Samsung reveals official Android 10 update schedule for Galaxy S10, Note 10, Note 9, and many more
While Samsung never explicitly confirmed its official Android 10 updates would start rolling out by the end of 2019, Google clearly suggested that was the plan last month for the world's top smartphone manufacturer, as well as a number of other major mobile device vendors including the likes of LG, Motorola, Sony, and Asus.
Our hopes of seeing stable Android 10 goodies delivered to the Galaxy S10 and Note 10 families in time for Christmas were further fueled by T-Mobile, as well as Samsung's public beta tests kicked off earlier this year than 2018's Android Pie preview program for the Galaxy Note 9 and S9 duo. But nothing is etched in stone yet, and one regional branch of the Korea-based tech giant only expects over-the-air rollouts for the masses to get underway in 2020.
No movement until January, at least as far as certain markets are concerned
No, January 2020 is not that far away, and yes, it's fairly impressive to see Samsung promise pretty much simultaneous updates for the entire Galaxy S10 and Note 10 rosters, as well as the Galaxy Note 9. Still, we can't help but feel a little underwhelmed by the company's expected turnaround for an OS promotion already provided to the likes of the Asus ZenFone 6, OnePlus 7, 7 Pro, 6, and 6T, or the Nokia 8.1.
Estimated dates for Android 10 updates for Samsung phones in 2020 (timetable for Israel, dates might differ slightly for other regions):
- April 2020 -- Galaxy A7 2018
- April 2020 -- Galaxy A9 2018
- April 2020 -- Galaxy S9
- April 2020 -- Galaxy S9+
- June 2020 -- Galaxy J6
- July 2020 -- Galaxy J6+
- July 2020 -- Galaxy J8
- January 2020 -- Galaxy Note 9
- September 2020 -- Galaxy Tab A 10.5
- July 2020 -- Galaxy Tab S4 10.5
- May 2020 -- Galaxy A10
- May 2020 -- Galaxy A10s
- May 2020 -- Galaxy A20
- June 2020 -- Galaxy A20s
- January 2020 -- Galaxy A30
- May 2020 -- Galaxy A30s
- April 2020 -- Galaxy A50
- April 2020 -- Galaxy A70
- March 2020 -- Galaxy A80
- January 2020 -- Galaxy S10e
- January 2020 -- Galaxy S10
- January 2020 -- Galaxy S10+
- January 2020 -- Galaxy Note 10
- January 2020 -- Galaxy Note 10+
- August 2020 -- Galaxy Tab A8 (2019)
- August 2020 -- Galaxy Tab A 10.1 (2019)
- July 2020 -- Galaxy Tab S5e
- April 2020 -- Galaxy Tab S6
Curiously enough, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ did manage to jump on the stable Android Pie boat ahead of Christmas last year (albeit barely) after opening their public beta doors in mid-November. This time around, Samsung allowed owners of S10-series devices in select markets to test-drive Android 10 as early as October, which means the company could take up to three months to complete this program. That's quite a long time, but on the bright side, bugs and major battery drain issues should be a lot easier to iron out before the "stable" updates actually begin to roll out.
Before getting too disappointed, you may also want to keep in mind the schedule discovered by SamMobile in the Samsung Members app applies solely to Israel. The Galaxy S10, S10+, S10e, Note 10, Note 10+, and Note 9 are slated to receive official Android 10 updates in the country in January, but other regions might be a little more fortunate... or less so. This is not a final timetable either, so basically, we don't know anything for certain.
A lot of April releases, followed by June and October waves of updates
That sounds like a pretty decent turnaround for the two A-series mid-range handsets and Samsung's newest high-end slate, but it's going to be hard to explain S9 and S9 Plus owners why they need to wait three more months than Galaxy Note 9 users. Once again, though, nothing's final yet.
The same obviously goes for the likes of the Galaxy Tab S4 and Tab S5e, both of which should score Android 10 goodies in July 2020, followed by this year's mid-end Galaxy Tab A 8.0 and Galaxy Tab A 10.1 in August. Yup, Samsung is seriously making a plan to deliver the latest OS version to a couple of relatively new tablets around the time Android 11 is expected to be released. And the sad thing is an August 2020 rollout for these budget-friendly Android slates actually doesn't sound all that bad if you think about it.
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