Newsletter
Android 14 is now available for Nothing’s first smartphone, the Nothing Phone (1). The big update is rolling out with Nothing OS 2.5.2. Users who participated in the company’s Android 14 beta program will get the update first, followed by those on stable Android 13. The rollout should be completed in the next few days.
Nothing Phone (1) gets Android 14 with Nothing OS 2.5.2
The Android 14-based Nothing OS 2.5.2 brings a host of new features and functional improvements to the Nothing Phone (1). The company has added new home screen and lock screen customization options, wallpaper, wallpaper effects, and themes to give you more ways to personalize your phone.
The Glyph Interface, which is the main USP of Nothing phones, has been improved to synchronize better with the device’s audio. There is also a new Glyph animation for NFC, while you now get direct access to the Glyph Interface’s Music Visualisation feature. Nothing has also improved the Flip to Glyph experience.
For those of you into gestures, you can now customize what a double-press of the power button does. Nothing OS 2.5.2 also lets you add shortcut gestures for Do Not Disturb, Mute, QR code scanner, and video camera to the lock screen. A three-finger swipe gesture will take screenshots, with Nothing giving you a new screenshot editor too. The firm has also redesigned the back gesture arrow visual.
The Quick Settings panel gets an updated layout with support for more icons, including buttons to switch ring modes. It also lets you access your network settings without unlocking the device. If you like to place widgets on the home screen, there are a few more options to pick from. You can now add widgets for the step counter, media player, and screen time.
Other highlights of Android 14 for the Nothing Phone (1) include an improved Weather app, an updated volume control interface with separate controls for ringtone and notification sound volumes, automatic exclusion of screenshot previews when taking continuous screenshots, improved camera stability, enhanced system stability and smoothness, and improved battery life.
Back up important files and data before installing the update
Android 14 should soon reach all eligible Nothing Phone (1) units globally. While the update shouldn’t delete data, some users who installed it say their phone was formatted. So, it might be a better idea to back up important files and data before installing the update. Some others have also noticed stutters when using Quick Settings. The update seems to be pretty stable otherwise. You can check for it from the Settings app.