Sony to start Xperia upgrades to Jelly Bean

As we move further into fall, phone-makers' plans for Android 4.1 upgrades are slowly but surely falling into place.

Today, Sony's joining the club and spilling the beans on which phones it will -- and won't -- upgrade to Jelly Bean. Here's the scoop:

• Sony's Xperia T, Xperia TX, and Xperia V will all be upgraded to Android 4.1. Sony says the phones will receive their upgrades "from mid-Q1 2013."

• Sony has previously said that its Xperia Tablet S would be upgraded to Jelly Bean but has yet to provide any specific timeline for that device's rollout.

• Also on the 4.1 yes-list are the global versions of the Xperia S, Xperia Acro S, Xperia Ion, Xperia P, Xperia Go and Xperia J. Sony is staying mum about timing on those devices at the moment; the company says only that it'll release more specific info "in due course."

• Now for the bad news: Sony has confirmed that none of its 2011 Xperia phones will be upgraded to Android 4.1. That means no Jelly Bean for the Xperia Arc, Xperia Arc S, Xperia Play, Xperia Neo, Xperia Neo V, Xperia Mini, Xperia Mini Pro, Xperia Pro, Xperia Active, Xperia Ray, or Sony Ericsson Live with Walkman (whew -- who comes up with these names?!).

So it's a bit of a mixed bag all around; on the one hand, after months of silence, at least Sony's finally telling us something about its Jelly Bean upgrade plans. On the other hand, mid-first-quarter 2013 isn't exactly an ambitious goal for upgrading its current models -- and dropping the ball entirely on its entire 2011 lineup is a pretty weak move to make. Those phones aren't even two years old.

Unfortunately, that's how this cookie -- er, jelly bean -- has crumbled. The truth with Android is that all devices have their own perks and drawbacks. If timely and reliable upgrades are important to you, an unlocked Google Nexus phone is the way to go.

Remember, you can find the latest Jelly Bean upgrade info for any device in my Android 4.1 upgrade list. It's always kept up-to-date with the most current details available for all phones and tablets.