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Question about Nexus 4(pure google phones)
Lidtop2013
02-10-2013
So i have a work mate with a nexus 4, he was going on saying how good it is etc and that its the only Android phone that can get updates straight away, but what i was wondering is....... what happens after say 2-3 years or more, is this still the case or would there come a point where the new software wont download because its too advanced for the phone or something?
Zack06
02-10-2013
Every device will become obsolete eventually. The Nexus One and Nexus S both released in 2010 are no longer updated officially.

But there is talk of Kitkat 4.4 being capable of running well on 512MB ram, and being more geared for performance, so there is a possibility the Nexus S could get 4.4.

The answer to this question is fairly obvious though. Technology moves fast.
Stiggles
02-10-2013
Originally Posted by Lidtop2013:
“So i have a work mate with a nexus 4, he was going on saying how good it is etc and that its the only Android phone that can get updates straight away, but what i was wondering is....... what happens after say 2-3 years or more, is this still the case or would there come a point where the new software wont download because its too advanced for the phone or something?”

It will still get it or be available to it through other means.
kidspud
02-10-2013
Originally Posted by Lidtop2013:
“So i have a work mate with a nexus 4, he was going on saying how good it is etc and that its the only Android phone that can get updates straight away, but what i was wondering is....... what happens after say 2-3 years or more, is this still the case or would there come a point where the new software wont download because its too advanced for the phone or something?”

The nexus s was released in December 2010 and software support from google ended in November 2012, so expect about 2 years support.
Lidtop2013
02-10-2013
Ahh you say ''officially'', so it wont appear on the device as a download OTA BUT you can download and install it manually, is that what you guys mean?
jonner101
02-10-2013
Originally Posted by Lidtop2013:
“So i have a work mate with a nexus 4, he was going on saying how good it is etc and that its the only Android phone that can get updates straight away, but what i was wondering is....... what happens after say 2-3 years or more, is this still the case or would there come a point where the new software wont download because its too advanced for the phone or something?”

The precedent for this is the original Nexus which came out in 2010 but didn't get Android 4 as the 2d rendering wasn't up to the job.

So yes eventually there will be a cutoff point, but probably be a while off yet. This is a similar system to the way iPhone updates work.
Lidtop2013
02-10-2013
Originally Posted by jonner101:
“The precedent for this is the original Nexus which came out in 2010 but didn't get Android 4 as the 2d rendering wasn't up to the job.

So yes eventually there will be a cutoff point, but probably be a while off yet. This is a similar system to the way iPhone updates work.”

Think iphones get updates for longer though, the iphone 4 can get the latest version of IOS7 and it was out well over 3 years ago.
sancheeez
02-10-2013
Originally Posted by kidspud:
“The nexus s was released in December 2010 and software support from google ended in November 2012, so expect about 2 years support.”

I would expect that 2 year window to stretch out.

As mobile devices have gained in power (especially the high end ones), they remain capable of getting updates for longer. Whether the manufacturers/providers take that into account is another matter entirely.

But it's not all about whether the hardware is capable. Bear in mind, if an old phone can't get an update, it gives them a selling point for the new one.
Richard_T
02-10-2013
The original nexus still has support on XDA here http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=556 there are a few roms on there that will allow a nexus one to run Jellybean 4.2
kidspud
02-10-2013
Originally Posted by sancheeez:
“I would expect that 2 year window to stretch out.

As mobile devices have gained in power (especially the high end ones), they remain capable of getting updates for longer. Whether the manufacturers/providers take that into account is another matter entirely.

But it's not all about whether the hardware is capable. Bear in mind, if an old phone can't get an update, it gives them a selling point for the new one. ”

I agree. I would expect the nexus 4 to last longer.
kidspud
02-10-2013
Sorry to hijack this thread but can I ask a quick questions about android updates on nexus phones.

My samsung android updates seen to be delayed by both the manufacturer and the phone company (in my case O2).

Does the phone company still cause delay on the nexus devices, or is it all completely bypassed?
sancheeez
02-10-2013
Originally Posted by kidspud:
“I agree. I would expect the nexus 4 to last longer.”

Yep.

Especially as it's a google phone. Much more at the manufacturers mercy for all other third party phones. And then the network provider after that in many cases.

Once they stop, home brew is usually the only further option. Although thats no bad thing. A lot of the home brew/dev community options are very good indeed. So good that some are now being officially endorsed. Which makes things like the Oppo N1 very interesting ...

But mainly, even when support does drop, it doesn't mean your device will stop working. It will still do everything you need it to and be perfectly usable.

In short. I wouldn't worry about it. Everything loses "official" support eventually. As long as you go with something half-decent, you'll be fine.
sancheeez
02-10-2013
Originally Posted by kidspud:
“Does the phone company still cause delay on the nexus devices, or is it all completely bypassed?”

No.

As far as I'm aware, once Google release it for a device, it gets it.

Unless there are network locked and branded versions where the provider can hold it back are there? Not sure???

But if it was from google, then you get it when they release it ....
pi r squared
02-10-2013
Originally Posted by kidspud:
“Does the phone company still cause delay on the nexus devices, or is it all completely bypassed?”

Bypassed completely - the updates come straight from Google's servers. They are drip-fed, rather than available to everyone all at once like Apple's iOS updates, which is a source of frustration for some die-hard fans, but realistically you only wait up to about 5 days - much better than the months the manufacturers take to update. (The only exception is carrier-specific phones, which we don't get over here. But in the US, Verizon had their own Galaxy Nexus - the international one was incompatible, I believe - and updates for that came via Verizon. I think it was basically treated as the unloved step-sibling of the Nexus family).

With regards to Nexus updates, even though the N1 etc. may not still be supported, they will still be receiving some core upgrades through Google rolling out updates through the Play Services Framework, so realistically we have a system a bit like Apples where they are still being "updated" as such, but with some features (eg. 4.2 lock screen widgets) not arriving.
Zack06
02-10-2013
Originally Posted by kidspud:
“Sorry to hijack this thread but can I ask a quick questions about android updates on nexus phones.

My samsung android updates seen to be delayed by both the manufacturer and the phone company (in my case O2).

Does the phone company still cause delay on the nexus devices, or is it all completely bypassed?
”

Aside from the disastrous Verizon/Sprint Galaxy Nexus in the US, Google alone controls Nexus. Nobody else has any say in what happens to the device other than Google. They control the updates, which is why Nexus devices always get them first, soon after Google announces them.

The Google Play Edition devices are different though, as Google doesn't control the updates, it is the OEM that has to compile and push out the updates, though with no UI overlays on those devices, they also get the updates fairly quickly.
finbaar
03-10-2013
The Nexus One (1st gen Snapdragon with 512mb ram and Adreno 200 gpu) was released in January 2010 with 2.1. It received updates until 2.3.6 in late 2011. Due to internal memory restrictions and the capability of the hardware Google did not update it further. Also the Cyanogen Mod team took the same decision and stopped support. Of course there are unofficial builds and I have booted 4.3 on mine but generally I leave it on CM 7.2 (2.3).
The Nexus S (Exynos 3 with 512mb ram and Power VR 540 gpu) was released in December 2010 with 2.3. It received updates until 4.1.2 in late 2012. Never owning one of these I don’t know why it was not supported further but half a gig of ram is low for 4.x devices to run smoothly.
The Galaxy Nexus (Dual core Omap with 1gb ram and a higher clocked 540 gpu) was released in November 2011 with 4.0. It is still receiving updates.
And of course the Nexus 4 has 2gb of ram with a quad core S4 pro cpu.
Google don’t want to give you a shite experience so eventually phones are dropped. But at least they give you the full update when they do and don’t withhold features like Apple.
The great thing about a Nexus device is the images are always available for download and flashing manually as well as the OTA updates. And as shown above they have all received at least two major updates as well as numerous bug fixes. And as Pi states the use of Google Play Services enable funtions to be rolled out to all Android phones without the need for a manufacturer update.
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