With its excellent battery life (5,000 mAh capacity!) and nice performing cameras (in daylight) the Galaxy A21s is (okay, was!) a popular budget-friendly handset. Although it comes with its share of drawbacks: the display resolution and color accuracy were a bit disappointing, the loudspeaker (no stereo) was weak, and gaming wasn’t a thing on it.
Now, the Samsung experts from the Netherlands – the always informative site Galaxy Club – reports that Samsung has decided to stop providing updates for the Galaxy A21s.
In 2021 and 2022, Samsung began offering five years of updates for its phones. However, in 2020, most Galaxy models were limited to four years of support. While high-end models like the Galaxy S20 currently enjoy the five-year support promise, models such as the Galaxy A41, A51, and A71 end in 2024. Now, the Galaxy A21s is also being removed from the list of supported phones.
Since its release, the Galaxy A21s has received regular updates, including upgrades to Android versions 11 and 12, as well as periodic security updates. As of now, the device is running firmware version A217FXXSCDXE2 with the May 2024 security patch.
According to Samsung’s original commitment to four years of support, no further updates are expected for the Galaxy A21s. While it is possible that updates could be released in the future, Samsung has made no promises in this regard.
For current Galaxy A21s users, there is no immediate need to take action. The phone remains secure and functional, with common apps, including banking apps, still working on Android 12. Additionally, Google Play system updates will continue to provide security for some key components for the next few years. As of now, the Google Play system update from May 1, 2024, is available for the Galaxy A21s.