LG finally releases Android 11 update schedule, and as usual it's not great

By Derrek Lee
published

LG Wing
LG Wing (Image credit: Alex Dobie / Android Central)

What you need to know

  • LG has posted an update schedule for its smartphones on its German website.
  • The schedule suggests only two smartphones being updated to Android 11 in Q2.
  • The LG Wing isn't expected to receive Android 11 until Q4 of this year.

When it comes to updates, LG is known for being notoriously slow. It seemed like things might've finally turned around for the company when Android 10 was released, but alas, LG is back to its old ways. An Android 11 update schedule was spotted on the company's German website (opens in new tab), and it doesn't paint a pretty picture for owners of LG's smartphones.

According to the schedule, the only two smartphones expected to receive Android 11 in Q2 are the LG Velvet and the LG G8X from 2019. Considering most of the best Samsung phones have already received the update, that's quite an unfortunate outlook for LG fans. Moreover, the 4G version of the LG Velvet won't receive the update until Q3 this year, along with the LG G8S. Lastly, the phones expected to receive the update in Q4 are the K42, K52, and yes, the LG Wing.

It's a bit disconcerting that one of LG's major launch devices of 2020 won't be updated until well after a year after it was released. It may not be all that surprising, considering the state of LG's smartphone business right now. Still, for a company that spent the past year trying to turn things around, you'd think there would be a more concerted effort to provide timely updates for the people that actually bought these devices.

Since this is only a German update schedule, it only applies to these phone models sold in the country. However, these time frames are likely to reflect when other regions will receive Android 11. The LG V60 ThinQ 5G has already begun receiving the update in the United States, while the update has already rolled out for the Korean variant of the Velvet.

Ironically, the website includes an explainer on why Android updates are so important, stating that they keep smartphones protected from malware with security patches.

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Derrek Lee
Derrek Lee
News Editor

Derrek is a long-time Nokia and LG fanboy who loves astronomy, videography, and sci-fi movies. When he's not working, he's most likely working out or smoldering at the camera.

6 Comments
  • (L)ate to the (G)ame as usual... That's all we ever know......
  • What about the G8?
  • I believe the G8S is the European market's version of the G8. Since this came out of Germany, they might not have the G8 all to address, and it might be on the same schedule as the G8S.
  • If LG decides to leave the phone market, this is one of the reasons
  • As a G8 owner, I don't care. I feel like these updates generally don't mean a whole lot to users in the first place, even though it's not a bad thing to get them earlier. Given the title, and tone, of this article, it's pretty easy to see why LG would feel they shouldn't bother in the phone market. They're obviously less successful than Samsung and not committing the same level of resources, so there's no way their crew would be getting updates out the door anywhere near when Samsung does. I mean, shoot, Microsoft is waiting until the summer to get Android 11 to their $1,400 Surface Duo, and that's the ONLY phone they need to do any OS work on. I'm sure the Wing, like, the Duo, takes longer because of the weird form factor and OS behaviors it invites, but LG also has to release updates to other devices with their smaller mobile team. I'm not some LG apologist. Despite being a G8 owner, their support staff was so horrible that I told them I'd never buy from them again, and I intend to stick with that claim. However, it seems like this article is just piling on the recent LG hate train as rumors of their demise increase. That being anything other than first to the market is met with such hostility just makes it harder for smaller OEMs to try to compete with Samsung.
  • Sadly i left Samsung for LG after my S7 Edge got slowed way down after a major update. I then went to LG and got a V40 and was happy. Six months later my S7 Edge got an update that fixed it but it was to late. I now have an LG V60 and am very happy with it. The slow updates dont help but with all this talk of slow updates and possible sales or exit of the market im spooked enough to go back to Samsung for my next phone replacement. But im sure that wont be till late 2021 or early 2022. But with that said, i am still very happy with my V60.