Because Google's Android operating system is open-source, anyone who wants to can take it and use it for their own purposes without asking. Most hardware manufacturers do ask, so they can bundle proprietary Google apps like the Android Market with their smartphones and tablets. But hobbyist programmers have also used it to create CyanogenMod, a third-party version of Android that adds new options and is free of carrier bloatware.
Some Android device makers are already porting the new version of Android, Ice Cream Sandwich, to tablets like the Xoom and the Asus Transformer Prime. But independent developers are using CyanogenMod to unofficially bring Ice Cream Sandwich to devices that weren't going to get it to begin with ... like Amazon and Barnes & Noble's e-reader tablets, and the HP TouchPad, a webOS tablet that was put on sale for $99 last year.
None of these efforts are ready for personal use yet, but here is a preview and a summary of how things are going.
Barnes & Noble Nook Color
The Nook Color is officially supported by CyanogenMod 7, an earlier version of the custom ROM which is based on the Froyo version of Android. (Instructions for the upgrade are here; however, as with all aftermarket firmware addons, there is no guarantee that you won't lose any data or that it won't break anything.)
Cory Gunther of Android Community describes the work that's been done so far to bring CyanogenMod 9, the Ice Cream Sandwich version, to the Nook Color. He links to the thread where the ongoing progress is detailed, but notes that "this is not for the casual modder" and that not everything is working correctly yet.
HP TouchPad
The TouchPad is powered by webOS, which has far fewer apps available for it than Android. Since HP has mostly killed webOS as a project, some people bought $99 TouchPads in the hopes that they could put Android on them.
According to Lucian Armasu of Android Authority, the CyanogenMod Ice Cream Sandwich port is not fully stable yet, nor does it support the camera or video playback. Its development is ongoing, however, and a video teaser has been posted on YouTube.
Kindle Fire
Amazon's extremely popular Kindle Fire tablet quickly became a target for Android custom ROM developers. Brad Linder of Liliputing sums up some of the work that's been done to bring Ice Cream Sandwich to the Kindle Fire, a process that's still ongoing on the XDA-Developers forums. Detailed instructions for how to try it out are available, but again, are not recommended for any but the adventurous (who are willing to risk breaking their tablets).
Jared Spurbeck is an open-source software enthusiast, who uses an Android phone and an Ubuntu laptop PC. He has been writing about technology and electronics since 2008.
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