The latest version of Android, Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, or simply Android ICS introduces a bunch of new features never seen before in its prior iterations. It would be available for tablets as well as smart-phones and it is expected to hit the Indian stores in November.
#1...Font System
One of the first things you will notice while using Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich is the brand new font system, which is much more appealing than previous versions. It is known as Roboto which is specially designed for high resolution screens and brings a magazine-like feel to the whole interface.
#2...Screenshots
Finally, your Android smartphone will allow you to take screenshots without rooting the smartphone or installing any third-party apps. Just hold down the volume down key and the power button to capture the screen.
#3...Instant voice
While this is not as compelling as Siri on iPhone, unlike other versions of Android which support voice commands, Android 4.0 will not take very long to transcribe your words. Just speak it in and it instantly transforms it into text.
#4...Android Beam
This features is based on NFC (Near Field Communication) and it allows two Android smartphones to securely exchange Web pages, contacts, media or even applications. It is based on NDEF Push technology.
#5...Unified tablet and smartphone API
Unlike Android Honeycomb, Android 4.0 ICS will work on tablets as well as smartphones, making it simple for developers to create one application and have it work on various form factors. This will surely improve the number applications on Android tablets.
The new version comes with a brand new Chrome mobile Web browser. It syncs with your desktop or laptop Chrome bookmarks, it can save pages for offline reading, and it can open upto 16 tabs at the same time.
#7...Improved Camera & Facial Recognition
Android ICS has some great new camera features, a brand new camera UI, options to edit your images using multiple effects right after you click them and it captures images at a ridiculously fast speeds, probably the fastest amongst smartphones. Video recording modes have also improved along with support for a time lapse mode.
