OnePlus 3 and 3T get their very last updates following three years of software support (Update: Downloads)
by Ryne HagerBack in 2016, the OnePlus 3 was a shock to the smartphone market, following up on the underwhelming OnePlus 2 with flagship-grade specs at a disruptive $400 price. Sadly, it's the end of an era for both it and the spec-bumped Oneplus 3T, as the pair of phones are getting their very last update.
The full changelog for the OxygenOS 9.0.6 update for the Oneplus 3 and 3T is rather sparse, and just below:
System
- Updated Android security patch to 2019.10
- General bug fixes and improvements
- Updated GMS apps
There isn't a lot to it, with a bump to October's security patch level, the latest Google apps, and the ubiquitous but undefined "bug fixes and improvements" almost every update gets.
OnePlus' forum announcement is explicit that this is expected to be the last update for the pair of phones:
This will be the last update for these two devices and we can't thank you enough for your invaluable feedback throughtout [sic] these three years. With your support, we improved Oxygen OS across three major Android versions and dozens of updates. This is not the end for the OnePlus 3 and 3T, though. Starting next week, we will start highlighting some of great work done by the developer community, for those of you considering to have a go at Custom ROMs.
For context, the OnePlus 3 was released in June of 2016, while the 3T came out later that same year in November — kicking off the twice-yearly, tick-tock release schedule the company has been fond of since. Last year, OnePlus guaranteed 24 months of Android version updates and 36 months for all the phones it still supported at the time. For comparison, Google now promises three years of Android version updates and three years of security updates for its Pixels.
This news actually means that, as of now, the OnePlus 3 has received software support for longer than the promised 36-month window, likely riding the coattails of the nearly-identical Oneplus 3T for a few extra months of support.
My personal OnePlus 3 was working until just a few months ago (when a battery swap resulted in a boot loop), but up until the end, it was still a snappy device whose performance belied its age. Those of you still trucking along with a OnePlus 3 or 3T won't be left out in the cold entirely, either. The company plans to eventually highlight a handful of Custom ROMs you can switch to, a process that's relatively easy on OnePlus phones.
In the meantime, this last update is set to start rolling out over the next few days/weeks. If you'd like to pull it down early, it may be available through the third-party Oxygen Updater app.
Update 1: 2019/11/29 2:34am PST by Rita El Khoury
As promised, the update is now live for the OnePlus 3 and 3T. If you don't get the OTA notification and are anxious to install it on your phone straight away, you can grab and flash the software from the links below:
End of Update
Source:
OnePlus