With the launch of the Google Pixel 8 and 8 Pro, the company also announced seven years of OS and security updates, which is unprecedented. Although Apple seems to provide at least five years of OS and security updates to its devices, an official policy has never been stated.
The seven-year update announcement makes Google the unchallenged Android overlord, as no other Android device comes close, with Samsung, OnePlus, and others averaging four years of OS updates and five years of security updates.
It's more than just updates
In the past, Google had a reputation for short device lifespan due to the length of updates. However, now the company offers seven years for Pixel devices and ten years of automatic updates for Chromebooks released after 2021, which is unprecedented.
With Google using durable, environmentally friendly materials, repairability, and Google's dedicated update team, you could own a device for a decade worry-free. Google seems focused on gaining consumer trust and building a longer-term, sustainable relationship that could lead some to switch their loyalties from Apple to others.
Allow me to be direct: Google is aiming its sights directly at Apple with these moves, and I, for one, am excited to see a bold challenger step up and openly say, "We're here, we make good products, and we're pushing to make the best products available." That is the vibe I felt while recently at Google's New York City HQ, and I think the seven-year and ten-year update policy is a step in the right direction.
Let's hope others follow suit. It's nice to see a tech giant fire off a potent salvo in the direction of the circled castle walls of Cupertino. Maybe it will shake things up at the Wonka Factory of tech, just enough to decide to get creative and innovate instead of the continued tiny incremental improvements it's been feeding consumers for over a decade.
