Sony provides update on 2012 Xperia smartphone Android 4.1 upgrade plans

SonySony today provided an updated and more specific timeline as to when 2012 Xperia smartphone owners would (or would not) see Android 4.1 Jelly Bean on their devices with the usual caveat that “availability and rollout timing will vary by market and customer variants.”

First up will be the Xperia T, Xperia TX and Xperia V with upgrades set to roll during February and March. The Xperia P, Xperia J and Xperia go will follow starting in late March. The Xperia S, Xperia SL, Xperia ion and Xperia acro S will then follow in “the subsequent weeks.”

A number of devices will not be updated. The Xperia U, Xperia miro, Xperia tipo, and Xperia sola will all remain on Android 4.0. Sony explained that:

The quality of Xperia’s software experience is dependent on a number of factors including: screen resolution, hardware platform and RAM. In the case of Xperia go, this combination came together in a way that meant the user experience running JB was not adversely affected.

Unfortunately, in the case of Xperia tipo, Xperia miro, Xperia U and Xperia sola this wasn’t the case – so we made the decision to keep them on Ice Cream Sandwich.

It remains to be seen if and when devices will then be upgraded to Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.

Sony has already confirmed that it will not upgrade its 2011 Xperia devices to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.

Read more: Sony Mobile Communications