OnePlus 7T gets stable OxygenOS 11 update with Android 11

Although it isn't as fast as we would have probably hoped, OnePlus is slowly but surely rolling out the latest OxygenOS version to its supported smartphones. Sometimes, it's forced to take those back due to a number of reported issues but, in general, the company has been trying to do good by its customers. After months in beta, OnePlus is finally ready to push OxygenOS 11 to the 2019 OnePlus 7T and OnePlus 7T Pro and, along with it, Android 11.

It's a rather massive update considering it's bringing two big software changes on both Android and OxygenOS levels. There's Android 11, of course, and all optimizations, new UI controls, and privacy features it brings. The phones are also being updated to the February 2021 security patch, which is sadly a month late now.

Then there's OxygenOS 11, OnePlus' biggest and perhaps most controversial iteration for its custom Android experience. It has shifted away from a stock Android look and feel and has prioritized making tall phones more usable with one hand. That it looks like Samsung's One UI is probably what irked many OnePlus fans but it seems that Google is also taking Android's Material Design in that direction anyway.

OxygenOS 11 also brings Always-on Display mode, what it calls Ambient Display, particularly the new Canvas feature. There's also now a quick toggle for quickly turning Dark mode on or off as desired. The camera app has also been given HEVC support to offer better compression for videos.

Given the size of the update, OnePlus 7T and 7T Pro owners should properly prepare their phones and Internet connections before starting the process. Given the huge amount of changes, owners should probably consider making backups, just in case things go awry here as well.