Modern Nokia smartphones are still the number one option in terms of timely security updates across the entirety of the Android ecosystem, according to a new report out of F-Secure Consulting. While this newest bit of information is based on a report that only covers the flagship segment of the smartphone market, that’s also the most frequently updated ones, as it encompasses premium prices that pay for more than just the cost of manufacturing.
So, we do not really need an expert case study to know that no $200 phone will ever lead in any after-sales metric such as the regularity of its security patches. Speaking of, HMD Global, the current holder of the Nokia smartphone license, keeps issuing security updates for pretty much all of its higher-priced handsets on a monthly basis. This is likely due to the fact its devices run a near-stock build of whatever the latest Android OS version from Google is.
Meaning their security updates do not require as many optimizations as those for something like One UI from Samsung do until they are ready to be released globally. This state of affairs is unlikely to change in the near future, with the exception of Samsung that may give HMD a run for its money after its recent announcement of a three-year Android update policy covering not just flagships but also many of its mid-rangers.
