Everything you need to know about Android's Ice Cream Sandwich

Everything you need to know about Android's Ice Cream Sandwich

With the iPhone5 expected to arrive in November, Google has got to beat Apple to the punch and put their attempt in at taking a chunk of the new contract-base before Apple has a chance to even get their product out the door. Ice Cream Sandwich is Google's attempt to unify their smartphone and tablet operating systems in to one linear product. This will allow for better communication between devices, and should allow more room for developers to create unified products rather than them having to create one for smartphones and then recode it for tablets.

When is Ice Cream Sandwich expected to be released?

ICS is expected to be released in early October, but this isn't official yet. In all previous versions, Android has released major updates in response to Apple releasing a product. We got Gingerbread around the time the iPad2 came out, and Froyo around the time the iPhone4 came out. They have been combating Apple their entire lifespan of Android. Since the iPhone5 is slated to come out in November, it only makes sense that they release ICS around then as well. November also marks the 2 year anniversary of the original Droid from Motorola. They have a lot of good reasons to release ICS during November.

When will we see devices with Android 4.0/2.4 Ice Cream Sandwich on them? When will my device receive Android 4.0/2.4?

Also during November, the next rumored pure Google phone is supposedly being released. Google's Nexus series phones are created by Google and run Android (Google's Mobile Phone OS). They are always the first phones to receive updates to Android, and the next Nexus device (codenamed the 'Nexus Prime') will be no different. The device is rumored to have a 4" super AMOLED display that is rocking an amazing 1280x720 resolution (that's right, a 720p HD screen on a phone). Considering the screen size, you should expect to see the debut of ICS in amazing quality. Other devices will probably get the update within a few months of it being released, as Google intends to make all devices compatible with ICS very short after its release (as opposed to in the past where some phones waited months to not receive updates, ever).

Why the buzz? What's the difference?

Google has planned for ICS to be the unifying OS for both tablets and smartphones that run Android. Now, rather than a developer having to create an app for a smartphone and having to recode it to scale up to a tablet, Google's ICS Operating System will take care of that for them. Another benefit? No more operating system fragmentation that Android is so infamous for. This means greatly increased boot up and shutdown times on phones, as well as increased speed when you are accessing anything within the operating system itself. Another benefit is facial recognition and the activation of NFC (near-field communication) chips. Facial recognition will be available for all phones that rock a front-facing camera and can be used to unlock your phone. Developers will also have tools to incorporate facial recognition into games. With NFC devices active, you can expect Google Wallet to to arrive very shortly after that, so you can say goodbye to credit cards. ICS will bring all of the great features of Honeycomb (Android's tablet OS) and bring them to the palm of your hand. You will also be able to use USB devices such as a keyboard and mouse. So for a recap:

-Improved user-interface.
-Improved boot up / shut down speeds.
-Facial recognition in devices with front-facing cameras.
-Activation of NFC chips in applicable devices.
-More stable applications.
-No more OS fragmentation.
-Ability to use keyboard and mouse via USB.



 So that's all you need to know about Android 4.0/2.4, Ice Cream Sandwich. If you have any other questions, please feel free to leave a comment on the blog.