The final build of Android Lollipop has only recently arrived on the Nexus 6and Nexus 9, but already we're looking forward to Android M. Here's everything we've heard so far about Android M, including a possible release date and new feature speculation. Also see: Android Advisor.
We will continue to update this article as new rumours circulate. Also see: Android KitKat vs Android Lollipop comparison.
Android M: What will it be called?
Before Android Lollipopwas confirmed, no-one really knew whether it would be called Android 4.5 or Android 5.0. After all, Ice Cream Sandwich(4.0- to 4.0.4), Jelly Bean(4.1- to 4.3.1) and KitKat(4.4- to 4.4.4) were all 4.x versions. In the end Google went with 5.0 for Lollipop. It's not yet known whether Android M will be simply a point upgrade or Android 6.0.
Following Android Alpha and Android Beta, Google has always named its Android OS updates after sweet treats, and in alphabetical order. So far we've had Cupcake, Donut, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread, Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwich, Jelly Bean, KitKat and Lollipop. We know M will be next, and we know it will be something tasty.
Just what that tasty treat will be is not yet known. Most speculation refers to Android M as Android Milkshake or Android Marshmallow. Our personal favourites are Android Mars and Android Milky Way - although Google insists KitKat was named after the Nestle product simply because it liked KitKats, we could be about to see another Nestle tie-up here. (Robots and spacemen go together in our minds in any case.)
Other potential names might include Android Malteser, Android Macaroon, Android Meringue Pie (forget the lemon), Android Moon Pie, Android Mint and Android Milk Dud. Any other suggestions? Comment below.
Android M: Spotted in the wild
Even before Android Lollipop was announced there were reported sightings of Android M.
Over on the Android Open Source Projectdevelopers have been spotted twice discussing Android M - firstly in regard to Logcat, and secondly in regard to a data interchange format. Neither will mean anything to end users, according to Myce, but can be useful to developers.
Android M: Possible release date
If previous Android OS release dates are anything to go by, we reckon we'll see the final version of Android M at the end of October or early November 2015, although like Lollipop it may be announced at Google I/O in June.
Android Lollipop was announced at Google I/O in June 2014, and launched on the Nexus 9 on 3 November 2015; Android KitKat was announced in September 2013 and appeared on the Nexus 5 on 31 October 2013.
Android M: New features
No concrete details are available on what new features will appear in Android M, although there are a few things users would like to see. Some of these include Google Fit and Google Now integration, an extreme power-saving mode as standard, a proper messaging hub, improved performance, better synching of notifications across devices, improved parental controls, more gestures and enterprise features. Also see: 5 things we want to see in Android M.
Android M: Android Auto
The latest rumour from Reuters is that Android M will be operate in and be built directly into cars, independently of a paired smartphone, with Google taking a much stronger focus on Android Auto.
"It provides a much stronger foothold for Google to really be part of the vehicle rather than being an add-on," said Gartner's Thilo Koslowski.
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