samsung Galaxy Note 8 | Eligible |
| Samsung Galaxy S9 | Eligible |
| Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus | Eligible |
13. Sony
| Sony Xperia XA2 Ultra | Expected |
| Sony Xperia XZ1 | Expected |
| Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact | Expected |
| Sony Xperia XZ Premium | Expected |
| Sony Xperia XZs | Expected |
| Sony Xperia XZ2 | beta available, confirmed |
14. Xiaomi
| Xiaomi Mi A1 | Expected |
| Xiaomi Mi 6X | confirmed |
| Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 | Expected |
| Xiaomi Mi MIX 2S | Expected |
| Xiaomi Mi 6 | Expected |
15. ZTE
| ZTE Nubia Z17 | Eligible |
| ZTE Nubia Z17s | Eligible |
16. Asus
| Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1 | Expected |
| Asus Zenfone 4 Pro | Expected |
| Asus ZenFone 5 (ZE620KL) | Expected |
| Asus ZenFone 5Z | Expected |
Conclusion
We understand that this is not an exhaustive list. However, a lot of Android One phones and Android Go phones will eventually roll over to this release. We will be proactively updating this list from time to time, so stay with us.
We welcome your suggestions below in the comment section. Please do not hesitate to drop is one. Thanks for visiting!