It's virtual reality's fault that most Samsung Galaxy Note 4s don't have Lollipop

Gear VR

If you're a Galaxy Note 4 owner then you're probably wondering where your Android 5.0 Lollipop update is, considering both the device and Google's software upgrade appeared at roughly the same time.

According to a tip passed on by Faryaab Sheikh of SamMobile, the delay is down to engineers at Oculus. They're busy updating the software to work with the Gear VR headset - which of course relies on the Galaxy Note 4 to power it.

That would make a lot of sense though it's frustrating for all the Note 4 users who are never going to go anywhere near a virtual reality headset. There's no word yet on when the update might eventually roll out, although it shouldn't be too much longer.

Lollipop cometh

Oculus and Samsung are partnering together on the development of the Gear VR. For the time being, you need an accompanying Galaxy Note 4 to be able to do anything with it - the headset essentially just straps the phablet to your face and provides sensor feedback.

Samsung's Android 5.0 Lollipop rolled out to the flagship S5 device last month and we've seen it running on a Galaxy Note 4 so we know the update is imminent, once the Oculus team apply the necessary tweaks.

We've asked Samsung for an official comment on the delay, and once we get something back we'll update this story accordingly.

Update: The Lollipop update is indeed beginning to hit some Galaxy Note 4 models, including AT&T's version of the handset, according to the carrier.

With this news it seems the update is finally rolling out to Samsung's phablet, so expect it soon if you're still waiting.

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David Nield
Freelance Contributor

Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you'll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.