Nothing has confirmed what many Phone (2) owners suspected was coming: Android 16 is the final major software update the device will ever get. The news came straight from CEO Carl Pei during a Reddit AMA, closing the book on a three-year update run that started when the phone launched back in 2023. Here’s everything confirmed so far, why it’s happening now, and what it actually changes for anyone still using the phone.
Nothing Confirms Android 16 Is the End of the Line
During a Reddit Ask Me Anything session, Carl Pei directly addressed questions from longtime Nothing users about the Phone (2)’s software future. His answer was blunt: there will be no Android 17 for the device. Android 16 is it. The phone will still receive security patches, but new operating system versions are officially off the table going forward.
This isn’t a rumor or a leak — it’s a direct statement from the company’s own CEO, which makes it about as confirmed as this kind of news gets.
A Quick Recap of the Phone (2)’s Update Journey
The Nothing Phone (2) launched in 2023 running Android 13. Since then, it has moved through three major version bumps: Android 14, Android 15, and now Android 16, which arrived as a stable release toward the end of 2025. That’s exactly three major OS updates, delivered over roughly two and a half years. Security patches are set to continue through 2027, giving the device a four-year support window in total when measured from its original launch.
Why the Chipset Is the Real Bottleneck
The reason behind the cutoff isn’t a business decision so much as a hardware limitation. Pei pointed to the Phone (2)’s Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 processor as the sticking point, explaining that Qualcomm no longer maintains the kernel version the chip depends on. Without that ongoing support from the chipmaker, building a stable Android 17 release for the phone isn’t practical.
This is a recurring issue across the Android world, not something unique to Nothing. Phone manufacturers rely on chipset vendors to keep supporting the underlying kernel code, and once that support ends, so does the manufacturer’s ability to push new Android versions — regardless of how capable the phone still feels day to day.
Carl Pei’s Candid Admission Overshadowed the Update News
The Android 16 cutoff wasn’t the only headline from the AMA. Pei also admitted that Nothing has become “strategically lazy” in certain areas of the business, a comment that quickly spread across tech media and, in some cases, overshadowed the more practical update announcement. He also acknowledged frustration from users over pre-installed apps and bloatware on recent Nothing devices, conceding that the criticism was fair.
For Phone (2) owners specifically, though, the update timeline is the detail that actually affects day-to-day use.
Did Nothing Break a Promise? Not Technically
It’s worth separating frustration from fact here. When the Phone (2) launched, Nothing promised three years of major Android updates and four years of security patches. Android 13 to 14 to 15 to 16 is exactly three upgrades, and security support is still on track to run through 2027. By the letter of the original promise, Nothing delivered exactly what it said it would.
What’s changed isn’t the promise — it’s the market around it. Three years of OS updates looked reasonable in 2023. In 2026, it looks thin.
How the Phone (2) Compares to Samsung and Google Today
This is where the criticism really lands. Samsung now commits to as many as seven years of OS updates and security patches on many of its phones, including budget models like the Galaxy A54. Google promises seven years of updates on its Pixel 8 series and newer. Even mid-range Android phones from other brands have started pushing toward five- or six-year update commitments as a competitive baseline.
Next to that, a device that stops receiving new Android versions after three years — with only security patches carrying it the rest of the way — looks noticeably behind, even if it was competitive when it first launched.
Other Nothing Devices Affected by the Cutoff
The Phone (2) isn’t alone here. The original CMF Phone 1 hits the same Android 16 ceiling, following an identical three-update lifecycle. One important exception: the Phone (2a), a lower-cost sibling released later, is still eligible for Android 17. That distinction matters a lot for anyone browsing the used market, since it’s easy to assume every device carrying “Phone (2)” branding follows the same update schedule.
Nothing’s newer flagship, the Phone (3), ships with a five-year major update pledge — a clear improvement over the Phone (2), even if it still falls short of what Samsung and Google now offer.
What This Actually Means If You Own a Phone (2)
Nothing changes immediately. The phone will keep functioning normally, and security patches will continue arriving through 2027, covering the most important protections against vulnerabilities. What you’ll miss out on going forward are new Android-level features, yearly performance and design refinements tied to major OS releases, and long-term guarantees around compatibility with apps built for newer Android APIs.
For someone planning to use the phone for another year or so, this changes very little. For someone hoping to hold onto it for four or five more years, it’s a signal to start thinking about what comes next.
What to Check Before Buying a Used Phone (2)
Anyone shopping for a secondhand Nothing Phone (2) should treat this update cutoff as a core part of the purchase decision, not a footnote. You’d be buying a device that has already reached the end of its major OS update runway. That doesn’t make it a bad phone, but it does affect long-term value compared to a similarly priced used Pixel or Galaxy device that still has years of guaranteed updates ahead of it. Double-check the exact model too — the Phone (2) and Phone (2a) are easy to confuse, but they’re on completely different update timelines.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the Nothing Phone (2) still get security updates after Android 16? Yes. Nothing has confirmed security patches will continue through 2027, even though no further major Android version updates are coming.
Why can’t the Nothing Phone (2) get Android 17? According to CEO Carl Pei, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset relies on a kernel version that Qualcomm no longer supports, making a stable Android 17 build impractical for the device.
Is the Nothing Phone (2a) affected by this same cutoff? No. The Phone (2a) is still eligible for Android 17, unlike the standard Phone (2) and the original CMF Phone 1.
Did Nothing break its update promise with the Phone (2)? No. Nothing originally promised three major Android updates and four years of security support, and the Phone (2) has received exactly that.
