For Google, Android 4.4 KitKat was all about getting rid of the excess bulge and having the OS running on as many devices as possible.
As revealed in an interview ReadWrite, Google did this by enacting Project Svelte, buried in the updated OS, to ensure it could run on devices with just 512 MB of RAM.
In the run up to KitKat we'd heard that Google was looking to support low-end devices, but now we have confirmation that this was the master plan all along, and will be a biggy for Google in eliminating the problem of Android fragmentation.
Svelte (adjective): Slender and elegant
In fact, Google even used a special Nexus 4 with half the processing power, 512MB of RAM and a 960 x 540 qHD display.
This isn't Google's first attempt to smooth things over. Project Butter in Android 4.1 was all about providing a more elegant, crash-free experience, though it wasn't so focused on reducing system demand.
So now we know - despite the fact that KitKats are substantially bigger than jelly beans, Google's updated OS has been shrunk quite significantly. Here's hoping this is the beginning of the end for Android fragmentation.