Android KitKat 4.4, one of the sweetest Google OS updates, no longer supports Google Play services. The message comes from the Android Developers Blog, which revealed that starting August 2023, API levels 19 and 20 will not receive APK versions beyond 23.30.99. This means that devices with KitKat will not get the latest version of the Play Store, which will not allow users to update apps and will render their devices slower.
Android KitKat has introduced updates that are valid even today more than ten years after the OS was launched. The system has brought improvements in the performance of the device with limited resources and has now paved the way for Android GO – the right OS iteration for low-powered smartphones.
KitKat was the first Android to let users choose their own launcher, introduced full-screen video playback, UI elements became transparent for the first time, and finally got native support for IR Blaster. We’ve also seen NFC functionality gain traction, the technology of today that allows us to make payments, start our cars, and unlock our homes with our smartphones.
Currently, active devices with Android KitKat 4.4 are less than 1% of the total mobile devices, making this a completely understandable move from Google, although we are very emotional and nostalgic to see the end of one of our favorite Android versions.