Android 4.3 build for Nexus 4 leaks

Built JWR66N has made its way out into the wild for the LG-made Nexus

A few weeks after Android 4.3 leaked for the the Google Play edition Galaxy S4, today we're seeing the same pre-release build - JWR66N - leaking out online for the Nexus 4. The unofficial firmware comes to us from Jeff Williams on Google+, who bought his Nexus 4 on Craigslist from a Googler, only to find it running the pre-release software. With a little help from the Google+ community, IRC users and XDA, Jeff was able to create a system dump and backup of the ROM. Currently the radio and bootloader are missing from this package - word on the forums is that they'll be provided at a later date.

The files can be restored through TWRP ​(TeamWin recovery) if you know what you're doing, giving you a working version of Android 4.3 ahead of the official release. Though with any leaked pre-release firmware of unknown origins, we'd advise caution if you decide to put this firmware on your own device, as unknown bugs another nasties may be lurking.

We've successfully restored the firmware to our own Nexus 4, and we've found it to be much like the leaked 4.3 build for the GPe Galaxy S4. That is to say it's almost identical to 4.2 to the untrained eye, but new developer settings and other subtle changes give this away as the genuine article. For more on the behind-the-scenes changes in Android 4.3, check out our hands-on feature.

With Android 4.3 now having leaked not once but twice, it's likely we won't have too much longer to wait before this new version of Android becomes official. Google's got an event scheduled for next Wednesday, July 24, and we'll be covering the day's announcements live.

"AC's resident Brit, cooking up piping-hot bowls of European Android coverage every day."