Nothing has announced via a community post the next stage in their beta program: the release of the first open beta of Nothing OS 2.5 for the Nothing Phone (2). The update includes a number of new features and improvements, as well as an exclusive preview of Android 14.
Just as the company did with Android 13 and as promised earlier this year once Google began the Android 14 Beta Program, Nothing has now officially announced that the beta for Nothing OS 2.5 is ready for the public to test. This announcement follows a Developer Preview that became available back in May for Phone (1).
This beta build introduces Android 14 to Nothing Phone (2) owners that don’t mind testing software and reporting bugs at the expense of coming across some possible issues with the user experience or with functionality. Since Nothing OS is a proprietary version of Android specific to Nothing phones, the features and improvements found in this update are both exclusive to Nothing and general on the latest Android OS.
Nothing OS Exclusive Features
- Updated the widgets library interface so Nothing widgets appear more clearly.
- New photos widget, allowing you to display your favourite photos on both your Home Screen and Lock Screen.
- New screenshot editor and menu, allowing for more advanced editing features and quick deletions.
- Updated design of back gesture to be more in line with Nothing’s style.
- Added the option to hide app icons on the Home Screen and app drawer. Swipe right in the app drawer to reveal hidden app icons.
- Capture screenshots quickly with a three-finger swipe.
- Customise the double-press power button to quickly access a chosen feature.
- Redesigned a joint Home Screen and Lock Screen customization page for a more comprehensive view of options.
- Introduced the glass filter to make your favorite wallpapers extra unique.
- New solid color wallpapers for a cleaner Home Screen appearance.
Android 14 Features
- Added a monochrome color theme in the basic colour section.
- New back gesture while interacting with apps
- Updated Quick Settings layout and added Nothing earbuds icons.
- More Lock Screen shortcut options including do not disturb, mute, QR code scanner and video camera.
- Made it possible to set ringtone and notification sound volumes separately, with an updated volume control interface.
- Added regional settings so you can customize your unit and number preferences
To download and install Nothing OS 2.5 Open Beta 1 on your Nothing Phone (2), you must already have Nothing OS 2.0.3 installed, which is the version that rolled out last month. However, the update does not happen OTA (over-the-air) and requires downloading and installing an APK file directly from your phone. The instructions and the installation file download can be found here in the Nothing Community blog.
Additionally, since this is beta software and things can most definitely go wrong, the company has also provided instructions on how to perform a rollback to the previous version. Be aware though, that rolling back will result in your phone being wiped back to its factory settings, resulting in data loss.
