Android Oreo running on 0.7% devices as per latest distribution numbers

Google has revealed the distribution of its operating systems for the first month of the new year. Unfortunately, for Google, there is not much change.

Starting with the latest Android8.0 Oreo, only 0.7% devices run on this operating system. Last month it was 0.5% hence there is a slight increase but it is still capped below 1%. The slow increase can be attributed to new handsets getting the Oreo update in a staggered way. Popular handsets to start receiving the Oreo-based updates are OnePlus 5 and Xiaomi Mi A1.

Next up is Android Nougat 7.0 and 7.1 with 21.1% and 5.2% share totalling up to 26.3%. This has also increased from last month's 23.3% share. With a 28.6% share, Android 6.0 Marshmallow still has the maximum devices running on it, despite a drop from 29.7% share of last month.

Moving on to Android Lollipop, consisting of v5.0 and v5.1 with 5.7% and 19.4% respectively, has also seen a drop from 6.1% and 20.2%. The fall, obviously corresponds to the gain of the newer Android versions but the numbers do suggest that this Android version is still the second-most dominating OS for devices, despite being 4 years old.

In the same fashion, the share of Android 4.4 KitKat has fallen from 13.4% to 12.8% this month, while Android Jelly Bean came from 5.9% to 5.6%. For the third consecutive month, Android Ice Cream Sandwich stays at 0.5%, while Android Gingerbread comes down another 0.1% to 0.4%.

As per Google, these numbers are compiled from Android devices that accessed the Playstore that visited the Google Play Store in the prior 7 days perid ending on January 8.

Google is expected to launch the next version of Android, likely called Android P at its I/O conference to be held in May. However, if history is any indication, the company will roll out the beta version of this OS by March or April.