PHONES, TABLETS & E READERS
Unsafe Android phones and tablets
Unlike iphones and ipads, which can install the latest software and security updates from Apple as soon as they’re available, Android phones and tablets are at the mercy of the manufacturer. This means the frequency of updates, and how long you receive them for, varies between makes and models.
Last September, Google announced that it will provide software support for its own Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro phones for seven years (until 2030), including system and security updates, and ‘feature drops’ (www.snipca.com/49954).
“No major smartphone brand oers this committed level of support and longevity”, it boasted, though support for older Pixel devices is more limited. For example, system updates for the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro (launched in 2021) end in October – security updates continue until 2026.
Samsung provides five years of security updates to Galaxy phones and tablets launched in 2021 or later, and four years of updates to ‘select’ devices from 2019 onwards (see www.snipca. com/49955). It also guarantees four years of software updates (three for pre-2021 models) to ensure your phone or tablet has the latest version of Android. In January, Samsung pledged that it will match Google by oering seven years of software and security updates for its new Galaxy S24 series (www.snipca.com/50006), but two months later it ended support for most of its Galaxy S20 range (from 2020, pictured below).
Other manufacturers are less generous, so visit the support sections of their websites to check when your phone or tablet will become obsolete. Motorola lets you select a device at www.snipca. com/49957 to discover when its security updates will end. Many of its older phones were only supported for two years (the Moto e32 expires on 1 May), but newer models , such as the Moto G54 (www.snipca. com/50007), are covered for three.
Although unsupported phones and tablets continue to work beyond their expiry dates, your apps will gradually lose some functionality because developers will stop updating them, and you won’t receive any new features. More worrying is that without security updates your mobile device will be at greater risk from hackers, malware and data theft.
Obsolete iphones and ipads
Before Apple considers its iphones, ipads and Macbooks to be obsolete, it brands them ‘vintage’. These are products that it stopped making more than five years ago, but less than seven, though there are some exceptions – the 4th-generation ipod Touch is still classified as vintage, despite being discontinued in 2013. The ipad Mini 4 from 2015 (pictured above) is the most recent addition to the vintage
category. Apple continues to support these devices during this period, but admits it may be di cult to find replacement parts for them.
The company’s Obsolete category is more final. These are devices that Apple stopped making more than seven years ago, and has now ended all hardware support for – at the start of April, the iphone 6 Plus was added to the list. Your obsolete iphone or ipad may still get security updates (Apple doesn’t impose a time limit on these), but you won’t be able to install the latest version of IOS – the oldest device to support IOS 17 is the iphone XR from 2018, and for ipados 17 it’s the 6th-generation ipad (also 2018).
You can find out which Apple devices are vintage and obsolete at www.snipca. com/49959. Apple also provides help for identifying your model of iphone (www.snipca.com/49960) and ipad (www.snipca.com/49961).
Unsupported Amazon Kindles
Amazon guarantees software and security updates for “at least four years” after a Kindle e-reader is last available to purchase on its website (as a new product, not a refurbished one). Once support for that model ends, it will be left unprotected, won’t get any new features and may lose access to the ebook store. You’ll still be able to buy books on your computer and download them to the device, and read any titles already stored on your Kindle.
Amazon’s support page on this topic (www.snipca.com/49962) says all the listed devices will receive software security updates until at least 2028. The oldest one mentioned is the 10th-generation Kindle from 2019, which means earlier devices are no longer supported. You can identify your Kindle model using Amazon’s guide at www. snipca.com/49965. Similarly, the support page for Kindle Fire tablets promises updates until 2028, but the oldest listed is from 2022 (www.snipca.com/49963).
To discover which Kindles are definitely obsolete, visit the Kindle section at Endoflife.date (www.snipca. com/49964) and check the Service Status column. Notable examples include the 6th-generation Kindle Paperwhite and 7th-generation Kindle Voyage, which haven’t received updates since 2019 and 2021 respectively. Several newer devices, such as the 8th-generation Kindle from 2016 (pictured above), were last updated in June 2023, and since they don’t appear on Amazon’s list they are now unsupported.