Misunderstanding about Software Updates...

The soul of a smart phone is it's software. Smart phone manufacturers constantly try to improve the software experience of their devices by changing the user interfaces or altering various features. All the improvements and addition of features are added through Over-the -Air (OTA) software updates.

Google releases Android Upgrades annually as is the case with Apple's iOS updates. These software updates bring about fixes for errors/bugs. Bug fixes may generally be small in sizes.

Google sends out software updates every month ( Eg; January patch, February patch) while Apple sends updates whenever bugs are to be fixed and features are to be added. The large updates may be the OS upgrade to the next version which may add many features and change the looks of the User Interface(UI). Google promises 3 years of software updates for it's Pixel devices. Apple generally supports it's devices for 4-5 years. Other Android manufacturers are improving their software update schedules by sending software updates for 2-3 years as people are holding onto their devices for longer years. Users expect their devices to work in a good manner even after 2 years of use. Many manufacturers lost their loyal customers due to bad software experience. Oneplus gained its customer base mainly due to the optimized software experience it provides. The Hardware specs also matter but the software is capable of keeping a device running for several years.

Software being so important, is ignored by people while purchasing mobile devices who primarily look only on specs. Any purchase should be made keeping in mind the future such as how long the device is going to be used, usage conditions and primary requirements and not the features which will be of no use but only for bragging.

So, software being so important, there still remains a common misconception that Software Updates slow down mobile phones or any devices for the matter. The fact is it may be true very rarely; Most of the updates fix various issues, makes the device smoother, faster and gives it a new fresh look in the User Interface(UI). Skipping updates may also risk the security of the devices. The mistakes in previous software version may make the devices vulnerable to cyber attacks. New forms of vulnerabilities are found by ethical hackers and reported to the software companies while the attack by black hat hackers causes a widespread data leak and breach in security of a mobile device.
These vulnerabilities are removed and a new security patch update is sent out. Keeping the software up-to-date is vital thing in the smooth and secure functioning of devices.

The conclusion is that Software Updates are more boon than bane!

VAMSI KRISHNAN A