Nokia is betting on Software Updates to Entice Customers

While announcing the availability of the Nokia 3.2 in the Kenyan market, one thing HMD Global really wanted everyone to take away was that all their phones will be receiving:

• Monthly Security Updates for 3 years
• Up to 2 years of System Updates to next Android Version

And this is their major bet in the push to have customers buy Nokia rather than other brands which HMD says never assure you of any updates whatsoever.

When you think of it, and with the recent announcement that even the Nokia 3 from close to two years ago is getting Android Pie, it is a good bargain both from the company and for the customer. Because here you are getting a phone that two years down the line will still run the latest version of Android. While other brands are offering you a phone that will probably stick to one OS version all through.

In Kenya, Nokia is competing with Huawei, TECNO, Samsung and Infinix. And this year especially, Huawei and Samsung have up’d their game with the devices they are offering in terms of specs versus price. So at say the price point of between 11k and 13k, you have the following devices competing:

• Huawei Y6 Prime 2019
• Huawei Y5 2019
• TECNO Spark 3 Pro
• Infinix Hot 7
• Infinix S4 and now the recently announced
• Nokia 3.2

The Nokia 3.2 will get Android Q when that becomes available. It will also get Android R whenever that launches. On the other side, Huawei phones aren’t good with software updates, and given the recent troubles with the U.S., one can’t be sure. Infinix haven’t been bad with software updates but they still don’t promise you updates for two years – it is sort of a gamble, you don’t know when an update will arrive.  TECNO this year shocked us with the Spark 3 Pro being the very first in the world to get Android Q Beta, and perhaps that’s a good indicator that they will be sending out updates more frequently.

So is Nokia’s bet really meaningful? Will customers pick the Nokia 3.2 over the others on that list because of software updates?

Something I noticed with the Nokia 3.2 is the storage limitations. It comes with 16GB internal storage. And given that the competition all offers 32GB storage, HMD decided to add in a 16GB Micro-SD card for the Kenyan market. Which wouldn’t be as fast as internal storage, but is a good addition nonetheless.

What I would like to see is if people will be choosing Nokia phones over other brands because of guaranteed software updates. Personally, it is exciting for me to have a phone run the latest version of Android through two years. It makes you obtain the most value from your phone. I had the OnePlus 5 which currently has Android 9 from Android 7. It is still a very fast and good device to re-sell. Would you pick up a Nokia over other devices because of guaranteed updates?