Update Your LG Smartphone Now. Soon, You Won’t Be Able To

When LG left the smartphone industry in 2021, the company laid out a three-year plan to continue supporting customers with new updates for eligible phone models. While that support has continued for a little longer than the pledged time, LG is finally shutting down its smartphone update servers on June 30.

At the end of June, LG smartphones will no longer be able to install any new Android OS updates. This means you’ll be limited to the last version you downloaded before the servers were shut down. 

Even if you’re downloading before the servers are discontinued, you can only upgrade to Android 12 or Android 13 and download any missing security patches, depending on your device.

LG is also shutting down the LG Bridge PC app. This software allows you to manage your phone’s contacts, images and videos on a desktop. More importantly, the app interfaces with LG smartphones to create data backups and install software updates. The LG Bridge software will also be sunsetted on June 30.

LG kept its phone update servers ‘past the typical use date’

Avi Greengart, a mobile analyst and president of Techsponential, says LG kept the lights on for a fairly long time in an environment in which consumers typically upgrade their devices every two or three years. Even so, he told CNET that today’s phones are being used longer than before — and they’re getting more support as well.

“Companies like Samsung are promising to update both the OS and security for up to eight years, which means that (those phones) will get new features long into the future,” Greengart said.

LG’s decision to end support for its smartphones will affect a “vanishingly small number of users,” according to Greengart. He advises that users upgrade their phones when they stop receiving security updates.

While many modern phones have outpaced the technology in older LG models, Greengart said that some customers hold onto their devices because of unique LG design traits like the rear fingerprint reader placement and dual-screen cover displays.

Greengart suggests that these customers look for alternatives that offer “secure face ID or fingerprint readers on the side power button” and “large fold phones from Samsung and Google in the US, along with Oppo and Honor in markets where those are sold.”

A representative for LG didn’t respond to a request for comment.