The most up-to-date version of the smartphone and tablet software developed by Google neglects the entire month of December in its “People” app, leaving those with December birthdays at risk of being forgotten.
Android 4.2 “Jelly Bean”, found on Nexus smartphones and tablets, does not allow users to add birthdays or anniversaries next to friends’ names if they were born in December.
On their website, the company claims that “Android 4.2 takes the speed and simplicity of Jelly Bean to a different level”, but few users will have expected that simplicity to include a year that is just 11 months long.
According to the Android Police blog, Google is aware of the problem but has yet to rectify it, and has not stated when the flaw will be corrected.
Users trying to add birthdays into the app are faced with the choice between November and January, with nothing in between. The news about the bug comes ahead of ‘Black Friday’ this week in the US, when American shoppers traditionally swamp shops after Thanksgiving. British shoppers may also reconsider their digital gift choices in the run-up to Christmas with a glaring omission to the calendar in any new Android purchase. The smartphone market is worth £182 billion globally, and Android’s more recent domination of that market has relied upon the smooth running of its software in comparison to missteps by Apple such as their much-derided new Maps app.