Google could skip an Android version for Android TV, Wear OS

Google’s Android platform is available for a variety of form factors, including TV and smartwatches. The company is hard at work on the Android-based Wear OS 4 and Android TV 14 updates, but it turns out that the firm might be skipping a version in both cases.

9to5Google spotted a code change noting that Google is retiring Android TV 13 in favor of Android TV 14.

The code change appears under the header “Don’t recommend Android TV Tiramisu”:

We are retiring T [Android 13 – ed] as a version in Android TV. Moving the T image to the non-recommended menu should dissuade developers from creating a T images if not required.

Android TV 13 was already released to manufacturers in late 2022, so it hasn’t technically skipped this release. But the quick decision to apparently retire Android TV 13 suggests that manufacturers will be forced to skip it in favor of Android TV 14 (if not an older, supported version).

Wear OS leaps ahead

Android-focused journalist Mishaal Rahman has also reported that Google is skipping an Android version for Wear OS 4, jumping from Android 11 to 13.

Either way, it’s interesting but not surprising to see Google skipping Android versions for its smartwatch and smart TV platforms. You could argue that these platforms don’t really require the same OS update cadence as smartphones. Furthermore, Rahman also notes that Android TV makers are allowed to skip a version to fulfill their update requirements.

Nevertheless, we’ve contacted Google to confirm this news and will update our article accordingly if/when we get a response.