Everything you need to know about Google's Project Treble that OnePlus just announced for its phones

OnePlus, after a change of heart, has decided to bring Google’s Project Treble in OnePlus 5 and OnePlus 5T. The feature is being tested in the latest open beta update and a stable version will arrive soon.

Along with Treble, the Oxygen OS open beta version, carries changes in user interface, colour customisation, new design for the weather app, etc.

Project Treble, which is explained below, is mandatory for every Certified Android device launching with Android 8.0 Oreo and above.

What is Project Treble?

Project Treble is a mechanism to deliver Android updates faster to the devices, bypassing chipmakers. It was started by the company ahead of the release of Android 8.0 Oreo last year.

Usually, there are several stages in any update or an Android release:

—The Android team publishes the open-source code for the latest release to the world

—Silicon manufacturers, the companies that make the chips that power Android devices, modify the new release for their specific hardware

—Silicon manufacturers pass the modified new release to device makers — the companies that design and manufacture Android devices. Device makers modify the new release again as needed for their devices, like adding ‘skins’

—Device makers work with carriers to test and certify the new release

—Device makers and carriers make the new release available to users

In simple words, Project Treble eliminates the second step above by modifying the how software is delivered. This required a change in the architecture of the OS.