From the forums: What's new in Android 4.4.1?

By Alex Dobie
last updated

Android 4.4.1 is upon us, and the first maintenance release of KitKat is rolling out now to certain Nexus devices. The big news that everyone's talking about relates to the many camera fixes and enhancements bestowed upon the Nexus 5, but it turns out there are also a lot of smaller changes and improvements in the new OS.

These include fixes for glitches like the Nexus 5 speaker bug and the bug that occasionally made the notification bar partly opaque. What's more, haptic feedback has been tweaked on the Nexus 5, "Photos" is now the default photo-viewing app when you swipe out of the Camera app.

We're digging through all these changes and more in a thread on the Android Central forums (opens in new tab), which is where you'll find our working list of what's new in Android 4.4.1. Check it out below — and join the discussion if you've spotted anything new since updating.

What's new in Android 4.4.1 - Android Central forums

Alex Dobie
Alex Dobie
Executive Editor

Alex was with Android Central for over a decade, producing written and video content for the site, and served as global Executive Editor from 2016 to 2022.

38 Comments
  • ART is now Whatsapp compatible as well.
  • Huh, I thought that bug fix would have had to have been made on the WhatsApp app rather than in Android itself. Posted via AC App on Nexus 5
  • No there error was a google error, i saw this in the play store under reviews, the Developer has replied to hundreds of 1 star reviews about ART (which is bogus becuase its a Development option and therefore doesnt warrant a negative review in my opinion) that theres nothing he can do, the error is with google and that he has flagged up the error at AOSP level which i thought was pretty good of him.
  • Right , whatsApp is working just fine now! Posted via Android Central App
  • Yeah finally :)
  • Only if you previously installed Whatsapp under Dalvik. If you don't have it already installed on ART and attempt to install it, there's an "unknown error code -24"
  • i hope there's a fix for the built-in phone mic bug. callers sometimes can't hear me at all or i sound garbled. i think this is a bug in the noise cancelling software. known issue. hopefully fixed with this update! i use Apple EarPods 99% for calls of the time though with no problems.
  • Interesting. Haven't heard this one. Posted via Android Central App
  • Can the Google+ Photos app do everything the normal Gallery app can?
    Can it also allow me to choose exactly which photos to backup to the G+ cloud?
  • Yes it can, it's the g+ photo app. Though I'm a little bit sad because the photos app doesn't have the filmstrip view that the gallery has :( filmstrip view has been my favorite thing in vanilla android since ICS, here's to hoping they'll add it. That and being able to view all your auto backup without having to search for #autobackup tag, cuz I believe that's not very user friendly.
  • It also can delete backed up photos which is not an option in stock gallery.
  • If i want to use this cyber monday deal 's moto x here in india, which carrier shall i opt for? Cus i dont want to get into unlocking issues and all i like to move it move it
  • Just go for the unlocked version. This is also a question for the forums, so those guys there might know more, and you'll avoid ticking off some of the viritrolls who have unrelated questions. Posted via Android Central App
  • On the nexus 4 now i finally nave trasparent bars in lock screen.... Posted via Android Central App
  • Can somebody confirm if this is true? Posted via Android Central App
  • I see that here too
  • Also on the power toggles widget you can now switch location mode, from GPS to battery saving Posted via Android Central App
  • Did they fix the bug that prevents saving an edited (cropped) screenshot in the Photos app?
  • This!
  • Does the Voicemail icon show in the notification bar if you have vm waiting? It's a seriously annoying bug.
  • When does the ota update come. I still dont have it on my AT&T Nexus 5. Any ideas?
  • I'm still waiting too. You'll get it at some point. Posted via Android Central App
  • There is no such thing as an AT&T Nexus 5. Posted via Android Central App
  • Nitpicking. You know what he means. ----------------------------------------------------
    So where is the competition for the Note 3? Oh right there isn't any...
  • Still waiting on the OTA. (Sprint) Posted via the Android Central App on my Nexus 5
  • Battery standby is pretty amazing now. Drastically better. Posted via Android Central App
  • You really think so? Sent from my Nexus 5 :-D
  • Haven't really noticed a difference there really. But I'll give it a few days to judge battery life. Posted via Android Central App
  • The speaker is significantly louder. Posted via Android Central App
  • And best of all doesn't sound terrible in many apps. Posted via Android Central App
  • True. The vibration feedback on the phone app got slightly increased too. Posted via Android Central App
  • SETTINGS app now show up on Recent Tabs! Finally!
  • PS: Nexus 4 here
  • Where? I can't see it. Posted via Android Central App
  • Small thing here too: SETTINGS' icon in Quick Settings menu now has a new black ring on my Nexus 4
  • What about when just downloaded apps don't appear on the homescreen but instead the screen slides over to Google now.. Is that fixed? Posted via Android Central App
  • does sideloading harm my phone...or i shud wait for the official one?? i m using n5... Posted via Android Central App
  • The lag on FIFA 14 which was there in 4.4 has been fixed with this update. Posted via Android Central App