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LG's Google TVs to get Jelly Bean update in Q3

Today LG announced that the Google TV operating system on LG TVs would be updated to Jelly Bean in the third quarter of this year.

David Katzmaier Editorial Director -- Personal Tech
David reviews TVs and leads the Personal Tech team at CNET, covering mobile, software, computing, streaming and home entertainment. We provide helpful, expert reviews, advice and videos on what gadget or service to buy and how to get the most out of it.
Expertise A 20-year CNET veteran, David has been reviewing TVs since the days of CRT, rear-projection and plasma. Prior to CNET he worked at Sound & Vision magazine and eTown.com. He is known to two people on Twitter as the Cormac McCarthy of consumer electronics. Credentials
  • Although still awaiting his Oscar for Best Picture Reviewer, David does hold certifications from the Imaging Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Standards and Technology on display calibration and evaluation.
David Katzmaier
2 min read
LG's 2012 G2 Google TV showing the Play Store with the current Honeycomb operating system. Sarah Tew/CNET

Google TV, the ambitious living room operating system often maligned as slow to update, difficult to use, and less focused than alternatives like Roku or standard Smart TV suites, will finally get a major operating system upgrade later this year.

LG announced today at Google I/O that its Google TVs will get the update to Android version 4.2.2, aka Jelly Bean, in the third quarter. LG is the only manufacturer still selling actual televisions with Google TV built-in, although a few set-top boxes are available, too. LG's models, including the 2013 GA7900 and GA6400 and the 2012 G2, will all get the update.

The release didn't mention whether or when other Google TV devices, such as the Vizio Co-Star, the Sony NSZ-GS7, or the Logitech Revue, will also get the update.

"In addition to boosting overall performance," says LG's press release, "the update will enable customers to enjoy more applications, including games that provide a greater level of interactivity and advanced graphics." It will support the Android Native Development Kit (NDK), so "smartphone apps designed using the NDK will run on LG Google TV with little to no modifications. With NDK compatibility, users can now play more games on the bigger...screen."

LG also posted a video with the update in action, featuring a GA7900 and the popular game Royal Revolt, as well as the newly developed remote control app for mobile phones and a feature that simulates 3D with standard 2D games.

By the time the update rolls out, the current version of the Google TV software will be nearly two years old. Based on Android Honeycomb (version 3.2), it hit Google TV devices in November 2011. While an improvement on its predecessor, and despite a couple of key updates since, it still has issues.

For what it's worth, Android phones and tablets have had Jelly Bean since LG's Nexus 4 and Samsung's Nexus 10 were released in November 2012.