KitKat on 34 Percent of Android Devices; Lollipop Yet to Debut: Google

Google has updated its Google Play distribution data for the seven-day period ending December 1, revealing that Android 4.4 KitKat running devices are steadily rising and closing the gap on Jelly Bean-powered devices.

Sharing the distribution data of different versions of Android, Google
reported that KitKat OS has a total share of around 34 percent (precisely
 33.9 percent) of active Android devices that check into Google Play
compared to the 30.2 percent reported at the beginning of November -
an increase of 3.7 percent in roughly a month.

Interestingly, Google's latest Android build - Android 5.0 Lollipop - that
was released in mid-October, and is now around for more than a month,
is yet to make a cut into the chart. The Android Developers' webpage
notes, "Any versions with less than 0.1 percent distribution are not
 shown," tipping that the Android 5.0 Lollipop despite of beingrolled
out to a bunch of devices has not yet reached the minimum mark.

The Mountain View giant shows that Android Jelly Bean still powers
the majority of Android devices, with the combined percentage of 48.7
 percent - dropping 2.2 percent from November's 50.9 percent. The 
Android 4.1.x is seen on 21.3 percent devices, Android 4.2.x on 20.4 
percent and Android 4.3 on 7 percent devices.

Android 4.0.x or Ice Cream Sandwich, in Google's December report,
registered a share of 7.8 percent, down 0.7 percent from November.
Android Gingerbread (v 2.3.3-2.3.7) and Android 2.2 Froyo's device
distribution shares are 9.1 percent (down 0.7 percent) and 0.5 percent
(down 0.1 percent) respectively in the latest report.

The OpenGL version, on the other hand, saw OpenGL 2.0 at dominating
 72.2 percent, and OpenGL version 3.0 steadily rising to 27.8 percent.

Google further adds, "This data is gathered from the new Google Play
Store app, which supports Android 2.2 and above, devices running older
versions are not included. However, in August, 2013, versions older than
Android 2.2 accounted for about 1 percent of devices that checked in to
Google servers (not those that actually visited Google Play Store)."

Interestingly, Apple's iOS 8 within three months of its public release is
powering the majority (60 percent) of active iOS devices. It took Google's
 Android 4.4 KitKat version 13 months to reach 34 percent of the worldwide
 users, according to Google's figures shared in December.

Android Kit Kat Adoption Reaches 13.6% According To June Distribution Numbers

The numbers are in. You know the ones I’m talking about, the percentage numbers of how many users are on each version of Android to date. Prior to these numbers being out Kit Kat was reported as being on around 9% of all devices worldwide, but the Android monthly distribution number have just been released by Google and it looks like Kit Kat has gotten a little bump in the adoption rate department. Kit Kat is now accounted for on 13.6% of all Android devices globally, with Jelly Bean as a whole seeing a drop to 58.4% of all Android device globally.  The biggest portion of Android users is still on Jelly Bean 4.1, with the number of users still on that version sitting at 29%.

What’s surprising is that Honey Comb is no longer on the list at all so does this mean that every single device that has ever ran Honey Comb has now been upgraded including the Google TV devices? No not really. What we’re actually seeing is all the data that Google collected for Android distribution that sits above 0.1%. Taking that into consideration, Honey Comb seems to account for less than 0.1% percent of Android users globally which is why we don’t and won’t see it on the charts anymore. The most recent version prior to Android 4.4 Kit Kat is Jelly Bean 4.3 and users on this version still account for 10.3% of all Android users globally. The data collected is comprised over a week long stint, with the data collection ending today, which makes it fall right in line with the recent updates to Kit Kat that devices have been getting, however there are still a number of devices on the waiting list to get bumped up from 4.3.

All versions besides Kit Kat are decreasing which means Google is working hard to upgrade everyone that they can, even if the adoption rate is a little slow still. With some devices still waiting to get their Kit Kat updates this number should end up rising even more the next time this report comes out, and for those of us that are already on Kit Kat, be on the lookout for the update to 4.4.3 which has just started hitting devices in the last day.

Moto E, Moto G and Moto X Start Receiving Android 4.4.3 KitKat Update

Motorola, soon after Google released the Android 4.4.3 KitKat factory images for Nexus devices, on Tuesday announced the same update for its Moto E, Moto G and Moto X.

In a blog post, Steve Horowitz, SVP, Software Engineering, Motorola said, "We are excited to announce some icing on top of the, well, KitKat. Starting today [Tuesday], we are rolling out Android 4.4.3, KitKat, which was just released by Google."

The company notes that the latest Android 4.4.3 KitKat update for Motorola handsets will start rolling out this week, with the first recipients listed by Motorola. Moto X T-Mobile users will receive the update first, while Moto G users in the US, who bought the smartphone online (also includes Moto G 4G LTE), and the Moto G users in Brazil, will receive the first updates for the handset.

For the Moto E, US users who bought the handset online will receive the update first. The company also notes that the Moto E will be receiving the next major Android update (as yet unspecified) as well, and added, "Consider this the cherry on top."

The company has announced that the Android 4.4.3 KitKat update for Moto E, Moto G and Moto X can be expected to be rolled-out globally in the coming weeks.

According to Motorola, the new Android 4.4.3 KitKat update for Moto E, Moto G and Moto X brings an improved dialler with updated interface; stability, framework and security fixes, as well as enhancements to the power profile capabilities.

Motorola has also listed the changelog for the Android 4.4.3 KitKat update for all three Moto smartphones. The Moto E will be receiving an updated phone dialler with a new graphical layout and colours to get better consistency and usability.

The Moto G, on the other hand, will be receiving a new pause video recording feature on the viewfinder; an updated phone dialler, much like the Moto E, and access to Motorola Alert, which is an app that sends periodic alerts with the user's location to selected contacts.

Lastly, the Moto X receives camera enhancements such as improved image quality with consistent exposure and flash colouring, as well as better photos in low light conditions using front camera.

The update for Moto X also brings ability to pause video recording with a pause/resume button on the viewfinder, much like the Moto G update. The Moto X also receives the updated phone dialler and can now download the Motorola Alert app.

In addition, the Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Play Edition also started receiving Android 4.4.3 KitKat update. The new update for Galaxy S4 GPE brings usual fixes for bugs and improvements to security, and stability.