Ice Cream Sandwich Release Date: Next in a 'Delicious' Line of Operating Systems
Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich was unveiled on Oct. 19 at the "Samsung Mobile Unpacked: Google Episode" media event alongside its flagship smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus.
It is expected to revolutionize the entire OS, which has been in high demand and now powers a number of devices on several different wireless networks.
Android was first released in 2008 but had a lackluster reception. Since then, the OS since garnered a steady increase in popularity.
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"The Android platform is the most popular mobile platform in the world," said Samsung's head of Mobile Communication, JK Shin at "Samsung Mobile Unpacked."
In order to keep up with technology, the Android OS has had a number of upgrades in just three years.
After the initial OS, G1, which was powered on the T-Mobile network and was not particularly popular, Android stepped up its game and began developing systems that were not only a techie's dream, but were also extremely “delicious” to speak of.
Since G1, each OS has been named alphabetically after a desert.
Here is a rundown of Android's many tantalizing operating systems, as detailed by CNET.
Cupcake, 1.5, released in April 2009, introduced the universal search box, an updated Android Market, a camera and voice-to-text capability.
Donut, 1.6, released in September 2009, introduced the virtual onscreen keyboard, camcorder mode for the camera, stereo Bluetooth, home screen widgets and folders, copy and paste and search within the browser and direct upload to YouTube and Picasa.
Eclair, 2.0, released in October 2009, introduced multiple user accounts, a universal e-mail inbox, the quick Contact pop-up widget, saved SMS and MMS search, an updated camera, Bluetooth 2.1 and various keyboard improvements.
Eclair, second helping, 2.1, released in January 2010, introduced live wallpaper and five home screens as well as speech-to-text for any text operation.
Froyo, 2.2, released in May 2010, introduced a faster OS, USB and hot-spot support capability, an Android Market update, Adobe Flash 10.1, file uploading in the browser and increased Microsoft Exchange and Bluetooth support.
Gingerbread, 2.3, released in December 2010, introduced an updated copy and paste, WebM video compression support, NFC (near field communication) support, various camera updates and virtual keyboard shortcuts.
Honeycomb, 3.0, released in February 2011, introduced a tablet OS, 3D graphics support, browser, plane mode and UI updates, video chatting with Google Talk, full-screen-mode photo gallery and Bluetooth tethering.
Ice Cream Sandwich, 4.0, will release in November 2011, introduced an OS that powers both tablets and smartphones, a new custom typeface called Robato, a completely touch screen UI, a lock screen featuring Face Unlock, and Android Beam, an NFC technology that allows users to share information by touching their phones together.
Most Android smartphones currently run on either Froyo or Gingerbread while the Honeycomb OS specifically powers tablet computers.
Ice Cream Sandwich will debut on the Galaxy Nexus in November.
Gingerbread powered smartphones such as the Nexus S and Galaxy S2 are expected to receive an Ice Cream Sandwich update. Older Gingerbread powered phones may also eventually receive an update.
After Ice Cream Sandwich, it is rumored that the next OS will be called Jelly Bean.
