Android 4.0 to be open source

Google has confirmed that its latest version of the Android mobile operating system (OS), also dubbed Ice Cream Sandwich, will be made open source once the Galaxy Nexus ships, ZDNet Asia reports.

Going open source means manufacturers will be able to put Android 4.0 into their own devices and cut their own read-only memory for existing products.

According to Thinq, previously, Google had made the source code for its Android operating system available to all under the Android Open Source Project, or AOSP.

The release of Android 3.0 Honeycomb - the version aimed specifically at tablets - marked a period where Android became closed source.

While previous versions are still available, Google has repeatedly refused to release the source code for Android 3.0 - despite promising to do so when the software reached version 3.1.

PCMag says Android chief Andy Rubin revealed earlier this year that Google did not want to risk having developers create Honeycomb apps for phones that would produce "a really bad user experience”.

However, with Android 4.0, which basically combines the best of the operating system's phone and tablet functionalities, Google is gearing up to release the source code.

"We plan to release the source for the recently-announced Ice Cream Sandwich soon, once it's available on devices," says Google engineer Dan Morrill. The first smartphone to run Android 4.0 will be the Galaxy Nexus, which will make its debut next month.