Nexus S and Motorola Xoom to remain on Android 4.1.2

While announcing the availability of Android 4.2 on AOSP, lead Android developer at Google Jean-Baptiste Quéru confirmed that the Nexus S and the Motorola Xoom will not be updated to Android 4.2 and will remain on Android 4.1.2.

We honestly can't say we didn't see this coming. Both devices, the Nexus S in particular, had started struggling while running the newer versions of Android, with their antiquated hardware unable to properly run the new software that is clearly designed for more powerful devices.

Still, both had a good run. The Nexus S was launched with Android 2.3 and since then has seen two major updates. Same goes for the Xoom, which was released with Honeycomb and received ICS and Jelly Bean afterwards.

It's worth noting that both devices are currently running a newer version of Android than many Android devices launched in the last six months, even though both have been around for close to two years now. While it does tell us that Google has been quite committed to updating its own devices, it also tells us how messed up the Android update situation is on non-Nexus devices.

Of course, just because the official support has stopped doesn't mean the unofficial support will cease as well. Custom ROM makers such as CyanogenMod will continue support for both devices for a while and you should see an Android 4.2 ROM for both pretty soon.

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