Android 12 might debut on October 4th

Android 12 has taken longer to bake than many of its predecessors, but the end might finally be in sight. XDA editor-in-chief Mishaal Rahman claims Google plans to release the AOSP (Android Open Source Project) version of Android 12 on October 4th. As the company often releases polished public releases at the same time as AOSP, that hints Pixel owners may get their upgrade starting that day.

If the timing holds up, this also sets expectations for the Pixel 6 launch. Google can't really ship its new range-topping phones without Android 12, so it's unlikely to formally debut the Pixel 6 before that date. We wouldn't be surprised if the hardware only surfaced sometime later in October.

Be prepared to wait if you aren't using a Pixel. While some phone makers tend to be quick and release major Android updates within weeks, many others take months. Samsung didn't start deploying Android 11 until December 2020, three months after Google officially released the OS. As much as Google has done to shorten update delays with efforts like Project Treble, it still takes time for companies to both adapt Android to heavily-customized interfaces and test the software with customers and carriers.