The folly of upgrading.

[mwake4goten]

I'm not an expert but from my own humble experiences as an end user I think that upgrades are a more hassle than they're worth. As a long time PC user (from windows 3.1 onwards) I have only ever seen one OS upgrade that made an existing machine perform better and that was Windows 7. But even in that instance, Windows 7 was following on from the disastrous Windows Vista, so it was more or less a "it couldn't get any worse" scenario.

I know that upgrades serve two functions, one is to fix issues the other to provide greater functionality. However, its generally the case that increased functionality puts greater workload on the smartphone hardware and when whenever that happens performance is degraded. Of course there are instances when the software engineers optimise the code so that it's more efficient but in my experience upgrading OS and makes your device slower not faster.

I used to be a self confessed update addict but this is the reason I will not be upgrading any of the OS on my devices any more, I would rather have less functionality and faster performance. Andriod N will be released and I will only probably get to use it if I buy an Android N smartphone. I got burnt badly by the Marshmallow update for my HTC one M8, yes Doze provides great standby time but overall the phone performance is more sluggish compared to Kitkat. Whatever OS your phone is launched with will probably be the best OS for the lifetime of that phone (unless you get into rooting and all that). I use this same philosophy with regard to apps too. I switch off automatic Google Play updates and manually update only if I really want any touted functionality from an app or if I am trying to resolve a problem.

Look at HTC, I actually wish HTC took their time with the app updates rather rushing to push out these OS upgrade in 90 days. More time should yield less bugs and more time to optimise the skin with the OS...

What do others think about OS and app updates, have you guys had similar experiences and will you be rushing to update to Android N?

 

[Snappy Phoenix]

I'm not an expert but from my own humble experiences as an end user I think that upgrades are a more hassle than they're worth. As a long time PC user (from windows 3.1 onwards) I have only ever seen one OS upgrade that made an existing machine perform better and that was Windows 7. But even in that instance, Windows 7 was following on from the disastrous Windows Vista, so it was more or less a "it couldn't get any worse" scenario.

I know that upgrades serve two functions, one is to fix issues the other to provide greater functionality. However, its generally the case that increased functionality puts greater workload on the smartphone hardware and when whenever that happens performance is degraded. Of course there are instances when the software engineers optimise the code so that it's more efficient but in my experience upgrading OS and makes your device slower not faster.

I used to be a self confessed update addict but this is the reason I will not be upgrading any of the OS on my devices any more, I would rather have less functionality and faster performance. Andriod N will be released and I will only probably get to use it if I buy an Android N smartphone. I got burnt badly by the Marshmallow update for my HTC one M8, yes Doze provides great standby time but overall the phone performance is more sluggish compared to Kitkat. Whatever OS your phone is launched with will probably be the best OS for the lifetime of that phone (unless you get into rooting and all that). I use this same philosophy with regard to apps too. I switch off automatic Google Play updates and manually update only if I really want any touted functionality from an app or if I am trying to resolve a problem.

Look at HTC, I actually wish HTC took their time with the app updates rather rushing to push out these OS upgrade in 90 days. More time should yield less bugs and more time to optimise the skin with the OS...

What do others think about OS and app updates, have you guys had similar experiences and will you be rushing to update to Android N?

couldn't agree more. Had a Note 4 before which was superb on Kit Kat. When Lollicrap OS came, the phone's battery literallty became half as I was able to get 2 days of battery life on Kit Kat but on Lollipop I would barely get through the day and the phone became very sluggish.

Same for iPhones, remember how beautiful the iPhone 4 S was on iOS 7? then it became a piece of garbage on iOS 8

 

[KSDroid01]

I'm not an update junkie but I have been impatiently waiting for Marshmallow for one reason: granular app permissions. On my last phone (which is still sitting on 5.1, and that's a major reason I bought the 10), I had around 15 apps I refused to update due to what I considered unnecessary and invasive permissions. With M, I get to tell the app what permissions it can use! This is huge to me. The point: once in a while an OS update comes along that is truly worthwhile.

With respect to an OS's impact on performance: as long as you are buying flagship hardware with a light skin (Lenovarola and HTC come to mind) processor performance at that level is such that OS updates have little to no effect on performance. IMHO.

Posted via the 10

 

[vamp07]

The integration of os supported finger print readers was a big deal and a reason to want the latest os but in general I agree. I do have to say android os upgrades are not as bad as iOS ones. I do find iOS updates have the potential to destroy the speed and enjoyment of using the iPhone.

 

[NEXUS_HTC_PS]

Anyone who knows anything about background processes, like the cache partition and ART, knows that updating from lollipop to marshmallow is the best thing you you could ever do( speaking about my experience personally with my M9). Lollipop was a joke. I admit Kit Kat was good, but nowhere near what marshmallow brings to the table. The optimization of background processes has immensely helped Android be as stable as its ever been. Not to mention what it does for the longevity of the device itself.

From me to you by the Power Cosmic

 

[isdaako]

Perhaps it varies by device, but every iteration to the OS has been an improvement on the phones I've owned. So, I look forward.

 

[mwake4goten]

Side issues: companies should also update each individual android OS at least twice. I'm finding with HTC lately that they update to the first version and then move on. A classic example is lollipop. HTC gave us 5.0.1 which was riddled with bugs, but they could have updated it to the revised version 5.1 but they didn't. They only waited a whole year and then updated to Marshmallow 6.0. That might sound good at first but 6.0 also has some big bugs too and probably needs an update to Marshmallow 6.1 but I don't think they will. I would rather HTC support at least two revisions of an OS that way at least the second version would be more stable. There's no point in updating to Android N because htc will rush to update to the first version of Android N and then refuse to update it until next major version which leaves you with early adopter bugs.

Google also needs to address the influence that carriers have with regard to the show time it takes to get updates. I wish all carrier phones could follow the iPhone/Nexus route of getting direct updates... I don't understand the difference?

 

[thejesse]

To each their own. I've been using Android since eclair and I've had exactly one (kit Kat I lollipop) bad upgrade experience. Granted that was an awful upgrade but no others have given me any trouble. I'm glad to have new features when upgrades chime out.