LG may be getting out of the smartphone business, but when announcing that move the company said it would continue to offer support and service for existing phones for some period of time.

Now the company is clarifying that it will continue delivering major Android updates for recent flagship phones apparently at least until Android 13 is released in 2022.

In a brief statement, LG explains that “all premium LG smartphones currently in use will receive up to three iterations of Android operating system updates from the year of purchase.”

That means if you have an LG G series, V series, Velvet or Wing smartphone released in 2019 or later, you should get three major operating system updates. LG says “certain 2020 models” including the LG Stylo and LG K series smartphones will get two major android updates.

The company says it will also continue manufacturing smartphones through the second quarter of 2021 in order “to meet contractual obligations to carriers and partners.” If you were wondering why anyone would buy an LG phone knowing that the company is pulling the plug on its phone business this summer, I guess the new guarantee could offer some peace of mind.

press release

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4 replies on “LG promises Android updates for existing flagships through 2022 despite shutting down its phone business”

  1. This not only provides peace of mind and incentive to help sell the existing stock of phones, but it also buys a lot of good will from current users which could be important in the future if they consider buying other LG products. Given that they’ve come a long way since their rebrand from Goldstar, that value cannot be understated.

  2. Or go one step further, agree to allow all current LG phones (2019-2021 models) to have their bootloader be unlockable. Then you’ll get LineageOS, and a plethora of other AndroidOS options.

    The community will be able to keep the phones alive and update long after 2022 and your official support. Just look at the HD2 phone which outlived its HTC manufacturer.

    1. Maybe, but as is the number of people who flash their phones’ firmware is a small percentage. This guarantee provides as much comfort, relatively speaking, as buying from any other brand and avoids buyer’s remorse for those that have one.

      Also, HTC is technically still alive and still producing new phones. It’s just stopped competing for top spot or major market share (How much longer they’ll survive in the phone business is anyone’s guess though).

      1. Yeah, I wouldn’t call HTC alive by any stretch. Last I heard they were producing losses, and only kept stable due to sales of the Vive VR. If you want to be technical, then yes, HTC now works for Google making Pixel devices which have steadily become less and less competitive over the years (Pixel 2XL was their prime).

        I think the bootloader is a smart avenue to take. It costs them nothing. Creates a lot of goodwill. And goes hand-in-hand with this direction to keep devices supported for another year or two. They’re not mutually exclusive actions to take. I’ve been the “gadget guy” for many friends and family, where I’ve recommended one device over another. I disregard the ads and marketing, and judged the device based on their merits… always leading to happy customers.

        Since we are all talking about goodwill, they could even do one last hurrah, and go out with a BANG not a whimper. By recycling whatever they have in R&D and making the most consumer friendly device of 2021. It should be something that goes down like the HTC HD2, Samsung S2, Nexus 4, OnePlus One, ZTE Axon 7, etc etc. It doesn’t even need to be a flagship, remember the original Moto G, that was a clean experience, no ads, lots and lots of buyers and support.

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