LG G3 Android 5.1 Lollipop Update: What to Expect?

Back in April, the new LG G4 was announced with the latest Android 5.1 Lollipop software, and old LG G3 owners are eagerly awaiting the same Android 5.1 Lollipop software update. Millions of car owners and carriers around the world have ported Android 5.0.2 to the LG G3 over the past few months, but now Android 5.1 is next, and hopefully soon.

Android 5.0 Lollipop was announced on October 15 and was released in November of last year. Within weeks, LG rolled out the update to the G3 in select regions, and in the past two months all US carriers have done the same.

However, the LG G3 Android 5.0 Lollipop update has introduced many minor issues and bugs that have been plaguing users, and the Android 5.1 Lollipop update should fix most of it. Below are a few details on what owners can expect from an LG G3 Android 5.1 Lollipop update.

Android 5.0 Lollipop brought a completely new look and feel to the Android operating system full of colors, animations, visual effects and more, but it also caused problems for millions of users. Not only for LG G2 or LG G3, Samsung, HTC and others have had problems as well.

In Android 5.0, Google tweaked animations and effects, improved the notification popup bar and lock screen notifications, introduced a new material design interface guide, and more. There have been many changes, followed by multiple minor updates, all causing the G3 update to arrive slower than expected.

LG G3 Android 5.0 Problems

Google quickly released Android 5.0.1, 5.0.2, 5.1 and now the latest Android 5.1.1 Lollipop has been released in mid-May. However, the LG G3 is still stuck on Android 5.0.2 and is plagued with tons of issues. While some owners are enjoying the new interface, better battery life and smooth performance, some are reporting tons of issues. Hopefully these will be addressed in Android 5.1 Lollipop updates.

We’ve heard of running out of battery life, frequent reboots of devices, WiFi issues, text messaging keyboard issues, and more. And while some of these are related to LG, others are issues within Android 5.0 that Google has since fixed with 5.1.1 Lollipop. The memory leak problem causes applications to slow down or crash, let alone restarting devices, which is among the biggest complaints of recent times.

Above, we’ve put together a list of some potential issues and fixes for the LG G3 Android 5.0 update, but it’s worth noting that not all users have reported problems. If you’re really experiencing something, try the link above.

LG G3 Android 5.1 Lollipop Update

For now, we don’t have any details on when the LG G3 will be updated to Android 5.1 (or Android 5.1.1) Lollipop, which Google released in March and then in April, but hopefully soon. LG’s latest G4 smartphone runs Android 5.1 straight out of the box, with a new LG UX 4.0 interface that has been greatly improved over previous years. The LG G4 software is LG’s best release yet and is expected to come to the LG G3 soon.

This week LG output Android 5.1.1 Lollipop for the G Flex 2, which was announced in January and runs Android 5.0.2, is extremely good news for LG G3 owners. This means that both the LG G4 and G Flex 2 are on the latest Android 5.1 and the next device in line should be the LG G3.

We’ve reached out to LG regarding the Android 5.1 update and when users can expect it to arrive, and we’ll update as additional details become available. LG Mobile was one of the fastest manufacturers to initially release Android 5.0, and I hope the same can be said for Android 5.1 Lollipop.

The LG G3 Android 5.1 or 5.1.1 Lollipop update should improve battery life, fix some app crashes and general instability, add some new features to the lock screen controls we’ve already seen coming for the international LG G3, and more. Google has reportedly fixed tons of Lollipop issues including the memory leak issue and this should reduce most issues for the LG G3. We still recommend doing a factory data reset to get a clean slate, but we’ll have to wait and see when the update actually arrives.

US Carriers

The latest US carriers shipped Android 5.0.2 Lollipop to the LG G3. While some regions saw it arrive in December and January, it took March and April for all US carriers to deliver the latest software to their owners. We’re hearing a Q2 release for the LG G3 Android 5.1 update, but that’s hard to say as there have been no announcements from LG or its partner carriers.

As we said above, both the LG G4 and G Flex 2 are running Android 5.1, so the next device in line is the LG G3 and hopefully it will arrive later this month. We’ve heard that Samsung is working to roll out Android 5.1 in June and LG is likely targeting the same timeframe. However, US carriers may experience a few delays and push the update to July, which could be Q3.

delays

Of course, delays are always a possibility and we’ve seen a lot of delays from LG over the past few years. They’ve done a better job with software updates for many smartphones and tablets lately, but the possibility of delays is still very real. LG was probably working hard on Android 5.1 Lollipop after it was released in March, but later last month Google released Android 5.1.1 with more fixes and improvements, which could push the version further back.

Most likely Android 5.1 and 5.1.1 changes are integrated into LG’s latest software for the LG G3, and are being tested by carriers before shipping to owners. LG will add the new LG G4 UX 4.0 interface changes to the G3, which may cause the update to take longer than initial expectations.

As it stands now, we expect to start seeing international variants of the LG G3 to see Android 5.1 or Android 5.1.1 in June, followed by US carriers next. It’s hard to tell when both LG and carriers are quiet, but expect an update with new features in the next few months, better stability with improved performance, and more.