Now that the Android 13 beta is out, I thought it'd be a good idea to download and install the thing - my job is to test tech, after all, and I wanted to see what upgrades it might bring.

So I dutifully booted up a Google Pixel 6 Pro that was ready and waiting in the TechRadar office, enrolled it in the beta program, and settled in to test out the new Google-built software...

...but after doing so, I really don't think you should, especially if you're doing it on your daily smartphone.

Avoid Android 13's beta

My first warning sign about the Android 13 beta was when I set my phone up to download and install it - the process took over two hours.

I had to leave my phone alone for over 120 minutes as it downloaded the 2.14GB file at an excruciating rate, and then installed it even slower - admittedly our office Wi-Fi being awful was no help here.

But I didn't want to touch my phone until it was complete, for fear of breaking something, so the device was a write-off until then.

Annoying new features

One of the big new Android 13 features is changes to security and permissions in apps, and from my time testing the beta, this is the most apparent one... in the most annoying way.

You see, in Android you always have to give apps permission for certain functions, but now there are even more to allow. I had to accept five different things just to send a story on Instagram.

And you might argue 'more options give people more controls over their privacy' - but who's going to be reading and researching the permissions if you're asked five different times? Most users will just rapidly tap that 'accept' button until the options go away.

Changes to Material You, including easier ways to use it, are one change I do like in Android 13. But there aren't enough changes right now to convince me that the download was a good idea.

Wait until the full update

I'm not saying Android 13 won't be worth the data it takes to download - nothing of the sort. The beta I tested today is a very early build - the first public one, in fact - and it doesn't necessarily represent the finished software.

Because of that, and the lack of meaningful changes, and the stability issues that happen with any software beta that could lead to a loss of data, I wouldn't recommend downloading the Android 13 beta to most people. Wait for the full version.

Oh, and there isn't even an Android 13 easter egg at the moment - you can trigger the Android 12 one, but that's it.

Luckily, I only downloaded Android 13 onto a side-phone, so it won't affect my day-to-day experience in the slightest - but if you install it onto your main device, I forsee you regretting that decision.

Oppo Find X5 and Find X5 Pro could have disappointingly familiar cameras

If you were hoping for big camera upgrades on the Oppo Find X5 range then you might be disappointed, as it’s looking increasingly likely that the Find X5 and the Find X5 Pro will have very similar setups to their predecessors.

That’s because both phones have been listed on the Camera FV-5 database, and their main snappers sound near-identical to those on the Oppo Find X3 range.

Both the Oppo Find X5 (listed here as the CPH2307 ) and the Oppo Find X5 Pro (listed as the CPH2305 ) supposedly have a 50MP main camera outputting 12.6MP pixel-binned images.

Both are also listed as having optical image stabilization, just like their predecessors, and the standard Find X5 is even shown to have the same aperture of f/1.8. The Find X5 Pro might be ever so slightly different, as its aperture is shown as f/1.7.

The front camera also looks identical to the Find X3 range, as for both models it’s listed as being a 32MP f/2.4 one (outputting 8.1MP pixel-binned images).

The other lenses aren’t included in this listing, but based on earlier leaks we expect those to largely line up with last year’s models too, including a 50MP ultra-wide, a 13MP telephoto, and likely a 3MP microscope camera for the Pro model.

Oh, and if you’re wondering how we know the phones in this database are the Oppo Find X5 and the Find X5 Pro, those model numbers were also mentioned in a TRDA certification listing spotted by MySmartPrice , and they were there alongside the names of the phones.

The existence of these listings also suggests these phones will land soon, but we already knew that because Oppo itself has confirmed that the Find X5 range will be revealed before the end of March.

Analysis: no upgrades? No problem

Assuming this and other leaks are right, the camera upgrades on the Oppo Find X5 range could be slim to none, but that might not be a big problem for the brand, as the competition doesn’t seem to be doing too much in the way of upgrades either.

From a hardware perspective, the cameras on the OnePlus 10 Pro appear very similar to those on the OnePlus 9 Pro , while leaks suggest the same will be true of the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra compared to the Galaxy S21 Ultra .

Some phones are getting bigger changes, with the Xiaomi 12 differing a fair bit from the Xiaomi Mi 11 on the camera front, and the cheaper Samsung Galaxy S22 models likely to differ from their predecessors, but certainly at the top end it seems less is changing.

That’s perhaps okay as a buyer too though, because the Oppo Find X3 Pro already has fantastic cameras, and there’s no guarantee that any changes would be for the better.

Via GSMArena

Nothing Phone (1): everything we know so far

"This will be a pivotal moment." That's how Nothing founder, Carl Pei, billed his firm's first major keynote where the Nothing Phone (1) was officially announced.

After months of leaks, teasers and speculation – none of which really revealed much – we've now had the official name drop for the first ever Nothing phone.

Nothing (the company) held an event dubbed 'The Truth' , where it finally announced some details of its upcoming handset. But this was far from a full announcement – it was more of an extended teaser, so there's still a whole lot that we don't know.

You'll find everything that we have heard so far about the Nothing Phone (1) below though, with official details first, then leaks and rumors further down, and once we hear more we'll update this article.

Cut to the chase

Nothing Phone (1) release date and price

We know the Nothing Phone (1) is landing sometime in 'summer' 2022, which likely means between June and September. However, that's as specific as Nothing has got.

A leak previously pointed to an April launch , but we reckon it’s more likely that was referring to the teaser event we’ve just had. In any case, April is probably not when we’ll see the phone in full, since that’s not summer.

There's no news yet - official or otherwise - on what the Nothing Phone (1) might cost, and since this is the first phone in the range we can’t even really guess.

Nothing Phone (1): design

Nothing hasn't revealed much about the Nothing Phone (1) yet, in fact the company hasn't even shown the physical phone, though it has shown the emblem (in the image above) you'll find on the back of the handset.

This is a close as you'll get to seeing the new Nothing Phone (1) for now, and a brief 18 second teaser video (below) focused on the logo suggests it could be illuminated.

With the case of the phone being at least partially transparent, these lights may highlight visible components inside the device.

The transparent design follows the language of the Nothing Ear (1) – the brand's earbuds that also have transparent elements.

Nothing Phone (1): NothingOS

The Nothing Phone (1) will run the Android operating system, however it will feature a light interface overlay dubbed NothingOS.

It's designed to offer a bespoke experience (with different fonts and sounds, for example, to other Android phones) you'll still have full access to every Android app.

We are also promised that the interface will offer a "fast and smooth" experience, which really is the baseline when it comes to expectations for a smartphone in the 21st century.

Nothing founder, Carl Pei describes it as "the best of Android, combined with our iconic design language. The hub for your digital life.

"We started by keeping what you love about stock Android, and removed the bloatware."

Nothing has given us a look at handful of screenshots of it new OS, which shows a simple, clean design which certainly looks functional - if not a little dull.

While we'll have to wait until the middle of the year to get our hands on the Phone (1), we - and you - will be able to try out NothingOS beforehand.

From April, Nothing will make a launcher available on select Android handsets, to give us an early flavor of the interface.

Nothing Phone (1): power

Beyond that, we know that the Nothing Phone (1) will have a Snapdragon chipset, but we don't yet know which one.

We'd imagine though that it would be a fairly high-end phone, so the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (found in the likes of the OnePlus 10 Pro ) is a possibility - although this would push the handset's price up.

Nothing may instead, opt to price its first smartphone more competitively, which may see it use the previous gen Snapdragon 888+ or 780G chipset instead.

These are still powerful chipsets which should be able to deliver a high level of performance - although small compromises may have to be made around image processing and high-end gaming. We'll have to wait and see.

RAM is another unknown for now, but Pei did have the following to say during the firm's 'The Truth' event about the Phone (1).

"It delivers the optimal processing power and RAM for the exact app you're using, while learning from your usage.

"By caching in the RAM, the apps you use the most will launch faster. The apps you're not using, but take up resources in the background, will be closed."

Could this be a way of dealing with a smaller amount of RAM inside the phone? Probably not, and we wouldn't be surprised to see 8GB inside Phone (1).

Pei also mentioned the partnership with Qualcomm will help "to fuel phone (1)'s powerful and energy efficient experience with fast connectivity speeds" - the latter point there being a strong hint towards 5G support. Again, not exactly a surprise, but we're working on very few details at the moment.

Leaks and rumors

Prior to the initial Nothing Phone (1) reveal we had heard a few things unofficially, though largely stuff that has now become official.

We heard for example that the phone would have transparent elements , and Qualcomm itself had implied that a Snapdragon chipset would be present – which we now know will be the case. Most aspects of the Nothing Phone (1) though remain completely unknown.