Newsletter
Qualcomm on Tuesday pledged support to Google’s Android Oreo (Go Edition) initiative aimed at entry-level devices, saying that the lightweight build of the Google-made operating system revision will be available on devices running Snapdragon-series chips starting in early 2018. The wording of the company’s announcement suggests that its Qualcomm Mobile platform won’t be part of its support efforts since it has technically been separated from the Snapdragon brand in early 2017, but more powerful chips from the company should soon be fully compatible with Android Oreo (Go Edition), whereas upcoming silicon from the San Diego, California-based tech giant will presumably have support for the newly announced OS revision out of the box.
Qualcomm said it’s already working closely with Google to bring Android Oreo (Go Edition) to its platform as quickly and efficiently as possible, adding that their joint efforts will benefit “consumer flexibility,” i.e. provide users in developing countries with affordable devices that are still running the latest edition of the most popular mobile operating system on the planet. Existing chips will be updated with Android Oreo (Go Edition) support soon after the new OS build is detailed by the Android Open Source Project, Qualcomm said, suggesting that original equipment manufacturers should expect to be able to take advantage of the compatibility in the coming weeks. The company’s support efforts also encompass its mid-range chips, though it’s unlikely that many (or any) devices with Snapdragon 600-series platforms will be eligible to take full advantage of Android Oreo (Go Edition), i.e. feature no more than 1GB of RAM.
Ultimately, the partnership should benefit price-conscious consumers, so long as they’re able to purchase a device powered by Google’s lightweight build of Oreo and consequently benefit from a user experience that’s comparable to the one offered by the full-fledged OS. The biggest difference between the two software packages is that the Go Edition of Android Oreo comes with a suite of Google’s popular apps build from the ground up for entry-level smartphones and tablets, as per Google’s previous statements on the matter. Android Oreo (Go Edition) is coming with the stable build of 8.1 Oreo that started rolling out earlier today.