Android 4.4 KitKat Update: How To Manually Update Nexus 7 With The Latest Android Firmware [Tutorial]

The Wi-Fi versions of both 2012 and 2013 Nexus 7 tablets began receiving the official Android 4.4 KitKat firmware update through over-the-air, or OTA, updates on Wednesday. The new firmware update comes with many new features, such as a new launcher and a modified user interface for a number of built-in apps.

For users that are yet to receive the OTA update on their devices, they can perform a manual installation process to upgrade their Nexus 7 tablet, for both 2012 and 2013 models, to the latest Android 4.4 KitKat.

Points To Note

- Ensure that you have proper data backup.

- The device should be fully charged.

- The USB drivers for the device must be installed on the computer. [Download]

- Enable USB Debugging.

- The Nexus 7 2013 needs to be running on Android 4.3 JSS15R (not rooted), which is the previous official update. If you are using Nexus 7 2012, the device needs to be running on Android 4.3 JWR66Y (not rooted), which is the previous official firmware.

NOTE: International Business Times will not be responsible for anything that goes wrong. Users should proceed at their own risk.

Tutorial

Step 1: Download Android 4.4 KitKat for your Nexus 7 -- 2012 model, 2013 model -- to your computer.

Step 2: Connect the device to your computer using USB cable.

Step 3: Place the .zip package on your SD card.

Step 4: Turn off the device.

Step 5: Get into the bootloader mode by holding down volume up, volume down and power on the tablet until you see the Fastboot menu and START on top.

Step 6: Navigate to "Recovery mode" by using the volume up and down keys, and then press the power button to select it.

Step 7: After an exclamation mark appears, hold down the power button, quickly followed by the volume up button. It will bring up the Recovery Mode menu.

Step 8: Now select “update from SD card” first, and then select the “.zip” file using the Power button. The Installation process will now be started.

Step 9: Once the installation is finished, the Nexus 7 will boot on its own. The first boot may take some time.

[Source: Team Android]