First generation Google Pixel phones to receive FINAL security update in December

[maartendc]

So it has finally happened, the first real Flagship phones made and sold by Google have become unsupported as of this month.

 

Original article from The Verge:

 

https://www.theverge.com/2019/11/5/20950210/google-pixel-xl-final-security-original-update-december

 

Quote

The Google Pixel and Pixel XL will get “one final software update” in December, the company confirms to The Verge. As of yesterday, it looked like the original Pixel was done getting updates, as Google released its November security update for most Pixel phones, but nothing for the Pixel or Pixel XL.

 

Quote

It wasn’t too surprising to see that Google’s original Pixels didn’t get yesterday’s update. When Google announced the phones in 2016, the company said they would get two years of guaranteed Android version updates and three years of security updates, which is also reflected on Google’s support page.

 

My personal take:

As an owner of a Pixel XL first generation, this is very disappointing. I knew that the phone would only get two years of new Android versions, and Google went above and beyond by pushing Android 10 to the devices. But I was not aware that it would get only 3 years of security updates. I use my phone for online banking and such, so this means my phone security will be compromised going forward. I've had this phone for about 2 years only, since I bought it later in 2017, when it was still being sold as the latest and greatest.

 

What is your opinion on this? For a phone that was supposed to be "the best Android experience" money could buy (and a lot of money it did cost). Is this good enough in your opinion?

 

In comparison: iPhones regularly get 4 years of new iOS updates, like the iPhone 6s released in September of 2015 got iOS 13 late this year.. I feel the fact that Google is lagging so far behind Apple in not only new feature updates, but SECURITY updates, is unacceptable. Especially considering that some people buy the phone not when it first releases, but perhaps 9 months later. This means they are really only getting 2.5 years of effective updates.

 

What is your take?

[Arika]

It's the unfortunate reality of all android phones; their long term support sucks. Credit where credit is due for Apple.

[Master Disaster]

I think Google went far beyond what any other Android OEM would do. At 3 years your phone is probably ready to be replaced anyway, the battery will almost certainly be dying and holding very little charge.

 

You cannot expect updates in perpetuity, that's unrealistic and probably would hurt the device more than help it as eventually software starts using more resources than the device has.

 

You want security updates moving forward look into custom ROMs. Lineage OS is the best place to start.

[Salv8 (sam)]

i'm just sitting here with my google nexus 5x with ASOP extended...

i don't need no official support!

[SeriousDad69]

This is why I buy iPhones. The 4S got an update in July of this year and it's an eight year old phone.
I'd really like to have a lot of the features of Android, like running emulators, but I'd rather have updates and support for longer than a measly two or three years.

[SeriousDad69]

22 minutes ago, Master Disaster said:

At 3 years your phone is probably ready to be replaced anyway, the battery will almost certainly be dying and holding very little charge.

This isn't 2010, there's no reason to throw your smartphone away after only a few years anymore unless you're gaming or something. Most people just need a battery replacement. How much more demanding do you think the Facebook app is going to get?

[yolosnail]

I always buy my phone a year later, once the next generation is launched, that way hopefully all the bugs have been ironed out, and the price has usually dropped by a good 50-70% from the launch price. With my LG G6, it got one software update to Oreo, and then a few security updates and that was it. It's supposedly still getting Pie but I highly doubt that!

As the battery life was getting awful and I need the water resistance, I just upgraded to the G7 rather than replace the battery. I might end up doing it anyway since it's only about £20. I don't need the high specs, but I'd much rather buy last years 'flagship' than this years mid-range for the same price, you get way more features for the same price. Plus, with a flagship you're more likely to get software updates.

 

Then again, I don't really care about feature upgrades, they can't add a headphone jack in software can they? 

[Froody129]

That's kind of sad... Even with new phones having been released it's not like this is an old phone. My 6s+ is still rocking the newest software and likely will be still be supported with security updates for a long while after feature updates stop supporting it. It's a shame, since I really want to jump ship from Apple, but I just don't want to have to change phone every 2 years.

 

How realistic is just installing one of the third-party flavours for extended support?

[porina]

1 hour ago, maartendc said:

In comparison: iPhones regularly get 4 years of new iOS updates, like the iPhone 6s released in September of 2015 got iOS 13 late this year.. I feel the fact that Google is lagging so far behind Apple in not only new feature updates, but SECURITY updates, is unacceptable. Especially considering that some people buy the phone not when it first releases, but perhaps 9 months later. This means they are really only getting 2.5 years of effective updates.

I use iPhone 8+ (work), iPad mini (personal), Pixel 3a (personal), Huawei tablet something (personal) daily. I don't feel Android is lagging in features compared to iOS and is better for me overall. All mentioned devices are still getting security updates, but I have no idea how long that's going to continue for.

 

I guess it would be nice to be in a PC like position, with almost forever lasting security updates. Easier on iOS, but Android fragmentation remains a problem that Google is still trying to solve. For example, they had moved many parts into a store downloadable update, and moving as much as they can out of the lower level OS which remains unique for the hardware support.

 

I feel 3 years is the minimum a high end device should come with. Maybe this should become a legal area like for cars, where manufacturers have to support parts for some years after a model is last officially sold. For phones, this could be for example 2 years of security updates from when it was last officially sold. I have to add officially, since there will always be some old stock floating around the system somewhere.

 

13 minutes ago, SeriousDad69 said:

How much more demanding do you think the Facebook app is going to get?

Don't give them ideas!

 

3 minutes ago, yolosnail said:

Then again, I don't really care about feature upgrades, they can't add a headphone jack in software can they? 

It's on the website next to the ram download.

[Arika]

15 minutes ago, porina said:

It's on the website next to the ram download.

No, it's still there, you just have to drill into your phone to open the port

[williamcll]

Hopefully custom ROMs still get updates.

[flashiling]

11 minutes ago, Arika S said:

No, it's still there, you just have to drill into your phone to open the port

did you get the microwave charging software update aswell?

[That Franc]

Buy an iPhone if you want security, but keep your Pixel for everything else.

[Zodiark1593]

3 hours ago, Master Disaster said:

I think Google went far beyond what any other Android OEM would do. At 3 years your phone is probably ready to be replaced anyway, the battery will almost certainly be dying and holding very little charge.

 

You cannot expect updates in perpetuity, that's unrealistic and probably would hurt the device more than help it as eventually software starts using more resources than the device has.

 

You want security updates moving forward look into custom ROMs. Lineage OS is the best place to start.

For all the crap Windows gets, even old Core 2 machines (add a decade to your 3 year mark) are still able to recieve the latest Windows 10 versions and updates. So yes, I absolutely expect the same of smartphones.

[GoodBytes]

4 hours ago, Master Disaster said:

I think Google went far beyond what any other Android OEM would do. At 3 years your phone is probably ready to be replaced anyway, the battery will almost certainly be dying and holding very little charge.

I disagree. Phones, even mid range ones, can easily last 5 years, if your needs are unchanged. A battery replacement is possible for under 100$. You want an example, my mother still uses and like my old phone, the original first gen Moto G. Yes it got a battery replacement, but phones calls and text still works great, and that is what she uses the device for 95% of the time. And the rest, still works fine. Yes she needs to close background process, to keep teh phone fast, but that is what you needed to do since day 1 in any case. What sucks is that she has 0 security, but in her peculiar case, she isn't affected by this, to my knowledge. The point is that the phone is still capable, and if it had security updates (say 5 years), it would be much welcomed And now she actually wants to do more, do maybe its time for an upgrade.

 

Encouraging waste is never good. It is not good for the consumer and not good for the planet.

 

Quote

You cannot expect updates in perpetuity, that's unrealistic and probably would hurt the device more than help it as eventually software starts using more resources than the device has.

And yet, Windows and iOS devices do have 5years+ of support. 

 

Quote

You want security updates moving forward look into custom ROMs. Lineage OS is the best place to start.

We should not have to do this. And it isn't an easy process either. I mean, it is easy for you and me, but not your typical person.

 

Manufactures and carriers, wants you to replace your phone every 2 years. Yes it is very nice that Google is pushing a solid 3 years of support complete with carrier by-pass.

[piemadd]

I currently use my essential phone which was released in 2017. Still receiving monthly updates for it and im happy with how well android 10 runs on it. Within the next year, I plan on buying a qualcomm snapdragon dev kit and making my own phone.

[piemadd]

Just now, GoodBytes said:

I disagree. Phones, even mid range ones, can easily last 5 years, if your needs are unchanged. A battery replacement is possible for under 100$. You want an example, my mother still uses and like my old phone, the original first gen Moto G.

My dad still uses his iphone 6, and with the current path of essential, i feel like my ph-1 will last at least until 1 or two years into college. The snapdragon 635 is more than enough for everyday use and even gaming. The battery isn't lasting as long anymore (only for 6ish hours now), but  plan on replacing that soon. In comparison, my brother bought a galaxy s8 for my mom and a galaxy s8+ for himself a month before the release of android 10. guess who didn't get android 10 even though my phone and theirs are comparable in specs and arguably mine even a bit better.

[jiyeon]

To be honest, this is probably the longest I've ever heard of an Android device getting updates, even if it is a security update.

As far as I'm aware, Google have always have a good track record of supporting their own in-house devices such as the former Nexus and the current Pixels. I remember my Nexus 5X got two major updates - I believe its final was Android N? - and then it literally got nothing else.

[Guest]

I a world where the planets resources are dwindling at an alarming rate, this kind of consumerism really is not a good route for us to take. Devices are no longer rapidly advancing, more incremental updates. Maybe phone companies should start offering battery, screen and update subscription services as well as the current service subs such as Apple Arcade and Apple Music. I think they need to move away from the product race to some extent and seek the virtues of software and services.

[rcmaehl]

LineageOS will continue to support the original pixel for several years to come. It's going to be one of the launch devices for LOS 17.

[RejZoR]

1 hour ago, That Franc said:

Buy an iPhone if you want security, but keep your Pixel for everything else.

Security, long term support, privacy, app quality... Maybe iPhones lack some things that are on Android for a while, but whole experience is quite different and better on iOS than on Android. It feels more "complete" if you know what I mean. And this is coming from someone who has been using Android since Eclair...

[Mark Kaine]

5 hours ago, maartendc said:

What is your opinion on this?

Don't use your phone for banking. 

 

1 hour ago, RejZoR said:

Security, long term support, privacy, app quality... Maybe iPhones lack some things that are on Android for a while, but whole experience is quite different and better on iOS than on Android. It feels more "complete" if you know what I mean. And this is coming from someone who has been using Android since Eclair...

No,  I don't. Whenever I interact with someone who has an apple and I just want to send them a photo or similar it has to be done in complicated ways over email or other similar idiotic ways so they can download it from "the cloud"  even though their apple is right in front of us and has a freaking USB in... 

 

 

And when I ask if there isn't an easier way the answer is always "I don't know how.. "  or  "this is how it works on apple,  it's better this way, you know"

 

I wouldn't call overly complicated and obtuse "more complete" but to each their own I guess lol.

[RejZoR]

33 minutes ago, Mark Kaine said:

Don't use your phone for banking. 

 

No,  I don't. Whenever I interact with someone who has an apple and I just want to send them a photo or similar it has to be done in complicated ways over email or other similar idiotic ways so they can download it from "the cloud"  even though their apple is right in front of us and has a freaking USB in... 

 

 

And when I ask if there isn't an easier way the answer is always "I don't know how.. "  or  "this is how it works on apple,  it's better this way, you know"

 

I wouldn't call overly complicated and obtuse "more complete" but to each their own I guess lol.

That's one of things I don't understand either, but it's really just one thing. Allegedly, because BT transfers are insecure where AirDrop is. Still, not providing an option with a warning is a bit silly, I agree.

[DrMacintosh]

Only 3 years of updates? So much for that promise you made Google. Womp womp. Meanwhile the iPhone 6s can still run iOS 13 just as well as the iPhone 11. 

[Teddy07]

don´t care about updates. Used galaxy s2+ for seven years and never had security trouble