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Nexus 7 Android 4.3 Update Said to Fix Major Issues

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The Nexus 7 Android 4.3 update is rolling out now to owners of the aging tablet and while it will be bringing new features to the table, it also looks like it may tackle some of the issues that emerged with the Android 4.2 Jelly Bean update that arrived in late 2012.

In November of last year, Android 4.2 Jelly Bean rolled out to Google’s Nexus devices including the Nexus 4, Nexus 10 and the Nexus 7, Google’s original 7-inch slate. And while the update was initially welcomed by Nexus owners, it soon became clear that the update was riddled with a host of issues that have plagued device owners to this day.

Read: Nexus 7 Review: From Hero to Zero.

The Nexus 7 Android 4.3 update apparently tackles Android 4.2 issues.

The Nexus 7 Android 4.3 update apparently tackles Android 4.2 issues.

Nexus 7 owners seemed to get the brunt of the problems as users experienced everything from lag to Bluetooth issues to poor battery life to slow charging that all but rendered the device useless. While quick fixes emerged and Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean touched down, Nexus 7 owners continued to notice problems with their device.

Earlier this month, Google announced Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, an incremental update that includes Bluetooth Low Energy, a tweaked camera application, amongst other things. However, from the looks of things, it’s also having a solid impact on the performance of the older Nexus 7.

According to AnAndTech, the Android 4.3 Jelly Bean update has brought fstrim support to Nexus users. In the simplest terms possible, TRIM is a controller for memory and with it on board, it will help to better manage the storage on board the Nexus 7. Before Android 4.3’s arrival, the Nexus 7 would continuously look over things that were once written to the device’s storage, even if they were no longer there. This has been thought to be one of the main culprits behind the lag issues that affected many Nexus 7 owners.

The changes will be gradual after installing Android 4.3 because TRIM needs some time to evaluate the Nexus 7’s storage and work its magic. However, after a couple of days, users should notice a difference. TRIM has come to all Android devices with Android 4.3 including the Nexus 4 and Nexus 10 so users of those devices could see increased performance as well.

The Nexus 7 Android 4.2 update brought numerous bugs.

The Nexus 7 Android 4.2 update brought numerous bugs.

It appears that the Android 4.3 update is also full of other fixes as well as users are reporting that the slow charging issues on the Nexus 7 have been alleviated and users are apparently seeing increased battery life. What this means is that Nexus 7 owners would be wise to install the update when it arrives.

The software has been rolling out since last week though it has yet to reach all users. Google typically rolls out its Android updates in stages which means that Nexus 7 owners will need to remain patient while the roll out continues.

24 Comments

24 Comments

  1. Ronald Geiken

    07/30/2013 at 2:02 pm

    I just got it installed on my Nexus 10 and things seem to be working faster, but still have the problem of my external keyboard being disconnected after running for about 2 to 3 minutes, and then when I want to type something in it takes a while for the tablet to recognize that and then it finally turns on again. I though with the Low Energy bluetooth that that would not happen any more. Also there is not setting to make sure that BT stays on all the time. Not sure how to accommodate that change. That has been the biggest frustration on this tablet since day one.The BT mouse seems to work OK. A short delay there would not be as much of a problem as the Keyboard disconnecting.

    • Corey

      08/11/2013 at 10:07 pm

      Yeah my keyboard doesn’t work on my tablet at all anymore which is particularly frustrating because my screen is cracked half way and only one side works when I’m writing my music. Anyone know why my bluetooth keyboard doesn’t work on my updated Nexus as opposed to the non updated one that I’m using now? Also the update erased all of my playlists which bugged the hell outta me.

  2. MobAlian

    07/31/2013 at 12:32 am

    Hope it will fix the issues

  3. Marty

    07/31/2013 at 6:35 am

    My Nexus now has 4.03 and it does seem a little faster.

    Having said that I haven’t had any problems with it over the past year and have used it every day.

    • harry

      07/31/2013 at 9:36 am

      marty how did u update my says verification faailed

      • Marty

        07/31/2013 at 10:24 am

        It just happened automatically over wifi when I switched it on on Monday. You need to make sure it’s plugged in and well charged during the download and update.

  4. Dave Larson

    07/31/2013 at 10:59 am

    I just installed the new 4.3 os on my Nexus 7 and I am missing my camera icon
    any ideas

    • Kim

      07/31/2013 at 1:14 pm

      The camera is located in the new app “Keep”

  5. Shuhrat

    08/01/2013 at 5:22 am

    Can someone help me how to downgrade ?

  6. loq082636

    08/01/2013 at 12:12 pm

    Keep is not the camera app…it just uses the camera for adding a pic to a note. The Camera icon is still there on my Nexus 7

  7. grit

    08/01/2013 at 4:57 pm

    Is anyone reporting issues with the new nexus 7? Mine seems to arbitrarily shut down and restart. If I’m reading a book when I reopen kindle it goes to where I started reading before it shut down. It has also shut down when I was checking email and searching on Google. ( and no, I didn’t hit the power button)

    • kate

      08/12/2013 at 9:48 am

      I am also having the same problem no matter what I am doing since the update to 4.3 it keeps shutting down. Any ideas anyone as I am close to throwing it out the window!

  8. Curtis Farster (@captcurt31)

    08/02/2013 at 9:53 am

    Nexus 7 working normally before update. After update, Spider bluetooth keyboad will pair but not type in any application.

    • Ronald C

      10/08/2013 at 10:17 am

      Same here with an Adesso WKB-1000BA. Pairs and types fine with my Galaxy S2 Skyrocket but not with my Nexus 7 purchased in late 2012.

  9. Jeremiah

    08/03/2013 at 11:16 am

    I’ve been finding overall lag and unresponsiveness ever since 4.3 installed on my N7. Often my auto-rotation doesn’t even work at all…

  10. Dan

    08/03/2013 at 11:33 am

    The day after I installed 4.3 I hooked up an OTG cable, a flash drive to the OTG and immediately lost the screen display. I unhooked the OTB and tried to turn it back on with the power button on the Nexus 7. Nothing. Tried the combination of power button and volume switch. Nothing. I checked the flash drive on my laptop and didn’t find any virus or nefarious files to cause the Nexus 7 to fail. Note: I had used the OTG cable and same flash drive with Jelly Bean 4.2.2 with no problems. Is it safe to assume that version 4.3 also affects the usb port on the Nexus 7? Plugging the Nexus 7 back into my laptop with a usb cable, the laptop doesn’t recognize anything plugged into the usb port. Bottom line, no power button function on the Nexus 7, no Nexus 7. Anyone with any ideas how to proceed?

    • Gary

      08/06/2013 at 9:58 am

      This happened to me too. I was able to revive my Nexus 7 by holding down the power switch by itself for about a full minute until it rebooted. Give it a try.

  11. Colin

    08/04/2013 at 2:03 pm

    I didn’t have any issues with 4.2 but the new update is causing me more issues.

  12. nick

    08/05/2013 at 2:14 am

    4.3 has totally trashed my nexus 7. The device takes ages to charge and battery drains very quickly. My iPlayer or Santander banking apps are no longer available…I’m off to Apple today to buy a mini…you get what you pay for…goodbye Google

  13. Kitty Stryker (@kittystryker)

    08/05/2013 at 3:34 pm

    My partner downloaded 4.3 and his 1st gen Nexus 7 is now an expensive paperweight. It’s stuck in a boot loop and the screen is practically unresponsive. Mine, meanwhile, is pretty functional on 4.2.2. So I don’t know about downloading 4.3 for the older Nexus 7 at least, it seems to be pretty crap for us!

  14. Deb

    08/09/2013 at 7:39 pm

    Gallery and camera apps stop working for me after the update. Not sure what to do or how to fix. Any ideas or if someone could point me in the right direction…

  15. Adam O'Callaghan (@adamocallaghan)

    08/10/2013 at 1:59 pm

    4.3 is shite. mlb.tv doesn’t work anymore with live playback, very annoyed

  16. tom_

    08/22/2013 at 5:07 pm

    I have 417 songs stored on my Nexus 7. I had organized most of them into some 50-60 playlists, each playlist corresponding to a dance that I teach. And each playlist hand built under 4.2.2. But it was worth the labor because during class I could scroll quickly to a dance (playlist) and open it to pick from the 1 to 10 songs used for that dance. Now 4.3 has emptied my playlists. I.e., the playlists are still there, but there aren’t any songs in them anymore.

    (I think of the playlists as “folders of shortcuts to the actual mp3’s”. The “folders” remain but the shortcuts were deleted by the installation of 4.3. Memo to the developers of 4.4: As I am able to easily manipulate the Music file folder in Internal storage on the Nexus 7 from my W7 pc, why not make the playlist “folders” susceptible to backup by upload to the pc? You would redeem yourselves by doing so and atone for sins you haven’t even committed yet.)

    Everyone else do this to recreate your playlists: Play Music –> Listen Now, tap the left side of the Listen Now banner to drop down a menu –> My Library –> Songs

    This will present all your songs in more or less lexicographic order. (A, The, El, La, Las and maybe some others are ignored when they begin the song title.) Start at the top of the list and for each song touch the barely visible 3 vertical dots on the right side to open a context menu which includes Add to playlist. Beware of hitting the slide bar (Kindle Fire is so much better with this particular maneuver). The playlists will be presented in lexicographic order … the first time. Afterwards playlists you’ve “added to” will be at the top of the list. Still, it’s better than a sharp stick in the eye. If you come to a song and you’re unsure where you want it, maybe you need to listen to it and some others or consult how Youtube treats it, create a New playlist, call it Suspense, and add it there so that later on you’ll know which songs you skipped over.

    I looked at the Listen Now feature that seems to be the default destination when you select the Play Music icon. (Yawn) I bet the developers thought that Listen Now is really cool. Who knows? Maybe you do too. I don’t. So I offer 50 gratitons (international standard unit of gratitude) to anyone who can tell me how to suppress Listen Now and have Play Music go directly to All Playlists (not Recent Playlists).

    And now I have about two days’ worth of intermittent work ahead of me courtesy of the Google-Android development team.

  17. deb

    08/28/2013 at 11:49 am

    Second update, and gallery still not responding.

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