Microsoft’s Surface Duo Android phone will get three years of updates

Microsoft is committing to support its new Surface Duo Android phone with updates for three years. "Surface Duo will be supported with OS and security updates for 3 years," says a Microsoft spokesperson in a statement to The Verge.

This means if you buy Microsoft's $1,399 Android phone, you're guaranteed to get the latest Android versions for three years. Naturally, this will also include updates to Microsoft's custom Android launcher on the device and any other software improvements that are likely to be made in the coming months and years ahead.

It matches a similar recent commitment from Samsung to deliver support for "three generations of Android updates" for its Galaxy S10 and newer devices (except the A-series). Three years also matches Google's own support for its Pixel phones. Google provides "at least 3 years from when the device first became available on the Google Store" of Android version updates.

It's encouraging to see Google, Microsoft, and Samsung all commit to a solid period of Android updates, especially after Android has suffered from challenges with updates and security support over the years. It's a situation that's rapidly improving, and Android 10 had the fastest adoption rate of any version of Android yet earlier this year.

Android still lags behind Apple's impressive adoption rate of iOS versions, for obvious reasons. Providing Microsoft, Google, Samsung, and others stick to their update promises, we could be about to witness Android getting a lot closer to iOS update adoption in the years ahead.