Kitkat, Jelly Bean, and the Ones Before

In case you are an owner of an affordable android tablet computer or any other Android-powered device, you may have already heard that Google has yet again released a new update to its mobile device operating system. Following the tradition of naming Android OS after sweet things and desserts, the latest release is called KitKat, as in the chocolate wafer bar. This may be a slight departure from the generic sweet stuff as Google partnered with Nestle this time, making the OS more if advertising tool by name. 

 But does it, as its namesake, give its users a break from bugs and bad experiences they have had with previous Android versions?  For a lot of users, it’s still too early to tell since only a few gadgets are pre-installed with Androis KitKat. But let’s take a trip down memory lane and see the faces of Androids past.

The Android operating system started in 2007 after it was backed up and bought by Google. The first handset that was able to utilize it was the HTC Dream which was released in 2008.  Since then, several improvements were already made and you can recognize it by the sugary treats named after it.  What started as an operating system for digital cameras has now become one of the largest operating systems overtaking the Symbian and Windows Mobile.  New features and bug fixes have been introduced since it was first introduced. 

Ice Cream Sandwich

This update was known as Android 4.0 or 4.0.4 and was released on October 19, 2011. This was the last version to fully support to the Flash Player of Adobe Systems.  There were several new features included in this update namely: drag and drop style in creating folders, pinch-to-zoom capability of the calendar, Integrated screen shot capture, ability to access applications even if the screen is locked and HD video recording for stock Android devices.

Jelly Bean

This update was introduced in June of 2012. A lot of affordable Android tablet models that were released during this year had this as its operating system.  This was actually considered to be an incremental update from the previous version on its functionality and improvement on the user interface.  Compared to previous versions, it had a smoother user interface making its user experience better. 

Kitkat

This is the latest update which was first announced in September of 2013. It was optimized to run on a larger number of devices but required a minimum of 512 MB of RAM to be able to run smoothly.  Surface elements have been changed from blue to white making it brighter.  So far, there have been no major bug reports released as not a lot of gadgets have used this as its operating system.