Android 16 for The Fairphone (Gen. 6) 📲 🎉

[Fairphone_CM]

Dear Fairphone community,

Tonight, March 16, we are officially beginning the phased rollout of Android 16 on The Fairphone (Gen. 6)!

This update brings a set of new features and small quality of life improvements. Read along to find out.

Software Version Information:

• Model: The Fairphone (Gen. 6) / FP6

• OS Version: Android 16

• Software Version: FP6.QREL.16.48.0.20260210142132

• Build ID: FP6.QREL.16.48.0.

• Security Patch Level: 5th February, 2026

• Update Size (from previous MR): 549.65 MB (549648784 bytes)

New features:

• New emojis

• Improvements for notifications

• Safety advancement

• More personalization

Everyday Use & Notifications

Two new features are introduced to structure the notifications on your home screen. Bundled notifications groups notifications from the same app to avoid clutter. Notification cooldown limits the sound made by succeeding notifications. Other small changes include a new shortcut for wallet on your home screen, measurement system customization and new emojis!

Accessibility changes

A small change included to improve accessibility is the replacement of high-contrast text with outlined text. This improves readability for users who need a stronger visual contrast.

Security changes

Android 16 brings some security improvements, one of them is specifically targeted at spam calls. To protect users from potential scams, installing malicious software via sideloading or granting sensitive permissions is blocked during phone calls.

Find more info about Android 16 in the Android Magazine or on the Android Developer page

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“How do I update my device?”
As with all major releases, the rollout is happening in phases to ensure stability. If you don’t see the notification immediately, please rest assured it’s on its way and will arrive over the coming days and weeks. When it’s time, a notification will pop up on your phone, asking you to update. Click Update Now and your Fairphone 6 should take care of the rest.

Thanks to all the beta testers! If you want to become a Fairphone beta tester you can apply here.

You can find all Fairphone 6 release notes on our website: https://support.fairphone.com/hc/en-us/articles/24463713641234-The-Fairphone-Gen-6-Release-Notes.

To find more information about updates, please visit this page on software longevity. You can also find our support article on how to check and update your software version here.

If you experience any issues with your device consult our Repair Portal.

• Update went well
• Update available but failed to download or install
• Update installed and now I am having problems
• I am not able to see the update yet

[Ignacio]

As usual, update available in Sweden (hallon operator) at 18:00.

Update went well. Not so slow as expected.
Known thing NFC was on after update even if I left it off. First boot is a bit sluggish but seems to be recovering fine.

[urs_lesse]

I guess I gonna press the smoothie button …

(you should see a screenshot up there which seems to not show in all browsers)

[Basko]

The update is available for my phone, which has dual SIMs from Simpel (NL) and Congstar (DE).

I will update this post as soon as the update has been installed and tested. It’s great to finally get Android 16!

The update is complete and everything seems to be working so far. The new visuals look great! I will test everything more thoroughly and report back if I find anything.

[urs_lesse]

After the initial boot and the completion of the update (message on screen) the whole screen was shifted like 20-25% to the left and Quickstep launcher was giving an error message. After I forced another reboot, things seem to have settled in. Some visual impressions (no SIM in the device, thus no carrier message in the top bar):

[Furdiburd]

I guess i am in a later sphase. At least i know i will get android 16 in a day or two

[embepi]

In my case WIFI was unable to connect just after the update but a restart helped. Everything works perfectly now.

[paolone]

Hello. the update arrive yesterday evening here in Italy.

All is ok, there is only a minor problem (for me) ,

in settings/gestures is not possible to invert the order of the buttons in the navigation bar.

Maybe is not a FP6 problem but an android problem

[Kim_Colpaert]

Looking forward to the first reviews of this software.

How is camera performance, shutter time, microphone quality, did battery improved, how is the allround software stability, did it solve random reboots,…

[Basko]

I noticed the same issue on my phone. Enabling the option to invert the order of the buttons in the navigation bar has no effect.

[hornedfiend]

I’m on latest iode os and looking to switch back to official firmware. As far as I can see, the security update is still the one from February. Will there be a March update? Because I can’t switch until you add it.

[Fairphone_CM]

thanks for flagging, we are looking into this @paolone @Basko

[Watchdog]

I just updated my phone and everything works fine.

At last i can use BLE audio on my Oticon Intent hearing aids without messing around in the developers options.

[Fairphone_CM]

@Stefan_Dijkhuizen I see you indicated in the poll that you are experiencing issues with your device since you installed the update.

Did you already go through the troubleshooting steps in the Repair Portal?

If your issue isn’t listed you can select: “My issue is not listed” → “I need further help”

[yvmuell]

@hornedfiend

Will there be a March update?

Sure with the next update

[tamas]

I updated my Fairphone 6 today. I have a camera issue when using the 2X crop: after taking the photo in 2X the photo is turning into an even more cropped version of it, in portrait mode the 2x works fine.

[Fra00]

Hello fellow italian.

Which provider are you using? I see that there aren’t italian providers on supported providers list.

Are VOLTE and VOWIFI working?

[twoexem]

Update installed fine on my brand new (arrived today) FP6. Might be the first time in my Fairphone journey where a new major version didn’t introduce any notable bugs or damage the device. Good work!