KitKat bites off a third of Android devices
But Jelly Bean is still in the lead, flavoring 48 percent of all devices visiting the Google Play store.
Android 4.4 KitKat is eating its way onto more Android devices, though it's still in second place behind older counterpart Jelly Bean.
The latest update to Google's Android Developers Dashboard, out Tuesday, shows KitKat with a market share of 33.9 percent for the seven-day period ending Monday. That stat revealed ongoing growth from 30.2 percent a month ago, 25 percent in September and 21 percent the prior month.
As always, the Developers Dashboard doesn't give a complete picture of how the various flavors of Google's mobile OS are faring. Rather, the information presents a snapshot of all devices that visited the Google Play store over a seven-day time frame.
Android 4.4 KitKat debuted more than a year ago in October 2013, yet many mobile carriers are still behind in pushing it out. That's because the Android update process is a challenging one. Unlike an iOS update, which is controlled by Apple, an Android update involves a variety of players. Google must first create the update. Then the device makers enter the mix by testing and customizing the update for different smartphones and tablets. And finally the wireless carriers must perform their own testing and planning for the eventual rollout. Welcome to the world of Android fragmentation.
Now, device makers are turning their attention to the latest version of Android: 5.0 Lollipop . Launched on November 3, the Lollipop update is now on the to-do list of many mobile device makers. But as usual, each manufacturer has a different time frame.
So far, LG and Motorola have already starting pushing Android 5.0 Lollipop to certain devices. But most other manufacturers are still in planning mode. As such, Lollipop has yet to appear as a blip on the Developers Dashboard, which does not show any versions with a market share of less than 0.1 percent.
Still No. 1 was Android Jelly Bean with a total share of 48.7, down from 50.9 percent last month. Android Gingerbread, which debuted in 2010, was in third place with a 9.1 percent share, down from 9.8 percent last month. But many of those Android devices still stuck on Gingerbread may simply not be compatible with the more recent versions of Google's mobile OS.
Ice Cream Sandwich was next on the list with an 7.8 percent share, down from 8.5 percent a month ago.