Google's fate as a company was never going to be determined by the phones it sold. But the company has finally addressed the main reason consumers don't buy its phones.
At the latest device launch event in New York on Wednesday, Google hardware chief Rick Osterloh announced that the new Pixel 8 phones will offer seven years of operating system updates. That's a significant shift from the three years of aftermarket support the company's previous Pixel phones received - which seems short considering that more and more smartphone owners are keeping their phones for longer at significantly higher prices. Apple Inc. 's (AAPL) iPhone typically offers a five-year operating system upgrade.
This could help Google further expand the very low single-digit market share of its Pixel phones. The move could also help the company's hardware business maintain its recent momentum. According to Visible Alpha's average forecast, analysts expect Google's hardware revenue to grow 34 percent this year to an all-time high of $10 billion. That's still only 4% of parent Alphabet Inc. 's (GOOGL) massive advertising revenue.