Nothing OS 4.0 | General Release

Zac · 2025-11-21T11:08:00+00:00

https://youtu.be/EIQECQ9UJKQ **Hey Community,** You know when your brain works so well it feels like it’s not working at all? That’s the flow state. Nothing OS 4.0 is made for it. Today, we are officially starting the public rollout of Nothing OS 4.0, powered by Android 16. This update is experience-led, fast, and thoughtfully designed. It builds directly on the foundation of OS 3.0, but strengthens the core experience across speed, consistency, and interaction. From new minimalist icons that help your brain breathe, to interactions that move smoothly at speed, this update is about removing friction. We’ve tightened every part of the system. UI components now follow a more coherent structure, iconography has been refreshed for clarity, and animations have been reworked so navigation feels more responsive. Nothing OS 4.0 is a step focused on fundamentals. Faster responses, cleaner visuals, smoother interactions, and a platform that’s ready for what comes next. ### Refined by You We didn’t get here alone. The Open Beta Test gave us the real-world data we needed to finalise the feature set. OBT builds focused on a limited set of areas so we could isolate issues and prioritise what mattered most. Now, with the full rollout, we are introducing a wider set of refinements based on everything we learned together. * A lot of users highlighted areas where the visual experience could feel more consistent. This led to updated status bar icons, refreshed first-party app icons, deeper Extra Dark Mode coverage, a cleaner lock screen password interface and smoother animations. * Many shared thoughts on multitasking and day-to-day flow. That shaped improvements like a refined Pop-up View with Dual Windows, 2x2 Quick Settings tiles, more widget sizes and the ability to hide apps in the App Drawer. * There was also strong interest in having more glanceable information. This helped bring Live Updates to the lock screen and to the Glyph Interface, making rides, deliveries and timers easier to follow at a glance. Thank you again to everyone who joined the beta and shared your time, thoughts and suggestions. Your input played a meaningful role in shaping this release. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-20/1763671923-99439-workhub-88.png "banner") Here is everything you can expect in Nothing OS 4.0. ### Visuals & Interaction. Calm and Fast. Everything in Nothing OS 4.0 moves smooth... at speed. Interaction physics now carry natural weight and momentum, while visuals have been standardised across the system for a cleaner, more cohesive look. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-20/1763671942-776094-workhub-86.png "banner") **Refreshed First-Party Icons:** Native app icons now feature a cleaner, more minimal design. The home screen feels balanced, modern, and comfortable to use. **Refined Status Bar Icons:** Status bar icons like Wi-Fi, battery, and data indicators now follow a cohesive visual style inspired by Android 16. The simplified layout reduces noise, making status information easier to scan at a glance. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-21/1763714053-92010-adobe-express-20251120-191923-6.gif "banner")**New Lock Screen Clocks:** We have refreshed the clock fonts and style, and introduced two new clock faces. Both feature a futuristic, geek-forward aesthetic that stays true to our bold design language. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-20/1763672507-525819-adobe-express-ns1.gif "banner") **Interaction Animations:** Physics and motion across the system have been refined. The Notification Shade, app transitions, and gestures respond with sharper tactility and depth, making every swipe and tap feel smoother and more natural. **Haptic Feedback at Limits:** Subtle haptic feedback now kicks in at maximum and minimum volume. This gives you an immediate physical response, letting you adjust levels without looking at the screen. ### Functional Flow. Cancel Distractions. We’ve added features designed to keep you focused and efficient. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-20/1763672545-437894-adobe-express-20251120-191923-2-1.gif "banner") G**lyph Progress:** Stay informed without the distraction. Rides, deliveries, and timers now sync across your screen and the Glyph Interface, showing progress through light and motion. Built on Android 16, we are no longer limited to specific applications. We will begin integrating most apps that support this feature into Glyph Progress, rapidly expanding compatibility for the services you use most. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-21/1763718956-622500-workhub-91.png "banner") **Refined Pop-up View:** Multitasking without breaking your flow. Open two floating apps at once and switch between them with simple gestures. This boosts efficiency, letting you handle multiple tasks without losing your place. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-20/1763672593-489986-adobe-express-20251120-191923-4.gif "banner") **Extra Dark Mode:** Enjoy a screen that is gentle on your eyes at night and keeps your battery lasting longer. It delivers deeper blacks, improved contrast, and reduced power consumption for better visibility and comfort in low light. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-21/1763721629-332191-workhub-93.png "banner") **Hidden Icons:** Keep your layout clean. You can now hide any app from your App Drawer without moving it to a Private Space. It declutters your view while keeping less-used apps just a search away. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-20/1763672634-246347-adobe-express-hs3.gif "banner") **More Widget Sizes:** We’ve added 1×1 and 2×1 layouts for Weather, Pedometer, and Screen Time. This lets you slot at-a-glance info into tight spaces or build balanced layouts for a faster scanning and more personal Home screen. **System and App Optimisation:** The new System and Apps Dashboard helps your phone stay smooth and responsive. It shows which apps are running in the background and lets you optimise performance with a single tap. Everything stays fast, efficient and consistent, without you having to think about it. **Universal Search Settings:** Search results can now be filtered to show exactly what you want, making it faster to find what you need. ### Creativity. Unlock Your Flow. Now that you have headspace, take your mind to Playground. This is the biggest leap in Nothing OS history. It is a world of creativity where an idea is all you need. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-20/1763672765-443753-chat-version-2.png "banner") **Essential Apps (Playground):** Create your own widgets by simply chatting with AI. No coding required. AI does the hard work to bring your ideas to life instantly. **Widget Drawer:** A new, organized view for all the widgets you build or collect from the community. It keeps your creative tools organized so you can find, swap, and share widgets effortlessly. Your phone becomes a canvas that is personal, creative, and uniquely yours. ### Privacy. Transparent Intelligence. As we introduce more AI, we ensure you stay in control. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-21/1763714568-300383-adobe-express-20251120-191923-9.gif "banner") AI Status Hints & Usage Dashboard helps you see exactly when an LLM is active right in your status bar and track usage in the dashboard. This gives you total transparency and peace of mind, knowing exactly when and how AI is working for you. ### Phone (3) Exclusives For Phone (3) users, NOS 4.0 unlocks deeper hardware integration: ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-21/1763713095-525914-adobe-express-20251120-191923-5.gif "banner") **Glyph Mirror Selfie:** Capture a Matrix-style reflection of yourself via the Glyph Interface. An extra Glyph Mirror selfie can be saved directly to the Gallery, making it easy to share your cool selfies with friends or use them as your social profile picture. **Smarter Flip to Glyph:** Choose between Vibrate or Silent modes when you flip your phone face down. This gives you the right level of awareness for the moment, whether you need total focus or subtle notifications. **Flip to Glyph AOD:** The Glyph Matrix’s AOD now activates only when Flip to Glyph is enabled. This reduces unnecessary battery use and better reflects real-world behaviour, since the back of the phone isn’t visible during everyday use. **Pocket Mode**: The Glyph Matrix now automatically disables in your pocket. This saves battery and prevents accidental triggers, so your phone is ready when you are. **New Glyph Toys:** Two new time-themed toys. Hourglass helps you visualise the passage of time, while Lunar Cycle shows the real position of the moon above you. ### Essential Memory. Your Second Brain. ![](https://cdn.nothing.community/2025-11-20/1763672815-185225-n-essmem-169.png "banner") With Nothing OS 4.0, Essential Memory becomes the next step in how Essential Space and Essential Search work together. Until now, Essential Space stored what you saved. With Memory, it starts to build an understanding of your captures. Anything you save in Essential Space becomes a memory your phone can recognise and recall when you need it. Ask naturally and your phone brings back the moment you captured. Say you save a poster from a design fair you want to attend and tag it “April events”. Later, you ask, “Is there anything interesting happening next month?”. Essential Search brings it back instantly. Space keeps it, Memory understands it, and Search retrieves it. Everything works together as one intuitive system. Essential Memory arrives soon with the next Essential Space update. ### Rollout Status: Nothing OS 4.0 begins rolling out today starting with Phone (3) and will expand to the rest of the Nothing smartphone lineup over the coming weeks, and to CMF smartphones by the end of the year. Phone (3a) Lite will follow early next year Let your mind flow.

Teddy2606

jamshi993 I still haven’t got it on phone [3], phone [2] will probably come straight after everyone with [3] gets it

Gary Gates

jamshi993

I don’t think it’s because of the complaints.

The phone 3 device is the latest device which a lot of people now own. I think it makes sense that they started with this device as it would enable them to build nothing os 4 for the flagship and then it’s easier for them to alter to make it compatible for all other devices.

The software needs to be tweaked to support specific hardware components.

jamshi993

Gary Gates I understand your point, but I’m a Phone (2) open beta tester.

If the beta has major bugs, then the whole purpose of beta testing is to receive bug-fixing updates. It’s been around 45 days now, and instead of improving, the bugs are increasing. My phone lags a lot and I’m restarting it multiple times a day.

If they can’t provide timely bug-fixing updates, then why release an open beta in the first place? Beta testing only works when feedback is taken seriously and updates follow.

JP

jamshi993 maybe you’ll get nos4 directly in 10 days … and security patch doesn’t matter that much… my old phone has july 2021 patch and still working fine… all banking apps and everything works great…

jamshi993

JP Then why did they promise a bi-month security patch update?

jamshi993

JP Not sure why the community team keeps deleting my comments and hiding my posts. I’m just asking for basic update info.

RomanCZ

BenedictRafael .. sorry, but this approach is directly against you. And you will know it in a few years, you will see. How you can even know, that the AI summary is correct? When all LLM/AI models are clearly halucinating/lying/falsing reality in more than 50% cases?

CMF1_hacker

RomanCZ there are way to easily double-check AI output.

Also, students (at least at UK uni level) was actual experts, i.e. sage on a stage, directly delivering lecture as years of recording and AI slop, my stock value as an employee has dramatically increased again after it waned during COVID and slightly after.

BenedictRafael

RomanCZ

Yeah I do know that so I am just using AIs mostly for summarising,and also i am not telling that i won’t use it for exam preparation but i have material(pdf) with me that’s what I am gonna upload in AI model and and it’s gonna get me answers from pdf uploaded but if the answer from ai is doubt and i compare it with notes from lectures,and overall as friends group we would discuss it with different ai models,notes

RomanCZ

CMF1_hacker - :-) understand, but most today people/students are simply not able to perform “double-check”, they do not have enough experiences and knowledges to evaluate whether the AI answer is “at least close to the right” etc. etc. And the crutial problem is, that such a people will know this own inability in 20 years and that will be too late.

Regardless of the fact that those who use AI when writing papers/essays usually do not know what they have written in those papers/essays and their brains show a significantly lower level of activity = they work hard on reducing their own education. And this is scientifically proven.

This is same situation as “COVID school generation” that distance learning is not for everyone and their social/professional abilities are very poor.

JakubL

@jamshi993

Why not the UN Court of Justice right away?

dineshroyale

Sickchild72 VoNR doesn’t go away even after disabling it from the status bar settings

ste_26

I know it usually takes a few days to settle after the update but does anyone have anything to share on how battery life is since updating? I’ve found the battery on the 3 has been mediocre at best since launch and I was hoping for some improvements to this. I’ve not seen any mention of battery optimization in the breakdown so far

Coldpaw

ste_26 Same for my NP3, I never was really satisfied with battery performance of the phone. However I am now using OS 4.0 since three days and can only say good things regarding battery life so far, at least for me it was a decent improvement, one which I didn’t expect but was a very pleasant surprise.

AbhimanyuSaxena_7nRAnaih4y

Looking for update for nothing phone 3a

CMF1_hacker

RomanCZ at undergrad level, at my uni in the UK we are switching to more viva voce (oral exams), like we did in Germany at the vordiplom (bachelor-level). Oxford university here, from my understanding, has an AI component in every single assessment at the university as they’ve partnered with OpenAI.

Also, I sit on a board of governors of my children’s school (this board ensures that the school is doing everything correctly from budgets to curricula) and “fake news” and how to detect it, in addition to using AI effectively, is getting rolled out to Year 3 students (7 years old) starting this coming year. the non-AI-bits are here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/ce86gv1gj9yo

AI is here to stay and there’s no excuse to not teach with AI and about it. Countries not doing this will get left behind.

AkashPrem

ajulexander within the end of the month of November is what I heard iam also Waiting for this

RomanCZ

… agree, to learn about and how to effectively use it is OK, but not to replace teaching or task completion as such (and we all know that students can be very creative in abusing any possibility how to make school “easier”).

CMF1_hacker

RomanCZ I guess I disagree and this is my last comment as the thread is/will derail/ed. Employees must use it, so students should be taught to use it responsibly and it should be no different than any other tool like a calculator or a pencil.

I like NOTHING’s transparent approach where you can see which libraries are being used and that’s one of my favourite features of NOS 4 beta/stable.

Perhaps other companies are doing something similar, but I see the AI very similar, with respect to privacy, as the camera or microphone, so it’s executed in NOS 4 really well.

RomanCZ

BenedictRafael …but it is definitely not your answers and you are deceiving yourself that you learn anything. No, you learn just how to “save some time”. Without electricity you will know nothing. Believe me, these results will appear to you in 20 years, and then it will be too late.

RohitPakalapati

Posting this purely to keep @Zac happy. His favourite little notification animation didn’t make it into the main post, so giving it the spotlight it deserves. When you swipe a notification away, the whole panel responds with a gentle magnetic shift. Nearby notifications move with it, making the interaction feel softer, smoother, and more natural.

[Update]: We also made a small change to the Glyph Matrix AOD.

The AOD capability of the Glyph Matrix is now integrated into Flip to Glyph and only activates when that mode is on, exclusive to Phone (3). Running the Glyph Matrix in AOD during everyday use drains more battery, and the back of the phone isn’t visible while you’re using it anyway. Integrating AOD into Flip to Glyph makes it more practical, saves power, and better reflects how people actually use their phones.

Thoughts?

RobIgo

RohitPakalapati I think that’s great!!!

tokyo72

RohitPakalapati Do not like the AOD change at all :/

AblohG_

Nothing for version : Metroid-V3.5-250923-1421-EEA 😭

AgentJ

SurajGohil_M1wNvWrfC7

Already tried that before commenting, but still here’s proof that I did.

rizanpmuhammed9

When will i get it in my NP 2a+

Anyone knows the exact date?

« Previous Page Next Page »