Google decided to release its new Pixel 9 smartphones earlier than usual this year, announcing them on 13th August instead of the usual October date. But these new phones do not have the newest version of Android installed, and instead will ship to customers with the year-old Android 14.

As spotted by Android Authority, Google has now seemingly let slip that Android 15, which you can test out in an unfinished form currently if you have a compatible phone, won’t be ready in its final stable version until October.

When testing a beta version of Android 15, the publication had a screen pop up on their Pixel device that said they should ignore that update “until Android 15 is available in October”.

This timeline is unusual because Google Pixel phones normally come out installed with the latest version of Android, but this year Google has jumped the gun - possibly to get its shiny new devices out on sale ahead of the launch of the iPhone 16, which Apple is very likely to unveil at an event confirmed to be taking place on Monday 9th September.

We now have a situation where the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro XL are on sale with Android 14, the same software you can get on the Pixel 8, Pixel 7, and Pixel 6 phones that are one, two and three years old respectively. Even when the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro Fold go on sale on 4th September, Android 15 will still be about one month from turning up as a software update on Google’s newest smartphones.

As well as trying to beat Apple to market this year, Google could have decided to release the Pixel 9 phones with Android 14 to give buyers a reliable software experience. Often, new Pixels launch with a brand new version of Android that can prove buggy and unreliable. Google might want to iron out the kinks of Android 15 with its beta testers and top bods before pushing out the big free update to all Pixel phones.

It could also signal that updates to new numbered Android versions simply aren’t a big deal any more. Android 15 will bring a few visual tweaks but its main feature additions are a new ‘private space’ to hide apps away, a theft detection lock to make your stolen phone useless to thieves, protection against fraud using AI smarts, and perhaps most usefully, adding items such as loyalty cards to your Google Wallet using a photo.

While useful, these are not exciting world-beating new things to do on your phone - smartphones are very mature in 2024 and Google delaying Android 15 shows that even brand new flagship models don’t need to come with the latest software versions.