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Which manufacturer updates its phones the fastest? (Android 12 edition)
Google rolled out the stable version of Android 12 on October 4, 2021. The software arrived a month later than its predecessor — Android 11 — which launched in September the year before. At the time of writing, we’ve just crossed the six-month anniversary of Android 12. Several smartphone OEMs have already updated their phones to the latest version of Android. But which one did it first? Well, that’s what we are here to find out.
Major Android updates that arrive on time are an essential measure of a brand’s competence. Delayed updates almost always put off buyers, as they rightfully should. Updating speed and frequency should be crucial deciding factors for your smartphone purchase. To help you make that choice, we have ranked all the major Android phone makers based on the time they took to update their phones to Android 12.
Before we list the fastest OEMs to roll out the Android 12 update, there are some factors to note about our ranking system:
- This article is based on information found in our Android 12 update tracker.
- We’ve ranked the OEMs purely based on the time to first update (excluding betas and early access programs). Some models and carrier variants may have to wait longer for updates.
- Updates go out at different times in different regions for different users, so view the dates below as estimates.
- We haven’t included Google’s Pixel phones as they’re always first to get the latest Android updates by default. If you want a phone that’s guaranteed to be updated on time, a Google Pixel is your best bet.
1. Samsung
- First device(s) with stable Android 12: Samsung Galaxy S21 series
- Date of first stable rollout: November 15, 2021
- Days passed since official OS launch: 41 days
When it comes to software updates, Samsung is undoubtedly among the fastest in business. It also offers the longest major OS upgrades in the market. The South Korean manufacturer rolled out the Android 12 update to its phones a month after Google pushed it out to the Pixels. By comparison, Samsung released its Android 11 update three months after launch, so it’s great to see the company come out with even faster updates this time around.
Also read: Samsung One UI 4 hands-on — Trying out all the new features
The Galaxy S21 series was the first in Samsung’s portfolio to receive the Android 12 update, which also introduced Samsung’s One UI 4 skin. The next Samsung phones to see Android 12 updates were the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3. Samsung has been nearly as quick to update its popular mid-range phones like the Galaxy A51, Galaxy A52, and others with the latest software. Newer devices like the Galaxy S10 series and Note 10 series started getting updated early in 2022.
Meanwhile, Samsung’s reigning flagship, the Galaxy S22 series, launched with Android 12 out of the box. However, it introduced version 4.1 of One UI with some cosmetic changes and a handful of new features, like the ability to choose virtual RAM.
2. OPPO
- First device(s) with stable Android 12: OPPO Find X3 Pro
- Date of first stable rollout: December 1, 2021
- Days passed since official OS launch: 57 days
OPPO was the second-fastest OEM to update its phones with Android 12 this year. It was fairly quick in pushing out Color OS 12 based on Android 12 at the start of December, which landed for the flagship Find X3 Pro first. The Find X2 series, Reno 6, and Reno 5 Pro were some of the first OPPO phones to receive the latest software that same month. So a really solid effort from OPPO here.
Later in January, OPPO started updating many other phones, including the A73, A74, F19 Pro, Reno 5Z, and more. The company also released a roadmap detailing all the OPPO devices getting Android 12 in the coming months. So far, devices like the OPPO Reno 7, K10, and A96 have been updated.
3. OnePlus
- First device(s) with stable Android 12: OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro
- Date of first stable rollout: December 7, 2021
- Days passed since official OS launch: 63 days
OnePlus was next in line to update its phones with Android 12. The flagship OnePlus 9 series received the software on December 7, 2021. The update also carried a new version of Oxygen OS, predictably called Oxygen OS 12. However, OnePlus’ rollout was not without its issues. The company was forced to pull the Android 12 update from the OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro just days after pushing it out. It quickly fixed the bugs and restarted the update cycle by mid-December.
If you were using the older OnePlus 8 series, you had to wait much longer for the Android 12 update. It started rolling out on March 21. Even older devices like the OnePlus 2 got updated, as well as budget phones like OnePlus Nord 2, Nord N200, and Nord CE have gotten Android 12.
Notably, OnePlus was faster than Samsung in rolling out the Android 11 update in 2020 but has fallen behind this year. Perhaps the brand’s now-junked plans to launch an integrated OS with OPPO may have interfered with its rollout of Android 12.
4. HMD
- First device(s) with stable Android 12: Nokia X20
- Date of first stable rollout: December 16, 2021
- Days passed since official OS launch: 70 days
HMD has not been the best at pushing out prompt Android updates recently. In fact, the company admitted that it didn’t do the best job of rolling out Android 11 to its devices. However, it was the fourth in line to roll out its Android 12 update, which hit the Nokia X20 in December 2021.
HMD ranked 10th for its Android 11 update speed in our rundown in early 2021, a considerable decline from its fourth position in 2020. Its comeback this year is hopefully a sign of improvement for the brand. However, only a handful of Nokia handsets have received the Android 12 update, and the company has yet to share an official list of devices that will receive it. We’ve seen the Nokia 8.3, G10, G20, 2.4, and 5.4 have been updated.
5. vivo
- First device(s) with stable Android 12: vivo X60 and vivo X60 Pro
- Date of first stable rollout: December 22, 2021
- Days passed since official OS launch: 76 days
This year, vivo was a bit faster to the Android 12 party than its Android 11 rollout. Just like its stablemate OPPO, the BBK group company started pushing out Android 12-based FunTouch OS 12 to its X60 series in December. Overall, vivo planned on upgrading 31 phones to Android 12 by April 2022. Other vivo phones may also get the software, but the company hasn’t revealed any details.
So far, devices that have gotten Android 12 include vivo X70 Pro, V21, Y51A, and the V17 Pro.
6. Sony
- First device(s) with stable Android 12: Sony Xperia 1 III and Xperia 5 III
- Date of first stable rollout: January 10, 2022
- Days passed since official OS launch: 96 days
The sixth smartphone vendor to disburse a stable Android 12 update was Sony. The company landed in the same spot last year.
Sony hasn’t shared an Android 12 rollout roster, but most Xperia handsets that launched with Android 10 or 11 onboard should get the update.
In January, the company started sending out Android 12 to the Xperia 1 III and 5 III. However, the update was released only in a few markets. Later in March 2022, the Xperia 1 II and Xperia Pro also picked up the update in Europe, Asia, and the US. Sony also updated the Xperia 10 II, 10 III, and Pro-I.
7. Xiaomi
- First device(s) with stable Android 12: Mi 11 Pro and Mi 11 Ultra
- Date of first stable rollout: January 18, 2022
- Days passed since official OS launch: 104 days
Xiaomi was one of the first smartphone OEMs to launch the Android 11 beta in 2021. The stable Android 11 update also landed around November for devices like the Mi 10 and 10 Pro. Sadly, that wasn’t the case with Android 12. It took 104 days for the company to give its phones the first taste of Android 12.
Xiaomi’s stable Android 12-based MIUI 13 build arrived in January, when it began rolling out the software for the Mi 11 series. Days later, several Redmi Note devices and POCO phones started receiving the update. Xiaomi confirmed a list of 18 devices would get MIUI 13 in the first quarter of 2022. Most of these devices have already received the update or are about to get it.
8. Motorola
- First device(s) with stable Android 12: Moto G Pro
- Date of first stable rollout: February 9, 2022
- Days passed since official OS launch: 125 days
Motorola took 144 days to roll out Android 11 to its phones. That was bad compared to the 98 days it took to seed Android 10. This year, Moto clocked 125 days till Android 12. It’s a slight improvement from last year but nothing to brag about.
The first Android 12 update for Moto phones landed in the UK in February. Moto, now owned by a Chinese company, releases Android updates in Brazil before other markets like the US and Europe. So if you have a Motorola phone and hear about an Android 12 update for it, you may have to wait a while before it actually lands in your country.
That said, the company has had a plan in place. It has listed 30 devices, ranging from the high-end Edge and foldable phones to its G series handsets.
9. LG
- First device(s) with stable Android 12: LG Velvet
- Date of first stable rollout: March 22, 2022
- Days passed since official OS launch: 162 days
LG has wrapped up its smartphone business, but it’s good to see that the company is still updating some phones to Android 12. The Velvet was the first device to get Android 12 from LG, and the company released a brief list of phones to get the update throughout Q2 2022. However, most of these updates may take considerably longer to arrive outside Korea. So far, we’ve seen the V60, Wing, G8X, and V50m have been updated, but many of these were upgraded as recently as July.
10. realme
- First device(s) with stable Android 12: realme GT Master Edition
- Date of first stable rollout: March 22, 2022
- Days passed since official OS launch: 168 days
We are down to the slowest OEM on our list to release Android 12, and realme has made the cut. The brand made a surprisingly slow switch to the new OS compared to last year, when it took 87 days to get Android 11 out. Even with its connection to OPPO, OnePlus, and vivo, the company only announced an Android 12 update schedule in January 2022. Even then, it is an early access program, and most realme phones have yet to get the Android 12 update.
Only a few devices have received stable Android 12 so far, including the realme GT Master Edition, realme X7 Max, GT Neo 2, realme 8, realme X7 Pro, realme X50 Pro, realme 7 Pro, and realme 8 Pro.
What about the other OEMs?
If you’ve kept up with our coverage of Android rollout speeds over the years, you may have noticed some absences this year compared to our last top 10 list.
Last year’s results: Android 11 rollout — Which phone brand was fastest?
HONOR announced Magic UI 6.0 based on Android 12, but the company only started rolling it out in the second quarter of 2022, starting with the HONOR 50.
That’s a wrap on our Android 12 rollout roundup. If you’re keen to look ahead to what’s coming up with the next iteration of Android, check out our Android 13 coverage below.