ZTE gives Android Oreo beta update to Axon 7 users in US

Chinese smartphone-maker ZTE had announced in December 2017 that Axon 7 will be updated to Android Oreo 8.0 anytime in 2018. However, the company had not disclosed any specific timeline for the rollout. ZTE US has now confirmed that the Android Oreo update for Axon 7 users will be available as early as April.

According to GizmoChina's report, Axon 7 users in the US, who are the part of the company's beta program, have already started getting the beta build.

This Android beta update is said to come with Google's January security patch. However, there is no information available when the final build will be released. It seems that ZTE is working hard to keep its promise of rolling out Oreo 8.0 update in early April.

The Android 8.0 Oreo will bring some new features to Axon 7 such as Picture-in-Picture, notification dots, project Treble, smart text selection and many more. Reports suggest that by the time Android Oreo 8.0 hits Axon 7, the phone will have crossed the two-year time limit that most OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) adhere to for rolling out updates.

ZTE Axon 7 was launched in May 2016 with the Android Marshmallow out-of-the-box. Later in 2017, the smartphone was updated to Android 7.0 Nougat. Now, users will get to experience the latest Android OS on their devices. 

Moreover, ZTE is also looking forward to rolling out Android Oreo 8.0 to Axon 7 Mini and Axon 7s smartphones. For now, only the US market will see this beta update and there are no details when other countries like the UK and India will receive the update.

ZTE Axon 7 specifications

ZTE Axon 7 boasts of a 5.5-inch AMOLED WQHD display with a resolution of 2560x1440 pixels. The smartphone is powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 SoC paired with an Adreno 530 GPU, paired with 4GB and 6GB RAM.

ZTE Axon 7 is available in three variants -- 64GB variant with 4GB of RAM, 128GB variant with 4GB of RAM, and 128GB variant with 6GB of RAM. The smartphone comes with a 20-megapixel rear camera with a f/1.8 aperture along with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) and dual-LED flash.

On the front, the handset sports an 8-megapixel selfie shooter along with a front flash for better lighting in low light conditions. Axon 7 also comes with a Quick-charge 3.0 support and packs a 3,250mAh battery.