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Not too long ago, Android phones were terrible for updates, with many handsets only getting a few new Android releases if they were lucky. But in recent years, many brands have been supporting their phones for longer, and now OnePlus is pushing support beyond that of almost any other company.
OnePlus has announced that “selected models” of its phones will now get four major Android updates and five years of security patches – numbers that match what Samsung is offering on the Galaxy S22 and select other handsets.
That’s higher than the company’s previous promise of three years of major Android updates and four years of security patches. The company has been frustratingly vague about which phones are actually eligible for this extended support, but the press release says “on select devices launched in 2023 and beyond”, unfortunately suggesting it won’t apply to current models like the OnePlus 10 Pro .
Presumably the OnePlus 11 does qualify, and with any luck, upcoming mid-range models from the Nord line will too, but only time will tell.
In the same breath, the company also outlined some of what users can expect from upcoming updates, namely OxygenOS 13.1 and OxygeonOS 14.
The first of these (OxygenOS 13.1) is due out in the first half of 2023 and will feature a focus on security and privacy features, with OnePlus touting an improved version of its Private Safe feature, which is designed to keep data sharing safe .
There is also a focus on improved digital health and wellness, including accessibility features for users with disabilities. Finally, photo albums are being improved and the company claims it will continue to focus on providing a smooth experience.
Talking about OxygenOS 14 was a lot fuzzier, but words like fast, smooth and reliable were thrown around.
Analysis: OnePlus now offers longer term support than Google, but still lags behind Apple
With the promise of four major Android updates and five years of security patches, OnePlus has made a leap forward on Google, which despite to make Android only promises major OS updates for three years, but matches OnePlus for security patches.
While it’s great to see OnePlus doing this, it also just emphasizes that Google itself still isn’t doing enough.
And we’d still give Samsung an edge on software updates, as a number of its current phones are promised as many updates as OnePlus is now offering, rather than just unspecific upcoming phones.
Yet there is still no Android brand to match Apple for updates. While Apple doesn’t promise a specific number, many iPhones have received software updates for five years, and some have received as many as six. And we’re not just talking about security updates here – these are major OS updates of the kind that OnePlus and Samsung promise for only four years.
So every Android brand has work to do, but this is another step in the right direction from OnePlus, and one more thing that could help the best OnePlus phones rank among the best in the future.