AT&T still has not released updates for many of its flagship Android smartphones and other top devices, including the Samsung Galaxy S5, S4, Note 4, the HTC One M8, One M7 and others.
While it seems that every day we hear progress on the Android Lollipop 5.0 update release for various smartphones and devices in the U.S., one carrier has been significantly lagging. AT&T has fallen behind its competitors Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile in providing timely updates to the most recent Android devices.
Even in the limited cases in which AT&T has provided the Android Lollipop 5.0 update, it has been significantly delayed and is way behind manufacturer stock version updates and those of other carriers. For example, the AT&T Android Lollipop 5.0 update for Motorola's flagship Moto X (2nd Gen) came almost four full months after it was released on Verizon.
Despite Samsung's huge lead in market share among Android smartphones, AT&T's Android 5.0 Lollipop update progress on Samsung devices is nonexistent. AT&T has not released a single update for any Samsung smartphone on its network, while its three competitors, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile, have all released the update for at least one device. Verizon was the first to push out the Galaxy S5 update to its customers, while T-Mobile took the lead with the Note 3, and Sprint was the first to roll out the Note 4 update on its network. Even No. 5 carrier U.S. Cellular, which is notorious for rolling out Android OS software updates later than its larger competitors, has managed to release the Galaxy S5 Lollipop update to its customers.
With the HTC One M9 on the horizon, AT&T still hasn't released the Android 5.0 Lollipop update to the popular former HTC flagships, the One M8 and One M7. All three of AT&T's competitors, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile, have already released the update to the One M8, and T-Mobile has even rolled out Lollipop to the One M7.
Jason Mackenzie, president of HTC Americas, recently promised that the update should hit the HTC One M8 and One M7 on AT&T by the end of March while stating that he was "not happy" about the delay and hinting that AT&T was responsible for it.
Also not happy are AT&T customers, who are tired of watching the same devices they own receive 5.0 Lollipop updates on other networks while they stay stuck on Kit Kat. If AT&T gains a permanent reputation as lagging on significant OS updates, it could dissuade some customers from continuing to use them as a carrier. Already, forums and message boards are teeming with irate customers slagging off the carrier and threatening to switch to one of its timelier competitors.
As always, we'll continue to bring you the latest news on all the Android Lollipop 5.0 updates for AT&T, as well as for other networks and regions, as it arises. Meanwhile, if you're an AT&T customer who is still waiting to get a taste of Lollipop, let us know how you feel in the comments below.
