OnePlus launches its own version of monthly Pixel Drops, sort of

Google’s Pixel drop updates are a great way to continue to add beneficial features to users without waiting for major Android updates, and it seems that OnePlus agrees with the concept. The company has announced a new monthly update series that will add extra features to its software and in-house apps. The new program begins this month and contains two versions for August marked U120P01 and U120P02, respectively.

To be clear, this isn’t the same thing as a typical OTA update and is independent of typical security patches and OS upgrades. There also doesn’t appear to be any way to flash it manually like you could with other types of updates. It also doesn’t roll out the way typical OTAs do, as the company says it will introduce monthly updates in phases to “ensure a smooth and stable installation for all users” and admits this current update might not reach everyone until as late as September 6.

Even if it’s not billed as an OTA, you’ll see pull down the update through the same process as always by going to Settings > About Device > OxygenOS and checking for any updates.

Before you get too excited, it’s important to temper your expectations here. While Pixel drops often have pretty exciting additions from time to time, it seems that OnePlus’ equivalent is much more minimal at least for the first time around. The update includes some system stability improvements that are specific to OnePlus, as well as a change to the Calculator that optimizes the Unit converter interface to make it neater and more intuitive.

None of these changes are particularly big or exciting, which makes us wonder why they couldn’t have been packed into a typical security patch. This is especially true right now, as there’s already an August security patch rolling out to select OnePlus devices. The answer is likely down to the fact OnePlus only commits to releasing security patches on a 90-day basis for most of its devices, so it might see this as a way to fix in-house issues faster without having to deal with the Android-specific parts of a true security patch.

While we’d all rather see more frequent security updates instead, here’s hoping this new program evolves into something more meaningful and useful.