Manually Update Nexus Phone to Android Nougat (7.0)

So what's the big deal with this Android 7.0 Nougat nonsense anyway?? I'm honestly not sure, but I spent about an hour updating two phones this evening. I figured I'd share the steps to sideload the latest Android update in case you are as impatient as I am.

Let's Get Started...

First off, you need a Nexus phone that is actually getting the update. Those are listed below.

• Nexus 5X & 6P
• Nexus 6
• Nexus Player
• Nexus 9 (WiFi / LTE)
• Pixel C

Next, you need to download the OTA (Over-the-Air) image for your respective device. Hop on over to the Android developers page (https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/ota) and download the Android 7.0.0 image for your device.

NOTE: Some links aren't posted yet but are live. Please refer to the Android Police article where they are posting download links to the OTA images on google's servers. (http://www.androidpolice.com/2016/08/23/flash-all-the-things-full-android-7-0-nougat-nexus-ota-roundup/)

Setup ADB

Next, you will need ADB (Android Debug Bridge) which allows your computer to communicate with your phone.

Mac

• Grab Homebrew (http://brew.sh/)
• RUN: brew install android-platform-tools

Windows

Download the minimal ADB/fastboot executable from XDA Developers (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2317790)

Prep Your Phone

These steps are specific for the Nexus 5X/6P. Do a quick google search on how to get your respective device into Recovery Mode if the instructions below don't work.

• Power down your phone
• Hold Volume Down, then press and hold the Power button
• Your phone should boot into the bootloader
• Hit Volume Down until you see Recovery Mode selected
• Press the Power button
• Wait for the android with a red exclamation mark to appear
• Hold the Power button and hit Volume Up
• A new recovery screen should show up
• Hit Volume Down until you select Apply update from ADB
• Press the Power button
• Plug your phone into your computer
• Open terminal / command prompt (Windows users, you may need to cd into the directory where the minimal ADB package is located)
• RUN: adb sideload

You should see a progress percentage on your computer and phone. Just wait for everything to finish up, then choose the option to reboot your phone when it completes. And there ya go, Android 7.0 without the wait. Hope it helped or at least kept those of you that are impatient satisfied.