The latest distribution figures are an all-too-familiar reminder of this. According to a 9to5Google report<\/a>, Android 16 is currently installed on a measly 7.5 percent of all Android devices. You could forgive a new operating system for this, but Android 16 launched back in June of last year!<\/p>\n Incredibly, this is a big improvement from April 2025, when Android 15<\/a> could only be found on a dismal 4.5 percent of all handsets. A major part of this was the incredibly slow rollout of Samsung\u2019s Android 15 skin (One UI 7) to previous-gen Galaxy phones, which hadn\u2019t even begun at the time. <\/p>\n \t\t\tThe Galaxy Z Flip 7 ran One UI 7 at launch<\/p>\n Dominik Tomaszewski \/ Foundry<\/p>\n Despite the improvement, it\u2019s a world away from the iPhone, where iOS 26 is installed on close to 30 percent of supported devices (per StatCounter<\/a>). If previous years are anything to go by, you can expect that figure to climb rapidly in the coming months. <\/p>\n Of course, it\u2019s unfair to expect an operating system that\u2019s fragmented across dozens of different manufacturers to compete with one that has a single source for all hardware and software.<\/p>\n But it\u2019s not about Android 16 trying to \u2018beat\u2019 iOS 26. The limited uptake has a huge impact on current Android phone owners, both now and into the future. <\/p>\n Android 17 is coming \u2013 but who cares?<\/p>\n Personally, I\u2019m excited for the next major version of Android, which is almost certain to be known as Android 17. But there\u2019s one big reason for that: I\u2019m likely to benefit directly from the new features.<\/p>\n Who can blame you for not getting excited about what Google reveals in its next glossy keynote?<\/p>\n I use Google\u2019s latest Pixel 10 Pro XL<\/a> as my main smartphone, putting me among the first in line for Android 17 when it drops. I\u2019ll probably even be eligible to try it early via a beta if I want. <\/p>\n \t\t\tPixel 10 series owners should get Android 17 as soon as it\u2019s released<\/p>\n Anyron Copeman \/ Foundry<\/p>\n This is simply not the reality for the vast majority of Android users. Whether you\u2019re using a Samsung, Oppo<\/a>, Xiaomi<\/a>, OnePlus<\/a>, Honor or any other third-party Android phone, you could be waiting months or even years to get Android 17. Who can blame you for not getting excited about what Google reveals in its next glossy keynote? <\/p>\n This is the crux of the issue. Outside of tech circles, very few people care about the new features coming in a major version of Android until it arrives on their phone. Even then, they probably won\u2019t notice unless changes are obvious.<\/p>\n Almost everyone has a phone. But almost no-one cares about interesting phone features that they won\u2019t be able to experience for many months \u2013 or perhaps ever.<\/p>\n Many of the recent Android features that would make the most difference to users\u2019 lives have been limited to Pixel phones, which account for an estimated 2.24 percent of global market share (according to StatCounter<\/a>). I\u2019d love my friends and family to be able to use Call Screening, Now Playing, Scam Detection and the Personal Safety app, but very few of them ever will.<\/p>\n \t\t\tNow Playing remains exclusive to Google Pixel phones<\/p>\n Dominik Tomaszewski \/ Foundry<\/p>\n Increasingly, software updates are all about bug fixes and security instead of new features. But that\u2019s where another major issue arises. <\/p>\n The big unsupported phone issue<\/p>\n The data reported by 9to5Google reveals another problem: the huge fragmentation of Android\u2019s user base. It\u2019s not just that most people are using Android 15 instead of 16 \u2013 over 10 percent of devices are running each of the last six major versions, dating back to Android 11 in 2020.<\/p>\n Of course, some of these phones may no longer be in regular use, but there\u2019s still a strong chance that millions of people are using unsupported phones.<\/p>\n You probably don\u2019t need to be told what the risks of this are. An unsupported phone is an insecure phone, without the security patches necessary to mitigate any threats. If your device gets a bug or is infected with malware, there\u2019s no Android update coming to save you.<\/p>\n There\u2019s still a strong chance that millions of people are using unsupported phones<\/p>\n As I explained in my iPhone 4 camera trend article<\/a>, the only way to use an unsupported phone safely is by not inserting a SIM card and never connecting to the internet. Otherwise, you\u2019re putting your personal and private data at risk of being accessible to hackers. No-one wants that.<\/p>\n \t\t\tThe Galaxy S9 and S9+ are no longer supported by Samsung<\/p>\n Foundry<\/p>\n Software support varies hugely depending on the Android phone you have, but a simple online search should tell you whether it\u2019s still supported. If not, I\u2019d urge you to buy a budget<\/a>, mid-range<\/a> or flagship handset<\/a> that is.<\/p>\n![\"Galaxy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Galaxy-Z-Flip-7_review-25.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"google](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/google-pixel-10-pro-xl.jpg\"){kind=tracking}
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