State of Android: Jelly Bean finally surpasses 50 per cent distribution

Android Jelly Bean has finally surpassed the 50 per cent distribution mark among Android devices, more than a year since the release of Android 4.1. The numbers incorporate Android 4.2 and Android 4.3 as well, and should bring some satisfaction to those who want to defend the "Android is fragmented argument" that has plagued the ecosystem.

Specifically, Jelly Bean now sits at 52.1 per cent of total Android devices, following Gingerbread's 26.3 per cent, Ice Cream Sandwich's 19.8 per cent, and Froyo's 1.7 per cent. Google only incorporates devices in the stats that have access to Google Play - devices below Android 2.2 aren't counted.

Jelly Bean first overtook Ice Cream Sandwich in May when it crossed the 28.4 per cent of global devices. In only a few months, Jelly Bean has come close to doubling its distribution, thanks to an uptick in manufacturers releasing Jelly Bean to their line of devices.

The 50 per cent accomplishment of Jelly Bean comes just after Google announced the next version of Android, Android 4.4 KitKat. The company says KitKat will help fix its distribution problems even further, as the software will have a focus on budget and lower-specification packing devices to run more stable. This will assumedly push manufacturers to release KitKat on their devices.

Speaking in October at the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, Google chairman Eric Schmidt talked claims of Android fragmentation, “With Android we have an agreement for vendors that you keep the Android stores compatible and that is a great breakthrough for Android," he said, adding, most importantly, “When you buy an Android phone the apps are compatible.”

With Jelly Bean now at 50 per cent, we'll be watching closely to see how Android 4.4 KitKat does reaching the same mark. To compare, Apple's iOS 7 accounted for 52 per cent of iOS Web share one week after launch, according to figures from Chitika's online advertising network.