Mastering the Update: Transitioning to Android 12L on Your Google Pixel Device

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• How to Manually Update to Android 12L

Google introduced Android 12L in late 2021 and after a short beta period it’s rolling out to Pixel phones. Well, some Pixel phones. If you don’t have Android 12L on your Pixel yet, we’ll show you how to get it.

At the time of writing in April 2022, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro have received Android 12L. However, despite its promise to roll out 12L to older Pixels “later this month “ in March, many still do not have it. So let’s take matters into our own hands.

Android 12L is available to manually install on the following Pixel phones:

• Pixel 3a/XL
• Pixel 4/XL
• Pixel 4a
• Pixel 4a 5G
• Pixel 5
• Pixel 5a
• Pixel 6
• Pixel 6 Pro

Related: What Is Android 12L?

How to Manually Update to Android 12L

The process for manually installing Android 12L on your Google Pixel involves using Command Prompt on Windows and Terminal on Mac. You’ll also need to follow our guide on setting up ADB on your PC before you do anything else.

This process does not wipe your Android device clean. It installs just like any other update. However, it’s a good idea to back up everything you might not want to lose if something goes wrong.

Next, we’ll get things ready on your Pixel phone. The first thing to do is enable USB debugging , which is outlined in a separate guide as well.

Lastly, we need the Android 12L OTA file for your specific Pixel. This is the update that will be applied to your device. Head on over to Google’s website and click the download link for your Pixel. It’s very important to get the file for the correct device.

Now you have everything you need! The rest of the process is outlined in our guide for manually sideloading OTA updates . You can pick things up at the “Connect Device and Boot into Recovery Mode “ section.

When the process is all said and done, you’ll be enjoying the latest version of Android on your Pixel phone. Android 12L is primarily about foldables and large-screen devices, but it has a few small goodies for everyone else.

Related: The Future of Phones: What Is Foldable Glass?