Samsung Alters Android Update Strategy Across All Users
In a bid to enhance the user experience, Samsung is revolutionising its update strategy for flagship devices like the S24 and Z Fold 6. The South Korean tech giant is offering up to 7 years of updates, with a focus on faster, more frequent, yet smaller and brand-specific updates.
This transformation is made possible by adopting trunk-based development, a method that replaces the traditional branch-based model. This approach, also embraced by Google, allows for faster development and release of updates, with fewer integration conflicts.
With all development happening on a single stable main branch, new features and APIs are hidden behind feature flags until they are ready to be enabled. This accelerates the Android release schedule, as evident with the early release of Android 16 in June 2025, compared to the usual August-October timeframe.
For manufacturers like Samsung, Xiaomi, and OnePlus, this means aligning their custom skins and features, such as Samsung’s One UI, more closely and quickly with the latest Android updates. Samsung has already adopted this model for One UI 8.0, enabling faster releases and aiming to match Google’s update speed in the future.
This change reduces delays previously caused by merging conflicts and allows brand-specific features to be integrated and updated more rapidly and smoothly alongside the core Android platform.
The benefits of this new approach extend to end-users, who can expect updates sooner and with improved stability. The really interesting features and changes will come through One UI updates, not Android versions. For instance, One UI 8 includes the new Now Bar for live notifications on the lock screen.
Other manufacturers like Xiaomi and OnePlus may adopt trunk-based development in the future, following Samsung's lead in implementing this efficient method among Android manufacturers.
Sources: - Android Authority on Samsung and Google's trunk-based model speeding up updates - SamMobile on Samsung's One UI update speed improvements due to trunk-based development - Wikipedia on Android 16 release schedule
- Samsung, by using trunk-based development, aims to provide faster and more frequent updates for smartphones like the S24 and Z Fold 6, not only with Android versions but also through its custom skin, One UI, such as the introduction of the new Now Bar in One UI 8.
- As a result of embracing trunk-based development, manufacturers like Xiaomi and OnePlus might expedite their update processes, similar to Samsung, ensuring their devices receive gadget updates sooner, enhancing user experience with smartphones.
