Posted by Software updates are always looked forward to by smartphone enthusiasts with excitement for the simple reason that they often add new features, functionality and/or improvements to devices. However, in reality, many times, a much-awaited software update comes along with an array of bugs that makes the devices a bitter-sweet experience.
Take for example how:
- Android 5.0 has reduced the battery life to almost half of what was obtained on KitKat for many updated devices.
- BlackBerry 10.3.1 update has resulted in different issues from flickering display to heating up and to poor battery life
- iOS 8 brought with it Blue Screen of Deaths (BSOD) for some iPads, significant reduction in battery life, among several other issues
Those are just three examples of how the software updates that we so love end up as things that we regret embracing. We get improvements and get annoying bugs along with them. It is a case of updates being a necessary evil for everyone who longs for improved functionality from their mobile devices.
If you live on the cutting edge, there is no doubt that you have had your fair share of software update woes. Do share your most memorable experiences using the comment form below.
Founder of MobilityArena. Yomi’s journey in mobile started in 2001. Besides obsessing over mobile phones, he also started creating WAP sites (early mobile-friendly websites created with WML). He began writing about phones in 2004 and has been at it since then. He has owned over 200 devices, from Symbian, Palm, PocketPC/Windows Mobile, BlackBerry/BB10, webOS, Windows Phone, Firefox, Ubuntu Touch, to Android, iOS, and KaiOS operating systems.
My experiences with software updates has been good so far, the Lollipop update on Samsung has been that bad. The battery life has been more or less the same for me. The visual and performance increase with Lollipop has been great minus some small changes (like the missing silent mode, some deprecated APIs which require appd to be updated).
The biggest issues i have had with software update has to be the deprecated SD card in KitKat which Lollipop has half fixed.
true… battery life on gionee m2 KitKat is significantly less formidable
My problem has been with app updates on windows phone. Sometimes I might be required to update a particular app two times in a month suffice to say that every single month I have at least 5/6 waiting for me with hardly any obvious change in performance.
I thought Lollipop came with Project Volta.
My magnifying screen on my lumia 535 was rectified with the update,
lollipop experience wasn’t bad, jes that twas with a custom ROM, n of recent they always leave a bad taste in the mouth
Most Ppl don’t have complains on updates with custom rom
The urge to be the very BEST and have the very LATEST is what keeps pushing us on to these updates. Personally, I would still go for them.
@okechukwu maybe tis jes me oh cos there always seem to be bugs…
hmm…seems these bugs only affect SOME people.
I agree. I’ve had numerous updates and none of them have led to my device functioning worse.
Sadly I look forward to them – until now I can’t tell you what Denim is supposed to bring that’s better than the previous WP software version.
Well, everything that has an advantage has as a disadvantage. Updates are meant to make the phone better. Imagine if they were no updates, we would be stuck using Android 2.3 gingerbread.
My Sony Xperia SP launched with Android 4.1 JB. Never used for more than two weeks and I updated to 4.3 JB which gave several issues. Sony gave a fix but then performance was still bad. I had to go for a custom cyanogenmod 4.4.4 kikat. Everytime I install the ROM it works well and after a month it becomes almost unusable. Just flashed down to default 4.1 JB that came with the phone yesterday. Updates are waiting. I just dey look them. No more updates for me for now abeg!
I thought updates are supposed to improve performance? The last Blackberry update instead decreased performance of my Z30! First, to silence my phone used to be just 2 steps, now it is 3! There is now a delay for apps to open (but no change in performance after opening). Now i don’t know how to search my phone! The default is to search the internet! What is the use of the stupid update?
e go better
We pray so.