Android version usage statistics with only active users

Question

So if 10% of the world is using a Android version below 4.0 then we need to make our apps compatible with these versions to be sure all people can use the apps. Right?

Question is, do we really?

Is there any way to make sure that these 10% is not inactive phones laying in random drawers in peoples houses? I understand people around the world may not be able to buy newer phones that have the newer versions but the people using these old phones can't use the features of a newer phone (better graphics etc) because their hardware can't handle it. Am I wrong?

• How low are you setting the minimum SDK requirement?
• How low do I need to go?

Anyone have statistics of commonly used Androids instead of all Androids?

Answer 1

Because this data is gathered from the new Google Play Store app, which supports Android 2.2 and above, devices running older versions are not included. However, in August, 2013, versions older than Android 2.2 accounted for about 1% of devices that checked in to Google servers (not those that actually visited Google Play Store).

That states in the website you selected. You can rule out from the displayed statistics phones inside boxes since then haven't connected yet to the Google Play store app. And, probably, only people that visit regularly (Yearly/Bi-Yearly) the Google Play Store app will enter that statistics.

This is basic an opinion-based answer. You should develop your apps to grasp the majority of users while still maintaining UX usability and performance of the application.