ZTE Axon 7 updated, Android 7.0 Nougat in the pipeline

The $400 ZTE Axon 7 was a pretty fly smartphone when it was released in June this year, and ZTE seems committed to improve it with regular software updates.

Available over the air now, the second software update for the Axon 7 will bump its version number from A2017U B20 to A2017U B27. One of the major improvements in this update would be a vastly improved RF performance, which could not come any sooner. After all, the Axon 7 has proven to perform poorly compared to its competitors in handling Wi-Fi and cellular signals.

The fingerprint sensor should work faster after installing the update. The 3,250mAh battery has gained a bump in performance as well, although some testing is in order to know how much farther a full charge can bring you.

There’s a new “fast battery drain” notification, informing you of any apps that suck up your battery life like there’s no tomorrow, regardless of whether the apps are running in the fore or background. When the software detects apps that cause significant battery drain, a pop-up will request your permission to shut down the offenders.

Other improvements included with the Axon 7 update are a group text messaging feature, improvements to the camera, and other minor enhancements and squashed bugs. A full changelog is available here.

Your Axon 7 will also be better protected against any potential malware or intrusions, with the latest Google security patches (September 1^st) thrown into the mix.

For those who would like to manually check for the update on their Axon 7, just hit Settings > Updates > Next > Update, and you’re good to go.

The blog post announcing the release of the update also teases the upcoming release of Android 7.0 Nougat for the Axon 7. While ZTE’s software is not nearly as impressive as its hardware, this commitment to delivering fast updates – including security patches – is certainly a good sign for the future.