[HN Gopher] Pixel 8 leak promises 7 years of OS updates
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       Pixel 8 leak promises 7 years of OS updates
        
       Author : nickthegreek
       Score  : 56 points
       Date   : 2023-09-25 20:07 UTC (2 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (arstechnica.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (arstechnica.com)
        
       | impish19 wrote:
       | This has barely ever tipped the needle for me when deciding to
       | buy a phone. I switched to a Pixel a couple of years ago for two
       | main features:
       | 
       | Call Screening -
       | https://support.google.com/phoneapp/answer/9118387?hl=en
       | 
       | Hold for me -
       | https://support.google.com/assistant/answer/10071878?hl=en
       | 
       | They're immensely valuable and I feel Apple is absolutely dumb
       | for having equivalents baked in already. If they did, I'd happily
       | switch over.
        
         | shric wrote:
         | My single feature that keeps me on Android is notifications. I
         | want an unobtrusive visual only (I never want my phone to
         | vibrate or make a noise unless my wife or kid is calling)
         | indication that there's something needing my attention. On
         | Android a tiny icon appears in the status bar. On iOS it's an
         | obnoxious pop up banner or nothing at all.
        
         | Xeamek wrote:
         | Samsung comes with screening pre-installed as well, although I
         | think it's just partnership with third party and not in-house
         | solution. But I imagine you can find the functionality simply
         | on play store
        
         | neilv wrote:
         | I'd still be happy with just my (GrapheneOS) Pixel 3, if only
         | it were still getting closed blob security updates.
         | 
         | Instead, I've had to replace it repeatedly: Pixel 3, Pixel 4a,
         | Pixel 5, and now Pixel 6a.
         | 
         | Each model upgrade was a regression in size and weight. The
         | only improvement I liked was in the cameras, but photography-
         | wise they're still only cameraphone snapshot grade, so not a
         | worthwhile upgrade to me. I would've rather been able to keep
         | using the Pixel 3.
         | 
         | I'm looking forward to keeping the Pixel 6a awhile (once the
         | carrier flakiness that coincided with the move the other day
         | settles down).
         | 
         | (Edit: Unless there comes out some local ML model _that I want_
         | that needs more processing hardware.)
        
         | kaba0 wrote:
         | While they were at it, they could have also fixed the emergency
         | call bug that - to my knowledge - still exists, and is an
         | instant no from me to any pixel phone.
        
         | doublepg23 wrote:
         | I think the less advertised feature of iOS 17 "Personal Voice"
         | is probably laying the ground work for features like this along
         | with the "Voicemail Screening" feature people are mentioning.
         | https://www.macrumors.com/2023/05/17/ios-17-personal-voice-f...
        
         | BugsJustFindMe wrote:
         | iOS 17 has added real time voicemail transcription in a way
         | that sounds a lot like Android's call screening.
        
         | verhaust wrote:
         | I don't use either of those features, but the one reason I
         | stick with Pixel phones is bloatware. The amount of useless
         | bloatware that comes with most phones is horrid. I went with a
         | Samsung tablet because Google (at the time) stopped making
         | tablets. The tablet hardware is good, but even after 2 years of
         | owning the device, I still get nagged constantly for not using
         | samsung specific apps/features that I have zero use for. Google
         | does do some nagging on Pixel phones for their silly features,
         | but I have found them much easier to turn off.
        
         | Eldandan wrote:
         | I just switched over to IPhone after a solid three years on a
         | Pixel 4a 5g and am having some adjustment pains with iOS
         | related to lack of these features. Live transcription is
         | another super useful feature I truly value during long,
         | annoying calls with call menu options (IRS, hospitals, etc),
         | since it is so helpful to see what the previous options were
         | without having to listen to the entire damn menu again.
         | 
         | Then there are small annoyances like not having the option to
         | enable auto-space after punctuation like commas and periods in
         | messages, even with third-party keyboards like swift keybaord.
         | And not being able to set a separate ringer and alarm volume. I
         | keep my ringer volume very low during the day, but I depend on
         | a loud alarm. Got to work late today as a consequence of this!
         | 
         | I'm already considering switching back to pixel 8 once it
         | releases next month, especially due to the increased support.
         | Only thing holding me back is tensor chips not yet being on par
         | until around 2025 when Google releases its first fully custom
         | chip.
        
         | slipperlobster wrote:
         | Call Screening is in iOS17. I agree that Hold for me would be
         | great on iOS.
        
         | Kirby64 wrote:
         | iOS now supports live voicemails. Functionally equivalent to
         | call screening, except a slightly different prompt.
         | 
         | The nice thing is this is on everything that runs ios17,
         | instead of just the latest. Android seems to unnecessarily silo
         | special features into just pixel phones for no apparent
         | hardware reason. Often times you can sideload (with root access
         | typically) the special pixel only features on any phone.
         | 
         | Nothing yet to compare to hold for me, but I wouldn't be
         | surprised if it was coming soon.
        
       | geodel wrote:
       | [flagged]
        
       | parheric wrote:
       | Yeh I doubt this will ever happen in a way that provides real
       | value for pixel owners... when they started using their own chips
       | it was meant to be 5 years, then turned out to be 3 years of
       | updates.
       | 
       | They've had the opportunity for I provide security updates for
       | their old pixels for years but chose not too. So this is just
       | marketing fluff to get a few more sales...
       | 
       | And in typical Google style after 3 years they'll say "yeh...
       | about those 7 years, we really meant 3"
       | 
       | Pixel pass anyone?
        
         | kyrra wrote:
         | Any source for pixel phones that were promised 5 years, only
         | getting three?
        
           | Borgz wrote:
           | I think they are referring to the Pixel 6 [1]. If the same
           | happened again, Google might announce that the Pixel 8 will
           | receive 4 or 5 years of major Android version updates and 7
           | years of security updates.
           | 
           | However, the alleged leaked specs for the Pixel 8 explicitly
           | state "7 years of OS and security updates" [2], so I think
           | they do actually intend on 7 years of major Android version
           | updates.
           | 
           | [1] https://www.theverge.com/2021/10/19/22735485/google-
           | pixel-6-...
           | 
           | [2] https://www.91mobiles.com/hub/google-pixel-8-pro-
           | specificati...
        
             | msm_ wrote:
             | As an owner of an Android phone (Pixel 4a) that just
             | reached EOL _and_ for which a potential 0-click RCE 0day
             | was just released (the webp thing), I 'd take three more
             | years of security updates on the spot. But well, I guess
             | time for a new phone.
        
             | jsnell wrote:
             | Pixel 6 was promising 5 years of _security_ updates from
             | the start. Like, from the very first announcement. As
             | evidence, note that _your link is from the time of the
             | launch_ , not some kind of bait and switch like the OP
             | claimed.
        
             | roneythomas6 wrote:
             | The link referring to 7 years of update. If you follow the
             | leaker on Twitter kamila in the original leak tweet they
             | mention it can be 5 years of OS update + 3 years of
             | security updates or something along the lines. The leakers
             | isn't sure if it will be full 7 years of OS updates. I
             | think other people reporting on the leak are failing to
             | differentiate OS updates vs security updates making people
             | to think Google rolled back on updates.
        
               | x0x0 wrote:
               | There's already an unpatched full login bypass
               | 
               | https://bugs.xdavidhu.me/google/2022/11/10/accidental-70k
               | -go...
        
       | supernova87a wrote:
       | The problem isn't so much that Google has a hard time old phones
       | on their OS maintenance team books, and even just phoning in the
       | effort to keep them working (hah). It's that they actively don't
       | _want_ to do any work that isn 't sexy and supporting new
       | products. I don't think their teams are incentivized to do so.
       | 
       | Let me play it out with an example.
       | 
       | At Apple, a team/individual might be actively told to have to use
       | an iPhone 8 for their daily use, so they get to experience what
       | it's like for a user with an older phone. They solve the users'
       | pain by solving their own pain, and commit to making the
       | experience actually better with future iOS releases. Not just
       | keeping it working but actually making it better if possible.
       | 
       | Google has shown time and time again that they're not thinking
       | like that. Or at least not setting up the company to be rewarded
       | like that.
       | 
       | I will also posit that the single-handed ownership of the iOS app
       | store makes deficiencies fall squarely on Apple, so they are more
       | directly blamed/responsible when phone performance gets worse.
       | With Android, and so many reasons a team could claim that other
       | factors are causing negative trends in performance, who cares to
       | keep making an old phone better?
        
         | thedougd wrote:
         | I agree with the theme of your post, but I think it's often
         | overlooked that Android doesn't necessitate full operating
         | system updates to deliver new functionality as iOS does. Owners
         | will regularly receive updates to basic apps such as phone,
         | calendar, contacts, etc. through the on-going Play Store
         | updates, even after 3 years.
        
           | BoorishBears wrote:
           | This often gets brought up, but it's only because of a
           | similar ill-discipline to what the comment you replied to is
           | talking about.
           | 
           | AOSP has basic apps for all of those use cases, but
           | presumably because it's much sexier to work on closed source
           | in-house apps that get to be updated as often as the team
           | feels like instead of being forced to work in the margins of
           | the OS update schedule... they languished to the point of
           | unusability.
           | 
           | I'm not even sure if they'd all run on the latest version of
           | Android, some of them are still using Kit-Kat era UIs last I
           | checked
        
             | Xeamek wrote:
             | It's not only that they are outdated, phone app was
             | officially deprecated this year and I'm pretty sure it was
             | the last one, so now android 'core apps' are officially
             | dead
        
           | IshKebab wrote:
           | It really only has that _because_ it is so difficult to
           | distribute Android OS updates.
        
           | x0x0 wrote:
           | But the phone is still worthless and unable to be used once
           | it stops getting security updates.
           | 
           | eg google killed my last pixel by cutting off security
           | updates like one month before a full login bypass was
           | discovered. I mean cute, I could still get updated apps...
           | but anyone in possession of my phone could login as me.
        
       | kvetching wrote:
       | When will we get our own local LLM?
        
       | jacooper wrote:
       | Honestly, pixels are the phones to get. With grapheneOS, you get
       | a dailyable, trustable phone, with crazy good cameras and long
       | support cycles.
       | 
       | And it's usually cheap, they drop fast in price, but the 8 is
       | really expensive for some reason, lets hope it follows the same
       | trend and just drops in price.
       | 
       | Something no other phones can't do, certianly not your blackbox
       | iphone(even if apples marketing says otherwise.)
        
       | thatoneguy wrote:
       | It's still a device wedded to an OS that wants your data shipped
       | off to a company that knows how to use it against you vs a device
       | iOS put out by a company that seems so wildly inept in this space
       | that they just went whole-hog on privacy, at least publicly.
        
         | thefz wrote:
         | > It's still a device wedded to an OS that wants your data
         | shipped off to a company that knows how to use it against you
         | vs a device iOS put out by a company that seems so wildly inept
         | in this space that they just went whole-hog on privacy, at
         | least publicly.
         | 
         | Apple still sells your user data to advertisers, they just want
         | to be the only one to do so, for profit.
        
           | kaba0 wrote:
           | Apple displays a goddamn relevant result in the AppStore,
           | while Google actively makes use of every single movement you
           | make -- it is just a completely dishonest comparison and has
           | no basis in reality. This is the non-political version of
           | EnLIGhteNEd centrism.
        
             | tredre3 wrote:
             | I thought it was just me! Search on the Google Play store
             | is just useless. It shows you 1-2 relevant results if
             | you're lucky, then a few pages of ads, followed by
             | completely unrelated results. When I know full well that
             | what I'm searching is there (and indeed it shows up in
             | Aurora Store or even google search no problem).
        
               | Xeamek wrote:
               | If you can't find the app you searched for directly, it
               | usually means that play store deemed your phone
               | incompatible (for whatever reason) and hide the result,
               | nothing to do with the search quality
        
             | thefz wrote:
             | Still, making billions with your data and a failed promise
             | of privacy.
             | 
             | https://proton.me/blog/apple-ad-company
             | 
             | They are no better than anyone else, they just convinced
             | you so.
        
               | kaba0 wrote:
               | They make more money with much much more primitive
               | "targeting" because they are sitting on top their own
               | platform with no competition. If someone wants to display
               | their ad on the Apple platform, they pay apple.
               | 
               | I don't mind being targeted by searching for "mobile
               | game" in the app store and it displays a mobile game ad,
               | and maybe even used up that I'm a male in his 20s. That
               | just can't be compared in good faith to what google or
               | facebook does.
        
         | livueta wrote:
         | I can de-Google a Pixel way past the extent I can de-Apple an
         | iPhone.
        
         | tredre3 wrote:
         | > your data shipped off to a company that knows how to use it
         | against you
         | 
         | OK I hate Google as much as the next guy but that's just
         | ridiculous. In what way does Google use your data against you?
         | How would that be profitable?
         | 
         | I guess you might consider targeted ads as being assault
         | against you?
        
           | digging wrote:
           | > I guess you might consider targeted ads as being assault
           | against you?
           | 
           | I'm not OP, but yeah I kind of do. See also: police and
           | government agencies buying personal data, which they Totally
           | Only Use For Good Guy Stuff I Promise.
        
             | readams wrote:
             | Did you know that Apple also uses your data to target ads
             | to you?
        
       | b8 wrote:
       | [flagged]
        
       | akyuu wrote:
       | I'm curious about how they're going to manage this at the same
       | time Linux LTS kernels are returning to being supported for 2
       | years rather than 6:
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37591050
        
         | roneythomas6 wrote:
         | Android common kernels(ACK) are downstream of Linux kernels
         | with so many patches which are not there in the Linux kernels.
         | So Linux having short 2 years update cycle doesn't have much
         | implication on ACK.
        
         | CameronNemo wrote:
         | The Fairphone is aiming to upstream their new phone's drivers.
         | Chromebooks typically run a much closer to mainline kernel than
         | Android devices.
         | 
         | https://liliputing.com/fairphone-5-is-a-repairable-e699-smar...
         | 
         | https://lore.kernel.org/linux-pm/20230830-fp5-initial-v1-0-5...
        
       | pshirshov wrote:
       | Batteries don't live that long.
        
         | edgineer wrote:
         | I replaced my Pixel XL battery earlier this year, still works
         | great as a backup and/or hacker news browsing device.
        
         | izzydata wrote:
         | All the more reason for user replaceable batteries.
        
         | pulpfictional wrote:
         | They're not very difficult to replace.
        
       | htatche wrote:
       | Knowing how Google _shortlives_ their products time after time, I
       | 'll pass, thanks.
        
       | mpol wrote:
       | Can anyone explain how this works in modern Android? Do the
       | drivers for this specific hardware live in Treble? Can they
       | "just" drop a new kernel in a point release, like linux 6.5
       | vanilla? Or linux 8.5 vanilla in the year 2030?
       | 
       | I am not an Android user, but do have some interest in following
       | what is happening. I do have interest in mobile Linux, currently
       | I am using Sailfish OS with libhybris drivers and an old kernel.
        
         | izacus wrote:
         | No, the kernel doesn't get updated (usually). Security patches
         | get back ported and Android releases can run on multiple kernel
         | versions.
        
       | 2OEH8eoCRo0 wrote:
       | Could this be tentative due to discontinuation of LTS kernels?
        
       | [deleted]
        
       | baq wrote:
       | Should've thought about it before I put my whole family on
       | iPhones for this exact reason. My kids run iPhone 8 without any
       | issues.
        
       | shmde wrote:
       | Do people really realllly think Google of all companies is going
       | to give 7 years of OS updates ?? I can see Apple doing it. But
       | Google ? Also pinky promises dont hold up in courts
        
       | amir734jj wrote:
       | I am looking to upgrade my old Pixel 3 XL. I use my phone with I
       | love Google cameras and pure android software. I don't like
       | Samsung UIs. I am wondering what a good option for me beside
       | Google is phones.
        
         | gman83 wrote:
         | Sony, Asus, Nothing & Motorola all pretty much run stock
         | Android.
        
           | roneythomas6 wrote:
           | Sony phones are really bad with updates. They have very short
           | 2 year update and the updates are extremely buggy almost
           | making the phone a brick. Look at Xperia 5 iv android 13 same
           | with Xperia 5 iii. Nothing is good with updates, Motorola
           | updates are stable but still have short update cycle and
           | security updates are not monthly for most phones.
        
       | jauntywundrkind wrote:
       | Has even a single Android phone received a major or minor kernel
       | update ever (ex: 5.4 -> 5.10)? That felt like what Treble &
       | creating an entirely Android specific way of building kernel
       | modules (the GKI, "Generic Kernel Image", specifically for
       | Android) was for.
       | 
       | Instead of having to upstream modules or support them against an
       | ever-moving kernel interface, the kernel could move & drivers
       | would have a special Android specific interface to code against
       | that would be stable. That was the plan, yes?
       | 
       | But I'm not sure this has ever actually happened or gotten used
       | yet? Android wrote it's own wrapper for the kernel, but is it
       | even having the upside it was built for?
       | 
       | Recent thread on a 2021 post on Android kernel dev:
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37612699
        
         | cypress66 wrote:
         | I assume you mean major version? Because the kernel gets
         | updated all the time otherwise.
        
         | red_trumpet wrote:
         | My Nokia 6.2 got updates from Android 9 to Android 10 and
         | Android 11.
        
       | gman83 wrote:
       | I've been using the Pixel 4a since it came out and it's been rock
       | solid. I'll probably go for the Pixel 8 Pro because of the
       | telephoto camera, so very happy it'll be supported longer. Could
       | Google mandate longer updates from OEMs in general? Or is that
       | not feasible?
        
         | izacus wrote:
         | OEMs have significantly prolonged their update cycles too -
         | both Samsung and Xiaomi are now promising 5 year support for
         | their top models.
        
       | rhuru wrote:
       | I think a meaningful "sustainability" goal could be to build
       | devices that can last longer and be used longer without the need
       | to buy the "latest" gadget. Building robust software and hardware
       | should be part of that thinking.
       | 
       | On a side note a younger kid in family used this unix tool called
       | "sed" and asked me if such advanced tools existed during "my
       | time". I told her I was not born even after 10 years had passed
       | since its invention.
        
         | Pingk wrote:
         | Absolutely! It's barely touched on in the article, but it's the
         | first "R" in reduce, reuse, recycle. By reducing our need to
         | consume because we want updates or need security patches, we
         | don't need to buy a phone every couple of years.
         | 
         | Together with the EU's replaceable battery law, this is a good
         | step in that direction.
         | 
         | Unfortunately it pushes against planned obsolescence which
         | makes companies more money, so we'll see how long the promise
         | of updates lasts...
        
       | wackycat wrote:
       | The cynical part of me wonders if that point is still under
       | debate internally at google and if one of the goals of the leak
       | was publicizing it so Google can't backtrack internally.
        
       | pluc wrote:
       | Anyone needs reminding that you can't trust what Google promises
       | especially when it comes to their products?
        
         | cowmix wrote:
         | Long time Google/Pixel fan... because I love pain and broken
         | promises.
        
       | least wrote:
       | I owned the original Nexus 5 phone and Nexus 7 tablet. I love
       | both of these devices for their design but both had serious
       | issues.
       | 
       | The Nexus 7's storage degraded, which rendered the device
       | unusably slow. I thought it was the upgrade to the next version
       | of Android that did it, but downgrading it did not fix the issue.
       | There's been some workarounds that made it slightly more usable
       | but ultimately it was a serious hardware defect that made it
       | unbearably slow to use even with these workarounds.
       | 
       | The Nexus 5 had a bootlooping issue -- I had the issue occur on
       | my first Nexus 5, 2 weeks out of warranty. Fortunately Google was
       | kind enough to send me a refurbished one... that shortly after
       | had the same bootloop issue.
       | 
       | My opinion of Google has gradually deteriorated over time to the
       | point now where I actively avoid using anything made by Google
       | because 1) they can't do hardware right and 2) they sunset way
       | too many products for me to feel comfortable using them. So the
       | promise of 7 years of OS updates on a hardware device by Google
       | just seems empty and maybe pointless because I don't trust the
       | device itself will continue functioning, even if the updates keep
       | coming... which I have doubts they will.
       | 
       | While I was still using Android, my Samsung Galaxy S6 was
       | probably the most headache-free experience I had, even with the
       | complete lack of feature/OS updates but as it stands, my iPhones
       | have all been rock solid devices, so that is probably what I will
       | continue using unless something drastic changes.
        
         | ftlio wrote:
         | My thought when I read it as well. I've owned Nexus 4, 5, 6,
         | Pixel 1, 2, 3, 4 and finally gave up. Half of these phones were
         | purchased because the previous model crapped out. I am not a
         | heavy phone user either. I think I stuck with them because
         | there was always some integration with Google and iPhone that
         | didn't make me happy, but whatever it is must have been solved
         | by the time I got an iPhone because I'm on three years with
         | mine. Probably won't replace it for another three years.
        
         | seabrookmx wrote:
         | > My opinion of Google has gradually deteriorated over time to
         | the point now where I actively avoid using anything made by
         | Google
         | 
         | It's worth pointing out the Nexus 5 released 10 years ago and
         | things have definitely changed (improved, IMO) in that time.
        
           | pizza234 wrote:
           | Owned a Pixel 1 in the past, and it started to suffer from
           | the same issue, so this may be an inherent problem in flash
           | storage (at least as it's implemented in mobile phones).
        
         | IntelMiner wrote:
         | I have to admit, I'm on the opposite end of the spectrum there,
         | having had both devices
         | 
         | I _loved_ my 2012 Nexus 7, and was a Day 1 upgrader to the 2013
         | model (my Mom enjoyed the 2012 for many years for eBooks and
         | Facebook)
         | 
         | My Nexus 5 I was also a day 1 purchase, upgrading from a slowly
         | deteriorating Galaxy S2. Unfortunately I had to replace it much
         | earlier after I slipped and fell on uneven concrete and
         | shattered the screen
         | 
         | If Google could just take the SoC of the Pixel 6/7/8/whatever
         | and stuff it in the housing of the Nexus 7 2013, give it a
         | modern battery and a nice OLED screen it would truly be the
         | best tablet on the market. But instead they want "bigger" and
         | are chasing after the iPad with the new pixel tablet
        
           | tredre3 wrote:
           | > But instead they want "bigger" and are chasing after the
           | iPad with the new pixel tablet
           | 
           | I bought a 11" tablet BECAUSE it is much bigger than a phone,
           | so I can comfortably watch videos and read technical
           | documents. I might have considered as small as 8", but 10"
           | was really the minimum in my mind.
           | 
           | Given that most android phones are 6-6.5" already, why would
           | anyone buy a 7" tablet in addition to their phone? Maybe as a
           | throwaway gift to a child? Would the market be large enough
           | to be worth it?
        
             | IntelMiner wrote:
             | If they could just make the Nexus 7 with better bezel-to-
             | screen (maybe something similar to the Pixel's?) it would
             | be _perfect_
             | 
             | I want something I can comfortably hold in one hand to read
             | books on, a 10 inch iPad or Samsung is just too big (and
             | heavy) to do that, and a phone just feels too squashed at
             | the same time
             | 
             | I'm probably in a hell of a niche but it truly was just the
             | perfect 'sweet spot' size for me
        
             | doubled112 wrote:
             | I like small phones. I have an iPhone 13 Mini, and have
             | never had the desire for anything larger. They drive me
             | nuts. I'm usually carrying two, and the bulk adds up.
             | 
             | I also have a 7" tablet. Small enough to fit into any
             | backpack, pocket, my wife's purse, etc. Still large enough
             | it's usable with a kickstand and Bluetooth keyboard.
             | 
             | If I want to do real work, I'll just use a PC. The small
             | tablet is a great middle ground away from home.
        
             | least wrote:
             | I have an iPad mini that I really like. A nexus 7 with a
             | slightly smaller bezel and updated internals would be a
             | really nice device. It's a nice size for casual games,
             | video watching, and a great size for reading manga or
             | books. The only option for a small tablet on Android really
             | is the Fire tablets from Amazon, but they're really lacking
             | in performance, which limits what you can do with it.
             | 
             | But in general I find Android tablets to be pretty lacking
             | in the software support department, even though
             | hypothetically it should be a great platform.
        
           | rhuru wrote:
           | True. My MIL is still using that Nexus tablet thought it is
           | completely battered but she only needs Candy Crush.
        
         | enlyth wrote:
         | I really tried to ride that train, had a Nexus 6, which got
         | stuck in an unrecoverable boot loop after a year, after that a
         | Nexus 6P which bricked itself similarly, and then a flagship
         | Samsung Note something, which couldn't be charged because of
         | "moisture in the port" after a year, despite it being
         | completely dry, after which the battery inflated so much it
         | blew open the whole case.
         | 
         | Then I bought an iPhone 11 Pro and it "just works" to this day,
         | with no replacement needed in sight. After years of being that
         | guy who explains the "dangers" of walled garden ecosystems to
         | my boomer iPhone parents, I joined their gang and have been
         | living carefree since.
        
         | p1mrx wrote:
         | > The Nexus 5 had a bootlooping issue
         | 
         | Are you sure that wasn't a Nexus 5X? I'm still using a Nexus 5
         | (running some LineageOS fork) as a media controller.
         | 
         | I had a Nexus 5X that bootlooped, so I traded in its
         | replacement for a Pixel 2, but its microphone died, and its
         | replacement had a perma-locked bootloader... but the Nexus 5 is
         | still doing fine.
        
           | hysan wrote:
           | It was both, but they bootlooped for different reasons. Nexus
           | 5 had a faulty power button that could fail in a couple of
           | ways. Nexus 5X was something about how the components on the
           | PCB were constructed being of iffy quality. You could get
           | lucky and never have the 5 fail whereas the 5X was/is
           | guaranteed to fail. I bought a 5X purely for device testing.
           | It was basically unused 99% of its lifetime (6+ years) and
           | eventually started bootlooping last year.
        
           | least wrote:
           | Yes, it was a Nexus 5. There's been several phones that have
           | had this issue from Google... which is all the more reason I
           | wouldn't buy another Google hardware device.
        
           | MerelyMortal wrote:
           | I had a Nexus 5X that bootlooped, but if IIRC from my
           | research at the time, Nexus 5 also had the same problem,
           | albeit seemingly to a lesser extent.
        
         | doublepg23 wrote:
         | Yeah I feel like Samsung has a very good value proposition in
         | 2023. I guess my biggest thing is it requires you to remove all
         | the bloat and adware as a prerequisite.
        
         | tanduv wrote:
         | Nexus products weren't _technically_ made by Google. 5 was LG's
         | design and 7 was Asus'. During this era Google specifically
         | stuck to working on the software while passing on the technical
         | designs to other partners.
        
         | LegitShady wrote:
         | I still have a functional Nexus 7 that I used as an ebook
         | reader for a long while until replacing it with a kobo e-ink
         | device. The N7 still boots. I wonder if there's anything useful
         | I could do with it. It paid for itself many times over in the
         | first 3 years and everything at this point is just bonus.
        
         | matwood wrote:
         | Same. I had both those devices and at the time of purchase they
         | were a great value contrast to the iPhone/iPad. But, after the
         | issues you describe I went back to iPhones and never looked
         | back. Google had a great opportunity that they squandered.
        
         | beebmam wrote:
         | After the rug pull of the Pixel Pass, I'm done with Google.
         | That was one of the scammiest things they've ever done. I'm
         | still fucking pissed about it and it's been a month.
        
           | roneythomas6 wrote:
           | I am not sure why people think it was scammy? Pixel Pass was
           | a glorified device financing option. Unlike Apple iPhone
           | Upgrade Program where you trade in your phone. The upgrade
           | isn't free you still need to pay monthly for next two years
           | when you upgrade. You can still upgrade for much cheaper with
           | 0% financing. Also when you subscribe to Spotify or Netflix
           | is there an expectation that you get the same price you
           | signed up for when they increase price? That is the same
           | happening here. For two years people got the Pixel Pass were
           | paying for the device financing + perks. They only paid for
           | device they got and not for any future device. Take a look at
           | Pixel financing cost it is much cheaper than Pixel Pass and
           | when you finance you have the option to trade in old phone
           | and get reduced finance rate.
        
       | [deleted]
        
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