Could the early Pixel 9 launch be about to backfire for Google?

A new rumour has suggested the early arrival of the Google Pixel 9 series might be too soon for it to ship with Android 15.

Android Headlines reports the Pixel 9 range will arrive with the existing Android 14 operating system out of the box, which would be the first time Google hasn’t been able to furnish the new hardware with the freshest software.

However, with Google bringing the launch of the phone forward by almost two months for an August 13 Made by Google event, there might not be enough time to get Android 15 onto the devices for launch.

The report says Android 15 is likely to arrive in September, as has happened in some previous years. However, with Google usually launching the Pixel series every year in October, it hasn’t been an issue.

Android Headlines says it is able to confirm the Pixel 9 won’t launch with Android 15, but doesn’t say how it has come by the information. It’s possible the site has seen some marketing materials, as it has with the Pixel Watch 3 leaks we’ve reported on this week.

Android 15 is currently still in beta, but a couple of weeks ago, Google issued the final preview version, leading us to believe it’d be fully cooked for Android 15.

While launching the phone with Android 14 wouldn’t be the greatest look for Google, an update would like arrive shortly thereafter, so it’d only affect the earliest adapters.

Google also promises seven generations of Android updates for Pixel phones. It’s not clear whether launching on Android 14 would means the Android 15 update would count as one of those.