Why hasn't OnePlus delivered Android 13 to all OnePlus 10 Pro users yet?

OnePlus isn’t exactly known for its smooth update rollouts. But owners of the OnePlus 10 Pro hoped that wouldn’t be the case for the Android 13 update. Unfortunately, the situation appears to be way messier than expected as the update has yet to reach all OnePlus 10 Pro devices.

On the OnePlus Community page, a user who goes by Bobbie63 posted a thread to ask some questions about what’s going on with updates on the OnePlus 10 Pro. In the thread, the user lays out a timeline for all the updates released since the first open beta of Oxygen OS 13 (OOS 13) — OnePlus’s version of Android 13.

As the user points out, the company first released the stable version of OOS 13 on September 20. Six days later, OnePlus pushed out an update for OOS 12 with the August security patch for India, North America, the EU, and globally. In the following three days, OnePlus released an OOS 13 update for India, North America, and the EU, which people who are still on OOS 12 didn’t receive.

The thread goes on to highlight how the company continuously skipped delivering updates to certain markets over the months. A trend developed where OnePlus was delivering OOS 12 and OOS 13 updates simultaneously, instead of getting everybody on the latest version of Android. And as a result, the OnePlus 10 Pro community splintered into those who have OOS 13 and those who don’t. Which begs the question, why?

According to the thread, OnePlus responded to another poster with a similar question asking about OnePlus’s two-path approach:

This is indeed normal. The OOS13 launch is an incremental push, and during this period, the team will continue to push OOS12 builds to the members. This is done so we can ensure the system security and user experience of the devices of people who are still using OOS12.

While that explanation does make some sense, it fails to explain a few things. As Bobbie63 mentions, if OnePlus cared about security, then why did the company not deliver security updates across the board? Some markets didn’t receive a new update for months. The answer also doesn’t reveal when those who are still waiting can expect OOS 13 to arrive.

At the moment, our own sources within the community who bought the 10 Pro through North American carriers and are eligible for OOS 13 say they have yet to receive the update. If this is indeed an incremental push, OnePlus is really taking its sweet time.