Oppo promises four years of ColorOS updates for flagship models

The topic of software updates has been and remains a very important one for Android device users, as although many phones sell for the same prices and have similar specs, only some also receive long-term software updates. In the last few years, the situation has improved, thanks to the efforts of Google and its partners to come up with faster and longer updates, but Samsung has been the trailblazer, promising up to five years of updates. Oppo is now coming in behind and trying to offer something similar, but the way it announced this suggests that it’s not necessarily about system updates.

Oppo’s Find X range phones will get expanded software support

Oppo was already offering three system updates on its high-end phones and four years of security updates, but the company is now announcing the extension to four years. That’s obviously the Find X series devices, with the rest of the models on a different update cycle.

These devices will, however, receive “four years of ColorOS updates,” suggesting that regardless of whether or not the ColorOS base will also be based on a new Android, the company will still release a new update every year. This strategy is followed even by Xiaomi, which, while offering the latest Android on some phones, only updates the MIUI interface on others, keeping the base on the old version of Android.

Now it also matters a lot how much of the new Android can be experienced on company phones. If Google continues in the direction of recent years, where annual updates are minor, it doesn’t really matter if you have the latest variant or not. Most of the special features on phones are starting to move to manufacturers, however, who year after year bring interface changes, but also new capabilities, especially from the AI area.

It is quite possible, however, that this wording is chosen to cover as many territories as possible with a single announcement. That’s because there is no “pure Android” in China, only company implementations like ColorOS and MIUI, each with their own app store and services. Outside of China, every major update has come alongside a new version of Android from Google.

What is certain is that Android phone manufacturers are starting to pay more attention to system updates, which will allow users to use their phones safely and with access to the latest features for longer periods of time. While Oppo and Samsung promise four years of such software support, Google is still only offering three system updates on the Pixel.