Samsung has announced that it promises to deliver four years of security updates to the majority of the Galaxy devices it’s launched since 2019.
In a press release issued on 22 February, the South Korean tech giant committed to at least four years of security updates for Galaxy devices within its Z, S, Note, A, M, XCover and Tab series’.
While flagship Android devices typically receive at least two years of security updates, the roadmap for more affordable devices is usually far less concrete. Samsung’s commitment to four years of security updates encompasses everything from its most recent and capable flagships, right down to its entry-level offerings from 2019, which is an impressive undertaking to embark upon for any manufacturer.
This serves as just another move from Samsung to prolong the validity of Galaxy devices already in consumers’ hands, having previously committed to three years of major OS updates for its higher-end devices, back in August 2020 and rolling out its ‘Galaxy Upcycling at Home’ program during its CES 2021 address – which allows users to turn old Galaxy devices into different products, like a baby monitor or a home IoT hub.
Security updates arrive on a monthly or quarterly basis and ensure that vulnerabilities discovered within an Android device’s underlying software and/or operating system can be patched, reducing the risk of personal or important data either being accessible to unintended parties or allowing for unwarranted actions to take place on a device unchecked.
In terms of which Galaxy devices fall within this new initiative, the current list stands at:
- Z Fold 2 5G
- Z Fold 2
- Z Flip 5G
- Z Flip
- Fold 5G
- Fold
- S21 Ultra 5G
- S21+ 5G
- S21 5G
- S20 FE 5G
- S20 FE
- S20 Ultra 5G
- S20 Ultra
- S20+ 5G
- S20+
- S20 5G
- S20
- S10 Lite
- S10 5G
- S10e
- S10+
- S10
- Note20 Ultra 5G
- Note20 Ultra
- Note20 5G
- Note20
- Note10 Lite
- Note10+ 5G
- Note10+
- Note10 5G
- Note10
- A42 5G
- A32 5G
- A12
- A02s
- A71 5G
- A71
- A51 5G
- A51
- A41
- A31
- A21s
- A21
- A11
- A90 5G
- A80
- A70s
- A70
- A60
- A50s
- A50
- A40
- A30s
- A30
- A20s
- A20
- A10s
- A10e
- A10
- M51
- M31s
- M31
- M21
- M12
- M11
- M40
- M30s
- M30
- M20
- M10s
- XCover Pro
- XCover FieldPro
- XCover4s
- Tab S7+
- Tab S7
- Tab S6 Lite
- Tab S6 5G
- Tab S6
- Tab S5e
- Tab A7
- Tab A 8.4 (2020)
- Tab A with S Pen
- Tab A 8 (2019)
- Tab Active3
- Tab Active Pro
It seems that a handful of devices are missing, however, with the Galaxy A02, M02, M02s and A20e seemingly absent. This 85 device-strong list is still impressive nonetheless.