Android enthusiasts who prefer to stay on the cutting edge of Google’s software often join beta programs to access the latest updates early. For Pixel users, this often involves testing beta versions of new Android releases before they are made available to the general public.
While testing these versions can be exciting, it can also become confusing, especially with Google’s various beta programs. Currently, some users are experiencing confusion because they are receiving update notifications that they should not be getting, causing complications.
Google began testing Android 15 with its first Developer Preview release in February, followed by a regular beta in April. Over the summer, Google introduced a new test program for the Android 15 Quarterly Platform Release (QPR), which ran concurrently with the regular Android 15 beta.
Although these were separate programs, some users mistakenly believed they were part of the same program. The regular Android 15 beta ended with the public release of Android 15, but testing for the QPR versions continues, further complicating things for users.
This week, Google officially released Android 15 for all Pixel phones, marking the end of the regular beta testing phase. However, the QPR1 beta is still ongoing, and users who wish to leave the beta program may find the process tricky.
If you want to exit the beta and return to the stable release, it often involves wiping your device, which means losing any unbacked data. There is, however, a brief window during stable updates where testers can switch back without a wipe, but that option is not yet available for those still in the QPR1 beta.
Some QPR1 testers have reported that they received notifications to leave the beta without wiping their data, similar to those who tested the non-QPR Android 15 beta. While this appears to be a convenient new feature, it is currently malfunctioning. Users trying to follow this process report installation issues, with the update process stalling indefinitely, particularly during app optimization, leaving their phones stuck for hours without progress.
It appears that these notifications were mistakenly sent to QPR testers instead of just Android 15 beta users, causing unnecessary complications. Google has yet to clarify what caused the error or provide a solution. For now, QPR testers who receive this notification are advised to remain on their current beta build until the next over-the-air (OTA) update, expected in December, when the QPR1 stable release is scheduled to be available.
