Samsung Galaxy S7 And S7 Edge Receiving Production Android Nougat Update In January

After weeks of waiting and what seemed like an endless barrage of beta updates (it was really just a handful), Samsung is finally ending its Android 7 Nougat program for its Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge handsets. A final release that will be polished and ready for mass consumption will be served up to Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge owners next month in the form of version Android 7.1.1.

Samsung opened its "Galaxy Beta Program" to eager Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge owners on November 9. It was intended to give users a feel for Nougat with Samsung's latest user interface and to gather feedback on performance, reliability, and usability, which it would use to shape future revisions. Samsung served up no less than five beta Android 7 Nougat releases throughout the testing period.

Samsung Galaxy S7

"Galaxy Beta Program will end on 12/30 by 24:00 PM. We would like to thank you for the interest and affection shown during this time. We will try to apply most of the useful options shared by all of you in official Nougat OS version," Samsung told participants.

There will be no more beta Nougat releases going forward. Samsung has also stopped taking feedback related to the beta builds through its "Error report" and "Suggestion" links in the app—all future feedback must be submitted through the "community." In the days and possibly weeks ahead, Samsung will shift focus to tweaking the final build for a January launch.

When Nougat arrives, Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge owners will join elite company. At present, Nougat is installed on less than half a percent of all Android devices. Android 5.x remains the most popular version, as it is installed on 34 percent of all Android devices, followed by Android 6.0 Marshmallow at 26.3 percent and Android 4.4 KitKat at 24 percent. Androind 4.1.x through 4.3 Jelly Bean is the only other version of Android with a double digit share of the market (12.8 percent).