Google's Android 4.1 has made a Jelly Bean-sized dent in Google's operating system horserace, eeking out a 1.2 percent share among the dessert-themed versions, according to recent data.
This newest version of Android has a long way to go before it catches up to the dominant Android 2.3 OS.
Also known as Gingerbread, Android 2.3 maintains a commanding 57.5 percent share despite the fact that it was released in December 2010.
Ice Cream Sandwich, aka Android 4.0, hasn't been as widely adopted, as proved by its its 20.9 percent slice of the pie over the last 11 months.
OS what now?
The stats, compiled by Google's Android Developers site, are based on the number of Android devices that accessed Google Play from Aug. 23 to Sept. 4, 2012.
Even more surprising than Gingerbread's continued dominance is that there are still even older versions of the Android OS accessing Google Play.
During the 14-day testing window, the older operating systems that connected to Google Play included Froyo at 14 percent, Eclair at 3.7 percent, Donut at 0.4 percent and Cupcake - which is not even listed on Google's own Android site anymore - at 0.2 percent.
Carriers make the call
Android OS's user values are so fragmented because it's up to the carriers and the device manufacturers to push these new versions to their phones and tablets.
Device owners can't simply go to iTunes and download the latest and greatest iOS.
So while Android 4.1 is far superior with features like a smoother interface ("Project Butter"), offline voice dictation and Google Now, not everyone can simply download and enjoy these changes.
Hence, why only 1.2 percent of Android devices run Jelly Bean, which launched in July alongside the Google Nexus 7 tablet.
Further compounding the OS fragmentation is that some Android devices still on their way won't run Jelly Bean when they ship to stores.
This includes the newly announced Droid Razr HD, Droid Razr Maxx HD and Droid Razr M, all running run Ice Cream Sandwich and all coming from Motorola, which is owned by Google.
Via TechCrunch
