Google to launch a new version of Android?

Rumors are circulating that a new version of Android - version 4.2 - could be available as early as November. According to reports, the latest iteration of the operating system, called Key Lime Pie, will be focused on integration of social networks and...

Rumors are circulating that a new version of Android - version 4.2 - could be available as early as November.

According to reports from the blogs Tech Radar and Kit Guru, the latest iteration of the operating system, called Key Lime Pie, will be focused on power optimization to increase battery life, on integration of social networks and on customization so that phone-makers and users alike can adapt its look and feel. There are also suggestions that it will be able to stream more content from the Google Play site and that it will be able to access custom apps and games that won't work with earlier versions of Android.

And while sites including Android Police have noticed devices running Android 4.2 on their server traffic logs in recent weeks, it would appear to be a mere incremental upgrade to the existing Android operating system, Jelly Bean. Furthermore, RootzWiki, a site dedicated to uncovering the source of Android-based rumors, believes that all reports about Key Lime Pie can be traced back to one hoaxer who posed as an Android insider who could vouch for the upcoming operating system's features. All of which casts serious doubt on the validity of reports that Key Lime Pie's launch is imminent.

Google is expected to make an announcement at Dive Into Mobile, the upcoming tech showcase and conference, hosted by All Things D on October 29 and 30, but insiders believe that the company will use the event to launch a new Nexus-branded smartphone by LG and not a completely new version of its operating system.

Jelly Bean, or Android 4.1, is currently the latest version of the operating system and was only launched in July. To date a mere 0.8% of the world's 500 million Android devices are said to be running it as their operating system but this number is expected to grow as device makers start to roll out the upgrade.