Last Updated on December 14, 2020
I came across one reply on a forum thread, the user agitated why Android users find it difficult to receive latest Android updates for their device just like the iOS users.
Even if all iOS user have updated to iOS 10 or not, there is a big difference between Android and iOS. Since iPhone, iPad and other Apple products are solely from Apple, there’s a bigger chance that almost all their products running same hardware specifications shall receive same updates in due time.
When you relate this scenario to Android devices, you will realize that this chance of uniformity in software/firmware updates is not possible owing to these following barriers;
Reasons why you may not receive latest android updates
- Android as Open source OS
- Vast Android powered smartphones and tablets
- Certified and non-certified smartphone manufacturers tapping into Android
- Cloned or customized Android builds
1. Android as Open source OS
Android is a product of Google. Being an Open source mobile operating system shows that its functionality can be altered by any third party developers. Unlike iOS, Apple manages the development, maintenance and updates of its operating system is handled only by Apple.
You see the big difference!
Google releases Android versions alongside hardware compatibility. You and I can grab a copy of Android source code from Google and blend it to our own taste.
2. Vast Android powered smartphones and tablets
As a result of being an Open source mobile operating system, this bring about numerous Android powered smartphones. If you and I can start a smartphone company, anybody can still do the same.
3. Certified and non-certified smartphone manufacturers
If you have checked mobile phone statistics, Android has greater percentage of worldwide domination. There are few popular Android manufacturers like Samsung, LG, HTC, Oppo, Huawei, Lenovo,…
Aside from these few Android brands, there are thousands of other manufacturers powering Android as their OS. Some of these manufacturers are certified while others manipulate on the works of the top manufacturers through clone.
4. Cloned or customized Android builds
A cloned device is an almost replica of an original product. These cloned devices are much cheaper than the original products and too shabby to be classic.
What are their implications?
One of their major implication is unconformity in user’s expectations. If I buy a Samsung Galaxy S8 running Nougat but my friend buys an Android phone from different manufacturer running Marshmallow.
In a normal sense of it, we found out that our hardware features are almost the same. But technically, my S8 beats his device when compared.
You own Android manufacturer may not have the support to accommodate latest android updates for your device. For a cloned device, there’s no way you are going to receive an official firmware updates unless they tweak their cloned ROM.
Android hardware specifications must be original for any device to run it. There are some over-hyped MTK Android device that come with almost 6GB of RAM, 22MP but cannot receive the best of it.
