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Nothing brings Android 15 Beta 1 to its budget phone, but not its flagship
- Nothing has announced it is one of the Android partners in the Android 15 Developer Preview program.
- App developers and advanced users can install Android 15 Beta on the Nothing Phone 2a to test their app compatibility.
- This build includes the Glyph SDK support, Nothing wallpapers, and boot animation but is missing other Nothing OS customization.
Android 15 is the flavor of the season, and we’re holding our breath to hear more from Google at Google I/O this week. Before Google makes its announcements, OEMs have begun announcing their participation in the Android 15 Developer Preview Program as an OEM partner. This program gives app developers more choices to test their Android 15 app compatibility. Tecno and OnePlus have announced themselves as partners, and now Nothing is also announcing the same, but curiously with the new Nothing Phone 2a.
Nothing has announced that it is one of the Android partners offering early access to Android 15, but it is doing so through the mid-range Phone 2a. App developers and advanced users can install Android 15 Beta 1 on the Nothing Phone 2a to experience the latest OS and test their apps on it.
The company notes the build includes Glyph SDK support, Nothing wallpapers, Nothing boot animation, and the Android 15 Beta 1 tag (including all the changes from the first beta already available for Google Pixel devices). However, beyond these, there are no more pre-installed Nothing apps and customizations (i.e., Nothing X, Weather, Launcher, Recorder, and Widgets are absent). This shouldn’t be an issue for developers anyway, but it is a further reminder that this build is not for the average user who bought the Nothing Phone 2a to experience Nothing’s unique customization features.
Upgrading to this Android 15 Beta 1 build could appear daunting, but it is surprisingly straightforward if you follow the instructions. Still, we reiterate that this is not intended for people who use the Phone 2a as their daily driver, as the beta is likely unstable and contains bugs. You should also back up your data before proceeding.
Curiously, Nothing is choosing their budget Phone 2a instead of their flagship Phone 2 as the candidate for offering Android 15 beta builds. Many Android partners prefer opting into the Developer Preview program through their flagships.
If you want Android 15 in stable form on your Nothing Phone, you’ll have to wait a few more months for Android 15 to be released in stable form in the first place, and then probably some more for Nothing to adapt Nothing OS to the new base.