- Vivek Rabara
- 31 August 2023
-
When it comes to reigning as the software update champion, iPhone takes the crown by offering a robust 5-year span of software updates coupled with 7 years of security updates. In the realm of Android, Samsung leads the charge with an impressive offer of 4 years for major OS updates and 5 years for security updates. Recent reports from 9to5Google suggest that Google’s Pixel 8 might be gearing up to emulate the iPhone’s software update policy. Although specific details are yet to surface, if Google manages to come anywhere near, it would certainly be a noteworthy development.
At present, Google provides Pixel smartphones with a combination of three significant OS updates and a span of five years for security patches. This arrangement for software updates was introduced alongside the debut of the Pixel 6 series in 2021.

According to the report, there’s speculation that Google could outdo Samsung’s software update commitment, beginning with the Pixel 8 series. If this comes to fruition, it might mean we can anticipate a minimum of five major OS upgrades for Pixel smartphones as Google strives to surpass Samsung’s offering.
Google’s shift to its proprietary Tensor SoC probably enabled this prolonged software support, as it grants the company full command over the software and hardware ecosystem, empowering it to decide the duration of OS updates and security patches for its phones and tablets.
Additionally, make sure you don’t overlook the opportunity to personally experience our distinctive side by side smartphone comparison tool!