Tag Archive for: updates

Google on why it decided to offer 7 years of Android, security updates on Pixel 8 series

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Google Pixel 8 series launch announcement was a bit of a sweet surprise for potential buyers as the company promised 7 years of OS and security updates. Apart from a bunch of AI magic tricks and quarterly feature drops, Google went ahead with this USP to make Pixel phones stand-out from a sea of Android smartphones. Recently, one of the company executives spoke about it and why it was done.

Seang Chau, vice president – Devices & Services Software, said during a podcast that Google has active user data of its Pixel users which suggests that most people use one model for multiple years.

“So when we look at the trajectory of where the original Pixel that we launched in 2016 landed and how many people were still using the first Pixel, we saw that actually, there’s quite a good active user base until probably about the seven-year mark,” Chau said.

According to the executive, when Google realised that people have been using the phones for as long as six years, the company decided that it will support Pixel 8 and later models with a total of 7 years of OS and security updates.

How Google is able to promise this change
One of the major changes that Pixel smartphones have seen since Pixel 6 onwards is the Tensor SoC – designed by Google to undertake AI tasks and machine learning models, giving it a better control on features.

But 7 years is a long time in the smartphone industry, and to tackle hardware limitations, Chau said that by keeping features software-based, Google aims to extend the usability of older devices, allowing them to benefit from new features without needing hardware upgrades.

Recently, it was announced that Pixel 8 is also going to get some AI features that were available on Pixel 8 Pro.

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Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 5 Enterprise Edition to Get Eight Years of Android OS Updates, Security Patches

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Launched in January this year alongside the Galaxy XCover 7, the Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 5G is IP68 certified and has military-grade durability (MIL-STD-810H). A few months after launch, a Samsung manager introduced the Enterprise version. The Galaxy Tab Active 5 5G gets eight years of Android and security updates. The standard version of the rugged tablet received four major operating system updates and five years of security patches.

The enterprise version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 5 will receive the Android operating system and security updates for eight years, a Samsung manager in the Netherlands announced on LinkedIn (via SomeMobile ). This means that the tablet will receive updates and new features to Android 22 until 2032. Meanwhile, the standard version of the rugged tablet gets four major OS updates and five years of security patches.

The Galaxy Tab Active 5 will be the first tablet from the South Korean brand that is sure to receive software updates for a longer period of time. Samsung has promised seven years of Android updates and security patches for the latest Galaxy S24 series. Google also offers seven years of software support for the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 5 Enterprise Edition comes in green and runs Android 14. It features an 8-inch WUXGA TFT display with a refresh rate of up to 120Hz, Gorilla Glass protection and an octa-core 5nm processor. . SoC.

The Galaxy Tab Active 5 has a 13-megapixel rear camera and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. It has a 5050 mAh battery. The tablet also comes with MIL-STD-810H certification and IP68 protection, which protects the device from vibration, accidental shocks, drops, rain and dust. It has S Pen integration and supports face unlock.

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Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5 get surprise final updates

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Google Pixel 4a 5G standard back image

David Imel / Android Authority

TL;DR

  • There are new Android updates for the Pixel 4a 5G and the Pixel 5.
  • The update is small (just over 10MB) and likely just security updates and bug fixes.
  • This is unexpected, as both phones reached end-of-life status in November 2023.

Earlier this week, Google rolled out the latest Android security patch to active Pixel devices. As expected, the oldest phone to receive that patch was the Google Pixel 5a, which launched in August 2021. However, now there are two updates for other, older Pixel phones: the Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5.

You can find the two updates on Google’s list of OTA releases. However, you don’t need to download them from there if you’re not in a rush. Since this is an OTA update, you’ll get a notification on your Pixel 4a 5G or Pixel 5 in the next few days if you haven’t already.

Unfortunately, Google is being very secretive about what’s included with these updates. Thanks to a Reddit thread, we see that the update is very small at just over 10MB. It doesn’t include a new security update, as it’s still on the November 2023 patch. Being that it’s so small and doesn’t have the latest fixes, we can only imagine this is an update that specifically addresses critical bugs or security risks for these two phones. However, for what it’s worth, one Redditor does claim that their phone feels “snappier and smoother” after the update.

Google has been known to do this in the past. When incredibly critical security exploits are found, the company pulls Pixels out of update retirement to get the fix out there. However, this rarely includes new features or other dramatic changes.

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Biden Worries House Tumult Could Disrupt U.S. Aid to Ukraine: Live Updates

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President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine arriving at the European Political Community summit in Granada, Spain, on Thursday.Credit…Marcelo Del Pozo/Getty Images

President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine arrived in Spain on Thursday to participate in a European summit aimed at strengthening cooperation across the continent amid concerns about waning support for his country as it faces another winter of Russian aggression.

The Ukrainian leader’s trip to the southern Spanish city of Granada came a day after President Biden expressed worries that the recent political turmoil in Congress could disrupt the flow of U.S. aid to Ukraine.

“I think it’s too late for us to worry. I think we have to work on it,” Mr. Zelensky told reporters at the summit when asked if he was concerned about a possible scaling back of U.S. military aid.

He said that he was confident that the United States would continue to support Ukraine’s war efforts, noting that meetings with Mr. Biden and with Congress members last month were positive.

Mr. Zelensky earlier said that the “joint goal” of those gathering in Granada was “to ensure the security and stability of our common European home.”

“We will pay special attention to the Black Sea region as well as our joint efforts to strengthen global food security and freedom of navigation,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Ukraine’s key priority, particularly as winter approaches, is to strengthen air defense.”

E.U. leaders are expected to discuss long-term financial aid for Ukraine at a summit planned later this month in Brussels. On Thursday, Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, told reporters in Granada that what Ukraine needed was “predictability and reliability” on direct budget support.

“I’m very confident of support for Ukraine from the United States,” she said. “What the United States is working on is the timing.”

Thursday’s meeting in Grenada comes amid concerns about potential cracks in Europe’s united front on Ukraine, as governments reckon with the economic and political costs of providing long-term support for Kyiv.

It is just the third meeting of the European Political Community, a…

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