Google could finally have cracked it. According to the latest data from statistics company StatCounter, Android 11 now has the fastest adoption rate of any Android version. There is one caveat – these data are for the United States only. Even so, this is still a monumentally encouraging statistic.
Long-time Android fans will now find that the biggest problem for Google’s hugely popular operating system is the introduction of updates. While Apple in California can flip a switch and transfer its latest version of the operating system – complete with a new design, updated functions and new standard apps – to millions of iPhones in a single evening, Google only has the same control over the iPhone’s own smartphone line. up, the Google Pixel. And let’s face it, Pixel isn’t the best-selling model in the Android world.
Instead of everyone talking excitedly about the latest Android features and redesigns, smartphone owners have to wait weeks and months for third-party manufacturers to add their own paint job to the operating system, add their own features, and customize the functionality of their own hardware. After that, the operating system – complete with a fresh coat of paint from Samsung, OnePlus or whoever – is sent to cellular providers to check that everything is working with their cell towers.
The result of this lengthy process? There are still smartphones from major manufacturers that haven’t received Android 11 yet – and yet, Google has already released the first preview of Android 12 for developers.
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Android 11 is coming to even more Samsung Galaxy phones this month
However, the latest statistics suggest that this may change. According to StatCounter, Android 11 holds over 25 percent of the market share for Android phones and tablets just 6 months after its official release. Nevertheless, its predecessor Android 10 remains the most widespread version with a market share of 33 percent.
When expanded to global numbers, Android 10 remains the undisputed market leader with a market share of 41 percent for smartphones and tablets. And in Europe, Android 11 is still catching up with Android 10. However, it seems that Google is taking better action against fragmentation with each new version of Android. Of course, we won’t know the exact market share that Android 11 has achieved until Google publishes its own internal statistics. While StatCounter is usually very reliable, it is not an official source for Android.
This topic is not all about aesthetics. New features can vastly improve the user experience, not to mention critical security and stability improvements that can take an extraordinarily long time to introduce – even after being signed out of Google.
More and more manufacturers are pledging to keep their smartphones up to date with new software versions over a longer period of time (Samsung has promised four Galaxy phones important Android security updates for four years, while Google and OnePlus have committed to keeping their phones up to date Having held up for at least three years) it is encouraging to see that the rollout of these updates is also gaining momentum.
For comparison: iOS 14, which was introduced in September 2020 and now runs on 80 percent of all iPhones worldwide, could already be installed on Apple smartphones in September 2015. The six-year-old iPhone 6S is still getting updated with new designs, features, and security updates.
