Don't worry - Google's confirmed a new Nexus device will appear this year

The popular Nexus range was thought to be under threat from a new direction by Google – but it's now been confirmed that it's not only alive and kicking, but something new is in the works.

Speaking to ReadWrite, Dave Burke, the head of Android engineering and the Nexus program at Google, confirmed that the brand is still 'invested in Nexus'.

The worry is that the new range of Android Silver phones – supposed to be launched in 2015 and feature high-end handsets from all the major manufacturers, from Samsung to HTC to Sony and further – would negate the need for a Nexus phone, as they would all run stock Android.

Burke said 'Android Silver is not something we are not commenting on right now,' both dismissing the notion that it would destroy the chance of new Nexus devices and confirming the mooted Silver range is real.

Nex(t)us

But it seems that Google needs the Nexus range of phones and tablets, as the hardware and software teams work together in tandem to create a new release of Android – and that's not changed with the launch of Android L.

Burke told ReadWrite: "When we are working, there are sort of two outputs. We're building a Nexus device and we're building the open source code.

"There is no way you can build the open source code without the phone or tablet or whatever you are building. You have to live and breathe the code you are developing."

He went on to say that Nexus is a 'statement of purity', a chance to show how the brand wants Android to look, and reiterated that the Nexus range isn't coming to an end any time soon.

What was interesting is that he used the word 'device' as a singular – given we've seen a lot of information regarding both a Nexus 6 and Nexus 8 device, it would have made sense that both would be refreshed later this year when Android L drops, but are we only in line to see one?