Android users had to wait longer than usual for the release of Android 15 this fall, but Google is already setting timelines for the next two operating system updates. In a change of pace, the next major release for Android will come in the second quarter of 2025.
“We are planning the major release for Q2 instead of Q3 to better align with the schedule of device launches in our ecosystem, so more devices can get major releases of Android sooner,” the company said in a blog post addressed to developers. This is good news for third-party phone makers, who historically have to wait a few months before getting the latest OS update.
In addition to the major release in the first half of the year, there will also be a smaller update to Android scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2025. The Q2 release will be the only release next year that will have behavioral changes that could affect apps. The smaller release due at the end of the year will focus on “feature updates, optimizations, and bug fixes,” but will not have any behavioral changes.
Pixelfed is now available as a mobile app for both iOS and Android. The open source, decentralized platform offers image sharing similar to Instagram. However, Pixelfed has no ads and does not share user data with third parties. The platform launched in 2018, but was only available on the web or through a third-party app client. The Android app debuted on January 9 and the iOS app was released today.
Creator Daniel Supernault posted on Mastodon on Monday evening that 11,000 users joined the platform in the past 24 hours and more than 78,000 posts have been shared on Pixelfed to date. The platform runs on ActivityPub, the same protocol that powers many other decentralized social networks in the Fediverse, such as Mastodon and Flipboard.
Many Instagram users are looking for alternatives to the Meta-owned platform after the company said it would end third-party fact checking and revise its “hate content” policy to allow derogatory comments against women and trans people, among other changes. Meta also blocked some of Pixelfed’s links on Facebook, deeming them spam and removing those posts. A company representative said it was a mistake and that the posts would be reinstated.