8-series just got OB2, running OOS11 - with the new Ambient Display Canvas feature

There's finally an Indian build for OB2, so users in India who haven't yet installed OB2 can now switch to it without losing India-specific features
Adhiraj S. Chauhan

UPDATES

2020-10-08 13:30 IST: edited article to reflect Indian build for OB2

After a delay of 2 weeks, OnePlus finally released Indian builds. Scroll down to read more about this (after the changelog section).

2020-09-23 21:02 IST: Added link to OB2 announcement


OnePlus had released the first Developer Preview for Android 11/R earlier this year. It was only available for 8-series devices. They quickly got DP2 on 14th JulyDP3 on 12th August, and DP4 on 31st August.

On 8th September, OOS11 was promoted from Developer Preview to the Open Beta track - right on schedule! Now 8-series devices just got OB2 as well.

We've listed the changelog of both OB1 & OB2 for 8-series, so that users who haven't installed any OOS11 Open Beta build yet (or users who don't have an 8-series device) can see what's new:

Open Beta 1 changelog

  • System
    • Fresh new UI visual design brings you more comfortable experience with various optimizations of details
    • Brand new weather UI supports dynamic switches between sunrise and sunset. You can have day and night at your hand now
    • Optimized the brightness bar display in status bar, enabling you to quickly adjust it by pulling down quick settings.
  • Game space
    • Newly added gaming tools box for convenient switches of Fnatic mode, WeChat, QQ and Screen Recorder at one place (Enable it by swiping down from upper right/left corners of the screen in gaming mode)
    • Newly added mis-touch prevention feature. Enable it, swipe down from the top of the screen, click and the notification bar will pop out
  • Ambient display
    • Added Always-on ambient Display function, custom Schedule / All day option included. Path: Settings – Display – Ambient Display.
    • Added 10 new clock styles. Path: Settings – Customization – Clock Style
    • Newly added Insight clock style, a joint creation with Parsons School of Design. It will change according to the phone usage data. ( To set: Settings>Customization>Clock Style)
  • Dark mode
    • Added the shortcut key for Dark Mode, pull down the quick setting to enable.
    • Supporting automatically turn on feature & customize time range. path: Settings – Display – Dark Mode – Turn on automatically – Automatically enable from sunset to sunrise / Custom time range.
  • Zen Mode
    • Added 5 new themes (ocean, space, grassland, Zen space1,Zen space2), and more timing options.
    • Included the Group feature in Zen Mode, now you can invite your friends and enable the Zen Mode together
  • Gallery
    • Supporting Story function, automatically form weekly videos with photos and video in storage.

Open Beta 2 changelog

  • System
    • Optimized some UI display in Settings
    • Fixed the low probability issue that widgets did not respond
    • Fixed the failure to wake up Google Assistant in some cases
    • Fixed the issue that the HD icon on the call log interface was not centered
    • Fixed the black screen issue when user entered "Tips & Support" interface
    • Improved the system stability
  • Clock
    • Fixed the issue that numbers disappeared in Timer under some special circumstances
  • Ambient display
    • Newly added Canvas feature that can automatically draw a wireframe picture based on a lock screen photo on your phone. You can view it anytime without waking up the screen (Path: Settings-Customization-Wallpaper-Canvas-Choose photo preview and it can be generated automatically)
  • Network
    • Optimize the power consumption of the Smart 5G

We wrote about OxygenOS 11 changes in this article, which is based on DP3 knowledge.


OB2 changelog has something quite interesting:

The Ambient Display "Canvas" feature. Image credit: XDA

With this feature, you can quickly create a wireframe-version of the image you choose, which will be displayed on your lockscreen while Ambient Display is active. We personally love this feature and it certainly makes OnePlus' Ambient Display different from all the other OEM implementations. If you want to learn more about this feature, either install OB2 and play around with it or check these articles:


At this time, only the 8-series devices can install this OB. We will update this article and send notifications again, in case more devices receive OOS11.

If you received a notification about this article and you don't own an 8-series device, we sincerely apologize.

Which devices support OxygenOS 11 OB2?

  • OnePlus 8 (all variants except carrier-branded e.g. TMO/VZW)
  • OnePlus 8 Pro (all variants except carrier-branded e.g. TMO/VZW)

OnePlus did not create regional builds for OB1, but they promised OB2 would have it. However there's still no regional build for OB2, which means Indian users who're installing OB2 on their 8-series devices may experience some features missing (e.g. Red Cable Club etc). While we're offering downloads for all regions, we recommend waiting for future builds if you care about missing India-exclusive features you're already used to.

On 8th October (2 weeks after OB2 was announced), OnePlus finally released Indian builds. We've analyzed the ZIPs and can confirm that there are quite a few India-specific APKs. Whether you call that "features" or "bloatware" is up to you. If you own an Indian variant of 8-series and haven't installed OB2 yet, you can use the app to install OB2 now (instructions below). They should contain all India-specific features like Red Cable Club etc. We're disappointed that they released an India-specific build so late - most people in India have already installed global OB2 by now, and it seems there's no way to install this India-specific build now, as it's an older build (OnePlus doesn't allow installing older builds via Local upgrade). Comparison of build dates:

  • OnePlus 8
    • Global: 2009181221 (18th September 2020 at 12:21)
    • Indian: 2009181216 (18th September 2020 at 12:16)
  • OnePlus 8 Pro
    • Global: 2009181219 (18th September 2020 at 12:19)
    • Indian: 2009181217 (18th September 2020 at 12:17)

You can clearly see that Indian builds are slightly older by a few minutes. So OnePlus basically had Indian builds ready, but claimed builds were delayed "for technical reasons". It's possible that the delays were either due to Google's CTS (Compatibility Test Suite), or an extended QA (Quality Assurance) period.

Other devices (7T-series, 7-series, etc) may get OOS 11 soon in the form of an Open Beta update.

Where can I install OB2?

This is meant only for 8-series devices - it WILL NOT WORK for other devices. Since this is a beta update, make sure to backup all important data before your proceed as it may not be stable!

Before installing, please ensure your battery level is at least 30% and you have at least 3GB space left on your device. If you encounter any bugs in OB2, make sure you report them to OnePlus.

You can install the preview using this app itself (switch to the "Open Beta" update method - you might have to enable "Advanced mode" as well) or by visiting the forum thread listed below:

Can I revert to the stable version of OxygenOS?

Yes, please read the forum thread of your device as linked above for detailed instructions. Rolling back will completely wipe all your data, so please take a backup before proceeding.

Below are the rollback/downgrade packages for each 8-series device. Make sure you choose the correct rollback package for your device and region. We are providing these links purely for your convenience, as rolling back isn't natively supported by our app. After downloading the correct rollback package, move the file from the "Downloads" directory to the topmost directory of internal storage (the same directory that the "Downloads" folder is in). Then, open Settings -> System -> System updates -> cog icon in the top right -> Local Upgrade, and choose the rollback package.

Rollback packages

The following packages will rollback your device to the currently latest Android 10 stable version, and will wipe all your data. These are not the packages you should download if you're looking to update to Android 11/R. For that, close this news article and change your update method to "Open Beta" in the app's settings (if your device is either an OP8 or OP8Pro).

Please take great care in downloading the rollback package meant ONLY for your specific device and region.