Why your Galaxy S21 FE is now a unique phone

The day the Galaxy S21, S21+, and S21 Ultra were dreading finally arrived this month. After completing five years on the market, Samsung has ended all software update support for these three phones, exactly as promised when they launched.

But support isn’t ending for the Galaxy S21 FE. In fact, the Galaxy S21 FE has quietly become a unique device in Samsung’s Galaxy S lineup. And more specifically, in the Galaxy S FE family. While its pricier siblings have reached the end of the road, the S21 FE will continue to receive updates.

The reason comes down to timing. Unlike other Galaxy S FE models, which launched about six months after their non-FE counterparts, the Galaxy S21 FE was delayed significantly. It arrived nearly a year after the original S21 trio, launching with a newer version of Android and One UI out of the box.

That delay turned into a long-term advantage. Samsung promised four major OS upgrades and five years of security updates to all Galaxy S21 models, and because it started out on newer software, Samsung’s four-OS-upgrade promise stretched further for the S21 FE.

It is the only phone in the S21 series to receive One UI 8 based on Android 16, and it will continue to get security updates for another year.

And it won’t stop there. The Galaxy S21 FE is also likely to receive One UI 8.5 as its final feature update. While still based on Android 16, One UI 8.5 is a meaningful update that's bringing a refreshed interface across various system elements and Samsung’s proprietary apps.

In the end, the Galaxy S21 FE won't outlast the rest of the S21 lineup because it's more expensive or more powerful, but because it didn't arrive on schedule. A launch delay effectively made it the longest-supported Galaxy S21 model and gave it an unexpected distinction few Samsung smartphones ever get.