Sony Flagship Devices Will Get Software Updates For Two Years After Launch
Interestingly, the first ever smartphones in 2017 to run Android 8 Oreo out of the box were not the Google Pixel 2 devices. It was the Sony Xperia XZ1 and Xperia XZ1 Compact. Sony smartphones launched since then have come with Android 8 Oreo out of the box, which is different than what many other OEMs have done.
Continuing on that, Sony has confirmed that its flagship devices will now receive software updates for up to years after the launch. This means that the Xperia XZ1 and the Xperia XZ Pro could receive software updates to Android P and Android Q. The new Sony Xperia update policies were discovered by Xperia Blog.
However, the new policy does not guarantee the company’s mid-range and budget phones will get the same software update treatment. This will depend on whether these devices will meet the company’s “exacting standards.” Also, the hardware on these smartphones will have to be able to produce a stable user experience.
Another good news for Xperia flagship buyers is that the company might release security updates outside the normal Android OS update cycle. This means that high-end Xperia smartphones will be updated with latest security patches for a long time. However, the same cannot be said for the budget smartphones in the Xperia lineup.
One exciting Xperia flagship in the pipeline is the Xperia XZ Pro. It is rumoured that the device will be launched at MWC 2018 in late-February.
Xperia XZ Pro: Rumour Roundup
It will have a 5.7 inch OLED display with 4K resolution, thin bezels and possibly, an 18:9 aspect ratio.
Under the hood, the Sony Xperia XZ Pro will have the Snapdragon 845 chipset, 6GB of RAM and up to 128GB of onboard storage. The storage is expected to be expandable via a microSD card. The fingerprint sensor is expected to be housed inside the lock button on the side. Although, with the presence of an OLED display, Sony could go ahead and use a screen embedded fingerprint sensor.
The device will be powered by a 3420 mAh battery which will support QuickCharge 4.0+.
The Xperia XZ Pro will have a dual rear camera setup, with one of the cameras having an 18 MP sensor with 1.33 microns pixel size and a 12 MP sensor with 1.38 microns pixel size. On the front will be a 13 MP camera.
The Sony Xperia XZ Pro will run Android 8 Oreo out of the box and with the latest policy, could see a software update up to 2020. This is a great news for Xperia XZ Pro suitors.
