Samsung promises Galaxy owners three generations of Android updates

[nanoguy]

Bottom line: Google has been trying to solve Android fragmentation for years, going as far as publicly shaming manufacturers that wouldn't support their phones for at least two years. Samsung has promised to break free of that habit, and its new update policy will now extend to lower-priced phones and tablets.

Samsung announced a slew of new Galaxy devices at its Unpacked event earlier this month, including the Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Z Fold 2 smartphones. At the time, the company promised it would start supporting its phones for at least three years, in an effort to match Google Pixel devices' software update policy.

Then today the mobile tech giant reaffirmed that promise, which will apply not only to S, N, and Z series of phones, but also budget-minded A-series phones like the Galaxy A51 and Galaxy A71.

The new list of eligible devices is as follows:

• Galaxy S series: Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G, S20 Ultra, S20+ 5G, S20+, S20 5G, S20 in addition to S10 5G, S10+, S10, S10e, S10 Lite and upcoming S series devices

• Galaxy Note series: Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G, Note20 Ultra, Note20 5G, Note20, Note10+ 5G, Note10+, Note10 5G, Note10, Note10 Lite and upcoming Note series devices

• Galaxy Foldable devices: Galaxy Z Fold 2 5G, Z Fold 2, Z Flip 5G, Z Flip, Fold 5G, Fold and upcoming Z series devices

• Galaxy A series: Galaxy A71 5G, A71, A51 5G, A51, A90 5G and select upcoming A series devices

The same update policy will apply to Samsung Tab S6 and Tab S7 tablets.

Samsung has committed to three OS upgrades starting with Android 11 that will land later this year. It's hard to predict if these updates will be as timely as you get with Pixels, but this is a clear response to Google who extended the same level of support for budget devices like the Pixel 4a.

Samsung's new update policy reflects the longer upgrade cycles observed in the smartphone industry. Many consumers hold onto their phones for longer than they used to, and this trend is likely to continue as a result of the economic downturn. Not to mention, it is more than deserving on expensive devices like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 and Microsoft Surface Duo which cost well north of $1,000.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/86422-samsung-promises-galaxy-owners-three-generations-android-updates.html

 

[Plutoisaplanet]

Lol it only took them over 10 years... This is a good move in the right direction though.

 

[PEnnn]

And one day in the far future they will be as good as Apple's policy.

 

[Mr Majestyk]

How about at least security updates for older phones you turds. You think I’m selling a perfectly good S7 Edge just to get new OS updates. These aren’t disposable devices. Even Google’s 3 years is pathetic.

 

[ToMMyHR]

And one day in the far future they will be as good as Apple's policy.

And Apple devices still won't be better...

 

[krizby]

Meanwhile at Apple: yeah we will continue to update older handset, but make them much slower so you would buy new ones anyways...
https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/13/...erygate-throttling-slowdown-settlement-claims

 

[Shadowboxer]

Android still have a long ray to go to catch Apple. On both hardware and software.

 

[m-tec]

They will never catch up to Apple on software updates, fragmentation is just a part of Android now. We don't like it, but most of us accept it. Jumped ship from Samsung after my last phone, S4 mini last year, I got a Nokia 8 for the same price, clean Android system with no bloat, lovely! and my Nvidia Shield tablet from 2014 is still going strong on Android 7

 

[MaxSmarties]

Lol it only took them over 10 years... This is a good move in the right direction though.

Tell me about another android manufacturer doing better than Samsung

 

[MaxSmarties]

Meanwhile at Apple: yeah we will continue to update older handset, but make them much slower so you would buy new ones anyways...
https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/13/...erygate-throttling-slowdown-settlement-claims

Except this is completely false and iOS 12 actually made old devices FASTER

 

[MaxSmarties]

I’m very happy about this. I didn’t replace my S10e because Samsung didn’t release a new compact flagship. I will stick with it for a little longer.

 

[Nobina]

My personal experience with software updates is that they create more bugs and slow the device down. All that for some new icons and animations.

 

[Watzupken]

Tell me about another android manufacturer doing better than Samsung

You will be surprise that the likes of OnePlus and Huawei actually does better than Samsung. I've owned flagship phones from these 3 manufacturers over the last few years. In my opinion, OnePlus is usually the most prompt in releasing updates, followed closely by Huawei, and then Samsung. Just comparing Huawei vs Samsung, I got 7 updates vs a distant 2 to 3 updates from Samsung in about 9 months. Do note that when I mean updates, these are not just bug fixes. These includes new features, enhancements, etc.

 

[Watzupken]

My personal experience with software updates is that they create more bugs and slow the device down. All that for some new icons and animations.

This is unavoidable. The reason is because new SOCs get released each year, and getting more and more powerful. Phone manufacturers are also pushing for ever increasing spec improvements, such as increasing amount of ram, just to try and segregate themselves from the sea of Android phones out there. The side effect for these hardware improvements is that software will be optimized for these faster/ newer hardware. If you are using an older phone, installing a new Android version for example may lead to a slower experience, especially when your device is 2 generations or older. Unless of course if you are not particular about the speed, then the lost in speed as a trade off for newer features may be worth it.

 

[krizby]

Except this is completely false and iOS 12 actually made old devices FASTER

Yeah its false and Apple is paying for the class action lawsuit ?
I even put the link in my post LOL.

 

[MaxSmarties]

You will be surprise that the likes of OnePlus and Huawei actually does better than Samsung. I've owned flagship phones from these 3 manufacturers over the last few years. In my opinion, OnePlus is usually the most prompt in releasing updates, followed closely by Huawei, and then Samsung. Just comparing Huawei vs Samsung, I got 7 updates vs a distant 2 to 3 updates from Samsung in about 9 months. Do note that when I mean updates, these are not just bug fixes. These includes new features, enhancements, etc.

I don't think you own any samsung flagship: on my S10e I received an update every month since the purchase.
Huawei EMUI is awful, and without Google services they are useless.
Oneplus is not even close to Samsung as far as software support is concerned (I owned the Oneplus One, the 3T and the 6...).

 

[MaxSmarties]

Yeah its false and Apple is paying for the class action lawsuit ?
I even put the link in my post LOL.

it is related to something happened with iOS 10 dude. Check your facts.
We are in 2020.
You wrote: meanwhile. English may not be my first language , but meanwhile means NOW, not years in the past.

 

[StrikerRocket]

I bought a Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 in 2014, and I *never* received a single update on this device, I say again *NEVER*!
We kept hearing rumors about updates to Android whateverversionwaslatestatthistime, but it never actually came. So I was stuck with a fairly high end device with no updates to its security and/or OS.
I eventually changed the battery, to see the led lighting of the panel fail a few days later!
A little disappointing if you ask me...
So they are just pledging to do what they *should* have done a looooong time ago. Great...

 

[krizby]

it is related to something happened with iOS 10 dude. Check your facts.
We are in 2020.
You wrote: meanwhile. English may not be my first language , but meanwhile means NOW, not years in the past.

"Meanwhile" meaning at the same time Samsung refused to update their older handsets, Apple continued to do so but purposefully throttled their older devices without informing customers.

For me though I don't care about any features update, just keep my phone exactly as it is the day I bought it is good enough.

 

[MaxSmarties]

I bought a Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 in 2014, and I *never* received a single update on this device, I say again *NEVER*!
We kept hearing rumors about updates to Android whateverversionwaslatestatthistime, but it never actually came. So I was stuck with a fairly high end device with no updates to its security and/or OS.
I eventually changed the battery, to see the led lighting of the panel fail a few days later!
A little disappointing if you ask me...
So they are just pledging to do what they *should* have done a looooong time ago. Great...

to buy an Android tablet doesn't seem a wise choice since the beginning, TBH

 

[m-tec]

to buy an Android tablet doesn't seem a wise choice since the beginning, TBH

I still use my Nvidia Shield tablet from 2014, it does everything I need. Even used it linked up like a pc to monitor and external hard drive, keyboard/mouse when my pc went down. If it had 2 usb ports, with one for power, it would be perfect. Nothing wrong with Android 7 either