After being released in mid-February of 2016, support for the Nextbit Robin has officially ceased as of today. Announced on Twitter this morning, Nextbit states it has shut down support for the device, bringing a swift death to the cloud-centric Android smartphone.
In January of this year, Nextbit joined Razer, acting as an independent mobile division. While nothing has been made of the coupling yet, it has been reported that Razer is working on a smartphone built specifically for “hardcore gamers.”
It should be noted, when Nextbit joined Razer, the company assured owners that support for the device would not be going away. Specifically, “We will continue to fulfill warranties for 6 more months. And as promised, we will continue to provide software updates and security patches through February 2018.” Interestingly enough, the post on Nextbit’s community forum where that was stated has since been taken down and redirects to the Razer forums, but don’t worry, we have the Wayback Machine.
Now, I’ll have to look at a calendar and consult a few scientists to confirm, but I’m pretty sure August, 2017 and February, 2018 are not the same thing. With the company announcing a cease in support as of today, this is a major disappointment for anyone who currently owns this device. Nextbit does say that if you need help with your device, feel free to check out the Razer Insider forums where you can find help from fellow Robin owners.
Update: Nextbit has clarified its ending of customer support in a new tweet. While customers won’t be able to receive support, the company will continue to push software updates until the aforementioned February, 2018 date. This is good news!
To clear up some confusion: although we’re ending customer support, we will continue software updates until Feb ’18 as planned
— Nextbit (@nextbitsys) August 1, 2017
RIP, Robin.
Effective August 1st 2017, we’ve shut down support for Robin. You can still refer to our online self-help: https://t.co/ZwXZGM04sJ
— Nextbit (@nextbitsys) August 1, 2017
I just bought this phone a little over a month ago to replace an Honor 5x that my three year old dropped into a water table. It was the right price for a heck of a phone, and I knew what I was getting into. I had been hearing for months that support was going to end after July 31st, so this was not a surprise. I tested every feature the phone has and they all work. I’m not using the “cloud” function and I won’t miss it. I’m comfortable running a custom ROM once I get bored with the stock ROM or I feel like having more current security updates.
And that’s why I don’t trust the cloud. You just never really know when it is going to blow away. I still carry and move everything important on a 128GB MicroSD that I move from phone to phone.
I still love the design of the Robin.
What happens to the data people have backed up in their cloud service?
What a scam! I hope the Better Business Bureau investigates them.
and what lowers the rating…. THE bbb is a joke
Not sure why you want this. They made a product. They market basically told them they didn’t want it. It would lose so much money by continuing to support the product that was rejected.
There’s no scam here. Calm down.
I’m bummed, because I like the innovation it represented. But it was a solution without a problem.
I still want this device. Amazon currently has it for 130…I just love the blue and grey design.
What version of Android is it on?… Nvm 7.1.1…. Perfect
7.1.1
My Damn S8 doesn’t even have 1.1
Plus it’s easy to unlock and install Lineage OS. Hopefully those guys will get Android O on it someday. Not a bad phone overall for a little over $100.
*Fake mild shock*
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/d62de953fbf756c5bc6ec09bc2ae3eb75a08cb6fdbc00275a2d6187b8b621e04.gif
10’s of people were surprised and hurt by this development. And they probably deserved it.