Android 9.0 upgrade is too slow, Google wants users to test Android Q directly

Although after Google released Android 9.0 this year, smartphone manufacturers have accelerated the speed of adapting their phones to it, and many models have been upgraded to the latest Android system. However, in the market share data of various versions of the Android system released by Google at the end of October, the latest Android Pie system still accounted for less than 0.1%.

The speed of Android system popularization has always been one of the problems that Google is worried about. After Project Treble, Google seems to want to let Android system users try Android Q in advance through the new Pie-GSI.

When Google released Android 8.0 at I/O 2017, it announced the new Project Treble, which attempts to solve the problem of manufacturers providing Android system updates too slowly for their Android smartphones. Through Project Treble, the Android framework code and hardware driver code are separated, making it easier for manufacturers to provide Android system updates.

A key part of Project Treble is the Generic System Image (GSI). Google requires that all Treble-compatible devices be able to boot GSI based on existing vendor software and undergo a series of tests such as CTS-on-GSI (Compatibility Test Suite on Generic System Image) and VTS (Vendor Test Suite).

Now, in addition to manufacturers, Google also hopes that GSI can work for ordinary users.

According to XDA, at this year's Android Developer Summit, Hung-ying Tyan from Google's Project Treble team held a speech titled "Understanding the Impact of Generic System Images (GSI)". Hung-ying Tyan said that Google will be committed to allowing ordinary application developers and even consumers to benefit from GSI. To this end, Google has provided Pie-GSI in AOSP and is exploring ways to provide future GSIs before the next Android version is released.

Hung-ying Tyan revealed that Google will provide users with an early trial of the next Android version through GSI. This means that even ordinary consumers, as long as they are enthusiastic enough, may be able to test Android Q before Google provides AOSP source code.