Motorola tops Samsung with its surprisingly early Android 17 Beta release
Motorola has already started releasing the Android 17 Beta program on some of its phones.
Motorola beats Samsung to the release of Android 17 Beta. | Image by PhoneArena
Can you name the first manufacturer that became a star producing Android phones? The first smartphone powered by the platform was known in the U.S. as the T-Mobile G1, which was released in October 2008 and it was created by HTC.
Motorola was the first superstar Android manufacturer
While Android showed promise, it was approximately a year later when the OS became a legitimate iPhone challenger. In late 2009, Verizon, Google, and Motorola teamed up to launch the Motorola DROID, the first phone to run Android 2.0.
With many features that were not yet found on the iPhone (including turn-by-turn vocal directions on Google Maps), the DROID became a hit. Motorola followed this up with other models including one that I really wanted but never bought; that was the 4.3-inch DROID X.
Motorola eventually lost its way
One model, the Motorola Flipout, was a small square with a 2.8-inch touchscreen display, and it could swivel to reveal a small QWERTY keyboard. The Motorola DROID 2 R2-D2 Edition was designed to look like the popular Star Wars character.
Motorola soon lost its momentum as Samsung, HTC, and LG forced Motorola out of the flagship phone business. HTC and LG both eventually faded from the industry (although HTC has since built niche phones with little in the way of sales). After prospering with its budget phones, Motorola had a hit with its revised clamshell foldable Razr, and this year, it added a book-style Razr foldable and the "world-class" Signature flagship.
Which manufacturer is on top of the Android update game?
The manufacturer has been working to improve two oft-heard complaints about Motorola phones. Motorola has been accused of shipping phones with poor photography systems that do not take good photos in low-light conditions, and feature a lagging shutter that results in blurry images.
Motorola surprises by being the first non-Google manufacturer to start Android 17 Beta
Another complaint about Motorola phones has to do with its ability to update to the latest version of Android. Some of these updates ended up arriving much later than the same update did on competitors' Android phones, and some models were not updated at all.
The Motorola Razr+ 2025 just received the Android 17 Beta. | Image by Motorola
Motorola tried to get off to a faster start and in fact, in late February it became the first non-Google manufacturer to announce its Android 17 Beta program, beating Samsung. Just yesterday, the company added three new phones to the list of models that are participating in the Android 17 Beta.
These Motorola phones will receive the Android 17 Beta
The three new phones are two clamshell foldables and a candybar:
- Motorola Razr+ 2025
- Motorola Razr+ 2024 (also called the Motorola Razr 50 Ultra in some markets)
- Edge 50 Ultra
- Motorola Signature.
- Motorola Razr 70 Ultra.
- Motorola Edge 60 Pro.
- Motorola Edge 2025.
- Moto G Play (2026).
- Moto G Stylus 5G (2026).
- Moto G Power 5G (2026).
The expected timeline has the Hello UI, supporting Android 17, rolling out during August-September 2026 for the Motorola Signature and Razr (2025) series. During October-November 2026 we should see the rollout take place for the Edge 60 and Edge 50 series. During late 2026 and early 2027, Hello UI with Android 17 should be pushed out to the Moto G series and older eligible hardware.
To sign up to receive the Android 17 Beta, follow these directions:
Create an account on Motorola's community website.
Visit the profile page and update your phone's unique IMEI number, or serial number (SN) details.
Opt in for MFN on your Motorola community profile.
Open the MFN Beta Testing Opportunities page to see a testing opportunity for your Motorola device.
Tap on the registration link for your Motorola phone.
Fill in all of the required details and when finished, submit your application.
Visit the profile page and update your phone's unique IMEI number, or serial number (SN) details.
Opt in for MFN on your Motorola community profile.
Open the MFN Beta Testing Opportunities page to see a testing opportunity for your Motorola device.
Tap on the registration link for your Motorola phone.
Fill in all of the required details and when finished, submit your application.
As of today, the public can still enroll in the Beta program for the Motorola Signature, which is currently on Beta 3 (by comparison my Pixel 6 Pro last week received Android 17 Beta 4). Edge 2025 users, in the U.S., are currently on Beta 2 and others can join a waitlist. The initial rollout of Android 17 Beta 1 for the Razr+ 2025 started yesterday, and the Moto G Stylus 5G (2026) is running a closed Beta that only top forum contributors are getting invites to join.
While Motorola has already started its Android 17 Beta program, Samsung will reportedly start its One UI 8.5 Beta program with Android 17 in May. The rollout will start with the recently released Galaxy S26 series.
Follow us on Google News
Popular stories
Latest News
Things that are NOT allowed:
To help keep our community safe and free from spam, we apply temporary limits to newly created accounts: