David Immel / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5 have new Android updates.
- This update is small (just over 10 MB) and is likely just a security update and bug fixes.
- This was unexpected, as both phones will be discontinued in November 2023.
Earlier this week, Google rolled out the latest Android security patches to active Pixel devices. As expected, the oldest smartphone to receive that patch was the Google Pixel 5a, which was launched in August 2021. However, other older Pixel smartphones currently have two updates: Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5.
The two updates can be found on Google’s list of OTA releases. However, if you are not in a hurry, there is no need to download from there. This is an OTA update, so you should receive a notification on your Pixel 4a 5G or Pixel 5 within the next few days if you haven’t already received one.
Unfortunately, Google is being very secretive about what these updates include. Thanks to a Reddit thread, we can see that this update is quite small at just over 10MB. It’s still on the November 2023 patch, so it doesn’t include any new security updates. Since it’s so small and doesn’t include the latest fixes, we can only imagine that this is an update that specifically addresses serious bugs and security risks for these two phones. For what it’s worth, though, one Redditor claims his phone feels “more comfortable and smooth” after the update.
Google is known to have done this in the past. If a very serious security vulnerability is discovered, the company will discontinue updates for his Pixel and release a fix. However, this rarely includes new features or other dramatic changes.