How Long Can One "Safely" Use an Android Phone Before It's Just too Old to Be "Safe" to Use?

[Slytherin_Princess]

How Long Can One "Safely" Use an Android Phone Before It's Just too Old to Be "Safe" to Use?

I'm just curious. About how long can an Android phone safely last? I don't know if I'm articulating my question correctly, so let me give an example. Let's say I have an HTC DROID Eris circa 2009 that still works. What is the absolute highest Android OS that the phone could be upgraded to, and would the phone be "safe" (free from viruses and vulnerabilities) to operate?

Again, I'm just curious. I don't have an HTC DROID Eris, but I see people are actually selling them on eBay and I remember whining at Christmas time way back in 2009 when I wanted one and didn't get one. Back when cell phones were only for calling, I had a Motorola StarTac that I had from 2000 - 2004 that I would have kept even longer had I not accidentally snapped the antenna off of it. I remember the salesman looking at me like I had two heads when I was upset that I couldn't just have it sent in for repairs or have it replaced with another StarTac. Why would people want to buy an HTC DROID Eris now? For parts? For parts for what? Do they root these phones and make them able to run on Lollipop or something? Or are they just "mad scientists" trying to build monster Androids out of old parts?

Does anyone on here still use a really old Android phone that runs on something like Froyo or Gingerbread, or has technology gotten so advanced that it's impossible to use a phone so old?

 

[anon8380037]

Re: How Long Can One "Safely" Use an Android Phone Before It's Just too Old to Be "Safe" to Use?

I can't answer with any authority so I will let someone else , but I am often surprised with threads started in the Ask Any Question forum from different world regions by users on very old Android versions, so I guess they work - but there must be a limit to how many apps and how many carriers will support devices from Gingerbread and earlier.

If someone has need for only a limited number of apps, and they can obviously still email, browse navigate and text - why not.

Would they be missing out on exciting new developments, sure - but any Android if it's functional would still top my old SE Symbian 'smartphone'.

I would be interested in a detailed answer.

BTW - I don't think safety comes in to it.

 

[Golfdriver97]

Re: How Long Can One "Safely" Use an Android Phone Before It's Just too Old to Be "Safe" to Use?

For all intents and purposes, Android is pretty safe at almost any OS level. Sure some stuff gets on a phone, like the FBI thing, but that situation is kind of hard to pin down. In that instance, we don't know what settings the user had, what they were doing,etc...

For further reading: Android Security — a Q&A with Google's Adrian Ludwig | Android Central

Thanks to Russell Holly for the article.

 

[dpham00]

Re: How Long Can One "Safely" Use an Android Phone Before It's Just too Old to Be "Safe" to Use?

Mod Note, cleaned up some posts. Let's keep things on topic

Sent from my Verizon LG G4

 

[Kashif Salman]

Re: How Long Can One "Safely" Use an Android Phone Before It's Just too Old to Be "Safe" to Use?

I still have Samsung Galaxy i9003 with KitKat. No concerns whatsoever

 

[Slytherin_Princess]

Re: How Long Can One "Safely" Use an Android Phone Before It's Just too Old to Be "Safe" to Use?

For all intents and purposes, Android is pretty safe at almost any OS level. Sure some stuff gets on a phone, like the FBI thing, but that situation is kind of hard to pin down. In that instance, we don't know what settings the user had, what they were doing,etc...

For further reading: Android Security — a Q&A with Google's Adrian Ludwig | Android Central

Thanks to Russell Holly for the article.

Thank you!

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