The Nokia X20 is HMD Global’s first device to get Android 12.
HMD Global offered its first Android 12 update this week, starting with the midrange Nokia X20. The company says users in this first wave will receive the update by December 17th.
Good. That’s what HMD said it would do, and it’s doing just that. We love to see it.
You’re forgiven if you forgot that the Nokia X20 exists — it’s a mostly unremarkable device with a 6.67-inch 60Hz display, Snapdragon 480 processor, and four rear-facing cameras. In fact, its most compelling features might just be its healthy support policy (three years of OS updates) and an unusually generous three-year warranty.
That’s a great policy in theory — as my colleague Jon Porter pointed out in his hands-on with the X20, the phone should still be under warranty when it gets Android 14. But there’s no real guarantee that HMD (or any Android device maker for that matter) will follow through with its promise of continuing OS updates. To that end, the company recently backtracked on its promise to bring Android 11 to the Nokia 9 PureView.
And generally speaking, the Android 12 rollout has been a rocky one. OnePlus pulled its buggy Android 12-based OxygenOS update for the OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3 owners have also reported issues with the stable Android 12 update. Google’s own Pixel 6 and 6 Pro appear to be afflicted, too. Even a so-called stable Android 12 release for Nokia phones could prove to be equally unstable. But if the X20 is to live up to its promised three-year lifespan, it’s certainly starting on the right foot.