Will the mobile phone system be updated? This is actually a big question

Preface: Android phones usher in a wave of system upgrades

Since Google issued a mandatory order some time ago, forcing mobile phone manufacturers to pay attention to the update of Android 8.0, it can be clearly seen that various mobile phone manufacturers have obviously moved much faster: SONY has long updated the Xperia XZP and XZ with the official version of 8.0 firmware, and promised that the X series will also be updated two years ago; Samsung's S8 beta update has released five versions, and it is said that the official version is coming soon; in China, OPPO revealed at the beginning of this year that the R11s will be directly upgraded to Android 8.1, which can be said to be a big surprise; as for Xiaomi, their MIUI 9 has just announced that it will carry out the last large-scale push, covering a total of 40 models.

It must be said that this wave of "system upgrades" is indeed quite gratifying: for the majority of mobile phone users, they can experience the benefits of the new system in terms of interface and performance through simple updates without having to buy a new phone. Nothing can be more satisfying than this.

However, there are still some differences between manufacturers in their attitudes towards "system updates". For example, recently an overseas netizen broke the news that Samsung's customer service revealed during a conversation that the old flagship Galaxy S6, which was released two generations ago, will definitely get an Android 8.0 update. This phone was released in April 2015, which is almost three years ago.

Not all manufacturers are conscientious enough

As soon as the news came out, it attracted the attention and discussion of some netizens: Why can the Samsung S6, which was three years ago, be updated to Android 8.0, and the Xiaomi 2S, which was five years ago, can still use MIUI9, but my own XX phone has only been bought for more than a year, and the official announcement has been made that it will no longer be updated. This is unfair!

It is indeed unfair, because there is no binding law on the issue of the system update guarantee period for Android phones. Although Google has officially stated that the system update guarantee period for Google phones is 18 months from release, and the security patch update guarantee period is three years (36 months) from release. However, this guarantee only applies to Google's own Nexus and Pixel phones, as well as other phones sold in Google's official store and for which Google is responsible for providing system updates, and has no binding force on other third-party manufacturers.

As a result, it is not surprising that manufacturers lack constraints and have different attitudes towards system updates - that is what it seems on the surface. But if you think carefully about the underlying reasons, it is not as simple as "no one cares".

Why is system update so difficult?

First of all, system updates, especially real Android version updates, are not a simple matter for the engineering team of every mobile phone company. It involves a lot of driver compilation, software and hardware adaptation, system built-in and third-party software compatibility testing, comprehensive experience evaluation and bug fixes, etc. It takes a research and development team at least several months of work to achieve basic stability and smoothness before pushing. It can be said that adapting to the new system itself is a "technical job" and it is really impossible to do this without a certain level of development strength.

Secondly, for some manufacturers, updating the system for "old models" that have reached the end of their sales cycle is sometimes "uneconomical". Not only because it takes up R&D and testing resources, but more importantly, it cannot directly promote sales, and it may be better to speed up the launch of new products to make more money... Therefore, whether the attitude towards system updates is positive sometimes actually depends on the business strategy of the corresponding manufacturer.

Finally, there is another reason why Xiaomi provides new system updates for old models such as Mi 2S and Samsung for S6, which cannot be ignored. That is, these models once had amazing sales and still have a large number of them in existence. Therefore, providing the latest system or firmware version for these classic old models can effectively strengthen the "loyalty" of old users and also have a positive impact on the brand's reputation - this is really not something that other brands can learn just by wanting to.

In conclusion: In fact, consumers care not only about updates, but also about attitudes

As the saying goes, "there is no free lunch in the world." "Conscientious" manufacturers provide system updates for old models, essentially in pursuit of a good brand image; while some other brands ignore updates and simply use the strategy of flooding the market with products. In fact, everyone is also considering the ultimate sales volume and profit.

However, from the perspective of consumers, whether a manufacturer provides updates for mobile phones and whether the updates are timely can actually be seen as a "mirror" of the brand's technical strength and even market sincerity. Therefore, despite various reasons, for the current mobile phone industry where "experience is king", system updates may still be something that many manufacturers should pay serious attention to and reflect on.