When Xiaomi and Google announced that they will work together to offer a smartphone running on near vanilla Android One and Xiaomi’s hardware specifications and affordable pricing, it was equally exciting for purists and geeks alike.
The Chinese smartphone maker did announce not one but three iterations under the Mi A line up i.e. Mi A1, A2 and the A3. However, reports suggest that Xiaomi has cancelled the A-series and there won’t be any Mi A4.
To recall the Mi A3 was launched approximately a year back in August 2019 and is already due for an update. Xiaomi has not officially announced the discontinuation nor has it confirmed the launch date of the Mi A4.
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With Android One, Google wanted to ensure that manufacturers offer the latest Android updates, however, Xiaomi's track record with these updates have been really bad. The last update for Mi A3 that came out recently highlighted the problems with Xiaomi's updates.
Losing partners and relevance
Danny Fischer from Smartdroid has speculated that since the Android One program itself has lost its relevance after Google’s recent improvements in Android update process as well as the introduction of Android Go, adding Android One to Google infamous list of cancelled products makes sense.
Android Go is a further lightweight version of Android that is created for entry-level devices and is capable of running on devices with extremely low-end specifications.
Apart from Xiaomi, Motorola and Nokia were the other few prominent brands that launched Android One powered devices, however, Xiaomi’s latest Android One device came out a year back and Motorola, after starting with Android One has moved to My UX on its One series phone.
Nokia is the only brand that is not only holding the fort but is also one of the rarest brands that has been seeding out updates actively even for devices that are located at the lower end of price gamut.
With not many takers both in terms of partners and users, the Android One program could well be heading towards the end of its lifecycle, though Xiaomi may still surprise everyone by announcing Mi A4 giving a sliver of hope before the inevitable.
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