Spreadtrum/Unisoc SC9860-family pin controller
Pin multiplexing and configuration support for Spreadtrum (now Unisoc) SC9860-family mobile SoCs, which power low-end Android smartphones. The same pinctrl core also underpins related parts like the SC9863A still found in budget handsets sold today.
recommendation
It should stay because the hardware is still shipping in new budget phones in 2025, such as TCL devices built around the Unisoc SC9863A, and the code itself is not abandoned: a Linaro cleanup landed in September 2025 and Unisoc engineers themselves did functional work on it in late 2023. An annotation noting that this targets a narrow, low-end mobile niche would help future readers understand why deployments look small despite the SoC family remaining commercially active.
repository signals
sources
- lore.kernel.org
Exact-file lore history shows the generic sprd pinctrl core was still touched in September 2025, indicating the driver is not abandoned upstream.
- lore.kernel.org
Exact-file lore history shows Unisoc-authored functional work on the sprd pinctrl code in October 2023, not just removal churn.
- cateee.net
LKDDb identifies this as the Spreadtrum SC9860 pinctrl driver and shows it remains present through current kernel series with compatible "sprd,sc9860-pinctrl".
- unisoc.com
UNISOC still markets the closely related SC9863A smartphone SoC, indicating the SC9860-family platform remains commercially relevant beyond legacy-only status.
- us.shein.com
A retail listing shows a new TCL 503 phone using Unisoc SC9863A with 2025 buyer reviews, supporting that this SoC family still appears in new low-end devices.
codex reasoning notes (technical)
`exec_command` on local Kconfig/source identified this as a real Spreadtrum SC9860 pinctrl driver. `lore_file_timeline` on both .c files found activity in 2023-2025, including a 2025 cleanup on the core file and 2023 functional refactoring on the SC9860 file; I found no removal discussion in the exact-file history I checked. `web.search_query` found the LKDDb page for current kernel presence, the official Unisoc SC9863A product page, and a current retailer listing for a new SC9863A phone. Result: still deployed in a small, low-end mobile niche, with no natural replacement other than keeping this driver for that hardware.