Lifespan of a phone released in 2016 ? Speaking about the OS

[Android Central Question]

I'm considering to buy the HTC One A9s, which was released in June 2016.
Looking at the specs on gsmarena.com, at the OS section, it only mentions Android 6.0 (Marshmallow). For some other phones, this website mentions Android 7.0 or even planned upgrade to 8.0.

Should I worry that this phone might not be able to stay up to date for at least 3 years ?

My phones and smartphones have always lasted 4-5 years and I intend to keep it like this. My previous phone was an HTC Desire S which I've been using for nearly 5 years, and I was kinda forced to abandon it due to the OS (Android 2) not supporting popular apps anymore, otherwise i could've been using it for one more year.

Thanks for your advice

 

[chanchan05]

No phone stays updated for a 3 years except iPhones. That's because the manufacturers of the SoCs in phones stop releasing updated drivers by then. Apple is a special case since they're also the ones who make those drivers so they can keep making them as long as they want. Samsung won't do it on their Exynos powered phones even if they could because they'll be alienating certain partners and markets (some markets don't use Exynos for the same model).

Android phones keep updated only for the OS for two years. Some like Samsung flagships and Pixel/Nexus phones get at least security updates for 3 years. Mind you that this only holds true for flagship lines like the Galaxy S and Note, LG G and V series, the HTC 10 and U11, Sony Xperia X Performance, Moto Z and Z Force, and similar range models. Once you go to the mid range phones, updates get murky. Outside of the Galaxy A series, Sony Xperia, and Motorola phones, most non flagship phones only get software updates for one year or none at all. It's the manufacturer's choice for how long they're willing to spend money to support that model. The higher priced models give them greater margins which are used to cover costs of update research and testing, which is why lower end models often get the short end of the stick.

The only lower end models that you can expect regular updates are those branded as AndroidOne by Google.