For those of you who are running the Android N Technical Preview, the first of what is likely to be many OTA updates is starting to roll out. Users of the Nexus 6, Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X are all seeing a small, 30MB update come to their phones as we speak and you should see the update hit your device soon if you haven’t already. Google has also updated the factory images that includes these updates and you can flash directly to them if you want to do so (although it is easier to just do the OTA through the Android N Beta Program). The new builds are as follows:
- Nexus 5X: NCP56W
- Nexus 6P: NCP 56W
- Nexus 6: NCP56P
- Pixel C: NCP 56P
- Nexus 9: NCP56X
- Nexus Player: NCP56R
Given the small size of this update, there likely are no new features to be found if you are running N. This, much like the security and bug fix updates each month on Marshmallow feels like a bug fix release. This, in part, is the beauty of doing the OTA updates for those who are testing as Google can now easily push fixes out quickly without testers having to reimage their phones every time a new update is released.
Even with this release however, I still do not recommend users upgrade to it unless they can live with some bugs and other issues. This is still the first beta, albeit updated a bit, and certainly is far
Android N
from fully developed.
For those who are interested, you can join the Android Beta Program and register your device to have it receive the N upgrade and updates via OTA. If you decide it is not for you, there is an option to remove your registered device and Marshmallow will be pushed back down to your device. Be warned though, doing so will format your phone so make sure you have any important data backed up and a backup copy of your phone (through your Google account).
