If you own a Pixel 8 or Pixel 8 Pro, Google supports it with updates for a full seven years. The company states in its documentation that the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro will receive Android version updates until at least October 2030 and security updates until at least October 2030. Enough to set a new record for long-term support for smartphones.
Samsung fans, rejoice as the company has also announced to match Google’s commitment with the Galaxy S24 series.
When you buy a Samsung Galaxy S24, S24+ or S24 Ultra, you not only get seven years of security updates for your smartphone, but also new features and updates for the supported version of Android. This is a big win for all customers because Samsung, which is primarily an Android hardware maker, can lead a new wave of software update commitments.
What does that mean ?
This is also a major change from Samsung’s previous support policy, which only covered smartphones for four years for major Android updates and five years for security patches. Enough to meet the company’s commitments in terms of sustainable development.
What does that mean ? In fact, this would allow a user to purchase a Galaxy S24 device and use it for seven years, and do so without worrying that the operating system has become vulnerable due to a lack of security patches. Samsung is also including updates that will add new features and updates to the version of Android supported by the phone.
Features like live translation will only get better with time. June Wan/ZDNET
The only thing this doesn’t guarantee is that the Galaxy S24 will always have the latest version of Android on the device. For example, the Samsung Galaxy S24 will most likely release with Android 14 and can be upgraded to Android 15, 16, etc. as long as the latest version can work.
This is no different from Google’s policy with Pixel devices
The reason for this limitation is that as the operating system evolves, older hardware may or may not support the newer version of the platform.
This is no different from Google’s policy with Pixel devices. However, because the supported Android version will continue to receive updates for seven years, it will always be up to date with security patches and new features that have been added.
This is a big win for all users.
Source: “ZDNet.com”