[Galaxy Note 4 Android Development (Exynos)] jpbl1976:
It occurred to me that Sammy may have purposely delayed the update to late March/April for the Note 4 (look around the forums: only a handful of Note 4 variants have gotten Lollipop) in order to boost sales of the SGS6:

1. As far as the Note 4's concerned, Sammy have likely already seen the majority of the sales they can expect from this SKU;

2. They need the SGS6 to become as successful as possible; don't be surprised if Sammy is providing quite a bit of a subsidy to telcos to push the SGS6

3. The Note 4 is now cheaper in the parallel and retail channels -- it's unlikely to underperform the SGS6 significantly performance-wise (these days, most Top-end smartphones have similar levels of performance, barring a few quirks here and there... ***cough*** Note 4 recents apps ***cough***). With its aluminium frame, bigger screen, S-Pen functionality and a similar camera (I've read that the Note 4 and SGS6 use the same camera module), the Note 4 provides an intriguing alternative to people who don't want to pay an early adopter's premium for Sammy's latest device while still giving them access to a premium built flagship unit.

So what's one way of skewing the odds further in your new flagship's favour? That's right: give it the latest software and create some uncertainty regarding the upgrade path for your older flagship. That way, you neutralise some of the internal friction. In the case of the SGS5, there wasn't any reason for delaying Lollipop: you actually WANT to give it the latest software to enable your telco and retail partners a better chance to move old stock. I mean, isn't it odd that our VERY CAPABLE NOTE 4 HARDWARE is among the last to receive the Lollipop update among Samsung's flagship lineup?

I'm not really sure I buy the "we had issues with the software" line that we've seen in related articles for the simple reason that Samsung has released buggy updates to a wider array of variants in the past. I'm more willing to believe there are commercial reasons for their decision, given their poor earnings and how much is riding on the success of their new flagship. It would be a simple thing for someone in sales and marketing to call operations and support and say: "look, we need to sell as many Galaxy S 6's as possible but the Note 4's competing -- why not delay its Lollipop variant to give it a bit an edge, eh?"

Of course, they couldn't OUTRIGHT delay it for every single variant -- that would create considerable customer disaffection and might have even resulted in class-action suits -- but by releasing it to a few variants, they have plausible cover: "we released it in January, as we promised we would -- but there were issues with the update and so we pulled back a bit to get our ducks in a row." Their Telco providers would've been fine with it: they can potentially make more from the SGS6 -- look at the bloody prices they're charging for it (more expensive than the Note 4 at launch in some cases) and consider that Sammy gives these guys huge subsidies on its flagships.

I seriously believe that factored into the Lollipop delay. It isn't even tin-foil hat thinking: there are compelling commercial reasons for it.

NOTE: Sorry, not-i, don't want to spam your thread. Just wanted to add 2-cents regarding the 3-month delay (and counting) in the release of Lollipop for our device.