Nothing Phone 1 runs a relatively lightweight, skinned version of Android called Nothing OS. Since the release of the Nothing Phone 1, the company has done a great job keeping things up to date and has issued a number of improvements as well. Now, the company has made its Android 14 beta available for its handset as part of its Developer Preview Program, giving users an early look at the experience.
This version of Android 14 is still early in development and as such, could have features missing or issues in general. This beta build is meant for developers in order to test out applications on the Nothing Phone 1 running Android 14. Of course, it’s not restricted to just developers, so if you’re brave enough to load it, just understand that things could go wrong and Nothing nor XDA are responsible. Before loading the Android 14 beta, it’s recommended to back up critical files you have on your phone that you don’t want to lose. During the process, the update process the phone will be reverted to factory state, and any personal information on the phone will be lost.
Known issues
Source: Nothing
As of now, there are a few known issues with the Android 14 build for Nothing Phone 1. The Nothing Android 14 beta build website lists a number of problems with fingerprints registration, face unlock, the Glyph feature, and more. It’s probably a good idea to look at the full list below.
- Fingerprints can’t be registered
- Face unlock unavailable
- Glyph features unavailable
- Battery sharing unavailable
- No Portrait Mode or slow motion feature in the camera app
- No pre-installed Nothing Weather and Nothing X apps
- Screencast to TV connection unavailable
If the warning and the issues above aren’t enough to deter you, follow the steps below to download and install the beta.
How to upgrade to the Android 14 Developer Preview on Nothing Phone 1
You can begin the process by getting your phone ready for the Android 14 update. You’ll need to follow the steps in order to get the local update tool to pop up. First, be sure to backup your phone’s data. Once you’re done, you can hop in.
- Be sure that your phone is on the latest Nothing OS with version 1.5.4.
- If the phone is up-to-date, create a folder in internal storage called ota.
- Download the Android 14 Beta update package
- Move the Android 14 Beta update package to the ota folder.
Source: Nothing
- Now, open your phone’s dialer and enter code #*#682#*#*. This will open the local update tool.
Source: Nothing
- The local update tool will automatically be set to scan the ota folder for an update.
- If it doesn’t come up, just refresh by tapping the reload button.
- If you do not have the correct file, there will be an error message.
- Once set, tap the Directly apply OTA from selection button to begin the update process.
- Keep the phone on and on the local updater screen.
Source: Nothing
- When complete, you will see a message that states “Update OTA Success.” This will confirm proper installation.
- After you reboot, you should boot into Android 14.
Revert to Android 13
Even if you load into Android 14, you can still revert to Android 13. Of course, you will lose information stored on the phone, so be sure to back up your data before you proceed. If you want to revert, just follow the steps above, and instead of the Android 14 package, just load in the roll-back package. Follow the same process and if all goes well, you should restart back into Android 13. As stated before, Android 14 isn’t perfect yet, so there are going to be issues. But if this isn’t your primary device, and you want to give it a go, you’re always welcome to do so. If you need help, be sure to check out our Nothing Phone 1 XDA Forums.
