Leaked HTC Roadmap Puts One (M7) Next in Line to Receive Android 5.0 Lollipop

A day after beginning the rollout of the Android 5.0 Lollipop OS update for the HTC One (M8) Developer Edition and unlocked version of the handset, a leak indicates the update will reach the One (M7) next. The Taiwanese firm had already rolled out the update to One (M8) Google Play Edition versions last month.

Notably, the next set of HTC handsets expected to receive the Android 5.0 Lollipop update was said to be the carrier-based HTC One (M8). However, HTC for some untold reason appears to have chosen the original HTC One. The leak from Vietnam (via GSMArena) indicates the update for the HTC One (M7) will be rolled out by Q1 of this year.

While the HTC One (M7) carrier-based handsets might be the last ones to receive the OS update, as they need the carrier's approval before rolling it out, HTC in December tweeted that, "We're still on track to update carrier versions of HTC One M7 & M8 within 90 days as well. More news on Unlocked and Dev editions soon!" This, taken together with the leak, could indicate that the Google Play Edition, Developer Edition and the unlocked version of the One (M7) are likely to receive the Android 5.0 Lollipop update before it reaches the carrier-based versions.

The leak further points out four recent handsets namely HTC One (E8), Desire Eye, One (M8 Eye) and Butterfly 2 to receive the update in the second quarter of 2015. The third-quarter, as shown in the piece of data, includes most number of handsets. The leak says Q3 will see Android 5.0 Lollipop update reaching the HTC One Max, One (M7) Dual-SIM, Desire 816, Desire 820u, One (M8) Mini, One (M8) China and One (M8 Eye) China. HTC in Q3 and Q4 together is said to bring Android OS to the One (M8) Mini unlocked, Desire 610, Desire 820s, Desire 510, and One (M7) Mini.

HTC, along with the Android update, is likely to roll out the latest Sense UI as a part of the OTA update. However, HTC has not yet confirmed an update for any of the handsets except the HTC One (M7) and One (M8) devices. It will also prove to be a challenge for the firm to roll out Android 5.0 Lollipop to such a large number of smartphones this year.