Nokia 8 Starts Receiving Android 8.1 Oreo Beta Update, HMD Global Confirms

HMD Global is now rolling out the latest Android 8.1 Oreo Beta update to its flagship smartphone, the Nokia 8 via the company's beta program, Nokia Phones Beta Labs. Meanwhile, HMD Global released the latest Android 8.1 Oreo update on Tuesday for the beta testers and the company's Chief product officer Juho Sarvikas made the announcement on Twitter.

Sarvikas in a tweet on Tuesday confirmed the Nokia 8 will receive Android 8.1 Oreo. He wrote, "Be our guest as we serve #AndroidOreo 8.1 beta for #Nokia8. Updating your device today will enable a host of new features." He also added, "the hamburger emoji fix with cheese now on top of the patty."

The Nokia 8 smartphone with Snapdragon 835 SoC running Android 7.1.1 Nougat out-of-the-box was launched in India in September 2017. Its Android 8.0 Oreo update began rolling out in November last year. Meanwhile, Android 8.1 introduces a variety of new features and capabilities for users and developers. The new features include Neural Networks API, new Settings and Power menu, developer APIs (API level 27), along with the latest optimisations, bug fixes, and security patches.

The Android 8.1 Oreo Beta is version 4.82A and the update size is 1553.9MB. To be a beta tester for the Nokia 8 Android 8.1 Oreo update, users will have to head to the Nokia phone beta labs page, and sign up with their Google account. After registering with IMEI number and other details, Nokia 8 users will get Android 8.1 Oreo software update notification within hours of registration. The update is rolled out over-the-air.

The Nokia 8 is powered comes with 4GB of RAM and packs 64GB of internal storage that can be expanded up to 256GB via a microSD card. As far as the cameras are concerned, the Nokia 8 packs a 13-megapixel primary camera on the rear and a 13-megapixel front shooter for selfies. The Nokia 8 and is powered by a 3090mAh non-removable battery.

In other news, HMD Global had said that it will directly provide Android 8.1 Oreo to the Nokia 2 handset. The budget smartphone was launched in October last year and came to India in November.