OnePlus Nord N10 5G Android 11 Rolls Out As Its First And Last Upgrade
The OnePlus Nord series is a bit of a double-edged sword for the company. On the one hand, its decision to launch affordable mid-range phones in certain markets has been warmly received. On the other hand, there has been major dissatisfaction with its commitment to the phones' software. That is commitment will be greatly tested in the OnePlus Nord N10 5G, which has finally started receiving OxygenOS 11 with Android 11, marking the beginning and the end for the phone's Android upgrades.
The OnePlus Nord N10 itself was already an oddity. Along with the 4G-only OnePlus Nord N100, it was the only OnePlus Nord model made available in the US market last year, skipping the original OnePlus Nord that had better specs. Despite the mid-range hardware, these still sold well in the US that OnePlus decided to use the same formula with the OnePlus Nord N200 5G.
The OnePlus Nord N10's success came even after the almost damning confirmation that the phone would receive only one major Android upgrade and two years of security updates. Although it already launched in late 2020, the phone still came only with 2019's Android 10 instead of Android 11. That means that the one and only upgrade it would receive will be the Android version it should have launched with in the first place.
For better or worse, that upgrade is now starting to roll out to some Metro by T-Mobile customers and a few T-Mobile subscribers. It's still unofficial, as far as the carrier is concerned, so it's no surprise there isn't a changelog or announcement yet. Owners of unlocked OnePlus Nord N10 models don't see any update available, which in itself is quite ironic.
OnePlus has received a lot of flak for its software commitment for the OnePlus Nord series, and it remains to be seen if it will cave into the pressure. For now, OnePlus Nord N10 owners will just have to wait for their first and last upgrade, an upgrade that itself is earning some harsh criticism for its bugs and heavy changes to the once-beloved OxygenOS experience.