If we had to choose where Android mobiles have improved more in recent years, we would not say things like the screen or the processor, but the updates. That has always been a section in which Apple’s iPhone have been superior, and by win, offering several years of support, while some Android mobiles have not come to celebrate their first anniversary before being abandoned.
This situation has changed overnight, with some brands such as Google and Samsung promising 7 years of updatesfar exceeding the 5 years of support that the iPhone usually receives (although Apple does not have a written rule and there are exceptions). Now, the Android platform has just given another blow to the table, which eliminates the main excuses that brands may have so as not to support their mobiles.
This week, Qualcomm has announced a new collaboration program with Google to offer the possibility of up to 8 years of consecutive support of new versions of android and security updates. This is the most ambitious project so far to ensure that the mobiles we buy now can last as much as possible, without the need to buy another and generate electronic waste.
Specifically, the alliance with Google assumes that both the Android operating system, as the kernel updates (the system core) will be available for eight consecutive years without needing “significant changes or improvements in the manufacturer’s platform and code”. The biggest work will come with the kernel updates, which will require new drivers, but apart from that, the code of each manufacturer may remain unchanged and continue to function.
To understand the importance of this announcement, you have to first understand what is the greatest obstacle to Android updates: manufacturers modifications. Each brand offers its own Android -based customization layer (such as Samsung Oneui), and its own ‘hardware’ configuration that requires its own ‘software’ and drivers.
With each new update and version of Android and the changes they bring, the developer has to make in turn Modifications in your code to guarantee compatibility; It is a great investment, depending on the amount of necessary modifications and devices to be supported, and hence the Android support has traditionally been very poor.
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With the new commitment of Qualcomm and Google, Each new version of Android will not require “significant changes” so that the brand code works correctly; And that should facilitate things a lot. The biggest difference will come with the kernel updates, of which the alliance promises two in the period of eight years; By affecting the system core, they will require updates of the ‘drivers’, but in return, they will offer greater security for longer, since they affect critical system components.
The Snapdragon 8 Elite is the first chip that is part of this collaboration between Qualcomm and Google, and therefore, mobiles such as the Samsung Galaxy S25, the Xiaomi 15 or the Asus Zenfone 12 Ultra are models that could benefit, in addition to the Future mobiles that use the next Qualcomm chips. However, it must be clarified that The ball is now on each manufacturer’s roofand that the policy of each brand is the one that will determine the real amount of years that we will receive updates. However, Qualcomm is optimistic and states that it has already received the commitment of several brands, so we expect ads in the near future.
