The three-year-old Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ may no longer receive Android OS updates but they continue to receive monthly security patches. The 2018 Galaxy S series flagships are now picking up the February 2021 Android security patch with a new update.
The update is currently rolling out over the air (OTA) with the firmware versions G960FXXSEFUA1 and G965FXXSEFUA1 for the two devices respectively. It is available across all major regions where the Galaxy S9 duo were sold. This update only brings the latest security patch, so don’t go deep looking for any new features.
Nonetheless, the February 2021 Android security patch fixes four critical and dozens of high-risk vulnerabilities found in Android OS as well as Samsung’s One UI. So you’d want to upgrade to the latest security level as early as possible.
If you’re using one of the Galaxy S9 or Galaxy S9+, be on the lookout for this update if you haven’t already received it. You should get a notification prompting you to download the latest update anytime now. You can also manually check for updates through the Settings app on your phone, under the Software update menu.
Samsung Galaxy S9, S9+ receive February 2021 security update
As mentioned earlier, the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ have already received their second and final major Android OS updates. The two devices arrived on the scene with Android 8 Oreo back in 2018. They have since received their Android 9.0 Pie and Android 10 updates over the past two years.
Samsung last year did promise to offer up to three years of Android OS updates to its flagship models as well as select mid-range smartphones. However, this generosity only extends to phones launched in 2019 and beyond. So the Galaxy s9 duo are out of favor. The One UI 2.5 update, which arrived in October last year, was perhaps the last major feature update for the two phones.
As for the security updates, they continue to receive the Android security maintenance releases monthly. They will likely receive monthly security updates for a few more months, or maybe, for another year. Samsung will eventually drop them to the quarterly cycle before software support completely dries up.
If you’re using a Galaxy S9 or S9+ and are looking to upgrade to a newer phone before they reach their end of life, the recently launched Galaxy S21 series might be an ideal choice. Samsung is offering a decent $350 in trade-in value for the two 2018 phones. The prices of the Galaxy S21 series, meanwhile, start at $799.99 and go all the way up to $1379.99.