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Are OnePlus and HUAWEI finally getting serious about software updates?
- OnePlus released its Software Maintenance Schedule that applies to every device from the OnePlus 3, as well as future devices.
- Huawei, meanwhile, said it will release bi-monthly updates for its P, Mate, and Nova series.
- By comparison, OnePlus’ software update schedule is far more specific than HUAWEI’s.
Even though OnePlus and Huawei smartphones tend to be excellent offerings, getting both companies to commit to some sort of software update schedule has been an effort in futility. That finally changes today, though HUAWEI’s schedule still leaves us with questions.
Starting with OnePlus, the company announced its Software Maintenance Schedule. According to the schedule, OnePlus will issue two years of bi-monthly software updates and three years of bi-monthly security patches to its devices.
The schedule immediately applies to the OnePlus 3 and 3T, OnePlus 5 and 5T, and OnePlus 6. This means the OnePlus 3 and 3T will get regular software updates until November 2018 and security patches for another year.
The OnePlus 5 and 5T, meanwhile, will get another year of software updates and two years of software patches. Finally, the OnePlus 6 has the full release schedule ahead of it.
As for HUAWEI, Ausdroid reported that the manufacturer committed to bi-monthly updates that include security patches. The update schedule applies to HUAWEI’s P, Mate, and Nova series smartphones.
HUAWEI also said its software update schedule starts with the upcoming Face Unlock update, which will be available for the P10, P20 and P20 Pro, Mate 9, Mate 10 and Mate 10 Pro, Nova 3E, Nova 2 Lite, and Nova 2I. Android Authority reached out to HUAWEI for comment on the software update schedule.
This still does not answer the question of how long HUAWEI’s smartphones will continue to receive updates. For a company as large as HUAWEI, there is no excuse for a vague software update schedule.
It might seem like something insignificant, but software update schedules help consumers keep companies accountable and give consumers confidence that the devices they have will be supported for a certain amount of time.
If companies do not release software update schedules or adhere to the ones they have, it is not the end of the world. However, they then have an excuse for not updating their smartphones on a consistent basis.
Take Samsung, for example. The company has a schedule for Android security updates, though the reality of the company’s update situation does not jive with the schedule The unlocked variants of the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus have been available since March, yet they just got their first software update almost a week ago.
OnePlus might not be the best when it comes to software updates, but the company’s Open Beta program shows that it takes updates more seriously than before. HUAWEI would be wise to nail down a more specific schedule and improve its spotty history on updates.