Google bring out the Pixel 8 this week and the biggest new lineament is n’t the Tensor G3 chip , the 48MP extremist - wide photographic camera , or the LTPO display . It ’s the promise , direct from Google , that the Pixel 8 will still get updates in 2030 . Google is guaranteeing seven year of Android type O climb , security updates , and regular Feature Drops , a massive improvement over the Pixel 7 ( three years of oculus sinister upgrade and five years of security update ) and the Galaxy S23 ( four eld of OS upgrades and five years of security department updates ) .
Google is also boasting that it ’s better than what Apple offer with the iPhone . Apple technically does n’t ensure a specific length of time for upgrade , but you may generally look on five years of iOS updates and six twelvemonth of security updates . iOS 17 supports iPhones back to the XR , XS , and XS Max , which were released in 2018 . At first glance , that might seem like less than Google is promising , but let ’s poke in .
Google promises seven year of updates “ from when the machine first became usable on the Google Store in the US , ” so if you buy one next August , you ’re getting six year of updates . Google specifically says updates are assure until October 2030 , so even if that think Android 21 come out in October 2030 , you ’re not guarantee to get any updates beyond the initial dismission .
The iPhone XR and XS , meanwhile , originally transport with iOS 12 , so that ’s five full o updates so far ( iOS 13 - iOS 17 ) , six year of updates ( through next September until Io 18 arrives ) , and seven year of surety update , as Apple continue to plump for the old iOS generation for at least a year . So in reality here ’s how the two platform look side by side with the current generation of phone :
And that ’s if Apple does n’t stretch out the life of the current iPhones . As recently as iOS 15,Apple had substantiate iPhonesgoing back six years , which mean theiPhone 15could get iOS 23 in 2029 , update throughout 2030 , and security update through 2031 which would be better than Google guarantees .
Besides , there ’s a reason why Apple does n’t guarantee a sealed number of upgrades . Each generation of iPhone is unique and by the time iOS 21 rolls around , the iPhone 13 might not be fit to run for it . If it is , Apple will summate it to the compatibility lean . If it is n’t , Apple wo n’t plump for it . And Google does n’t know how the Pixel 8 will fare with Android 21 either .
As Tommy Boy said , “ A guy puts a guarantee on the boxwood ’cause he wants you to finger all warm and toasty inside . … Because they bonk all they sell ya was a guaranteed part of sh — ” well , you get the point . Maybe the Pixel 8 will end up get a couple of month of supererogatory software program updates than the iPhone 15 once 2030 rolls around . But you roll in the hay what , I ’d still rather trust the troupe that does n’t need to promise anything .
