Samsung Reveals KitKat Roll-out As Google Aims For Reduced Android Fragmentation

Samsung has started the roll-out of Android 4.4 KitKat across a number of devices in its Galaxy range, while Google is reportedly preparing to force Android manufacturers to only release hardware running the latest version of the operating system.

The Korean manufacturer announced that the Samsung Galaxy S4, S4 Zoom, S4 Active and S4 Mini will all receive the update, as will the Samsung Galaxy S III, S III Mini, Galaxy Mega, Galaxy Light, Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy Note 8.0, Galaxy Note 10.1 and Galaxy Tab 3.

The roll-out will start in the US, but so far no details have been offered on when the update will reach Samsung devices in the UK.

Android fragmentation

KitKat brings a range of new features to Samsung devices and a leaked memo suggests that Google wants to get the latest version of Android on as many devices as possible.

According to Mobile Bloom, Google plans to force manufacturers who want to access the Google services framework and Google Play store offer the most recent version of the operating system.

Devices which ship with an older OS version nine months after a more recent version has been released will not receive Google Mobile Service (GMS) distribution. The apparent aim of this policy is to reduce fragmentation in the Android ecosystem and to prevent manufacturers from launching devices with older software – something which Google believes is unwise.

Android is the most popular operating system in the world, but some devices still run versions as old as 2.2 Froyo, released in May 2010. KitKat is currently installed on just 1.4 percent of all Android systems, with the most popular version being 4.1 Jelly Bean.

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