Nokia starts shipping Android 9 Pie to the 7 Plus

by Volker Weber

The keyword here is 'starting'. Unlike Apple, which ships to all iPhones at once, that never happens on Android.

Comments

Well this is not fully true: all current Pixel devices worldwide receive their update like iOS at the release date.

Ralf ter Veer, 2018-09-28

Apparently I'm not under the first 10%. :(

Hannes Niebuhr, 2018-09-28

"All current Pixel devices worldwide" is a rounding error below one percent.

Volker Weber, 2018-09-28

Serious question here:

How many low-budget Android purchases are going to start feeling competition against used iPhones?

Here in the US you can get a reconditioned, unlocked iPhone 6S for $200. Some carriers are selling them for $50 with a contract.

Considering that it runs iOS 12, still feels snappy, etc., what advantages does a new Android phone in the same price range really have? Maybe a better camera? Wireless charging?

Erik Brooks, 2018-09-28

> iPhone 6S...still feels snappy

I don't think you have used one with either Facebook, SnapChat or WhatsApp installed because the lag and apps falling out of memory are real.

Ananya Gupta, 2018-09-28

Well, you should not have any of those on your phone anyway.

Volker Weber, 2018-09-28

But wait a second, “never happens on Android” sounds like it’s referring to the whole Android population, i.e. Samsung, Nokia, etc. - for sure that is true. But “Nokia is starting” sounds like Nokia is dividing the population of “7 Plus” devices into waves. Is that really true and do they do it differently than Apple? If I am not misinformed, iOS devices also don’t get the updates immediately but in waves, unless the user actively checks for the update (where then, yes, everyone gets it immediately).

Ragnar Schierholz , 2018-09-28

@Ragnar Apple releases to their content distribution network for every supported device at the same time (barring extraordinary circumstances). Propagation latency invariably means some users don't see the updates for anywhere from 30 minutes to several hours. CDNs can be congested for the first few hours after release but this has invariably cleared within half a day. Automatic updates can be disabled for both iOS and macOS but are enabled by default and conscious user intervention is required to change that behaviour.

David Richardson, 2018-09-29

I second Ragnars observation: Not actively checking for an update, iOS 12 showed up on my iPhone 8 at 1400 on 28th September. My prevoius iPhone 6s, still under power and connected, does not yet show an iOS 12 update. Located in central Germany.

Jörg Hermann, 2018-09-29

@Ananya - I know plenty of iPhone 6s and 5se users who use all of those apps just fine. But more to the point - will those apps feel snappy with a $50 Android?

Erik Brooks, 2018-09-29

Joerg, the point is you can have your update on day 1. Most certainly not the case with Android. Even if active user request was necessary for some phones, it's still better than not being able to get the update at all.

Yes Eric, a $50 Android on contract definitely runs those Apps snappily. I have a $100/ no contract Huawei Honor at the office for testing purposes. It's a good enough phone.

I think in the end, competition from refurbed iPhones won't be huge. Plenty people like to buy new things. I do. They'd prefer a virgin Android for $200 than a second-hand iPhone. Not to mention screen sizes...

Anyhow, iPhone is King.

Maximilian von Hulewicz, 2018-09-29

@Eric Brooks

I use PCs with Windows and Linux since I'm 12 years old and never considered buying Apple products. Earlier, because of the price, and today because never change a running System/Envirement. I know my junk. :)
So when in comes to mobile phones I never thought about buying Apple either.

And I'm expecting HMD to open the Bootloader in some time, because I like to tinker with my Hardware and break the wall of the garden. I'm used to maintain security on my Desktop for 25 years now. So also doing it for my phone doesn't bother me.

I think Apple builds the best/safest mobile Hardware and mostly good Software. They just don't build products for me. :)

Hannes Niebuhr, 2018-09-29

Erik, it's a difficult question to answer. Markets behave very differently. Look at the Kantar Worldpanel:

https://www.kantarworldpanel.com/smartphone-os-market-share/

The iPhone enjoys a much larger market share in the US and the UK than in Germany.

Volker Weber, 2018-09-29

Isn't it odd to contrast a $200 iPhone with a $50 Android?

You get a high end android one smartphone for $220. Android Pie inclusive. And if you think, the better Hardware, better camera, bigger storage isn't worth any money, then why buying the new iPhone?

Than the point isn't android vs ios, but the lack of innovation in the industry... Sometimes I miss Steve Jobs and his innovative mindset.

Nina Wittich, 2018-09-29

@Nina - You're generally on to my point. The rate of "critical" advancement of phone hardware seems to be diminishing, to the point where soon (maybe now?) a sub-$200 used iPhone may be seen by most people as "pretty much the same" vs. a new sub-$200 Android.

At that point the differentiators become everything else you get with the product: the depth of integration, ecosystem, longevity and depth of software/security update cycle, brand "status", privacy stance, etc. These are things that cannot be fixed with quick tactical changes - they are strategies that take years to execute.

Major breakthroughs like 5G will of course immediately obsolete a number of phones, and screen size always matters, but I'm really curious to see how the used iPhone market sells.

Erik Brooks, 2018-10-03

Kann erfreut berichten, dass das Nokia 7 Plus meiner Frau heute das offizielle Update auf Android 9 bekommen hat. Security Patch Level 1 Sep 2018 (leider noch nicht Oktober). Wie sieht es in Deutschland aus?

Jochen Kattoll , 2018-10-10

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