I can’t handle the stress of asking after missed updates
When Google and then Samsung promised seven years of major OS updates for the latest Pixel 8 and Galaxy S24 families, I was left agog. That’s longer than any other phone maker before; even longer than Apple, which quietly supports every iPhone with five years of iOS. Since then, I’ve been looking for potholes on the road to seven years. I’ve been looking for off-ramps where Google or Samsung renege on the promise. That’s why I hope Google doesn’t promise seven years for the rumored Pixel 8a. It would just be too stressful for me.
See, I don’t think Google can do it. I don’t think Google can support the Pixel 8a for seven years of updates. I’m pretty sure that there will be disclaimers and caveats for the Pixel 8 by the time we reach the finish line.
We’ve already seen hints. So I don’t want to deal with this promise on the Pixel 8a, the next bargain Pixel from Google, rumored to be coming in May at Google I/O 2024. I just want to enjoy the phone on its own merits, and not worry about Google disappointing us long term. Is seven years realistic? Nobody knows for sure
Would a phone from seven years ago be able to run today’s version of Android? In 2017, Samsung launched the Galaxy S8 – certainly one of the best Galaxy phones. That phone had respectable specs, even by today’s standards. It used an Exynos or Snapdragon 8-core processor and packed either four or six gigs of RAM. It also used USB-C, had wireless charging, and even offered microSD card expansion.
By today’s standards, this would be a fine bargain phone. You can find cheap phones with less than 4GB of RAM. Therefore, you might expect that the Galaxy S8 would be upgradeable from its original Android 7 to Android 14. Sadly, Samsung never pushed the Galaxy S8 past Android 9. Yup, that flagship phone got two major OS updates, and that’s all, folks.
The Galaxy S23 family only gets four years of updates, which will take that phone from Android 13 to Android 17 in 2027.
