You should think Xiaomi has learned its lesson when it comes to Android updates, as the manufacturer has long struggled with faulty versions that reduce or affect left and right phones. But that doesn’t seem to be the case. During the holidays, the company tried to roll out Android 11 to the Xiaomi Mi A3 running Android One, and owners are reporting on Reddit and on the company’s own forum that it breaks their phones.

The problem seems to affect many people who have tried to update their Mi A3 to Android 11. It seems that many phones are completely bricked, which means they can no longer be powered on properly and get stuck on the start screen. Some owners even report that they don’t get to the start screen at all and can’t get to the quick start, which usually resets the phones.

Xiaomi is advising those affected to go to service centers, which isn’t really a sensible solution in the midst of a pandemic – let alone people who don’t have a Xiaomi store nearby at all. Data saved on phones can be (partially) lost, although we don’t know if service centers could recover some or all of it.

A spokesperson for Xiaomi India made the following statement:

We are aware of the issue on some Mi A3 devices following a recent Android 11 update. We have since discontinued the rollout.

We ask users who experience this issue to visit one of the more than 2000 service centers across the country closer to you where a solution will be provided free of charge and unconditionally (in or beyond warranty) .

We regret the inconvenience this has caused. As a brand committed to providing the best user experience possible, we will continually improve our products and services.

This isn’t the first time Xiaomi has asked Mi A3 owners to question their purchase – the Android 10 update has already been pushed and pulled several times until the company finally manages to release appropriate stable software. Hopefully Xiaomi can fix the issues without further delay this time around. Once this inevitable new version rolls out, we can only advise you not to hit the update button until you hear how it is for other braver souls.