M is for Marshmallow: Android 6.0 OS update revealed

Google has finally settled on an official nickname for Android 6.0, and the company has decided to name it Marshmallow.

As Android and Google users now, the company has taken to using a combination of sweet treats together with the alphabet to come up with unusual nicknames for their operating system updates, hence the Lollipop and Kitkat versions of years past.

Prior to the Marshmallow reveal, Google had taken to calling the upcoming update as Android M even when they first announced it back in May during the Google I/O conference, according to CNet.

Google's latest announcement is significant not just because users will now know what to call their latest operating system, but also because of the new features it is set to introduce to devices.

Arguably the most significant addition coming via the Android Marshmallow update will be the new Android Pay feature, according to The Verge. Android Pay will basically allow users to start using their mobile devices to complete financial transactions. For example, if there is something a user sees online in an app, they can use Android Pay to purchase it right then and there, and they can do the same thing even when they are shopping at actual retail stores.

Android Pay is not the only useful feature coming via the 6.0 update, as users will also be granted access to Now on Tap. Now on Tap is a pretty straightforward addition. Instead of Android users needing to log in to their phones and tablets just to access Google Now, they can now just simply hold down the home button on their home devices and they will be granted immediate access to the program.

Even though the Android Marshmallow is expected to bring mostly good things along with welcome tweaks and fixes that the operating system has badly needed, there are still some aspects of it that are causing people some concern.

According to Re/Code, the most recent versions of the Android updates have been particularly vulnerable to security breaches thanks to a software bug known as Stagefright.

As of now, it is unclear if the upcoming Android 6.0 Marshmallow update will finally be able to fix the security problems that have been plaguing the operating system for a while now, but if not, then it could prove to be the one very prominent black eye for the new arrival.

The Android 6.0 Marshmallow update will be released this fall.