Xiaomi Mi A1 tipped to get Android 8.1 Oreo soon: Beta ROM now available to testers

Google released the Android Oreo 8.1 to Pixel series and it has made its way several phones since then. But, Xiaomi Mi A1, despite being the Android One series phone has not received the latest update. Now, it looks the company is finally getting ready to release the software.

The company has started seeding Android Oreo 8.1 beta ROM to testers via OTA (Over-The-Air). Usually, phone makers take a month to test the software before the rolling out to the public. So, Xiaomi Mi A1 owners may have wait until mid-July to experience the Google's chocolate-milk cookie-flavour OS on their device.

Having said that, Google and Xiaomi are setting a bad precedent with the Mi A1 because one of the two key aspects of Android One programme is the timely release of firmware update and the other is the pure Android experience. They need not do any tinkering to make it work on a device as it built to run pure OS with no skin on top like we see in other branded phones. There has to be accountability on the part of the company and come out clean on why there was more than six months delay.

Here's what's coming in Android 8.1 Oreo

• Android v8.1 Oreo update will bring latest Google security patch
• New Browser feature to detect when users unknowingly go to malicious URLs, and it will stop any espionage attempts on the phone.
• It also comes with new biometric security options that will allow the user to disable fingerprint reader if an unregistered fingerprint tries to open the phone more than a pre-set number of attempts.
• New Oreo firmware will bring value-added battery management feature that will allow the user to see the battery life status of the wireless earphones, so he or she can know beforehand to charge them before heading out.
• Google's Android team has also added Neural Networks API (NNAPI) support in v8.1 Oreo, which will enable device's machine-learning capabilities to improve user-experience of Google Assistant's personalized recommendations to the device owners. But, we are not sure if mid-range phones like Xiaomi Mi A1 have the compatible hardware to run NNAPI.

Stay tuned. Follow us @IBTimesIN_Tech on Twitter and on Google News for latest updates on Xiaomi and Google Android update release schedule.