When Google and Samsung recently announced 7 years of software support for their latest flagships, some hoped OnePlus would follow suit. But nope – OnePlus is sticking firm to its promise of 4 major Android updates and 5 years of security patches.
Naturally, people wondered – why not match Google and Samsung? OnePlus’ COO Kinder Liu had an interesting food analogy to explain their thinking:
“Simply offering longer updates misses the point. It’s not just about software lifespan, but fluency of the user experience too. Think of your phone like a sandwich. Some brands say the filling (software) is good for 7 years. But they ignore the bread (user experience) going moldy after 4 years. Suddenly 7 years of updates doesn’t matter if the overall experience is bad.”
He has a point – what good are updates if the battery is shot and the performance is laggy? OnePlus tests its phones to maintain speed and smoothness for 4+ years.
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Liu also noted research showing most people upgrade within 4 years anyway. So from a business perspective, longer support doesn’t make financial sense yet. Of course, if updates lasted longer, upgrades might slow too. A bit of a chicken and egg thing.
Bottom line – OnePlus feels pushing updates past 5 years risks hurting user experience and isn’t worth the costs. And since many owners upgrade by then anyway, they don’t see a need to match Google/Samsung.
I get where Liu is coming from – hardware degrading can ruin the experience, even with new software. But for those who do hold phones longer, those extra 2-3 years of updates would be really nice! In the end, choose the updated policy that fits your habits best. You’ve got options!