Android updates are super important, and we are glad things have improved in that regard over the past 2-3 years. It was Samsung that started offering longer software support and pushed other brands, including Google, to provide more Android OS and security updates. Qualcomm is also doing its part to make it easier for brands to offer software updates.
Qualcomm could change how quickly Android updates are released
In an interview with Android Authority, Chris Patrick, SVP and General Manager of Handsets at Qualcomm, revealed that Qualcomm has been working on a few things that should make it easier for Android OEMs, like Samsung, to release software updates. He revealed that Qualcomm has been working with Google and Android OEMs over the past few years “to change the structure of inline code — to kind of change the machinery for how we do those updates.”
These changes should theoretically reduce the friction Android smartphone brands face while keeping their devices updated with the latest software. While these improvements have been happening over the past few years, Qualcomm will announce something later this year that should make things even better.
While the Qualcomm executive didn't reveal an exact date or the event where this announcement will happen, we expect the venue to be the Snapdragon Summit 2024 in October. This is the same event where Qualcomm is expected to announce the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4. The Galaxy S25 series and other high-end Android phones and tablets will employ that chipset next year.
The story continues after the video below, which explains all the new One UI 6.1 features.
Earlier, Android smartphone brands offered just a couple of major OS updates for high-end devices. Most of Samsung's devices, low-end or high-end, used to get just two major Android OS upgrades.
However, Samsung started improving by offering three major Android OS updates to select devices. Later, it announced that its high-end and some mid-range devices would get four Android OS updates and five years of security updates.
Last year, Google announced it will offer OS and security updates to Pixel devices for seven years. It was a massive deal in the Android ecosystem, one that left even Apple in the dust. With the Galaxy S24, Samsung announced that it would match Google and offer seven major Android OS updates to its high-end smartphones and tablets.
