Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Google has upgraded the kernel version of all Tensor-powered Pixels in the Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1 release.
- The Google Pixel 6 series, Pixel 7 series, Pixel 8 series, Pixel Tablet, and Pixel Fold all join the Pixel 9 series in running Linux 6.1.
- Previously, Tensor G1 and G2-powered Pixels were running Linux 5.10 while Tensor G3-powered Pixels were running on Linux 5.15.
Android manufacturers have to put in a lot of behind-the-scenes work to meet the promises they laid out in their phone update policies. One of the biggest hurdles they have to overcome is meeting Google’s updated certification requirements for newer Android releases, but thankfully, Google has programs like Longevity GRF that make it easier for Android devices to get 7 years of updates. One of the requirements that Google changes with each new release of Android is what Linux kernel versions are supported, which means that in order to actually achieve 7 years of updates, manufacturers have to push out major kernel version upgrades from time to time. Google is no exception, so that’s exactly what they’re doing for all Tensor-powered Pixels in the next quarterly release of Android.
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With the release of the first beta for the second quarterly release of Android 15, Google quietly pushed out a major kernel version upgrade to all its Tensor-powered Pixels, unifying the kernel version across Tensor devices. The Pixel 6, Pixel 6 Pro, Pixel 6a, Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel 7a, Pixel Tablet, and Pixel Fold are all being upgraded from Linux kernel 5.10 to 6.1, whereas the Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro, and Pixel 8a are being upgraded from Linux kernel 5.15 to 6.1. The Google Pixel 9 series, meanwhile, was already running Linux 6.1, so there aren’t any changes for these devices.
For proof, here are screenshots of the Android version screens from a Pixel 6a, Pixel 7 Pro, and Pixel 8 running Android 15 QPR2 Beta 1:
In addition, here’s a screenshot from the AOSP builders group that shows the kernel sources for each Pixel device have indeed been rebased on top of the Android Common Kernel fork for Linux 6.1.
This Linux kernel upgrade hasn’t come as a surprise, as I actually reported on this very change at the beginning of the year. What I wasn’t sure of at the time was when the kernel upgrade would actually come, but it’s good to see that it’s arriving with Android 15 QPR2, slated for release in March of 2025. If you want to know more about why these kernel version upgrades are necessary, I highly recommend reading my exclusive piece on the Longevity GRF program which goes in depth about how Android vendor updates work behind-the-scenes.
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