One of the primary reasons why some people love Nokia Android phones is because they promise quick updates to the Android software. HMD Global is always quick to push updates for its top of the line Nokia phones and for those who love the stock Android experience that Nokia offers, nothing could be better. One of the most successful Nokia devices out there is the Nokia 8.1 and the good news is that this device has started receiving the Android Q Beta 5 update. It is worth noting that the Nokia 8.1 is part of the Android Q Beta programme. As such, to upgrade to the Android Q Beta 5 build, the users will need to be at least on the Android Q Beta 3. For the people running the stable version of Android 9 Pie and wanting to upgrade to the latest version of Android, the wait is a little longer.
Nokia 8.1 Android Q Beta Build 5 Seeding Now
Chief Product Officer at HMD Global took to Twitter to announce the seeding of this new update. The company executive noted, “Dear developers! The latest Android Q developer preview (Beta 5) is now available on the Nokia 8.1. Get ready to summon Google Assistant with just a swipe from either of the bottom corners of the device.” As per HMD Global, the new Android Q Beta 5 build for Nokia 8.1 will bring the July 2019 Android Security Patch onboard the device. Like usually it is the case with Beta builds and Developer Previews, the update will have to be installed manually. Currently, there is no way for novice users to install this update via the OTA method.
Swipe from Bottom Corners to Summon Google Assistant
One of the notable features that Google has added with the fifth Beta build of Android Q is a new way of summoning the Google Assistant. Now the Google Assistant can be summoned simply by swiping from any of the bottom corners of the screen. If the users are using the gestural navigation system on their Nokia 8.1, then this would be a relatively easy way of summoning the Google Assistant. But, there is a slight catch that Nokia 8.1 users should note of. HMD Global has said that the swipe function to summon the Google Assistant would only be available on select models of Nokia 8.1 which would include TA-1119, TA-1121, and the TA-1128. If you are currently reading this from any of the above-mentioned models, then you are good to go for the Beta 5 build of Android Q.
In case you are not sure, you can also head over to Settings > System > About Phone > Model & Hardware to check whether or not your phone supports the feature. Now it goes without saying that since it is one of the Beta builds of Android Q, don’t be surprised if you run into few bugs while using the device with Android Q Beta 5.
