Google has updated the Android adoption numbers it features on its Android developers site, revealing that Android 4.4 KitKat has further gained market share at the expense of other Android OS versions, although Jelly Bean is still the dominant OS version in the Android ecosystem.
According to data collected during a 7-day period ending on May 1, KitKat is now at 8.5%, up from the 5.3% it registered a month earlier. Combined, the three Jelly Bean version are at 60.8%, a slight drop from 61.4% during the previous period.
Just like before, Ice Cream Sandwich and Gingerbread devices still have a massive presence in the Android environment, with 13.4% and 16.2%, respectively – these numbers have also dropped from the previous month, when the two OS versions had 14.3% and 17.8% market share, respectively. Froyo is still available on 1% of the currently active Android devices.
KitKat’s share of the Android devices that can connect to the Google Play Store – which is how Google collects the data – should further climb in the following months, as more devices shipping with KitKat pre-installed are sold, and as more devices finally get upgraded to Google’s latest OS version. An earlier report revealed that KitKat adoption has been slower than Jelly Bean’s, even though the OS has been optimized to also run on older devices.
Meanwhile, Google is rumored to unveil a new Android OS version in the coming months, possibly alongside a new device.
Google’s Android distribution graphic for early May 2014 follows below.
