People with Nexus 7 tablets say the latest major Android update – codenamed Lollipop – has slowed their slabs to a standstill. Google said today it is investigating the matter.

The Android support forum is full of complaints that the latest firmware, version 5.0, renders the tabs unusable. And apps built with Adobe Air have been stripped from devices upgraded to Lollipop, but that's probably no great shame.

Reg readers have also been in touch to complain. Here's a couple from Twitter:

The update hits circa-2012 Nexus 7 fondleslabs in particular, we're told. The firmware update is being pushed over the air to Nexus 4, 5, 7 and 10 devices; the Nexus 6 and 9 shipped with Android 5.0 installed.

"I regret downloading the update," wrote one Nexus 7 owner.

"My Nexus 7 is laggy, restarts and crashes randomly, takes ages to navigate or open pages, refuses to connect to wireless, and must restart after that. Sometimes I feel like smashing the tablet against the wall – so frustrating."

The Android 5.0 Lollipop update arrived last month for smartphones and handsets. The OS was featured in Google's I/O conference keynote, and features support for 64-bit ARMv8-compatible processors and a new user interface, among other upgrades.

Google, for its part, says it is looking into the matter.

"We're aware some Android users are facing issues and are looking into what might be the cause," a spokesperson for the advertising giant told The Register.

This wouldn't be the first time an update has bogged down operations on older hardware. Apple users regularly complain that new OS releases slow down their gear, and the iGiant recently had to build a special version of its iOS platform that would run properly on older stuff. ®