Nothing users have been waiting months for their Android 16 update, and the company has finally revealed when it’s happening. After testing Nothing OS 4.0 through an open beta that began in late October, the brand has now confirmed the public rollout will begin this Friday, November 21. It made the announcement via the Nothing Community site, thanking beta testers for their feedback and promising “the wait is nearly over.”
Much like the central theme of UIs this year, Nothing is calling this Android 16 release ‘Flow’, reflecting a smoother, more natural-feeling interface. Incidentally, iOS 26 brought in a new design language for iPhones called ‘Liquid Glass’, also denoting smoother, flowing elements. Vivo’s OriginOS 6, which debuts on Vivo phones worldwide as Funtouch OS phases out, also wants to give users a fluid experience with its UI.
Nothing OS 4.0 retains the company’s minimalist visual identity but makes a few practical enhancements. Extra Dark Mode makes using late at night more comfortable and may help with battery life on OLED screens. Pop-Up View introduces easier floating-window multitasking. A new condensed 2×2 quick settings tile layout cleans up the notification shade. Personalisation for the lock screen is enhanced with two new clock face options. Nothing Playground, an evolution of Essential Apps, gives users a way to create and share small widgets and apps that can help personalise the phone without relying on heavy apps.
Camera improvements trickle down the lineup too. The Nothing Phone 2 series gets the Stretch feature from the Phone (3) range, which subtly reframes and corrects photos without any need for manual editing. One of the debated features is the Lock Glimpse, a glanceable lock screen panel surfacing updates and relevant content in a timely manner. Nothing underlined that this feature is fully optional; it is turned off by default on the Phone 3a series, and users can easily turn it off or tweak it on all supported models.
While Nothing hasn’t officially published the list of finally supported devices, the open beta gives us an idea. Nothing OS 4.0 is already in testing on the Nothing Phone (3), Phone (3a) and (3a) Pro, Phone (2), Phone (2a) and (2a) Plus, and the CMF Phone 2 Pro. These are probably the models that will get the stable update on day one. The newer Phone (3a) Lite should join the list too, as should some CMF models that come with Nothing OS and still have guaranteed Android upgrades remaining.
All phones released before the Phone (3) are guaranteed three major Android updates. The oldest model to get Nothing OS 4.0 is the Nothing Phone (2). The Phone (1) has already reached the end of its update window and will not move beyond its current Android version.
Nothing OS 4.0 will be the final big update for the Phone (2) and CMF Phone 1. The Phone (2a) family should receive updates up to Android 17, while the Phone (3a) series and the CMF Phone 2 Pro have two major updates ahead of them. Meanwhile, the flagship Phone (3) remains Nothing’s best-supported device with five years of OS updates and an additional two years of security patches.
