The Android 12 beta 2 is now available for Pixel users, so you can road-test the new Android version before its official release
Got a Pixel phone? You can now download the Android 12 beta 2 release.
Google confirmed the Android 12 beta 2 early this week.
Beta 2 is now available, with the latest features and changes to try with your apps. This release is suitable for development, testing, and general use. Android 12 is still in active development, so the Android system and apps might not always work as expected.
Google
Android 12 beta 2 will be available to run on the following Pixel phones:
- Pixel 3 and 3 XL
- Pixel 3a and 3a XL
- Pixel 4 and 4 XL
- Pixel 4a and 4a (5G)
- Pixel 5
How To Get Android 12 Beta
In order to get Android 12 beta 2 up and running on your Pixel phone, you will need to have an Android developer account – these are pretty easy to get.
Once you have an Android developer account, you will need to flash the build to your phone. After this initial beta build of Android 12 is installed, you will then receive OTA updates of newer builds.
Android Flash Tool guides you step-by-step through the process of flashing your device—there’s no need to have tools installed—but you will need to unlock your device and enable USB Debugging in Developer options.
Connect your device over USB, then navigate to Android Flash Tool and follow the onscreen guidance. For complete instructions, see the Android Flash Tool documentation.
Android Developer Blog
Google has also provided links for manually flashing your compatible Pixel phone with the Android 12 Beta – you can get the links for this here.
Should You Download Android 12 Beta 2?
If you’re not an active developer, it probably isn’t worth it. Beta builds – especially early on – are usually very buggy.
Certain apps might not work. You might experience performance issues and/or lose core functionality on your phone.
Specifically, Google notes that there very good be “stability, battery, or performance issues” associated with the Android 12 beta 2 build.
For this reason, it probably isn’t worth downloading the Android 12 beta onto your daily driver.
If you have an old, supported Pixel phone laying around, however, by all means, check out it – you got nothing to lose.
If you do not have an old Pixel around to test it on, I’d wait for the actual release. That way you won’t negatively impact your Pixel phone.
Android 12 will be one of the biggest updates Google has made to its mobile OS in recent times.
Check out our guide to Android 12’s best new features and abilities for a more detailed overview of what you can expect when Android 12 starts rolling out later this year.
And check out the new features coming to Apple Watch’s watchOS 8 here!
