[Updated] Vivo Android 11 (Funtouch OS 11) update: List of eligible devices & release date

This story is being continuously updated…. New updates are being added at the bottom…..

Original story (April 28) follows:

Fresh from toppling Samsung to the second spot in India’s smartphone market in Q1 2020, Vivo still isn’t a name that rings a bell in the minds of many westerners. A few enthusiasts may know the company’s habit of churning out phone after phone is the major reason they are topping the charts.

Nonetheless, Vivo continues to make strides outside China and India by investing money in retail distribution networks. With its futuristic tech that often catches the eye (the first smartphone with an in-display fingerprint scanner was made by Vivo), Vivo’s ship seems to have set sail.

But to keep it steady, Vivo needs to step up its software update efforts. Like several other Android vendors, Vivo’s software update policy is unclear. Granted, there is lack of clarity on which Vivo devices will be upgraded to Android 11, probably with Funtouch OS 11 to spice things up.

Even so, based on the company’s misty efforts with previous Funtouch OS updates, including the ongoing Funtouch OS 10 update based on Android 10, we have come up with select handsets that we think will pick up the Vivo Android 11 update when the time comes.

Vivo devices eligible for Funtouch OS 11 update based on Android 11

As noted, Vivo doesn’t say much about its software update policy. Given that it took months after Google released the stable Android 10 OS for Vivo to reveal its official Funtouch OS 10 plans, it may take quite some waiting before the official Vivo Funtouch OS 11 update plans become available.

Until then, below are the devices we think Vivo should update to the new OS when the stable version begins rolling out.

Vivo iQOO Neo3 5G
Vivo iQOO 3 5G
Vivo NEX 3S 5G
Vivo V19
Vivo Y50
Vivo S6 5G
Vivo Z6 5G

One common thing with the above phones is that all have Android 10 preinstalled, which guarantees them an update to the next iteration of Android. Vivo should release more Funtouch OS 10-powered phones as the year winds down, so we’ll keep updating the list.

Going by the sheer raw power, we also think the Vivo Android 11 update should be made available to the following devices, which come pre-installed with Android Pie and are in line to pick up updates to Android 10.

Vivo NEX 3 5G
Vivo NEX 3
Vivo NEX Dual Display
Vivo iQOO Neo 855 Racing (aka Vivo iQOO Neo 855+, iQOO Neo 855 Plus, or iQOO Neo 855s)
Vivo iQOO
Vivo iQOO Pro 5G
Vivo iQOO Neo
Vivo iQOO Neo 855
Vivo iQOO Pro

Vivo has a dotted history of devices that received two major Android OS updates. To pick recent cases, though, the Vivo X23 and Vivo X21s, the latter also known as Vivo V11 or V11 Pro, are set to receive their second major OS update to Android 10.

So yeah, the above devices receiving their second major Funtouch OS won’t be the first from Vivo, but it could be even better if the list grew bigger to include midrangers listed below:

Vivo X30/Pro
Vivo X27/Pro
Vivo S5
Vivo S1/Pro
Vivo Z5/Z5i/Z5x
Vivo Z3x
Vivo Z1x
Vivo Z1Pro
Vivo U20
Vivo U10
Vivo U3
Vivo Y9s
Vivo V17/Pro
Vivo V15 Pro

As noted earlier, the lists above are not official, so expect changes when Vivo does announce its Android 11 update plans later on. But when? Read on.

Vivo Android 11 update release date

Vivo announced Funtouch OS 10 in mid-December 2019, over three months after Google released the stable Android 10 to the Pixels. If Vivo keeps up with the same spirit, we could get official Funtouch OS 11 availability details in Q4 2020.

The Vivo X30 family arrived preinstalled with Funtouch OS 10 but based on Android Pie. Granted, we could see a similar thing with Funtouch OS 11 although we don’t know the devices that could first arrive based on Android 10 before picking up Android 11 updates later in 2021.

Yeah, that’s the earliest you can expect your Vivo handset to pick up a stable update to Android 11 with a new Funtouch OS skin running on top, although public beta tests for select devices are likely to begin in Q4 2020.

To recall, Vivo enrolled three handsets in Google’s Android Q developer preview program back in May 2019, namely Vivo X27, Vivo NEX S, and Vivo NEX A. If anything, we won’t be surprised if the number of devices increases when this year’s Android R developer preview program goes public.

We will update this article with details of the devices that Vivo will add to Android 11 DP, probably beginning the month of May 2020.

Update 1 (June 12)

The beta update to Android 11 for the iQOO 3 has been released. Head here for more coverage.

Update 2 (September 22)

IST 01:40 pm: At the Vivo V20 series launch event in Thailand, the company teased fans with a few hints of what to expect with the upcoming Funtouch OS 11 skin. For starters, Vivo’s new skin will be highly customizable. To know more, head here.

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