Android customers who need to improve to model 15 might want to guarantee their system has no less than 32GB of storage.
In a confidential GMS Necessities doc uncovered by Android Authority, Google has set this stage because the minimal quantity of area required. This is applicable whether or not you purchase a brand new telephone with Android 15 out of the field or attempt to improve your present system to the latest model.
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As at this time’s Android telephones sometimes include no less than 128GB of storage, the newest requirement will not be particularly onerous. If something, it appears fairly beneficiant. Nonetheless, it implies that older or cheaper telephones with 16GB of area or much less won’t be able to run Android 15, which formally kicked off last October.
What was the earlier minimal requirement?
The brand new minimal is double the earlier quantity of 16GB, launched with Android 13 in 2022, Android Authority defined.
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Beforehand, Android 12 required simply 8GB of storage. Roughly 75 p.c of the 32GB have to be reserved for the info partition, which homes system apps and recordsdata, system app information, and all person apps and recordsdata.
How can Google demand a minimal stage of storage?
Technically, it can’t.
Nonetheless, the corporate can insist on a specific amount for producers that need to run the official taste of Android (and never the open source version AOSP) and outfit their telephones with Google Mobile Services (GMS).
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Licensed by Google, GMS is a set of preinstalled apps and APIs, corresponding to Google Search, Chrome, Google Play Retailer, Gmail, YouTube, and different packages that Android customers have come to count on.
Why does Google require a minimal quantity of storage?
The easy reply is efficiency.
A telephone with solely 8GB or 16GB of area could have simply sufficient room for all the mandatory apps and information. Add within the software program that customers need to set up and the recordsdata they create, and they’re going to quickly encounter a barrier, triggering each storage and efficiency points. Even 32GB will not be sufficient to accommodate all of the hefty video games and different packages many individuals like to make use of, however no less than it’s a begin.
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Out of curiosity, I ran a search on Amazon for Android telephones with 4GB, 8GB, or 16GB of storage and located nearly 800 outcomes. Even assuming that some telephones incorrectly appeared within the outcomes, that’s nonetheless numerous gadgets that won’t meet the brand new commonplace.
Since many of those telephones are older or cheaper fashions, they most likely wouldn’t obtain Android 15 within the first place. Nonetheless, setting a minimal storage requirement is yet one more approach for Google to make sure that Android customers should purchase a more moderen, extra trendy telephone in the event that they need to hold it up to date.
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