The EU is working towards requiring at least three years of OS updates on smartphones. A report that may be a tall order for Android devices as various brands leveraging their platform wobble in providing regular updates to their users.
Apple doesn’t look like it will be terribly affected by this. Thankfully so, as it seemed to be the main target of the USB Type-C mandate from the EU. For this future mandate however, Androids will need to fasten their seat belts for a bumpy ride ahead. At the moment, Samsung is the only Android manufacturer that gives four years of OS updates on its premium devices.
Other Android OEMs like Google Pixel offer three years of OS updates for their devices, while some offer less. Quite frankly, setting a number of years a device will receive upgrades is especially useful for Androids. This will boost the device’s longevity and provide value for money.
If this act goes into law, it will apply to devices sold across the member countries of the EU. It will also impact the state of devices sold outside the EU, as most companies will not want to risk limiting the standard three years of OS updates to Europe. We might start seeing some of its effects by the end of the year.