You may have noticed a peculiar update to your Nexus device recently: a fresh download for the one Contacts apps.

ke has done with most of its system apps, the company is now updating these two directly from the ay Store. This gives flexibility to add in a new feature, fix a bug, or make other tweaks without pushing out an Android update.

But there was a bit of a mystery in how this was being implemented. The apps appeared for some, then were gone, then were back again, then were gone again… they don’t appear in the ay Store or in my list of previously updated apps. They updated, then promptly vanished.

reached out to to find out what was up, got the following statement:

First, a bit of background: as you probably know, one Contacts haven’t been listed on ay in the past. That means historically we’ve only been been able to update them alongside each new version of Android (ie roughly once per year).

• ’re now listing them in the ay Store so we can deliver improvements more rapidly, through ay updates.
• The apps will only be listed in the ay Store for people who already have the apps on their devices (Nexus phones, Android One, ay editions).
• So this is a structural change: it helps us make the apps better by adding new features improving the user experience.
• Given how essential they are, we’re rolling out one Contacts especially cautiously gradually. Due to the way the update system works, some users (but not all) may have seen one Contacts in ay but now can’t any longer. And due to how gradually we’re rolling them out, some users will continue to see them before others do. But we’re continuing roll-out in the days ahead, so: coming soon.

So if you have a device that runs the one Contacts app already (A Nexus device, Android One, or ay ition phone) you’ll eventually see them pop up in the ay Store. But if you’re running any other phone looking forward to downloading these stock apps, you’re still out of luck.

y this matters: It’s good news if you have a Nexus device (or are still holding onto a ay ition phone) as it means new features may come your way before everybody else waits for an Android update. ’d love to see make these apps available to all users, as the dialer contacts management tools on some phones leave a lot to be desired.