On Tuesday, Oct. 9, Google announced that it will release Android 4.1.2 to the Android Open Source Project (AOSP). The release is a minor update to Android 4.1.1 and the official Google note says it "improves performance and stability and fixes bugs."

The Android 4.1.2 update is 31.3MB in size and the upgarde on Nexus 7 enables landscape mode on the tablet's home screen. Even though the update does not make any major changes to the current operating system; it however, brings the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean a step closer to the final update to Android 4.2 Key Lime Pie.

"As a note to maintainers of community builds running on Nexus 7: please update to 4.1.2 at the first opportunity. Future variants of the grouper hardware will have a minor change in one of the components (the power management chip) that will not be compatible with 4.1.1. The build number is JZO54K, and the tag is android-4.1.2_r1." indicated, Jean-Baptiste Queru, an Android engineer on Google Groups.

Queru also says that there is a "New [Nexus 7] revision coming indeed with a different power management chip. It's functionally identical to the existing one, but requires a new driver and bootloader that weren't part of 4.1.1." This comment hints that a new Nexus device may be on its way soon.

Additionally, EE Times reported that a Nexus 7 user from Australia sent a screenshot from his tablet, which read "Android 4.1.2 System Update." The screenshot also detailed that the software update would upgrade a user's Nexus 7 to Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean, which would in turn improve "performance and stability" as well as fix any issues or bugs. Moreover, the update would also enable the "rotation of the home screen to landscape orientation."

Many users on XDA developers-forum have also confirmed the update of Android 4.1.2 on their Nexus 7 tablet.

Android users will be eager to get the latest Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean update on their devices and hopefully the update will be released in phases. However, Nexus devices including the Galaxy Nexus, Nexus S, and Motorola Xoom may expect an update in the near future.