A MUCH-LOVED budget Samsung smartphone will no longer receive updates which could mean trouble for existing owners.
Updates not only provide users with fancy new features but also security fixes that stop criminals from exploiting any loopholes they uncover.
Companies usually commit to providing free updates for so many years until the handset has become quite dated.
Samsung’s most recent handsets get a whooping seven years of free feature and security updates.
But sadly it’s the end of the line for one handset.
And affected users should consider upgrading to a brand new smartphone to avoid any possible problems that could come up in future.
The model in question is the Galaxy A21s.
It launched back in May 2020 with Android 10 (One UI 2.0), when Samsung pledged to offer two new versions of Android and security updates for four years to the smartphone.
Since then it has indeed received Android 11 (One UI 3.0) in 2021 and Android 12 (One UI 4.1) in 2022.
The Galaxy A21s has been removed from Samsung’s list of devices still receiving security updates in the future, according to SamMobile.
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Samsung may well put out critical security updates if something major comes up.
But ultimately the Galaxy A21s is more susceptible to attack than before.
Galaxy A21s alternatives
The Galaxy A21s was one of Samsung’s cheaper smartphones.
If you’re looking to upgrade to something in a similar price range, you might want to consider the Galaxy A25.
It features a 6.5-inch Super AMOLED display with a bezel-less design and impressive screen-to-body ratio.
One standout is its massive two-day 5000mAh battery which is bigger than an iPhone.
For something with a bit more in the mid-range, you might want to consider the Galaxy A35 or the Galaxy A55.
See a video of the Galaxy A55 above.
Samsung – a brief history
Here’s what you need to know…
- Samsung is a major South Korean company made up of many businesses that operate globally
- It’s known locally as a “chaebol”, which means “business conglomerate”
- It was founded by Lee Byung-chul in 1938 as a trading company
- But over several decades, it branched out into food processing, insurance, textiles and retail
- It wasn’t until the late 1960s when Samsung entered the electronics industry – for which it’s best known in the west today
- It also launched businesses in construction and shipbuilding in the 1970s
- Today, Samsung’s most important sources of income are its smartphones and computer chips
- The firm accounts for around 20 per cent of the South Korea’s GDP
- More than 270,000 staff are employed by Samsung globally
