OnePlus explains why it's only promising 5 years of Android updates, not more

06 February 2024
It all has to do with sandwiches.

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What resale values you talking about people? Any Android phone after 3 years will be considered trash in value :) even if you buy flagship it's retail value will be double or triple less, so One Plus here with great explanation, after 4 or 5 years of using same phone nobody will ever buy it from you not expecting to take it basically for free, we talking about screen wear and battery wear. Taking majority of users they trash their phones after couple of years usage, resale value is least in your mind :)

    Haven't used a pixel in ages but isn't Google's software faily debloated from the start? It means it'll work on older hardware better than the competition.

      • ?
      • Anonymous
      • CbB
      • 10 Feb 2024

      coolkev99, 09 Feb 2024This proves Google's strategy is working. The 7 years... moreyou get what you pay for. You can get 7+ year software updates by paying 1000+ dollars price.

        • S
        • SamsungShaftsUs
        • s7k
        • 09 Feb 2024

        What a silly comment from the CEO of a company.

        If what he is saying is true, why do all my rooted phones with CFW have next to no issue working 5-6-8+ years? I've never replaced the battery on an 8 year old phone and there isn't any issues even with battery life.

        Even the garbage phone, the TributeHD still runs after all of this time.

        And if we talk about mobile devices, my 3DS and PSP both have never needed a battery replacement.

        So...?

          This proves Google's strategy is working. The 7 years support is starting to separate the premium brands out from the rest. OnePlus's excuse is laughable, yet predictable. What else they gonna say?

            • ?
            • Anonymous
            • CbB
            • 09 Feb 2024

            Anonymous, 09 Feb 2024The battery issues are true, but Android is still complete ... moreFor some people android is garbage, for some other people iOS is garbage. It's subjective matter.

              • G
              • Gus
              • KgW
              • 09 Feb 2024

              For a flagship specs phone I'd imagine it going for 10 years if we're being honest.
              Sure, performancewise might not be the same from the first 3-5 years since you bought it, but it still would be usable and be able to handle daily tasks, multimedia, some simple android games.
              I still have and use my Xiaomi MiMax 2 running on Android 7, turning 7 years this year, and I can still play decent games on it, battery life is still very good, haven't replaced it yet. Use it for multimedia youtube, netflix, spotify, and more, so imagine if it was a high performance phone with top specs and still performs better than how midrange phones would 7-10 years later, I'd still be able to use it ans/or hand it down to my younger siblings/relatives or children I might have in the future.

                • ?
                • Anonymous
                • B42
                • 09 Feb 2024

                The battery issues are true, but Android is still complete garbage that slows down with every update, except on Google Pixels. I understand very well why people prefer Apple iPhones with iOS instead of any Android.

                https://www.gsmarena.com/hollywood_actor_chris_evans_says_goodbye_to_his_beloved_iphone_6s_and_its_home_button-news-54803.php

                  • G
                  • Gus
                  • I@H
                  • 09 Feb 2024

                  For a flagship specs phone I'd imagine it going for 10 years if we're being honest.
                  Sure, performancewise might not be the same from the first 3-5 years since you bought it, but it still would be usable and be able to handle daily tasks, multimedia, some simple android games.
                  I still have and use my Xiaomi MiMax 2 running on Android 7, turning 7 years this year, and I can still play decent games on it, battery life is still very good, haven't replaced it yet. Use it for multimedia youtube, netflix, spotify, and more, so imagine if it was a high performance phone with top specs and still performs better than how midrange phones would 7-10 years later, I'd still be able to use it ans/or hand it down to my younger siblings/relatives or children I might have in the future.

                    • ?
                    • Anonymous
                    • rA}
                    • 09 Feb 2024

                    Eboy, 09 Feb 2024Am I the only one who agrees with what he said? Seven years... moreLame excuse it is

                      • E
                      • Eboy
                      • IV$
                      • 09 Feb 2024

                      Am I the only one who agrees with what he said? Seven years of system updates are good, allowing us to use it for a longer time, but what about the hardware? If many things are not supported or become obsolete, what's the use of seven years of system updates? Take the Samsung S24 Ultra, for example, its latest feature, Galaxy AI, cannot be used on the Galaxy S22 series. So, with the S22 Ultra having a four-year system update, if the hardware doesn't support the latest features, what's the point?

                        • V
                        • Vinz
                        • v3J
                        • 09 Feb 2024

                        What a reason, why is the concept of "send for battery replacement" is not being considered? Would you change your car because its tyres were all worn out? I guessed nobody will wanna change their car just because the tyres worn out.

                          Let's imagine Oneplus could provide 10 years of update. Mr Liu would say exactly the opposite, ie. Long support is good for environment, respectful to users. And I would imagine, instead of the childish sandwich analogy, he would choose a reference like a house which is built to last forever.

                          In spite of the irresponsible opinion of Mr Liu. I intend to keep my phone forever. The expensive repair for replacing battery or screen is NOT the reason to justify short support period. This is the consequences of the criminal design method called "planned obsolescence".

                          Instead of pursuing this stupid hardware design trend. Mr Liu should show innovation about making a more durable phone, easy to service. I can help you with that, right now: don't count on me as a customer.

                            Honestly, I don't agree with what the COO has said but I agree with them not providing a promise of longer updates. It's just that, a promise. Oneplus isn't big enough like Samsung or Google to uphold that huge promise consistently. If they provide 5 years of updates in a good time to time basis then that's all anyone could ask for. Most people change phones within 3 years and Oneplus phones hold their value longer than Samsung phones so the resale value thing is redundant.

                            COO isn't entirely wrong, replacing the battery would just void the IP rating, then what? What about the resale value then? I'd rather just buy a new phone. Planned obsolescence? Most definitely but if there were a way to get new batteries for reasonable prices with the IP rating intact then most people would do that. But Oneplus, like all other Chinese brands, don't have that great availability/customer support available in every country so yeah, I'm playing the devil's advocate by sort of agreeing with the COO.

                              What a dumb comment from the CEO... If it were not for cracked screen in my OP3 I would probably still use it after 5 years...

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • CbA
                                • 08 Feb 2024

                                Artem S. Tashkinov, 08 Feb 2024Only one of us is a person who understand the science behin... more"Only one of us is a person who understand the science behind tech and what you wrote is complete and utter nonsense."

                                Yeah, only one of us understand science behind tech and FYI its not you.



                                "Computers and smartphones do NOT get slower with time. Windows and Android may slow down when you install a ton of crap, but it's your fault, not your device's."

                                I have a laptop which is 9 years old and when I bought it was fast. Now its only used for some video playing and email because it can't handle more load and FYI I have only 3 3rd party apps installed now (VLC, firefox and adobe reader)
                                I have phone which is 3½ years old. When it was new I used to play some casual games, right now I cant play same games because phone overheats.(it's not bloated at all with apps.
                                So yes, computers and smartphones do get slower with time.



                                "There are way too many people who do not understand tech at all and are ready and willing to dispose of their old devices after installing a gazillion of apps or/and opening 150 tabs in a web browser"

                                It's you who do not understand that everything age and electronic hardware is not an exception. I have only 12 3rd party apps (total 48 including built in) on my phone and 2 of them browsers (no gazillion apps) and I do not open more than 4-5 tabs in browsers. But it is still not as good as it was 3.5 years ago.


                                It would be better for both of us if we do not respond to each other. Goodbye.

                                  Anonymous, 08 Feb 2024How many times and how many spare parts have you changed? N... moreOnly one of us is a person who understand the science behind tech and what you wrote is complete and utter nonsense.

                                  Computers and smartphones do NOT get slower with time. Windows and Android may slow down when you install a ton of crap, but it's your fault, not your device's. Neither CPU, nor RAM, nor GPU, nor your SSD will slow down with time.

                                  And yes, I've upgraded CPUs, RAM and GPUs on multiple occasions but not because they got "slow" but because new applications and games increased their HW requirements. I also upgraded my monitor from 1080p and 1440p, that meant my video card had 44% more pixels to render. That meant if I hadn't upgraded it, my games would be running a LOT slower. Games are especially brutal in terms of HW.

                                  There are way too many people who do not understand tech at all and are ready and willing to dispose of their old devices after installing a gazillion of apps or/and opening 150 tabs in a web browser. And oh boy, a new device feels faster but it's not because it's new, it's because you've not overloaded it yet.

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                                    • Inve
                                    • S3c
                                    • 08 Feb 2024

                                    The biggest reason is many manufacturers rely on Snapdragon, and Qualcomm only guarantees 2 or 3 year support.

                                    Makers can invest to support the SoC themselves, but it becomes risky and costly because Qualcomm will not report future security issues or provide any support for development.

                                    This is why i prefer Exynos: long support and less risk from security issues.

                                    People say that 5% higher FPS in benchmark matters most, but to my ears that sounds like saying "this car is more expensive and has no seat belts or air bags, but at least it drivers 5% faster!"

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                                      • Anonymous
                                      • M4b
                                      • 08 Feb 2024

                                      I don’t care about the latest ui or feature updates. But I am expecting security patches for long time to make sure nobody hacks my phone.

                                        • y
                                        • yalim
                                        • mu4
                                        • 08 Feb 2024

                                        Shane, 07 Feb 2024What are you smoking? I change phone every 3 months, I have... morechanging the phone 3 times a year? you must have serious issues in life unless you are a phone tester at work. that is absolutely not normal at all. average usage is 2-3 years. even changing every year is not normal.

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