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Motorola is getting away with zero OS updates thanks to regulatory loophole
(www.androidauthority.com)
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this post was submitted on 31 Jan 2026
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One potential problem is apps could stop working if they target a more recent version of Android.
To my knowledge, has any Android API version been deprecated in under 5 years?
It doesn't require deprecation. It could just be an app updating to use new APIs.
I read something about google's play store requiring an API update every 2 years since late 2022, but i don't know specifics.
I'm not sure, but even if that's true, there are other stores available on slightly older versions (fdroid, obtainium, aurora). Note, however, that some newer versions of android will prevent app installation outside of their official play store (they tag it as "side loading, but it's actually just installation).
Edit. Spelling.
even Android 8 (2017) runs all the latest apps in 2026, it's totally fine.
New versions of chrome require Android 10 from what I understand. Presumably apps that are less essential will be more likely to remove support for older versions sooner.
EDIT: I'll also note here that even if an app "works," it may be with degraded functionality (where the missing functionality is increasingly important). For instance, passkey support in external password managers requires Android 14.
oops you're right, seems like they killed A8/9 with Chromium v139. damn :/