14 DAY TRIAL // Yesterday, we told you T-Mobile announced that the much-anticipated Android 4.4.3 update would start rolling out for Nexus 7 tablets over the air. The new build is the third minor update of Android 4.4. KitKat, after Android 4.4.1 and 4.4.2.
Now this particular version has gone official and Google has made the binaries and factory images for the Nexus 10 and some versions of the Nexus 7 tablets available (via AndroidCommunity).
There has been a lot of speculation about what Android 4.4.3 might actually bring to the table when it arrives into the wild. And with Google I/O being just around the corner, some might have expected the new build to arrive with some major changes.
We hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the new update won’t arrive with any game-changing, mouth-watering feats. Most of the release is actually related to bug fixes and some performance tweaks. Even so, it’s still nice to receive a maintenance update from time to time.
The official changelog is not currently available, but according to T-Mobile, the Android 4.4.3 includes security enhancements and bug fixes.
The update will probably roll over the air soon too, and in the meantime custom ROMs based on Android 4.4.3 will surely become available, especially since the update has been pushed to the Android Open Source Project.
Nevertheless, reports are coming in, saying users updating to the new Android 4.4.3 build will notice some new additions.
For example, the update brings forth a feat that allows users to pause a download of additional files, when they are downloading large files of the Google Play Store.
The feat wasn't available before, so it’s a decent addition for those who want to be in better control of their downloads.
Anyway, it’s interesting to note that the new Android is launching on the very same day Apple has unveiled its new major iOS update. But Android 4.4.3 can’t compare to iOS 8 in terms of novelty, not by a long shot.
In anticipation of the OTA, Android 4.4.3 version is now available as firmware images and binaries, which will come in handy in case you might someday need to restore the Nexus 7 or Nexus 10 to their ancestral state.
Nexus tablets that have been included in the initial roll-out include the Nexus 10 “mantaray,” the Wi-Fi version of Nexus 7 2013 “razor,” the older Nexus 7 in both Wi-Fi “nakasi” and 3G “nakasiq” flavors.
We’re currently missing support for the Nexus 7 2013 mobile version “razorq,” though, hopefully, we won’t have to wait for it that long.