Qualcomm plans to make updates easier for Android OEMs
Android fragmentation is one of the many issues that users complain about, which is why companies making phones don’t usually promise more than 4-5 years of OS updates. Security updates are a completely different matter and those typically go for about five years (even more in some cases).
That said, Qualcomm seems to be determined to make it easier for OEMs to roll out Android updates. The reason this is done by Qualcomm and not Google is because older chipsets require more resources and delivering Android updates for these is a very complex matter.
In an interview with Android Authority, Chris Patrick, SVP and General Manager of Handsets at Qualcomm, said that the company plans to introduce changes to make it easier for OEMs to update their older Android phones.
Basically, the reason that many times Android OS updates are delayed is because chip makers like Qualcomm and MediaTek stop supporting older chipsets. This not only delays updates, but more often than not it significantly reduces the number of updates some phones receive.
That said, Qualcomm seems to be determined to make it easier for OEMs to roll out Android updates. The reason this is done by Qualcomm and not Google is because older chipsets require more resources and delivering Android updates for these is a very complex matter.
Basically, the reason that many times Android OS updates are delayed is because chip makers like Qualcomm and MediaTek stop supporting older chipsets. This not only delays updates, but more often than not it significantly reduces the number of updates some phones receive.
Although Qualcomm claims that it’s not one of the bottlenecks in this complicated process, the US-based chip maker revealed that it’s been working with Google and OEMs “to change the structure of inline code.” Qualcomm’s official, the company will announce something in this regard later this year.
You’ll see that, later on this year, we’ll make some announcements about some of those changes we’ve made to facilitate this and help the whole ecosystem keep Android phones closer to up to date.
– Chris Patrick, SVP and General Manager of Handsets at Qualcomm, June 2024
With the upcoming changes, OEMs shouldn’t have any issues providing Android updates in a timely fashion and for a longer time. Thanks to Qualcomm’s code optimization, the process of delivering Android updates for OEMs should no longer be that expensive and complicated.
As for end users, the aim is to have updates coming out sooner and Android devices getting support for more years. It remains to be seen how these changes will affect customers, at least those using Android devices equipped with Qualcomm chipsets.
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