{"id":963489,"date":"2026-05-16T09:10:18","date_gmt":"2026-05-16T09:10:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/963489\/"},"modified":"2026-05-16T09:10:18","modified_gmt":"2026-05-16T09:10:18","slug":"googles-android-upgrade-why-you-need-a-new-phone-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/963489\/","title":{"rendered":"Google\u2019s Android Upgrade\u2014Why You Need A New Phone In 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\" top-image\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1778922618_669_0x0.jpg\" alt=\"Google Android phone character\" data-height=\"4982\" data-width=\"7554\" fetchpriority=\"high\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0\"\/><\/p>\n<p>All change for Android <\/p>\n<p>getty<\/p>\n<p>Bad news for hundreds of millions of owners of Android smartphones. It turns out that if you want Google\u2019s latest upgrade, anything other than a 2026 phone won\u2019t be good enough. And that means even Samsung\u2019s nearly new, $1500-plus Galaxy S25 doesn\u2019t make the cut.<\/p>\n<p>As Android specialists @<a class=\"color-link\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/assembledebug\/status\/2055328501348413639?s=46&amp;t=MSKJFdUSbMScD9tYzDznag\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-ga-track=\"ExternalLink:https:\/\/x.com\/assembledebug\/status\/2055328501348413639?s=46&amp;t=MSKJFdUSbMScD9tYzDznag\" aria-label=\"AssembleDebug\">AssembleDebug<\/a> have just warned, Google\u2019s new \u201cGemini Intelligence features are only available on Android devices with the most advanced capabilities and spec requirements.\u201d That means Google\u2019s Pixel 10 series and Samsung\u2019s Galaxy S26 series.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"embed-base color-body color-body-border link-embed embed-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/zakdoffman\/2026\/05\/15\/confusing-apple-changes-iphone-green-bubbles-after-15-years\/\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"After 15 Years\u2014Apple Changes Green Bubbles On Your iPhone\" data-ga-track=\"forbesEmbedly:https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/zakdoffman\/2026\/05\/15\/confusing-apple-changes-iphone-green-bubbles-after-15-years\/\" rel=\"noopener\">ForbesAfter 15 Years\u2014Apple Changes Green Bubbles On Your iPhoneBy Zak Doffman<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Google says <a class=\"color-link\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.google\/security\/android-gemini-intelligence-security-privacy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-ga-track=\"ExternalLink:https:\/\/blog.google\/security\/android-gemini-intelligence-security-privacy\/\" aria-label=\"Gemini Intelligence\">Gemini Intelligence<\/a> has been built with security and privacy at its center. This is about automating tasks, but that comes with risks. &#8220;Because great AI experiences require uncompromising privacy, we\u2019ve grounded Gemini Intelligence on Android in three core principles.&#8221; Those are \u201cexplicit user control, comprehensive data protection (and) operational transparency.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>All change for Android <\/p>\n<p>getty<\/p>\n<p>Per <a class=\"color-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sammyfans.com\/2026\/05\/16\/galaxy-s25-and-fold-7-outdated-for-gemini-intelligence\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-ga-track=\"ExternalLink:https:\/\/www.sammyfans.com\/2026\/05\/16\/galaxy-s25-and-fold-7-outdated-for-gemini-intelligence\/\" aria-label=\"SammyFans\">SammyFans<\/a>, \u201cGemini Intelligence is officially arriving first on Samsung phones, but the Galaxy S25 Ultra and Fold 7 might already be outdated. Google\u2019s new Gemini Intelligence platform landed this week with a requirements list that reads like a bouncer deciding who gets into the club, and some very expensive Samsung Galaxy phones didn\u2019t make the cut.\u201d Phones also need &#8220;at least five Android OS upgrades and six years of quarterly security patches.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhatever the case,\u201d <a class=\"color-link\" href=\"https:\/\/9to5google.com\/2026\/05\/15\/gemini-intelligence-android-spec-requirements\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-ga-track=\"ExternalLink:https:\/\/9to5google.com\/2026\/05\/15\/gemini-intelligence-android-spec-requirements\/\" aria-label=\"9to5Google\">9to5Google<\/a> says, \u201cGoogle says that Gemini Intelligence will make its debut on Pixel and Samsung Galaxy devices later this year, with a report suggesting that the Galaxy Z Fold 8 will be the first to launch the new features. \u201d<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"embed-base color-body color-body-border link-embed embed-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/zakdoffman\/2026\/05\/14\/whatsapp-warns-iphone-and-android-users-ai-chats-not-truly-private\/\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"WhatsApp Warns iPhone And Android Users: AI Chats Not \u2018Truly Private\u2019\" data-ga-track=\"forbesEmbedly:https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/zakdoffman\/2026\/05\/14\/whatsapp-warns-iphone-and-android-users-ai-chats-not-truly-private\/\" rel=\"noopener\">ForbesWhatsApp Warns iPhone And Android Users: AI Chats Not \u2018Truly Private\u2019By Zak Doffman<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Google <a class=\"color-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.android.com\/gemini-intelligence\/#:~:text=1%20Gemini%20Intelligence%20features%20are%20only%20available%20on%20Android%20devices%20with%20the%20most%20advanced%20capabilities%20and%20spec%20requirements%3A\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" data-ga-track=\"ExternalLink:https:\/\/www.android.com\/gemini-intelligence\/#:~:text=1%20Gemini%20Intelligence%20features%20are%20only%20available%20on%20Android%20devices%20with%20the%20most%20advanced%20capabilities%20and%20spec%20requirements%3A\" aria-label=\"says\">says<\/a> \u201cwith (these new) AI powered features, users have granular authority to opt-in and out of entire features or disable specific components at any time. By putting the choice in your hands, we ensure that AI assistance feels like a helpful partner rather than an intrusive presence.\u201d But &#8220;Gemini Intelligence features are only available on Android devices with the most advanced capabilities and spec requirements.\u201d And that means a 2026 smartphone, it now seems.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"All change for Android getty Bad news for hundreds of millions of owners of Android smartphones. It turns&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":963490,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3159],"tags":[2061,166609,269259,867,547,28735,262090,269261,542,162081,269260,53,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-963489","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mobile","8":"tag-android","9":"tag-galaxy-s26","10":"tag-gemini-intelligence","11":"tag-google","12":"tag-mobile","13":"tag-pixel-10","14":"tag-pixel-11","15":"tag-pixel-9","16":"tag-samsung","17":"tag-samsung-s25","18":"tag-samsung-s27","19":"tag-technology","20":"tag-uk","21":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116583480950757934","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/963489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=963489"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/963489\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/963490"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=963489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=963489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=963489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}