The new Nexus 6P, not the Google Nexus 2016 Marlin, phone is displayed during a Google media event on September 29, 2015 in San Francisco, California (Photo : Justin Sullivan | Getty Images News)
Google appears all geared up for the Nexus 2016 release date push as the tech giant started unleashing projects that seem to prepare the way for the next Nexus unboxing. For starters, the LG-made Nexus 5X is down to $199 at the Play Store and bundled with Project Fi.
At around the same time, the March security patch for existing Nexus devices and the Pixel C hybrid machine has been made available though in factory images. That means getting the updates will require flashing or manual installation.
As for the latest Nexus 5X promo deal, a $150 discount awaits Android fans, which according to 9to5Google is an offer to bring in more subscribers to the Project Fi project, which is Google's MVNO cellular service that provides fast, stable and affordable mobile connection. With the price off and the Fi bundle, the 16GB 5X is up for grabs for only $199 while the 32GB variant is at $249.
The offer runs on limited time, which the report said Google has set to expire on April 7.
And upon getting that Nexus 5X, users can opt to get the latest Android Marshmallow factory image that according to a separate report by 9to5Google remains part of version 6.0.1. The security patch is mostly to quash the OS bugs recently identified by Google software engineers.
"The bugs range from moderate to critical in severity. The most severe vulnerability deals with remote code execution through email, browsing or MMS," the report said.
As mentioned above, the Android March security patch is in factory image state so users can hold out for the over the air (OTA) version to skip the trouble of having to flash. Same goes for the Pixel C owners.
The patch, by the way, covers the Nexus devices made from 2013 to present, which included the Nexus 5X and 6P down to the Nexus 7 2013.
Now all these developments indicate that Google is busy at work - for one, on the upkeep of its existing products and services and likely too on lined up offerings. For many, what Google has to unpack this year mostly involves the sequel to Android Marshmallow that is named for now as Android N and the Nexus 2016 family of devices.
The latest rumors say the next Android is likely version 7.0 and it will be leaner and faster than its predecessors with significant UI tweaks. As for the next Nexus, Huawei and HTC are the likely Google partners on the project with HTC taking charge of two smartphone models that Geek Snack said will have a POLED display or plastic OLED, and should mean curved or flexible screen.
Huawei, on the other hand, is said to build a 7-inch tablet called Nexus 7 2016, which in recent reports is said scheduled for release date in the immediate months or weeks following the Google I/O Developers Conference in late May or early June 2016.
