Last time, in February, we left you with episode 6 of "The History of Android with Radu", when we dealt with Jelly Bean and its multiple variants. Now we're back with episode 7, where we'll discuss Android 4.4 KitKat and the history of a unique partnership between a tech giant and a sweets giant. Everything new this release brought, but also what legendary terminals proposed to us, find out below.
Android "KitKat" is the code name of Android version 11, and in numbers it is Android version 4.4. It was presented on September 3, 2013 and focused in particular on performance optimizations on entry level terminals, which did not have very advanced features. The story of this debut is accompanied by a little hoax from Google, who let it be understood for months that the code name will actually be "Key Lime Pie". That's because in the background they were negotiating with the confectionery company Nestle, which has the KitKat chocolate bar brand.
Key Lime Pie was even considered, but in the end it was abandoned because apparently many people around the world don't know that dessert. As part of a promotion, KitKat bars were launched that had the shape of an Android robot, and there was also a competition in the US, with Nexus 7 tablets and Play Store credit won as a prize in KitKat packaging.
KitKat carried forward the improvements brought by Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, only that it focused more on optimization, especially for low-end terminals. The optimization came through "Project Svelte", a name born from an anecdote of the head of Android engineering David Burke, who had established "Project Butter" at Jelly Bean, and after fat comes the regime, so "svelte". To simulate terminals with more modest specifications, the developers underclocked a Nexus 4 at low frequencies, with a single active core, 512 MB RAM and a resolution of 960 x 540 pixels. Energy and memory consumption were also monitored, to see what an OS actually needs to be operational.
The wish was for the applications to stop consuming so much memory. Visually, the Holo identity started from version 4.0 has evolved, but now the blue accents have been replaced by shades of gray and white. This can be seen especially in the icons in the status bar. The applications also have transparent areas and we also have an "Immersive Mode", so completely full screen, hiding the navigation bar. I also had transparent navigation bars and the background of the app drawer was also transparent and not just black.
On terminals with stock Android, the Messaging and Movie Studio applications have been removed, the former replaced by Google Hangouts, which also supports SMS. The Gallery app has been scrapped in favor of Google+ Photos. Perhaps the most updated was a new runtime environment, known as Android Runtime (ART) and meant to replace Dalvik (virtual machine) debuted, but only as a preview on KitKat. Later ART would become the norm. Where Dalvik used just-in-time (JIT) compilation of applications, ART used compile-on-install and then only run the application from the compiled version.
The dialer was now simpler, as was the Contacts page, and contacts were organized according to those you spoke to most often. You could also search for businesses in the area from the same search bar as contacts. Games, eBooks and movies were now completely full screen, hiding the status bar and navigation buttons as screens got bigger and bigger. The Hangouts app combines both Hangouts conversations and SMS and MMS.
Voice control has evolved, with support for "Okay Google" to activate Google Now control. You could dictate messages or do voice searches. We also got emojis in the keyboard, an easier connection to Google Cloud for printing, but also support for all NFC payment services. There was also a pedometer built into the OS that connected to fitness apps. Google promised that this OS was designed for accessible terminals, which also have 512 MB RAM on board and will be able to run it very easily.
Also keep in mind that we have "Flat" designs in Windows Phone and iOS 7, and Google also went for a "flat" approach to icons and made them bigger. The app drawer now only had applications and not widgets, and the latter could only be accessed by holding down the homescreen or pinching it. KitKat also brought a boost to location, using a combination of GPS, WiFi and mobile antennas in the area to find your location more precisely. The lockscreen in Android 4.4 could now display something other than widgets, such as album art of movies or music and dedicated playback controls.
Here are the representative terminals for this OS:
LG Nexus 5
Nexus 5 was a phone produced by LG as a flagship and promoter of Android KitKat. It received positive reviews for its performance, but the screen was criticized for the way it looked in the sun. The camera was a bit fickle though. It had a polycarbonate body that was pleasant to the touch and somewhat reminiscent of the Nexus 7 from 2013. In terms of hardware, it was very similar to the LG G2, to which it was related. It was balanced in terms of equipment, only that at the international level it did not really support enough 4G bands. In our review it felt below the LG G2.
Samsung Galaxy S5
Galaxy S5 was Samsung's flagship in 2014. It debuted at MWC 2014 and in Romania it had a spectacular presentation at the Intercontinental Hotel. It was the first phone on the market with 4K video recording and stood out for its extra security functions, such as a fingerprint reader or a Private Mode. It also stood out through the health functions, with that pulse reader on the back.
It was the first Galaxy S much criticized for bloatware, but also for the fingerprint reader and the pulse sensor which were inconstant. Opinions were divided about the "golf ball" design of the back: some appreciated a lighter phone, others were keen on the metallic trend of the moment.
HTC One M8
HTC One (M8) came after a fantastic phone, the HTC One M7, which made history. This model arrived in March 2014 and was perhaps the last HTC flagship unanimously appreciated by the public. It had a more rounded body, Full HD screen and a depth of field sensor for the camera, revolutionary at the time. The stereo speakers were generous in volume, already a HTC trademark. Curiously, it also had a version with identical hardware and Windows Phone 8.1 on board. I appreciated its battery, acoustics, lack of bloatware and processor power. However, it does not film as well as its rivals.
Samsung Galaxy K Zoom
Samsung Galaxy K Zoom was an experimental cameraphone from 2014. It was the successor of the Galaxy S4 Zoom and had excellent optical stabilization and impressive zoom for that year. Its camera had a resolution of 20.7 megapixels and offered a 10X optical zoom, which I only achieved in 2020 on the Huawei P40 Pro+. It also had Xenon and LED flash, but it took photos a bit slowly, because the processor was not up to the photo sensor yet. It was a massive terminal, with a thick cheap plastic case and somehow overall it was below the phones of the moment: Galaxy S5 and Lumia 1020.
Samsung Galaxy Note 4
Galaxy Note 4 was Samsung's autumn flagship from 2014. It came with Android KitKat on board and a screen considered huge, at 5.7 inches. The world held him back because he had imitation leather on his back. As late as 2014, the battery was still being removed from the phone, and in a unique way it returned to the microUSB 2.0 port, instead of USB 3.0 as on the Note 3 and Galaxy S5. It revolutionized through a Fast Charge function, which took you to 50% in 30 minutes. The stylus was at the stations, allowing you to cut out portions of the screen, extracting text from images, but also drawing on screenshots. The S Pen also had a physical button that allowed you to hold it down to select multiple photos or lines of text.
Huawei Ascend P7
Before we dreamed of collaborations with Leica and phones with powerful processors, we had the Huawei Ascend generation. The Ascend P7 was Huawei's flagship from 2014. It received mixed reviews, with people praising its thin body and the fact that it used glass in its construction. The processor was still slow compared to rivals, and Huawei took a risk with its own Kirin, which at the time did not impress. The price was attractive, the screen was bright, the acoustics were OK, but the filming was poor and the battery below expectations. It also had a lot of bloatware.
LG G3
LG G3 was LG's 2014 flagship, which came as a successor to the LG G2 and inherited some of its design elements. It had narrow screen edges and inaugurated Quad HD resolution on phone screens. Unfortunately, the screen did not cope well in the sun at all and the autonomy was seriously reduced. One crazy aspect is that the rear laser autofocus system used a component originally created for LG vacuum cleaners. The world criticized the metal imitation of the case, promoted as real metal.
LG kept its unique approach with buttons on the back, more carefully separated from the camera. Its laser rangefinder was a first among flagships, and autofocus was done in just 276 milliseconds thanks to it.
Sony Xperia Z2
The Sony Xperia Z2 was Sony's 2014 flagship, arriving in the spring of that year. It was already the time when Sony had parted ways with Ericsson and we had a debut at MWC 2014. It impressed with its waterproof design, but it attracted a lot of criticism for overheating and freezing when shooting 4K. When we tested it, we called it "the best camera of 2014" and praised its stereo speakers. The screen was a big leap from the Xperia Z1, and the battery delivered what it promised. I also had bloatware and the interface seemed stuck in time. At the time I was getting two PlayStation apps on board.