infographic Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

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Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support

The announcement that Nexus One users won’t be getting upgraded to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich led some to justifiably question Google’s support of their devices. I look at it a little differently: Nexus One owners are lucky. I’ve been researching the history of OS updates on Android phones and Nexus One users have fared much, much better than most Android buyers.

I went back and found every Android phone shipped in the United States1 up through the middle of last year. I then tracked down every update that was released for each device - be it a major OS upgrade or a minor support patch - as well as prices and release & discontinuation dates. I compared these dates & versions to the currently shipping version of Android at the time. The resulting picture isn’t pretty - well, not for Android users:

Source and full article: the understatement

[firey]

thing is though, CM and the like bring phones up to the current version, even if not 100% fully supported. With apple you can't do that. I agree manufactures have a tough time keeping phones up to date, however.. most companies with android phones aren't locked soley to android. Many have non-smart variatys, wp7, or other os's.

Along those same lines, Blackberry has horrible update support, in terms of their "older phones". So this isn't android only, and along with that, it's not JUST the manufacturer, it's also up to the service provider. The manufacturer can release the update, but carriers have to make the choice to support it or not.

Just like manufacturers can unlock the boot loaders of the phone, but carriers can opt out, or write their own lockers.

If you look, Apple has 4 iPhones in that list (I know there are more), all with the same carrier, all owned by 1 company, all manufactured, developed for, and created by 1 company. Android doesn't have that, Google Creates the OS, it's up to the manufacturers to create devices that can run it, and up to carriers to decide if to even send it as an update.

[tanjiajun_34]

Just asking I thought the first iPhone does not even have iOS 4. Why is it on current major version?

[BigFatTuna]

linux there are to many choices and and hardware limits on each device so one update will not work on all of them.

on IOS devices its always a Win win with updates because apple makes both

this is the reason i feel linux will never be more then a hobby OS for phones and pc / tablets

Droids are nice but until there is one droid with all cell networks the updates just do not make sense with to many things that can go wrong with all the different hardware and features needing drivers and code changes.

[spacer]

How is it Google's fault that OEMs don't put out updates for their own phones? Except for maybe the Nexus One, Google has no control over which phones get what updates.

[Teebor]

That graphic says to me "don't buy motorola" their ongoing support for the product is terrible. But thats the problem, its down to the manufacturer not google to update the phones

[DKAngel]

you simply cant compare android phones and the iphone, you have what 5 iphones?

and a billion android phones?

[Hardcore Til I Die]

We wouldn't want to put many phones that are up to date on the Android list as that would go against the author of the chart's intention, wouldn't it ;)

HTC Desire, HTC Desire HD, Samsung Galaxy S - up to date (not in terms of minor version numbers)

It's plain to see that Android is not supported by manufacturers/carriers for as long as iOS devices, but that chart is somewhat skewed because it's showing far more devices that aren't updated than ones that are!

[Rudy]

Looking at the Cliq XT makes me want to cry... that really sucks for people who bought that phone!

[Chasethebase Reporter]

Just asking I thought the first iPhone does not even have iOS 4. Why is it on current major version?

Technically it is up to date with the last supported version. I don't know whether the chart is right or wrong here, but iOS 3.x is the last supported version of the iPhone, meaning it is fully up to date where supported. These Android phones can run newer versions of the OS, yet aren't updated.

I don't think there's a right answer here.

[Roger H. Veteran]

It was said that there are plenty of unfair comparisons in this infographic.

The HTC Aria, Droid Eris & Hero, Motorola Cliq, Cliq XT & Backflip, Samsung Moment, Behold II were all "budget" phones with some being even "low budget" - Aria. I wouldn't put them in the same league or class as any iPhone so expecting them to get support for any amount of time as say the expensive $600 phones is a bit weird.

The HTC Nexus One & Droid Incredible, Evo 4G are the only phones in that same caliber. Since the report stops at June 2010, most of the phones that are available now and still getting support to Gingerbread aren't included. The ones included are still getting support as shown.

So to me the graphic is somewhat flawed. The iPhone wouldn't be benchmarked or compared to any of the other phones as they aren't in the same class so to expect them to get the same kinda support is kinda eh : :rolleyes: That's like comparing a Mercedez SL550 AMG to a Hyundai Accent (even though they've stepped up their game).

Not defending the lack of updates just pointing out some simple truths.

[Rudy]

It was said that there are plenty of unfair comparisons in this infographic.

The HTC Aria, Droid Eris & Hero, Motorola Cliq, Cliq XT & Backflip, Samsung Moment, Behold II were all "budget" phones with some being even "low budget" - Aria. I wouldn't put them in the same league or class as any iPhone so expecting them to get support for any amount of time as say the expensive $600 phones is a bit weird.

While these phones are "cheap", don't forget that the price listed are with a contract so they're not really that cheap...

[Roger H. Veteran]

While these phones are "cheap", don't forget that the price listed are with a contract so they're not really that cheap...

Well yeah obviously - here i'll give a break down of what I can find of Contract pricing vs MSRP.

HTC Aria - $99/299 (they dropped the price to $49 to free with contract after 30 days after launch)

HTC Droid Eris - $99/399

HTC Hero - $180 (5 days then dropped to $99 because of Eris)/$399

Motorola Cliq - Free/$399

Motorola Cliq XT - $120/330

Motorola Backflip - 199($99)/399

Samsung Moment - $99/479 :o

Samsung Behold II - $99/449 :o

So even though some of those prices were crazy - these were launch prices too mind you. Not Amazon or other cheaper places pricing. EG NewEgg which sold Cliq XT for $249 no contract on launch. So i'm not saying they are in the same class but.....

[HawkMan]

you simply cant compare android phones and the iphone, you have what 5 iphones?

and a billion android phones?

How is it Google's fault that OEMs don't put out updates for their own phones? Except for maybe the Nexus One, Google has no control over which phones get what updates.

Can we compare Android to WP7 then ?

One software/OS developer

Multiple OEMs

[bold]ALL[/bold] phones upgraded to the latest major version a year down the line.

This is all google and their faulty license to blame. Or rather googles unwillingness to impose rules on the OEMs in order to get as many on board as possible. That resulted in this mess. Not the amount of oem's and the separation of OEM and developer.

[Anibal P]

Can we compare Android to WP7 then ?

One software/OS developer

Multiple OEMs

[bold]ALL[/bold] phones upgraded to the latest major version a year down the line.

This is all google and their faulty license to blame. Or rather googles unwillingness to impose rules on the OEMs in order to get as many on board as possible. That resulted in this mess. Not the amount of oem's and the separation of OEM and developer.

Still can't compare, MS still essentially has one NON CUSTMIZABLE version of the OS, Google releases Android, the manufacturers unfortunately add their "custom" crap on top of it.

[HawkMan]

Still can't compare, MS still essentially has one NON CUSTMIZABLE version of the OS, Google releases Android, the manufacturers unfortunately add their "custom" crap on top of it.

Still comparable.

As I said,this is all google's fault. Google could have demanded. In the license that major versions need to be provided for 1 year and minor,upgrades for 3 years, or something. They didn't. And on top of that, they allowed the oem's to change so much that it takes to much resources for them to provide the upgrade.

So yes it's very comparable. Google just needs to put the foot down for their customers, or they will soon realize that customers would rather be with the guys that actually are on their side. Be it Apple or Microsoft.

Point is that it is possible to have a business model like google does, and still provide updates to all your OEM devices.

[LittleNeutrino Veteran]

Official updates have always been an issue with Android phones, just about the only way to keep an android device fresh is not to rely on your Carrier to allow the manufacturer to update the device, but to root it and use custom roms that keep the phones fresh, however, not all phones are supported in this fashion.

[The_Decryptor Veteran]

It was said that there are plenty of unfair comparisons in this infographic.

The HTC Aria, Droid Eris & Hero, Motorola Cliq, Cliq XT & Backflip, Samsung Moment, Behold II were all "budget" phones with some being even "low budget" - Aria. I wouldn't put them in the same league or class as any iPhone so expecting them to get support for any amount of time as say the expensive $600 phones is a bit weird.

The HTC Nexus One & Droid Incredible, Evo 4G are the only phones in that same caliber. Since the report stops at June 2010, most of the phones that are available now and still getting support to Gingerbread aren't included. The ones included are still getting support as shown.

So to me the graphic is somewhat flawed. The iPhone wouldn't be benchmarked or compared to any of the other phones as they aren't in the same class so to expect them to get the same kinda support is kinda eh : :rolleyes: That's like comparing a Mercedez SL550 AMG to a Hyundai Accent (even though they've stepped up their game).

Not defending the lack of updates just pointing out some simple truths.

Regardless of the costs, these devices should still be receiving software and security updates while they're still sold and supported. I bought my HTC Aria 4 months after it was launched on a 2 year contract (I'm at the half way point right now), as as that graph shows this phone was never running an up to date OS.

Relative cheapness (It's not much cheaper than an iPhone on a plan) shouldn't be an excuse for terrible support.

[Xerax]

How is it Google's fault that OEMs don't put out updates for their own phones? Except for maybe the Nexus One, Google has no control over which phones get what updates.

Microsoft don't own the phone's OEM's, yet every WP7 has NoDo and Mango..

[Roger H. Veteran]

Regardless of the costs, these devices should still be receiving software and security updates while they're still sold and supported. I bought my HTC Aria 4 months after it was launched on a 2 year contract (I'm at the half way point right now), as as that graph shows this phone was never running an up to date OS.

Relative cheapness (It's not much cheaper than an iPhone on a plan) shouldn't be an excuse for terrible support.

Don't be so naive now, support is part of the price you pay for the device. The cost of the service to use said device can be anything and doesn't relate to the phone. If you got a 3200 minute plan paying $199 a month, that's the cost of the plan. AT&T is HTC's customer, AT&T wont pay for that kind of support and therefore there's nothing to pass on to you. In order for them to get cheaper pricing they've elected to remove certain expectations other than replacing the device during warranty periods. The upgrades require testing on HTC and AT&T's side and all that testing costs money.

I agree the device should be upgraded to the latest versions of software, that is if it can run it. The ARIA has 500mhz CPU and 384MB of RAM. It's not a matter of oh they aren't offering any support, it's just that the device can't support anything newer. Have you tried running Windows 7 on your 166mhz CPU with 32MB of RAM lately? I've put CyanogenMod 7 on the ARIA - still got it running great. This is of-course without all the HTC stuff. So imagine you offer upgraded software to your customers and then suddenly the phone is completely different from what they bought, how many ****ed off customers would you have then? Sure they have the latest Android but they don't got any Sense widgets or the Applications they've become used to.

[Japlabot]

The problem is squarely with OEMs. If they don't want to put in the resources to support a particular phone, they need to make all the work that they have done to be able to compile a build for that phone as open source so that the community can just pick up where they left off. If they don't want to do this, then support the phone for longer or lose to Apple. An open source friendly OEM would sell more, as it is a selling point to know that your phone will be infinitely supported until THE CUSTOMER is ready to upgrade, and then the customer will likely buy the same brand again after a positive experience.

[Lexcyn]

Like I said in the story on the main page, you can't really compare the two since the iPhone is basically ONE type of hardware and Android has a crapton of different types, all with software customized by carriers to some extent or another.

[Scorpus Veteran]

I think that Google should use a Microsoft approach... not for WP7 though but for Windows.

Make each update available to every single phone via a download, not an OTA or anything like that, but make sure it works on all hardware without customizations. A base model so to speak, like if you go into a store an buy Windows 7, you get stock Windows 7 without crap OEM software.

Then make it up to the OEMs/carriers to update their software via OTAs, bundling all their crap and whatnot with it.

This way, people that actually want to get updates can do so without OEM crap, and those that don't know how will eventually get it after OEMs apply their interfaces to it.

[Roger H. Veteran]

The problem is squarely with OEMs. If they don't want to put in the resources to support a particular phone, they need to make all the work that they have done to be able to compile a build for that phone as open source so that the community can just pick up where they left off. If they don't want to do this, then support the phone for longer or lose to Apple. An open source friendly OEM would sell more, as it is a selling point to know that your phone will be infinitely supported until THE CUSTOMER is ready to upgrade, and then the customer will likely buy the same brand again after a positive experience.

Well technically they do, they release source code for kernel and all the stuff that's licensed but their custom stuff is copyrighted and the rest (drivers for broadcom and such) can't be shared as it's all NDA and all that.

What we want and what companies want are 2 different things. They are looking to sell things and we are looking for 1 thing that does everything forever. If they did that they'd all be out of business. There's that story the other day about the guy from Maine that drove his 1990 Honda Accord for 1 Million miles, one comment from the Honda folks went something like this - This shows how well our cars can run if you maintain them, good thing most people don't or we'd be out of business.

People upgrade to the newest Apple devices not because the current one is broken or the newest one is so much better, it's simply marketing. As the infographic says, Apple supports their current devices well so why would I need to go out and spend my hard earned cash for the next one every year if the old one is just as good because it's running the same software as the new one? How much faster do you need to open Angry Birds or your contact list?

The good thing however is that Android is open source and even though my HTC Aria didn't get updates to Gingerbread (officially), it is running 2.3 right now. It's my backup phone incase anything should happen to my Galaxy S2. Open source is definitely not a selling point to the mass market, if anything it's part of the Android problem in general where they can't get certain options like Apple because it's too open.

I think that Google should use a Microsoft approach... not for WP7 though but for Windows.

Make each update available to every single phone via a download, not an OTA or anything like that, but make sure it works on all hardware without customizations. A base model so to speak, like if you go into a store an buy Windows 7, you get stock Windows 7 without crap OEM software.

Then make it up to the OEMs/carriers to update their software via OTAs, bundling all their crap and whatnot with it.

This way, people that actually want to get updates can do so without OEM crap, and those that don't know how will eventually get it after OEMs apply their interfaces to it.

I think the problem is just choice. If all the phones sold were top end devices then google could do such an update. When some devices have 256, 384, 512, 768 and 1GB - the problem becomes programming for the least common denominator which then holds back innovation. Microsoft can probably ellaborate on this as well in the PC space. Microsoft had some time to learn from Google's mistakes without going the Apple route and found a totally awesome middle ground. As you can see now however, choice is limited. All the phones are coming out basically looking the same which is bad for competition. How would the average person choose a phone if they are all:

1Ghz CPU

512MB of RAM

The only diffrentiator left is screen size or amount of storage or camera MP.

So say you walk into the AT&T store tomorrow and you see about 5 WP 7.5 phones (say this is all they sold). I guess you could choose based on screen size if you rather those types or maybe it's the color that matters. The problems for OEMs is what makes you choose a Samsung over a HTC or Motorola or X if they are all the same?

Edited October 29, 2011 by SHoTTa35