Project Svelte: Android 4.4 KitKat works on entry-level thanks to modded Nexus 4

In the creation of the newest version of Google's mobile operating system Android 4.4 KitKat, the developers responsible for testing it did so on modified Nexus 4 devices. One key element in the creation of the full feature set of Android 4.4 KitKat was "Project Svelte", a name for a goal that was to bring the software to any device running a mere 512MB of RAM. To create a system that worked this way, Android developers didn't go out and grab a 512MB smartphone, they crippled their Nexus 4 devices to do the work instead.