Many Android users know the frustration of tapping the “Check for update” button when a new update is released, hoping that doing so will make the update appear on your device. Now it will.
Googler Elliot Hughes has revealed that pressing the “Check for update” button on your Android device “actually works now”. When you press the button, Google will flag that the update check is user-initiated and will let you bypass the usual limitations of a staged update rollout. This means that if you check for an update and there’s one available, you’ll get it even if you’re not currently part of the update’s staged release.
In order to get this feature, you’ll need to have the latest version of Google Play Services installed. It also seems likely that this only applies to Nexus, Pixel, and Android One devices, too.
It can be frustrating when you know that there’s a new update available for your device, but you can’t get it because it’s a staged rollout and you’re not in the current stage. Sideloading and flashing images are one way to solve this, but not everyone is comfortable doing that with their expensive phones. Thanks to this change, though, folks with Google phones can get an update right away if they know that there’s one available.