It's not the latest flavor from Ben & Jerry's. But Android Ice Cream is bound to be a hit when it debuts this summer, the latest in Google's dessert-named updates for its mobile operating system.
Android-powered devices are currently running 2.2 (Froyo) or 2.3 (Gingerbread), and at last week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Motorola unveiled the Xoom tablet, the first device to run the major update, Android 3.0 (Honeycomb), optimized for larger-screen tablet use.
Cold War
There are now reports that the next release, 2.4, will either be called Ice Cream or Ice Cream Sandwich. But however they are labeled, future Android updates will have their work cut out in competing with Apple's iOS, which powers the iPhone and iPad. The iPhone 4 is currently distributed by AT&T and soon by Verizon Wireless, the largest U.S. wireless carriers.
If Android 2.4 arrives this summer, it will compete with the anticipated iPhone 5, which will pack the latest hardware and software from Apple's labs at Cupertino, Calif.
"The iPhone 5 will come out in June, at the same time 2.4 will become common," said technology consultant Ron Enderle. "The stakes are high. They're going to have to up their marketing game."
U.K.-based gadget news site Pocket Lint, citing "multiple sources familiar with the matter," reported Jan. 10 that Google will debut 2.4, code-named Ice Cream, this summer at its IO conference in May, with a June/July release date.
In a brief interview Wednesday, Google spokesperson Randall Sarafa couldn't tell us much about future Android updates. "We haven't set a timetable," he said, also declining to comment on the Verizon iPhone.
The latest data from Nielson shows Android and iOS almost neck-and-neck in the race for smartphone dominance in the U.S., with Apple ahead by a nose at 28.6 percent, compared to Android's 25.8, based on data from June through November.
Close behind is Research In Motion's BlackBerry, at 26.1, although Android is leading with new purchasers, 40 percent of whom chose Android during that period, compared with 27 percent for Apple and 19 percent for BlackBerry.
Apple's share is more impressive since its operating system runs on only one smartphone and currently one U.S. carrier, compared to the roster of manufacturers offering Android devices on all major carriers. That's also a marketing advantage for Apple.
"Google has the problem of too many products and not enough focus on any one of them, while Apple has the advantage of focusing on one device," said Enderle. "The customer gets confused with the Android product line."
Honeycomb vs iPad 2
Another Google-Apple matchup will play out in the next few months as Motorola's Xoom and other tablets running Honeycomb face off against the second-generation iPad, which could be announced as soon as next month for spring release.
Android 3.0 is the first version to require dual-core functionality, allowing the device to perform multiple instructions at the same time, meaning it cannot be used as an upgrade for existing single-core devices.
"The expectation is that Apple should be able to have a multi-core solution in place in time for iPad 2," Enderle said. "But microprocessors aren't their core business, so there is a possibility they could miss this."
Sarafa said devices running Android 3.0 will roll out on additional devices according to the timetables of manufacturers. "Everything you see in Honeycomb is definitely the future of Android," he said.
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